“Then we just can’t let it happen,” Alice said. “We’ll all chip in and help you keep the shop.”
“We want to help,” Gwen said when Mary Beth started to protest. “After all, we all love A Stitch in Time too.”
Mary Beth squeezed her arm. “That’s sweet, but it’s not your problem. It’s mine.”
“But we can help, Mary Beth,” Peggy insisted. “We already—” She broke off, eyes wide.
Mary Beth looked at her and then at the rest of the group. “Yes, Kate told me what you were already doing.”
“We were just going to see if we could raise some money,” Annie admitted when no one else spoke up. “It was supposed to be a surprise.”
Peggy cringed. “Sorry.”
“All we did was gather up some stuff to sell,” Alice said. “It’s not a big deal.”
“Not a big deal?” Mary Beth shook her head. “You all amaze me. Thank you all for trying to help, but it’s really something I’ll have to figure out for myself.”
“We’ve been worried about you,” Alice told her. “We could tell you haven’t been yourself lately.”
“We didn’t want you to lose the shop,” Kate admitted, her head down and her dark hair falling to one side, concealing her face. “We just … . We wanted to do something to help you.”
Annie took Mary Beth’s hand, pulling her down into the empty chair next to hers. “We’re your best friends, Mary Beth. We know when something’s wrong.”
Mary Beth looked up at the ceiling, her eyes blinking rapidly. “You’re not supposed to make me do this.”
Peggy handed her a tissue. “There’s nothing better than a good cry, I always say.”
A quick dab of the tissue was all Mary Beth would allow herself. Then she straightened in her chair and put on a determined smile. “I love you all, really, but this isn’t the end of the world. I’m a big girl, and this is my problem to work out. All I can do is work hard and pray hard and see what happens. You haven’t sold any of your stuff yet, have you?”
Annie shook her head. “We’ve just been gathering things up.”
“Well,” Mary Beth said, emphatically, “then you ungather all of it. I mean it. I’m not going to have all of you giving up your nice things just because I hit a rough spot in the road.”
“We can at least help you figure out what to do,” Alice said. “I could always get you on at Divine Décor if you want me to.”
“I don’t know,” said Mary Beth. “I’m comfortable with people I meet here in the familiar surroundings of my own shop, but I don’t know if I could do what you do, Alice. Going to a different place for each customer’s ‘party’ would seem like starting a new job each time. I suppose I could get used to it, if I had to.”
Alice smiled. “I know what you mean,” she said. “I felt the same way for a while when I started out, but you do get used to it, and the people who host these sort of parties are so nice.”
“Or maybe you can move the shop,” Gwen suggested. “If you found a cheaper place, maybe things wouldn’t be quite so tight.”
Mary Beth sighed. “I wish it were that easy. Besides, I don’t think I could find a cheaper place. Not here in Stony Point. Mr. Huggins has been great about not raising my rent. He says getting paid regularly and on time is raise enough for him.”
“I’m surprised by Jeb Huggins selling out this way,” Stella said. “He’s had this place for years now.”
Mary Beth sighed. “That’s the worst part. His wife has heart problems, and he’s got to have money for all her medical expenses. No—I just have to face facts. Unless something happens, and that does not mean all of you bankrupting yourselves buying things here that you don’t really need, then I’ll have to close up.”
Stella reached over and squeezed her hand. “I wish there was something I could do, dear. Mr. Brickson left me fairly well off, but most of what I have is in annuities and trusts. I couldn’t lay my hands on enough cash at one time to really make much difference at this point.”
“When do you have to give Mr. Huggins your answer?” Alice asked.
“I have till the end of next month to let him know.”
“I thought you had some money put aside for times like this,” Gwen said. “I know my husband advises you at the bank—not that he gives me details about any of his clients of course.”
“I guess I should have listened to him when he told me to make safe, long-term investments. But I had a ‘sure thing’ awhile back and lost quite a bit of my savings. Now here I am.”
