Professor Higgins Investigates

Chapter 3

Lizzie felt the sting of a bite on her pinkie and pulled her gaze away from the window to look down at Harry. They were sitting on the window bench, and he was looking up at her, wondering why she had stopped scratching his ears.

"Biting my fingers will not endear you to me," she scolded, but continued to scratch his ears. Looking back out the window, she watched another car pull into the main parking lot of the B&B.

Guests were arriving, and others had just checked out. It was a constant cycle that her housekeeper loved. The routine tasks of putting fresh sheets on the bed, fresh flowers in the glass vases, and fresh baked goods in the basket she kept in the lobby for the guests kept the woman busy. And Nora Meadows loved to keep busy as much as she loved to keep people happy. The bed-and-breakfast was a perfect solution for that. She"d been there for Lizzie since she was a child, and Lizzie didn"t know what she"d do without her.

One of the younger staff rushed out to grab the suitcases from the new guest, and Lizzie watched their progress as they made their way inside the B&B. When the door closed behind them, she returned to gazing out at the property beyond the main house. She could easily see the greenhouses and the beautiful gardens that occupied a good third of the property. Past the main greenhouse was a huge pond, and she could see the swans floating on the still waters. Beyond the pond, she could barely make out the roof of one of the last projects left to tackle on the property.

It was an old house that had yet to be renovated, and if Nora Meadows was right, it was the oldest building on the property. A knock at the door to her suite of rooms drew her attention, and she left the window and a disgruntled Harry to answer it.

"Do you want one of the staff to bring up your boxes?" Mrs. Meadows herself stood in front of Lizzie, a smile reaching from ear to ear as she opened her arms to welcome Lizzie home.

"No, they"ve got plenty to do; I can get to it later. What can I do to help? It looks like it"s getting pretty busy down there."

"Nothing. I’ve got everything under control for the moment. You and Harry just get settled and come down when you"re ready. I’ll welcome your help then, I’m sure there will be plenty to keep you busy."

Without waiting for an answer, Mrs. Meadows turned on her heel and left the same way she had just come. Harry saw his opportunity and slipped out the door before Lizzie could stop him. She didn"t worry about his safety, but she worried about the trouble he"d get into, and shouting his name, she hurried down the hallway to try to catch him.

Harry had four legs to her two, and he was low to the ground and running furiously; it didn"t take long before he disappeared from Lizzie"s view. But that didn"t matter. She knew exactly where he was heading.

"You little troublemaker. When I catch up with you…" she mumbled out loud as she picked up her pace to head him off.

But Lizzie was too late. Harry made it to the kitchen before she did, and in his typically determined way, she found he had already snitched a piece of bacon that had been on a dirty plate on the counter. Harry may be fat and slow, but when it came to food, he let nothing stand in his way. Lizzie entered the kitchen from one door, and Nora Meadows came in the second door, staring at the cat in exasperation.

"Harry, I’ve told you again and again this kitchen is out of bounds for you. Now take that piece of bacon and get." She opened the kitchen door as she spoke, and the cat dashed out, knowing he"d pushed his luck and unwilling to take a chance on any repercussions.

"I"m sorry Nora, Harry saw an opportunity, and he took it." Lizzie said, gasping for air from her sprint to catch the cat.

"It"s not any different from any other day. Harry and I wage an ongoing battle. But he does no harm, and the bacon was going to go in the garbage, anyway. It’s Harry’s weight I worry about. But maybe now that he’s not roaming the hallways of the college, he can hunt mice in the greenhouse and work off some of that weight."

Lizzie and Nora stared at each other for a second and then burst out laughing. The idea of Harry chasing a mouse was funny. Harry was quite content to watch a mouse, but chase them? Not a chance. That was for the barn cats. He was so above that type of work.

"Harry"s going to have to get used to some new rules now that we"re here full time, isn"t he?" Lizzie asked.

"I have a feeling he"s not the only one who"s going to need to get used to a new routine," Nora said as she handed Lizzie a glass of cold water.

Lizzie gulped the water down, thinking about what the woman had said. She was the third person who, within a matter of an hour, had basically told Lizzie she needed to find a hobby. She smiled ruefully at the older woman and gave a shrug.

"Don"t worry, it won"t take me long to find a project. And I promise I won"t disrupt your routines around here."

Nora Meadows gave an unladylike snort. She knew full well that Lizzie was going to want to get her hands into the operations of the B&B. It was best she found a project quickly for the sake of all the staff. Lizzie put the glass in the sink and looked out the window, watching Harry meander his way across the grounds toward the greenhouse. She didn"t worry about him wandering the property. He had his own favorite haunts, and everybody looked out for him. He was too lazy to run away and seemed to have that sixth sense, like most cats, to watch out for danger. If only he"d use those senses to stay out of trouble.

