A beige Prius pulled into the drive and gave a little beep. Felicity climbed out with a wave. Dasha barked once but stayed at Cam’s side.
“Need help?” Felicity called.
“Good morning,” Cam called in return. She waited until the petite woman came near. “We need to wash these and bag these. I’d love some help.”
Felicity bent down to stroke Dasha, then glanced up at Cam. “Gorgeous day, isn’t it?” She shifted her large farm basket to her left hand and extended her right toward one handle of the bushel.
Cam let her take the handle. “It’s lovely out. Isn’t it nice to feel a little warmth and no wind?”
Felicity agreed while they strolled together toward the barn. “Heard you were attacked here last night. Pete is going to be all right? The news said he was shot.”
“He is. I talked to him this morning. In fact, whenever the doctor clears him, I need to go pick him up. Which is why I’m glad you came early. Alexandra said she would come by to help, too.”
“It all must have been terribly scary.”
“No kidding. Richard Broadhurst turned out to be a desperate man. Dasha rescued us.” Cam patted Dasha’s head. “Such a good dog.”
Cam slid the wide barn door open and waited until Felicity had come inside before shutting it behind her. She carried the bushel over to the washing station, glad she’d had the forethought to include it when the barn was rebuilt. The hoop house stayed warmer than outdoors, but if she had to stand in it to wash greens in frigid water, she wouldn’t be able to offer midwinter salad. Customers wanted their greens plate ready, not dusted with soil. She ran water in the deep sink, then loaded the greens into a big cloth mesh bag and submerged them. An old washing machine sat plugged in next to the sink.
“We’ll let them soak for a couple of minutes, and then I’ll spin the water out of them before we bag.” She’d learned the trick from chatting with another grower at the farmers’ market. Spinning them like that turned out to be a brilliant way to get the water off the greens, water that, if left on, would rot them in a couple of days.
“You can help me make the rest of this look nicer than it does now, if you want.” Cam gestured to the long table where she’d dumped all the share offerings without arranging them in any kind of order or creating an attractive display.
“Hey, I wanted to tell you something Dad told me yesterday,” Felicity said, emptying a bag of potatoes into a wooden box. She began to sort through them for bad ones.
“Oh?”
“Remember he said the person he saw that day was an Indian?”
Cam nodded.
“Frank Jackson wears his hair in a ponytail. And I’ve seen him with a dangling earring that has a silver feather on it. I asked Dad if it was Frank he saw, and he said it was.”
“He knows Frank?”
“Sure. Frank worked for Dad in his landscaping business one summer when he was out of work. But Dad probably lost his name, you know, because of his dementia.”
“Well, we know Frank was in the building, visiting Bev that day, anyway. But he didn’t kill her, after all, despite what Pete first thought.” Cam hauled the bag of greens out of the sink and lowered it into the washing machine. She turned the dial to SPIN and started the machine.
“I sure hope there’s no more detergent in that machine,” Felicity said.
“I scrubbed it thoroughly and ran plain water through it a dozen times. Your greens and lettuces have been spun in this since last August.” Cam laughed. “Did you ever taste detergent on your salad?”
The barn door slid open. Alexandra and DJ, holding gloved hands, sauntered in with a rush of fresh air.
“Great to see you both,” Cam said.
Felicity waved at them.
“We read the news on Wicked Local about . . . ,” DJ said, frowning.
“About Pete and me being attacked by Richard Broadhurst?” Was Cam going to have to repeat this for every customer? Probably. She sighed and explained that they were fine, that Dasha took Richard down, that Pete was shot in the arm, but he was going to be all right. She left out the part about breaking Richard’s hands.
“I’m really glad,” Alexandra said.
When DJ nodded his agreement, Cam was relieved they hadn’t pressed for more details of the attack.
“Hey, me and DJ were talking. We’re going to start a petition to keep Bev’s farmland as open space. Maybe the town can buy it as conservation land or with a farming restriction. That way nobody can build on it.”
“Interesting idea,” Cam said, musing on the idealism of young adults, or of those younger than her, anyway. Who knew? Maybe it could happen. “I hope the town goes for it. I wonder what will happen to Richard’s property now, though.”
