23. Asher
twenty-three
Asher
A s I stepped back into the silent shop downstairs, I felt a sense of comfort wash over me. Last night had brought a fear and anxiety that I thought I had long ago squashed. But I was wrong. At that moment, I was slowly sinking underneath the waves, unable to keep myself afloat. And it was Maya who brought me back to the surface.
I pull a large handwritten cookbook from the top shelf in the kitchen and begin flipping through the pages. Thankfully, Maya was a very organized person, and this meant that running the shop shouldn't be too much of a hassle today. It was still early, and the bakery wasn't set to open for another hour. I reach nearby, grab the spare apron, and toss it over my shoulders before tying it behind my back.
Despite everything from the past week, I didn't feel the same anxiety at the moment that I had been holding onto the past week. As I rolled the cookie dough thinly and began cutting out shapes, I could feel the weight of the two photographs still in my pocket, weighing me down like an anchor. I wanted to ask Maya about it but didn't want to upset her. She genuinely seemed to know nothing, but there had to be something else.
I cut out the cookies into various Christmas shapes and placed them on the cookie sheet before sliding them into the oven and moving on to the next tray. It would make sense that the shops are being targeted in a pattern, but what that pattern was doesn't make any sense to me. I have no way of proving that Maya's grandmother is connected to the break-ins, but she is for sure connected to the North Star Beacon . The only issue is that I don't know what that means; even more concerning, I don't know what he wants with Maya.
I slide the pan of cookies in the oven and begin on the third pan. After finishing that one and sliding it in with the other two, I make my way around the shop, turning on various lights and lighting candles. I flip the sign on the front door to say "open" and make my way back into the kitchen to continue working on more pastries.
"Good morning," a small voice calls out. The chime of the bell above the door rings loudly, and I suddenly worry that it will wake Maya up.
I peek my head out, wiping my hands on a towel, and see the small boy from before.
"Good morning, Emmett," I said to him. He looks at me immediately with a sour look, placing his hands on his hips and looking around the shop for who I assumed was Maya.
"Where is Miss Maya?" He asked me. He puffs his bottom lip out in a pout.
Bingo.
"She's out sick today," I tossed the towel down on a nearby counter.
"She's sick?" The young boy looks shocked and takes off toward the upstairs apartment. I grab him underneath his arms and lift him before he can rush up the stairs, and I set him back down on the other side.
"She's asleep right now. You can see her here in a bit. I'm sure she would love to see you, but right now, she's not feeling well, and we don't want you getting sick with her, do we?"
Emmett stared at me for a moment, thinking about his next words before he finally walked away and into the kitchen. I follow him back there, and the boy takes a cookie from a finished basket before eating it greedily.
"When do you leave?" He asked me. Crumbs fall from his mouth and onto the floor.
"I don't know yet," I answered, a little shocked.
"Well, don't." He continues eating the cookie, shoving it in his mouth fully before trying to grab another one.
I snatched the basket up and placed it on a shelf out of his reach, and he scowled.
"I don't like you very much," he says.
"I'm sorry to hear that," I say, grabbing the rest of the cookies and placing them high like the first basket.
"But I guess I'll let you stay," Emmett rolls his eyes and huffs.
"Well, thank you, Emmett." I smile, amused.
"You take care of Miss Maya, so I guess I'll allow you to hang out a bit longer." Emmett looks around the quiet shop, shrugs off his red coat, and tosses it on the floor by the kitchen door.
"Has she been alone for a while?" I asked the boy, who already knew the answer.
Emmett walked back to the front counter before taking a seat. I follow him, picking up his jacket as I pass.
"As long as I've been alive," he says. He begins digging through the counter and pulls out a small hidden train before running it over the counter. "She never gets any visitors. Except for some old lady."
"Some old lady," I ask him. "You mean Miss Margaret?"
Emmett looks at me as if I'm dumb.
"No, not Miss Margaret. Some old lady comes by once a year, but every time she enters town, she stares at the shop before leaving." Emmett scoffs. "It's really weird."
"Do you know this woman?" Anxiety begins to build in my chest as the conversation continues.
"No. The sisters at the orphanage say that it's not our business and that we have to respect Miss Maya's privacy, so I don't ask."
" You don't ask?" I raise an eyebrow at him and laugh to myself.
Emmett looks at me sideways before grinning wickedly.
"I do ask," he confesses after a moment.
"And what did they say when you asked?"
"They don't say anything," Emmett goes back to playing with the small train, and then the timer beeps on the oven. I race back and pull out all three trays, placing them on a rack to cool before returning to the small boy.
"Emmett, do you know this woman?" I pulled out the picture of Evelyn and set it on the counter to him, and his face remained the same.
"No, that's not the same woman," He shakes his head before returning to the train.
"Are you positive?" I ask him.
"The woman has short brown hair and isn't old and scary like that one," I grin at his words.
"And what did she do when she was here?"
"She stood in front of the shop at night, walked around to the back, and left again. She seems to leave in a hurry each time."
"Did something happen?" Something deep inside me told me that this was directly related to everything that was happening around Maya.
"It looked like she was looking for something on the ground, but then something spooked her, and she ran off."
My mind immediately flashes to the small coin I found, and I reach under the counter and grab it, setting it in front of Emmett.
"Do you recognize this, Emmett?"
Emmett looks at it silently before looking at me and sliding it back over.
"I'm not allowed to talk about that." His demeanor suddenly shifted, and he put the train back under the counter and immediately began heading towards the door.
"Emmett."
"What?" He says quietly. He doesn't turn around to face me.
"It would help Maya a lot if you told me what you know about this coin," I said, setting the coin down in front of him. He looked outside anxiously.
"Who are you?" He asks, his lips suddenly trembling.
"I'm a friend," I promise him. I reach my pinky out to him, and he quickly grabs it with his own. He looks outside again, and as soon as he feels clear, Emmett throws his arms around me. I wrap my arms around him, hugging him, and after a few moments, he releases me.
Emmett suddenly pulled out a coin from his pocket that matched exactly the coin I had in my hand.
"Where did you get that?" I asked him, confused.
"A man gave it to me at the festival last night." Emmett's face exploded with excitement. "He said he would adopt me and Emery so that we could be together forever."
My blood suddenly runs cold as the memories of last night resurface, and I feel myself fall closer to insanity with each breath that I take.
"What did he say to you?"
"He asked me if I liked living here and if I ever dreamed about getting adopted." Emmett smiled brightly and flipped his coin over in his hand.
"And what did you say?" I took everything in me so as not to sound angry. I didn't want to scare the boy off. Not when he was helping me.
"I told him I wanted to be adopted into a wealthy family. I wanted to get adopted into a family where I could eat and buy anything I ever wanted." Emmett bounced happily.
"What did he say after that?"
"He just smiled at me and handed me this coin. He said that he would be back to see me." Emmett hesitated for a moment. "But he said that it had to be our secret. Am I in trouble?"
I hugged him closely for a moment before releasing him.
"No, Emmett. You're not in trouble at all. You helped a lot, thank you."
Emmett smiles a little anxiously before waving goodbye and leaving the shop. He shoves the coin back into his pocket, and I do the same with mine.
I had no way of confirming who that woman was visiting. But as I watched the happy boy walk back towards the orphanage, a knowing feeling came over me. Emmett had no reason to lie. He loved Maya just as the other children did. If he were telling the truth, the woman would be back anytime throughout the season. If she comes back this year, I'll be waiting for her.
I look up the stairs towards the apartment, and Maya's face flashes across my vision. I gripped the coin tightly in my hand before flipping the shop sign over to ' closed.'