Gone with the Wool

by Betty Hechtman

  Inwardly, I smiled. So I had managed to keep all the turmoil away from them.

  Scott stopped next to me. “I appreciate trying the looms, but I’m a needle man.” He held up a scarf connected to a pair of circular needles to illustrate.

  The van for the airport pulled up and began to load. A few people who had driven, headed for their cars. Everyone thanked me and said they wanted to come back. I guess that meant the retreat had been a success.

  Finally, it was just me and Lucinda. “Whew,” she said. “This has been quite a week. And they had no idea what you had going on. Make the regular number of desserts for us, and if I were you, I’d make full orders of the muffins, too. You’ll see, tomorrow everything will go back to normal.”

  She pulled her coat a little tighter against the chilly air. Her suitcase stood next to her. “There’s Tag,” she said, as a Prius turned off the driveway. “With the restaurant closed, he’s planned a special welcome-back night for me. Being away really puts a new spark in things.”

  I waited until she’d gotten in the car and it had driven away. I felt at loose ends when I went back home. There had been so much excitement, and now it was all over. Julius was sitting on the stoop outside the back door, waiting for me. I was about to go inside when the door to the guest house opened and Sammy came out, pulling a bag.

  “Thanks for letting me stay last night. It was kind of traumatic with my parents, and it was nicer to stay here.”

  “I’m sorry about the way it worked out,” I said.

  “It’s okay. It’s better that they know why I’m really here, instead of thinking it was because of you. No more pressure from them about when there’s going to be a wedding.” He looked at me with his soulful eyes and held my gaze for a little too long for it to be believable that he was really happy about it.

  “I’m glad you made the parade,” I said. His face lit up, and he let go of his bag.

  “I have to show you what I’m planning for next year.” He took out three red beanbags and started juggling them. He did pretty well, only dropping them once. “By next year I’ll be juggling flaming batons.” It was probably good his parents weren’t here for this.

  One way or another, my life was intertwined with Sammy’s. I went to give him a hug. “You know, if you want to rent the guest house, I’m still available as a tenant,” he said.

  He finally ambled down the driveway toward the BMW parked on the street.

  The phone was ringing as I went inside. I knew who it was. I grabbed the cordless and said, “Hello, Mother.”

  “Huh?” the voice on the phone said.

  “Frank?” I said in surprise. Then I got worried. “Is something wrong?”

  “Feldstein, everything is still copacetic here. You left me hanging. I wanted to know how it all turned out.”

  “Nailed it,” I said with a laugh. Then I told him all the details. Frank was as horrified as the other men at what Coach Gary had done to his team. He wanted me to let him know what they finally charged him with, and he thought it would be a long list.

  “My muffins are off the hook, and it’s going to be baking as usual,” I said.

  “Good for you, Feldstein. You make me proud. I guess this means you won’t be moving back.” Did I detect a little disappointment in his voice?

  “You could always come for a vacation,” I said.

  I heard him chortle as his chair let out a protesting squeak. “Maybe someday I will.”

  * * *

  That night, I made myself a frozen entrée and gave Julius some stink fish, and then I got my baking things together.

  Grand Street was quiet, and all residue of Butterfly Week had been packed into a load of plastic trash bags that would be picked up the next day.

  The Blue Door was dark, like all the other businesses on the street. I unlocked the door and turned on the light. After setting my things in the restaurant kitchen, I quickly turned on some soft jazz to cover the deathly quiet. I should have known it wouldn’t last.

  I planned on following Lucinda’s instructions and making the full order of desserts. I began by taking out the ingredients for apple pie. I had lost myself in peeling apples when I heard a knock at the door. I went to answer it, expecting it to be one of the usual people who showed up. I was shocked to see Gwen, with her face close to the glass.

  I opened the door and brought her in. Her brow was furrowed, and she said she didn’t want to sit down. “I’m still trying to process what you told me. If it was just me, I would leave everything as it is. But I have to think of Crystal, Marcy and Kory. I’ll do the paternity test. Then maybe you can help me consider my options.”

  “Of course,” I said.

  “But it stays our secret for now.” Gwen looked to me for agreement. Now that she’d gotten it off her chest, she said she just wanted to go home.

  I went back to the pies and, when they were done, smiled at the row of them sitting on the dessert counter. I was ready to move on to the muffins when there was another knock at the door.

  This time it was Dane in uniform. “No rest for the wicked,” he joked. “I thought I’d take my break here.” He held out a red tote bag. “I retrieved it from the museum. I think everything is in there, but it’s probably a mess.”

  “Thank you,” I said, looking inside. The work I’d done on the blue hat had fallen off the loom and come apart, but the skein of red yarn and instructions for the cowl were intact.

  “I’m going to start on this when I get home tonight,” I said. He nodded, though I doubted he knew what I was talking about.

  He seemed more thoughtful than usual. “I don’t know how to begin to thank you for what you did for Chloe.”

  “We couldn’t have her in jail when she got her shot to be Butterfly Queen.”

  Dane smiled. “Chloe as a queen is going to be something to see. I hope Cadbury is ready for it.” He watched as I unloaded the muffin ingredients.

  “I was planning to make full orders even before Lucinda suggested it,” I said. “And there’s something else. I know the town council will go nuts, but I’m calling the pumpkin muffins Monarchs.”

