Katherine chuckled and moved the old armchair to the other side of the wood stove. “Well, however it happened, I’m glad you came! Let’s park the captain over here where it’s warm, and I’ll put the kettle on. It’s chilly out there, and besides, I have a surprise for you.”

Katherine breezed off to the kitchen, more butterflies in her stomach than she had felt for years. She put the kettle on, took down the teapot and reached for a shipping box on the counter. As she opened it, she breathed in deeply. The scent of cinnamon, chicory, and a spice she couldn’t place filled the closet-like room as she opened the pouch of tea. Yes. It’s time.

She had been wondering how to broach her new idea with the captain, and this seemed like just the right opportunity. Although both Braddocks had a strong family loyalty that led them to be reluctant to change anything about the Harborside, Serena had a sense of the practical and could usually help her brother see past his initial resistance to the thought of making even small changes to the Harborside.

While she waited for the water to boil, she rejoined the Braddocks in the shopfront. Picking up Tommy’s stool from where it usually stood tucked into a corner, Katherine set it at the captain’s feet. Carefully lifting his injured leg onto the stool, she noticed the sturdy boot-like cast. “This is new, isn’t it?”

“Yes. And the doctor says I can put weight on my ankle, but it hurts more than I like to admit whenever I do.” He grimaced, then put on his old expression of mock-sternness. “But don’t you go tellin’ her that.” He nodded toward Serena who stood near the shelves with a dust rag in hand. She wasn’t dusting though. She was standing completely still.

Katherine crossed the room and put a hand on Serena’s arm. “You knew about the Anne, right?”

“Yes.” Serena said softly, her voice catching. “But it didn’t seem real until now. Such a treasure…”

“I know,” Katherine whispered, not trusting her own voice.

Serena gave her a long look, then a little smile. “I believe you do know.”

Just then, the tea kettle began singing and Katherine rushed off to make the tea.

In the kitchen, she swirled the hot water around the pot to warm it, just like the captain had taught her. Then she dumped the water into the sink and spooned in the loose tea. When she poured hot water over it, the steam engulfed her in a cloud of spices and orange peel. She smiled. Surely they wouldn’t be able to resist.

Katherine set three cups on the mahogany tea tray with its inlaid starburst and handles worn smooth by generations of Harborside hands. As she set the teapot next to the cups, she glanced up at a shelf and, on an impulse, added the honeypot as well.

“My, that’s an interesting-smelling brew you’ve got there, Katherine. What is it?” Captain Braddock shifted in his seat as Katherine set an old tilt-top tea table next to him.

“You’ll see.” she set the tea tray on the table with a playful wink, while trying to calm the nervous jitters in her stomach.

“I think it smells heavenly,” Serena said, sinking gracefully into the chair on the other side of the wood stove. “And tea by the stove on a winter’s day—it’s the good old days come back again, Jeremiah.” She looked across at her brother with an expression Katherine recognized. It was the look of memory.

“It is indeed.” Captain Braddock met his sister’s gaze with unusual softness.

Katherine quietly poured out the tea, setting the tea strainer carefully out of sight behind the teapot. She wanted them to taste the tea before forming an opinion about the ingredients.

Handing the cups around, she smiled, trying to seem calm and collected. “It’s good you both came in today, because I’ve been wanting your opinion on this.”

“What is it?” the captain repeated.

“Opinion first, then details.” Katherine moved the table over and placed a folding chair next to the captain, forming a sort of circle around the wood stove.

She watched as they sipped, amused, in spite of her anxiousness, at the similarity of their expressions.

“Well?” the question burst out of her before she could stop it.

Captain Braddock set the cup down in his saucer and stared at the reddish-brown liquid. He took another sip. “Cinnamon. Cardamom. Orange peel…” his voice trailed as he stared down again, pondering the substance before him.

“Chicory.” Serena added, taking another sip. “and, is that…chamomile?”

“Yes.” Katherine rubbed her palms together. “And apples”

“And…Allspice, I think?” Serena smiled. “What a lovely combination it all makes!”

Katherine tried to mask her sigh of relief. “You like it?”

“Yes. I do. What about you, Jeremiah, what do you think of it?”

Captain Braddock’s face remained somber. “It’s an herbal infusion, is that right?”

Katherine nodded. “It’s from Israel. I stumbled across it while researching a Persian tea a customer mentioned. I never did find the Persian blend, but this sounded so interesting, I took a chance and ordered some.” She held her breath, waiting for his reaction.

“We haven’t sold herbal teas at the Harborside before.” His expression changed to one Katherine could only describe as dubious.

“But that’s not exactly true, Jeremiah.” Serena interjected gently, taking another sip. “Granny told me once that Lizzy used to make her own blends of herbal infusions to sell in the shop. In fact, she had a little tea garden growing in that enclosed part of our yard. That’s why it’s so wild in there, all those herbs gone to seed—literally.”

Katherine felt her eyes widen. “Really?”

“Yes.” Serena studied her for a moment. “I’ll show you next time you’re over in the daylight.”

Something like a door opened inside Katherine, and she felt a sudden certainty of direction, a widening of the idea she had been toying with. “I’d love that!”

“But back to this tea,” Captain Braddock said, with such sternness that Katherine almost missed the quick twinkle in his eye. “It’s good. We’ll stock it.”

Katherine nearly upset the tea table as she jumped up. “Then you’ll have to try it with honey.”

19 Treasure Hunt

“What are you doing with all that paper?” Tommy looked up at Katherine as she brought another stack of papers down from Granny’s sea chest in the secret room.

“It’s a sort of treasure hunt.”

Tommy’s eyes lit up. “Really? Can I help?”

“Maybe… but it’s not pirate treasure or anything exciting like that. I’m looking for a very important paper.” She chuckled at his obvious disappointment. “Sorry to get you all excited, but the paper really is a treasure.” She settled into the chair by the fire, while Tommy took his favorite seat on the little stool nearby.

“What kind of treasure’s made out of paper?” Tommy peered skeptically into the box of papers in Katherine’s lap.

“Well,” Katherine began, setting the box down on the floor and pulling out an untidy sheaf of papers. “You know how the Harborside is like one little wooden building inside this big long brick building?”

"Yeah."

“The Harborside used to be the whole big building, but many years ago it was sold.”

Tommy nodded sagely. “Cap’n told me.”

“The Braddocks have been saving money all these years, just to buy back the rest of the building, but we don’t know where the money is.”

“So we’re looking for a map?” Tommy’s eyes lit up again.

“I suppose you could say it’s a sort of a map. But it will probably look like a boring old bank paper.”