Sarasota Dreams (20 page)

Grandpa stepped up. “Whatever you have to say to my granddaughter, you can say in front of me.”

“No offense, Gramps, but this is a private conversation.”

Mary turned toward Grandpa and saw his face redden and his fists clench at his sides. He was obviously infuriated, but his Mennonite faith wouldn’t allow him to act on it—at least not with his fists.

“Grandpa,” she whispered as she took hold of one of his fists and tugged at him. “Let’s leave him alone now. He’s obviously just trying to upset us.”

“I cannot allow anyone to talk to my granddaughter like this.”

“It’s just words,” Mary said. “C’mon.”

Jimbo snorted. “Look at the baby run away with her cowardly grandfather. No wonder your mother couldn’t stand it here. What kind of people are you, anyway?”

Anger boiled inside Mary, but her Mennonite teachings popped into her mind.
Lord, please forgive me for these feelings, but I’m only human
. She felt her grandfather resist, so she pulled even harder. “He’s just trying to make you do something you’ll regret,” Mary whispered.

Grandpa’s jaw remained tight as he nodded. “You’re right.”

“I’m not sure how we’re going to get him to leave,” Mary said on their way back to the kitchen. “Looks like he’s determined to make our lives miserable.”

They’d barely reached the kitchen door when Grandpa softly said, “I’m calling the police. I can’t allow him to threaten you.”

“He didn’t exactly threaten me,” she reminded him. “He just said he wanted to talk to me privately.”

“I’m still calling the police.” Grandpa pulled his cell phone from his pocket and stepped toward the back door.

Mary glanced across the dining room and spotted Abe and Jeremiah sitting in her station. She felt as though her world was imploding. She wasn’t ready for these two very different pieces of her life to meet.

Shelley gently touched Mary’s arm. “Is there anything I can do?”

“I don’t know,” Mary admitted. “I never expected to see anyone from …” Her chin quivered, and she sniffled and glanced down.

“You don’t have to say anything,” Shelley said. “I just want you to know I’m praying for you.”

“Thank you,” Mary said. She forced a shaky smile. “Isn’t it amazing how we seem to be taking turns needing the other one to hold us up?”

Shelley nodded. “That does seem to be the case. I’m glad we have each other.”

Mary noticed Shelley’s eyes refocusing on something behind her, so she glanced over her shoulder and saw Grandpa approaching. “Did you call the police?”

“Ya.” Grandpa looked frustrated. “They said unless there was a blatant threat, they can’t really do much. They’ll let the patrol officers know, and they’ll come out when they get a chance.” He cleared his throat. “Something about this not being a high priority.”

With as much confidence as she could muster, Mary lifted her head. “I’m sure we’ll be just fine. I’m not going to let some mean man from my past make me afraid.”

“Would you like to go on home?” Grandpa asked from behind her.

“No, we’re too busy. I’ll work until the crowd settles.”

“Let me know if I need to do anything, okay? I’ll keep a close eye on you.” Grandpa paused before he gestured toward the dining room. “Oh, one more thing you need to know. Abe’s here with Jeremiah.”

“Yes, I know,” Mary said.

“You okay with that?”

She smiled to ease the angst she saw on Grandpa’s face. “Yes, I am just fine.”

“You’re a strong woman, Mary,” Shelley said.

An expression of pride replaced the one of worry on Grandpa. “That’s because she’s my granddaughter.”

Mary and Shelley both laughed. “I don’t know about my personal strength, but I’m fortified with friends and knowing the Lord is with me, no matter what.”

“Ya.” Grandpa patted her and Shelley on the shoulders. “Now I gotta go see how we’re doing on the breads.”

Mary stared at the door to the dining room then took a deep breath. “Time to go face the lions.”

“You go see what Abe and Jeremiah want. I’ll try to deal with that strange man,” Shelley said.

After Shelley disappeared into the dining room, Mary went toward Abe and Jeremiah’s table. She lifted her order pad and pencil. “Have you decided what you want?”

