A Dark Amish Night (10 page)

   After getting her toddler to sleep, Hannah decided to get some fresh air by hanging out wet laundry. She chided herself the whole time.
Get it together, Hannah, you are scaring your own children. These thoughts of ill will are not the plain folk way. You cannot wish harm on anyone. Not even your husband’s murderers.
That last thought made her physically sick.

   How could she help but be angry at the men who’d stolen the love of her life and now threatened her child? Not to mention they had invaded her home and she could no longer live in it alone. She looked up to see Timothy out in the field with Abe. The sight brought tears to her eyes. She was glad Timothy had finely left his room, but her once loving and happy boy now lived in fear and missed his father.
God, all I can do is ask forgiveness for this anger I have inside me, but I am not sorry for this protectiveness I have for my children. I thank you for my children, Father. Please help me keep them safe and help Quinn find these men that took Eric from me very soon.

  
Hannah finished her prayers as she hung the last of the laundry on the line to dry. It was a warm and sunny summer afternoon. Timothy would be out of school for summer break in a few days and Hannah was actually relieved that she would be able to keep him under her watchful eye. She looked out across the field past the tractor where Abe and Timothy stood. She caught a flash of movement in the woods at the edge of the tilled land. For a brief moment, a lump of fear welled up in her throat, thinking the man who had been in her house last night had returned. Then she saw him in the distance and felt his eyes on her in a now familiar protective gaze.
Quinn
.
 

   When Hannah looked again, Quinn was gone. His men must have been going over the campsite he’d found in the woods. The thought of another man with evil intentions so close to her family, waiting and watching, sent a chill down her spine. Just as the thought of Quinn being so near now made her feel safe. Two very different dangerous men threatened to tear down her world. One man intended harm and another was bent on protecting her.
Dear God, help me. I fear for my family and I don’t know what to do about the man who wants to harm us and the other man I want to love. I cannot think of either and remain the good woman I am sworn to be.   

   That evening Quinn got stuck at the office doing paperwork and catching up on reports for the county. He really needed to get back out to the farm and talk to Timothy some more, but duty called. He hoped to make it out there before Timothy went to bed. One of his deputies was parked at the house now, watching over Hannah for him. Quinn was anxious to relieve him and that perplexed him. Quinn was ever a man of duty but he did like his personal time off as well. One mistake he had made with Kathleen was always working and never taking time off to rest and be with his wife. On the rare times he was home he was too exhausted to do anything but sleep. It was a hard lesson to learn after Kathleen died. The very reason he’d come to Heaven was to slow down, enjoy his life a little, and be more appreciative of that life.

   Now with Hannah and her children in danger, Quinn was back to his old habits of working day and night. It was really too easy for him to slip back into the routine of working a case like this. It was just that somewhere along the way, this one became really personal. That thought gave him a jolt. This was just the thing he needed to avoid. Any personal entanglements were downright scary and threatened his vow to live a quiet and complication free life.

  Quinn shook himself.
Get back to work and focus. This is a routine investigation. You would have to be blind to not be attracted to Hannah, but this is not personal. It’s my job to take care of her and protect her. Nothing more…

   The buzzing of his cell phone broke Quinn from his thoughts. “Ramsey here. What can I do for you?”

   “Hey old man, you sound all ‘I’m gonna kick the crap outta somebody.’ Did I catch you at a bad time?”  It was Ollie.

   “Nah, Ollie, I just got a lot of paperwork and I’m chained to my desk at the moment. And you know me. I hate the paperwork. So what’s up?”

   “I got a lead on the tire tracks we found. Based on the wheel base and turning radius we determined the tracks were made by a 1990 to 1992 Ford F250. The tires themselves are not matching, meaning the tires were all made by different manufactures. Also, the truck is a four-wheel drive. I am running a check now on all these types of trucks registered in and around your county now. If I come up empty handed I’ll run it statewide.”

   “Thanks, Ollie. This is at least a starting point, makes me feel like we now have something to look for.”

   “No problem. I’m heading home now and I’ll fax over the reports to ya’ in the morning, Okay?”

   “Sure thing night, Ollie.”

   Quinn no sooner hung up the phone then a call came over his radio. “Hey, Boss, you read me?”

    “Yeah, Porter, I read you. What’s wrong? Are the Hershbergers good? Something happening out there? You need back up?” Quinn struggled a little to keep the anxiety out of his voice.

   “The Hershbergers are fine, but we have a small problem. The married couple that’s staying with them just left. Seems they had a death in the family, and they have to head home. The young man said he doesn’t think they’ll be back tonight and maybe not for a few days. He said he would get in touch with Bishop Miller and get somebody else out here, but he’s not sure when that will be.” 

   Quinn looked out the office window. The moon and stars were already shining brightly in the darkened sky.
Shoot, it’s already too late to try and find someplace else for Hannah and the kids to stay tonight.

   “Alright, Porter, you sit tight. I’m on my way to relieve you now.”

   “Okay, Boss, over and out.”

   When Quinn got to the farm house, his deputy was making rounds around the perimeter with his flashlight. Hannah sat on the front porch steps. After he got a brief report from Porter, he joined Hannah on the porch.

   “I’m sorry I didn’t get out here sooner tonight, Hannah. I had to file some reports that couldn’t wait. I know I promised to talk to Timothy. I hope you’ll forgive me.”

   “There’s nothing to forgive. Your deputy told me you had some work to get done, but we need to talk to Timothy soon. I’m worried about him, Quinn. He’s not the same little boy he was before… Well, before his father passed. I know Eric’s death weighs heavily on him, but it’s more than that. It’s like he’s terrified. He knows something, I’m certain of it. He just won’t tell me.”  Hannah covered her face with her hands and began to sob softly. “I’m so sorry, Quinn, I just feel so helpless to protect my own son. I don’t know where I would be without you right now.”

