by Jill Diamond
“Bueno! See ya Saturday,” said Jeremy. He started to walk away but then turned back to Lou Lou. “Hey, thanks for not telling on me for the Diary Mission,” he said. “Pretty cool of you, Lou Lou Bombay. Pretty cool. I do feel bad that you and Peacock got in trouble. I’ll make it up to you with some killer caracoles once I get the recipe right.”
“Still working on the caracoles, huh?” said Lou Lou.
“Yeah, Rosa sampled my latest batches. Apparently, turmeric, mustard, and tuna salad aren’t the right ingredients either.”
“I’m not surprised,” said Lou Lou. Tuna salad caracoles sounded worse than beef bouillon caracoles. “Oh, and you’re welcome.”
“Maybe the Diary Mission wasn’t such a great idea,” Jeremy said.
“That depends on what Pea tells us on Saturday!” Lou Lou replied. “If she’s found a way to use the diary to get back the Bonanza, being grounded will definitely be worth it!”
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Pastry History
On Friday evening, Lou Lou crossed her fingers and pitched the idea of shortening her punishment to her parents. She could barely wait another day to hear Pea’s news, let alone two! She held her breath while she waited for their decision.
“You have been extraordinarily helpful this week, Lou Lou,” said her mom. She nodded at Lou Lou’s dad and Lou Lou exhaled. It was a good sign that her mom hadn’t called her Louise.
“As of the end of morning watch tomorrow, you are no longer grounded,” said her dad. Translated from nautical-speak, this meant that Lou Lou was free after eight a.m.
“Thank you!” Lou Lou hugged her parents.
With her parents’ permission, Lou Lou headed to Cupcake Cabana the next morning. She left a few minutes early so she could see the finished Bonanza mural on the way. The artists had decided to complete the painting as planned, even though Verde Valley had taken over the celebration.
The Bonanza mural was huge, colorful, and richly detailed. In the painting, Limonero Park was crowded with smiling people, many of whom were wearing Pea’s fancy hats. Skilled brushstrokes were used to show the park’s lemon trees and Lou Lou’s honeysuckle. Abuela Josie was performing her famous stunt and Ella Divine sang in the gazebo. As she gazed at the mural, Lou Lou sighed and felt a familiar twinge of sadness. She hoped Pea had some good news.
Lou Lou was the first to arrive at Cupcake Cabana, with Jeremy right behind her. The shop was crowded, but they found a table and sat down to eat their cupcakes—vanilla with buttercream frosting for Lou Lou and chocolate double fudge for Jeremy. After what seemed like five eternities, Kyle arrived, followed by Pea.
“I missed you so much!” Lou Lou hopped up from her chair. It felt like ten eternities since she’d seen Pea, even though it had only been a week.
“Me too!” Pea said, readjusting her cardigan after Lou Lou’s hug.
“Now tell me—” Lou Lou stopped herself. The polite thing to do was to ask if Pea wanted a cupcake.
As often happened, Pea read Lou Lou’s thoughts. “It’s okay.” Pea smiled. “I’ll get one after.” She sat down in the empty chair between Lou Lou and Jeremy. “Hola, Jeremy. Hi, Kyle,” Pea said. “Thank you for coming.”
“I’m so glad you asked—” Kyle started enthusiastically. But then he quickly changed to his Comet Cop voice: “I mean, you’re welcome, Earthling. I had to make time in my busy cosmic crime–fighting schedule, but that’s acceptable.”
“No prob!” Jeremy said. He wiped a white spot off his black leather jacket with his finger and stuck it in his mouth. Pea crinkled her nose ever so slightly.
“Powdered sugar,” explained Jeremy. “I was making Mexican wedding cookies this morning.”
Pea pulled two sheets of paper from her bag. At the top of one, Lou Lou saw the words Penmanship Practice.
“What does that have to do with the Bonanza?” Lou Lou asked impatiently. “Sorry,” she added when she realized she was being impolite again.
“Before we had to give the diary back to the Argyles, I copied a bit as penmanship practice, remember?” Pea said.
“Yes,” said Lou Lou. So much had happened in the past week, she’d forgotten about this.
“When I looked back at my work, I realized something important.” Pea placed the top sheet of paper in the middle of the table so that everyone could see. “Look here.” She pointed to a paragraph and read aloud:
“Date: The second of May.
