A Farewell to Yarns

came early and flew through fast with an eye out for an accidental bargain, something they could snatch up and resell at an inflated price. The quilt that had been marked so low would have been such an item if Shelley hadn’t marked it up and purchased it herself. The early shoppers also included those women who were on their way to work and had to shop fast. The first hour, therefore, was hectic, but as the morning wore on, the pace became more leisurely, and Jane found herself enjoying the opportunity to visit with various neighbors she hadn’t seen for a while.
    At eleven, her replacement came, and she wandered off to the living room to see how Shelley was getting along. “My afghan’s gone,“ Jane said, disappointed. It had looked so pretty draped over the piano, and she’d anticipated at least one last look at it.
    “Yes, a woman bought it the first hour. Are you on a break? Suzie Williams was supposed to take over for me, and she actually had the grace to send a replacement. She’s putting her coat away. I’ll meet you in the kitchen when she’s ready to take over.”
    The kitchen and family room had been set aside for the use of the workers. Signs on the doors said: STAFF ONLY. DO NOT ENTER. Jane went to the kitchen, got a cup of coffee and a croissant and joined Fiona in the family room. It was only the second time she’d seen her this morning, the first being when she let them in the house hours ago.
    “It’s going wonderfully well, isn’t it?“ Fiona said. “I was just speaking to the women at the front, and they say they’ve got nearly a thousand dollars already. Well, I better get along. I’ve got to stand guard on the ground floor guest bedroom.“
    “Oh, no, Fiona. I didn’t assign you to that. We don’t want you to have to do any more than you already have.“
    “It’s quite all right. Ethel Besley called and said her car wouldn’t start. I’m just taking her place until she gets here.”
    Jane made one more feeble protest, offering to take Ethel’s duty, but was relieved when Fiona insisted on filling in. Jane desperately needed to sit down. She slouched into a comfortable leather sofa and nibbled her croissant as she stared at the pictures on the opposite wall. How different this room seemed now. The first time she’d seen it, she’d been shocked at the callousness of having a room devoted to Richie Divine that poor Albert had to look at every day and be reminded of his own lack of renown. Not it seemed a cozy, friendly place, a room where Albert and Fiona could recall the past while enjoying the safe, obscure lives they’d made for themselves.
    “Jesus! This kind of thing brings out the best and the worst in people,“ Shelley said, coming in and flinging herself into a deeply upholstered chair. “I had a woman ask me to mark up a price, because it was such a good cause. Then I had a ghoulish threesome who made no bones about the fact that they’d come to see what they could ferret out about the murder next door. Didn’t even pretend to want to buy anything, just asked me nasty questions.“
    “Probably undercover agents for VanDyne,“ Jane said. “I wonder if he’s making any progress. It’s terrible to admit, but I’d almost forgotten about it in the rush to get this thing going.“
    “Some detective. The day before yesterday you were going on about how you had the solution on the tip of your tongue. Now you’ve solved another little mystery, and you’ve forgotten the murders altogether.“
    “No, not altogether. I still think there’s one little something that we already know that could unravel the whole thing. I just can’t quite grasp it. As for the other—“ She glanced over her shoulder to see if anyone else was around. “—that wasn’t the solution to anything. It was just a stunning revelation of an interesting fact.“
    “Interesting? That’s an understatement. By the way, where’s Albert? I haven’t seen him all day.“
    “Probably hiding from the ravening hordes. I can’t blame him.”
    The question of Albert’s whereabouts was answered for them a few minutes later when he came staggering in the back door with two Kentucky Fried Chicken barrels. “I thought the workers might need lunch,“ he said.
    They stuffed themselves and returned to work. Jane took a two-hour shift at the front table, a busy job but one she got to do sitting down. When she was done with that and another hour filling in for a woman whose child had been sent