If anyone had heard rumors about Leah and the ring, surely it would come out now, but no one spoke. His tension eased.
“I guess they think local firms aren’t fancy enough for them,” Sam said. “It’s that way with a lot of these new people. Even the contract for that addition to the high school they’re building went to an outfit from over near Philadelphia.”
“Too bad. You’d think they’d want to give the work to local people,” Josiah said.
“Right. But there’s still folks around who appreciate good quality work from a local craftsman. You put a notice up on my bulletin board, and I’ll be sure to draw people’s attention to it.” Sam gestured toward the battered board that contained notices for events and ads for small businesses.
“Denke, Sam. I might do that.” Josiah had already decided to put his name in at Morgan Construction, but Sam’s advice wouldn’t hurt.
He’d gotten what he’d come to town for, anyway. Leah would be relieved that the local gossip mill wasn’t bubbling about her already. That was something good in this mess.
He put in a few more moments of visiting just for the look of it, and he headed out. He’d thought of going round to the construction company today, but instead he found himself heading for the Morgan house. It wouldn’t hurt to see if Leah was there. Besides, Mrs. Morgan might have some news.
He’d no more than drawn the horse up at the Morgan house when Mrs. Morgan’s car came up the driveway, sending out a spray of gravel. He stood where he was, waiting for her.
She got out of the car, smiling as she came toward him, but Josiah thought he detected worry in her eyes. His heart sank.
“Josiah, I’m glad you’re here. Leah will be glad to see you.”
“She didn’t go to her regular job, then.” He’d thought Leah might be exaggerating the effects on her other employers, but maybe not.
“The woman called and canceled.” Mrs. Morgan walked toward the door, gesturing to him to follow. “No explanation, but I guess we know what happened.”
Leah opened the door for them. Her eyes were shadowed as if she hadn’t had much sleep last night, and he felt a twinge of sympathy for her.
Leah nodded to him, but all her attention was on Mrs. Morgan. “Any news?”
Mrs. Morgan hesitated, and Josiah figured she didn’t want to disappoint Leah. She shook her head. “I’m sorry. I was hoping by today they’d have found the silly ring.”
The hope faded from Leah’s face. “What is she saying to people?”
“I did put a stop to that.” Mrs. Morgan gave a short nod. “I could see she was going to start talking about it to some of the women, so I headed her off. I told her how dangerous it would be to her reputation to be spreading stories around when a theft hadn’t been proved. She got the message.”
“Denke, Geneva.” But Leah’s expression said she didn’t think that would really help.
He had to say something, no matter how little it was. “I stopped by the hardware store to see what the local gossip is. No one said a word about it, so you must not fret about folks talking.” Not yet, anyway.
Mrs. Morgan hung her bag on a bentwood coatrack in the hall and led the way back to the kitchen.
“I did hear that the Graysons have hired and fired several local people,” Josiah said. “It seems to me that might make someone mad enough to want to get even. But I don’t see how they’d know about the ring.”
Geneva brightened. “Still, it’s something. And Leah told me this morning about the break-in at the house yesterday. I can’t help thinking it must be connected. But how?”
He shook his head, unable to imagine either of the Graysons breaking into the farmhouse, even if they thought the ring was there. He glanced at Leah, trying to think of something reassuring to say, and found she was evading his gaze.
“Leah, was ist letz? Has something else happened?”
“Ja.” Leah took a deep breath, as if to steady herself. “Last night, after everyone had gone, Sarah and I went out to the barn. Someone was there. He rushed away when he heard us.” She rubbed her shoulder, as if in memory, and his throat tightened.
“Did he hurt you?” He moved closer, wanting to touch her but not quite daring.
Leah shook her head, hand still pressed against her shoulder. “I don’t think he meant to. He knocked me down when he ran.”
“Could you tell who it was?” Excitement filled Geneva’s voice. “Amish or English?”
Leah shook her head. “It was nothing but a dark blur. Could have been an animal for all I know, but Sarah says definitely it was a person. She couldn’t tell if it was man or woman.”
“English, then,” Geneva said decidedly. “If it had been an Amish person, she’d have been able to tell whether it was a man or a woman by the shape.”
“I hadn’t thought of that.” Leah looked at her with respect, and the woman’s cheeks grew pinker.
