The Townsfolk

Nine souls, by the census. Seven, by the sign at the town limits. Make of that what you will.

Doreen Halloway

Mayor of Greywater Falls; proprietor of Halloway's Bakery

Quiet, at peace with an hour and a loaf that mean nothing anymore

Gerald Pith

Retired postman

Settled, content to live near a number rather than wait on it

Hank Mossley

Owner of Mossley Hardware; night-shift foreman at the old mill

Steady, glad to sell something that means nothing in particular

Wren Aldercott

Editor, sole reporter, and typesetter of The Greywater Gazette

Steadied, and quietly satisfied that an ending arrived without ceremony.

Marigold Vance

Owner and cook at The Kettle diner

Settled, quietly moved that the ritual dissolved outward into the ordinary

Esmé Okonkwo

Town physician (the only one)

Quietly resolved, having crossed from private chart to shared evidence and unsure yet what she has started.

Toby Fern

Student; unofficial correspondent for the school paper

Quietly attentive, glad of a clean ending

Agnes Crewe

Eldest resident; lives alone in the cottage nearest the water

Light, fully retired from riddling and glad of it

Russ Dunmore

Town constable (the only one)

Off duty, lighter, quietly proud of an empty log