Secrets in the Grave (Serenity's Plain Secrets Book 3) (20 page)

“You look a little tired yourself. Try to get some rest,” Anna said, before she turned away heading towards Daniel’s Jeep. He smiled at me and joined his mother.

When I was alone with the bishop, he said, “What are your thoughts?”

I looked at the older man, more confused than ever.

“Fannie’s death wasn’t completely natural. The official report won’t be out for a few days, but it’s safe to say that she ingested a combination of ingredients that either caused her to bleed to death or exacerbated the event.”

“What about Wilma Gingerich? Did she have anything new to add regarding my sister’s death?” He asked the question slowly.

The breeze warmed as more of the clouds pushed to the east. I held my face into the soft wind and recalled my visit with Wilma. Even with the rise in temperature, I shivered.

“Nothing that can be used to indicate foul play. I looked over Robyn’s medical records from when she was admitted to the hospital and the autopsy report. Everything points to natural death from childbirth complications.”

The bishop nodded. He shifted on his feet to leave when he paused. His expression was guarded, thoughtful even. “I consider myself to be an honest and open minded man. I try to see the good in people, over the bad, always hoping that others are living same God fearing life that I am. I must admit, my sister’s death has hounded me for a decade. I can’t put my finger on it, something is not right to me.” He shrugged. “Perhaps it’s because Jonas’ own mother perished in childbirth when Jonas and Ada Mae were teenagers.”

“Did both the mother and baby die?”

“Yes, it was Violet Peachey’s ninth child. The pregnancy was hard on her. It was a high risk for a woman of her age and fragile state to have another. A mistake that they all regretted later on,” Bishop Esch said.

“Did she die in the home?” I asked, holding my breath.

“Why yes. It was Jonas and Ada Mae who cared for her. Their skills weren’t enough to save their own mother.”

“That is odd,” I muttered.

“Yes, it is,” the bishop said. He stared at me and then walked away.

I felt the thrumming of my heart as I imagined Jonas seeing both his mother and wife die in the birthing bed.

What were the chances of them both being natural deaths? I didn’t like the direction my mind was going.

I glanced at the sun’s low position in the western sky and made a quick decision.

I wouldn’t be able to enjoy the evening with Daniel or work up the nerve to go back to the drug store to buy a pregnancy test until I visited one more person today.

I only hoped she’d talk to me.

20

SERENITY

I
brought the tea cup to my mouth pretending to sip it. When I glanced over the rim, Hannah was fidgeting with her fingers in her lap, not touching her own cup.

Damn, I’m getting way too paranoid
. I set my cup on the small table beside my chair. For once, I’d gotten a break. Irene Kuhns was in town, signing the release papers for Fannie’s body. The burial was planned for the following afternoon. The Amish didn’t waste time getting their dead into the ground.

“I’m sorry to ask you questions during such a difficult time.” I searched Hannah’s face, which was pale and tired. “Were you and Fannie close?”

Hannah sniffed, looking away. When she faced me again, her eyes had a slightly hard edge that took me by surprise. “This probably sounds awful, but no. We weren’t close at all. She always bossed me around, making me do her chores. She was kind of lazy that way.” Hannah blew out a long breath. “I feel terrible even thinking ill thoughts about her now after what’s happened.”

I studied Hannah’s face. She was prettier than her sister. Her hair had a reddish tint and her large, hazel eyes were speckled with brown dots. Her nose was small and straight and her cheekbones high enough to be slightly exotic for an Amish girl. I could see Arlo Thomas going after her, and Eli Bender, too.

“It’s not your fault. Sometimes, siblings don’t get along. It happens.” I tapped my finger on the table, debating how to proceed. She was eighteen, not a girl, but without any makeup and with the primly white cap, she seemed younger. “When did you find out about your sister’s pregnancy?”

Hannah swallowed and her face reddened, but she didn’t look away. “She’d been throwing up in the mornings and her belly was growing plumper. She never told me, but I suspected. Then when she began drinking the peppermint tea that Ada Mae brought her, I knew it for sure.” She tilted her head, smirking, showing me how clever she thought she was. “All the pregnant women drink it to soothe their bellies.”

“Did you notice your sister drinking any other kind of tea—perhaps something Jonas brought her?” I chanced.

