by K. J. Emrick
Jon had told them about turning Chip over to the State Police, and how the warrant for Izzy had been rescinded given the circumstances. She would still have to make several statements and testify at any number of hearings, but for the moment she was free.
Helen arrived with trays of cookies and muffins and little finger sandwiches. Not long after, the store was full of people from town, eating, laughing, and dancing to music.
Great Aunt Millie was there too. At one point, a single balloon untied itself from a chair and came floating over to hang in front of Lilly until the little girl grabbed its string. Millie always had loved children. It’s such a shame that she’d never had any of her own.
Sue was late in arriving to her own party. When she got there, the whole place erupted in cheers and applause, causing the young woman to blush fiercely. Beside her, a young man with a kind face broke into a wide smile and leaned over and whispered in Sue’s ear, making her blush even harder. Darcy recognized Zach, Sue’s boyfriend.
The two of them came over to where Darcy and Izzy were standing. “Hi Sue!” Darcy said. “Like your party?”
“You shouldn’t have done all this, Darcy!” Sue was laughing, holding Zach’s hand tightly. “This is too much.”
“It’s not even close to enough to show my appreciation for everything you’ve done here. Everyone in town is going to miss you. Oh, this is Izzy McIntosh. Izzy, this is Sue and her boyfriend Zach.”
“Nice to finally meet you,” Sue said. They talked for a while and then Helen came to pull Sue off to some other people.
After Sue walked away Darcy turned to Izzy. “You know, with Sue leaving I’m going to need someone to help me here at the store. And if I remember, you kind of need a job.”
“Boy, do I ever,” Izzy sighed. “I have no idea what state my finances are in. I have to have Chip declared alive again, and see if I’m entitled to any of his money or if it all has to go to pay back what he stole, and it just keeps getting worse the more I think about it. A job would definitely help.”
“Then why don’t you come work for me?”
Izzy looked mildly surprised. “That’s so generous of you. Are you sure?”
“Well, it’s actually kind of selfish on my part. I’m going to need someone to help me with the surprise Sue and I put together. Jon!” She called across to him and he looked over, his mouth full of a muffin he had just bitten into. He came over to her, kissing her with crumbs still on his mouth. “Silly man,” she said. “Can you stay with Izzy for a few minutes? I need to do something.”
Leaving Izzy with him, she rounded Sue back up from the crowd again. “Are you ready to show everyone?”
Sue nodded, too excited to speak. They went over to the cash register, to the object covered over by the counter, and Darcy called for everyone’s attention. With the music still playing in the background everyone quieted down and waited for what the big announcement was.
“I’m so glad that everyone made it for Sue’s going away party,” Darcy said loudly. She looked out and saw so many faces she recognized. Clara Barstow, Blake Underwood and Evelyn Casey, Linda and her boss Marla and all the others. “This town has always been a place where good people come together to help each other. We’re losing a good friend as Sue goes off to fulfil her dream.” Applause rippled around the room and Darcy had to pause to let it die down.
“We’re also going to welcome a new friend today,” Darcy went on. “Can we all say hello to Izzy McIntosh, and her daughter Lilly?”
There were murmured hellos and whispered questions among everyone, and a few people came over to introduce themselves personally to an obviously flustered Izzy.
“Before Sue leaves, we want to show you what we’ve been working on.” Everyone’s attention was back on Darcy again. She nodded to Sue, and Sue nodded back, and both of them took a corner of the tablecloth to lift it up and over with a little flourish.
Underneath was a stand-up display made from heavy duty yellow cardboard. Across the top of the display were tall red letters. “A Library in Your Hands,” it read. In the display itself were three rows of neatly stacked e-readers, all in brand new boxes.
Approving murmurs rippled through the room. “I am proud to announce,” Darcy said, “that the Sweet Read Bookstore is now offering e-readers for sale, along with a slew of your favorite books in electronic format to purchase or rent.”
Darcy smiled over at Sue. “Thank you,” she whispered. “You did a great job on this.”
The young woman, one of Darcy’s best friends, came over and hugged Darcy tightly. “I’ll miss you,” she said.
“I’ll miss you, too.” Darcy was surprised to feel tears in her eyes. A mix of emotions swept through her. She had spent so much of her life being the oddball, but in moments like these she could see how truly loved she was, and how many friends she had.
Misty Hollow was truly a wonderful place to live. Fate had led Izzy and Lilly to just the place they needed to be when they were in trouble.
Of course, trouble always found Darcy Sweet. She knew another mystery would come to town soon enough. They always did.
The End
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About the Author
Strongly influenced by authors like James Patterson, Dick Francis, and Nora Roberts, Kathrine Emrick is an up and coming talent in the writing world. She is a new Kindle author/publisher and brings a variety of experiences and observations to her writing.
Based in Australia, Kathrine has wanted to be an author for the majority of her life and can always be found jotting down daily notes in a journal. Like many authors, she loves to be surrounded by books and is a voracious reader.
In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her family and volunteering at the local library.
Her goal is to become a bestselling author, regularly producing noteworthy content and engaging in a community of readers and writers.
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