Tea, Thyme, an Murder (Pies and Pages Cozy Mysteries Book 13) Read online

“I got here first. I applied for this space first, but somehow she still got it.”

  “Probably because she and her sister had a good history in business,” Carla noted matter-of-factly.

  “It’s not fair, so I tried to scare her off by making up the whole bit about another shop opening. My shop.”

  “But you had to know that wouldn’t have worked,” Karen said.

  “Yes, I knew. That’s why I took it upon myself to end it once and for all. I enrolled in the class. Susan never recognized me still, even to this day. She didn’t remember my name from the letters I sent threatening to sue. For someone so full of herself, she sure was stupid.”

  “How dare you,” Karen defended her sister, despite the misunderstandings she’d had with Susan when she was alive.

  “On that Thursday in question, I stayed behind after class pretending to ask a bunch of novice questions. While I did that, she didn’t see me mix in the poison hemlock with her usual tea mixture. I made sure to pick it when it was most potent and only add the most poisonous parts to the tea.”

  “And then she drank it, thinking it was just her normal mix,” Bert said.

  “But it didn’t stop the wheel from turning,” Carla added.

  “Even when she’s dead and gone I can’t escape her. When I heard you were going to keep your sister’s legacy alive, I knew I had to bring a stop to it one way or another,” she directed the comment at Karen, waving the bottle again. “Today, I’ll make sure to end it. Burn this shop to the ground and get rid of all traces of Susan Green and her stupid herbal empire.”

  Rolling her finger over the lighter, a small orange flame popped out.

  “Hold it right there,” a gruff voice came from behind her. Harry emerged from the stock room as well.

  The sound of sirens echoed in the air as multiple cop cars pulled up in front of the shop, their lights flashing.

  “Sorry, but we called the cops on the way over here,” Bert admitted.

  “Put the lighter and bottle down,” the detective ordered the woman.

  “No,” she shouted, holding the lighter to the fabric. In a flash like lightning, Harry ran forward and grabbed the bottle from the woman’s hand before she was able to throw it. Bert could hardly believe her eyes, seeing him move that fast.

  Pulling out the fabric, he tossed it to the ground and stamped it out. The other cops came marching in and handcuffed her. Harry handed the bottle of vodka off to one of the officers. “Take that in as evidence,” he ordered.

  “Whew. That was a close one,” Bert sighed, all too glad for her boyfriend.

  “See? I’m in shape.” He smirked at her.

  Chapter 13

  “Does no one in this town ever lock doors behind them?” Harry joked, indicating that the back door on the herb shop had been unlatched again when he’d arrived the day before.

  “I guess not, since it seems Tayler just let herself in. I guess she’d missed my shop the night before throwing from the street and decided she needed to be in the shop proper to actually get the effect she wanted.”

  “I think she was just trying to warn you off,” Harry pointed out.

  “Or she just has poor aim.”

  “Well, in some respects I can’t blame people for leaving their doors unlocked,” Harry noted, returning to his original thought. “I know a lot of folks like to keep their doors open for fresh air during these last cool days of summer before things get really chilly in autumn.”

  “Yeah, I know I love to throw open all the windows on my upstairs apartment. I guess when you’re there in the building, you’re not worried about someone walking in and trying to rob or kill you—especially in the middle of the day.”

  “But if you just had someone in your family die under mysterious circumstances, you’d think you’d keep the doors locked. I know we live in a relatively small city, but there is still plenty of crime going on. It’s good to be careful sometimes.”

  “Makes sense to me,” Bert said, shifting in her seat. Looking out the window, she saw that they were driving around the park. “So, where are we going again?”

  “I told you. It’s a surprise,” he smirked behind his mustache.

  “Can’t you just tell me?” she pushed, eager to know what it was.

  “I don’t have to. We’re here,” he announced, pulling up to a fenced-in lot between two brick buildings.

  Bert raised an eyebrow. “You bought me an empty lot?” she questioned.

  He chuckled and shook his head. “Hardly. Come on and I’ll show you.” Putting the car in park, he shut it off and got out, leading the way to the wooden gate in the middle of the fence. Pulling out a key, he undid the u-lock and opened the fence.

  He motioned for her to step inside.

  Eager to see what lay beyond, Bert walked through and gasped. The empty lot was built up with wooden boxes which acted as planters for gardens. The walls were all edged with long stalks of corn which would be ready for harvest soon. Other plots had various flowers, vegetables, even pumpkins starting to sprout.

  Harry walked over to one box that stood empty. “This one is ours now.”

  “You bought us a space in the community garden?”

  “That’s right. We can get the soil ready for planting next spring. We can come together and work with our hands and get some real down to earth exercise,” he joked.

  “That was a terrible pun.”

  “I know.”

  “But I loved it,” she admitted, walking over and embracing him in a hug. “Now I can grow all my own greens to put into the cheese and herb pie.”

  Harry grimaced, and Bert saw. “What?” she demanded to know.

  “Can you not make that pie again?” he requested.

  Bert sighed. “I suppose you don’t have to eat it again.” It was true that the pie hadn’t been a huge hit with anyone—including Carla, Bert, and Harry. It was unusual, seeing as her pies were usually a hit. Bert had liked the pie, though. It had a somewhat earthy and bitter undertone that a lot of people didn’t care for.

  In the end, she knew it wasn’t the right dish to bring in the brunch crowd. She’d have to think up something else.

  In the meantime, she could make the herb and cheese pie for herself. Turning her attention back to the plot, she smiled. “Our first piece of land together as a couple. It’s not quite a house, but it’ll do.”

  Harry coughed and huffed a little, obviously uncomfortable with what she was implying.

  She rolled her eyes and shook her head. “Don’t worry. We’ll still take it slow.” She patted him on the back. She knew he wasn’t comfortable with the idea of moving in together, let alone marriage, and honestly neither was she.

  She wasn’t quite ready to let go of her late husband, Howie, yet. He was always there in her mind, a reminder of why life was so good. He was, in many ways, the polar opposite of Harry.

  Bert tilted her head, looking at him while he knelt and placed his hand on the dirt as if he could hear it speaking to him in some base way.

  Harry was still a great catch, and Bert felt blessed to be with him at this point in her life.

  She knelt next to him and placed her hand next to his on the dirt. “I look forward to many beautiful days of gardening together,” she whispered.

  Turning his face toward hers, he gave one of his trademark timid smirks before moving in and kissing her.