Dearest Diary,
Alice is settling into Verde Valley quite nicely. She called our dwellings ‘crude,’ but I am sure she meant it in a charming way. I pointed out that we have many conveniences; we even built an oven so Diego could bake his scrumptious caracoles, a pastry he just created! Alice loved the caracoles, and her goats quickly gobbled them up! Diego said agave is the secret ingredient that makes the caracoles so delicious.”
Pea looked up expectantly.
“I don’t get it. How does this help?” asked Lou Lou. “Wait, I know! The diary is clearly a fake because goats don’t eat pastries!”
“No—” started Pea.
Kyle cleared his throat loudly. “I can tell you from my extensive experience with my goat battalion that they will eat absolutely anything. That includes space helmets, limited edition comic books, and superhero underwear.”
“I’m confused,” said Jeremy. “I tried agave in my caracoles and it didn’t work.”
“I remembered you told us that in the candle shop,” Pea said. “So—
“Agave is the wrong ingredient!” Lou Lou said. “The diary is a fake because it’s wrong about the caracoles! This is exactly what we’ve been looking for!” In her excitement, Lou Lou was almost shouting. She realized that she was attracting attention from people at nearby tables. “This is exactly what we’ve been looking for,” Lou Lou said in a much quieter voice. “El Corazón can finally take back the Bonanza!”
“It’s a cosmic miracle!” added Kyle.
“Hey, guys,” Jeremy said. “This is really great. And I don’t mean to be a downer, but—” Lou Lou held her breath. She didn’t like the but—. “We still don’t know the actual secret ingredient. So won’t the Argyles say the diary is right about the agave and I’m just a bad baker? Even though that’s clearly untrue.”
“I was worried about that, too,” Pea replied. “But then something extraordinary happened.” Pea showed them the second sheet of paper she’d taken from her bag. It was worn and fraying at the edges, and the writing was faded. Lou Lou could make out most of the black-inked words, but they were in Spanish, so she wasn’t sure what she was reading. At the top of the page was written Mi Receta followed by what appeared to be a list. Jeremy read aloud:
“Harina, azúcar, huevos, mantequilla…”
“Aren’t those foods?” asked Lou Lou. She didn’t recognize all the words, but she knew that azúcar meant sugar and huevos meant eggs.
Pea nodded. She was smiling, and her blue eyes sparkled.
“It’s the recipe!” Jeremy said, looking up from the page. “For caracoles!”
“¡Exactamente!” said Pea. “The original recipe complete with the actual secret ingredient!”
Jeremy grinned from ear to ear. “Peacock Pearl,” he said, “I do believe that you have saved the day!”
CHAPTER TWENTY
See You Soon, Gazebo!
“How on earth, Pea?” Lou Lou asked. She could hardly believe that Pea had the real caracoles recipe!
“I was feeling sad about the Bonanza and my hats, so I decided to hang the painting of Tío Diego above my bureau. I thought it might help me feel better,” Pea said.
“Just like Abuela Josie suggested,” Lou Lou remembered.
“Sí. When I was attaching hanging wire, I saw something sticking out of the back of the frame. I pulled it out and it was the recipe!” Pea explained.
“That’s amazing! Your tío Diego helped in a totally unexpected way!” said Lou Lou.
Jeremy’s hands were trembling with exc
itement as he continued reading the recipe. Lou Lou felt it, too. They were finally about to learn the secret ingredient for the caracoles and prove the diary was a fake. Everyone would know about the Argyles’ trickery and El Corazón would get back the Bonanza, the gazebo, and Pea’s hats, once and for all!
Jeremy’s lips moved as he read the recipe. He nodded at each ingredient that he recognized. When his eyes scanned the end of the list, he shook one fist in the air in a victory salute.
“¡Madreselva!” Jeremy exclaimed.
“Huh?” Lou Lou asked. “Are you talking about my honeysuckle or about Puerta Madreselva, where Diego grew up?”
“Neither,” said Jeremy. “Madreselva—honeysuckle—is the secret ingredient in caracoles!”
Jeremy turned the recipe toward Lou Lou and pointed at the paper. “See! It says it right there!” Sure enough, Lou Lou saw the words, Nectár de madreselva and guessed correctly that they meant honeysuckle nectar.
