Sweet as Honey (Aster Valley 2)

Sam pulled me over onto his lap. “No. It might mean it was a random act of vandalism. Or maybe it wasn’t really arson.”

“What if the investigator thinks you did it?” I asked.

“I don’t have any motive for that kind of crime. They’d have a hard time pinning it on me with no evidence.”

My phone rang again. This time it was Barney.

“There you are. I’ve been buzzing at your gate with no response.”

“I’m not at home,” I said, moving back over to my seat and taking a quick sip of coffee. The wine hangover wasn’t too bad, but I was still looking forward to drenching it in whatever the heck Mikey was making that smelled so good.

“Where are you? I found something important at the shop.”

“You went to my shop?”

Tiller and Sam exchanged another look. That was beginning to annoy me.

“Where are you?” Barney asked again.

“Rockley Lodge. I spent the night at Tiller and Mikey’s.”

Barney sighed. “I wish you’d called me. I would have come to stay with you. I told you that.”

I was tired of telling him no over and over again, so I didn’t. “Feel free to leave what you found. I’ll be home later.”

“No need. I’ll run it up to you at the lodge.”

I stared at my phone. “Why do people keep hanging up on me before I can respond?” I muttered.

Mikey slid a plate full of a steaming serving of egg casserole in front of me. Tiller vibrated with happiness. “Egg surprise! Truman, you need to stay over more often.”

If they fed me like this, maybe I’d consider it. I dug into the food without waiting.

Sure enough, right as we finished up breakfast and I’d convinced Tiller to let me do the dishes, there was a knock on the door. Mikey brought Barney back to the kitchen. He was carrying a large paper grocery bag that he set down carefully on the island.

“Oh sweet pea,” he said, bustling over to kiss me on the cheek. My hands were dripping wet with soapy dishwater, so I simply stood there and accepted it. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Sam watching every move.

Not going to lie, I kind of liked the scowl on his face.

“How are you bearing up?” Barney asked, cooing over me and murmuring that I looked just awful. “You must not be sleeping. I knew this would happen.”

Mikey offered him a cup of coffee, then asked, “What’s in the bag? Did you bring us some cookies? I happen to know Truman has a soft spot for peanut butter cookies.”

Barney’s face wrinkled in confusion. “Truman only eats organic plant-based foods.”

I wanted to laugh. “No, I don’t.”

Sam couldn’t resist. “Pretty sure peanut butter is plant-based anyway.”

“Be that as it may,” Barney continued, “I brought something super special for you from the shop. When I remembered how dear it was to you, I couldn’t resist going over there to look for it.”

I dried my hands off and opened the paper bag, pulling out a familiar, albeit soot-dusted, spiral notebook. “Oh my gosh! It’s Aunt Berry’s recipes.” I glanced over at Barney in surprise. “How in the world did you find this?”

“And how did it survive?” Tiller asked, stepping closer to take a look.

It was a good question. The spiral was definitely covered in ash and soot, but otherwise, it didn’t look like it had been harmed at all. I searched my memory to figure out where I might have left it the last time I’d used it.

“I could have sworn I had it here at the house from when I made the last batch of thyroid drops for Dee Lorens,” I murmured, brushing off the dust into the kitchen sink. “No, wait. I took it to the shop to grab the ingredients for the eczema cream. That’s right. I guess I must have left it there.”

Mikey dampened a paper towel and brought it over to help clean off the soot.

I glanced back over to Barney. “Thank you so much for thinking of this. I can’t believe I almost lost it. I have the recipes backed up on my computer now, but having them in her own handwriting means so much to me. I really appreciate it.”

Barney relaxed and smiled under my expression of gratitude. “I’m so glad. I hated the thought of you losing something so special. I know you don’t have much to remember her by. It would have been a shame to lose this in that horrible fire.”

“Was there anything else?” I asked. “Berry’s mala beads?”

Barney opened his mouth to say something, but then his eyes flicked to Sam for a beat and then back to me. “I’m afraid not.”

Mikey frowned. “Were those the colorful beads that hung behind the register counter?”

I nodded. “It kind of looks like a rosary, but the beads are all different kinds of stones. Some were rare and precious gemstones. The mala is used in meditation.”