“We plan to include his in the proposal,” DJ added. “They abut, and it just makes sense.”
“It’s true, he’s likely going to have to sell it to pay off his debts.” Cam nodded slowly. “Hard to manage an apple orchard from prison.”
“So how can we help you here?” Alexandra opened her hands.
“How about seeing if the girls produced any eggs for us?” Cam pointed to the top of the egg fridge. “Cartons are up there.”
“We’re on it,” DJ said with a smile, the dimple creasing his left cheek.
Cam’s cell phone rang, playing the theme song to Star Trek: The Next Generation.
“You are a geek, aren’t you?” Alexandra laughed, shaking her head.
Cam helped Pete into the truck an hour later. He wore the clean clothes she’d brought him, plus her down jacket, since his own winter coat was ruined. One sleeve flapped empty over his injured arm in the sling.
On the way back to the farm she told him what Felicity had said about her father describing Frank as an Indian.
“It makes sense,” Cam said. “With that silver feather earring he’s always wearing. And his long hair.”
“I wondered about that,” Pete said.
“Oh, and last night Albert told me he remembered what happened to him. His blanket got tangled in his crutch, and he fell.” Cam glanced over at Pete. “So you were right about that.”
He nodded, the faintest hint of a smile on his lips.
“I still wonder about that house cleaner I talked to,” Cam said. “Maybe she was just scared of being reported for an infraction.”
“Let me get you all set up in the house,” Cam urged as she pulled into her driveway. She helped him out of the truck, then tucked her arm through his good one and turned toward the house. “I’ll fix you a nice cup of hot tea. You can rest on the couch while I get these shares distributed. It’ll be only an hour or two.”
“No.” His olive skin had started to regain some color but still looked faintly green to Cam. “I’ve had enough of hanging out alone. I’ll keep you company.”
“It’s cold in the barn,” she protested.
He held up his hand. “You have work to do and people around. I’ll sit in a chair and watch. I’ll be fine.” He shrugged off her arm and trod carefully toward the barn.
She had no choice but to follow. Snow crunched in the driveway. Cam darted her head around to see Lucinda pulling up behind her truck. With a toot from her horn, she jumped out and hurried toward them.
“Detective, glad to see you alive,” she said.
“Really?” he asked, pulling his mouth, as if trying not to smile.
“Really.” Lucinda patted him on the back before they entered the barn.
A chorus of “Welcome back” was followed by scattered applause from the core group of locavores. Ruth had come by with her girls, Nettie and Natalie, as well. Ellie ran to Pete and gave him a kiss on the cheek. Cam smiled at seeing the color return to Pete’s face. Vince stood there grinning, with his hands in his pockets.
Pete waved everybody down with his good hand. “No fuss, now. I’m going to be fine. Dash?” he called. “Where’s our real hero?”
Dasha emerged from the office. He barked and trotted toward his huma
n. Pete squatted and put his good arm around Dasha, then gazed up at the circle of people.
“This is the guy who deserves the applause,” Pete said.
Alexandra started clapping, and soon everyone joined her.
A tiny “Yay, yay,” came from little Nettie Dodge, followed by, “Mommy, why are we clapping?”
Pete beamed and stood. “It’s for this great guy here.”
Dasha sank onto his haunches and front legs. Then he turned his head sharply toward the rear of the barn and sprang to his feet, assuming an alert stance. The cat door flapped, followed by Preston streaking by. The door flapped again. Ruffles pushed his way through and chased after Preston on his dinosaur feet. Dasha barked. Preston leapt onto the top of the rototiller. Ruffles stopped short. He turned toward the group, extended his head a couple of times, and crowed as if he were onstage at the opera.
“So it’s not a cat door. It’s a rooster door.” Cam shook her head in amazement. “How about rooster potpie for dinner?”
Recipes
Roasted Root Stew
Serves eight.
Use local ingredients whenever possible.
