Safe Hearts (Amish Safe House, Book 3) Read online

  Safe Hearts (Amish Safe House, Book 3)

  Copyright © 2015 by Ruth Hartzler

  All Rights Reserved

  Smashwords Edition.

  Smashwords License Notes.

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be resold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should purchase your own copy from your favorite ebook retailer. Thank you for respecting the author’s hard work.

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  Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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  This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to any person, living or dead, is purely coincidental. The personal names have been invented by the author, and any likeness to the name of any person, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

  This book may contain references to specific commercial products, process or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, specific brand-name products and/or trade names of products, which are trademarks or registered trademarks and/or trade names, and these are property of their respective owners. Ruth Hartzler or her associates, have no association with any specific commercial products, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, specific brand-name products and / or trade names of products.

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  (Isaiah 12: 1 - 6.)

  You will say in that day: “I will give thanks to you, O Lord, for though you were angry with me, your anger turned away, that you might comfort me. “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.” With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. And you will say in that day: “Give thanks to the Lord, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the peoples, proclaim that his name is exalted. “Sing praises to the Lord, for he has done gloriously; let this be made known in all the earth.

  (1 Corinthians 2: 1 - 16.)

  And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.

  Table of Contents.

  Chapter 1.

  Chapter 2.

  Chapter 3.

  Chapter 4.

  Chapter 5.

  Chapter 6.

  Chapter 7.

  Chapter 8.

  Chapter 9.

  Chapter 10.

  Chapter 11.

  Chapter 12.

  Chapter 13.

  Chapter 14.

  Chapter 15.

  Connect with Ruth Hartzler.

  Next Book in this Series.

  Other books by Ruth Hartzler.

  About Ruth Hartzler.

  Proverbs 14:26.

  In the fear of the Lord one has strong confidence, and his children will have a refuge.

  Chapter 1.

  Kate watched as a flock of birds, flying in formation, disappeared into the clouds. She smiled and looked back at the garden. The flowers were growing beautifully, and the crops were coming on nicely. She tipped over the watering can and drenched the plants as she walked through the rows.

  The sound of a vehicle coming down the dirt path pulled her attention away from the garden and the harmonious chirping of birds.

  Kate looked up to see a small, black buggy driving at a fast trot up the road. It came to an abrupt stop, and a woman jumped out of the vehicle and walked toward Kate.

  “Good morning, Abigail,” Kate said, noticing with dismay that Abigail seemed quite distraught.

  Abigail walked up to Kate. “Have you heard the news?” she asked.

  Kate’s eyebrows knitted. “What news is that?”

  “So, you haven’t?” Abigail sighed deeply. “Remember Beckie’s cousin, Jeremiah? Well, he was just arrested in town for suspicion of murder.”

  Kate was shocked, an Amish man, accused of murder? “What on earth happened?” she asked.

  “I’m still trying to piece it all together, honestly.” Abigail wiped her eyes before continuing. “I’m sorry, I just…”

  “It’s completely understandable,” Kate replied. “How would you like to come inside for some meadow tea? We can discuss what happened, if you’d like.”

  Abigail glanced over at her and smiled. “I’d like that. It’s been a difficult morning, so some tea and conversation could remedy that a bit.”

  Kate led the way to the main house and held the door open for Abigail to enter. She then followed her inside. “You can have a seat right there at the table,” she said, pointing toward the left wall.

  As Kate was getting the pitcher of tea and mugs, Beth walked into the kitchen. “Beth, would you happen to be free for a few minutes?”

  “Of course,” Beth said. “Is everything okay?”

  “I’m not sure, to be honest,” Kate answered. She stepped closer and whispered. “Abigail just stopped by with some very upsetting news about Beckie’s cousin.”

  “Jeremiah?” Beth asked.

  “Yes,” Kate said, nodding her head. “I guess he’s been charged with murdering someone. Abigail seemed very upset, so I invited her in for some tea. It might help if you spoke to her, too.”

  Beth nodded. “Yes, and I’d like to know what is going on.”

  Kate walked over to the table where Abigail was seated and placed the cups on its surface. She filled them with tea before taking her seat across from both women.

  “Thanks for this,” said Abigail, right before sipping from her cup. “Mmm, this is delicious.”

  “It’s somewhat of a family recipe,” Beth said with a grin. Kate could tell she was trying to lighten the mood, so she smiled back at her and nodded.

  “So, what do you know about what happened with Beckie’s cousin?” Kate asked, trying not to sound too blunt.

  Abigail paused for a moment, and then placed her cup of tea on the table. She stared at it for a few seconds before speaking. “Well, they still aren’t entirely sure what happened,” she sighed. “Jeremiah was working as a barista at one of the town’s local cafés. I don’t know what evidence they have on him, but they think the victim was a regular of his.”

