Amish Safe House. Debby Giusti

grown taller. Sarah said I look like an Amish girl.”

      Abraham had to smile. “You look very pretty, Kayla, and very Amish.” Her hair was braided and pulled into a bun. “We must get you a white kapp in town.”

      “Sarah said girls cover their heads when they pray and since they always pray, they always wear their hats.”

      “Called a kapp,” he instructed.

      “William wears baseball caps sometimes.”

      “That is not the same thing.”

      The girl nodded. “Sarah’s fixing Mama’s hair so she can look Amish, too.”

      Footsteps sounded. Abraham looked up to see Julia standing in the hallway, eyes downcast and a troubled frown on her oval face. She wore the typical Amish blue dress with white apron tied around her slender waist. Any self-sufficiency he had noticed earlier in her demeanor had been replaced with an alluring femininity that caused his gut to tighten. He also noted a hint of confusion that creased her brow, as if leaving her ordinary world and stepping into the Amish realm had thrown her off-kilter. Perhaps dressing Amish was too much too soon. The woman had been through so much.

      Sarah encouraged her forward. “Trotter’s Dry Goods sells kapps. You must go to town and buy one for Kayla and Julia. Another dress, too, and a second apron.”

      He nodded. “We will go soon.”

      “I could meet you there and help with the selection.”

      “If we need help, I will let you know.”

      Sarah nodded and glanced at Kayla. “Tell me which you like best, apple pie or sweet potato?”

      “Apple,” Kayla said.

      “I have an extra pie in the wagon.”

      Abraham smiled. “Thank you, Sarah.”

      “It is the least I can do.” She turned and grabbed Julia’s hand. “I do not know the reason you are here, but I know it must be important. Embracing the Amish life is not easy. Should you need another woman with whom to talk, tell Abraham you would like to visit. Perhaps one day this week. I will be finishing one of my quilts and could use help.”

      “I’m not sure you would approve of my stitches.”

      “We all must learn, yah?”

      Julia smiled. “I hope someday to find a way to repay you.”

      “Payment is not necessary. We are neighbors and now friends. My help is freely given.”

      Sarah stepped toward Abraham and took his hand. “It is always good to see you, Abraham.”

      “Thank you, Sarah.”

      “You will come for dinner on Sunday?” she asked. “The bishop and his wife will be at my house.”

      “Not this week. Perhaps some other time.”

      She stepped closer and smiled knowingly. “Someday you will be ready, yah?”

      Then she hurried around him and patted Kayla’s shoulder. “Come with me, child. You can bring the pie into the house.”

      Abraham watched her climb into the buggy and hand a pie to Kayla. The girl hurried back inside.

      “Place the pie on the counter,” Abraham instructed. “We will have a slice after we eat this evening.”

      Kayla returned to the porch and waved goodbye to Sarah. Julia stood near the sink as if glued in place.

      “I am sure wearing an Amish dress is not what you expected.” Abraham tried to explain. “Jonathan felt the disguise would add another layer of protection.”

      “He’s right. It’s just a change.” She offered him a weak smile, and then, with a sigh, stepped closer to the sink and washed a glass left on the counter. “Sarah seems like a nice woman.”

      “She goes out of her way to be helpful.” Abraham took another sip of coffee.

      “You are courting, perhaps?”

      He furrowed his brow. “Did she say this?”

      “No, of course not. It’s just she mentioned her husband had died.” Julia reached for the towel and dried her hands. “I saw Sarah’s expression when she looked at you. I thought—”

      “You thought wrong.” For whatever reason, Julia’s comment irritated him. “William is still in the small room at the front of the house, probably refusing to change clothes. You best check on him.”

      Abraham grabbed his hat from the wall peg and stomped outside. His anger changed to concern when he spotted William heading into the barn from the driveway, still wearing his Englisch clothing. Abraham glanced back at his house and then at the phone shack in the distance. The door he had closed earlier now hung open.

      His heart stopped. The boy had left Abraham’s house through the front door and had returned to the phone booth, probably to call his friend. If William had shared his whereabouts with David, the information could easily spread throughout the Philadelphia neighborhood and eventually to the Philadores. Within a day or two at the most, the gang would descend on Yoder, Kansas, in search of a fourteen-year-old boy who, in their opinion, needed to be offed.

      Abraham would talk to William, but first he had to alert Jonathan. He hurried to the phone shack, stepped inside and hit the button that would reveal the last number called. He jotted down the sequence of digits on a piece of scratch paper and tapped in Jonathan’s number.

      “We have a problem,” Abraham said in greeting. He quickly relayed what had happened and provided the phone number William had contacted. “Have Karl pick up the family and find another safe place for them to hide out.”

      “No can do, Abe, at least not now. Fuentes is beating the bushes, trying to find Will. Moving the family would be too dangerous. They have to stay with you until things calm down.”

      “You are taking too big of a risk, Jonathan.”

      “I’m keying the phone number William called into my computer. Give me a minute or two and we’ll see what I can find.”

      “Find a new hiding place for Julia and her children. If the gang learns their whereabouts, they will be sitting ducks, as the saying goes.”

      “Hopefully the kid in Philly will keep his mouth shut.”

      Abraham let out a frustrated breath. “The kid’s name is David Davila. If you count on him keeping silent, you are toying with William’s life.”

      “We’ll work as fast as we can, Abe, but nothing is done in the blink of an eye. You know that.”

      “I know when someone is in danger and needs protection.”

      “That’s why I placed them with you.”

      “While you are checking, run the name Nelson Turner. He asked for directions to Yoder. Said he was a writer.” Abraham provided the license plate number for the sports car.

      “Writer or journalist? I’ll check the plates, but my advice is to stay clear of anyone involved with the media. The last thing we want is Julia or her children’s photo in the paper or on some online news blog.”

      “That was my thought, as well.”

      Jonathan clucked his tongue. “I found the address associated with the phone number William called. Now I’ll cross-check it with known gang members in the area.”

      A sigh filled the line.

      Abraham pushed the receiver closer to his ear. “What?”

      “William’s friend, David, lives at the same address as a low-level punk who we think has ties to the Philadores. Pablo... Pablo Davila. They must be brothers.”

      “David is probably filling