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Chapter Twenty Four ~ Finally at peace

It was 4 in the afternoon and I decided to close up Carol's Collections early. With everything happening and Carol's connection to it all, I'm not surprised we've had less customers than usual. Only about 3 people came in today, one who was lost and needed directions to the nearest bus stop and two locals shopping for birthday presents for their parents.

As I locked the door and stepped outside, I got a blast of fresh air. It was peak time and lots of people were driving and walking home from work. I joined in the crowds and made my way down the street. It was unusual for this many people to be out and about, but I guess it was a nice evening.

As I walked towards the cafe I noticed several newspapers had escaped their stands and were being carried away by the wind. Plastered on all the front pages were "Is Carol Livingstone guilty?" and "Will this mystery killer strike again?". We lived in a small town where nothing much happened, so for a murder to take place was quite extraordinary. The press were so desperate to get their hands on any detail they could, no matter how small or insignificant.

I arrived at Cafe Well-Bean a few minutes later and pushed the door open. As I stepped through the door frame, smells of freshly baked bread and coffee filled the air. I stopped to breathe in this magnificent smell. The cafe was quiet as usual and only two of the tables were occupied. One in the corner of the cafe next to the window overlooking a nearby field. An elderly couple were sitting enjoying their afternoon snack, I assumed they were regulars as I'd seen them here quite a few times before. The other table was being used by a man who was sitting with his back me so I couldn't really see his face. He was reading today's times newspaper and sure enough it was all about the murders. There was no escaping it.

I walked towards the counter and could immediately hear Geoff's cheerful voice.
"Hello Skye!" Geoff exclaimed.
"Hi Geoff," I said less enthusiastically.
"I feel like I haven't seen you in ages," he said, emphasising the word ages.
"I know I've just been so busy with the shop and music," I said.
"Yeah, I'm sure you've lots to do at the shop with Carol... you know..." I could tell Geoff didn't want to remind me of everything that's been going on.
"Anyway," he said, trying to change the subject. "what can I get you today?"
"Hmmm, I think just the usual," I replied, looking at all the freshly baked desserts enclosed in the glass case attached to the counter.
"Coming right up," said Geoff as he disappeared into the kitchen.

A few moments later, a smiling Geoff returned clutching a bacon roll in one hand and a steaming hot cup of tea. I paid, grabbed my food, said thank you to Geoff and walked back out onto the street. I decided it was still early so I headed to my usual bench.

My bacon roll was still hot and tasted quite delicious. The chamomile tea warmed me up and I felt much better. I did feel slightly better after eating and I began to think that going to see Sandra was a good idea. Recently, I've been doing much better since starting to express my feelings in a journal. I'll admit, I wasn't very enthusiastic about it at first, but it has genuinely had a positive effect on my life.

For the first time since Piper's death, I felt rather stress free.