Brownies and Broomsticks: A Magical Bakery Mystery by Bailey Cates Page A

vegetable garden, but word got around and life was difficult for a while.”
    I gaped. “Grandmother cast a fertility … You’ve got to be kidding!” My grandmother was a prim and proper lady who always wore an apron in the house and got upset when I used the word
darn
.
    Lucy went on. “Mary Jane doesn’t embrace her gift, and that’s her choice to make. Unfortunately, your mother tried to choose for you, too.”
    “But—”
    “She didn’t tell you about your magical heritage, did she?”
    Numb, I shook my head once.
    “Our family specialty is called hedgewitchery. It’s one of the gentler branches of magic.”
    “Specialty?” I squawked. “Lucy!”
    “An affinity for herbal lore, herb craft, and a heck of a green thumb. All of which you possess.”
    “Well, I can grow most anything, sure. And I do have a particular interest in herbs, but that’s only because I like to cook with them!”
    “And you’re very good at it, too. Pure magic in the kitchen.” Her eyes crinkled as she smiled broadly.“Have you ever had the feeling you were different from the people around you?”
    My lips parted to deny such silliness, but no words came out. I’d often felt peculiar, especially as a child. Once I’d even had the temerity to mention it to Mama.
    Don’t give yourself airs, Katie. You’re nothing special, just a normal kid.
    I hadn’t felt like a normal little girl, though. Not then. But over time I’d convinced myself she was right.
    Or was she? The truth was that I still felt different. I’d thought having a husband and a home with a nice rosebush by the door might change that.
    “You grew up and decided everyone thinks they’re special, even when they’re really not. Right?”
    I stared at Lucy, then shook myself. “Don’t they?”
    “Not special like you were. And you had evidence of it, didn’t you?”
    A telltale shiver ran down my back. I held up my palm in a weak attempt to stop her.
    She ignored it. “Think about when you were a child. How you knew things other people didn’t know. How you could influence events—not exactly make things happen outright, but nudge them to go the way you wanted. Remember when you and your father went hiking, and you already knew which plants you could eat and which ones were poisonous? No one told you that. It was just part of the knowledge you were born with. And what about how you always knew how Sukie and Barnaby were feeling? Even what they were
thinking
? You may be allergic to cats, but your father always made sure you had dogs around to keep you company. He knew you needed them. That they were truly your friends.”
    My thoughts shot to little Mungo, waiting for me on the driveway and then later on the porch.
    “And don’t forget your dragonflies.”
    I shivered again, despite the heat. “They aren’t mine.”
    “They’re your totem, Katie. They manifest whenever there’s something you should pay attention to, like a metaphysical tap on the shoulder.”
    There had always been dragonflies around when I was a child, and I’d been drawn to depictions and representations of them like other little girls loved unicorns. But over time I’d seen them less and less. Until Savannah.
    But that was just because of the warm climate. Right?
    “When the opportunity for the Honeybee came along, I knew it was kismet,” Lucy said. “I would finally have a chance to introduce you to your heritage.” Her obvious joy would have made me smile if I hadn’t still been so stunned. Then it was replaced by a rueful look. “I hadn’t planned on springing it on you quite like this, though. Believe me, I wanted to ease you into it so you’d have a chance to get used to the idea. But then Mavis Templeton was murdered, and Ben’s in danger. You needed to know now, even if you’re not prepared to use any of your abilities yet. The spellbook club is meeting to see what we can do to help Ben, and I don’t want to try to hide that from you.”
    Spellbook club