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confused.
    “Yes, you. I find it a bit odd that two major crimes have occurred in the last week involving people you are somehow connected with.”
    “That’s ridiculous!” I snapped, switching from shocked sorrow to anger.
    “It’s okay, Sophie. The officers are just doing their job.” He squeezed my elbow and looked directly at them. “I was at a press conference this morning.”
    “Yes, the one that was televised live.” I added, just to be sure it was clear that Wes was in
no
way responsible for killing poor Ms. Mary.
    The officers nodded and wrote in their notepads.
    “Thank you for the information. Please call us if you can think of anything else.” The thinner one, Officer Petty, I had taken notice of his name tag by then, handed over a business card. Then they each gave a brief nod to Mr. Healey, Danny, and Wes, ignored me altogether, and walked out.
    I turned to Mr. Healey. “I don’t believe it.”
    “I know, Sophie. It doesn’t make sense.”
    Wes made a more sympathetic comment. “I don’t know who could be so cruel.”
    Danny added, “I know. It’s crazy.”
    “So what now?” I asked.
    “I’m not sure. I’m going to reach out to her family. I know she has several daughters in the area.” Mr. Healey pressed his lips together, as if holding back emotion, and then walked toward the back room, leaving us to let the news sink in.
    “Ms. Mary worked here for twenty years.” Danny sighed. “She used to babysit us.”
    “I feel terrible.” In fact, I was starting to feel all cruddy again.
    “Do you want me to take you home?”
    I looked at Wes. “No, I’m okay. I just think it’s really tragic. She was so nice.”
    “Are you sure? I can take you.”
    He looked as if he didn’t want to leave, and I almost didn’t want him to, but I knew he couldn’t hang out with me at the store all day. “I’m okay. Really. You need to go to class. Pick me up when I get off. I’ll be all right.”
    He leaned down and kissed me on the forehead. “Call me if you need anything.” Reluctantly, he turned and headed for the door.
    I gave him a genuine smile, considering the circumstances, and turned to Danny. He appeared almost as shaken up as his father. “You okay?”
    He shook off the concern directed toward him. “Yeah, I’m all right, but it just won’t be the same around here. She kept my dad organized and me in check. We’ll miss her, that’s for sure.”
    I wanted to offer a hug, and then thought it might be awkward. Then I wondered who would hug him. I had never seen Danny with any girl. No one ever brought him lunch or dinner. I never saw him on his phone or texting or anything. And he was good-looking.
    Then again, before I met Wes, no one would’ve ever seen me with anyone, and I had been just fine. I still would’ve needed a hug if someone close to my family had died. Still, it would seem forced, so I just walked around and patted him on his shoulder gently. He turned and gave me a soft smile.
    Interrupting the awkward I’m-here-for-you-if-you-need-me moment was a gust of air as Dawn burst through the door. “What the hell, Danny? I’m not due in until 4:00.”
    “Well, little sis, Dad wanted you here, so he could tell—”
    “Oh, please.”
    “Dawn, will you shut your mouth for two seconds?”
    They were about to go back and forth in a sibling spat when I interrupted. “Ms. Mary died this morning.”
    Her mouth froze, her face flashed through the same expressions of confusion mine had, and then she asked almost the same questions.
    Needless to say, the afternoon was not a joy. It felt cold, sad, and empty in the store all day. It seemed that we were the least busy we had been all year, like the customers knew to stay away and give the store some healing time, only it made matters worse. No one wanted to make small talk or discuss the awful news, so we were silent most of the day.
    Finally, Mr. Healey went home early, and at closing time, I did too.
    It wasn’t surprising