Lamb to the Slaughter (Serenity's Plain Secrets Book 1) (15 page)

She had a point and I’d already been thinking about it myself. But dammit, couldn’t Serenity stop being the sheriff for a moment and just be a woman having dinner with a man who found her highly attractive?

I sighed and leaned back. Obviously, this night wasn’t going in the direction I had hoped it would.

Resignedly, I said, “I believe Sandra told you who she thought had a hand in the death of her friend. She’s just a kid, Serenity. She’s not looking at all the angles the way that we are.”

“But why didn’t Timothy and Patricia tell me about Eli when I asked them? What are they hiding?” she leaned in, daring me to give her an answer.

I could see where she was heading with her train of thought, but I couldn’t buy it myself. Timothy and Patricia were good, honest people. Patricia may have her problems, but she wouldn’t cover up for a person who might have killed her daughter.

“You need to understand that these people aren’t going to rattle off every bit of information you want. They are secretive and suspicious of the outside world.”

Serenity stood and began picking up the dishes from the table in a fit of anxious energy. I remained seated and watched her as I fought to keep a smile off my face.

“They certainly seemed at ease with all the outsiders donating money to their cause at the school house benefit auction,” she said.

Feeling the need deep within myself to play the devil’s advocate and defend my roots, I said, “They were comfortable with those people, because they’d probably spent years building up trust and friendship through business deals and just being neighbors. You come on the scene, a woman with a strong personality, and someone they don’t have any knowledge of at all—of course they’re going to be leery.”

The doubt still lingered on her face and I added, “And besides, why worry right now when there’s nothing you can do about it tonight anyway. Hopefully, in the morning you’ll
get your answers. Why don’t we relax in the living room, where you can finish off that glass of wine that you’ve barely touched?”

I rose, waiting for her to move with me to the other room. She eyed me suspiciously for several long seconds. Finally, she picked up her drink and led the way to the couch. She made sure to sit at the far side, which bugged me, but then, I was grateful that she was sitting with me at all the way things were going.

Her behavior made me doubt what I was doing. Maybe I was wasting my time trying to get to know Serenity better. Although, there was a sparking current between the two of us that made me want to take the risk, there was something about her independent nature that scared the hell out of me. She was just the type of woman that I could fall hard for—and then she’d break my heart.

“You know, Daniel, I can understand why you left the Amish,” Serenity said after she took a sip from her glass. Her eyes fastened on me and I braced myself for what she was about to say. “They are pretty damn creepy.”

Her words sunk in and my anxiety disappeared. I began to laugh in earnest. I was expecting her to say something much worse.

When I’d finally calmed, I met her frown and said, “You’re seeing them at their very worst right now. If nothing had ever happened to Naomi Beiler and you’d gone to the school house with me, meeting the Amish for the first time there, your perception would be very different. I guarantee it.”

“Doesn’t true character come out in a crisis? Besides, you and I would never have been there together if it weren’t for Naomi’s death.”

I thought for a minute, staring out the sliding glass door into the darkness. I certainly couldn’t tell her the truth—that I’d wanted desperately to ask her out when I’d worked on her roof a year earlier. I’d been intimidated by the beautiful police officer, who unlike most of the women I’d encountered over the years, completely ignored me after the initial consultation. I just figured that the only woman I’d crossed paths with since Abby, who I was truly interested in, didn’t give me a second thought.

When I glanced up at Serenity’s waiting face, I wondered what had changed since then. Maybe I was tired of being alone—maybe she was too irresistible for me to ignore any longer. Whatever it was that had prompted me to open my heart to the little sheriff, I knew that it wouldn’t be easy to back out now.

“Yeah, you’re right about that, but I’m glad to be helping you on this case. It’s given me the opportunity to put my foot in the door with my family, and that’s a good thing.”

Serenity stared at me, her expression changing several times before it settled on hesitation. She sat up straighter.

“Do you know Tony Manning?” she asked in a guarded voice.

“Sure I do. Doesn’t everyone in this town?” I said honestly, wondering where she was heading.

She huffed and rushed out, “I mean, are you buddies with the man?”