Abe glared at Jeremiah, who cleared his throat. “Um … Mary, I want to …” He tossed a helpless look in Abe’s direction, but Abe looked away. Mary couldn’t help but notice Jeremiah’s discomfort.

“You want to what?” she asked.

“Look, Mary, I’m really sorry about those things I said to you that weren’t respectful. I was just being … well, I was being a jerk.”

Mary blinked then turned toward Abe, who nodded. “He means it,” Abe said softly.

From the first time they’d met, Jeremiah had never been nice to her. When he’d shouted those comments from the car, Mary was shocked at how crude he could be.

“Please, Mary. I want us to be friends,” Jeremiah continued. “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to make it all up to you, but I’d at least like a fresh start.”

The swirl of thoughts in Mary’s head nearly made her dizzy. Too much was happening too fast.

Abe glanced up, and his eyes widened. He pointed to something behind Mary. She spun around and found herself face-to-face with Jimbo. Her mouth instantly went dry.

“I told the old man I wanted to talk to you, and I’m not taking no for an answer,” Jimbo said as he placed his face inches from hers. “You have something of mine that I want.”

Fear welled inside Mary’s chest. “You don’t know what you’re talking about, Jimbo. I don’t have anything of yours.”

His eyes narrowed, and a smirk covered his lips. “I was there. I saw my dad give you that box.”

The box. Mary’s mind went back to that day when Big Jim had broken the news and given her the bus ticket and box. Jimbo had been with him.

“What’s in that box is not yours,” Mary said.

“Oh, but I believe it is. My father gave you something that’s rightfully mine. He’s gone now, and now I’ve come to claim it.”

Mary was more surprised than frightened. “That box—”

Jimbo didn’t give her a chance to finish her statement before grabbing her by the arm so tight she let out a yelp. “You’re giving me whatever was in that box my father gave you, and I’m not leaving until I have it.”

Before Mary had a chance to react, both Abe and Jeremiah stood. One of the chairs crashed to the floor, sending a startling collective gasp over the guests in the restaurant.

Next thing she knew, Abe was on one side of Jimbo, and Jeremiah was on the other. Abe’s large frame towered over Jimbo, and with stocky Jeremiah on the other side, he looked terrified. They each took one of his arms and lifted him off the floor. Mary stood with her mouth gaping open as they walked Jimbo to the door, where they nearly slammed into a pair of uniformed police officers.

W
e got a call to stop by here,” one of the officers said. “We were a few streets over. Do you need some assistance?”

Jeremiah looked at Abe and nodded. “Yes, sir, this man threatened one of the women who works here,” Abe said.

The officers exchanged a glance before one of them spoke up. “We understood this wasn’t a physical threat.”

“There wasn’t a physical threat when Mr. Penner called, but that has changed. This man grabbed Miss Penner right before you arrived.”

The officers both nodded then stepped forward to take over with Jimbo. Abe’s muscles were still tight, but he let go. Jimbo kicked one of the officers and tried to flee, but Abe was quick. He caught Jimbo and returned him to the police officers within seconds.

“Sir, you just made one big mistake.”

Joseph had made his way over to them by now. “I didn’t think we’d see you any time soon,” he said to the officers. “Thanks for coming when you did.”

One of the officers grinned. “You’ve been good to us, and we were in the neighborhood.”

The men followed the officers outside where they handcuffed Jimbo, read him his rights, and put him in the back of the police cruiser. Joseph, Jeremiah, and Abe each told the officers what had happened. After the officers left, Abe patted Jeremiah on the back. “Thanks for helping out.”

“Yes, I want to thank you, too.” Mary’s soft voice came from behind. Abe and Jeremiah turned to face her, and she looked directly at Jeremiah. “I want you to know that I accept your apology, and I want to apologize to you, too.”

Jeremiah smiled and kicked at the ground with his toe. “Thank you, Mary, but you didn’t do anything wrong. I’m the one who should do all the apologizing. If I hadn’t acted so selfish, we could have been friends.” He extracted his hand from his pocket and extended it.

