by Robert Ladd
CHAPTER TWO
“Murdered?” Emma said. “But how? Who?”
“I don’t know,” Nicholas whispered. “But keep the children close today. Don’t let them out of your sight.”
Emma nodded, as if she would ever let the children out of her sight now. “Poor Naomi,” she said, as she rubbed her paws together. “Poor, poor, poor, poor, poor Naomi.”
Naomi was Tammeus Bear’s wife.
“There’s a meeting at Gray-Rock tonight,” Nicholas said. “I’ll ask the others if there’s anything we can do for her and her family.”
Suddenly Emma brightened. “I know what I’m going to do,” she said. “I’m going to bake Naomi something.” Pleased with own decision, Emma immediately went about the task of gathering flour, sugar and mixing bowls.
Baking was Emma’s way of dealing with stress. There was something about whipping up a batch of brownies that helped settle her nerves. And since she was nervous quite often, the Groundhog family never went without plenty of food.