“Well, I’d say this definitely means the police should be involved—“
Leah was already shaking her head at that thought. “I can’t.”
“But the police could investigate the people Mrs. Grayson fired. I don’t see how we can do that,” Geneva said, her tone persuasive.
“No.” Leah said. “My daad says no, and I can’t go against that.”
“Maybe if I spoke with him…” Mrs. Morgan let the words die away as the phone rang. She shook her head in exasperation. “I’ll get that in the other room. Josiah, talk some sense into her.” She hurried off.
Josiah touched Leah’s sleeve, longing to protect her and not sure how. “There’s some truth in what she says. If your daad knew everything, he might agree.”
Leah looked up at him, her green eyes dark with misery. “I know he must be told about Mrs. Grayson. I just don’t know how.”
He clasped her hands in his, holding them firmly. “I’ll go with you. I’ll help you.”
Her hands moved slightly, and suddenly he was aware of the warmth of her skin against his. His breath seemed stuck in his throat.
Leah’s eyes widened. Her lips parted, but she didn’t say a word. Before he could think what he was doing, he bent and kissed her.
Her lips met his questioningly, soft and tender. He longed to put his arms around her, pull her close, protect her from all harm….
What was he doing? He pulled back, horrified at himself. This was Abe’s kid sister. He couldn’t steal a kiss without consequences.
She blinked, as if waking from a dream.
“I…I’m sorry,” he stammered, feeling like a fool. “I didn’t mean to do that.”
Leah’s face seemed to stiffen. She took a step away from him, not speaking.
“I’d best go.” Thinking only of getting away before he made even more of a fool of himself, he went quickly to the kitchen door. “I’ll pick you up after work.”
“You don’t need to.” Leah’s voice was cold. “I’ll find a ride.”
He was irrationally angry at that. “I’ll komm,” he said, and bolted out the door before he could get himself into any more trouble.
Leah had never been so happy to have a buggy ride come to an end as she was when Josiah turned into the lane toward home. All she wanted to do now was to sink into the safety and routine of her usual chores and let everything else slip away.
Josiah had shown up early at Geneva’s, forestalling Geneva’s offer to drive her home. After all, Geneva had said, eyes twinkling, Leah couldn’t very well disappoint Josiah after he’d come all that way.
Geneva probably thought she was promoting a romance. But Geneva didn’t know what had happened between Leah and Josiah.
That kiss…Leah’s cheeks burned at the thought, and she could only hope the brim of her bonnet hid her from Josiah’s gaze. Truth to tell, she’d been dreaming of a kiss from Josiah for years, and for a few brief moments, she had lived in the dream.
And then Josiah had pulled away, looking horrified, and she hadn’t known what to do. If he thought she let just anyone kiss her that way—
Her thoughts broke off when she saw another buggy pulled up at the hitching rail. She recognized the horse, and her heart nearly stopped. Ezra Burkhalter, one of the ministers of their congregation. The strictest of their three ministers, stricter even than Bishop Amos.
And the one with whom her daad seemed most in sympathy. She couldn’t believe it was anything other than the charge of theft that had brought him here.
Josiah brought the buggy to a stop. Daad stood next to Ezra on the back porch, and the two men stepped down to the walk to meet her.
“You’d best go,” she murmured, sliding down from the buggy seat. “Denke, Josiah.”
But he was already getting down. “I will stay.”
He shouldn’t. But Leah could think of no way of stopping him.
“Brother Ezra is here to speak with you, daughter.” The lines in Daad’s face seemed carved even deeper than they had been yesterday. He glanced at Josiah. “You are always wilkom here, Josiah, but just now it might be best if you went over to Abe’s.”
Josiah didn’t budge. “I know what happened to Leah. I would like to stay.”
Ezra’s thin lips formed a tight line above his dark beard. “As you will, then.”
His piercing gaze fixed on Leah, and she felt as if she were wilting. “A grave accusation has come to my ears about you, Leah Miller. Is it true that working for that Englisch woman has led you to steal?”
“No, no.” She couldn’t get the words out fast enough. “I didn’t take anything from Mrs. Grayson.”
“But she accused you of this act,” Daad said. “And you did not tell us.”