“I was afraid that was what happened,” Kate said. “I’m so sorry, Mary Beth. And I’m sorry for being such a blabbermouth.”
“You’re not a blabbermouth.” Mary Beth reached across the circle to squeeze Kate’s hand. “And thank you for worrying about me. Thanks, all of you, but you can stop now. I’ll be fine. God knows what He’s doing. If He wants me here, then He’ll show me that. If not, I just have to believe He has something new for me to do. Now let’s all get to work, or I’ll have to change our name from the Hook and Needle Club to the ‘Everybody Worry About Mary Beth Club.’”
****
“We’re not really going to forget about helping Mary Beth, are we?” Alice asked as she and Annie walked back to their cars after the meeting was over.
“Of course we’re not. And we’re also not going to let this Burly Boy thing ruin the atmosphere of downtown Stony Point. I can’t believe Ian would let that happen.”
“There’s big money behind that franchise, money Stony Point could use for a lot of good things.”
Annie stopped in her tracks. “You’re not saying you’re behind this, are you?”
“Of course not. But nothing has happened yet. All we have to do is figure out how to keep A Stitch in Time right where it is, and there won’t be any Burly Boy.”
“I suppose you’re right.” Annie scowled. “That doesn’t make me any happier with our local government.”
Alice laughed. “Just remember, they have tough decisions to make too. Don’t snap Ian’s head off next time you see him.”
“Somebody mention my name?”
Alice and Annie both turned. Ian was leaning his tall, rugged frame against a lamp post, his smile crinkling the corners of his dark brown eyes.
Annie had to press her lips together hard to keep from doing just what Alice had warned her against.
“Hello, Ian,” Alice said. “How’s the lumber mill these days?”
He winced just a little. “Staying afloat.”
“I guess times are hard for everybody,” Annie said coolly. “Obviously you know about Mr. Huggins having to sell the Bijou Theater and the building that houses A Stitch in Time.”
Ian straightened away from the lamp post. “I do, in fact. It’s part of my job.”
Feeling the heat rise in her face, Annie put her hands on her hips. “Is it also part of your job, Mr. Mayor, to sell out Stony Point to the highest bidder?”
Ian smiled and put his hands up, warding her off. “Whoa there. I’m the mayor, not the town council. There’s only so much I can do on my own.”
“But a Burly Boy? Really, Ian?”
“Don’t be so upset, Annie. It’s not a done deal yet. Not by a longshot.”
“That’s what I told her,” Alice put in.
“I’m just sorry to hear Mary Beth is having a bad time,” Ian said. “If she could stay in her building, then Burly Boy would have to go somewhere else. Huggins is the only one on the square willing to sell, and that’s only because of his wife. And Burly Boy isn’t interested in anything that’s not right in the middle of town.”
“But the zoning laws should be able to keep them out,” Annie said, finding it harder and harder to be upset with the always-reasonable Ian.
“Not if the council finds that it’s in the city’s best interest to waive certain provisions,” Ian explained. “The planning and zoning committee is looking into rezoning. If they make a recommendation to the council to rezone the prop
erty, there will have to be a public hearing. I’m sure there will be a lot of opposition, so—as I said—this is far from being a done deal. Really, Annie, I tried. I don’t like it any better than you do.”
Great. Now she was starting to feel sorry for him. Her expression softened. “I know you don’t. And I’m sorry I snapped at you. I just hate to see anything happen to Stony Point. It’s—well, it just means a lot to me.”
He winked at her. “Come on, ladies. Since we can’t get a Double Chili-Cheese Burly Boy Bonus Burger with Burly Fries here in town, I’ll treat you both to a sandwich at The Cup & Saucer.”
Annie and Alice smiled at each other, and then Alice took Ian’s arm.
“You’ve got a date.”
Ian held his other arm out invitingly. “Annie?”
Refusing to acknowledge Alice’s insinuating smirk, Annie accepted. Arm in arm, the three of them walked over to The Cup & Saucer.