Hannah scrunched up her mouth. “None that I can recall. Mr. Peachey stopped by with herbs for Momma each week. He would talk to Fannie, show attention to her.” Hannah rolled her eyes. “That made Fannie’s head get all big.”

“Oh, really—why’s that?”

Hannah shrugged. “Jonas Peachey is old, but he’s a good looking man. He’s still of marrying age.” She glanced around, wide-eyed. Even though we were alone in the nearly dark house, she still feared being overheard. Only one lantern light glowed from above the kitchen table in the adjoining room.
The darkness made me uncomfortable, but didn’t seem to bother Hannah. “I think Fannie was a little sweet on him.”

Interesting. I filed the information away.

“Was your sister secretly seeing someone?” I lifted my shoulders apologetically. “I mean, we all know she was pregnant.”

Hannah’s face scrunched as if pained. From experience, I didn’t think she was attempting to come up with a lie. The young woman seemed honest to a fault.

“I wondered that myself, but she never told me if she was seeing someone.” She shrugged. “It’s not unusual for secret courtships to go on. It’s hard for us. Once we commit to courting, it’s kind of a done deal. Sometimes teens will explore their possibilities in secret before announcing a firm courtship. It can save a lot of trouble later on.”

I nodded slowly, understanding.

“What about you? Has someone caught your eye?” I ventured.

Hannah smiled, blushed, and then frowned. The passing of emotions over her face was startling to witness.

Her voice lowered to a whisper. “There’s a boy I fancy a lot. But I think I messed it up.”

A lump formed in my throat and my heart went out to the young woman sitting in front of me.

“Nothing is ever as bad as it seems,” I offered.

“Oh, this is. I’ve ruined my life.” Her eyes teared up. She pulled her apron up to dab at them.

I could feel her desperation. I reached over and grasped her hand. “Don’t say that. There’s always hope.”

Hannah’s wet eyes met mine and her tears began to fall. She stood up, jerking her hand away.

“All my hope is gone!” she cried, fleeing the room, her footsteps striking the wooden steps of the staircase.

I leaned back, exhaling.

Counseling wasn’t my strong suit, but the girl needed help. I was going to get it for her before some kind of harm befell her, either from outside forces or from herself. The problem was, how to go about it? She was Amish. There was almost no way to get her the help she needed without the entire community finding out—including Eli.

I ran my hand through my hair, tugging on my ponytail. What a rotten turn of events for Hannah.

I would tell Daniel about the pregnancy test I’d seen Hannah buy and about what Arlo Thomas had said about the Amish girl. They were his people. He’d know how to handle it.

I stood and stretched, anxious to get out of the lonely, dark house.

When my cell phone vibrated in my pocket, I pulled it out, looking at the number.

Black Willow, Ohio. With my heart racing, I brought the phone to ear.

“Hello?”

“
Hullo
?”

“Who’s this?” I asked.

“It’s Marissa. Can you come talk to me?”

A picture of the mentally handicapped Amish girl came to mind. I’d given my business card to Wilma. Marissa must have gotten a hold of it.

“Uh, sure, but you’re in another state. Why don’t you tell me what’s on your mind? We can talk on the phone,” I suggested.

There was static and then a loud sigh. “I don’t know. I’m not sure that’s a good idea. I have something to tell you—to tell you about Jonas,” Marissa sang into the phone.

“Okay, I’ll come to you. Can you tell me what it’s about?”

“Tell you about Jonas…tell you about Jonas…about Jonas.”

Marissa’s singing stopped and the phone went dead.

I groaned, sprinting for the doorway.

So much for a relaxing evening.

21

SERENITY

I
gazed out the window at the flat farmland softly illuminated by the full moon. Occasionally, a farmhouse and barns would appear, shadowed and eerie looking. Statistics showed more crimes were committed in urban areas, but there was something secretive about the lonely countryside that put me on edge more than the city centers I’d worked in. At least in Indianapolis, I knew what I was dealing with. Out here, I was constantly being surprised.

“I still don’t see why we couldn’t have left in the morning,” Daniel remarked.

I took another sip of the milkshake he’d bought me at the last rest stop. It was chocolate-banana, my favorite. Glancing over at his profile, I smiled. He really was accommodating.

