At seven o’clock in the morning, Jessie and Violet were awakened by a knock on the door. Jessie threw back the soft yellow quilt and got out of bed. She peered out the window and then hurried to open the door.
“Aunt Jane!” she said, giving her aunt a hug. “Violet, Benny, Henry!” she called out, “Aunt Jane’s here!”
Violet was already out of bed, and in a few minutes, Henry and Benny came in from the back room. Everyone was happy to see Aunt Jane.
“I didn’t mean to wake you,” Aunt Jane said, sitting down at the table. “But I got up very early this morning missing you. So I decided to drive out and see how you are.”
“We’re great,” Benny said. “Working in Mr. Taylor’s store is fun. I know how to use the scale now.”
“Good for you, Benny,” Aunt Jane said. She smiled at everyone. “Jerry was in Elmford last evening and he stopped by for a few minutes. He said the four of you are doing fine work.”
Jessie poured some orange juice for everyone. “Have you made the curtains for the den yet?” she asked.
“I’m almost finished,” Aunt Jane said. “They’re going to look wonderful.”
“I can’t wait to see them,” Violet said. “Andy is going to be so surprised.”
“Yes, he is,” Aunt Jane agreed, looking pleased. “Oh, I spoke to your Grandfather on the phone last night. He sends all of you his love.”
“I miss him,” Benny said. “Does he miss us?”
“Of course he does, Benny,” Aunt Jane said.
“He’s going to want us to come back to Greenfield soon,” Henry said. “I hope Mr. Taylor finds someone to work in the store before we have to leave.”
“I hope so, too,” Aunt Jane said. “I’ve been talking to people in Elmford about the job. Maybe someone will be interested in it.”
Jessie looked at the clock on the stove. “We better hurry and have breakfast,” she said. “It’s almost time to go to work.”
“Can we have pancakes tonight?” Benny asked. “We still haven’t had pancakes,” he told Aunt Jane. “Violet said we could have them for dinner.”
“That sounds good,” Aunt Jane said. “And that reminds me. When we came out here the other day, I forgot to buy some more maple syrup. So I’ll go along to the store with you when you’re ready.”
The Aldens ate a breakfast of fruit, toast with honey, and milk. Then they got dressed and walked to the general store with Aunt Jane.
Jerry Taylor was sweeping the porch when the Aldens and Aunt Jane arrived. “Good morning,” he said with a smile.
“I came to buy some of your delicious maple syrup, Jerry,” Aunt Jane said. “It looks like I’m your first customer of the day.”
“The first of many, I hope,” Mr. Taylor said. He suddenly looked worried.
“You aren’t losing business, are you?” Aunt Jane asked.
“There were a lot of customers yesterday,” Jessie said.
“You’re right, Jessie. But not all of them buy things,” Mr. Taylor said. “And everyone keeps talking about the new shopping center.”
“I went there yesterday to see what it was like,” Aunt Jane said. “It certainly is fancy. But it is also very expensive. And the things they sell aren’t any better than what I can find right here.”
Mr. Taylor smiled again. “You’re not only my first customer, Jane,” he said. “You’re my best customer.”
Everyone went into the store then. Aunt Jane bought the syrup and stayed for a while, talking to the Aldens. Then she looked at her watch. “I think I’d better get back,” she said. “It’s almost an hour’s drive to Elmford, and I want to finish those curtains today.”
“Come back and see us again soon,” Jessie said.
“I will,” Aunt Jane promised. She gave all the Aldens a hug, and said good-bye.
Soon after Aunt Jane left, a farmer drove up in his truck. Henry helped him unload the fresh tomatoes he had brought. Jessie and Violet put them on the table in the store. Benny dusted the counter and made sure all the candy jars were full.
“A man’s coming soon about the job,” Mr. Taylor said to the Aldens. “Nancy told me that he called yesterday.” He stopped talking and looked around. “Where is Nancy?”
Henry looked around too. “I’ve been so busy, I didn’t even notice that she wasn’t here.”
“I hope she isn’t sick,” Jessie said. “I’ll go to her cabin and see.”
“I’ll go with you,” Violet said.
“If she isn’t feeling well, tell her to stay in bed,” Mr. Taylor called after the two girls.
