LITMIR.BIZ

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Thomas came. We went in together and found that someone had torn the place apart. Then we discovered Jesse upstairs on the floor. Thomas called 911. And then—then I got this strange phone call.”

      Thomas exhaled a sigh of relief, pleased that she’d overcome her hesitation and decided to share the truth with the police chief.

      “How do you mean, strange?” McClendon asked.

      Darcy quoted the caller verbatim. McClendon scratched his head. “And you have no idea who would have sent you a threatening message?”

      “No.” She shook her head.

      “You didn’t recognize the voice?”

      “It was modified. Computerized. It didn’t sound natural.”

      “Did either of you see anyone coming or going from the area around the house?”

      They both shook their heads.

      “Did you see anything unusual or missing?”

      “It was impossible to tell. The place was wrecked.”

      “Right. We sent a team over to Mr. Troyer’s place to investigate. But they won’t know what or if anything is missing. Then again, based on this phone call you’re telling me about, it seems likely that the caller didn’t find what he wanted at Jesse’s home.”

      Thomas nodded. That made sense. Whatever the man from the phone call was after, he’d probably tried to get Jesse to reveal where it was first. When that hadn’t worked, he’d tried searching the house for it himself. When that failed, he’d threatened Darcy. But how had he known about Darcy? That was still a puzzle.

      “So, you’re from Philadelphia?” McClendon asked her.

      “Originally, I’m from Virginia. But I’ve lived in the Philadelphia area since college. I work as a buyer for Winnefords department store.”

      “You live alone?”

      She nodded. “I have a small town house in the suburbs.”

      “You work in the city?”

      “Mostly. I travel to New York a lot.”

      McClendon flipped through his notes. “Now, what was your relationship with your father?”

      “We...didn’t have a relationship until recently.”

      The chief looked up at that. “None at all? Was it a custody issue?”

      “No, it was... To be honest, I’m not really sure what it was. I was raised by my mother’s parents. They blamed Jesse for my mother’s death, so maybe that’s why they told me my father had died when I was a baby. They didn’t want anything to do with him.”

      “And when did you find out the truth?”

      “About a month ago. Jesse sent me a letter, and we met for the first time a week later.”

      “Did you tell anyone that you were coming to Willow Trace today? Did anyone of your acquaintance know about Jesse and your recent discovery that he is your father?”

      “No. No one knew I was coming. Only Jesse. And I hadn’t told anyone about him contacting me, other than my grandparents. But they didn’t want to discuss it.”

      McClendon looked to Thomas, who hoped the questions were nearly over. Darcy looked ready to collapse.

      “She’s told you everything as it happened,” Thomas said, hoping to head off any more questions.

      “Has she?” the chief asked. “So you can confirm what she’s said about the letter and meeting with Jesse? He told you about his daughter?”

      Thomas flushed. “Well...no, actually, today was the first I heard of it.”

      “Do you consider yourself close to Mr. Troyer?”

      “Ja, of course. We have been neighbors for twenty years.”

      “And he never mentioned a daughter? Not even in the past few weeks?”

      “No,” Thomas admitted. “He has spoken of his wife and I knew she had died, but there was never mention of a daughter.” Thomas couldn’t deny that the situation was strange. There were so many things that didn’t make sense. And the only people with answers were the threatening man from the phone call and Jesse, who might never wake up again.

      But Thomas believed that Darcy was being honest with them. Her shock and horror at Jesse’s attack had been real. And so was her fear at the phone call.

      “It must be related—the beating and the phone call,” Thomas said. “Don’t you think? It was almost like the caller was watching us. Like he knew exactly when to call.”

      “So what’s your theory on why anyone would want to beat up a nice Amish man and threaten his daughter?” McClendon asked.

      Thomas shook his head slightly. For that he had no answer. “I cannot even imagine who would want to hurt Jesse. He’s just a sweet old Amish fellow who minds his own business.”

      “You said he’s been your neighbor for twenty years. Where did he live before?”

      Thomas took off his hat and scratched his head. “I don’t recall. That would be a question for the bishop.”

      Could all this be tied to Jesse’s past? Jesse’s life before he came to Willow Trace? But that was so long ago. Even if he had enemies from decades in the past, why would they come to trouble him now?

      Thomas shifted his weight and kept one eye on the door. He was on the lookout for his friend Elijah. Earlier he had asked the ER staff to notify not only the bishop and leader of the Ordnung about the beating, but also his friend, who had spent many years in the Englisch world working as a police detective before returning to his Amish roots. Thomas hoped Elijah’s experience with police investigations could help them.

      McClendon continued questioning Darcy. “Do you give the police permission to track your incoming phone calls? In the case this happens again?”

      “Of course. You can have my phone if that helps you find whoever did this to Jesse,” she said, handing over her phone.

      Thomas saw Elijah Miller enter through the waiting room doors and walked over to greet him. He met his good friend with a hearty handshake. “Are you a sight for sore eyes. Here. Come. McClendon is speaking to her.”

      “Chief,” Elijah said as they joined Darcy and McClendon. “And you must be Miss Simmons. The whole Ordnung is praying for Jesse. And I’m here to help in any way I can.”

      Darcy seemed confused as she looked over Elijah and took in his Amish dress but somewhat Englisch mannerisms and speech, which Thomas had learned that his friend could turn on and off depending on what the situation might call for.

      “Eli is a former detective,” Thomas explained.

      “Well, I’m just a farmer now, Miss Simmons. But I worked for ten years on the force in Philly, before coming back home,” he said.

      Darcy nodded.

      “I just came from the cottage,” Elijah said. “There was a team of investigators. So far, they seem to have no leads on who attacked Jesse. Jesse lived plain. Very plain. There was nothing in his home that anyone would want to steal. But there was a business card with Miss Simmons’s personal information and number. We found that on the floor with a few papers and some old pictures.”

      “Well, that could be how they got your number,” McClendon said, turning to Darcy. “But that doesn’t explain how they would know you’re Jesse’s daughter.”

      “There was a letter there from Darcy,” Elijah said. “I didn’t read it. I think it was marked into evidence with the photos.”

      “Photos?” Thomas repeated. “I can’t imagine Jesse having photos. It’s verboten.”

      “Forbidden,”

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