“No, not buddies, but he’s never done me a bad turn. If you’re asking, I did vote for you.” I grinned. It hadn’t been tough call for most of the people of Blood Rock to take a chance on the young woman with the exemplary career over the old codger who couldn’t stay out of his own kind of trouble.

She twittered her fingers and then, amazingly moved closer to me. I stiffened, suddenly very much aware of her close proximity. If I shifted and leaned toward her, she was close enough to kiss now.

“I don’t know why I’m telling you this—maybe I’m crazy, but I trust you for some strange reason.” She breathed deep and blurted, “Tony implied that the Amish would take care of the situation on their own. I got the impression that he was talking about a vigilante type thing. What do you think about that?”

Her pretty eyes were glued on me, waiting. Although I didn’t really want to talk about it, her question had brought up a particular incident in my head that I thought I should tell her—that I wanted to tell her about.

“When I was five years old, so we’re going back about thirty years, there was one night that I will never forget. Aaron Esch was close to our age now, as were my parents. It was during a long, hot, dry summer when a young Amish woman, and I don’t even know her name, so don’t bother asking, had something very bad happen to her. At the time, I was too young to understand much of it, but later on, through the older boys talking, I figured out that she’d been raped by an outsider who lived within the area.”

I paused to see that she was staring at me intently before I turned away and looked through the window into the darkness outside, the scene from my childhood vividly before me.

“It was after dark and I was in bed about to fall asleep, when I heard the clops of the hooves on the driveway. I remember climbing from the bed to search out the window. When I saw three buggies pulling right up to the house, I became alarmed and went to my brothers’ beds to tell them what
I’d seen. My brothers were already gone. I found the three of them in differing positions of kneeling on the steps, their heads all turned in the direction of the kitchen, listening. I tiptoed past them down the steps, not really trying to sneak by, but it didn’t matter anyway. They were so caught up with their own eavesdropping that they didn’t even notice me.

“When I reached the kitchen, I hung back, just inside the doorway, peeking around the corner. Mother was sitting at the table, her hands tightly clenched while she stared up at the four men standing around the table. Father was there, along with Aaron Esch, and James Hooley. The other man was one of the ministers at the time, Abraham Yoder, and he’s since passed. I listened for a minute to their rushed words about a pickup truck and the covered bridge on Route 27. The words all blurred together to nonsense in my five year old mind. But, one thing that I understood, and always stayed with me, is the blood.”

Serenity interrupted, her eyes round like saucers,
“Blood?”

“Yeah, blood. All four men had it smeared on their bare arms, where there shirts were rolled up. Aaron even had a scratch running down the length of his cheek. You can barely see the top of it still, if you look above his beard line. In those days, his beard wasn’t quite as bushy, and the scratch more visible.”

“What happened?” Serenity moved even closer, her eyes still wide.

“My mother looked up and saw me standing there in the shadow. She hushed the men loudly between clenched teeth. It took her a second to cross the kitchen and pick me up in her arms. With my trained little ears, I heard my brothers high tailing it up the steps ahead of us. By the time we reached
the bedroom, my brothers were under their covers, feigning sleep. Mother tucked me in and kissed my nose. Before she left, she said loudly to the room, ‘You best be forgetting what you heard tonight, and never speak it aloud, if you know what’s good for your backsides.’ She didn’t have to worry about us saying a thing. My brothers understood more than I did, but we all knew that if we talked, we’d get Father into big trouble. We never spoke of it again. At least, I know this is the first time I’ve told anyone about it.”

We sat silently for a minute, Serenity staring at the floor, and me staring at her. When she spoke, I was surprised.

“Was Tony hanging around with your Father at that time?” Serenity asked.

“I remember occasionally seeing Tony in the neighborhood when I was a kid. He worked at the stock yard in those days, before he became a cop, and then sheriff. But, he wasn’t in the kitchen that night, and I don’t remember him having anything at all to do with it.”

“I didn’t mean that…exactly. I just wondered if maybe he’d heard about it from somebody.” Serenity was still deep in thought, her lips pursed and her eyes faraway.