  Kate and Beth exchanged confused glances. Why would any barista murder one of his daily customers? The thought was perplexing; it made very little sense whatsoever.

  Kate scratched her forehead. “I can’t imagine how Beckie must be feeling right now,” she said. The thought of being in that poor woman’s shoes was disheartening; when put in the middle of such a situation, do you believe in your family, or do you trust the people who are in charge of stopping the bad guys?

  “It’s all just a huge mess. Right now she’s trying to get to the middle of it, just like we are.” Abigail took another sip of her tea. “The strangest part -” Abigail’s voice broke off.

  Kate and Beth looked at each other once more, both anxiously awaiting the next few words. Abigail seemed to be lost in deep thought, so Kate spoke up in a calm tone. “What is the strangest part?”

  “Oh,” Abigail said, seemingly startled by the question. Looking up from her cup, she returned to reality. “The victim
was found in the morning, when Jeremiah went in to open up.”

  Now the story was really beginning to fall apart; it made absolutely no sense to the U.S. Marshal that lay dormant within Kate. Why would a murderer set himself up to discover the body? She dug through the files in her mind to remember some of her past cases. She had dealt with countless criminals during her long career; some were quite silly, and others were highly intelligent, but only a handful of them would ever do something so careless. Kate realized that she was still lacking a lot of information about the murder, but the pieces just didn’t seem to be falling into place.

  “Do you know what the cause of death was?” Kate asked.

  “Not yet,” Abigail replied. “I think they’re conducting an exam on the body at the coroner’s office later today, but the initial report ruled that it was most likely due to either an intentional poisoning or the ingestion of something foreign and toxic into the body. I’m not really sure what the difference between the two is, though.”

  “It’s probably just police jargon and technicalities,” Kate said, hoping to sound as if she had no idea. “But, I think that means that it could still be ruled an accident,” she added. “If they’re wording it in such a way, it’s probably because their findings were inconclusive. That could be why an autopsy is necessary.”

  “Perhaps,” Abigail said, “but it seems like they’ve already made up their minds. They see that a murder victim was possibly poisoned, so they blame the first barista to find him, and it just so happened to be poor Jeremiah who was the one that got stuck opening the café this morning.” She frowned before hiding her face with another sip of tea.

  “What is Jeremiah saying about the accusations?” Beth asked.

  Abigail shrugged. “I really don’t know. Obviously, he refutes the charges and is denying everything, but I haven’t heard anything from him directly.”

  Kate’s thoughts drifted back to the facts. There were too many variables, too many unanswered questions for her to be able to figure out what could have happened. She needed more information. What time did the deceased man expire? Were there any tell-tale signs of foul play or tampering with the victim’s food or drinks? And who closed up the café the night before the body was found? That person should have been the first suspect. Something nagged at her, as the questions buzzed around in her mind.

  “What do you know about the victim?” Kate asked, hoping that a little extra information would help.

  “They haven’t released his name yet, but I heard he was a private detective.”

  “A private detective?” Kate parroted. “You mean that the guy was a private detective?”

  “Something like that,” Abigail replied. “I guess he showed up in our town to ask questions about something.”

  Kate was still unsure what was going on, but now things seemed just a little bit clearer. Maybe someone stopped the private detective before he got too close to their trail, or maybe there was some other horrific truth to it all. Either way, Kate knew that she needed to find out more about the investigation. The lingering fragments of apprehension stayed with her as she thought about Logan White and the fall of his empire. Was something or someone new emerging from his shadow?

  “It’s all an unfortunate mess,” Beth said. “Hopefully the police will get it all cleared up soon and poor Jeremiah and Beckie can go back to their normal lives.”

  “That’s all I hope for,” Abigail said, smiling.

  Kate glanced down at her untouched cup of tea. She lifted it to her lips and drank. The sweet taste refreshed her weary mind. “Have they ruled out allergies or things of that nature?”

  Abigail shook her head. “I don’t believe so. Not officially, at least, but one of the officers told Beckie that it was unlikely. I guess they found a small container near the body.”

  “A small container?” Kate repeated, puzzled.

  “Yes,” Abigail said, sounding a bit timid all of a sudden. “A small, black pouch. It was about this big,” she explained, making a circle with her fingers to show its size.

  Kate realized that it was a bit larger than a quarter, if her depiction was accurate. “What relevance does that have to the death?” Kate asked, already knowing the answer, but not wanting either of the women to know that she did.

  Abigail grimaced. “They think it’s what held the poison or whatever it was that killed him.”

  The words echoed in Kate’s head. She knew that Jeremiah was completely innocent. There was no way she could force herself to believe that a hard working Amish man, with, of course, no criminal history, would commit such a heinous crime. Something was not right, but she still struggled to put her finger on what exactly was out of place.

