THE HERBALIST (Books 1-5)

by Leslie Leigh

  “What is it?” Lauryl asked, giving Melissa a skeptical look.

  “It’s called eyebright, it’s…”

  “Eyebright? For a cough?”

  “Yes, as strange as it sounds. Eyebright was traditionally used for coughs and lung conditions as well as for conjunctivitis, which is a condition of the eyes.”

  “So do I need to put some in my eyes?”

  “You could if they have a lot of discharge, but I think taking it internally will be enough. Conjunctivitis comes from the same kind of virus that could be causing your cough.”

  “And still take the elderberry syrup?”

  “Yes. They can be taken together. You need to keep taking both for at least three days.” Lauryl nodded. She coughed again, but it wasn’t quite as agonizing this time. “And drink your tea. I’ll send some home with you.”

  “That, too?”

  “You need to keep hydrated, and this will keep your throat and lungs soothed.”

  “Okay. What do I owe you?”

  Melissa quickly added the items up. “$14.73,” she said.

  “Hey, that’s a bargain. Makes me feel better and saves me a drive to Tucson, too. I’d have spent that much in gas.”

  “Probably,” Melissa agreed. “Are you seeing a doctor in Tucson? I thought Dr. Mercer was working with you.”

  “Not anymore,” she said, shaking her head, and starting to cough again. The other two customers in the store checked out quickly and wished Lauryl well as they hurried out the door. “Thanks,” she said, “I think.”

  “Maya mentioned seeing Nash on his way out of town this morning,” Melissa ventured.

  “Yeah, he stopped by for breakfast.”

  “That’s nice. Where is he staying now?”

  “With his uncle who lives out north of town.”

  “Is that where he’s always been?”

  “No, he had his own place between here and Nogales, but he finally had to give it up.”

  “Oh, that’s too bad. Is he doing all right?”

  “As all right as he can be without much work.”

  “My shed roof could use a bit of patching,” Melissa said. “Do you think he’d be willing to look at it and give me an estimate?”

  “I’ll ask him. I’ll have him contact you if he wants to do it.”

  “All right, then.”

  The shed roof wasn’t that bad, and it was still a couple of months until monsoon season, but it was always good to be proactive, and she would rather pay Nash to do it if he needed the work.

  Lauryl finished her tea and paid just at closing time.

  “Rest, Lauryl, rest,” Melissa said.

  “I know; you keep saying that, but I don’t know how I’m supposed to get anything done by resting all the time. I’m trying to get ready for a show.”

  “Are you working on new pieces?”

  Lauryl shook her head. “Not this time. I haven’t felt well enough to do new stuff. I’m just taking my most recent ones that haven’t sold.”

  “You do beautiful work, that’s for sure. Can Nash help you with all the packing and lugging? I’ve seen how much stuff you have to take with you every time.”

  “I hope so. If he’s not working on your roof.”

  Melissa laughed. “I’ll see to it that we work around your show.”

  As Lauryl walked out, Rhianna Kendrick was heading up the sidewalk to the store, obviously intent on coming in despite the fact that Vivian had already flipped the sign to “Closed.” Rhianna was one of those people in whom Melissa could sense the unrest in her life.

  Melissa watched as Rhianna paused to talk with Lauryl. Lauryl was coughing, and she showed Rhianna the contents of her purchase. Rhianna nodded once, but then shook her head, and Melissa could tell that she was offering Lauryl her two cents.

  “I’m closing up, Rhianna,” Melissa called out as Rhianna ventured through the door. “I just finished counting the drawer.”

  “I need some glycerin to make some tinctures.”

  “I don’t carry it. I just ordered jojoba oil for some of my concoctions, but I don’t use glycerin very often.”

  “Oh, and you only place orders that match your own needs?”

  “Well, no. I—”

  The woman shook her head and interrupted. “Poor management practice, if you ask me.”

  Which I didn’t, Melissa thought to herself. “What, specifically, are you tincturing with it? There might be something else that’ll work better.”

  “Henbane and belladonna.”

