Never Again Read Online Free PDF Page A

her mother. She wore a yellow waitress outfit covered by a frilly white apron. Order pads and pens stuck out of the pockets on the front. Her brown hair was tugged into a ponytail and her blue eyes were much kinder. She sent Lucy an apologetic look. “Welcome to Nevermore,” she said. Then she flinched, obviously not wanting to sound too friendly. “Are you staying in town?”
    “No,” said Lucinda.
    She nodded, nibbling on her bottom lip. Her glance flicked to her mother, and then back to Lucinda. “I’m so sorry. Really.”
    “Don’t apologize,” chastised her mother. “She ain’t got no cause to be here.”
    “Ember’s tea shop is just across the street,” said the girl. “Her place is neutral ground.”
    Her gaze was filled with urgency, and Lucinda responded to it even though she had no idea why the girl would be so concerned about her welfare.
    “Thank you,” she said.
    “Hurry yourself on over there,” chirped the waitress, making shooing motions with her hands. She slanted a gaze toward the back of the restaurant, and then looked at Lucinda. “Get some of Ember’s chamomile tea. It’s real soothing.”
    Her smile seemed more brittle than bright, and if Lucinda weren’t drowning in her own emotional morass, she might wonder what problems the girl had. It was obvious she wasn’t happy. Then again, dealing every day with that mother of hers would no doubt wear down any soul.
    “Good day to you,” she said to the waitress, echoing the dismissal Gray had given her earlier. She pulled up the hood, dragged the duffel over her shoulder, and went back out into the storm.
    Even though the rain pelted her relentlessly, she felt as though something heavy had been lifted off her shoulders. The Piney Woods Café had been oppressive, the atmosphere weighted down by the negative emotions of its owner. Though it was worse in the café, the energy imbalance affected the whole town. She’d felt the shift the moment she’d arrived. It was almost as if Nevermore were sliding up and down a teeter-totter. Still, it was a lovely place. Despite the magical quavering, there was an underlying sense of peace—masked, yes, but there. It seemed to be waiting. For what, she didn’t know. Lucinda trudged down the sidewalk. She’d hitched most of the way here, but with the sky wailing like a toddler amidst a temper tantrum, she wouldn’t get a ride to Dallas, much less one all the way to the Mexican border.
    Her body shook, from cold, exhaustion, and lack of food. She gripped the strap of the duffel. C’mon, Luce. You’ll be all right. Sighing deeply, she stopped on the corner, and studied the bricked street. Two lines of black bricks laid in the opposite direction of the red ones delineated the crosswalk. There wasn’t a stoplight, or even a stop sign. She wondered how traffic was managed. Then again, how much traffic could a town with a population of 503 actually have?
    Feeling trepidation, Lucinda looked around. Her neck tingled, and she had the distinct impression someone was watching her. Probably a few people from the café had their noses pressed against the window waiting for her to get struck by lightning.
    No one was on the street, and though several cars were parked along the curb, none were actually on the move. Nevermore was such a quiet place. What was it that Gray had once told her? Oh, yes. That as soon as the streetlights came on, Nevermore rolled up its sidewalks. After the excitement of living in Europe and New York City, she wouldn’t have thought she’d ever consider living in such a tiny town. No gourmet restaurants, or theater, or coffee shops, or Neiman Marcus anywhere in sight . . . mere months ago she would’ve been appalled. But today, with nothing except a few clothes and even fewer bucks to her name, and no one to give a damn, Nevermore seemed more like sanctuary. It was almost as if she could belong here.
    Don’t be silly, Luce.
    Even if Gray allowed it—and he wouldn’t—she