Her heart felt as if it would break at the disappointment in her father’s eyes. “I hoped that the ring was just lost. That Mrs. Grayson would find it, and no one would ever know what she said.”
“I heard Mrs. Grayson’s words,” Josiah said. He stood next to her, and she seemed to feel his support as if he touched her. “She gave no reason for suspecting Leah. Even her husband seemed to think the ring was just lost.”
Ezra Burkhalter was staring at Josiah, and she began to fear that Josiah’s support, much as she valued it, would put Josiah in a false position. After the way he’d reacted to their kiss, it was clear he didn’t want a relationship with her, and that was probably what Ezra was imagining.
She stepped forward, reaching out a hand to her father. “I’m sorry, Daadi. I didn’t want to tell you such an upsetting thing if it was going to be cleared up easily. Especially after what happened yesterday.”
Daad’s face seemed to soften at the reminder. Maybe he understood how hard it would have been to blurt out her troubles on top of the break-in.
“Omitting the truth is the same as a lie.” Ezra’s words were stern.
“Has this woman talked to the police?” Daad seemed to brace himself for her answer.
“No. Not yet,” she added.
“The Englisch police are not my concern,” Ezra said. “Only the state of your soul. If you come before the church and confess the truth, you will be forgiven.”
“I’m telling the truth.” The words burst out of Leah, and she fought back tears. “I didn’t take anything. You can’t want me to confess a lie.”
Ezra’s thin lips tightened. “This is a serious matter. I must take it to the bishop and the other ministers.” He nodded gravely to her father and stalked off to his buggy.
Leah had eyes only for Daad. Surely he would tell her he knew she wouldn’t steal.
But he didn’t. He turned and walked toward the barn, moving as stiffly as if he’d aged ten years in an hour.
“I’m sorry.” Josiah’s voice was soft. “Your daad knows in his heart that you didn’t take the ring. I’ll talk to him later. Tell him how it was.”
Her breath caught on a sob, and she clenched her fists. “Denke, Josiah.” She choked out the words. “But you’d best stay away. You don’t want folks to start talking about you, too.”
She didn’t wait for an argument. She just ran into the house.
Chapter Five
“I still say you should have told me.” Abe punctuated his words by pounding the nails into the stall door he was fixing.
Josiah, holding the door steady for him, moved his fingers safely out of the way. “Leah begged me not to. What else could I do?”
“You should have thought of something,” Abe said stubbornly, but it was clear he couldn’t think of a real answer.
“Anyway, if one of my sisters wanted your help, you would do it.” Josiah pressed his advantage.
Abe’s frown dissolved in a grin. “Your sisters are older and married and living clear out in Indiana. What would they want with me?”
“Nothing, but if they did…”
Abe tossed the hammer into his toolbox. “All right, ja. I’m glad you’re trying to help our Leah. But what can we do?”
That question was what Josiah had been hoping to hear. After a restless night spent thinking of how Leah had run into the house to hide her tears from him, he’d only been able to come up with one possibility.
“How about going with me to talk to Becky Lapp? She’s working at the Farm Market just down the road.”
Abe ruffled the sandy beard that marked his status as a married man. “Ja, I know, but what does Becky Lapp have to do with it?”
“She used to work for Mrs. Grayson in the house, just like Leah does. I figured she might be able to tell us something helpful about the woman.”
“Don’t see what it would be,” Abe grumbled, but he was already lifting the harness from its rack.
Josiah didn’t, either, but he had to do something, and talking to Becky was all he’d come up with. He didn’t seriously believe Becky would have gone back to the Grayson house and taken the ring, of course, but maybe she could tell them something that would help them understand the woman.
In a few minutes they were riding down the road behind Abe’s buggy horse.
“Like old times, ain’t so?” Abe flicked the lines. “I never thought you’d move back. I figured you were settled out there for gut. What made you komm?”
Josiah shrugged, vaguely uncomfortable at the question. “My uncle taught me a lot, but his own boys were coming along to be settled in the business. With my sisters married and my mother remarrying…” He shrugged. “I guess I figured I was better off here.” The truth was, he’d felt as if none of them needed him anymore.
Abe cocked an eyebrow at him. “Going to settle down, get married? You’d like it fine.”
“Just like a new husband, trying to push everyone else into marriage.”