  Melissa laughed inwardly. She knew that wasn’t what the woman was using it for; she had just said that to get a rise out of her. “I’d be happy to make a special order for you.”

  “Special order? I suppose that will cost me four times as much than if you were carrying it.”

  “I don’t mind ordering it for you and giving you my wholesale price.”

  “But won’t you pay more for an individual product than if you were ordering in volume?”

  “Yes, but it’s still less than you having to pay retail for it.”

  Rhianna sniffed. “Well, okay then.”

  “Anything else I can do for you?”

  “You’re not going to place the order right now?”

  “It’s after 5 o’clock. My supplier isn’t open.”

  “Well, then, I’m not paying you for it until it gets here.”

  “That’s my policy anyway, Rhianna. You don’t have to pay for it until you pick it up.”

  “Well, I thought that with such a small shop, you might not be able to pay for it yourself if I didn’t pay for it in advance.”

  “No. It’s really no problem.” Rhianna had always seemed to be in denial about Melissa’s success because she had tried operating a shop and market in Catalonia years before that hadn't worked out. People had said that the shop was always disorganized, and that Rhianna was so unpleasant the majority of the time that no one even wanted to walk through the door. She knew Rhianna had tried to run it all by herself, which would be very difficult. That would make me cranky, too, Melissa thought.

  Melissa checked the back door, but Carl had locked it before he left. She stopped back by the counter to write herself a note to order the glycerin in the morning, when she noticed that the bottle of eyebright she had sold Lauryl was still sitting on the counter.

  She just stared at the bottle while she thought about it. She was sure she could remember putting it into the bag for Lauryl. Then what was Lauryl showing to Rhianna if not that?

  It didn’t make sense. Was it possible she had accidentally put something else into the bag instead? No, it just couldn’t happen. She knew she had put it into Lauryl’s bag.

  Melissa picked it up and examined it to make sure it was the same bottle. The plastic was off the top, so she had to assume it was the same one since she had put some into Lauryl’s tea.

  Perhaps there was a simple explanation, or perhaps there was none. Either way, Lauryl needed the tincture, so Melissa would take it to her. She decided she would drop it by Lauryl’s place on the way home.

  Lauryl’s car wasn’t in the driveway when she arrived. Melissa sighed. So much for resting Melissa thought. She looked around to see if there was somewhere she could leave the package, but decided against it. She would call her later this evening to see if she could find out anything and possibly drop off the tincture for her.

  Melissa called just before eight that night, but Lauryl didn’t answer. She decided against leaving her a message, and would try back later. When she called back at 8:30, Lauryl still didn’t pick up.

  “Lauryl, this is Melissa. I’ve been worried about you ever since you left the shop. I was surprised to find the eyebright I thought that I’d given you sitting on the counter. I don’t know how that happened, but I really think it would help in your recovery. I came by to drop it off, but you weren’t home. If you don’t mind, I’ll come by tomorrow morning and give it to you then. I just wanted to let you know. I hope you’re doin
g okay. Try and take it easy, alright?”

  Melissa went to bed early on Tuesday and Friday nights because the following mornings she baked special items that people stood in line for. She smiled. Every day Flora baked wonderful muffins that people loved. But baking Melissa’s special buns just twice a week had been a good sales strategy, creating a supply shortage of sorts so that there was a consistent demand. Of course it helped that they were very, very good.

  She thought about Lauryl again just before she drifted off to sleep, thinking back over their conversation, the earlier email, and how thin she had looked. She knew Lauryl was worn down, and that she probably was heading for a bout of bronchitis that could easily turn to walking pneumonia if she wasn’t careful. She couldn’t help wondering why she was losing weight, though.

  Melissa’s thoughts were getting fuzzy. Her eyelids were heavy, and dreams beckoned. She would think about Lauryl in the morning when she was wide awake.

  *

  When she walked by Lauryl’s house the next morning in the pre-dawn, Lauryl’s car was in the driveway. Melissa decided to call her later that morning about the tincture.

