'You look deep in thought.' Tilly glanced up from where she was wiping the bakery counter down.
'Yep. I've just got this strange feeling that I'm about to lose my job. My boss has been making a couple of comments recentlythat makes me wonder whether he’s closing the business or selling it on.' Merri scrunched up her nose. She was aware it all sounded pretty vague, but she just couldn’t shake the feeling now the idea had been created in her mind. 'So, I want to just check in with my boss to see if he'll give anything away but I'm not sure what to say or what I could ask him.'
'Oooh, that's a tricky one. you could ask about holiday days or ask for a pay rise.'
Merri laughed. 'I've not had a pay rise since I started working there, if I ask for one, he'll know something's up. And he knows I'm aware I've sued all my holiday up. I need something else...'
'I know! How about saying you promised a friend to ask if there were any jobs going at the company?'
'That’s a god one and plausible too. In fact, my flatmate’s boyfriend is looking for a job right now. Not that I'd want him working in the same office as me, but my boss doesn't know that.'
'Perfect.' Tilly went back to the cleaning.
As she began writing the email, she automatically reached towards her neckline to fidget with her necklace, as was her habit when she was concentrating. Not being able to find it, she straightened her back and reached around her neck, ready to pull the chain to release her snowflake pendant from her jumper. That was strange. She could feel the chain.
Placing her mobile down on the counter, she pulled out the neckline of her jumper, feeling around for her necklace. No luck. It wasn’t there.
'Is everything okay?' Pausing again, Tilly frowned.
'No, I can’t find my necklace. Can you see if it's there please?' Hurrying over to Tilly, she stood in front of her and lifted her ponytail off the nape of her neck so Tilly could check.
Running her hand across the back of Merri's neck, Tilly shook her head. 'Nothing. has it got caught in your jumper? Maybe when you were getting changed this morning?'
'I don’t know.' Merri tapped her hands across her front. She couldn’t feel anything.
'Why don’t you pop upstairs and check in your room, it might have come off during the night or something.' Tilly glanced towards the large clock above the counter. 'We've got a few minutes until opening so take your time.'
'Okay, thanks.' Without hesitating, Merri pulled open the door to the flat and ran up the stairs, barely noticing the brightly coloured wallpaper she normally took the time to admire going up and down the stairs. Once in her bedroom, she both switched the light on and opened the curtains, something she hadn't got around to doing before going downstairs to help Elsie with the morning baking.
With the room now bathed in light, she carefully pulled her jumper and turned it inside out, Nothing. It was there. Next, she threw the duvet back and ran her palm across the sheet. Again nothing. Trying not to panic, she walked slowly around the room, her head bent and her eyes searching the floor for the sparkle of her snowflake pendant.
Where was it? Where could it have gone? When did she have it last? Taking her hair out of her ponytail, she quickly tied it back up again. She needed to think. Downstairs! It wasn’t in the bedroom, the only other place it would be is the bakery.
Retracing her steps downstairs, she kept her eyes on the floor in case she spotted it before pulling the door leading to the bakery open and stepping through.
'Are you ready to open?' Brooke smiled from where she was waiting at the front door.
'No, I...' She shook her head. She couldn’t say the words. She couldn’t admit she'd lost the only thing she owned from her mum.
'No luck?' Tilly walked through he kitchen door, two trays piled high with the robin shaped chocolate chip cookies Elsie had been baking last night. 'Did you find your necklace?'
Merri shook her head.
'The snowflake one? You can't find it?' Leaving the door closed, Brooke walked towards her.
'The catch was a bit dodgy. I should have got it fixed.' Merri clasped her hands together as she felt panic rising from the pit of her stomach. What if she never found it?
Sensing Merri's panic, Brooke took charge of the situation. 'I'll go and look in the kitchen, you two check out here. We'll find it, Merri.'
'Yes, we will. It's got to be here somewhere. I'll start this side of the room, you start that side and we'll meet in the middle. That way we know we've covered it all.' Tilly began walking slowly, her eyes trained on the floor.
'Don’t we need to open?' Merri croaked. As much as she wanted to, no, needed to find her necklace, she could see a small queue already forming outside the door.
'We'll open just as soon as we've found it. With the four of us looking, I'm sure it won't take long to find.' Glancing across at her, Tilly smiled.
'Okay, thanks.' Tilly and Brook were right, they could cover every inch of the bakery between them. She hurried towards the other side of the bakery to begin her search. They'd find it.
'IT'S NOT LIKE IT CANhave just disappeared. it's got to be here somewhere.' Elsie rubbed Merri's forearm. 'Do you know when you had it last?'
