A Perfect Square

Chapter 20




DEBORAH WAS HELPING ESTHER in Tobias’ grossdaddi’s house on Monday morning. Shane had finally allowed them to remove the crime scene tape and begin cleaning it.

“This woodwork is beautiful.” Deborah ran her hand over a cabinet face.

“Tobias told me that their grossdaddi made all the cabinetry himself.”

“It’s still in very gut condition.”

They had already wiped down all the cabinetry and placed the new shelf paper in the drawers and on the lower shelves. “Do you want it on the upper shelves as well?”

“I know no one can see them, but I like the idea of it being there. Is that silly?”

“Not at all, and you bought plenty. Might as well use it.”

“Exactly, plus it’s easier to clean a shelf that has been lined.” Esther pulled a table chair over to the kitchen counters and stood on it. The extra two feet allowed her to reach the top shelf, given her height. “If you’ll cut the lengths, I’ll lay them down.”

“Fair enough. We should be done in here before Leah and Joshua wake from their naps.”

“I can’t believe they still rest in the mornings.”

“Well, you may not be so lucky with your next boppli. The twins were not sleepers. I think they took naps until they were six months old. After that, I was lucky to have the evening hours to myself.”

“You’re the second person to mention another baby to me in the last week.” Esther accepted the long strip of blue paper and stretched to place it on the top shelf. “How do I know I’ll have more babies though? Maybe after all this time I won’t be able to.”

“Not likely that your body has forgotten how.”

“I suppose. It seems so odd though. It’s been me and Leah for so long now that I don’t know what to think about the idea. When Tobias mentioned it the other day, I felt all disoriented, but at the same time excited.” Esther put her hands on her hips and studied the cabinets. “Looks gut.”

Climbing down, she smiled at Deborah. “I suppose it will all work out.”

“Of course it will. It’s like I tell Mary. God will bring babies when he’s ready for them and not before.” Deborah pulled Esther into a hug.

“Danki. You’re a gut friend. How about we go and see what needs to be done to the sitting room?”

They walked into the room, walked in front of the large window that looked out over the yard and the dirt road leading off the property, when they both saw it, or rather, them.

Esther drew in a sharp breath and pulled herself up straighter.

“What do you suppose it’s about?” Deborah whispered.

“I don’t know, but it can’t be good if there’re three cars of them.”

They walked outside and reached the patrol cars the same time as Tobias, who had come in from the fields. Taylor, Gavin, Black — they were all there, and more.

“Tobias, Esther, Deborah.” Taylor was the one to step forward and hand a folded sheet of paper to Tobias. “This gives us the right to search the premises again. It’s been approved by Judge Stearns.”

“I don’t understand.” Tobias quickly scanned the document. “What is it exactly that you’re looking for?”

Shane had been speaking to Gavin and several other officers who now fanned out — some moving toward the pond, others going in the direction of the barns.

“What is this about?” Esther asked.

Taylor cleared his throat. “Officer Black is going to need to ask you some questions, Tobias. You have a right to have an attorney present.”

“I don’t have an attorney. I didn’t know that I needed one.”

Shane stepped forward. “Are you waiving your right to legal counsel?”

Tobias stared down at the paper again, began reading from the top.

“Why are you here, Shane?” Deborah slipped her arm around Esther. The way she had begun shaking, there was a possibility this new blow might be too much. Certainly there was a limited amount of shock a body could take.

Instead of answering, Shane showed them an eight-by-ten photo he was holding. It was a picture of a teenage Englisch girl. She had long auburn hair, a smattering of freckles across the tops of her cheeks, and the sweet smile she sported revealed a mouth full of braces.

“Do you know her? Have any of you seen her?”

“No,” Deborah said.

Esther shook her head, her gaze flying to Tobias.

“I have never seen this girl. Now why are your men on my land?”

“Because she’s missing, Tobias. She’s been missing for two weeks, and we have reason to believe that Reuben had something to do with it.”

Tobias’ face flushed blood red. “You don’t mean that.”

“I do mean it, and we will search this property.”

“To find what?”

“To look for her body, man. What do you think?” Shane stepped closer then, and his next words pulled the breath out of Deborah’s lungs. “And if we find her, it’s going to be harder for you to explain away. One girl you might not have noticed. One girl you might have an alibi for. But two? That’s not very likely. Two you’d have a harder time explaining. Two, he’d probably need an accomplice, someone who helped or knew what was going on or at least covered for him.”