****
With all the members of the Hook and Needle Club gone, Mary Beth took a moment to tidy up the shop. How could she stay down when so many people obviously cared about her and were praying for her?
She had just straightened out the display of hand-dyed embroidery floss when the phone rang.
“A Stitch in Time. This is Mary Beth. How can I help you?”
“Auntie Beth?”
Mary Beth smiled to hear Amy’s voice over the telephone. “Well hello, sweetie. How are you?”
“I’m fine, but I wanted to find out how you are.”
“I’m doing all right.” Mary Beth sank down into one of the shop’s comfy chairs. “How’s your mom? Have you heard from her lately?”
“Oh, you know how it is.” Amy’s voice took on the indifferent tone that she usually used when she talked about her mother, Melanie. “She’s in Milan or something. I don’t know.”
“I’m sure she’ll give you a call when she gets back.”
“Yeah, I guess.”
Poor Amy. As much as she tried, Mary Beth could never seem to make up for Melanie’s maternal shortcomings.
“I wish you two were closer, honey. I know your mother would like that.”
Amy sighed. “I’ll give her a call as soon as I find out where she is—if she’s not too busy to talk, OK?”
“That’d be great.”
“Anyway, I didn’t call to talk about her. I called to talk about you. I’ve been worried about you.”
“Me? Why would you worry about me?”
“I don’t know. You’ve seemed … distracted the last couple of times I’ve talked to you. Is everything all right?”
“Nothing you need to worry about. Really. It’s just that Mr. Huggins may be selling this building, and that means I’m going to have to make some changes.”
“Oh Auntie Beth, no. Does that mean you have to move the shop? Can’t you just keep renting from the new owner?”
“It’s not as easy as that,” Mary Beth admitted. “The buyer they’re considering wants to tear down my place and the theater next door to put in a fast-food restaurant.”
“That’s just not right. Can’t you buy the building?”
Mary Beth laughed. It was easier than crying. “You know I don’t have that kind of money, sweetie.”
“Maybe I could—”
“No, you’re not going to do anything silly. I know how hard you’ve worked for what you have, and I know things haven’t been easy for you lately either. I’ll be fine. Really. Things will work out.”
Amy was silent for a long moment. “But you love the shop. And you’ve worked hard for it too. It’s not right for you to lose it after all these years.”
“I don’t know that there’s any right and wrong about it. Businesses either make it, or they don’t. No matter how hard you try, sometimes you have to try something else. But I’m not giving up quite yet, sweetie. We’ll see what happens. Either way, I don’t want you to worry about me. I’d rather tell you about something exciting that happened. Annie Dawson was up in her grandmother’s attic the other day. You remember all the stuff she has up there. Turns out your grandmother had given Annie’s grandmother a little china vase on a brass stand … .”
5
Once Mary Beth had told Amy about the key and the table and the clue Geoffrey Whyte had left for Angeline to find, she found her mood had improved, and Amy didn’t sound quite as anxious as she had when she first called. By the time she told her niece goodbye, she was humming and tidying up the shop. She felt particularly cheery when the phone rang again.
“A Stitch in Time. This is Mary Beth. How can I help you?”
“Um, hi. Miss Brock? This is Mandy Culbertson. I wanted to know if today was a good day for me to come and help you at your store.”
“Oh.”
Mary Beth blinked, hardly knowing what to say in response. She had totally forgotten about agreeing to let Amanda work at the shop. It had seemed like a good idea at the time to her and to Amanda’s mother when they had discussed it after the accident. After all, the girl should take some responsibility for the damage her carelessness had caused. Now Mary Beth wasn’t sure she felt like dealing with it.
“Um … yes, hi, Mandy. How are you?”
“I’m fine. I just got caught up on some research I had to do for a school paper, so I thought I’d come by and help you for a while.”
“Uh … yeah. OK. Umm, you know, Mandy, I appreciate your wanting to help and everything, and I was very happy to have you help getting the glass all cleaned up and the merchandise put back where it belonged after the accident, but really, that was plenty. I don’t think you need to—”
“But, Miss Brock, I really want to help. I know the insurance paid for everything, but that accident was totally my fault, and I want to make it up to you. Please.”
