The Ruth Valley Missing Read Online Free PDF Page A

here.”
    “Oh yes. It’s a very
close community here. Can’t do much here without it being noticed. Keeps
everyone safe.”  
    Once all the bags were
in the room, I closed the door, this time, without locking it.  
    “Heading out?” Maria
stood between me and the stairs, clutching her apron.
    “In a few. I still
need to sign papers for the house I’m renting, and get some groceries.”
    “Would you like to sit
and have some tea before you go?”
    The look on Maria’s
face was a hopeful one. She seemed excited at the prospect of having someone to
sit and chat with over tea. It was a bit chilly outside, so it didn’t seem like
such a bad idea.
    “That sounds great.”
    I followed her
downstairs and had a seat in the kitschy sitting room, Elvis and Shirley Temple
staring down at me from collectible plates.
    “I’m just going to pop
into the kitchen and grab us some tea. Cookies or scones?”
    “Scones, please.”
    As I waited, I thought
about how smoothly everything was going. Within less than a few days, I’d found
lodging, with a sheriff for a landlord, found most of what I needed in town,
and already spotted several spots that I wanted to explore with my camera. More
than anything, I was starting to feel somewhat relaxed, a feeling I hadn’t had
in, well, years.
    “I made Earl Grey.”
    Maria walked out with
a little blue and white pot on a tray with a creamer and a pot of sugar cubes.
Next to the sugar were scones, still warm from the oven.
    “So you’re renting the
house behind Jack?”
    “Yeah. Did I mention
that earlier?”
    “No, but word spreads
like fire in this town.”
    Word barely spread
through my old apartment building. Even if there was an actual fire.
    “So, what’s Jack
like?”
    “Oh, he’s a
sweetheart. Takes good care of the town. Everyone adores that man.”
    “Yeah?”
    “Yup. I mean, we don’t
get much mischief around here, but if there’s even a whiff of it, he has it
taken care of.”
    I sipped my tea,
listening, happy to hear my soon to be landlord had such a favorable
reputation. Maria leaned in to grab a scone, looked around as if someone was
listening, then spoke in a hushed voice, “He’s not too bad on the eyes,
either.”
    She patted my hand,
her eyebrows raised before grabbing a scone and leaning back in her chair. I
smiled and nibbled on a scone to avoid comment. She was right. He was very
handsome, but that wasn’t something I wanted to dwell on at the moment, so I
changed the subject.
    “So, I’ll probably be
checking out tomorrow morning. I was planning on getting myself moved in first
thing.”
    “On a Sunday morning?
You’ll miss Mass.”
    “Oh.” The sudden
change in Maria’s friendly demeanor, her stiffened posture and pulled-together
brow told me I shouldn’t mention that I hadn’t been to Mass, or any other
church service for that matter, in ages. “I hadn’t thought about that.”
    “Obviously. Mass is at
ten.”
    “It’s been a crazy
week. I guess the days just started to blend together.” I let out an awkward
laugh. That, and my agreement to be in church the next day seemed to return her
to her normally cheerful mood.
    My Sunday plans were
suddenly much fuller than I had counted on.

Chapter 8
    I walked into the
church minutes before it was going to start. I was hoping to slide into a back
pew unnoticed and zip out just as quickly when it ended. I had originally
planned out my whole day, including groceries and some more shopping, ending in
the window seat of my new bedroom with a cup of tea and a book. Mass was
putting a significant cramp in those plans.
    As I walked in, I was
shocked to see the pews full, including the ones in the back. In all my days of
attending Mass as a child, our church was half full on a good day, and the pews
at the back were even empty for holiday services.
    Everyone in town must
be here, I thought. I stood on my toes trying to scope out an empty spot somewhere
close by when I felt a nudge.
    I looked over