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sure what to believe about him at this point. I guess it’s possible that he was faking it, but I’ve been doing this for some time, and he seemed genuine.”
    “All right, thanks for updating me, Luke.”
    “How are you this morning?”
    “I’m doing okay. Did you hear about the woman outside the post office this morning?”
    “Yes, a patrol officer took care of that. He suspected the woman heard about Emma’s death and became paranoid about it.”
    “She didn’t have any real evidence that it was a murder?”
    “No, he said as soon as he arrived she stopped shouting and started mumbling about cover-ups, and the town being a hot bed of ignorant criminals.”
    “Wow, quite opinionated.”
    “Yes. Anyway, we think she might have needed some mental help which we are going to organize, but nothing to be too concerned about.”
    “Okay, thanks Luke. You should come by when you can, Mee-Maw made some fantastic muffins.”
    “First chance I get, I’ll be there.”
    “We’re closing after lunch.”
    “My morning is pretty packed. I’ll text you if I can get over there.”
    “Bye Luke.”
    When he hung up the phone Ally sighed. One more dead end, and nothing to convince Luke that the death might be a murder. Although many customers came into the shop throughout the morning the normal jovial atmosphere wasn’t there. Most people uttered a few words, or discussed in whispers what had happened to Emma. After lunch, Ally was more than eager to close up.
    “I don’t think I could take one more sad look in my direction.” She frowned as she locked the door. “I wish so many people didn’t know that it was me that found Emma.”
    “It’s a small town, unfortunately everybody knows everything,” Charlotte said.
    “Yes, but I wonder about Mavis ranting near the post office this morning. Does she know more than all of us? Maybe I should try to talk to her.”
    “First, let’s head over to Jack’s. I’m sure he’s had his share of casseroles brought to his door, let’s bring something sweet to him,” Charlotte suggested.
    “Yes, I want to see how he’s doing. I’ll take care of closing up.” Ally grabbed a rag and some cleaning solution to wipe down the counters.
    Charlotte tapped her chin as she looked through the selection of chocolates. “What kind do you think Jack will like? Emma used to buy a variety. Jack only moved to Blue River when he married Emma a few months ago and was often away for work so I don’t think I’ve ever seen him in the shop.”
    Ally frowned as she looked in the display case. “I’m not sure. Maybe we should just take him some of each. If he just lost his wife he may not even want to eat, so at least he’ll have something to offer any guests or family members that might be there for the funeral.”
    “Good point. I’ll put together a big box.” As Charlotte set about packaging the chocolates, Ally noticed the sign for Emma’s yard sale still hung in the window. With a heavy heart she walked over and took the sign down. She couldn’t bring herself to crumple it up and throw it away so she folded it neatly and tucked it into the drawer under the cash register. She reached into her purse for her phone to check for texts. When she opened her purse, she noticed the wooden box that they had purchased from the yard sale.
    “I guess this is even more of a treasure now, isn’t it?” She held it up for her grandmother to see. Charlotte wrapped the chocolates in a deep purple bow and then looked up.
    “Yes, it is. Maybe you should have it at the cottage for a while. It might not be a good idea to put it on display in the shop just yet.”
    “You’re right. Someone could recognize it from the sale. We’ll wait a few months then add it to the collection.” Ally tucked the box into her purse and then took the chocolates from her grandmother. “Should we head over now?”
    “Better now I think, before too many people have a chance to bother him.”
    “Good idea.” Ally