A Slice of Magic

by A. G. Mayes

  ‘What do you mean?’ she asked.

  ‘I think she sabotaged me so she’d have an easier time winning.’

  ‘Why would she do that?’ Holly had a concerned and sympathetic look on her face.

  ‘She’s been out to get me. She wants to be queen of desserts in Hocus Hills. Don’t ask me to explain the insane,’ I said.

  ‘Maybe.’ She nodded doubtfully. ‘Let’s get back to the booth.’ Holly grabbed my arm and gently led me away.

  ‘I’ll meet you there,’ I said. ‘I just have to grab something.’ Holly uncertainly watched me go.

  I found Alice walking back towards her cookie booth. The intricate paper lanterns and professional banner that hung in her booth made my paper chain look juvenile. I stepped in front of her, and she looked surprised for a second before the smug smile returned to her lips.

  ‘That was fun, wasn’t it?’ Alice asked. She reached up to scratch her shoulder with the hand that held the blue ribbon so it dangled in front of my face.

  ‘Did you do something to my pie?’ I demanded. I tried to keep my voice down. Maybe the pressure of running the pie shop without Aunt Erma really was getting to me.

  ‘I’m sorry the contest didn’t go better for you,’ she said with sarcastic sympathy.

  ‘What did you add to it?’ I was determined to get to the bottom of this.

  ‘I can’t believe you would accuse me of tampering with the baking contest,’ Alice spoke loudly, and people turned to stare.

  ‘I’m going to prove that you messed with my pie,’ I hissed, then flashed a smile at the gawkers.

  ‘I’d be happy to give you some baking lessons if you want.’ She gave me a charming smile. I felt the blood rise to my cheeks, and I gripped the sides of my apron to keep myself from punching her. I turned and stormed back to my booth. Lena and Mr Barnes were standing there talking to Holly. I wanted to throw something or kick something, but I settled for stomping my foot. I don’t know what I expected. Of course, Alice wasn’t going to just admit to ruining my pie. I would have to prove it.

  ‘How’s it going?’ Lena asked slowly.

  ‘Great, just great,’ I said.

  ‘Don’t you worry about the contest, dear,’ Mr Barnes said. ‘There are plenty of people around here who didn’t see it.’

  ‘Oh, but they’ll hear about it soon, I’m sure,’ I said.

  They continued their cheerful chatter, and I daydreamed about the different ways I could prove Alice’s foul play.

  Things slowed down drastically after that. I think maybe word was spreading about how the baking competition had gone. We took inventory of what we had left.

  ‘We’re almost out of paper plates and chocolate banana cream pie,’ Holly said.

  ‘I definitely have more plates, and I might have one more pie in the fridge back at the store,’ I said. ‘I’ll run and get them. Can you handle things here?’

  ‘No problema, chica,’ she said. ‘I’m just going to eat this piece of pie right here that flipped over when I tried to scoop it out of the tin. You can’t serve pie like this. I’m really doing a public service here.’ She sat down on the folding chair in the corner and took the first bite off the fork. ‘Mmm,’ she sighed. ‘You’re welcome.’

  I laughed and headed back towards the pie shop. The sun had gone behind the clouds making the streets dark and cold. There wasn’t another soul in sight. The sounds of the crowd at the festival grew distant.

  The moment I rounded the corner, something felt different. Then I saw it. The small window by the door was broken. Without thinking I turned and ran back to the festival.

  ‘Holly!’ I was out of breath and had to bend over with my hands on my thighs for a minute.

  ‘Susie, what’s wrong?’ She put her hand on my shoulder and bent down.

  ‘Pie shop, broken,’ I gasped. Wow, maybe Gina was right. I should work out more.

  ‘What? What’s broken?’ Holly asked. A few people had started to gather around and I realized I might be making a scene.

  ‘Someone broke into the pie shop.’ I was finally able to get out a full sentence.

  It was like a noisy mob scene, and I think I was a part of it. Everyone in town seemed to be moving together towards the pie shop. They fell silent when they saw the broken window.

  Chapter 14

  Day 11 — Saturday

  ‘She probably broke into it herself,’ a voice called out. Was that Gina?

  ‘Why would I break into my own shop?’ I asked.