Lizzie let her gaze wander from the troublesome cat to the view that greeted her from the window. Individual cottages with classic gingerbread trim painted in pretty pastel colors, each with an individual little garden, sat across from the greenhouses. One or two of the cottages had their front door open as guests were carrying their suitcases inside to begin their weekend at the bed-and-breakfast. There were seven cottages in all, each one individually painted and surrounded by custom landscaping so the guests would have a unique experience. Returning guests often deliberately asked for a different cottage so that they could find the hidden treasures that each one offered.

The main house, from where Lizzie looked out the window, was a three-story southern plantation home. Over the years, her family had converted it into a bed-and-breakfast, and in all, there were nine rooms that could be rented out. Mrs. Meadows had her own room off the kitchen, and of course, Lizzie had her suite, one of three on the top floor. The bed-and-breakfast was all part of an old plantation. Over the years, the acreage had dwindled down as the family sold acres off for need of money or to reduce upkeep. Now there were just twelve acres, and much of that was devoted to gardens.

"We"re booked full for the weekend, right?" Lizzie asked.

"That"s right, and most of the guests are here for your retirement party. So, there will be no disappearing into your suite or the gardens this weekend; you"re going to have to play hostess," Mrs. Meadows answered, and Lizzie could hear the warning in her voice.

The older woman knew her well, and after years of living together, understood that Lizzie would just as soon work in the gardens or retreat to her suite to read a book than mingle with the guests. She wasn"t snobbish or standoffish, she just liked her privacy and downtime. But now that she was retired, there would be plenty of downtime and she smiled back reassuringly at the older woman.

"Not to worry. I promise to be on my best social behavior. Actually, I"m looking forward to it; there are a few people coming that I haven"t seen in years, and I"m looking forward to catching up with them."

"Well, let"s put you to work right now so you"re not tempted to steal away. Can you go to the kitchen garden and bring me some of these herbs?" Mrs. Meadow shoved a piece of paper in Lizzie"s hands and gave her a slight push toward the door. Glancing down at the list as she picked up the basket that sat on a chair by the door, always ready and waiting to collect flowers, herbs, veggies, or plants from greenhouses, Lizzie nodded in agreement. But Mrs. Meadows wasn"t paying any more attention to Lizzie. She"d given her the instructions and was moving on to her next task in the kitchen. Smiling to herself, Lizzie walked out the back kitchen door and followed the pathway that led to the kitchen gardens which sat between the greenhouses and the guest dining room.

"And don"t be all day. There are plenty of other chores that need to be done before the rest of the guests arrive." Mrs. Meadows’s voice followed Lizzie as she closed the door behind her, and she smiled to herself. Mrs. Meadows was in her glory, giving orders, and Lizzie didn"t know how the B&B would run without her.

Lizzie turned from the direction of the cottages and started following the Chattahoochee stone driveway toward the kitchen garden. She loved the sound of the crunching of the tiny stones underneath her feet, and when a car arrived, there was no need for an announcement. The sound of the wheels against the gravel let everybody know someone was arriving. The late afternoon sun was still hot, and it beat down on Lizzie"s head, reminding her she"d forgotten to grab the hat that was always hanging by the door. With the smells of the garden guiding her, she picked up her pace, knowing there was shade just around the corner. Most of the herbs were planted in semi-shade to keep the scorching sun from burning their delicate leaves. The vegetables took advantage of the full sun, and the flowers were mixed in along the border, the brightly colored marigolds being the prominent flower. They were planted to deter the rabbits, an old wives’ tale that Lizzie wasn"t so sure worked. Especially when she saw a rabbit sitting on the edge of the bed nibbling on some parsley.

"Shoo, you better get out of here," she scolded the rabbit, clapping her hands at the same time. The little animal looked up at her, but then continued to nibble on his favorite herb. It wasn"t until Lizzie got closer that he took off, scurrying to another part of the garden. Laughing to herself, Lizzie started collecting the herbs on her list for Mrs. Meadows. She knew full well the rabbit would be back as soon as she walked away. But there was plenty for everyone, and she didn"t have the heart to chase him off any further.

It didn"t take long to collect everything on the list, and she looked over the basket’s contents, pleased with what she saw. Everything looked healthy, bug free, and tempting. On impulse she reached into the basket and snapped off a sprig of peppermint, popping it into her mouth.

"I"m no better than the rabbit," she snickered to herself.

"I saw that!"

Lizzie was so startled she almost dropped the basket, and she turned to see who was shouting at her from the other side of the garden. Her face lit up with a smile when she saw it was the head gardener and researcher for the greenhouse. Giving a wave, she started toward him, eager to find out what he was working on.