But Nancy wasn’t sick. When Jessie and Violet knocked on the door, Nancy opened it and smiled. But her short red hair was not combed, she had only one shoe on, and she was holding her toothbrush.
“I overslept!” she cried, pulling the door open wider. “My clock stopped during the night and the alarm didn’t go off. It’s a brand-new clock, too!”
“We were afraid you were sick,” Jessie said as she and Violet stepped inside.
“I’m fine, but I’m a mess,” Nancy laughed. “Let me brush my teeth and comb my hair. Then I’ll walk back to the store with you.” She hurried into the bathroom.
Violet and Jessie waited in the big front room. “This room is just like ours,” Jessie said. “I guess all the cabins are alike.”
“But there’s something strange about it,” Violet said quietly, looking around. “I don’t know what it is. But this room doesn’t look right.”
On the stone mantel of the fireplace were two photographs in silver frames. Violet walked over and looked at them. One was a picture of a man and a woman. The second was a picture of a young boy and girl. They were standing near a tree, and the boy’s face was in shadow. But the girl’s face was in sunlight. “This girl looks a little like Nancy,” Violet said. “But she has long, brown hair. Nancy’s is red and short.”
Jessie didn’t answer. She was staring at a small shopping bag on the kitchen counter. “Look,” she said to Violet, pointing.
The bag was white, with green letters that spelled the words Elmford Shopping Center.
Just then, Nancy came into the room, ready to go. Jessie and Violet didn’t say anymore to each other. But they both wondered why Nancy would buy things at the new shopping center when she knew how worried Mr. Taylor was about it.
There were a lot of customers at the general store in the morning. But the afternoon wasn’t very busy. Violet decided to make a new sign. When she finished, she showed it to Mr. Taylor.
“Something Aunt Jane said made me think of it,” Violet told him. On the sign, she had drawn a picture of the general store. It looked just like the real one. Below the picture were the words, Taylor’s General Store. Old-fashioned Quality. Old-fashioned Prices.
Jessie said to Mr. Taylor, “Aunt Jane said your things were just as good as the ones in the new shopping center. But not as expensive.”
“It’s a perfect sign, Violet,” Mr. Taylor said. “Thank you. I’m going to put it out on that tree by the road.”
“I’ll help you hang it up,” Henry said.
Violet went out with Mr. Taylor and Henry. Jessie stayed inside to help Benny fill one of the candy jars with sour balls.
“I haven’t tried one of these yet,” Benny said, as he held the jar steady. When Jessie was finished pouring the candy, he took a penny out of his pocket and put it on the counter. Then he popped a sour ball into his mouth.
“Benny!” Jessie said, laughing. “You should see the face you’re making.”
“It is sour,” Benny mumbled because his mouth was full. “But I like it.”
“I don’t think there is any candy you don’t like.” Jessie was still laughing. But when she looked across the room, she saw Nancy, and she stopped laughing.
Nancy was standing by the shelves of clothes. A new shipment of T-shirts had arrived that morning. As Jessie watched, Nancy took a yellow shirt off the shelf. Then she rolled it up and tucked it under the shirt she was wearing. It hardly showed.
Jessie could hardly believe that Nancy was really stealing something. But she had seen it. She was so shocked that she gasped, and Benny heard her.
“What’s wrong, Jessie?” he asked.
Jessie shook her head. She didn’t want to tell Benny about it now. “I’ll explain later,” she said.
Just then, Mr. Taylor, Henry, and Violet came back inside. “Time to close up for the day,” Mr. Taylor said. “Remember, Nancy, you have tomorrow morning off.”
“I haven’t forgotten, Mr. Taylor,” Nancy said. “Maybe I’ll go see a movie tonight.”
Everyone helped to clean up the store for the day. As Henry swept the floor, he noticed that Jessie was very quiet.
“What’s the matter, Jessie?” he asked.
“I asked her the same thing,” Benny said. “But she wouldn’t tell me.”
“I can’t right now,” Jessie said. She looked at Nancy, who was nearby, dusting the counter. “I’ll have to tell you . . .”
“Later,” Benny finished. He made a face. “I’m always having to wait.”
Henry smiled. “This time, we both have to wait, Benny.”
Jessie tried to smile, too, but it was hard. She couldn’t forget that she had seen Nancy Baldwin stealing from Mr. Taylor’s store.
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