  She thought about Lauryl the entire time she was preparing the Chelsea bun dough and concluded that she should pay her a visit. She might even call Dr. Mercer. She had been surprised when Lauryl had said she wasn’t seeing Dr. Mercer any more, but maybe he could give her a clue as to what was going on. If he was able to, that is. She knew he was bound by the medical privacy act, but he saw her more as a colleague rather than just a concerned friend.

  Flora came in to help her at seven, and they had everything finished and in the display case by eight. When they opened the door, there were already people waiting outside. Melissa’s Chelsea buns were always completely sold out before nine, despite the fact that she increased the amount she was making every few weeks. Ada had been one of the first in line to ensure that she got her bun, and she ordered one to go as well. Apparently, she had decided not to make her own after all.

  Chapter 4

  Lauryl’s niece, Cindy, came in after the rush. “Have you talked to Lauryl this morning?” Melissa asked.

  “Didn’t we have this conversation yesterday morning?” Cindy said with a laugh.

  Melissa grinned. “Well, you and Ada did. Lauryl wasn’t feeling well when she left here yesterday afternoon. I tried to drop off something at her house last night, but she was gone. I called her around eight, and there was still no answer.” Melissa said nothing of the tincture mystery.

  “I’m sure she’s okay,” Cindy said, ending the conversation by looking in the case and placing her order.

  “Will you check on her this morning?” Melissa asked as she rang up Cindy’s purchase.

  “You are that worried?”

  “Just concerned. That’s all.”

  “No problem. I’ll stop by right now and see how she is.”

  “Thanks. Have her call me. Even if it doesn’t help her, it will make me feel better,” Melissa chuckled.

  “Fair enough,” Cindy said.

  It seemed like only a few minutes later that Melissa’s cell phone rang.

  “My God, My God, she’s not breathing!”

  “Cindy?”

  “Yes! Please, Melissa. You have to help me!”

  “Hang up and call 9-1-1. I’ll be right there.”

  The call disconnected. Lauryl yelled for Flora to come to the counter. Carl came instead. “Flora’s on break,” he said.

  “Something’s happened to Lauryl. I need you two to mind the store.”

  Carl’s eyes flew wide. “Absolutely,” he responded. His expression reflected the concern he heard in Melissa’s voice.

  As she exited the shop, Melissa heard the sirens. She ran toward Lauryl’s house, and saw an ambulance and fire truck rounding the corner.

  Melissa ran up to the door but Grant Martin, an EMT and one of her old boyfriends, blocked her way.

  “We can handle it, Melissa; the boys need room to work.”

  It was a tense few minutes until the front door opened and Cindy ran toward Melissa in hysterics.

  “She’s dead! She’s dead!” She grabbed Melissa. “Oh, my God. She’s dead.”

  Melissa pushed past Grant now and went into the living room where Lauryl lay on the floor, surrounded by three EMT’s.

  One stood and nodded. “Called at 10:32 a.m. Let’s call the coroner.”

  *

  “The coroner wants to know if there’s an obvious cause of death.”

  The EMT looked around the room, but nobody was sure how to respond.

  “Was she ill?” he asked.

  “She’s been ill for some time,” Cindy said.

  “She has?” Melissa asked, surprised.

  “Yes. She has a degenerative disease of some sort.”

  Melissa didn’t know what to say. She had never sensed that in Lauryl.

  “Who’s her doctor now, Cindy?”

  “I don’t know. Somebody in Tucson.”

  Melissa looked at the EMT, and then back at Cindy. “Would you mind if I gave Dr. Mercer a call? He had been treating her until just recently.”

  Cindy shrugged.

  “Sure,” the EMT responded. “We need to know what to do before we leave here.”

  Melissa stepped into the next room and called Dr. Mercer’s office from her cell phone.

  His receptionist answered.

  “Hi, Dolores. This is Melissa Michaels. Would it be possible for me to speak to Dr. Mercer on an urgent matter?”

  “Urgent? Well, he’s with a patient, but I’ll see.”

  “Thanks. You know I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t important.”

  “I understand.”

