Comes the Winter by Samantha St. Claire

Author:Samantha St. Claire
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Samantha St. Claire
Published: 2020-04-06T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 18

DETERMINED, LENA WALKED to Main Street and the Baker Mercantile the following afternoon. Although she was a bit nervous about delivering her gifts to Vicki, the idea of selecting baby clothes thrilled her. She could recall similar visits charged by her employer to find some item of clothing for Miranda. Oddly enough, the girl had favored yellow and not pink. So, Lena made a game of finding a new shade of yellow with every purchase—canary, sun-kissed, banana, lemon. She would always deliver them to the child and they'd play a game to name the unique shade she'd discovered.

The shopkeeper at the mercantile knew nothing of her previous day's adventure down the street, so she was courteous and solicitous. Although the selection was considerably limited to what she might have found in the shops of Chicago, she did manage to find a cozy flannel nightgown with yellow print, and two dresses, one pink and one pale blue, and a warm yellow blanket with matching knit bonnet. At the last minute she pulled from the shelf, a cloth doll with a cheerful embroidered smile, adding it to the pile.

“Shall I deliver these for you?” the shopkeeper asked.

Lena stared at her for a moment, tempted by the suggestion, but quickly realizing the awkwardness that would pose for both parties, she quietly refused the offer. “No, thank you. I'll take them with me.”

Lena was aware of the shopkeeper's attention to her while wrapping the items she'd purchased. Lena sensed her curiosity, but busied herself looking at boots and shovels, anything that would keep her too far away to be asked questions she cared not to answer.

“Here you are, then. Someone is going to be very pleased with your gifts.” She smiled encouragingly.

“Yes. I hope so.” Lena took the parcel and quickly made her escape with a hasty, “Thank you.”

Lena knew the street Jessie had described, but she'd never visited the area. Women of her background and breeding just didn't. She cringed thinking of her hypocrisy. She was no better than those stodgy old serpents back in the mercantile.

Biting her inner cheek, Lena strode down the alley with more confidence than she felt. A sudden burst of men's laughter startled her. Her pulse quickened as did her steps. Relieved, she found the door she sought. Knocking lightly, she waited, trying to steady her breathing. This was ridiculous. Why was she so anxious? She heard heavy steps. A latch lifted on the other side of the door.

A slender woman with heavy rouge and bright red lips opened the door. “Can I help you?” Though the words were courteous enough, the tone was overly polite. “We don't give to charity.” There was a definite smirk to those ruby-colored lips.

“I'm here to see Vicki. I think she's expecting me.”

The woman's expression did not change at the news, her dark eyes scanning Lena from top to bottom. “She's not here.”

“Oh.” Lena clutched the parcel to her breast, sensing the simmering hostility, wondering if this was anything like what Vicki had experienced yesterday.

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