Stirring the Plot (A Cookbook Nook Mystery) Read Online Free PDF Page B

center of the garden near a birdbath waterfall. Maya had cleverly placed decorative art and bird feeders throughout the shop. Bowls of wrapped Halloween candies sat on wrought-iron tables and potting étagères.
    Maya, a slender, almost ropy woman, her lean look the result of a vegetarian diet, greeted us as we entered. She wore a witch hat decorated with black satin and white bell-shaped flowers. She had woven the flowers into her curly tresses, as well. As we entered, she handed each of us a business card. I already had one, but I didn’t decline. I loved the lily of the valley logo. I remembered doing an advertising campaign for an online florist. Unlike my typical humorous ads, the LOV ad—that’s what we had called it—featured what I believed was every schoolgirl’s dream wedding: exquisite bouquets of lily of the valley with their pretty white bell-shaped flowers and streamers of white chiffon blowing in a gentle breeze. On a previous visit to The Enchanted Garden, I had asked Maya about the logo. I learned her mother had named her Maya Lily:
Maya
for May, and
Lily
for her mother’s favorite flower, which bloomed in May. How sweet was that?
    “This way, y’all,” Maya said with a subtle Southern accent. She was born in South Carolina but had migrated to California after college. As she led the way, she rubbed her hands like a witch beckoning Hansel and Gretel into her cottage, which made me giggle. All part of the act, I assumed. “On your right, you’ll see a number of unique plants that might benefit you, should you be so inclined. Jacob’s Ladder, otherwise known as Ladder to Heaven, can increase your mental abilities as well as your joie de vivre. Lavender, I’m sure you all know, attracts affection. It is especially good when used in love-type potions.”
    A few of the visitors giggled.
    “Think about adding some dried lavender whenever you’re writing a love note. Y’all still do that, don’t you? Write?”
    More laughter.
    “In addition, the aroma of lavender encourages long life. Some people carry lavender in order to see ghosts. Have any of you seen a ghost?”
    No hands shot up.
    Maya grinned. “Me, either, but I hope to someday. Now, sage”—she fingered a grayish-green plant—“is wonderful when added to a bath. It can purify you of all past evils and negative deeds. If you burn sagebrush, sort of like burning incense, you can drive away malevolent forces.” She moved on to a section of trailing plants. “Rosemary, when burned, is powerful, as well. Pay attention: if you place a sprig of rosemary beneath your pillow, you’ll get a good sleep. It also”—she beckoned us near, then whispered—“attracts elves.”
    “Jenna has seen elves,” Rhett joked. “The Keebler kind.”
    I knuckled his arm.
    Emma, who had been hanging back with Pearl and Bingo, sidled up to Maya. “Tell them about the history of this place.”
    “Didn’t you tell them, Vera?”
    My aunt shook her head.
    Maya offered a mock scowl. “Fine. Leave the heavy lifting to me. The main building of The Enchanted Garden was erected in 1901. The garden shop was passed down from generation to generation, until the last of the family died, with no survivors. Some believed the original owners were witches.”
    “No,” someone from the back of the pack said.
    Maya raised a finger. “Aha, I hear disbelievers among you. It’s true. Witches dwelled in Crystal Cove. The bay has mystical properties.”
    My aunt clucked her tongue and winked at me.
    “Really?” a teenage girl asked, not the same one who had yowled in the cemetery.
    Maya nodded and waved a hand dramatically. “I purchased the garden site specifically to draw on these properties. I have dedicated my life to finding just the right herbal potion for everyone who asks.” Maya was the herbalist I had scheduled to teach our customers how to make potions. “Now, follow me for more of the tour.” She crooked a finger. We trailed her until she came to an