Falling for the Storekeeper by Morgan Kit

Author:Morgan, Kit
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Angel Creek Press
Published: 2023-07-24T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

“Maybe I can try writing something down?” Alma turned to Conrad. As the town deputy, he always carried something to jot down notes. “Do you have paper and pencil?”

“Of course.” He pulled them out of his other vest pocket and handed them to her.

She scribbled down, “What is your name?” and held it out to the girl, who hesitated before taking it.

“Good idea,” Aaron commented. Everyone watched as the young woman’s dark eyes scanned the paper, her expression unreadable. “Does she understand?”

“I don’t know,” Alma admitted, frustration creeping into her voice. “She’s not giving us any indication one way or another.”

“We should head back to town,” Aaron suggested. “We can find someone who might be able to communicate with her, even if it’s just through gestures.”

“Right,” Alma agreed.

The girl tossed the paper to the floor then held her hand out.

“I think she wants more lemon drops,” Sterling said.

“There’s one more in the bag.” Alma got to her feet, took it out, then held it before her. “Do you want it?”

The girl licked her lips, fixated on the candy.

“Stand up and come get it,” Alma coaxed. “There’s lots of food in town. I have scads of it in my store. You can stay with me.” She studied the young woman’s face, stricken by her terrified eyes and the vulnerability that seemed to radiate from her.

“Alma,” Aaron began hesitantly, “I know you have a big heart, but we don’t know anything about this girl. We should find someone else in town who can take her in.”

Alma shot him a look equal parts incredulity and annoyance. “And who would that be? You know as well as I do that our town is already stretched thin with people patrolling day and night. There’s no one else who can help her.”

“Then we’ll find someone,” Aaron insisted. “We don’t even know if she’s connected to the strange occurrences in town or if she’s a victim herself.”

“Exactly!” Alma exclaimed, her eyes flashing. “Which is why I’ll take her in, at least until we can figure out what’s going on. She needs our help, Aaron. And I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I turned my back on her.” Her stubbornness was kicking in. Her father used to tease that arguing with her was like trying to stop a stampede with a rope.

“Fine,” Aaron conceded. “But I want it on record that I think this is a bad idea.”

“Your objection has been duly noted.” She turned back to the young woman, her voice softening as she addressed her. “You can come with me, all right? I promise I’ll take good care of you.” She waved the candy at her. “Come on, you can have this. All you have to do is come get it.”

The young woman stared at Alma, her dark eyes filling with fear, confusion and something that could almost be mistaken for gratitude. She looked from Alma to the men and back again, her gaze darting around as if she were trying to decide whether to trust them.

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