Death of a Mad Hatter (A Hat Shop Mystery) by Jenn McKinlay Read Free Book Online Page A

corner, the one with the carved bird on top, a bird I had nicknamed Ferd.
    I knew what she was thinking. Lily of the valley was Mim’s scent, and it wafted through the shop with no discernible point of origin. We had not discussed it, but I was pretty sure Viv believed that Mim, or the essence of Mim, appeared in the shop at moments of great importance.
    Viv patted Dotty’s hand and said, “Of course, we’d love to come.”
    It took me a moment to identify the feeling that swirled in the pit of my stomach, but there it was—dread. Where Viv had taken Mim’s scent as a sign of encouragement, I had taken it as a warning. I supposed only time would tell which of us had been right.
    “Do you really think this is wise?” I asked Viv as soon as the door shut behind the last of the Grisbys. “I mean they’re all a bit crazy, don’t you think?”
    “What did you expect me to say?” Viv asked. “I was all at sixes and sevens when she asked and then—”
    “Lily of the valley,” I said. “I smelled it, too.”
    “I think it was Mim telling us to go,” she said.
    “Maybe she was telling us
not
to go,” I said.
    Viv looked worried. “Maybe.”
    “Viv, you have to be straight with me,” I said. “Do you think Mim is haunting the shop?”
    “No!” Viv said immediately and then added, “Perhaps.”
    We looked at each other and then we both glanced around the shop. Mim was still very much a part of this place. It wasn’t hard to imagine her hanging on even from the beyond. And as much as it alarmed me, it also comforted me.
    Viv began gathering the materials she’d been going over with the Grisbys. She had finally nailed down all of their hats and needed to get to work on them immediately, as the Wonderland tea was just a month away.
    “What if it was just someone’s perfume that we caught a whiff of?” I asked.
    Viv shook her head.
    “I’ve only noticed that particular scent a few times over the past five years,” she said. “I thought when you came and joined the business, it might stop.”
    “Is that why you invited me?” I asked. I can admit my feelings were a teeny bit hurt.
    “Don’t be thick,” Viv said. She handed me the fabric samples to carry to the back room while she gathered her sketches. “You know I’ve wanted you here for years.”
    I glanced at her and she gave me a level stare. I knew she was telling me the truth, and then I felt bad that it had taken a personal crisis to get me here.
    “Okay,” I said. “So, are we talking Mim’s ghost or just an essence?”
    “I’d say an essence, leastways I haven’t seen a ghost, have you?” Viv asked.
    “No,” I said. “But I’m suddenly thinking I need to watch my language a bit more carefully.”
    “And no bringing any boys home,” Viv said with a laugh. “I don’t want to be smelling lily of the valley when I’m snogging a date.”
    “Oh, horror,” I agreed.
    Viv led the way as we carried our things to the workroom. Since we seemed to be in such a sharing place, I figured this was as good an opportunity as any to find out about Viv’s personal life.
    “So, young Liam seemed pretty taken with you,” I said.
    “Really? I didn’t notice.”
    Fee was sitting cross-legged on the big wooden table, fashioning a very large silk peony flower out of a wide blue ribbon.
    “Didn’t notice?” I asked. “How could you not notice? He was following you as closely as a shadow.”
    Viv put down her sketches and I offloaded my armful of fabric.
    “Who’s this?” Fee asked.
    “Scarlett seems to think Liam, the older of Daphne Grisby-Mercer’s sons, fancies me,” Viv said with a laugh.
    “I don’t think it I know it,” I said. “He said as much to me and his brother George.”
    “Oh, was he the one with the dark hair? He was quite good-looking,” Fee said. We both looked at her and she shrugged. “I heard male voices, so I took a little peek. It’s not like we get than many men in here, yeah?”
    “So what did you