Alice by Kirsten Osbourne

Author:Kirsten Osbourne [Osbourne, Kirsten]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Unlimited Dreams Publishing
Published: 2018-04-28T07:00:00+00:00

Chapter 6

When they got to the house, Lewis surprised Alice by parking the wagon and getting out alongside her. He tied the horses up and walked toward the front door.

“What are you doing?” Alice was confused.

“I need to have a talk with Edna Petunia and Cletus,” Lewis explained.

Alice’s stomach churned. “About me?”

“It’s for your own good, Alice.” Lewis pounded on the door.

Martha, another one of Alice’s sisters, answered. “Hi, Lewis,” Martha said, brightening a bit. Lewis was kind and protective of all of his sisters-in-law, and they liked him, too.

“Hi, Martha. I need to have a word with Edna Petunia and Cletus before you all sit down to supper.” Lewis looked at Alice with a grim expression on his face.

Alice wished she could melt into the floor. Martha’s eyes widened, and she ran off to find her adoptive parents.

Cletus came to the door a few moments later. “Hello, son. What’s all this about?” He shook his son-in-law’s hand. Lewis was normally a level-headed man, but he seemed a bit shaken to Cletus. Cletus wondered what had riled him.

“I’d like to speak with you and Edna Petunia privately.” Lewis shoved his hands into his pockets.

“Sure, son.” Cletus led Lewis into his formal sitting parlor. “Edna! Come in here, snickerdoodle!” Alice shook her head and went into the kitchen to see if she could help her sisters get ready for dinner.

Edna Petunia strode into the formal sitting parlor a minute later and took a seat next to Cletus. Lewis was sitting across from them. “What’s all this about? Is it Ruby?”

“No, Ruby is resting comfortably. She’s sick, but she’ll be fine. What I’d like to talk to you about is Alice,” Lewis began, his mouth set in a firm line.

“You’d better not tell me Alice is pregnant!” Cletus joked.

“Well . . .” Lewis trailed off.

“I need some cough medicine.” Edna Petunia pulled a small flask out, unscrewed the lid, and gulped down some liquid.

Despite himself, Lewis stifled a grin. Ruby had told him that all the girls suspected that it wasn’t actually cough syrup in Edna Petunia’s ever-present flask. They had a feeling it was something a little more scandalous. No one begrudged her for it, however. She was a good woman who had led a long, colorful life, and none of her adopted daughters felt it was their place to confront her about it. “Don’t worry, Edna Petunia. It’s not that. But I’m worried that’s where things are headed.”

“Son, you’d better start explaining yourself, quickly,” Cletus said crossly. “I should be eating my supper right now, not listening to you gossip about one of my daughters.”

“Yes, sir.” Lewis nodded his head. “I’m sorry about that. I just—Alice was locking up the mercantile, and a man I’ve been doing business with, Mark Brooks—he apparently asked her if he could come in after we were closed for the day. When I came downstairs to get something I’d left behind, I saw him kissing her!”

Cletus frowned. “Now you’ve got my attention. What kind of man is this Mark Brooks?”

Lewis looked bewildered.

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