Read Sweets Forgotten (Samantha Sweet Mysteries Book 10) for Free Online Page B

personally. She hung up and went back to the cinnamon-sugar ambiance
of her own shop.
    “Hey, Sam,” Jen greeted. “I was
just totaling the register. Looks like we’ve had a decent day.”
    Sam crossed behind the counter to
take a look. It was amazing how certain days turned out well, even when it
didn’t feel like a lot of traffic had come in.
    “Becky and I were playing a
little game with Jane awhile ago, tossing out names to see if she recognized
her own.”
    “And?” A rush of hope.
    “No luck. No flicker even.”
    “Ah well.” She told Jen about her
call just now to Beau. “I’d better inform her.”
    It wasn’t as if Jane had any
belongings to gather, so when Melissa Masters pulled up in front of Sweet’s
Sweets thirty minutes later she was ready to go.
    Melissa turned out to be a woman
in her fifties, probably near Sam’s age but far more matronly with polyester
slacks and a pastel color-coordinated blouse. Her hair reached her collar in short
gray waves and her smile was genuine, the sort that radiated kindness and
understanding toward those who had endured way too much in their lives. Jane
seemed to feel instantly at ease with the social worker.
    “We’ll go to Casa Comfort,”
Melissa said. “The sheriff knows where we are.”
    Sam nodded.
    “Jane, you’ll share a room with
another lady tonight. We have nightgowns and toothbrushes and most anything
you’ll need. Depending on how many are with us at any given time, sometimes you
get a room of your own. We put women with children in the larger ones and there
are bunk beds for them. But don’t worry about it. I’m sure the sheriff will
find your identity and get your home address real soon.”
    Jane seemed a little confused by all
the plans, but Sam knew that must be normal. She watched as Melissa showed Jane
out to a white Ford sedan and settled her comfortably in the passenger seat.
She’d never thought of the logistics necessary to take people in on a moment’s
notice, some of them indefinitely.
    They drove away and Sam wondered
if she would ever see Jane again. Quite likely, Beau would come up with her
identity, and anxious family members would come pick her up. With luck maybe
Jane’s memory would come back immediately when she saw familiar faces and
surroundings. Otherwise, she might be in for a long haul of medical and
psychiatric care.
    “Sam?” Jen touched her forearm.
“You okay?”
    “Absolutely.” She surveyed the
sales room. “Ready to close?”
    “Here’s the bank bag. I think
everyone else has already left.”
    Suddenly, the long day closed in
on Sam and she felt an overwhelming need to get home. In the kitchen, Julio had
washed and neatly put away all the baking utensils. The oven was off and
Becky’s orders for the next day waited on the worktable. The lights, other than
the one above Sam’s desk, were off.
    After checking the front door
behind Jen, she jammed the bank deposit into her backpack purse, switched out
the final lamp, got into her van and drove north. Thank goodness for the crockpot
chicken waiting at home; at this moment she didn’t even have the energy to stop
for fast food.
    I miss the box , she thought as she edged through the stop-and-go
traffic past the pueblo turnoff. No, you
don’t. You can’t turn to magic every time you get a little tired.
    An ancient VW with a wheezing
engine and bumper stickers all over the back, slowed abruptly to make the turn
at the health food market, and Sam had to hit her brakes to avoid rear-ending
it.
    “Get your taillights fixed,” she
muttered to the oblivious driver, reminding herself to stay alert. It wasn’t
that much farther.
    The turnoff for the ranch
welcomed her, the stone portals on each side of the long drive and the carved
lintel connecting them gave the place a solid feel. Beau’s big log house, where
Sam had moved when they married, welcomed her in the late dusk. Lights at the
windows and the sight of his cruiser parked out front comforted her.