She
shook her head before waving back and disappearing into her new shop. The new
shop that was right next door to The Gathering Grove.
“I
guess you won’t need the green machine to go into the bakery in Locust Grove.”
I shouted into the window of my old El Camino. Gerald could contract with Raven
and they’d do a great business together.
“Oh,
we do for the ingredients,” he shouted back. “Remember, there’s not a grocery
store in Whispering Falls. . . yet!”
Yet.
That
always seemed to be the answer. . . yet.
I
continued to wave as the Grand Marshal of our short little trip down Main
Street. I looked behind me, noticing all the other shop owners waving to the
crowd as well.
Whispering
Falls was back to our normal, happy, magical community. My soul sighed with
delight as the bright warm sun beat down on my uplifted face.
Even
the Karima sisters were behaving. Most of the time they were running around
trying to assess the health status of customers and spiritualists, with a
secret hope that their funeral business was going to pick up soon.
“Hear
ye, hear ye, and read all about the Grand Reopening in tomorrow’s edition of
Whispering Falls Chronicles.” The voice rang above the crowd, catching my
attention. “Whispers can be loud if you listen closely!”
A
hand waved a newspaper above the heads of the crowd. I continued to wave as I
watched for on opening in the people to see who the hand belong to.
“Hear
ye, hear ye.” There was a little opening right before A Charming Cure. “Get
your first edition of The Whispering Falls Chronicles.”
My
mouth dropped when Faith Mortimer appeared, profusely waving the paper in the
air. Her long blonde hair was long gone into a short razor cut, almost
completely covered by a pageboy hat.
“Hi,
June!” She ran over and threw a paper in the bed of the green machine. “Enjoy!”
I
picked up the paper and the headlines read: Wicked Good Bakery now open on Main
Street, and Whispering Falls Isn’t Whispering About The New Newspaper In Town.
There
couldn’t be a better addition to the community than the Mortimer sisters. They
were welcomed with open arms.
We
pulled back around to stop where we had started. In front of Belle’s Baubles.
“Thank
you, Sir.” I took Gerald’s hand getting out of the back of the green machine.
“You were a very good escort.”
“Why,
you are so welcome.” He did a little bow. “Would you like a spot of tea before
you head to man the big line outside of A Charming Cure?”
We
looked down the street. Not only did A Charming Cure have a line, but every
single shop did. Even Wicked Good.
“You
know what.” I held my hand in the air. “I think I’ll take a rain check. There’s
someone I need to see.”
I
ran across the street, noticing Faith was already taking pictures and jotting
some notes on her journalist pad. Her new job suited her. And she looked very
happy and healthy.
“Wow,”
the word popped out of my mouth as I pushed the big pink wooden door open and
walked inside Wicked Good.
The
lime green walls looked amazing against the jars of candy that lined them. The
cake stands on each table had the most amazing assortment of cupcakes I’d ever
seen.
The
black and white checker floor lead the way to a room filled with Victorian
style dining furniture. The menu had any dessert you could ask for as well as
any tea that was sold at the Gathering Grove.
“So?”
Raven snuck up behind me. Her hands were behind her back. “What do you think?”
“I.
. .” The words were stuck. “I’m shocked. It’s amazing.” I ran my hand along the
old Victorian tables she had rehabbed in an off-white finish. “Beautiful,
Raven. Absolutely beautiful.”
She
brought her hands in front of her. “Today’s special, June’s Gem.” There was a
chocolaty round treat on the plate in her hand.
“Is
that what I think it is?” My mouth watered at the thought of a homemade Ding
Dong.
“Try
it.” Her eyes glistened. “In honor of you.”
Carefully
I took the yummy goodness off the plate and bringing it up to my nose, I took a
sniff.
“Umm...”
I closed my eyes to enjoy every single smell. Splitting it in two, I handed
Raven half. “Here’s to us.”
“Ding
Dong, the witch is dead.” Laughing out loud, we tapped our two halves together
before we devoured every single morsel.
“Yes,
the witch is dead.” I knew my smile was filled with chocolate teeth. “This is
amazing.”
I
followed Raven back up to the front of Wicked Good. She handed me a box of
June’s Gems.
“I
must go. My customers wait.” I gave her a quick hug and headed toward A
Charming Cure, Mr. Prince Charming next to me the whole way, his tail wagging
in the air.
My
heart filled seeing Belle’s Baubles overflowing with customers. Bella looked
out the window and winked before she buried her head back in the jewelry case.
Across
the street, customers were in a line to get a table at The Gathering Grove Tea
Shoppe. I was sure Gerald was already reading someone’s tea leaves.
“Excuse
me.” I barely missed a collision with a man carrying a very large crystal
chandelier out of Mystic Lights.
“I
smell death.” Constance Karima rushed past me with her twin sister, Patience,
on her heels. Both dressed in housecoats, they hurried along.
“Yes,
death.” Patience repeated after her sister.
Death?
But,
quickly dismissed the notion when a kangaroo hopped out of Glorybee Pet Store
and Petunia running after it flailing her arms in the air.
I
ran as fast as I could to cut the joey off at the pass, but Mr. Prince Charming
had already come face-to-face with it, stopping the kangaroo dead in its
tracks.
“Gotcha!”
Petunia pushed a few of the leaves that were dangling from her messy up-do back
in place. “I hate it when good souls come back as an animal they do not want to
be. At least you came back to life,” she scolded the animal after grabbing it
up.
Before
I reached A Charming Cure, I peeked my head into A Cleansing Spirit Spa.
“You
are going to make a fantastic mother,” Chandra chuckled and rubbed the palm of
the young woman sitting at the manicure table in front of her. “Oh, twins too!”
