Free The Tree Shepherd's Daughter by Gillian Summers Page A

bush in sight.
    Keelie walked onto the deck, which was huge, and covered by an arbor draped in-what else?-ivy. Maybe the
ivy had eaten the roses.
    Inside, Mrs. Butters was pulling a tray from an oven.
The gingerbread woman smiled kindly at Keelie, who
didn't return the smile. She didn't want to get used to anyone being nice or friendly to her. It was better this way.
Keelie Heartwood was out of this place the first chance
she had.
    "Good morning, Keelie. What can I get for you?" The
gingerbread woman smiled, her little black-raisin eyes
shining in her brown face. Keelie resisted the urge to lean
forward and sniff her.
    "A couple of muffins, please." Too many carbs, but
after this morning it was a well-deserved treat.
    "What kind do you want?"
    "Do you have any blueberry?"
    "Of course. But they're for the mundanes. For us I have
some with unicorn fruit and crystal seeds. Of course, this
may be a bit more to your liking." The woman reverently
held out a golden mound-topped muffin speckled with
bright bits of red berry. "Fairy winkberry. It's your father's
favorite."

    "Fairy winkberry," Keelie repeated, hoping she wasn't
losing her hearing.
    The woman's eyes twinkled. "Yes, fairy winkberry. I
don't make these very often, for the berries are rare in these
parts, but one of the jousters happened upon a blooming plant near the meadow the other day and brought me
back a basket."
    Berries sounded more normal than crystal seeds. For all
she knew, the crystal-seed muffin could have quartz bits in
it. She remembered the toothless guy from the day before.
No doubt about it. He could've been a crystal-seed muffin
victim.
    "Okay. Fairy winkberry. But since it's so big, I'll have
just one. And a tall chai."
    "I'm afraid I don't have chai, but I do have a lovely
herbal tea that goes great with the muffins." She pulled
a tray from a stack and put the muffin on it, with a lacy
paper doily underneath it.
    No chai. Of course not. Keelie remembered going to
the coffee shop at the mall with Laurie and the gang after
school. Chai and coffee were their favorite hot drinks. This
place was totally primitive.
    "How about a coffee then, dark roast?"
    "Aren't you a little young for coffee? I think Zeke would
object." The feminine voice behind her sounded disapproving.
    Keelie quickly turned to see who had spoken to her. It
was the herb lady, Raven's mother, dressed in purple and
white, her billowing sleeves embroidered with little green herb plants. Her bracelets jingled and chimed with her
movements.

    Heat crept up Keelie's cheeks as she looked down at her
mismatched Muck and Mire Show outfit. And the woman
smelled divine, like something from an exotic land. Mom
had never worn perfume. She'd thought it was unprofessional.
    The memory of her mother brought Keelie back to
reality. Who was this woman to question whether or not
Keelie could have coffee? To call her dad Zeke and pretend
she knew what his rules were? Mom let her have coffee.
And it wasn't any of this woman's business if she did. Her
motherly act was irritating.
    She was probably out to impress her dad, Keelie
thought. And if that's the case, she's auditioning for a part
that doesn't exist.
    "I think that's for me to decide," Keelie said. "I'm old
enough to make my own food choices."
    "I know that your dad eats as naturally as possible,
just like your grandmother," the herb woman said, unperturbed. "Besides, it's going to be too hot for coffee."
    She didn't want the nosy herb lady to rat her out, but
she wasn't giving in yet. She turned back to Mrs. Butters.
"Do you have Coke?"
    The herb lady frowned.
    "No," Mrs. Butters said. "But the turkey leg stand
opens in about an hour, and they sell soft drinks there."
    Keelie sighed. What kind of eating place didn't sell
Coke? This was taking the medieval theme all too seriously. "Okay, give me the herbal tea."

    The muffin lady and the herb lady smiled at each other.
Keelie looked away. She didn't