Lucky hugged her friend tighter and felt Sophie melt into her arms.
“When I think of Hilary Stone giving her daughter up for adoption, I can’t imagine anything like that. I feel like there’s a soul hovering around me, around me and Sage, learning to love us, waiting to be loved, waiting to be born.” Sophie pulled back. Her eyes were full of tears. “But I’m so scared.”
Lucky smiled widely, certain her eyes were full of tears as well. “You’ll be a great mom.”
“You think so?”
“Yes.” Lucky nodded. “I know so.” She reached for a tissue and wiped Sophie’s cheeks. “Come on, let’s get out of here.” Lucky held the door as they stepped out to the corridor. “Has it occurred to you how much things have changed in just a few short years? Time is such a strange thing, isn’t it? When we were kids, we felt as if it couldn’t pass fast enough and now it seems to fly. It wasn’t that long ago I had absolutely no thought of ever returning to Snowflake.”
Sophie took a deep breath and linked her arm through Lucky’s as they headed for the elevator. “And I was so mad at you for leaving for college in the first place.” She pushed the button for the lobby. “I didn’t even want to speak to you when you came back.”
“And never in a million years did I think I’d have a chance with Elias. Now we’re engaged and you and Sage are about to start a family.”
“It’s because of you that Sage is still here. He could have gone to jail for the rest of his life for a crime he didn’t commit. Both of us owe our lives to you for figuring out who murdered that winter tourist.”
“Don’t dwell on that,” Lucky said as they stepped into the elevator. “Everything’s wonderful now. Jack will be back on his feet soon and the Spoonful . . . well, we’ll keep on serving soup just as always. You and Sage are going to have a baby and Elias and I”—Lucky took a shaky breath—“will be getting married.”
Sophie smiled. “You’ll be Mrs. Letitia Scott.”
Lucky laughed. “Now I’m scared. It feels like a new identity. I don’t want to be different, I want to stay the same, I just want Elias and me to be together, for real.”
“But this is a good change. And I’m going to be your bridesmaid, right?” Sophie narrowed her eyes.
“Of course, who else? You’ll be my one and only.”
“Well, unlike you, I can’t sew, but promise me I can help pick out your wedding dress?” Sophie asked as they stepped out of the elevator.
“Yes, absolutely. I’ll definitely need help with that,” Lucky agreed. “Have you thought about any baby names?”
“Yikes! No! I’m still trying to get used to the idea I’ll be a mother! And you’ll be a godmother.” She hesitated. “But maybe . . . if it’s a girl, I’ll call her Letitia.”
“Oh,” Lucky groaned. “Don’t saddle the poor kid with that name.”
“Why not? It’s a beautiful name. It means happiness.”
The glass entrance doors released and they stepped out into the warm spring sunshine. “Why don’t you follow me back to the Spoonful and we can continue this argument there.”
“What argument? We’re not arguing. I’ve already decided.”
“Well, if I’m going to be a godmother, don’t I have a say?”
“I’ll think about that,” Sophie replied.
Lucky hugged her friend. “Let’s get back to the Spoonful. I know we’ll have some very hungry customers waiting for us.”
Author’s Note
Adoption laws, which vary from state to state, play a large role in the plot of A Clue in the Stew. Although records are always confidential to the public, in certain states information is made available to birth parents, adoptees, siblings and even descendants of deceased adoptees. In Vermont, the official site for adoption records is: dcf.vermont.gov/fsd/vermont_adoption_registry.
A Clue in the Stew references a site called connectadopt .com. This is purely fictional, although the name is based on a real site—the Worldwide Adoptee and Birth Parent Search Database, which can be found at: adopteeconnect.com.
If you are someone seeking information about a birth parent, a sibling or a child given up for adoption, you can register at adopteeconnect.com, provide any known information and receive notifications if another’s search matches your parameters.
Recipes
CREAM OF ASPARAGUS SOUP
1 bunch asparagus
1 tablespoon butter
2 leeks, green part removed and white part thinly sliced
1 large potato, peeled and cubed
3 cups chicken broth
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup water
2 tablespoons lemon juice
4 tablespoons crème fraîche
Trim off thick ends of asparagus and chop stalks into 1-inch thin sections. Reserve 4 asparagus tips for garnish and set aside.