  ‘For attention. Sympathy. Everyone knows how well the baking competition went for you. Maybe you’re hoping people will come buy your pies if you’ve been the victim of a break in.’ Gina appeared through the crowd advancing towards me.

  ‘That’s ridiculous,’ I sputtered. I had not expected this.

  ‘You’re the only one in town who would break in like that,’ she said, pointing an accusatory finger at me.

  ‘What does that even mean?’ I asked.

  ‘Come on, Gina,’ Holly stepped between us, her hands balled into fists. ‘Susie wouldn’t break into the pie shop.’ Her voice reached a menacing tone I’d never heard from her before and both Gina and I took a step back. ‘Just because you’re nuts, doesn’t mean everyone else is.’

  The crowd collectively gasped. Gina’s eyes narrowed, and Sheriff Buddy appeared just in time to stop the verbal attack that Gina was about to launch.

  ‘What’s going on here?’ he asked and twenty voices answered him. He got the gist of the story from the eager crowd and came over to get my account. ‘I’ll go in and check it out,’ he said to me. Quiet murmurs went through the crowd as we all waited outside. I kept catching people glancing at me and then looking away. I noticed Alice standing at the edge of the crowd surveying the scene. She held the silver cat in her arms. The cat was struggling to get away, but Alice held her firmly. Gina’s eyes were boring into me as though she was hoping I would burst into flames. She was probably the one who did this so she could blame me for it. Maybe she was hoping to shut down the pie shop for a few days so she could win her stupid weight loss challenge.

  Henry appeared next to me. ‘What’s happening?’ he asked.

  ‘Someone broke into the pie shop,’ Holly told him. His eyes widened.

  ‘Are you OK? Did they take anything?’ he asked.

  I shrugged. ‘The sheriff’s in there now.’

  ‘Gina’s trying to get everyone riled up into thinking that Susie did it,’ Holly whispered.

  ‘They’re going to pull out torches and pitchforks soon,’ I said.

  Henry tried to hide a smile, ‘I knew you were trouble from the moment you got here.’ He gave my arm a playful squeeze. Then with a more serious face, ‘Do you want me to go talk to her?’ I shook my head.

  Just then, Sheriff Buddy came back outside, and the crowd was silent.

  ‘No one is inside anymore, but it’s a mess in there,’ he said.

  ‘Sounds like the work of someone looking for sympathy to me,’ Gina said in loud whisper. I ignored her.

  ‘Susanna, will you come inside with me and see if you notice anything missing?’ Sheriff Buddy asked.

  ‘We’ll be right out here waiting for you,’ Holly said, squeezing my arm. I followed the sheriff through the front door. Broken glass crunched under my feet. I wanted to sweep it up before going any further, but I resisted the urge and followed him back into the kitchen.

  ‘Where do you keep the cash in here? Is it missing?’

  I barely heard him. The kitchen was a disaster. The warm homey feel was gone. I tried to swallow the lump at the back of my throat. Bags of flour had been thrown off the shelf. A few of them had been ripped open, and flour was strewn across the kitchen leaving a layer of white powder covering everything. I walked around, my feet making tracks in the flour, something young Susie would have enjoyed, but old Susie was just thinking about how much clean-up was ahead of me. There were a couple of smashed glass pie pans. They were sturdy so they’d only b
roken into a few pieces, but someone must have thrown them against the floor to make that happen. They didn’t break just by dropping them. I could say that from experience. Everything from the shelves in the pantry had been knocked to the floor. It was a giant pile of cans and bags and bottles. Aunt Erma’s favorite flowered coffee mug lay in a pile of broken pieces underneath the shelf at the back of the kitchen. How would I ever explain this to her?

  ‘It was probably just a couple of kids getting into trouble during the festival,’ Sheriff Buddy was saying. ‘Do you notice anything missing?’

  I checked for the cash box in the desk. There wasn’t much there because I diligently went to the bank every day to deposit the profits. Every penny was still inside.

  I shrugged. ‘I don’t see anything missing.’ Mitzy let out a tormented howl from upstairs. I ran up and opened the door. She practically flew into my arms, shaking.

  It looked around the apartment, but everything looked exactly how I left it except for a cookie cutter that was sitting on the edge of Mitzy’s bed. That couldn’t be blamed on the burglar though.

