Three Green Notebooks Left in a Cedar Chest on Elm Street

on Elm Street was colder now, carrying the sharp scent of woodsmoke from the chimneys near the creek.

I stopped at the corner where the sidewalk split toward the church.

“I have to see Gale,” I said.

Arthur stopped beside me, his hands deep in his coat pockets.

“The office will be open,” he said.

“She has to know the county has the papers,” I said.