Golden Stair (23 page)
His gaze darted toward the back of the shop, but he made no move to turn away from her. “Have you seen Mrs. Downing?”
Afraid we’ll be interrupted?
She resisted the urge to smirk at what she interpreted as a child’s paranoia of getting caught with his hand in the cookie jar.
“She’s in the back getting my order.” Reminded of the fact that she was
still
waiting, Ana scowled at the curtain covering the doorway that led to the back of the shop. As convenient as Mrs. Downing’s absence had turned out to be, she still despised being kept waiting. “She assured me it wouldn’t be, but a moment.”
“Mrs. Downing does like to take her time, doesn’t she?”
Forcing her attention away from her impatience, Ana focused on the selkie.
“You sound like you’ve experienced Mrs. Downing’s efficiency before.”
He nodded. “I come in fairly frequently.”
“You live in town?”
“Just outside town you might say.”
Like in the sea just off the shore not a hundred yards away? Is it possible that you left your skin within walking distance?
“Was your trip into town solely to visit Mrs. Downing’s lovely establishment or will you be making a whole day of shopping?” She tried to keep her voice light and only politely inquisitive. For the first time in her life, she was grateful for the nosey nature of Haines’ inhabitants. Brec wouldn’t be the least bit suspicious of her questions. She could probably inquire as to the color of his underwear without making him flinch.
Brec rolled his eyes. “I’m afraid my brother will have some say in that. I have no doubt he’ll drag me to a wide variety of shops before he’ll be ready to head back home.” He leaned in somewhat conspiringly. “I only need to shop here. After that I could do whatever I wanted while I waited for my brother to finish. I’m a sort of doctor, you might say, so I need to come here for—”
“Here you are, Ana,” Mrs. Downing announced, coming through the doorway from the back of the shop. “All set.”
“Thank you so much, Mrs. Downing.” Ana snatched the bag of herbs from the old woman’s hands. The selkie would be shopping with his brother for awhile. If she hurried, she could make it to the shore and be on her way home before he finished. Guilt rolled through her stomach, tightening into a hard knot. Clenching her teeth, she desperately shoved it away. She had to try. She couldn’t last much longer. “Put it all on my tab!” she called to Mrs. Downing. She dashed toward the door, willing herself not to look back.
Jennifer Blackstream is a psychology enthusiast with both a B.A. and M.A. in Psychology. Her fascination with the human mind is most appeased through the study of mythology and folklore as well as the novels of Terry Pratchett.
Jennifer enjoys listening to Alice Cooper, trying new recipes (to which she will add garlic whether it calls for it or not), watching television with her family, and playing with her woefully intelligent young son. She lives in
Ohio
.
Jennifer spends most of her time drinking coffee from her X-Men mug and desperately trying to get all her ideas written down before her son can find that all magical button on her laptop to make her latest work vanish.
To learn more about Jennifer Blackstream and her novels, visit her website at
http://www.jenniferblackstream.com
.
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- The Skeleton Crew
Golden Stair
©Copyright Jennifer Blackstream 2014
Skeleton Key Publishing
Cover Art Elaina of For the Muse Designs © Copyright October 2013
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Published in 2013 by Skeleton Key Publishing,
Norton
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Ohio
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United States of America