Page 50 of Whisk Me Away
"What happened a week ago?" Mia's chipper voice called from the front of my booth, scaring me. I gasped, spinning to stare at my best friend, who was now shooting daggers at me.
"Don't tell me something happened with the Sheriff, and you didn't tell us until a week later!" Mia glared.
"Oh, that's exactly what happened," Eden chimed in, folding her arms over her chest.
I held up my hands up in a placating manner, hoping to calm them down before they got started.
"Okay, now, just hear me out,” I pleaded.
Mia mirrored Eden's stance, and now my best friend and sister were waiting impatiently for answers. I glanced around quickly, making sure none of the old ladies from the knitting circle are anywhere near my booth.
"I'm sorry!" I hissed. "It happened so fast, and then I was prepping for this event, and it just hasn't really had time to sink in yet. I promise I was going to tell you!" I gave them my best puppy dog eyes.
Mia and Eden exchange glances before focusing their attention back on me. Mia is the first to speak.
"Fine, but start from the beginning."
Blowing out a long, deep breath, I dove into the story of how Brant and I became a thing. I told them about him coming into the bakery and all but demanding I give him a chance. I reminisced about us spending the day baking, talking, and laughing until he rushed away for a meeting.
Eden and Mia both oooh and ahhh through the entire story and had goofy grins on their faces by the end.
"We forgive you,” Eden laughed.
"Yes, and we are so happy for you, K!" Mia pulled me into a tight embrace. "You deserve all the happiness in the world."
"Thank you,” I sighed as Eden moved Mia out of the way so she could have her turn to hug me.
"I've got to run. I set up a book exchange booth, and the event is about to start. I'll see you girls later! Let's get dinner soon,” Mia waved as she left our both.
"Sounds good. I'll text you!" I called after her.
Eden and I spent the rest of the event chatting with the locals until the last treat was gone. My heart wasn’t fully healed, but after a day like this, I knew it was well on its way. I would always miss Mom, but I knew she'd want me to live the life God had called me to, even when it hurt.
CHAPTER 34
BRANT
"You've got to be kidding me," I muttered under my breath.
The string of break-ins we had last year were picking back up again. Thankfully, not at Karis' bakery anymore. Instead, they've found an abandoned house on the outskirts of town and decided it was the new party spot. I got a noise complaint call late last night or, you could say, early this morning from one of the neighbors.
I grabbed Randle, and we drove to the property to find it crawling with underaged kids doing who knows what. When the first kid spotted us, they all took off like they were on the showAmerica's Most Wanted. We managed to detain one of the kids, who didn't look much older than sixteen.
After bringing him in and calling his parents, I left him with a few of the officers and went back out to join Randle at the abandoned house. He stayed to assess the scene while I drove our little delinquent to the station. We spent the next few hours combing through the disaster inside the house.
As I stepped over the abandoned house's threshold, the musty air assaulted my senses, mingling with the suffocating stench of stale beer and smoke. The place was a mess, like a tornado had ripped through it. Graffiti covered the walls where there might have been wallpaper once. Furniture was tossed around like it had been part of a brawl. Empty bottles and cans were scattered everywhere, glinting in the faint light that managed to filter in through the busted windows. Empty bottles and cans littered every available surface, glistening in the dim light that filtered through broken windows.
"What's your take on this mess? How long do you reckon this has been going on?" Randle asked, pulling me out of my thoughts.
He was standing in the middle of the living room with a toothpick hanging out the side of his mouth. His hands were stuffed in the pockets of his uniform pants as he took in the chaos.
"Judging by the state of this place, I'd say it's been quite some time. The graffiti looks like it's been here for ages, and the amount of trash didn't accumulate overnight,” I replied, striding over to where he was standing.
It had been a while since we've had a break-in around town. The last one was at Whisk Me Away when it was being renovated. It made me wonder if they moved out here after that night.
"You're right. This isn't just a one-time thing. These kids have been using this place as their personal party pad for a while now. And judging by the beer cans and cigarette butts, they're not just here for a game of cards,” Randle joked.
"My thoughts exactly. This is a full-on party spot. But what's got me concerned is the safety of these kids. I mean, look at this place. It's a disaster waiting to happen,” frustration bled into my tone.