  Melissa was put on hold briefly, listening to some calm but insipid music—the kind that reminded her of elevator music.

  Dr. Mercer picked up on the other end. “Melissa? What can I do for you?” he asked, crisp and busy, yet with warmth in his tone.

  “Hal,” she said, using his first name in an effort to soften the news a bit. “Lauryl Taylor was found dead in her living room just a short time ago.”

  “What?” he said, obviously surprised.

  “The EMT’s need to know whether this is expected and natural or not.”

  “Why would it be expected?”

  “Cindy seems to think she was possibly terminally ill.”

  “Not to my knowledge. Other than run down, but that’s hardly terminal.”

  “Lauryl told me she was seeing a doctor in Tucson. Any idea who?”

  “I had referred her recently. Can they wait, Melissa? I think I need to see the body myself.”

  “I’ll ask them.”

  She looked up to see Grant standing in the doorway.

  “Will you ask them if they can wait until Dr. Mercer comes to take a look at her?”

  “They’ll wait. I’m in charge.”

  “Okay, good. Hal? They’ll wait.”

  “I’m on my way,” he said.

  *

  After examining the body briefly, Dr. Mercer spoke in low tones to Grant who nodded, in turn giving quiet instructions to the other EMTs.

  Grant stepped away from the body and placed a call to the sheriff’s department.

  Melissa thought about making a cup of tea for Cindy, but it occurred to her that the whole house might very well become a crime scene, so she didn’t want to touch anything.

  “It’ll be a half hour before the sheriff can get here,” Grant announced.

  Melissa stepped over to Rodney, the young fireman who had been standing with Cindy and spoke to him quietly. “Can you take Cindy over to my shop, Rod, and ask Flora to make her some passionflower tea? Keep an eye out because she’ll need to come back when the sheriff gets here.”

  Rodney looked at Grant, who nodded his assent.

  “C’mon, Cindy,” Rodney said, “let’s walk over to Melissa’s store and get some tea.”

  Cindy seemed hesitant, but everyone urged her to go for her own good,
so she went with him, leaning on his arm.

  Dr. Mercer showed the same release of tension that Melissa was feeling when she left. “Poor girl,” the doctor said. “Was it Cindy who discovered her?”

  “Yes. I sent her when I hadn’t seen nor heard from Lauryl despite leaving her messages.”

  “I wanted to see the body myself to make sure there weren’t any obvious signs of suicide.”

  “Suicide?”

  “Yes. I had recently referred her to a psychiatrist in Tucson because of some things we talked about recently.”

  “Like what?”

  “You know I can’t reveal that, Melissa.”

  “I was worried about her when I woke up this morning. When she was in my shop yesterday, she looked so thin. What kind of antidepressants would cause her to lose weight?”

  “Stimulants, but that would be a strange thing to prescribe for her particular difficulties. Most popular antidepressants cause weight gain. I suppose the Medical Examiner's report will tell us if she was taking anything like that. In fact, it would tell us a lot of things.”

  “With their backlog, that could take weeks.”

  He shook his head. “Probably not. They won’t want her taking up space since they always have such a huge influx of unidentified illegals. I suppose they’ll want to get her done pretty quickly.”

  “Can we check her bedroom and medicine chest for anything she might have been taking?”

  “We can look, but we can’t touch.”

  “Then how will we know if she OD’d on something?”

  “Depending on the ME’s report, they’ll send a forensic team to gather the meds.”

  “Of course. But I would like to look.”

  He looked around and saw there was just one EMT now in the room with Lauryl’s body; the rest had gone outside to smoke and to wait for the sheriff. He turned and nodded to Melissa. “If it will make you feel better.”

  They walked back through the bedroom. Melissa’s eyes swept over the bedroom looking for pill bottles. Unless it was in her nightstand, which she was sure Hal wouldn’t let her touch, there wasn’t anything out of the ordinary in the bedroom.

  They entered the bathroom. Dr. Mercer pulled a latex glove out of his pocket. “I always have a pair or two of these on me; I never know what I’ll be getting into.”