“That’s what adds the special sweetness!” Lou Lou said.
Jeremy leaped up from his chair and grabbed Pea’s hands. He gave her a twirl that ended in a hug and almost toppled a nearby table. Pea was smiling when Jeremy released her. She brushed a bit of Mexican wedding cookie powdered sugar from her sleeve. Then it was Lou Lou’s turn to hug her best friend for the second time that morning.
“Incredible, Pea! Jeremy will win the caracoles contest. Your hats will come home! And we’ll finally have PSPP in the gazebo. You’re a heroine! A right clever lass!” Lou Lou used her dad’s sailor praise.
“¡Gracias!” said Pea.
“I must add my cosmic compliments as well,” said Kyle. He patted Pea awkwardly on the back. “I did think the habanero caracol was delicious, but I can’t wait to try the real recipe. And I can share a caracol with Mercury now that I’ll get my goats back!”
“I would be honored to have your space goats try my pastries, Kyle,” said Jeremy. “Now I’m sorry to break up this party, but I’ve got some killer caracoles to make! May I copy the recipe, Peacock? I’d never forgive myself if the original fell victim to a baking accident!”
“Actually, I already did that for you.” Pea pulled a third sheet of paper from her bag. Lou Lou was always amazed by how considerate Pea was.
“Thank you!” Jeremy stood up. “Hmm, I wonder where I could get some nectár de madreselva?” He grinned at Lou Lou.
“I suppose my honeysuckle could spare a bit of nectar,” said Lou Lou, grinning back. She was happy she could play a role in saving the day.
“What are we waiting for then?” asked Jeremy. “Off we go!”
Before they went to Limonero Park, Lou Lou stopped at the SS Lucky Alley to grab seed jars for the nectar and check in with her parents. She wasn’t going to risk getting grounded again. Twenty minutes later, Lou Lou, Jeremy, and Pea arrived at the park. Kyle had to go visit his auntie, but Pea promised they’d include him in any plan to expose the Argyles’ lies.
The first bush in the long row of honeysuckle was in full bloom. The nectar of this variety was edible, so Lou Lou showed Jeremy and Pea how to extract it by picking a flower, pinching it, and pulling out the long white style in the flower’s center.
“Make sure you only take nectar from the flowers, no berries, because most honeysuckle berries are poisonous,” Lou Lou cautioned.
When they’d collected enough nectar, Jeremy rushed off to make his first batch of authentic caracoles with the promise that Lou Lou and Pea would be his taste testers.
After Jeremy left, Lou Lou and Pea went to the center of the park. The circle on the ground marking the planned spot for the gazebo was overgrown. Nobody had bothered to maintain it after the Bonanza and the gazebo left for Verde Valley. In the middle of the circle, somebody had stuck a sign into the earth that read: ¡ÁNIMO, EL CORAZÓN! TAL VEZ HEMOS PERDIDO EL GAZEBO PERO NO HEMOS PERDIDO NUESTRO CORAZÓN.
“Cheer up, El Corazon!” Pea translated. “We may have lost the gazebo, but we have not lost our heart.”
“But now we know for sure that the Argyles lied! And we’ll get the gazebo after all!” Lou Lou said triumphantly. “All thanks to you, Pea!”
Pea smiled. “What will our first Friday PSPP in the gazebo be like?” she asked.
“We’ll eat caracoles,” said Lou Lou. “They will go well with tea.”
“We will have to wear something amazing,” Pea chimed in. “As Edith Head said, ‘You can have anything you want in life if you dress for it.’”
“And to quote Forest Buttercup, ‘Potassium-based fertilizer is the best for fruit trees,’” Lou Lou said. “We’ll have to wear your hats for PSPP, of course!” she added quickly, since her quote was a little off.
“I can’t wait to get them back,” said Pea, smiling. “Especially Abuela Josie’s lucky hat. And the one I made for myself.” Pea’s expression suddenly changed to worry. “Lou Lou, will anyone even believe us about the diary after the chestnut-and-sorrel fiasco?”
“We’ll figure out a way to make everyone believe!” said Lou Lou. “It shouldn’t be hard. It’s the truth after all! Let’s go back to my house and plan.”
“I like that idea,” said Pea. She linked arms with Lou Lou.
“See you soon, gazebo!” Lou Lou said to the empty space in the park.
