24
Word traveled fast through the Amish community of Stoney Ridge about Clara Zook’s missing babies. They’d come to the Zook farm by buggy, on horseback, on scooters, all in record time. A dozen had already arrived, and more were on their way: men, women, teens, older children, all with faces drawn tight with concern. In the shade of the Zook barn, Evie swatted a mosquito off her arm and glanced sideways at Charlie, who was staring blankly at David Stoltzfus as he gave out instructions in Penn Dutch to the gathered neighbors.
“I’m not catching a single word of this,” Charlie whispered, his brows knitting together.
Evie stifled a smile. “David says to head out in teams of two, to fan out from the farm and head toward the county road where Clara was found. If we see any sign of the babies—a blanket, a bootie, anything at all—get word to Dok’s office right away. And to try and stay quiet to hear the sounds of babies crying.”
David had looked directly at Hank Lapp as he said that. Hank then shouted out something that was on everyone’smind: “How LONG can those babies LAST without MILK or WATER? That is ... assuming they’re STILL alive.”
Everyone froze at that. All eyes were on David, as his troubled look deepened. “The next few hours are critical,” he said, his voice heavy with worry.
Teams of two fanned out over the farm, so Charlie and Evie headed to the road, flashlights in hand. The heat of the summer evening wrapped around them like a heavy blanket, and the humidity wasn’t helping. “Evie, how do you know Penn Dutch?”
“My grandparents were Mennonites. They spoke to each other in Penn Dutch. To me, they spoke in English. But I picked it up. You’d be surprised how much you can absorb when you’re listening to enough conversations.” It dawned on her, just now, where the habit of eavesdropping had started for her. And that she’d had that habit most of her life.Bleh!
Charlie sounded impressed. “I can barely handle one language, let alone two.”
Evie didn’t respond, her attention turning back to the search. She tripped over something in the road, and he reached out to steady her.
“Careful,” he said. “With the sun setting, it’s starting to get dark.”
Under the thick canopy of tree limbs, it was already hard to see. He flicked her flashlight on and handed it to her. “Charlie, what if...”
“What if we find the babies and return them, safe and sound, to their parents?”
Right. That was a much better frame of mind to have.
“Let’s keep going.”
His flashlight cut a path through the shadows. The sky had darkened, but there was still enough light to see the outlines of trees and fences, creeks and crevices. Evie and Charlie trudged along, their flashlights sweeping over the ground as they moved, listening carefully to the sounds of the night.
One hour passed, then another. The rising moon cast an eerie glow over the fields, and the soft sound of horses’ hooves clopping along the road carried through the warm, still air. Flashlights flickered and lanterns bobbed in the darkness, as people searched and searched, some on horseback, some on foot, some on scooter. Despite the urgency, the night had an almost surreal calm to it.
Evie and Charlie had been walking in near silence, ears straining for any sound that might lead them to the babies. Finally, Evie spoke, almost without thinking. “It’s kind of a big deal that Wren’s the one who found Clara and brought her in, isn’t it?” She wasn’t sure why she’d said it—fatigue, maybe. The thought just slipped out before she could stop it.
He glanced at her. “It is. A really big deal. Wren can be bullheaded, but she comes around. I know she can rub people the wrong way, but she’s got a good heart.”
Did she really? Evie wasn’t so sure. Especially now. “While everyone was waiting for the bishop to arrive, I overheard Hank Lapp say something about a lawsuit that Wren’s involved in.”Bleh!Evie was mortified to realize howmuchshe eavesdropped. All the time. But she learned so much! And Hank spoke in a shout. It wasn’t hard to overhear him as he explained to the people standing around him about Wren’s grandmother and the other two Amish women, all suffering terribly from postparty syndrome (Hank’s words) and the clinical trial with Dok’s predecessor. Evie’s stomach had twisted when she heard Hank describe the lawsuit against the pharmaceutical company.
“Yeah. Didn’t work out the way she wanted it to.”
Evie wanted to know more, a lot more, but now wasn’t the time.
Charlie let out a sigh. “Evie, after this is all over, we need to have a long talk.”
So Charlie was aware of the lawsuit. Maybe ... he was inon it with her? Is that why they both came to Stoney Ridge in the first place?
Even in the heat, Evie felt a chill run through her.
Conniving Charlie.
Wily Wren.
Worse. Evincible Evie.
They turned down a dirt lane, listening for sounds of crying infants. Other than owls hooting to each other in the treetops, they heard nothing. At the end of the lane they turned around to head back to the road.
Exhaustion was starting to set in. But they couldn’t stop. Not yet.
