Run: 2026-05-29-01KSSJMG8AG6Z66PJ1SC3HPQ9T

The bell above the door jingled as warm air rushed in, thick with the scent of cinnamon and yeast. "You're here early. The scones aren't even out yet." "I didn't come for the scones. I came because I heard about Eleanor." A long pause. The soft thud of dough hitting the floured counter. "Everyone's heard about Eleanor by now. This town can't keep a secret to save its life." "Is it true she was found in the church garden? Right under the rose trellis?" "That's what they're saying. Though I'd wager half of what they're saying isn't worth the breath." "You don't seem very surprised." "At my age, dear, nothing surprises me anymore. People come, people go. Sometimes they go sooner than they ought to." "That's a cold thing to say about a woman you've known forty years." "Is it? Or is it just honest?" The rolling pin stilled. "Eleanor and I had our differences. I won't pretend otherwise. But I didn't wish her dead." "I never said you did." "No. But you were thinking it. I can see it on your face, plain as the flour on mine." "Maybe I was. Can you blame me?" A sigh. "No. I suppose I can't."