“That is very sweet of you, Mandy.” Mary Beth looked around trying to figure out what the girl could do that would be helpful and not need constant supervision. “Um, when would you like to come?”
“Whenever you want. I can come now, if you want me to. Is that all right?”
“Um, sure. Right now is good.” Except I don’t have a clue what to do with you when you get here. “That’ll be great, Mandy. I’ll see you in a little while.”
A few minutes later, as she was tidying up a display of new yarns at the back of the shop, Mary Beth heard the front door open. Mary Beth quickly stuffed the yarns in the appropriate basket and called out, “Hi, Mandy—that was quick! You must have been just down the street.”
Mary Beth walked to the front of the shop, expecting to see the teenage girl, but instead, an imposing-looking, thirty-something woman and a very young man stood just inside the front door. It wasn’t Mandy Culbertson. It wasn’t anyone she’d ever seen before.
“Ms. Brock?” said the woman.
Mary Beth’s face had registered her surprise, but then she put on a pleasant, professional smile. “I’m sorry. I was expecting someone else. But, yes, I’m Mary Beth Brock. What can I do for you?”
The woman snapped her manicured fingers, and the baby-faced young man behind her handed her a business card. She immediately thrust the card at Mary Beth.
“I’m Kyrie McMillan. I’m with SLR & FFH, Incorporated. You know us better as Burly Boy’s Burger Barns. As you may know, we’re in the process of purchasing this property for development. With your permission, we’d like to do a brief review of the interior, including the basement and any access areas, in order to get a better idea not only of an appropriate purchase price, but also any potential assets or materials that could be salvaged before demolition of the building.”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa. What was that?”
The woman looked as if she wanted to roll her eyes. “With your permission, we’d like to do a brief review of the interior, including the basement and any access areas—”
“I got that part. What I didn’t get is that you had actually made a deal to buy this property or that Mr. Huggins had given you permission to, what did you say? ‘Review
the interior’?”
The woman’s young assistant squirmed in his too-large suit coat, but he didn’t make a sound. The woman, on the other hand, did not look as if she were one to squirm at all. Ever.
“I understand the final details are being worked out with the owner, Mr. …”
She turned to glare at her assistant who was fumbling with some papers in a file folder.
“Mr. Huggins,” he whispered.
“Mr. Huggins.” The woman turned again to Mary Beth. “But, as you can well understand, Ms. Brock, it’s helpful to do a certain amount of planning even before the actual deal is agreed upon. I trust you have no objections to us merely looking at the property? We promise not to disturb anything or interfere with your customers.” She peered into the shop. “If any should actually come in.”
Mary Beth managed to keep smiling. “I think, seeing as you don’t actually have a contract in place for this property, I would rather wait until Mr. Huggins—”
“Get Huggins on the phone,” the woman directed her assistant. “He’ll be at that medical center number in the file.”
He took a phone from his inside pocket and started punching in numbers. Obviously, neither of them cared that Mr. Huggins was at the hospital with his ailing wife.
“No, wait.” Mary Beth exhaled heavily. “Don’t bother him now. If you really think you need to, come on in and look around all you like.”
The young man secreted the phone in his inside pocket once more, and Mary Beth stepped aside to let him and his boss into the shop.
“The back room is through there, and you’ll find the steps to the basement in there too. Still, I hate to see you wasting your time here if Mr. Huggins doesn’t end up selling to you.”
The other woman smirked. “That won’t happen, Ms. Brock. I’ve been handling these demos for a lot of years. Some of the owners and residents squawk a little at first, especially in the smaller towns, but they finally come around. There’s no stopping progress. Come along, Greg.”
The two of them disappeared into the back room. A few minutes later, they were back up again, the young assistant writing down his boss’s observations as quickly as she could fire them off.
The Key in the Attic Page 4