The Truth-Teller's Tale Read Online Free PDF Page B

instance, Joe Muller came up to me one day as I waited for my sister outside the bakery and said, “I need to talk something through with someone,” he said. “Do you have a minute?”
    â€œCertainly,” I said.
    He hesitated, running a hand through his thinning brown hair as he attempted to formulate his thoughts. “I’ve been thinking about buying the old Windemere place,” he said. “I might buy some sheep and see if I can get a little flock going. Karro said he’d ship the wool for me at cost for the first two years, and then I’d pay him double for two years. I haven’t told anyone about it, because I know Ralph Haskins is thinking about buying the place, too.”
    I couldn’t believe it. “Are you mad?” I demanded. “There are more sheep farms near Merendon than there are boats in the harbor. If you’re going to buy the place, that’s fine, it’s a good property, but think of something else to do with it. And never make any deal with Karro or anyone that means you have to pay twice the going rate at any point in the future. Can’t you do basic math? You don’t have to worry about old man Haskins, though. He doesn’t have enough money to buy the Windemere place. I don’t think anyone does but you. You can probably get a better price than the one you were offered.”
    Joe stared at me with his mouth hanging open. It was a full minute before he was able to speak again. “I guess you’re not Adele,” he said at last.
    â€œNo,” I said in a huffy voice. “I guess I’m not.”
    Now he began to smile. “But maybe that’s not such a bad thing. So you don’t think I’m much of a businessman, do you? But you approve of the Windemere property?”
    â€œI think you should be a little more careful about the deals you make,” I said, a bit embarrassed and trying to repair some of my damage. “But I do think you should buy the Windemere place.”
    â€œWhat should I pay for it? What’s it worth? And what should I do with it if I don’t run sheep?”
    We talked over his options for a few more minutes, until Adele came out of the bakery carrying a bag of bread. “Hello, Joe,” she said with a quick smile. “Were you looking for me?”
    I surmised that they had had some conversation in the past when he mentioned he might want to confide some of his business decisions to her.
    He was grinning broadly now. “No,” he said. “I think your sister has helped me figure it all out. Thanks, girls. I’ll be in touch.”
    Adele watched him thoughtfully as he walked away, then turned her head so she could inspect me. I couldn’t keep the smug expression from my face. “I suppose you gave him some good advice,” she said at last.
    â€œI suppose I did.”
    I expected her to be irritated, but that was the thing about Adele. She never seemed to feel such uncharitable emotions, or else she knew how to hide them. “Good,” she said. “Let’s go home.”
    For the most part, the residents of Merendon did not make the same mistake that Joe Muller and Widow Norville had. They did not want to risk talking to the wrong sister. Most people realized pretty quickly that they could not simply ask “Are you the Truth-Teller?” or “Are you the Safe-Keeper?” because Adele was capricious and I wasn’t always around to give a straightforward answer. After some trial and error, the townspeople settled on one particular question that seemed guaranteed to net the appropriate response: “Is it safe to tell you a secret?” Adele always answered yes to that, and I always answered no. I believe strangers who were sent looking for us were also told to use this password, and I know our parents generally warned their overnight guests to ask us something of the sort before they began to pour out their hearts. So