  “I think that this whole thing is horrible,” Beth said. “What a disappointing way to start the day.” She frowned and spun her cup of tea.

  “Yes, it certainly is, but I thank you both so much for welcoming me and offering counsel.”

  “You’re always welcome to stop by for some tea and conversation; you know that,” Beth said, with a wide smile.

  Abigail nodded and took one last sip from her cup. She then stood from her chair and nodded. “If I learn any new information about what’s going on, I’ll be sure to stop by again.”

  “Yes, please do,” Kate replied. “Please send Beckie my prayers, if you see her before knitting.”

  “Of course,” Abigail said, as she turned and headed for the exit. Beth waved, but Kate remained seated, staring into her cup of tea.

  “I’m not sure what to think of the whole ordeal,” Kate admitted. “I thought it was all over,” she said under her breath.

  “What was that?” Beth asked.

  “Oh, I was just saying that I hope everything blows over. Hopefully the coroner will be able to clear Jeremiah’s name once and for all.”

  “We can only hope and pray.” Beth stood up. “I should get back to work, though.”

  Kate frowned and took another sip from her cup. What was going on? Did a private detective get under the wrong person’s skin and pay for it with his life, and if so, why was Jeremiah implicated in his murder?

  Genesis 15:1.

  After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.”

  Chapter 2.

  Kate gave up. She surrendered. She was not a quitter; she had tailed many a case for months on end, before she was forced to go undercover. But this was hopeless – hopeless!

  Kate had solved more mysteries than she could even remember. Yet for the life of her, she simply could not puzzle this out. And to make matters worse, her sworn enemy was completely undaunted by her efforts to take control of the situation.

  How in the world could something like knitting be so beyond her? Kate glared at the mass of yarn, as she tried to untangle her pinkie finger out of the mess. How did she even get her pinkie near the mess in the first place? Yes, she and yarn were not friends at all.

  She glanced around at the ladies as they chattered away. They made it look so easy. Even stern, ancient Esther in the corner could make a flawless set of potholders, arthritis and all. Kate could not help being irritated with herself for being the only person in the group who was hopeless at knitting.

  Kate would never have thought that she would care so much about craft or domestic type things. She had even thought things like knitting and jam making were too girly to worry about. She had been too busy protecting her charges from criminals to worry about things like that. However, after months of living with a woman who could turn milk into butter and yarn into a baby dress, she found her skills severely lacking for this place. It’s was hard not to feel inadequate when your biggest achievement is not stabbing yourself with your own needles, she thought.

  Kate was starting to suspect that the ladies had given up trying to improve her knitting skills. They still encouraged her and insisted that she was improving.

  Kate likely would have given up on
this venture ages ago. It was not like she wanted to become a domestic diva or anything. It wasn’t the knitting that drew her to the group every week, or the delicious treats they shared. And as nice as the ladies were, she probably could have lived just fine in her isolated cottage, until she got that long-awaited call from her boss saying the mole was caught.

  What drew her was their uncanny ability to collect information. These ladies could make the CIA hang its head in shame. On at least one several occasion, their chit chats provided her clues she needed to orchestrate the solving of a crime, while concealing her real identity at that. It wasn’t easy to solve murders and bust crime rings while playing the part of an Amish woman with amnesia.

  Kate would never have gotten anywhere on the cases without these ladies, even if there was no way to thank them for it yet.

  “Isn’t it exciting?” Lillian inspected her stitches with a studious smile. “I’m so happy for Rose. She found herself a gut mann in Samuel Esh.”

  “I hope they have a long and happy marriage,” Nancy replied agreeably. “After all the strangeness recently, it’s wonderful to have something nice to look forward to.”

  Even Maria smiled and nodded. When Rose’s love letter to Samuel was discovered, the ladies of the community wasted no time giving the two every excuse to run into one another. There had been dinners and errands, among other events.

  “We should get a start on the wedding gifts, perhaps,” Nancy mused. “I wonder what they need?”

  Lillian gave a sly grin. “Baby clothes for a start.”

  “Oh behave.” Nancy gave the other woman a light slap of admonishment on the shoulder. “I was thinking of china.”

  “Yes, that’s a gut idea.”

  Kate’s mind wandered as the ladies chattered about the things they needed to tell Rose to help her settle into her new role as a dutiful wife. Kate tried to imagine herself as a bride in a quiet Amish community, surrounded by people supporting and advising her. She shook her head. She was touched and warmed by the scene, but it really wasn’t for her.

  The sooner they found the mole, the better. Kate had a special place in her heart for these ladies. She admired how well they thrived in this way of life. She had even come to realize how many things in her life she had taken for granted. Yet the longer she had to lie to these ladies, the heavier the façade became. The ladies deserved more than a fake Amish woman blundering through their traditions, and ruining their perfectly good thread.