  “You go, girl. And that is probably the one fancy name the town council won’t mind anyway.” He handed me the paper baking cups. “This shift isn’t all bad,” he said. “I could take my breaks here. That is if you don’t mind. It could be almost like a mini date,” he said with a wink.

  Patterns

  Crystal’s Loom Cowl

  Note: Looms come with tool and instructions on e-wrap cast on and stitch.

  Supplies

  1 skein Lion Brand Homespun, Candy Apple, 6 oz, 170 g, 185 yds, 169 m, 98% acrylic, 2% other fibers

  41-peg round loom

  Knitting loom tool (comes with loom)

  F-5/3.75 mm crochet hook

  Tapestry needle

  Finished size: Approximately 26 inches in circumference and 8 inches tall

  To cast on: Make a slip knot, leaving a tail. Take slip knot through middle of loom from top to bottom and place it on side peg. (This is just to anchor yarn. After a few rows, take off peg and let hang loose.) Working counterclockwise around loom, e-wrap pegs, keeping wraps loose.

  Round 1: Working in the same direction as cast on, e-wrap pegs. After wrapping all pegs, anchor yarn by wrapping around side peg. There are now two loops on each peg. Working in same counterclockwise direction, use loom tool to lift bottom loop over top loop and off peg. After working the last peg, release the working yarn from the side peg.

  Repeat Round 1 until knitted work is approximately 8 inches. To cast off: Work the cast off very loosely. Hold working yarn to inside of loom. Insert crochet hook in last stitch worked from bottom to top. Lift loop off peg, chain one by sliding working yarn through loop on hook (keep loop loose). Use crochet hook to lift next loop off peg, going from bottom to top. There are now
two loops on hook. Slide new loop through other one, chain one, being sure to keep the loop loose. Repeat until last stitch. When there is one loop left on hook, chain one,cut yarn and pull the end through final loop, tighten loop. Weave in ends with tapestry needle.

  Gwen’s Crochet Butterflies

  Supplies

  1 skein Red Heart Super Saver, Carrot, 7 oz, 198 g, 364 yds, 333 m, 100% acrylic (enough to make a lot of butterflies)

  1 skein Red Heart Super Saver, Black, 7 oz, 198 g, 364 yds, 333 m, 100% acrylic (enough of both yarns to make a lot of butterflies)

  Size K-10.5/6.50 mm crochet hook

  Size H-8/5.00 mm crochet hook

  Tapestry needle

  Stitches used

  Chain (ch), single crochet (sc), double crochet (dc), triple crochet (tr), slip stitch (sl st)

  Finished size: Approximately 4 inches across the wings

  WINGS

  Using K hook and carrot yarn, ch 8 and join with a sl st.

  Round 1: Ch 1, make 17 sc in the circle, join to first stitch with a sl st.

  Round 2: Ch 3, sc in next stitch, *sc, ch 3, sc* repeat from * to * around. 8 chain 3 spaces made.

  Round 3: *Sl st to move yarn into ch 3 space , sc, dc, dc, tr, dc, dc,sc (all in the ch 3 space)*.*. Repeat from * to* 7 more times. Sl st in first space. Fasten off.

  Weave in the ends then fold the piece in half and the butterfly shape should be apparent. With K hook, attach black yarn to top side of one of the wings. Ch 1, working through both layers join by single crocheting around the wings. Fasten off and weave in ends.

  BODY

  Using H hook and black yarn ch an approximately 10-inch strip. Fasten off.

  Make a knot at each end of the strip, cut excess yarn (this will be top of each antenna). Fold the strip across the center of the butterfly (so that it shows on both sides), tie the top in a knot (the butterfly’s head) leaving about an inch on each end to create the antennas.

  Recipe

  Monarch Muffins

  2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

  2 teaspoons aluminum-free double-acting baking powder

  1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon

  ½ teaspoon baking soda

  ½ cup chopped walnuts

  1 egg

  ¾ cups buttermilk

  ¾ cup canned pumpkin

  ⅔ cup packed brown sugar

  ⅔ cup melted butter

  ¼ cup spiced pumpkin seeds (optional)

  Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Line 12-cup muffin pan with paper baking cups.

  Sift flour, baking powder, cinnamon and baking soda into a medium bowl. Add nuts and stir.

  In another bowl, beat egg lightly with fork. Stir in buttermilk, pumpkin, brown sugar and melted butter. Make a well in the middle of dry ingredients, and add wet ingredients all at once. Stir just until moistened. Batter will be lumpy. Spoon into prepared pan. Sprinkle spiced pumpkin seeds over each muffin. Bake for approximately 20 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Makes 12 muffins.

  Keep on the lookout for Betty Hechtman’s next Yarn Retreat Mystery and Crochet Mystery, coming soon from Berkley Prime Crime!

  Betty Hechtman is the national bestselling author of the Crochet Mysteries (most recently Seams Like Murder, Knot Guilty, For Better or Worsted and If Hooks Could Kill) and the Yarn Retreat Mysteries (Wound Up in Murder, Silence of the Lamb’s Wool and Yarn to Go). She has a degree in fine arts and since college has studied everything from tap dancing to magic. When she isn’t writing, reading or crocheting, she’s probably at the gym. She lives in Southern California with her family. Visit the author at bettyhechtman.com, killerhobbies.blogspot.com, and facebook.com/BettyHechtmanauthor.

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