Free Finding Sarah by Terry Odell Page A

he held her. He probably treated
everyone like that, trying to comfort and help deal with traumas. She vowed to
let him do his job.
     
    * * * * *
     
    Sarah opened the shop door and
locked it behind her, glad to have an excuse to put thoughts of Randy aside
while she dealt with her daily routines. The extra weight of the lock in her
purse reminded her she needed a police report. Maybe she could call the station
and leave a message. She wasn’t ready to talk to him yet.
    The doorbell buzzed at the back
door. “Coming,” she called. She hurried through the shop and peered through the
window.
    A disembodied voice came from
behind an array of roses, lilies, gerbera daisies and something purple she
couldn’t identify. “Delivery for Sarah Tucker.”
    “I’m Sarah,” she said. She took
the flowers, revealing a stocky deliveryman. “Thank you.”
    “I’ll need a signature, ma’am.”
    “Sure. Sorry.” Sarah set the vase
down on the nearest table and signed the clipboard.
    “You have a nice day,” he said
and then hastened back to his van.
    After making sure the door was
secure, she poked through the greenery until she found the plastic pick with
its tiny envelope. Her fingers trembled with a twinge of excitement as she
pried out the card. She read the neat, block printing.
    Forget him . Let me help. Dinner
tomorrow. CW .
    She dropped the card on the
counter. Why would she think they might have been from Randy? She pulled the
gold chain from beneath her blouse and ran David’s ring back and forth along
its length. She needed Randy to find her stuff. Nothing more. She didn’t need
Chris either. If things kept up, she’d be out from under in three months. She
was the expert scrimper. What was a few more months of ramen noodles?
    Giving the ring one final
squeeze, she tucked it back inside her top. She picked up the vase and carried
it to the front window. By the time she finished rearranging things to showcase
the flowers, several people gathered to admire the display. She flashed the
browsers a smile, then went to unlock the door and turn the sign to “Open”.
    The flowers created a
conversation piece, and Sarah made a mental note to change her front window
display more often, and to put something unusual in there. Maybe she’d be back
on top in two months.
    Shortly before closing time, when
the shop was empty, Sarah took the cash out of the register and went in the
office to lock it up. She heard the door chime and left the safe ajar in case
she had to make change. Happiness at the prospect of another sale made a smile
effortless as she went to the front.
    She could feel the smile drop off
her face. “Diana? What brings you to Pine Hills?” Her sister-in-law stood in
the doorway, the hem and necklines of her red dress threatening to meet in the
middle. The diamond pendant she wore drew the eye to breasts Sarah didn’t
remember being quite so … round.
    “I wanted to give you this in
person, Sarah. After all, we used to be family as well as business partners.”
She held out a large, blue envelope. “I talked to a lawyer last night after you
called.”
    Sarah felt her face glow until
she was afraid it matched Diana’s dress. “Let’s cut the legal lingo. Give me
the abridged version.”
    “Well, what it says is that if you’re
so much as a day late with any of my checks, I’m going to get the shop.”
    “You can’t do that.” At least
Sarah didn’t think so.
    “Oh, he says I can. There’s a
bunch of stuff about liens and whatever. But look. I have a much simpler
solution.” Diana strolled across the shop to an easy chair Sarah had for
customers to sit in while they browsed some of the books she carried.
    When had Diana called a lawyer?
Why did she think it was just her luck that Diana was probably sleeping with
one? That it had probably been him with Diana when she’d called? Sarah ripped
open the envelope. The letterhead said, “Lincoln and Gross, Esq., Attorneys at
Law.” She tried to skim