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community, so he made it all sound bad enough to get a temporary protective order for himself and Sydney. I assume he thinks having three thousand miles between them will minimize the danger in the future."
    Kate pulled out the aspirin bottle. "Sounds like a good plan for him, but what about Lila?"
    " Hopefully, she can stay close enough to Sydney to benefit from the protective order." Meg tapped the bottle. "You have another headache? Not to play mother hen or anything, but you're still recuperating from getting bashed around last month by Amelia's killer, and the doctor told you not to overdo for a couple of months. It's nearly two, and we haven't eaten yet. I think it's time for a good break."
    Was it really that late? They 'd been so busy with the lists and the labels and interruptions, the day truly had raced. "You know, we've accomplished a lot today. By the time we go and eat anything it will be time for you to pick Ben up from school to take him to his soccer practice anyway. We have to be here early tomorrow to make sure we meet the security guy, so let's knock off now."
    " You're the boss." Meg grinned when she added, "But you know, as an organization expert you really ought to have a better handle on the time. I could probably turn you in for workplace abuse or something."
    Fifteen minutes later they we re in the café at The Book Nook and sinking spoons into a creamy chicken tortilla soup. The owner of the shop, Saree, was a Jamaican immigrant who'd married a New Orleans history professor, then moved with him a year ago when he gained a better position at the nearby university. Kate watched Saree's graceful movements as she rang up a book sale, her colorful batik cotton dress matching many of the children's book covers she bagged up for the smiling mother making the purchase. When Saree finished her task, she grabbed the tea pitcher and an empty glass and swayed between the tables to where Kate and Meg sat in one sun-filled corner.
    " Hello, chickies, how are you today?" Saree greeted in her musical cadence. She topped their iced tea glasses, then filled the empty one for herself and took a seat. "It is a beautiful day and so warm in this spot."
    " Your whole shop is warm, Saree, in more than a hundred ways." Kate laughed. "I had a headache coming on before we arrived here, but your delicious food and atmosphere licked it in a flash."
    Saree pointed to the sign over the doorway that read "Nourishing the mind and the soul."
    " Nothing better for chasin' away those nasty headaches. Oh!" Saree rose from the chair and moved back to the sales register. There were no customers in line. Kate watched to see what made her move away so quickly.
    A moment later Saree pulled several large books from a shelf beneath the counter, sacked them in one of the double-handled Book Nook heavy-paper tote bags, and returned to the table.
    "The scrapbooks you ordered arrived." Saree sat the bag on the empty chair beside Kate.
    " Are you trying a new hobby, Katie?" Meg asked. She reached to pull one edge of the bag open farther to take a look, and Kate removed a book and set it on the table so she could see it better.
    " The books are for the Collier kids. My idea kind of goes as a flip to the one Lila referenced today when she brought the memory books." Kate opened the cover of the book. "I plan to give one to each of the kids on moving day, so they can build scrapbooks about their lives when they're apart from one another. Then, the younger kids can mail their California adventure books to Sydney, and she can mail hers to the two of them in So Cal." Kate shrugged. "I thought it might help them feel they were staying better in touch with one another if they added ticket stubs and pictures and memory bits that point to the places and events they'd been to while everyone is apart."
    Meg flipped through the blank pages. "Great idea. And what a good size. You are always thinking of things I never even consider. I feel like such a shlub."
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