“If you had heard Marissa on the phone, you’d be in a hurry to get there too,” I pointed out.

Daniel ran his hand through his hair. “If she’s not in any danger, I don’t agree. She’s a simpleton. You can’t trust what she says to be factual anyway.”

I shook my head. “I disagree. Marissa is functional. She might be at the intellectual level of a child, but she’s capable of explaining herself.” I took a shuttering breath. “She has a secret about Jonas and I want to know what it is.”

“Even if she does, will her testimony be admissible in court?”

I took a measured breath. “It’s hard to say. I’m hoping that whatever she has to say opens up new channels to investigate Jonas Peachy. Marissa might just have enough information to break the case wide open, without having to involve her too much in the details.”

Daniel’s voice dropped. “Why is it so important for you to nail this guy to the wall? Has it ever occurred to you that maybe he’s innocent? We don’t even know for sure what happened to Fannie.”

I stared at Daniel, taking in his strong nose and full lips. Whenever I stared too long, I experienced school-girl tingles, and this time was no different. I shook off the feeling.

“There’s something up with him. I can’t put my finger on it, but my gut is telling me that he’s crooked.” I turned in the seat to face Daniel. “Do the Amish commit suicide? I remember Rachel Yoder stepped in front of a train because of her feelings of guilt about Tony Manning’s beating, but does that sort of thing happen often?”

Daniel shook his head. “No. They believe suicide is the ultimate sin. The Lord will forgive for grievous acts, but once you’ve killed yourself, you can’t ask forgiveness. Honestly, Rachel Yoder is the only person I know of who did themselves in intentionally.”

“That’s what makes Fannie’s case so strange,” I exclaimed. “The herbs she ingested either killed her outright or worsened
a situation arising from complications of the pregnancy. Either way, she consumed ingredients that were highly dangerous. Even if she was desperate, it seems an odd way for a young woman to take her life.”

“Who’s to say? Maybe she simply mixed some herbs together in the hopes of having an abortion and it killed her too,” Daniel suggested.

“I checked with Bobby on this. Tansy ragwort and pennyroyal aren’t the types of herbs that common people have laying around in their kitchens.”

“We’re talking about the Amish, remember. There are many uses for herbs. I distinctly remember Ma having a variety of dried plants hanging from the rafters in the storeroom when I was growing up. You’ve seen firsthand how important herbal remedies are to the Plain people. Look how Ada Mae was able to save Christina and her friend.”

I sank down into the seat, thinking. It wasn’t just plants on my mind.

“What about the supernatural healings? Do you really believe that your friend Lester was miraculously healed by your mother or that Mervin’s leg recovered because of some kind of Amish magic?”

Daniel was silent a moment, then chuckled. “Why is it so difficult for you to believe in things you can’t see? That’s what faith is, Serenity. Trusting in something because you feel it on the inside, not because you see it in front of your face.”

I rolled my eyes, but didn’t immediately say anything. I had seen Mervin’s healing. It was the spooky feeling that rolled over me when Jonas had been praying that was my undoing.

“I can’t deny that
something
happened in that room with Mervin. That’s what scares me,” I admitted.

Daniel reached over and cupped my hand. He smiled. “The sooner you accept that not everything is explainable, the happier you’ll be.”

I took a breath. “This case is different than others I’ve worked on, especially Naomi’s. Usually, I have a clear idea about what’s going on. This time I don’t. It’s as if the entire case is fogged over.”

Daniel released my hand and turned into Wilma Gingerich’s driveway. It was still the same little white house beside the road, surrounded by yellow flowers, but in the shadows of night, it wasn’t as welcoming.

Daniel cut the engine off and turned to me. “It’s almost nine o’clock. That’s really too late to call on Wilma uninvited.”

“I know.” I sighed. “But I have no choice. That girl needs my help. That’s one thing I am sure of,” I said.

Without argument, Daniel stepped out of the Jeep. I followed suit. I found myself standing on the front porch with my arms crossed. The nighttime air was chilly and still.

Daniel rapped on the door. Only a faint light shone from a window on the side of the house. I waited, holding my breath that we hadn’t wasted a three hour drive.

The door opened a crack and Wilma peeked out. She wasn’t wearing the usual cap. Her long gray hair was coiled onto her head. The wrinkles in her face deepened when she saw me.