Chapter 45
Roman needed some air, so he decided to take a walk. As he headed towards the downtown area, he saw that the town had decorated for their annual Christmas festival and had invited various vendors to participate, which they did willingly and regularly. Temporary booths with white canvas tops all in a row were set up along Pine Avenue, which ran perpendicular to Main Street just one block over from the county courthouse. The majestic stone building was adorned with green, white, and red balloons to celebrate the Christmas season.
The crowd of people grew larger as the steady stream of cars and trucks disgorged their occupants, while shouts of “Merry Christmas” and “Happy Holidays” mingled with the imploring of small children to have their turn with Santa Claus. However, as each
