Without You, There is No Point in Surviving

Chapter 22 Sunny Days to Come

"Mrs. Oakley," called Mrs. Taylor, trudging up the sand and grass, waving her arm. "Mrs. Oakley. Margery!"
Her long auburn ringlets jerked back revealing her pale, alarmed face. Nellie hadn't paid any mind to the woman shouting and strolling towards her front yard. Mrs. Taylor continued trotting up the hill, a basket in her hands. Oh, great. Nellie thought as she stood up from her small garden in front of her blue cottage, gracing her features with the fakest of smiles. "Mrs. Taylor, how are you, dear?"
"I'm quite well Mrs. Oakley," basket looped around her arm, she stopped in front of Nellie seeming as if out of breath. Seconds later after catching her wind, she gabbed both of Nellie's hands, squeezing them lightly and leaning in towards her. "Those pies you sent over the other day were absolutely delicious." She implored.
"Oh, glad to hear it." Nellie spoke, throwing in a fake chuckle to match the smile. She wanted to be sick.
"I just had to repay the favor," Mrs. Taylor said, shoving the basket into Nellie's arms.
"Oh, dear you shouldn't have." Nellie said looking down at the plate of what looked like a slab of wet steak and Nellie was most certain she would retch now.
"It's stuffed steak with mushrooms."
"Thank you, goodness it looks heavenly." She said with more fake smiles, hiding her obvious disgust. "I'll just take this inside." Nellie said fleeing from the conversation.
"Your flowers look so lovely." Mrs. Taylor hung on.
Nellie spun back around, "Oh," she stopped herself from speaking any gratitude looking at the mess of dirt and daisies that looked as if they were hanging onto life by a single thread. "I don't exactly know what I'm doing." Laughed Nellie honestly. "I've never had a garden before."
"Plant them farther apart, the roots need room to grow." She advised. "Enjoy, the steak." Mrs. Taylor waved off with a cheery look, heading back to her home.
While stepping onto the porch, Sweeney stood in the open door waiting for her. "You look like you needed to be rescued." He commented, stepping aside for her to come inside.
"Yes, I'm sure you raced at the opportunity, love." She teased.
He eyed the slab of meat in her hands quizzically. "What is that?" he asked with a tone of disgust.
"Steak with mushrooms. I'm not eating red meat every again, so it's all yours." she spoke holding the basket out for him.
"No, I don't fancy mushrooms." Sweeney said walking away from the thing.
"Well, what am I to do with it then?"
"Throw it out."
"That'll be such a waste." Nellie said taking a whiff that almost made her gag.
"You've really developed an allergy, haven't you?" he spoke with a coy smile tugging at his lips. "Add it to your menu."
"I haven't had an appetite for much things as of late." Nellie said setting the basket down in the kitchen. Her comment made Sweeney practically launch himself in front of her. "Besides, I can't add it to my menu, it'll have gone bad by time I open tomorrow."
"Nellie?"
"Hmm?" he turned her around to face him. stroking a hand up her arm and placing the other on her abdomen.
He leaned into her ear and whispered, "Is there something you wish to tell me?"
"No," she said nonchalantly before cracking a smile. "Patience, love. I'm going to the shop; I have some things to prepare before opening tomorrow."
"I thought about going fishing in the morning." She looked his way. "Thought it'd be beneficial. We wouldn't have to keep spending coin on chicken as meat."
Nellie smiled, "that's a lovely idea."
"You sure you won't need help in the shop tomorrow?" he asks.
"I'll manage just fine." She spoke, placing a chaste peck to his cheek before leaving the cottage, taking the steak with mushrooms with her.
She placed the dish of meat deep in the town muck behind her shop where the occasional cat or rats liked to lurk. "Whoever wants it." Nellie said after scrapping the slab of meat onto the filthy street. She looked down at the painted dish, half tempted to steal the thing. It would be a nice little memento of this town when the day comes for them to move on.
Work in the shop has been insufferable busy lately. With the season changing to summer more and more customers wanted pies, and this particular day was no exception. Nellie actually preferred to be outside in the warm sun. The lunch rush had just ended giving her a few moments of peace.
She rested her head onto her hands, smiling warmly as she spotted children happily running along the street, kicking a wadded piece of cloth in the shape of a ball to each other. The bell atop the door jingled and she straightened herself up in alarm as a bobby walked through the door looking her way. "Evening ma'am."
"What can I do for you sir?" Nellie smiled despite her nerves. What the devil is a man of the law doing in her shop on a Friday afternoon? "Would you like a pie? Free of charge for all your service."
He smiled, "That's very kind of you ma'am, but no." he displayed a missing persons flyer to her. "May I hang this up in your window?"
She relaxed a bit. "Of course, sir. I don't mind."
He showed the flyer to Nellie, "Do you know anything about him?"
Nellie stared down the picture of the man her and Sweeney served to their neighbors last week. Her first thought was to obviously say she doesn't know anything about him. A fear of more police or detectives poking around the town near her shop shook her to her core. Nellie decided to go with sending the bobbies onto a different trail. "He does look a bit familiar." She began. The officer leaned in closer to her. "He came in here the other night, a couple days back, he was drunk and rambling nonsense. He ordered a pie then went on his way."
"Did he say anything about where he was going?"
"He just mentioned leaving town, to go visit a friend."
"Thank you, ma'am," the bobby said. "I'll leave this with you." He said setting down the flyer, and exiting the shop. Once gone, Nellie retreated to the back room and sat shakingly into a chair. A wave a nausea rushed over her almost out of nowhere and she ran over to the sink retching into the porcelain. She wiped her mouth on a rag strangely starting to feel better. She took it easy the rest of the day. She had woken up that morning with a sneezing attack unlike anything Sweeney had ever seen as he fretted over her. By time the shop was ready to close, her throat felt dry and scratchy and she made her way home, not bothering to clean up or prepare for tomorrow.