Where Shadows Meet(96)

Matt flexed his wrists to give himself the most give as Hannah tightened the rope, then looped it down to his feet. Trudy stepped over to test the give, and he kept his muscles flexed until she nodded with satisfaction.

She turned back to Hannah. “You, come with me. Leave the kid here with Matt.”

Hannah glanced up at Matt with an apology in her eyes. Matt had to delay Trudy until he could get free. “I found a photo album. Some things are starting to make sense to me. My parents were never happy. All I remember as a kid was how unhappy my mom was. Dad never smiled. He killed himself. I think he was in love with Hannah’s mother. But that’s not Hannah’s fault.”

“Her family has blighted mine for decades. But no more,” Trudy said.

Hannah was frowning. “What are you saying?” she asked Matt. “I thought my dad dated your aunt.”

Matt kept talking, straining at his bonds the whole time. Was there a bit of give? “There once were four friends. They all met in town, where they worked together at a local café. Patricia and David—your mom and my dad—were dating. Irene had a crush on the Amish boy—your dad, Abe—and the four of them double-dated. Your grandparents probably didn’t like that, but it was Abe’s rumspringa and they hoped he’d grow out of it. But something went very wrong. Abe fell for Patricia and stole her from David. David never got over the loss, even though he married. The marriage was unhappy, and he eventually took his own life. Did I get all that right, Trudy?”

“Shut up.” Trudy grabbed Hannah’s arm and dragged her toward the door. “Patricia was a cuckoo in our nest. And so is her daughter. You’re just like her, batting your eyes and enticing men into your web. First Reece and now Matthew. I won’t allow it to continue.”

Hannah managed to tug her arm free. “Did you kill my parents?” Her eyes grew round with horror.

“Of course I did. You didn’t think I would let them get away with destroying my family, did you? Hannah here told Irene her mother was finally pregnant again. That was the final straw. Patricia didn’t deserve a child after all she’d done. Then Hannah took my first grandson and ruined his life. She has to pay.”

“Irene is Reece’s mother,” Hannah said.

Trudy scowled. “How did you know that?”

Hannah went pale. “I ran into Ellen Long today. She mentioned it.”

“Who’s his father?” Matt asked. He saw horror dawn on Hannah’s face.

Trudy laughed. “It’s not Abe, if that’s what you’re thinking. I would have stopped that soon enough. It’s some loser who stayed at their commune a few months, then moved on. Irene had a nervous breakdown, so I took him.”

“I thought he was a foster kid.”

She waved the gun in the air. “A smoke screen.”

“What about Cyrus?”

Hannah answered. “I think he was just a dupe. His wife was having an affair with Reece. I’m guessing Reece mixed poison in with the sugar, then asked him to make cookies and deliver them to my parents when he went to pick out a quilt. The trail would lead back to the bakery, and it would look like he got caught up in his own murder plot.”

Trudy squinted at her. “That Ellen is—”

Hannah backed away from Trudy. “Why did you take my mother’s quilts?”

“Jealousy,” Matt answered. “I saw a picture of you, Trudy. You were beside a quilt that looked like Patricia’s famous hummingbird quilt. She imitated your pattern and had more success than you ever dreamed of.”

“All because she was Amish,” Trudy spat. She grabbed Hannah again and dragged her to the door. “But it all ends today.” She pulled her captive through the door and closed it behind them.

Matt began to strain at his bonds. They didn’t give much, but he had to get free. Wrenching and twisting his wrists, he stretched and moved the rope until he began to feel a bit of give, but it still wasn’t enough to slip his hands free. “Caitlin, come here. I need your help.”

He could only pray his daughter had enough strength to loosen his bonds. When she was at his side, he instructed her to find the end of the rope and trace it back to the knot, then try to push the end through. She wasn’t accomplishing much. Finally, five minutes later, he felt it give and his hands began to pull free.


THE MOSQUITOES CAME in hordes, eager for their blood. Hannah could see the same bloodthirsty intent on Trudy’s face. Trudy marched her down a muddy path toward the raging creek, fifty feet across at its widest point. The current had torn trees up by the roots, and giant sycamores rode the dirty waves in the churning water. The swollen creek had nearly reached two beached canoes.

They skirted the water, and Trudy turned toward a small path that circled back toward the shack. An open cistern yawned in front of them, obviously just uncovered. It was about four feet in diameter.

She stopped in front of the open hole. “Time to say good-bye, Hannah.”

Hannah froze. What could she do? She cast her gaze back and forth across the area, but there was no place to hide. Trudy raised the gun, and Hannah expected the bullet to plow through her any second.

“Trudy, no!” Reece’s shout rang out through the trees.

Hannah saw him rushing up the path toward them. His eyes wild and his face white, he was not the savior she’d hoped for. He carried a gun in his hand. Trudy turned toward her grandson, her scowl deepening.