It stood by itself at the end of a quiet street. Maples had been planted and rose bushes grew along a picket fence. Amanda didn’t stir outside until well past ten. She wore a bright new outfit that would cost most women a couple of months’ worth of wages, and carried a folded parasol that she happily twirled on her shoulder. From behind an oak in an empty lot, Fargo watched her stroll to Main Street. Only when she was out of sight did he stride from hiding. Amanda was on a shopping spree. She spent half an hour in a millinery and almost as long in the general store and was trying Fargo’s patience when she went into a small shop on a corner and sat at a table in the window. Fargo entered just as a pot of tea was being set in front of her by a young woman in an apron. He pretended to be studying a case of cakes and pies and watched her out of the corner of his eye. She filled her cup and was raising it to her lips when she saw him and gave a start.
