A Dark Amish Night (3 page)

   Hannah was in the side yard hanging out wet laundry when Quinn pulled up. Her long blonde hair had come loose from her prayer cap and whipped around her slender form in the strong spring winds and Quinn was struck by what a lovely woman Hannah was. The fact that she was an awesome cook as well made for a deadly combination for Quinn. He had to remind himself that not only was Hannah a grieving widow, she was Amish, and clearly not for him.  Even if that weren’t enough, Quinn had sworn off any complications of the female kind many months ago, so if Hannah was safe with any man, it was him as far as Quinn was concerned.

   Hannah turned and waved at Quinn as he exited the car. She was glad to see someone for change. Quinn brought no social pressures with him and she hoped he would have some answers as to how Eric could have come to such an end. Everyone kept calling Eric’s death an accident but Hannah had a gut feeling there was more to it. It was unbearable to think of anything more sinister happening, but still there was that nagging thought in the back of her head. Hopefully Quinn could put her fears to rest and she could move on as best she could for the sake of Ruth Anne and Timothy.

   “Sheriff Ramsey, I’m happy to see you. Won’t you come inside and I’ll fix you a cup of coffee, and I have some apple strudel fresh out of the oven.”

   “I’d like that very much, Hannah. I need to ask you a few questions anyway.”

   “Of course, come on in.” Hannah left her clothes to finish drying on the line and led Quinn into the house.

   Timothy watched his mother and the sheriff from the inside of the barn. He quietly closed the barn door and looked for a place to hide. He did not want to talk to the Sheriff again. He’d told the man all he was going to tell. Timothy was the man of the house now and he would do everything he could to protect his mother and sister. He owed his father that much. And protecting them from the prying questions of the Sheriff was a priority.  It was the Amish way.

   Quinn sat across the finely crafted oak table from Hannah. The old farmhouse was neat as a pin and filled with handsome handmade furniture. “Eric must have been quite good with wood. I must say your furniture is beautiful.”

   “Yes, Eric learned the craft from his father. Some of the older pieces we have were made by Eric and his father.”

   Finishing off his strudel Quinn thought again of what an awesome cook Hannah was. “You can add a batch of that strudel to my order for this week.”

   “Great, I’ll do that. I need to get out this week anyway. I have plans to sell the farm and move into town as soon as possible. I’d like to start my own bakery. Of course I need to talk to my Bishop and the church deacons first. If Eric or I had any family nearby I would be expected to turn to them, but as it is I’ve only a few distant cousins living up north.”

   “I must say that I’m relieved to hear that you’ll be moving closer to town. It must feel like you’re completely isolated out here.”

   “No, I’ll miss the solitude, but I can’t run a farm and raise two children by myself. I feel like I’m giving up on Eric and his dreams, but I also feel selfish for wanting to stay out here. I have to find a way to support my children.”

  “I understand. I’ll ask around town to see if anyone has a place for rent and if you go see Ida Mae at the Sunland Realty I’m sure she could find you a buyer for the farm. Lots of folks are moving into the area searching for a place with land. So selling shouldn’t be a problem.

   “Oh, Sheriff, I’d appreciate the help very much, but the community will help us.”

   “Hannah, I would appreciate it very much if you would call me Quinn, okay? I have some questions for you about the night Eric went into town. Do you feel up to talking about it?”

   Quinn pulled out a small note pad and Hannah realized how at ease she felt with Quinn. She’d never been alone with any other English man before, but instead of feeling uncomfortable she felt at peace. “Yes, I think I’m ready.”

   With a nod of his head Quinn went over his notes. “Can you tell me what exactly Eric went into town for that night?”

   “Well, we needed some supplies mostly feed for the horses, and he was going to make some last minute deliveries of baked goods for me. But I guess he never got to make those deliveries because all the food was still in the buggy when you found him.”

   “Hmmm, what about the supplies and the horse feed?”

   “No, I guess he didn’t get those things either. Timothy said he visited with some of the menfolk in the town square and then he must’ve just headed home. Oh, but he had to have stopped by Pattie Sue’s place because the pie I made her was not in the buggy.”

   “So, did Pattie Sue order a pie?”

   “Uh, no not really, I made her the pie as a gift. She didn’t know about it, but Eric promised me he would take it to her first.”

   “I wonder if he took her the pie before or after he stopped at the town square.”

   “I’m not sure. Let me call Timothy in so you can ask him, but first I need to check on Ruth Anne.”

  “Oh, sure go right ahead.” Quinn jotted down some more notes and wondered about Timothy. He’d not seen the boy since the day he’d brought him home with his mother from the office. The boy had been withdrawn and tight lipped. Which, given the fact that he’d just lost his father, was understandable. It seemed to Quinn that the boy was putting on a brave front. For a boy so young to lose his father, it must have been incredibly hard for him.

   Hannah returned from upstairs and went to the back door where she called out for Timothy. A few moments went by and when no answer came, she called out to him in that sing song voice that all mothers use when calling their children home. More minutes passed, and Hannah called out again, this time more urgently.

   “Timothy Eric Hershberger, you answer your mother this instant.” Still no answer and Hannah started to worry. “Sheriff, I mean, Quinn, I’m going to head out to the barn to look for my son. Will you excuse me?”

    “Let me come with you.” Quinn followed Hannah out to the barn as she continued to call out for Timothy.

   Soon an hour passed with no sign of Timothy. Tears started to well up in Hannah’s eyes. “Where can he be? Doesn’t he hear us? He couldn’t have gone far. It’s not like him to go missing like this. Something has to have happened to him.” Hannah paced the inside of the barn. Quinn put a comforting arm around her.