“¡Hasta pronto, gazebo!” Pea added, and the best friends happily strolled off toward the SS Lucky Alley.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Amanda Loves Cupcakes
Lou Lou and Pea decided their next step should be to tell Abuela Josie about the fake diary. Pea’s abuela was sure to believe them now that they had proof, and with her on their side, everyone else would believe them, too! They’d visit Abuela Josie on Monday afternoon, but in the meantime, Pea said they should keep their discovery a secret. Lou Lou knew it would be hard for her not to share the exciting news with everyone, but she also knew Pea was right.
On Monday at school, Lou Lou smiled inside every time she heard someone talk about the Bonanza. When a boy in Math was sad because he couldn’t perform his magic show at the celebration, Lou Lou said three chrysanthemums so she wouldn’t tell him not to ditch his rabbit-in-a-hat quite yet. And when she overheard a teacher lament that she couldn’t throw her daughter’s birthday party in the gazebo, Lou Lou quickly walked away.
Lou Lou had permission from her parents to go straight to Pea’s house after school. She met her best friend on her front steps.
“Should we go straight to Abuela Josie’s?” Lou Lou asked.
“No, come inside first. I have two things to show you!” Pea held the door open for Lou Lou.
When they entered Pea’s kitchen, Lou Lou immediately spied a beautiful red vaquera hat on the table.
“You finished it!” she said, hurrying to get a closer look. The hat had turned out beautifully with the rhinestone-dotted brim, a shiny new silver chain, and a cluster of black-and-brown feathers on one side.
“Rooster,” Pea explained when Lou Lou gently touched a feather. “They were a better fit on this hat than peacock.”
“Abuela Josie is going to love it!” Lou Lou said. “It’s exactly right for her.”
“As Christian Dior said, a hat ‘is very often the best way to show your personality.’”
“She’ll have double the personality once we’ve taken back the Bonanza and her lucky hat is returned,” said Lou Lou. “She can wear that one for her stunt and her new hat for the rest of the celebration.”
“Yes!” Pea beamed. “I thought we’d give this to her today.”
Lou Lou had been so distracted by the hat that it was only now she noticed a brown bag also on the table. From the butter stains on the paper, she guessed immediately what was inside.
“Jeremy’s caracoles!”
Pea nodded. “He brought them over yesterday evening.”
“How do they taste?” Lou Lou asked.
“I haven’t tried one yet. I was waiting for you!”
Lou Lou couldn’t believe Pea’s patience. If J
eremy had brought the pastries to Lou Lou first, she definitely would have sampled them already.
Pea took out two caracoles and put them on little blue plates.
“Papá?” She reached for another plate when her father walked into the kitchen.
“No, thank you,” said Henry Pearl. “I’m watching my figure. It’s almost swimsuit season.” He patted his trim belly and Lou Lou giggled.
Lou Lou wasted no time biting into the caracol, and Pea did the same. They watched each other as they chewed.
“Wow! It’s perfect!” said Lou Lou halfway through her first mouthful.
Pea finished chewing. “¡Increíble! They taste just like Señora Basa’s! She’d be so impressed. She always said, ‘No hay nada mejor que un caracol delicioso.’”
Lou Lou raised her eyebrows.
“There’s nothing better than a delicious caracol,” Pea translated.
“We should congratulate Jeremy,” Lou Lou said. “He’ll definitely win the caracoles contest now!”
“Let’s call him later! But first let’s go see Abuela Josie. After, I want to stop by Marvelous Millinery and clean the cabinet before my hats come back.”
“Great! I’ll help you,” Lou Lou offered, even though she hated cleaning and doubted the cabinet was very dusty.
Pea gently lifted the new vaquera hat from the table and Lou Lou grabbed the paper bag. They went outside for the short walk, but before they left Pea’s steps, Lou Lou saw they had an unwelcome guest. Amanda Argyle was playing hopscotch on the sidewalk in front of Pea’s house.
“What’s she doing here?” Lou Lou asked Pea. Her ears burned.
“I have no idea. And why is she playing hopscotch by herself? That can’t be very fun,” Pea observed sadly.
“Pea! Don’t feel bad for Amanda. She’s not a nice person!” replied Lou Lou.
“I know. But still, it must be lonely,” Pea said.