Chapter 10

She had nowhere to go, so she went to St. Anne's.Mrs. Green opened the door, looked at her face, looked at the box in her arms, and did not ask one question. "Come in, love," she said. "There's always a bed here for you. There always was."Lucy stopped on the step. "You knew?""Five winters of parcels, and the same little star your mother used to sew?" Mrs. Green smiled her tired smile. "Of course I knew. I knew your mother too. I was the one who put those gray mittens on that sick little boy. Come in out of the cold."By the next day, the story was all over Millbrook: the girl from the hat shop was a thief. She had stolen from poor Mr. Pike. The constable would take her before the judge after Christmas.Mrs. Pratt made very sure that everyone heard it. And she made sure of one more thing: she asked the constable very kindly to come to the fair on Christmas Eve, "so that everyone can see," she said, "that this town does not forgive thieves."If the Earl ever did hear Lucy's word against hers, it would be the word of a thief said in front of everyone. And no one believes a thief.Christmas Eve came cold and clear. The square in Millbrook was full of light. There were lamps on every post and a band and stalls with hot chestnuts and gingerbread. The whole town was there.At one end stood a little wooden stage with a green cloth on it. That was where the Earl would speak.The children of St. Anne's came down the hill in two long lines, holding hands. It was the one night of the year when they were allowed to see the fair. Mrs. Green walked in front, and at the back, keeping the little ones in line, walked Lucy Ward in her old brown coat.She had not wanted to come, but Mrs. Green had said, "The children need you, love, and you have done nothing wrong. You hold your head up." So she did.She heard the whispers start as soon as she walked into the square: "That's her, the thief, the girl from the hat shop." People moved away from her as if she might steal their purses.Then the Earl climbed onto the little stage, and the band stopped.

She Knitted for the Orphans in Secret for Five Winters — Then an Earl Showed the Whole Town

Thrown Out With Her Suitcases After Raising His Newborn — Until Someone Said, "Then Maybe Tell Everyone Who Paid Your Mortgage Last Year"

"You Were Just My Backup Plan in Case He Flaked," She Said Without Shame

"I've Been in Love With Someone Else This Whole Time," She Said — So I Just Said "Okay"

She Said: "Open Relationships Are Normal Now — Don’t Be Insecure." After I Found Her Messages...

My Fiancée Said, “I Slept With My Life Coach To Prepare For Marriage,”

News in the same category

She Knitted for the Orphans in Secret for Five Winters — Then an Earl Showed the Whole Town