A Bride in Store by Melissa Jagears

Author:Melissa Jagears [Jagears, Melissa]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: FIC042030, FIC042040, FIC027050, Mail order brides—Fiction, Triangles (Interpersonal relations)—Fiction, Choice (Psychology)—Fiction, Frontier and pioneer life—Fiction, Kansas—Fiction
ISBN: 9781441264725
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group
Published: 2014-07-24T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 16

Will glanced at the clock. Quarter to five. He walked past the aisles to see if he’d missed a customer, but the store was still empty, as it’d been for the last two hours.

He hung his hammer on the storage room wall. The people in this town should be done shunning him because of Axel. If he’d been implicated in his friend’s shenanigans, the sheriff would have hauled him in already.

But no matter how much he berated the townsfolk in his mind, they didn’t listen.

Though there was one good thing about being spurned: he could close the store early every day and look for Eliza. He’d walked past the butcher every afternoon since first seeing her there—hoping to catch her dumping her mop bucket.

He wasn’t about to court her on the butcher’s stairs, but was hoping to talk to her for a minute or two so bad?

He’d only caught her twice. Both days had been Thursdays, and today was Thursday again. But if he didn’t find her, he ought to go see Silas Jonesey. Will hadn’t been invited back to his farm, but the man needed some human conversation and perhaps a game of chess to keep his spirits up. Jonesey spent entirely too much time alone.

The front door opened, tripping the little bell.

He closed his eyes and let out a tiny groan. A chance to see Eliza or a chance to sell something? Other than the store’s selection of canned goods, he was frightfully close to going without food. Of course, finding his missing savings would help buy groceries, but he had yet to find his change purse. He needed a coin or two in his pocket more than he needed to see Eliza.

At least that’s what his stomach told him.

He dragged himself up front.

“Good afternoon, William.” The sheriff pulled off his hat.

Will slowed. Did the man bring good or bad news this time? The best news would be that he’d caught Axel sitting atop a pile of loot. “Did you find Axel?”

“The sheriff’s deputies up in Atchison have taken over the search since that’s where we caught the Wallers.”

Will pressed a hand against his hollow stomach. “What can I do you for, then?”

“Several businesses have reported missing merchandise. Have you noticed anything amiss? Seen anyone lurking around or have something unaccounted for?”

“I am missing something, but I thought I’d misplaced it. Has anyone turned in a circular leather pouch containing eighty-four dollars?”

The sheriff whistled. “That’s a lot to misplace.”

“Don’t I know it.” Though the money wasn’t near enough to go to school. “I can’t recall seeing anyone doing anything suspicious or unusual.”

The sheriff pinned him with a narrow-eyed gaze. “I have to ask this, Will—why have been you walking down Main Street aimlessly peering into windows?”

Huh? Certainly the sheriff didn’t think he—

“When I’ve asked others about suspicious activity, three people pointed fingers at you. Now I’ve known you for a long time, but I’ve known Axel about that long too. . . .” The sheriff scratched at his chin.

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