Dana R. Lynn - Amish Country Ambush

But God had wanted him to be a police officer. There was no going back on that decision.

“Elise, enough.” He strode closer until he was directly in front of her. “You need to let me do my job. I will find Mikey. But you need to remain in the hospital until the doctor releases you.”

“Which is not going to be tonight,” the nurse interjected.

Elise huffed out an annoyed breath. There was a storm brewing inside her, that was for certain. Hopefully, he could persuade her to accept his plan.

“Ryan, I’m the only one here who knows what Leah looks like. It makes sense for me to help.”

He couldn’t help it. The sarcastic snort left his mouth before he could stop it.

She opened her mouth, no doubt to argue. He didn’t know her that well, but he had already learned that she was bone stubborn. And since he was the one who was literally standing between her and what she wanted at the moment, that meant he was going to get the brunt of it. Shoving his hands into his pockets, he waited for her argument. None came. Instead, her eyes widened as she caught sight of something over his shoulder.

Reflexes had him spinning to face whatever she had seen. He came face-to-face with the grinning countenance of his friend, Sergeant Miles Olsen. Miles was holding the hand of his pretty wife, Rebecca. Rebecca had grown up in an Amish family. She’d chosen to leave before being baptized, which meant that even though she didn’t live in the Amish community, she still had a relationship with her family. When Ryan had asked Miles about Leah Byler, he had responded that Rebecca had known her, although not well. Leah’s family wasn’t originally from the community where Rebecca’s family lived.

“Good, you’re here.” It was about time. He could use some reinforcements.

“Hey, Parker. No problem. Always glad to help.” Miles nodded, and his floppy blond bangs bounced on his forehead. Miles always looked like an overgrown Boy Scout. Until he got into serious police mode. Then his demeanor could be as fierce as any other officer’s.

“What’s going on?” Elise’s soft, husky voice was rife with suspicion.

“Nothing to get worked up about.” He walked back to her side so he could look down at her. Man, she was pretty. Wait, where had that come from? That thought did not belong in his head right now. “This is Sergeant Miles Olsen, and his wife, Rebecca.”

Her eyes focused in on the couple. He was surprised to note that she didn’t gawk when Miles started signing to his wife. Rebecca was deaf, and Miles often served as her interpreter with the hearing community. Some people had a problem with it and found it embarrassing to be around her. Others reacted like it was the most fascinating sight they’d ever encountered. Elise didn’t seem to be bothered at all. Good for her.

“Okay. It’s nice to meet you both. So why are you here?”

Miles smiled at her. He signed while he spoke. “Ryan said that your nephew was probably with Leah Byler. We know her. Or at least Rebecca does.”

Rebecca nodded and started signing, her slim hands flashing too fast for Ryan to catch every movement. Fortunately, Miles was far more experienced at this, and interpreted. “Yes, I know Leah. She moved here recently from New Wilmington and is staying with her cousin. I talked with the bishop of the community. Normally, no pictures are allowed—either photographs or drawings. However, since a child is at risk, he made an exception this once and gave me permission to do this.”

Rebecca reached deep inside the bag she had slung over her shoulder. Elise gasped when the blonde woman pulled out a hand-drawn image of an Amish teenager with brown hair. It was a profile picture, not a full image. But Elise recognized the subject instantly, which gave her hope that maybe it would be good enough for a stranger to recognize her. And if she had a toddler with her, it would make her all the more memorable.

“That’s Leah! Did you just draw that, from memory?” Elise leaned forward, squinting as she took in the image on the paper.

“Yes. I am not sure if I got the eyes right.”

Elise beckoned with her left hand, the one not hampered by the IV. Rebecca moved in closer to the bed. Ryan edged away to let them have room.

“I think the eyes are pretty close. At least it will give the police a good idea of who they are looking for.”

Ryan peered at Elise. There was a faint flush in her cheeks, dispelling the sickly appearance she’d had at first. Her voice was livelier, too. He knew what he was seeing. Hope. A sudden dread clenched his heart. He did not want to fail this woman, to watch the hope fade into anguish. He’d disappointed far too many people in his life.

Stop it! He mentally shook himself out of his morose thoughts, like a dog shaking off the water after a swim, sending his doubts flying. He had no room for them. Those insecurities—that was his father speaking. The father who never talked with him without expressing his disappointment that Ryan hadn’t followed both his parents and his older brother into the field of medicine.

You could have made something of yourself, Ryan. That was his father’s favorite refrain.

It didn’t matter, though. Medicine was not his calling. He had known since high school what he was meant to do with his life. And if God approved, well, his family was just going to have to learn to accept it.

Which didn’t make his father’s disappointment any easier to bear. He shrugged his shoulders, mentally pulling himself back to the crisis at hand. Now wasn’t the time for nostalgia.

Now was the time for action.

“If the picture is accurate, then I will send it out. It will be easier to search if we know who we are searching for. I will also use the pictures you’ve given me of Mikey and circulate them. We have already put out an Amber Alert on him.” After pulling his phone from his pocket, he scanned the drawing with an app, then forwarded it. He thought of something. “I will also pull up your brother-in-law’s photo from the DMV and send that out.”

She raised her eyebrows. “Okay. But I already told you, it won’t do you any good. He doesn’t look the same now. I wouldn’t have recognized him if I hadn’t heard him speak.”

“So noted.”

Ryan thought for a moment. She needed to speak with a photographic artist. Unfortunately, the woman the department normally hired was out of town for a few days. They didn’t have the time to wait. He excused himself from the room and went to call his chief.

“Chief Kennedy here.” His deep drawl might have sounded casual, but that was deceptive. Ryan knew that the chief was solid and would give his all to see justice done.

“It’s Parker, sir. I am at the hospital with Miss St. Clair. She says the man who attacked her is her brother-in-law. He was reported to have died in an accident a few years back, but no body was ever found. Apparently, he was changed by the accident, but his voice is the same—and he spoke about things only her brother-in-law would know. So if it’s not him, someone has worked very hard to put on a convincing act.”

There was a pause. “Well, most people know their own relatives. Therefore, I will assume for the moment that the man in question is not dead, but is in fact here in LaMar Pond. What do you need, Sergeant?”

“Sir, she says that his appearance has been altered drastically. I have Olsen and his wife here with me—”

“And you’d like Rebecca to draw a current image since our sketch artist is unavailable, am I correct?”

Ryan let out a breath. “Yes, sir.”

“I don’t have a problem with that, Parker. If anyone says anything about it not being official, I’ll accept the blame.”

“Thanks.”