  I went back downstairs where the sheriff was waiting, making notes in his little notebook.

  ‘It’s strange that they didn’t go upstairs, isn’t it?’ I asked him.

  He shrugged. ‘Maybe the dog scared them off.’

  Mitzy’s mood was bolstered by me holding her, and she wagged her tail at him and let out a low growly bark, all traces of her fear gone. ‘Or maybe they weren’t looking to do anything besides cause trouble. Or maybe they saw you coming and ran before they found what they were looking for.’

  What could they have been looking for here? The pie shop certainly didn’t have a whole lot of valuables inside. Sheriff Buddy asked a few more questions and jotted down some more notes.

  ‘Call me if you notice anything missing,’ he said, handing me his card. ‘Good luck with the clean-up.’ And with that he was gone.

  Holly and Henry appeared at the door. ‘Whoa,’ Henry said looking around.

  ‘The sheriff thinks it was just some kids,’ I said. Holly and Henry exchanged a look.

  ‘We’ll help you clean up,’ Holly offered.

  I suddenly felt a wave of exhaustion fall over me. ‘No thanks. I think I’ll take care of it tomorrow morning. Maybe I’ll open a little late,’ I said. They seemed to understand my desire to be alone.

  ‘Call me if you need anything,’ Henry said, hugging Mitzy and I before heading out the door. Was it just my imagination or did the hug last a second longer than a typical friend hug? Holly’s raised eyebrows answered that question for me.

  ‘I’ll check in with you in a little bit.’ She wrapped me in her arms, careful not to squish the dog between us. Mitzy took the opportunity to lick her face. ‘Thanks, Mitzy,’ she said, wiping off her cheek with her sleeve. ‘I can come back in the morning to help with all of this,’ she motioned to the mess as she walked out the door.

  I tried to put Mitzy back upstairs so I could put something over the broken window out front, but she protested with such a terrible howl that I let her follow me. It wasn’t like the kitchen was sanitary at the moment anyway. I found a piece of plywood, a leftover from one of my earlier improvement projects, and hammered it in over the opening. Then I swept up the glass. With each stroke of the broom my blood pressure went up another notch. Here I was trying to help my aunt, working as hard as I could, and this was how I was treated?

  Mitzy stayed close. I went to the pantry to pick up everything that wasn’t broken and she settled into the office chair, her wide eyes watching me closely. I was muttering angrily at the cans as I set them down harder than necessary on the shelves. Mitzy tilted her head side to side as though thoughtfully listening to my every complaint. After the pantry, I scrubbed the countertops and mopped the floors until everything sparkled.

  My stomach growled loudly. I hadn’t eaten since breakfast. We went upstairs, and I filled Mitzy’s bowl with food while I reheated some pizza.

  Between the break-in and the baking contest disaster, my head was spinning. I was still seething about Alice’s sabotage and Gina’s accusations when my phone beeped with a text.

  It was from Holly. It said, ‘Come to the back door.’ I trudged down the stairs. Mitzy almost tripped me halfway down with her need to stay as close as possible.

  ‘If you kill me, there will be no one left to feed you,’ I scolded her. She backed off a couple paces.

  I cracked the back door open and Holly stood there holding up a large bottle of tequila and a shopping bag.

  ‘I’m here to help clean up, and I brought margaritas,’ she sang out.

  I opened the door wider to let her in.

  ‘How did you get this done so fast?’ she marveled at the pristine kitchen.

  ‘I was fueled by anger. Now we can just relax and have that.’ I pointed to the bottle.

  ‘Did you read this Ask Elodie?’ Holly asked holding up a folded newspaper that I’d left on the kitchen table. I’d fished some old papers out of the recycling so I could catch up on past columns.

  ‘I think I read it this morning,’ I said. This morning seemed like so long ago.

  ‘It was the one about the frogs,’ she said, seeing the blank look in my eyes.

  ‘Right, it’s coming back to me now.’

  ‘I can’t believe that person wanted to put frogs in her sister’s bed,’ Holly said, shaking her head as she cut up a lime, ‘That’s cruel to the frogs. I’m glad Elodie set her straight.’

