"Lily, what a pleasant surprise," Gregg Abbott had perked up at the sight of Lily, as most folks did. His eyes flitted suspiciously to Clive. Clive remembered that look. It was unsettling.
"Afternoon Gregg," Lily trilled. "I wanted to show my friend your charming shop. You know Dr. Clive Wimpleton, right?"
"I do. A pleasure to see you again," Gregg said as politely as possible.
As Lily chatted brightly about Gregg's craft, Clive had studied the wandmaker. Gregg's shoulders were rigid, his expression souring whenever Lily touched Clive's arm affectionately. His jealousy was obvious, and for some reason, that has made Clive proud. He’d thought he’d never made another warlock jealous—about a witch.
"You know, I would love to have some apple wood for wands." Gregg moved closer to Lily and gave her his best smile. "Your orchard, like you, is so beautiful. I can only imagine what exquisite wand those trees would make?"
Lily had blushed and squeezed Clive closer to her side. Gracious as always, she smiled at Gregg warmly. "You know, honestly, the trees are quite content and healthy. I can’t remember the last time they shed any branches. Gregg, I would share if I had anything I could give you. You know that, right?"
Gregg's eye twitched, which had nearly made Clive chuckle aloud, but that would have been rude. "Yes, of course.” Gregg said, “Thank you anyway."
As they made their exit, Clive remembered glancing back to see Gregg pinning after them. Or rather pinning after Lily. That was the first time the knowing went through him, and he longed for a chance to feel that feeling again. Lily had made him feel so many things he’d never known before, but this one was the feeling of being part of something so beautiful that others wanted to be you. Clive was certain no one had ever really wanted to be him before he was with Lily.
He studied the books that surrounded him. He’d always been surrounded with books and what good had it done him? No good.
“Dr. Wimpleton,” Honey’s voice rang out from the front of the bookshop.
“Right with you.” He gathered himself, straightened his sport jacket, tamed a few wispy white hairs poking out at odd angles, and donned his favorite pair of spectacles before heading to the front of the store. "Ah, Honey and Cona. What brings you here today?"
Honey cleared her throat. "Well, I found Cona waiting outside the shop.”
Cona cleared his throat. “I was hoping we could reminisce a bit.”
Clive smiled and patted the top of Cona’s large grey head. “Always, my dear friend. I’ll always reminisce with you. But maybe after we see what dear Honey needs.”
Cona nodded and trotted to over to the hearth, and curled up in front of the fireplace. Clive threw a bolt of magic into the stone structure and set the few stacks of logs ablaze.
“Thank you, Dr. Wimpleton. I was hoping to ask you some questions. About the water that comes from the Cauldron Falls waterfall."
Clives greyish white eyebrows shot up. "The water? Goodness, I can’t imagine that I’d know anything special about the water. But we can discuss in my office. You coming Cona?" He led them back through the shop.
"Have a seat," Clive said, shuffling through the mess on his desk. "Now, what's all this about, water?"
Settling into the lumpy armchairs across from him, Honey took a deep breath. "It's about Lily, sir. We think her...her murder might be connected to the falls somehow."
Clive nodded thoughtfully, and Cona sat up straight beside him. “Tell us.”
Honey recounted the strange conversation she and Roam had with Miles Montgomery the night before.
Clive’s fingers absently tapped the desktop while she described the secret of the water from the falls and what was happening in the woods with the plants.
"Most peculiar," he murmured. "And troubling. I agree."
Honey smiled gratefully. "I want to figure this out. But I'll admit, I'm rather out of my depth here."
She met the professor's gaze. "You're the history expert. Do you know anything about the falls or what could be causing the plants to grow so wildly big in the woods? Have you found anything in your research? We know we need to pinpoint the poison killed Lily. It’s our assumption this is had to be a common plant, amplified by too much of the water. But Miles indicated that the amplification was magnificent and made the fruits and veggies more delicious, not dangerous." Honey left out the part about Lily’s orchard being enchanted. She’d save that nugget for herself and Roam to see how it factored into their mystery.
Clive stopped tapping his fingers and grew still. "I may be new to town, but I've spent many hours studying this collection of extensive archives. Colin’s bookshop is full of interesting and very old books."
He bustled over to a towering bookshelf, running his fingers along the spines. "Ah yes, I believe I have a text or two that may prove illuminating. But we’ll have to dig deeper.” His eyes shone with scholarly excitement behind his wireframed spectacles.
“Okay.” Honey waited.
"If there are answers to be found about the history of the waterfall, I assure you we shall uncover it behind these shelves. Follow me.” Clive led Cona and Honey through a narrow doorway hidden behind a bookcase, into a maze of shelves that seemed to stretch on endlessly. She dodged teetering stacks of ancient leather-bound books as they delved deeper into the shadowy archives. Strange symbols and arcane scripts marked the cracking spines, speaking of forgotten lore from centuries past.
"Watch your step. It’s a bit of a mess in here. I’ve been exploring and organization is clearly not my strong suit." Clive called over his shoulder. "The deeper we go, the more precarious it gets."