“I think the adults in that room didn’t speak about it to anyone. Any of the Amish who might have known about it would have kept silent, probably believing that whatever was done needed to be done.”

“But Todd said your people were pacifists,” Serenity said.

I laughed again, but not with as much vigor. Having Serenity beside me on the couch, looking all warm and sweet helped to keep my humor level in check.

“They’re human too, don’t ever forget it. My own Father had a temper like a summer storm when he was angry. It’s
just that we don’t fight in wars against people that we don’t personally have grievances with.”

“Oh, that’s a whole ‘nother subject that we don’t have time to talk about,” Serenity said with a roll to her eyes.

I took the words as the only chance I might get. Leaning in close enough to her to breathe in her spicy scent, I said, “Why, is there something else you’d rather be doing, Serenity?”

I hoped that she understood the tone of my voice, but a part of me was worried silly that she’d jump off the couch and leave. Or, even worse, laugh at me.

She didn’t do either of those things. Instead, she drifted closer and when her head tilted slightly, I pressed my lips against her plump ones. I couldn’t help the sigh that escaped me as her mouth parted and I covered hers with mine. The rush deep down was exactly what I expected I’d feel kissing the beautiful woman.

Now that Serenity had loosened up, she slipped her arms around my neck, and I took it as the cue to pull her in tight against me. The electricity between us was tangible as our mouths began to work frantically against each other, our tongues wanting more.

Serenity’s cell phone going off caused me to cuss, and I wasn’t ashamed for the word I’d used when Serenity pulled away and looked at the number.

“Sorry, I have to take this,” she said breathlessly before standing and walking into the kitchen.

When she returned, she had on the hard-faced expression of a sheriff again. I inwardly groaned at the progress we’d just lost.

“I have to go. There was a car accident on Route 45. There’s a fatality, and I’m on call. So…I guess I’ll see you
in the morning,” Serenity said as she reached for her leather jacket that was tossed over the back of the couch.

I caught her hand before she touched the material and stood, pulling her up against my body. Dammit, I wasn’t going to let her escape without an acknowledgement that we’d shared a kiss. I began to lower my head, and could feel her sway slightly just before she shoved her hands into my chest and pushed away.

“Really, I have to go.” She caught up her jacket and moved to the door quickly. “I’ll see you in the morning—unless your plans have changed?” she asked, with a conflicted look hovering across her face.

“Nope, nothing’s changed. We’re still on for our search of Eli Bender,” I said, not even trying to hide the smirk on my face.

Serenity nodded and plowed out the door like she was escaping a tornado.

But, then again, from the feelings I’d experienced kissing her, maybe she was.

14

NAOMI

September 25th

N
aomi sat at the picnic table cradling her head on her arms, and hoping that anyone looking out the butcher shop windows would believe that she was truly sick. She hadn’t felt guilty lying to Mr. Zook about having a belly ache. After all, he’d barely spoken to her since the announcement at church of her temporary shunning. She needed to be with Will—and this was the only way.

When Naomi heard the rumble of the diesel engine, she smiled, feeling happier than she had in several days. She peeked over her elbow to confirm that it was Will, before she rose slowly, continuing the act and making her way to his truck.

Will jumped out and ran to the passenger side, opening the door for her. He raised his hand to help her with the climb up, but she gave a sharp head shake, meeting his eyes for a second before she took the step in herself. The last
thing that she needed was for one of the nosey girls to see Will touching her.

It was a mile down the road before Naomi let out a whoop of joy. Will jumped at her sudden victory cry and then turned in understanding with a wide smile.

“Have I just participated in the rescue of a damsel in distress?” Will asked, still grinning.

“Yes, Will. You sure did. I’ve needed rescuing since last week.” She blushed at Will’s intense look and turned to watch the farms drift by. Autumn’s colors were beginning to sprinkle into the landscape. Naomi felt strengthened at the sight of the yellowing leaves. In her mind, the change of seasons meant that there were changes ahead in her life also. Even though there were so many obstacles in her way, Naomi still held out hope that she would be happy and free someday.