  ‘I understand that it’s not fair to the frogs, but I totally get the desire for revenge,’ I said.

  I had offered to help make the margaritas, but apparently they were a secret family recipe. ‘You shouldn’t even be in the room when I make them,’ she told me. I promised not to look.

  Holly began jumping up and down, holding the cocktail shaker in her hands. I raised my eyebrows.

  ‘I have to work for my drinks,’ she explained loudly, trying to be heard over the rattling ice as she hopped across the kitchen floor. ‘So, who are you planning revenge against?’

  ‘Oh, I don’t know. Alice, Gina, that kid who works at the coffee shop who always skimps on the whipped cream, whoever broke into the pie shop.’ I ticked them off on my fingers.

  Holly served us each a drink, and we clinked glasses.

  ‘Wait,’ she cried as I put the drink to my lips. I froze. ‘I brought straws.’ She searched through the bag she’d brought and pulled out a couple of large, brightly colored straws that looped around a few times at the top. ‘Trust me. It will taste even better if you drink it through this straw,’ she said. I shrugged my shoulders and plopped the straw into my drink.

  Wow, it was good.

  We began plotting different forms of revenge. Switching Alice’s sugar for salt so her cookies would be disgusting. Putting full fat yogurt into Gina’s morning low fat yogurt smoothies. Filling the burglar’s house with flour.

  ‘I can’t believe people think you broke into your own shop,’ Holly said. She was sprawled across the armchair with one of her legs on a footstool and one hanging off the side.

  ‘Yeah, why did Gina say that I was the only one who would break in “like that”?’ I asked.

  ‘Because you don’t know the spell,’ Holly mumbled sleepily.

  ‘What?’

  Her eyes snapped open, ‘Because Gina’s crazy.’

  ‘What spell?’ I asked. Why did that word keep coming up around here?

  ‘It looks like you could use another round.’ Holly grabbed my glass and trotted off to the kitchen.

  The night quickly deteriorated into a sing-along of the greatest hits from the Nineties, but I couldn’t get Holly’s words out of my head.

  Holly had made a nest of pillows and blankets on the living room floor, and I was in my usual spot on the sofa. Mitzy was curled up next to Holly’s head and I worried that Mitzy would roll onto Holly’s face and smother her. I didn’t worry for long though because soon I was sound aslee
p.

  Suddenly I was standing in the center of town. There were smashed pies on the ground all around me. I could hear Aunt Erma’s voice yelling, ‘She took them! She took them!’ I started running. Where was she? I had to find her. Crusts and fruit and custards squished under my feet. No matter which direction I ran, Aunt Erma’s voice sounded distant. I woke with a start and sat straight up on the couch feeling disoriented, my heart hammering in my chest.

  I leapt over Holly’s snoring body and ran down to the kitchen. I frantically began opening cupboard doors. Where were they? I searched every inch before finally leaning against the wall, deflated.

  The spices were missing.

  Chapter 15

  Day 12 — Sunday, November 13th

  My heart was racing. Maybe I was still a little drunk from the margaritas Holly had brought over, or maybe I had finally been pushed too far. I’d spent my whole life understanding. Every time something went wrong, I was always the understanding one. Not anymore. Now I was going to do something about it. The plan was far from well thought out. I shifted the large bag I was carrying to the other hand.

  The streets were quiet except for a light breeze that rustled the last few leaves off the trees. The mannequins in the thrift store window looked menacing with the streetlights casting shadows across their blank faces. Since it was just after three in the morning, I hadn’t even bothered to change out of my superhero pajamas. I wrapped my sweatshirt tighter against the damp cold air as I approached Alice’s shop.

  ‘What are you doing?’ A voice behind me made me jump. I turned around to see Henry and Willy. Henry was wearing his bright yellow knit hat, and Willy wore a matching knit vest.

  ‘Henry. You scared me. I’m just out for a late-night stroll.’ My voice sounded strange. ‘What are you doing out so late?’

  ‘Willy couldn’t sleep.’ He patted the dog on the head. ‘And when Willy can’t sleep, nobody can sleep, so we decided to go for a walk.’ A large roll of toilet paper fell out of my bag. Henry’s eyebrows shot up.

  ‘I’m just doing some … decorating,’ I said lamely.