Read Online Return to Willow Lake by Susan Wiggs - Free Book Online Page A

on a bit of kolache, Sonnet Romano had
breezed into the bakery, completely by herself. She wore a pink backpack with
pockets and zippers, and pencils all lined up like bullet cartridges in an ammo
belt. She wore her curly black hair in twin braids, and a pair of horn-rimmed
glasses perched on her nose.
    All by herself, she marched up to the counter. Her pointy
little chin barely reached the edge. “One iced maple bar, please. And can you
put it in a nice box? It’s for my teacher. Today is my first day in kindergarten
and I’m bringing her a treat.” She carefully placed her money on the counter.
“My mom said this is the right amount. She had to work today.”
    Zach stared at her in amazement. His mother nodded with
approval. “It’s that nice Sonnet Romano from play group. Why don’t you go say
hi?”
    Zach recoiled in horror. He nearly gagged on his pastry.
    While Sonnet waited for her parcel, she turned, zeroing in on
him like a laser. “You’re Zach,” she said. “You’re in Miss Nelson’s class, same
as me.”
    He couldn’t think of anything to say, so he blurted out the
first thing that popped into his mind. “Why are you wearing those glasses?”
    “They make me look smarter,” she said, tilting up her chin with
pride. She turned abruptly, pigtails flying out like helicopter rotors. Then she
picked up a pink cardboard box sealed with string, and went to the door.
    She paused and turned to Zach. “Well? Are you coming?”
    His mom had given him a hug. “Go ahead, sweetheart. It’s going
to be a wonderful day.”
    Zach shook his head at the memory. Even
then . At the age of five, Sonnet knew exactly where she was going,
and he was expected to follow along.
    He sipped his coffee and frowned at the screen of his iPhone.
He was supposed to be getting organized for the day, and instead he’d let his
mind wander to a time back in ancient history. With a will, he made himself
focus on the present.
    The present wasn’t a bad place to be. Here and now, with the
future glimmering ahead like a sunrise on the horizon. He needed to move in that
direction, not dwell in the past.
    Through the shop window, he watched the town getting ready for
the day. Shopkeepers rolled out their awnings and displayed their wares on the
walkways. Delivery trucks disgorged supplies to restaurants, and people walked
briskly toward the train station. Like any small town, an atmosphere of
familiarity colored the scene. Zach had always liked that about Avalon. Being
part of a small community filled in somewhat for his crappy family
situation.
    He had been on his own ever since high school, when his father
was led away in handcuffs, the town disgrace. Zach was left with a house in
foreclosure, a mountain of unpaid bills and a reputation in tatters. Matthew
Alger had defrauded the town of Avalon. He’d picked the pockets of people who
could scarcely buy groceries, let alone pay their local taxes.
    Zach had made a vow that day. He would make restitution to the
people his father had defrauded. It would surely take years, but he would do
what he could. It wouldn’t happen on his salary from Wendela’s, though. Through
the years, he had been depositing whatever he could into the city treasury,
trying to chip away at his father’s debt, bit by bit.
    He was going to miss this place. But he had to go, and soon.
How else was he going to find his life? Filming weddings and bar mitzvahs and
retirement parties was a way to make ends meet. But being a filmmaker…that was
his life. And he couldn’t very well do that in Avalon. Sure, the town looked as
pretty as a picture on a postcard, so pretty it made your heart ache. But pretty
didn’t pay the bills. To do that, he needed to go where the work was. But he was
stuck in a conundrum. Due to lack of funds, he had not gone after what he
wanted.
    Zach’s phone rang, and he did a double take. The name that came
up was the one he least expected—the longest of longshots: Mickey