Where Shadows Meet(28)

“I still have friends,” he said.

And he did. His background in law enforcement was one reason she’d resisted getting a phone for so long. Then when the book hit big, she’d had no choice, but she had an unlisted number. That hadn’t slowed him down long. Saying nothing at all, she quietly closed her cell phone, then pressed the button to shut it off.

Aware that Angie and the children were staring at her, she managed a smile. “Anyone want a cookie?” Her aunt always kept cookies in the jar on top of the refrigerator. She didn’t wait for an answer, since the girls wouldn’t have understood, but reached up and pulled down the jar. The girls each accepted a cookie, and Hannah turned to pour them some milk. Once she set the glasses on the table, she moved to the sink to stare out the window.

Angie’s vanilla scent told her that her friend had moved closer. “Was that Reece?” she asked.

“Yes. He says he has our daughter. That he’s raising her Amish in a district in Shipshewana.”

“But she wasn’t dressed Amish.”

“I know.” Hannah glanced into Angie’s worried face. “He’d taped a little girl laughing and talking. He said it was our daughter. I think he’s toying with me, but I can’t get it out of my head, Angie. What if he’s not lying? What if this little girl really is my baby? Maybe he converted after the picture.” Hannah couldn’t let it go. Everything in her longed to hold that little girl, to smell her hair, to hug her close and kiss that soft, round cheek. Maybe she was losing her mind. Life with Reece might have driven her over the edge.

Angie sighed. “Find her, then. I bet she’s here somewhere. Reece doesn’t have her. He probably saw this girl and realized she looked a lot like you. He’s playing games, trying to get you back. He couldn’t have had her all this time. You said he wanted nothing to do with fatherhood.”

“I know. He told me to come home if I wanted to see her.” Hannah inhaled as a thought struck her. “You don’t think he’s already taken her from her home, do you? What if he kidnapped her? I can’t let her fall into his hands!”

Angie grabbed her forearm. “Think, Hannah. He’s not going to risk jail. He’s just trying to lure you home.”

Hannah’s panic calmed as she recalled that the girl’s voice had mingled with other children’s. “You’re right—I know you’re right.” Shuddering, she leaned against the counter. “I thought this was all behind me.”

“It will be if you let it.”

Hannah glanced at her then. “Could you just walk away, Angie? Look that little girl in the face and walk away without knowing?”

Her friend hesitated, then sighed. “Probably not. But there’s no way I’d go back to the guy who beat me.”

“I’m not going to.” But would she? If Reece had her daughter, she would have no choice but to go back long enough to grab the little girl and flee. “Maybe I’ll go talk to the sheriff. He might know something about the child.”

A woman’s voice Hannah recognized as her aunt’s raised in a sharp protest, though she couldn’t make out any words. Angie exchanged a long glance with her. “I wonder if Sarah told her I’m here,” Hannah said.

Footsteps sounded on the wooden floor, then her aunt burst through the doorway, followed by Sarah. Tears marked Aunt Nora’s eyes with puffiness, and she swiped a hand at her wet cheeks but only succeeded in smearing dirt on them. Her bonnet was askew, but her dark blue dress and white apron were neat and pressed. She had to be fifty now, but she looked older.

Hannah took a step toward her, arms open. Aunt Nora rushed into them. She hugged Hannah with a desperate grip, and a keening cry burst from her lips.

“I know,” Hannah whispered, rocking the older woman a little. “I know.” Tears rolled down her cheeks too.

How well she remembered the grief, anguish, and disbelief. The emotions had never left her. The horror of that night colored everything she’d done since. Every time she thought of the monster who’d destroyed her baby, her anger and hatred grew. If she was right and it was Reece who had killed her parents too, she’d spit in his face, rake at his eyes with her nails. No punishment would be great enough for all he’d done.

Every time she thought of her hate, the insistent voice of conviction came. Forgive. A voice she’d gotten good at ignoring. She knew her hate hollowed out her insides and drove nails into her compassion. She should pull it out by its roots, but the thought of justice was the only thing that kept the tears at bay. If she suffered for it in the end, then so be it.

If that man was Reece, he’d killed her parents to get to her. And his plan had worked. Was it her bitterness that made her want to believe he was guilty? Or could she be on the heels of truth? What if he’d struck again, killing Moe this time? A tremor ran through her, and she tightened her hold on Aunt Nora until the older woman managed to choke back her sobs.

Her aunt pulled away and dabbed at her face. “Thank you for coming, Hannah. I know it wasn’t easy for you.” She straightened her shoulders. “I know my Moe is in God’s hands. I must accept God’s will. I shouldn’t have meddled.” Fresh moisture flooded her eyes.

“Meddled?”

“I was warned to stay quiet, stay out of it. But I saw the child.” She bit her lip. “I knew then the sins of the past would come out.”