“I’m packing Aunt Maggie’s things.”
Lauren’s face fell.“I’m so sorry.We all miss her dearly.”
Chelsea nodded.Maggie had been an integral part of the Honeybrook community.
Maybe Lauren could answer Chelsea’s questions.“What do you do here?”
Lauren laughed.“I’m the mayor.”
Chelsea’s eyes widened, and she grinned.“Congratulations.How long?”
“It’s my first month,” Lauren admitted.“I’m still getting my head around everything.”
“Perhaps you can help me.”Chelsea explained what had happened with Johann and Darren, and Lauren’s mouth dropped open.
“I haven’t seen or heard anything about a retirement village.”She turned to the receptionist.“Have you, Robyn?”
Robyn shook her head.“Only the rumours around town.”
Lauren walked towards her office.“Come in and I’ll look it up.”
Chelsea followed her into the office with dark blue carpets and a window overlooking the main street.A large jarrah desk sat in the middle with a computer monitor on it and several wooden bookshelves lined the walls.“Has the council done any business with Johann before?”
Lauren typed on her keyboard.“Let me check.”
Chelsea sat in the seat across from her.
Lauren frowned as she read whatever was on her computer screen.“The company was involved in the sports complex development about eighteen months ago.It was completed around the time Aunt Maggie died.”
Interesting.Chelsea would have to go through Aunt Maggie’s correspondence and check whether she had any dealings with the company.“Could someone on the council have implied it wouldn’t be difficult to get approval for the village?”
“Maybe,” she said.“Leyton was their contact.He shouldn’t have, but Honeybrook has been struggling for a while now.”Her shoulders sagged.“A retirement village would have attracted people to town.”
Chelsea squeezed her hand.“I noticed a lot of shops were closed on Main Street.Is that what you mean by Honeybrook struggling?”
Lauren nodded.“The only people moving to town are teachers getting posted here,” she said.“All our generation moved on the moment they hit adulthood.Josh and I are the only ones left.Do you remember him?He was a friend of Ethan’s.”
“Yeah.Did you two ever get together?”
Lauren laughed and waved her hand.“No, nothing like that.We both had our reason for staying.”A frown flickered on Lauren’s forehead.“If the annual fair doesn’t attract people back to town, I don’t know what to do.”
Chelsea perked up.“I used to love the Honeybrook fair,” she said.“Does it still get the crowds?”
“Not even half,” Lauren admitted.“People seem to have forgotten we’re here.”
Chelsea grinned.“Do you need help with publicity?When is it?”
“I would love help,” Lauren said.“But we don’t have the funds to pay anyone.”
“I’ll do it,” Chelsea said.“I’m… on holiday at the moment.Publicity is what I do.”She wanted to help this town, which had been a home to her.Aunt Maggie would want her to.
“Are you sure?Anything you could do would be amazing.”
A small part of her brain told her she was procrastinating, finding an excuse not to make decisions about her future and Lilydale, but she ignored it.“All I need are the dates, any photos or video you have of past events, and a list of special events you’ve got planned for this year.”Excitement shimmered at the thought of working on something worthwhile.“It won’t take me more than a few hours to come up with some promotional pieces.”She gave Lauren her email address.“Send them to me.I should have a plan within twenty-four hours.”They swapped phone numbers, and then Lauren stood.“I have to get to a meeting.I can’t thank you enough.”Her goodbye hug held a hint of desperation in it.
“Honeybrook has always had a special place in my heart.I want to help.”
Lauren grabbed her laptop.“We should catch up over dinner.I’ll call you later.”
