Retail Help, Part 2

Within that same month of opening my shop, I had a second spirit encounter.

Typically, I was alone in the shop. This day, I got a whiff of musk cologne. And immediately felt a warming sensation all over my body.

I believe I had a guardian specter.  The spirit introduced himself and accepted my business endeavor.

Lesson: The windows can wait.

A few months later my partner joined me for the day.

I required extra time to finish a few custom orders. Thus, I needed storefront help.

Foot traffic was low, allowing my partner to catch up on work.

The brass bell rang as the front door opened. Two young men entered.

I can always tell what kind of visitors by the tenor of the discussion. By the sounds of it, these boys weren’t paying customers.

I continued focusing on hand stitching my project and I let my partner handle it.

A whiff of musk hit my nostril again. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up. Time to pay attention to the discussion.

The questions weren’t about product curiosity. They surrounded the business success. There wasn’t a conversation—just an interrogation of the business.

They asked. Andrew answered. It seemed odd.

With the quickening haste of the questions, I could sense the discussion pivoting. Into an unfriendly direction.

I picked up the hammer sitting next to me. Quietly, I rose up from my chair and stood next to the wall partition.

The boys were cornering Andrew like jackals. I watched them stand within 3 feet of him. He had no escape route.

“Can I help you boys?” I asked from the center of the room with the hammer gripped tight in my hand.

They stammered for a response. Shuffling away from Andrew, they turned on their converse tennis shoes and hurriedly exited the shop.

My heart was beating a thousand miles a minute. I could taste the sweat on my lips. My hand was gripping the hammer so hard—I had to consciously unfold the fingers from around the handle.

“Jesus Andrew, they were cornering you! Did you see that?”

I strolled to the front of the shop and locked the door. We didn’t unlock it until another customer arrived.

That day, I had no idea how close my partner was to being mugged—in our own shop.

Lesson: Always listen to your spirit guides.