“How
did you know?” The woman let out a cry of joy. “The only other person that
knows is my husband.”
“Honey,
I can see it in your hands.” Chandra glanced up at me with a twinkle in her eye
that matched the sparkle on the gem in the center of her turban.
I
waved and skipped next door to open A Charming Cure.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
“Welcome
to A Charming Cure.” I greeted each customer that came in.
“I
was in here a couple of days ago. You gave me a cure for my acne.” The blonde
reminded me of her visit only a few short days ago, but it seemed like a
lifetime had happened since then. “I wanted to thank you. It was gone by the
time I got home. It was like. . .” She searched for a word.’
“Magic.”
“Yes.
Magic.” She turned and began looking around the shop. Fortunately, nothing she
needed jumped out at me, or better yet, at my intuition.
But
the young man standing in the corner of the bath salts did grab my attention.
“Can
I help you?” I asked the bewildered gentleman who had a distant look on his
face.
Bouncing
on the balls of his feet, his curly red head jiggled, a little bit like Bozo
the Clown. “I. . .um. . .have a little problem.” He glanced down toward his
nether region.
“Oh.
. .” I stammered, feeling a little flushed.
He
leaned in. “I heard you might be able to help. I mean, homeopathic cures are
like the new thing. Right?” Worry set deep in his eyes.
“Yes.”
I rubbed my hands down my apron, and clasped my hands together. “I think I
might have exactly what you need. I’ll be right back.”
This
was a new one to me, and very exciting.
The
cauldron was ready to go. I grabbed some Ginseng, L argentine and Gingko Biloba
off the ingredient shelf, along with a pinch of banana peel, salmon, and pine
nuts. Carefully I stirred each ingredient in, focusing on my customer’s sexual
desire.
There
was a little something missing. I peeked around the petition and grabbed the
gentleman’s attention. I waved him over.
“Do
you have a picture of your significant other?” I asked knowing it was a strange
question.
He
didn’t question me; he pulled his wallet out of his back pocket and retrieved a
wedding picture of a woman with the same colored hair as him. “It was our
wedding day. She’s lovely.”
The
pride swelled on his face, never taking his eyes off her as he handed me the
photo. Without warning, I tossed it in the cauldron. His eyes grew big.
“It’ll
be done in a few.” I planted a grin on my face and disappeared back over the
cauldron.
The
indigo potion reflected against the copper cauldron sending out gold flashes.
The elixir whirled and twirled, causing a small funnel cloud about one inch
above the glowing tonic. It thickened with each stir of the oar, causing the
cloud to go slower and slower until it disappeared into the air.
The
masculine cobalt blue empty potion bottle lit up behind me, letting me know it
was the right bottle for this man’s. . .little issue.
With
the golden lid unscrewed, I plunged the bottle into the cauldron, allowing it
to fill to the top. I wanted to make sure he used every single ounce.
The
smell of bagels engulfed my senses. Screwing the lid back on, his potion was
complete and his problem would soon be gone.
“Here
you go.” I held the beautiful masculine bottle out when I found him in the
crowd. “You need to sprinkle a couple dashes on your bagel every morning.”
He
held the bottle up to the light. The thick mixture had turned to a fine grain,
the size of salt.
“Oh,
if your wife mistakes it for salt, it won’t affect her in any way.” I winked.
“Only you.”
We
walked back to the cash register to make good on what he owed me.
Ding,
ding.
The
bell above the door dinged, but I didn’t know how another customer was going to
fit into the store. It was filled beyond fire code.
Aunt
Helena tipped her head back when I looked up. I couldn’t help but wonder what
she wanted of me now that all the drama was over. We never seemed to see
eye-to-eye, but I guess that was most families. Just not mine.
Her
face caught a light that brought back a memory of an image that was buried deep
in my mind. Only in the memory she didn’t have her scar, she held out a doll.
In the memory, a young girl took it. The young girl was me, standing next to my
dad’s coffin.
Our
eyes held for a minute and she knew. She knew exactly what I remembered.
Without
a word spoken about it, she walked up to the counter.
“I’m
glad to see business doing so well.” She glanced around the room. “I have a
present for you before I go back to Hidden Hall.”
She
put a brown paper bag on the counter. I unrolled the top and reached in,
pulling out an old photo of Darla, my father, and me standing in front of my
cottage on the hill.
“Thank
you.” I reached out to hug my aunt, but she was gone. I held the frame close to
my heart and hugged it. It was the only picture I have of my family. Darla
always told me that memories were kept in your heart. But it was nice to have
the real thing.
I
studied how happy we looked and wondered what they would’ve thought of my life
and how it turned out. I couldn’t wait to hang it up. It was going to stay in
the shop, where I spend most of my time.
Throughout
the day, I found myself glancing at the picture and smiling. My intuition told
me that they approved of how things were turning out.
“Are
you ready?” I rubbed my hand down Mr. Prince Charming’s back, while looking out
the front window of the shop wondering why Oscar hadn’t stopped by.
There
was a strange gnawing in my gut that made me question whether or not Oscar had
changed his mind. Was he keeping his distance so he didn’t have to face the
embarrassment of having kissed me in the hospital? Was it a spur of the moment
kind of thing?”
Tapping
each bottle of ingredients before I left, I took another look around my shop.
“Well,
Darla,” I walked over to the picture that Aunt Helena had given me of my
parents. My finger slide down the face of my mother and I stopped on her lips.
I didn’t remember my father’s voice, but I remember Darla’s. Suddenly I wished
I could hear her voice just one more time. “How do you think I turned out?”