   Quinn slid down the porch step and wrapped his arms around Hannah’s shoulders as she continued to cry. “Hannah, you go ahead and cry. I’m right here and I’m not leaving until I know you and Timothy and Ruth Anne are one hundred percent safe.” 

   Hannah laid her head on Quinn’s chest. She knew this was wrong on so many levels, but right now she just didn’t care. She needed someone just to hold her and help her carry this awful burden of dealing with the loss of her husband and finding herself a single parent all in one fell swoop. Somehow she’d come to trust Quinn, and it just felt right that he should comfort her now at her weakest and lowest point.

   “It’s just that Eric and Timothy were so close. If Eric were here, Timothy would have no problem telling his father what’s bothering him. I feel like I’ve let both Timothy and Eric down. I can’t manage the farm alone and that means I have to either submit to an arranged marriage or take my children from the only home they’ve ever known. Oh, how can I do this? I’m so scared. So afraid I’m going to mess my children up for life.”

   “Hannah, you’re the best mother I’ve ever known. You’re loving and kind and work like mad taking care of your kids. And what’s this about an arranged marriage? Surely you must be joking?”

   “Bishop Miller and the deacons want me to keep the farm. They wanted to help me find a good plain folk man to marry and stay on the farm with, but its okay now, we’ve worked it out. They’ve agreed to help me start a bakery in town and I’ve agreed to not sell the farm. They are still hoping for me to marry again and move back out here, though. I told them that I’m still in love with Eric and there’s no way I can possibly consider ever marrying again.”

   “You must be missing Eric awful bad. Why don’t you tell me a little about him? How did you two meet?” Quinn wanted to keep Hannah in his arms as long as possible. She stirred up longings and a sense of protectiveness in him, but he lied to himself. 
This is a good opportunity for me to learn more about Eric Hershberger. It’s not personal. It’s about the investigation.

  
“Eric was five years older than me. When we were growing up I know he thought of me as a little pest, but he was always kind. I knew I loved him when I was eight and he was thirteen. It was the last day of school and Teacher let us have a picnic under the trees at the school house. This was Eric’s last day as a school boy. He’d just completed the eighth grade. Peter Yoder kept running by me and pulling at my hair while Teacher’s back was turned. I finally had enough and I shoved at Peter when he got close to me and he pushed me to the ground. Eric saw him do it and ran to my defense. He was like an angel to me then. He shoved Peter back and told him to leave me alone. Told him this was not how the plain folk behaved and shamed Peter in front of his friends. After Peter ran off Eric helped me up and wiped away my tears. I didn’t see much of Eric after that except at Sunday meetings, but I knew that someday I must marry him.” Hannah sighed.  She knew she should pull away from Quinn’s arms she just didn’t have the strength to do it right now. She stayed in his embrace and told him more about Eric.

    Eric was engaged to Margaret Miller back then. She was Bishop Miller’s daughter. Margaret took off, though, right before she and Eric were to get married. No one knows where she went. I suspect that the Bishop has kept some kind of contact with her over the years, but when a person runs away from the community they are essentially shunned by everyone. When I finished school, I did everything I could to spend time with Eric and eventually he started to court me. The way he told it was that I courted him first and I guess he was right. I courted him first.”

   “It sounds like you must’ve loved him your whole life. Most people live a whole lifetime and never have even a moment of that kind of love.” Quinn felt overcome with jealousy. Not for the love that Hannah had shared with Eric, but for the woman who had once vowed to love him forever, the one who cheated on him.

   “Tell me about her, Quinn.”

   “Tell you about who?”

   “Your wife, I heard that you left your wife when you came here. Are you divorced?” Hannah could not even fathom divorce. It happened sometimes in the community, but only very rarely. Hannah had never known anyone who’d been divorced.

   “No, I’m not divorced. My wife is dead.” Quinn whispered the last part afraid he might choke on the words.

   “Oh, Quinn, I am so very sorry. How long has it been since she passed?” Hannah tilted her head up to look into Quinn’s face. She understood all too well the sorrow she could now see in Quinn’s eyes. It was as if Quinn were now a kindred soul. Someone who understood her own pain and grief as well as she did.

   “It’s been five years now and I still think about her every single day.”

   “Do you want to talk about it?”

   Quinn’s knee jerk reaction was to cut this conversation off right now, but something inside him burst like a dam and the words began to flow from him like a river. 

   “I met Kathleen at a bar. She was just so beautiful. I asked her to dance and we hit it off right away. We dated for six months after that. I couldn’t imagine my life without her. So we got married. I had just reached Special Agent status with the bureau and I was ready to be married. So I thought. I knew my job would be demanding. I thought Kathleen knew that too. I was gone for days at time. Kathleen started going out at night with her friends and she met someone. She’d been gone a week before I realized she’d left me. That was my fault. I took for granted that she would always be waiting for me. I never worried about her or checked in on her. She finally gave up on me because I was never there.”

   “So she left you? And then she died?”

   Quinn took a deep breath and continued to talk. It was almost like opening a door to a closely guarded part of his soul.

   “After Kathleen had been gone a few weeks I was missing her real bad. I tracked her down through some of her friends and begged her to come home. I told her I blamed myself for her affair and that if she just gave me one more chance I’d be a better husband and take fewer assignments. I promised to be home more so we could start a family. She told me she still loved me and was willing to come home. I was overjoyed. We made plans for her to come home the next day.

   “Late that night Ollie showed up on my doorstep. He’d been called in to help with forensics on a murder-suicide. He told me it was Kathleen. Her lover shot her and then turned the gun on himself. She must’ve have told him she was coming back to me. It was my fault she had an affair and it’s my fault she’s dead.” Quinn sighed and rested his chin on the top of Hannah’s head.