the stairs, tripped and fallen. Whether he’d tripped in shock from what he’d seen was an open question.
Four rooms upstairs. Which one was Kevin’s was obvious—typical little boy’s bedroom, decorated with train wallpaper and bright curtains to match. The items he’d come to fetch would be there, but for the moment, he wanted to see the rest of the upstairs. There was a guest room and next to it what might have been a study for Frank, furnished with bookshelves and a desk. He considered taking the time to search the desk, but if Deidre were hiding anything about an affair, it was unlikely to be there.
Her bedroom was the likeliest place. He moved into the room, feeling like an intruder. But that was part of the job, wasn’t it? Like the living room, this room had an air of permanence, as if the furniture had stood where it was for a lot of years and was comfortable there.
Jason dismissed the thought. This was no time to get nostalgic for a permanence he’d never experienced. He went quickly to the dresser, a massive affair of highly polished maple, and pulled open a drawer. Moving quickly, he felt under clothes, looking for any crinkle of paper or odd shape.
In the third drawer he found it—a sheaf of something under the drawer liner. He drew out the bundle. Cards, greeting cards, stretching back over the years, it seemed. A birthday card signed “Mommy and Daddy,” a graduation card, several Valentine cards. He opened one that read: “I don’t know what I did to deserve someone like you. You are my strength.” It was from Frank.
Feeling like a Peeping Tom, he shuffled through the rest and came up with nothing. As he put them back into place, he felt something else, something tucked back into the corner under the paper. He was reaching for it when he heard footsteps on the stairs.
Closing the drawer as quietly as he could, he managed to be in the center of the room when Judith Yoder appeared in the doorway. She didn’t look surprised, but then she’d have seen his car in the driveway. But she did look suspicious.
When she didn’t speak, he hurried into speech. “I’m glad you’re here. Maybe you can help me. Deidre asked me to pick up a few things for Kevin, and I haven’t been able to spot the first one on the list. Do you know where his handheld electronic game might be?”
The suspicion in Judith face wasn’t allayed. “Not in Deidre’s bedroom.” She jerked a nod toward the next room. “Komm. It’ll be in here.”
He was very aware of her covert glances as she took the list from his hand and began collecting the items. A couple of small toy train pieces, a few books, a pack of crayons, the electronic game.
“Thanks. I’m afraid I’m not up on little boys’ toys.”
Judith tucked everything into a bright tote bag. “Please tell Deidre I’ll be in later this afternoon.” She handed him the bag. “Let me see you out.”
He’d gotten the bum’s rush a few times in his life, but never with so much politeness. Judith closed the door firmly behind him, and he headed to his car.
So she’d be seeing Deidre this afternoon, would she? What exactly would she have to say about this little episode? It seemed to him that his relationship with Deidre Morris might be ending sooner than either he or the judge had expected.
* * *
A FEW DAYS LATER, juggling a backpack and a shopping bag provided by the hospital, Deidre ushered Kevin into the house at last. It had seemed like forever, and she wondered how long it had felt to Kevin. She kept a close eye on him as they walked into the living room. Would being home bring back memories?
But Kevin seemed perfectly normal. He spotted Judith coming out of the kitchen with Benjamin and rushed over to them.
“Hey, Benjy, did you know I was in the hospital? I had my own room and a television, too.”
Benjamin grinned. He wasn’t too fluent in English yet, but the two of them chattered together in a scrambled mixture of English and Pennsylvania Dutch. “Me and Mamm brought whoopie pies.”
“Wow!” Obviously that was far more important than the hospital stay. “Can we have one now, Mommy? Can we?”
Deidre glanced at Judith and got a smile and a nod in response.
“Okay, you two. One each. Kevin, don’t run.”
Heedless, the two boys raced to the kitchen. Judith chuckled. “I wonder how many times you’ll say that in the next few days.”
“I might as well save my breath, but I have to try. The doctor said to keep him quiet.”
“Does the doctor have a five-year-old boy?” Judith asked innocently. “Might as well try to stop the wind from blowing.”
“True.” Dropping the bags, she gave Judith a hug. “Thanks for the treat. Maybe we’d better see if there’s any milk for them before they choke on mouthfuls of chocolate.”
“No need. I already poured it. And made sure you have what you need in the refrigerator. I knew you wouldn’t want to run to the store first thing. Your cousin Anna dropped off chicken potpie for your supper, so all you have to do is heat it up.”
Deidre had a ridiculous urge to cry. “I don’t know what I’d do without you. Everyone has been so kind, coming to sit with Kev, cleaning the house, running errands...”
“Everyone wants to help.” Judith hesitated, and her serene oval face actually looked troubled. “That makes me think of something I must tell you.”
“Something bad?” She was instantly apprehensive.
Judith considered. “Maybe not. It bothered me, is all. The other day when I came over I found somebody here. That Mr. Glassman. He said you’d asked him to pick up some things for Kevin.”
Deidre’s tension slid away. “Actually he offered, but it was really helpful. Kevin was just about bouncing out of the bed, and I needed something to entertain him. It’s okay that he was here. I had lent him my key.”
“Ja, that’s what he said. But I found him upstairs in your bedroom.”
“In my room?” Odd, but she could easily see reasons why that would be. “Maybe he was just trying to find the things on the list. And he hadn’t ever been upstairs before.”
“Maybe.” Judith didn’t sound convinced. “But I’d think he’d have seen that Kevin’s toys were in his room, not yours.” She hesitated a moment. “He is a stranger.”
He was. She kept forgetting that. Natural enough, since he’d been with her through one of the most traumatic experiences of her life. But how much did she know about him?
“You’re right to tell me. Thank you, Judith. Denke.” She used the Pennsylvania Dutch word for thanks automatically.
“What will you do?”
“I’m not sure, but I’ll have to decide soon.” She glanced at her watch. “He’s coming over so he can be here when Chief Carmichaels talks to Kevin this afternoon.”
“Ach, that man and his questions.” Judith looked exasperated. “He even talked to Benjamin, and what could Benjy tell him? Benjamin was in bed and asleep, and he hadn’t even seen Kevin since
