CHAPTER 17––––––––
No matter how hard she stomped, the mud would not come off her shoes, so Mara slipped them off and left them on the back porch. Heavy rain always turned the short path from the driveway to the back door into a muddy mess, and she had just sprinted through it. She took off her jacket, shook it and opened the door into the kitchen. The smell of spaghetti sauce and garlic bread drove away the shiver she felt coming on.
“Hard day at the salt mines?” her mother asked, standing over the stove, stirring a steaming pot.
“Not at all. It was nice to get back into a routine and do something productive.” Mara slipped her jacket onto a hook next to the door.
“Ned Pastor called and said he would stop by later this evening to talk to you about the medallion. Why don’t you go get so
