CALAMITY (h.s)

ONE.

ONE. || EMALINE

It's hard to keep a low profile when you are Emaline Thatcher. People constantly seeking you out, reporters asking questions, cops consistently knocking at your door — But somehow, for the most part, Emaline stayed out of the public eye and lived a quiet life.

Emaline's life consisted mainly of the same boring routine.

Wake up.

Go to work.

Sleep.

Repeat.

It wasn't necessarily that she liked it that way either — It's just what she had to do to live any sort of normal life.

Today, Emaline's normalcy and routine was broken.

She stood timidly behind the counter at the local bookstore she worked at, typing new books into the database. She read the description of each book carefully, noting the ones she would eventually like to read.

A ring of the bell that chimes when the door is opened is heard. Emaline looks up, greeting the customer with a warm smile, "Hi, welcome to Cloudies, how are you?"

A frail woman smiles back, "Great, thanks... How are you?"

Emaline pauses her work to engage in conversation, "I'm fine, thanks. Let me know if you need anything, I'll be happy to help."

"Thank you..." The woman peers at Emaline's name tag, "Emma."

The woman nods, beginning her exploration through the store. She browses books that she couldn't care less about. She peruses the genre labels, finally finding what she was looking for.

True Crime.

She skims through the titles, looking for the cheapest thing she could find. She eventually finds a book on a clearance sale for $2. The dainty woman brings her selection back to Emaline, plopping it down on the counter for purchase.

Emaline eyes the book, noticing the markdown on the classic, In Cold Blood, her eyes furrow in confusion. She inspects the hardback, flipping through the pages thoroughly. Eventually, she finds the catalyst for the low price.

"Just letting you know, there's a a lot of coffee stains on the second half of the book," Emaline points out and continues, "Great book though — for a great price. Do you read a lot of true crime?"

The dainty woman smiles, "I watch a lot of dateline, I figured I would give reading a chance."

Emaline's eyes light up, "You chose a great book for your first choice, Truman Capote is great. What's your favorite dateline documentary? I definitely need some TV recommendations."

Something about the dainty woman's mannerisms change. She suddenly seems to take up more space in the room.

"Have you heard of the Wright-Styles family Jewelry heist? Happened a couple days ago, it's been all over the news," The woman investigates.

Emaline rings up the book, maneuvering on autopilot, "I don't think I have.. What happened?"

The lady's eyes widen in shock, "You know Luca Thatcher? That famous criminal?"