   “Don’t worry. He’s probably just hiding out somewhere. He did just lose his father.  We’ll find him soon I’m sure of it.”

   A loud voice yelled out “Take your hands off my mother, right now!” Then Timothy appeared at the top of the ladder to the loft. He was shaking with fury.

   “Timothy, you get down here this instant. Why didn’t you answer me? I’ve been calling you for an hour.”

   “I’m not talking to him, Ma, you can’t make me.” Timothy jumped down from the loft and ran into the house, leaving his bewildered mother and Quinn in his wake.

A Dark Amish Night

Chapter Three

  Quinn said his goodbyes with a promise from Hannah that she would bring in Timothy to the office the next day, as she had to come into town anyway to talk to the Bishop and the church deacons. Hannah waved to him until his tail lights disappeared down the dirt road.

   She then went straight to Timothy’s room and knocked on the door before she went in. Her heart was broken for her son. Of all three of them she worried for her son the most. Timothy worshipped the ground his father walked on. It must have been particularly hard for him to be coping with such a loss.

   “Timothy, we have to talk. I understand you’re hurting son, but you can’t behave in such a manner. Sheriff Ramsey needs to ask you some questions and you have to answer him truthfully. He is the law, and we must obey.”

   “Even if he puts me in jail I won’t talk to him. He’s English, and the English don’t understand our ways.”

   A painful stab jabbed Hannah in the chest. Timothy was so much like his father, not only in looks but in manners and opinions. “Yes, darling, the Sheriff is English, but even your father would tell you we must obey all the laws of the land we live in, even the English ones. That means you have to answer all of his questions and the Amish way is to always be truthful and to promote peace. We’ll have to go to the Sheriff’s office in the morning and I expect you to behave like the well brought up Amish lad you are. Can you do that for me, Timothy?”

   Timothy nodded his head in compliance even though his heart was not in it. His mother could tell her son was conflicted. “So, after breakfast you’ll go out and hitch the horse to the buggy for me, right?”

   Timothy’s face brightened a little. “Yes, Ma, I can do that.”

   “There’s my good boy. Now, I need you to get ready for supper. I have some baking orders to finish before we go into to town tomorrow.”

   “Momma, do you think Papa will be proud of me if I take good care of you and Ruth Anne?’

   “Oh, yes. Your Papa will always be proud of you. Now, get ready for supper and bring your sister downstairs with you when you come, okay?” Hannah closed the bedroom door behind her and wiped at the hot tears that fell down her cheeks. She had to pull herself together. She was determined to keep her children feeling secure, and that meant they could not see her falling apart. No matter how heartbroken she was, she would carry on for her children.

   The next morning, Hannah headed into town. Her buggy was loaded down with baked goods and her two children. The fresh spring air felt good on her cheeks and lifted her spirits. Timothy was still brooding but he had agreed to talk with Quinn. Ruth Anne sang songs and played with her doll on the seat next to Hannah.

   When they got into town, it was no surprise to find Quinn waiting for them outside his office.  

   “Good morning, Hannah, and a good morning to you as well, Ruth Anne.”

   Ruth Anne giggled and laughed at Quinn as he handed her a brand new Raggedy Ann doll. “A curly red-headed doll named Ann for a curly red-headed girl named Ruth Anne.”

   “Quinn, you shouldn’t have. We are not to accept gifts from outsiders you know, but seeing as Ruth Anne is already in love I suppose we’ve no other choice.”

   Quinn didn’t miss the smirk on Timothy’s face as he gave his sister the doll. “Well, what do you say you and I take a walk, Timothy? That way we can talk like men without the women hovering. Hannah you don’t mind, do you?  What if I have him back here in say an hour?”

   Hannah wasn’t all that sure about leaving Timothy. “Well, son, what do you think? I do need to meet with the bishop and the church deacons this morning. You think you’ll be okay on your own?”

   Timothy shrugged. “I’ll be fine, Ma. Go on.”

   “Okay, then.” Timothy pulled away from his mother when she bent to kiss him on the head, but rather than be offended, Hannah smiled. “I’ll be back for you here in one hour. Quinn, I’ll see you then too.”

   Hannah loaded Ruth Anne and her new doll onto the buggy and headed for the church. She wasn’t sure what to expect from the church deacons, but was totally unprepared for what they expected from her.

   “You want me to submit to an arranged marriage? Surely you must be joking?” Hannah was indignant, and not sure if she’d understood correctly.

   “Hannah, it wouldn’t be like that. Think of your children and your farm. As it is that you have no other family that can take you in or lend you help, the church must help provide for you as a true widow of the faith. We are prepared to assist you financially and help run your farm until an appropriate suitor can be found for you, and of course you will choose the final candidate. A young woman with land such as yourself would have no problem finding a good man to care for you and your children. There would be an appropriate amount of time for you to grieve and then be properly courted of course.” Bishop Miller stood in front of Hannah as she addressed him and the church deacons.

   “So, that’s it then. As a good woman of the plain folk I should submit to an arranged marriage instead of trying to support my family on my own with a business of my own. I don’t understand if the church wants to help support me financially then why won’t you help me start my own bakery? I suppose that if I were past childbearing years like Pattie Sue, we wouldn’t be having this ludicrous conversation.” This whole situation was becoming surreal to Hannah.

   Her bold statement caused some rumblings from the church deacons. Bishop Miller left Hannah standing where she was and went to the circle of deacons to confer with them.

   Hannah shifted her weight with Ruth Anne in her arms fast asleep.
Dear Lord, Please intervene here. I cannot even bear the thought of living with another man right now. Don’t let this stand. Please, just don’t.