“I am a peaceful man.” Tobias was within an inch of Shane’s face now. “But if you say one more word to me, if you make one more false accusation, I will take my fist, and I will put it — “

“Tobias!” Esther’s scream split the morning. She pulled herself away, out of Deborah’s grasp, and threw herself into Tobias’ arms. “Come with me. Come inside. Let Shane’s men look for what they must. Then they’ll go. They will find nothing, and then they will go.”

She linked her hand with his and pulled him toward the house, and though his face had turned a deep red, he went.

Deborah followed them as Shane turned back toward the pond.

Why would they think Tobias or Reuben had anything to do with this missing girl?

How could they think such a thing? Certainly Tobias had nothing to do with the first one, and now … now there was a second? It seemed once doubt had been cast on a person’s character, then it was too easy to make the next connection.

She thought of the conversation that Esther had suffered through with Mrs. Drisban in the General Store. The one where the woman had given her a Christian pamphlet — as if Amish folk weren’t Christians. On telling her about it, Esther’s cheeks had paled, and she’d pulled the pamphlet out of her bag like it was a hideous thing.

Deborah had been curious though.

Drisban and Shane had known Reuben, Esther, and Tobias all their lives. How could they doubt them so? Was it that they believed they’d changed? Or was it that they believed all men were capable of such evil?

It wasn’t like Shane Black to jump to conclusions without some evidence — the blood he had found in the house didn’t prove anything in Deborah’s opinion. Yes, there were questions. Yes, Reuben should answer them if he could, but still he was not guilty. What else had Shane found? Tobias said they’d searched the woods with dogs before the arraignment. Why?

Something else was at work here, and Deborah was ready to find out what it was.

Since the shop was closed on Mondays, Callie used the day to place stock orders, catch up on paperwork, and run errands. Today’s errands were going to take her by the Grossdaddi House on the edge of town. First, though, she stopped at The Kaffi Shop.

“I thought Amish people kept their parents at home with them.”

“Most do,” Margie agreed, handing Callie a to-go cup of coffee with a shot of espresso, all topped off with whipped cream. Margie’s bright red hair was cut in a short ‘do that looked great, and Callie wondered for a minute about her decision to grow her own hair out. “I think with Mr. Bontrager the problems were twofold. The son sold his farm and bought a place here in town above the CPA office where he works.”

“How does an Amish person work in a CPA office. I mean — “ Callie stopped, not sure how to continue.

“I know what you mean. It’s the schooling thing, but many times they do have a talent for professions that traditionally require more education. For instance, the younger Bontrager — I don’t remember his name now — was always very good with numbers. He had a real gift. No doubt he would have gone to one of the big schools with a scholarship if he’d been an Englischer.”

“But because he’s Amish he didn’t.”

“Right. He tried a few different jobs and finally answered an ad at the CPA office, just as an errand boy at first. He was older even then — too old to be an errand boy.” Margie swiped a dish towel across the already clean counter.

“So what happened?” Callie sipped her coffee and reached into her to-go bag to pinch off a corner of her cranberry muffin.

“Didn’t take long for the owner to realize his gift for numbers. They kept promoting him, until now he handles almost as much work as the CPA.”

“But he’s not a CPA.”

“No. He makes a good living though, and he seems satisfied with that. Married late and they had no children. But living in town, there wasn’t really a good place for his father to live once he couldn’t stay alone. The Grossdaddi House seemed like the best place when you add in the complication of Mr. Bontrager’s dementia.”

“How do you know so much about everyone?” Callie smiled and folded her to-go sack shut. “It’s not as if you’re a gossip. Yet, you seem to know everyone’s history.”

“It’s a small town, Callie. Live here long enough, and you’ll know as much as I do.” Margie walked around the counter and squatted down, gave Max a good rub behind the ears. Then she stood and pushed a box of cookies into Callie’s hands. “These are oatmeal raisin. The old folks like them. Mind taking them out there for me?”

“Not at all.”

“And next time you come by, you can tell me what this is all about.”

“I’d love to. In fact, I might have some more questions for you. Want to grab a bite to eat next Monday evening?”

“It’s a date. Hubby has a late meeting, so I was on my own anyway.”

Callie felt more optimistic as she climbed into her car than she had in the past week. Finally, it seemed, things were starting to come together.