She smiled, took his hand, then turned and met Abe’s gaze as Jeremiah let go and stepped back. “Abe, I’m sorry I was so abrupt with you last night,” Mary said. “I’ve been … well, out of sorts lately. Can we be friends, too?”

Abe hesitated but eventually nodded. “Ya. I think that’s a very good idea, Mary. We can be friends.” He felt as though a piece of his heart had been chipped away. He still wanted much more than friendship with Mary, but he’d settle for what she was willing to offer.

“Well, I better get back inside and tend to my customers,” Mary said.

Joseph wedged himself between Abe and Jeremiah and put his arms around them. “You fellas want something to eat? My treat.”

“Thanks, Mr. Penner. We need to get back to the farm. Jeremiah is starting today.”

Mary had been back in the restaurant for nearly an hour when someone from the police department called Grandpa. After he got off the phone, he motioned for Mary to join him in the small office beside the kitchen.

“They have a statement. Apparently Jimbo was very talkative, and they have some information they said you might want to hear.”

“Any idea what it is?”

He shook his head. “Neh, but I don’t think we’ll need to worry about him coming around here anytime soon. He’s in jail now, and if he even steps foot on the restaurant property when he gets out, he’s going back to jail.”

“I wonder why he wanted that box from my mother.”

Grandpa cupped her chin. “I’m sure he must have thought it was something it wasn’t. I can’t imagine a Yankee man wanting a Mennonite woman’s kapp. The officer who called asked if we wanted to go to the police station or if it would be better for someone to come here.”

“I hope you said they should come here.”

“Ya. It’s much easier since they have the cars.” He pulled her into a hug. “I want to be there with you when they tell you whatever that evil man said.”

Her throat swelled with love for Grandpa. “Thank you.”

The crowd had died down, so when the police officer arrived to see Mary, they were able to sit at an isolated booth in the corner where no one else could hear. Shelley said she’d seat people as far away as possible for as long as she could. Grandpa brought some mugs and a pot of coffee to the table, and the three of them sat down—the officer, Grandpa, and Mary.

“I’m not sure how much of this is true or how much he made up, but we backed some of it up by calling the police station in Ohio,” the officer began. “James McCollum Jr. gave us a statement that we thought would interest you.”

“James McCollum Jr.?” Grandpa said.

Mary nodded. “Jimbo.”

“Oh.” Grandpa turned back to the officer. “Please continue.”

“Apparently his father, James McCollum Sr., and your mother were in a relationship. He’d agreed to be involved in a drug sting, and apparently your mother got caught in the crossfire when it fell apart.” He paused for a moment when she gasped. “You okay?”

Mary stared at the officer who told her a completely different story from what she’d always believed. She had no idea her mother was in a personal relationship with Big Jim, and she’d thought her mother had been killed because she was an informant. “Please continue.”

“James Jr. said he was in the office when his father presented you with the bus ticket and a box. After you left, he asked his father what was in the box, and he was told it was something of great value, but he never said what it was, except it was rightfully his.” The officer shifted in his seat. “You wouldn’t by any chance still have that box, would you?”

Grandpa’s head whipped around to face Mary. “You don’t have to—”

She covered his hand with hers. “No, that’s okay.” Then she looked at the officer. “Yes, I do have the box, and Big Jim was right. It is the most valuable possession I own.”

The officer looked extremely uncomfortable as he fidgeted with a sugar packet. Finally he looked at her. “I’ve been asked to take a look at it if you do so I can let them know what was in it. They think it might be a clue in a case against a drug ring.”

Mary grinned. “I doubt that, but I’ll be glad to show you what was in it.”

Grandpa stood. “Why don’t the two of you go on to the house now while we’re slow here?”

The officer and Mary left the restaurant and rode in silence. As they pulled up in front of the house, Mary looked around at the place she now called home. It was hard to imagine what her life would have been like if things had been different.

Grandma greeted them at the door, her eyebrows knit in concern. “Come on in. Would you like something to eat, Officer?”