In a large pot, melt butter, add sliced leeks and sauté for 5 minutes. Add potato and chopped asparagus stalks, and sauté for 5 minutes more.
Add chicken broth and season with salt and pepper. Bring to boil over medium heat, reduce heat to low, then cover partially and cook about 15 minutes, until vegetables are tender.
In the meantime, add water to a small saucepan, bring to boil and add reserved asparagus tips and lemon juice. Cook on medium heat for 3 minutes just until tips are tender. Drain and let cool.
Purée the soup in a blender in batches, or with a wand, then reheat the soup over low heat. Garnish each serving with crème fraîche and asparagus tips.
Serves 4.
ASIAN TOFU NOODLE SOUP
3½ cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 cup water
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 tablespoon ginger root, freshly grated
2 cups shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and caps sliced
handful of rice noodles or whole wheat spaghetti, broken in half
1 cup carrots, chopped
2 cups snow peas, fresh, trimmed and cut in half lengthwise
8 ounces firm tofu, cut into ½-inch chunks
½ cup green onions, chopped into ½-inch pieces
Heat broth almost to boiling, and add water, soy sauce, garlic and ginger. Add mushrooms, noodles (or spaghetti) and carrots, and cook 5 minutes. Add snow peas, and cook 2 more minutes.
Add tofu, and cook until vegetables are tender but still crisp, and noodles are al dente, about 2 more minutes. Remove from heat and stir in green onions and serve.
Serves 4.
FENNEL AND DATE SALAD
3 tablespoons pumpkin seeds
½ cup chopped walnuts
1 head romaine lettuce, washed and thinly sliced on the diagonal
3 celery ribs, thinly sliced on the diagonal
1 bulb fennel, cleaned, outer leaves removed, cut in half and sliced very thin
1 cup fresh parsley
5 ounces hard Parmesan cheese, shaved
10 dates, pitted and thinly sliced on the diagonal
juice of ½ lemon
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
DRESSING
juice of ½ lemon
2 tablespoons walnut oil
Mix ingredients for dressing and set aside.
Toast pumpkin seeds and chopped walnuts in a small skillet for 2 minutes, remove and set aside. Mix lettuce, celery, fennel, parsley, cheese and dates. Add lemon juice, toasted nuts and dressing and toss again. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Serves 4.
TOMATO PEPPER SOUP
2 teaspoons butter or margarine
1 sweet green pepper, seeds removed and diced
1 yellow pepper, seeds removed and diced
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
> 2 cups chicken broth
2 cans diced tomatoes, puréed in blender with juice, or 1½ pounds fresh tomatoes, chopped
2 teaspoons maple syrup or sugar
4 tablespoons uncooked white rice
2 basil leaves, torn in pieces, or ½ teaspoon dry basil
¼ teaspoon dry thyme, or small sprig fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
dash cayenne pepper
freshly ground pepper to taste
Melt butter or margarine in a large pot. Add green and yellow diced peppers, onion and garlic. Cook on medium heat, stirring, for 5 minutes or until onion is soft. If mixture dries, add a little broth. Add remaining ingredients except black pepper: broth, tomatoes, sugar, rice, basil, thyme, bay leaves and cayenne pepper. Bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer about 15 minutes or until peppers are tender. Turn off heat, cover and let sit until rice has softened, approximately 20 minutes. Reheat, and add freshly ground black pepper to taste. Remove bay leaves and serve hot.
Serves 4.
CORN AND CHEESE CAKES
½ cup yellow cornmeal
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ cup grated cheddar cheese
½ teaspoon salt
dash black pepper
1 large egg
¼ cup half-and-half
1 cup yellow corn kernels
½ cup chopped green onions
nonstick vegetable oil spray
¼ cup (approximately) spicy brown mustard
Mix cornmeal, flour, baking soda, grated cheese, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Whisk egg and half-and-half together and add to dry mixture, blending well. Stir in corn and green onions. Spray large nonstick skillet with vegetable oil spray. Over medium heat and working in batches, drop small amounts of batter on skillet, pressing down lightly and turning over. Cook until each cake is golden brown, about 1½ to 2 minutes. Top each with a dab of mustard. Serve warm.
Depending on size, makes approximately 20 small cakes.
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