Ingredients:
4 cups ½-inch cubed parsnips
2 cups ½-inch cubed carrots
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus 2 tablespoons for sautéing the onions
8 cups ham stock
4 medium gold-fleshed potatoes, cut into ½-inch cubes
2 medium yellow onions, peeled and diced
4 fat cloves garlic, peeled and minced
¾ head green cabbage, sliced thin
6 cups baby kale or kale leaves, finely chopped
2 cups herbed tomato sauce
½ pound ham, cut into ½-inch cubes
¼ cup basil pesto
1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary
1 tablespoon minced fresh sage
1 habanero chili pepper
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
In a large bowl toss the parsnips and the carrots with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and then spread them out evenly on a rimmed baking sheet.
Roast the vegetables in the oven, turning every 10 minutes, until they are tender, about 30 minutes. Set aside.
Meanwhile, combine the ham stock and the potatoes in a large soup pot. Bring them to a boil over medium-high heat, and then reduce the heat and simmer until tender, about 20 minutes. Set aside.
In a separate large soup pot or in a large Dutch oven, sauté the onions in the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat until soft, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté until soft, about 4 minutes, being careful not to brown it.
Ladle all but 2 cups of the reserved ham stock and potatoes into the pot with the onions and garlic. Stir in the cabbage, kale, tomato sauce, ham, pesto, rosemary, and sage. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat.
Float the habanero chili pepper in the pot, and then reduce the heat and simmer until the cabbage and kale are tender, about 20 minutes.
Lightly mash the potatoes in the reserved ham stock and potatoes. Add the mashed potato mixture to the pot along with the reserved roasted parsnips and carrots.
Simmer the stew until the flavors mesh, about 5 minutes more. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Remove the habanero chili pepper with a slotted spoon. If you like a spicier flavor, press the habanero between two spoons over the pot, releasing the juices, and then discard what remains. Otherwise, simply discard the entire pepper.
Serve the stew hot with a hearty red wine and a salad of local greens.
Note: You can substitute chicken stock and cubed chicken for the ham stock and cubed ham, or substitute vegetable stock and 2 cups cooked dried beans for protein.
Apple-Almond Cake
Serves eight.
Ingredients:
2 medium local apples, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced (Cortland, Macoun, or Spartan varieties work well)
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, plus ¼ teaspoon for the almonds
½ cup sliced almonds
1½ cups unbleached white flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt (Note: NOT cyanide salt . . .)
½ cup local salted butter, softened
1 cups light brown sugar
4 large local eggs
½ cup local milk (fat content of your preference)
Whipped cream for garnishing the cake
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter and flour a 9-inch springform pan.
In a medium bowl toss the sliced apples with 2 teaspoons of the cinnamon and set aside.
In a small bowl, combine the sliced almonds and the remaining ¼ teaspoon cinnamon. Set aside.
In a separate medium bowl or large measuring cup, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, cream together the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat after each addition. Gradually fold in half the reserved flour mixture, then the milk, and then the remaining reserved flour mixture.
Pour half the batter in the prepared springform pan, layer the reserved apples evenly on top, and then pour the remaining batter over the apples. Sprinkle the cinnamon almonds evenly on top.
Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the cake is golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Serve warm with whipped cream dusted with cinnamon.
Winter Rummy Cider
Serves five.
Ingredients:
1 quart local apple cider
1 cinnamon stick
3 whole cloves
10 ounces local rum (can be spiced)
5 ounces Cointreau
Directions:
Combine the apple cider, the cinnamon stick, and the cloves in a large saucepan. Heat the cider over medium heat until it just begins to boil, and then lower the heat and steep the cider just short of a simmer for 1 hour.
Ladle the cider into 5 mugs, filling each two-thirds full.
Add 2 ounces rum and 1 ounce Cointreau to each mug and stir well. Serve at once.
KENSINGTON BOOKS are published by
Kensington Publishing Corp.
119 West 40th Street
New York, NY 10018
Copyright © 2015 by Edith Maxwell
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the Publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.
Kensington and the K logo Reg. U.S. Pat. & TM Off.
Library of Congress Card Catalogue Number: 2015934122
ISBN: 978-0-7582-8467-9
ISBN-10: 0-7582-8467-5
First Kensington Hardcover Edition: June 2015
eISBN-13: 978-0-7582-8469-3
eISBN-10: 0-7582-8469-1
First Kensington Electronic Edition: June 2015
Farmed and Dangerous Page 25