Read 6 A Thyme to Die for Free Online Page B

later.” The girl seemed to be mulling something over. “My father carried with him a large, black bag. A satchel, I believe you call them. I would very much like to find it.”
    Peggy thought about it. The duffel bag Reggie had mentioned, no doubt. It seemed a strange thing to be concerned about, especially if the girl was trying to pass herself off as Tanya. What could she be looking for?
    “I talked with your father while he was setting up his exhibit. He never mentioned a bag of that sort and I didn’t see him with one. Are there important documents you need in the bag?”
    “That is a personal matter,” she snapped. “I need the bag as soon as possible. Bring it to this hotel where I am staying.”
    ‘Tanya’ got up quickly from the bench and handed Peggy a card from the Hilton. She stalked toward the sidewalk and got into a new, black Mercedes that had been parked at the curb.
    Peggy watched her drive away. There was a sticker on the back that proclaimed the car a Friendly Rental vehicle. It was a local rental agency with one office at the airport.
    Still wondering what was going on, Peggy went back inside The Potting Shed. It had been a curious conversation, not at all what she’d been expecting.
    “Well?” Selena was waiting for her. “Does she want to sue you because her father died or is she planning a vendetta?”
    “Neither, as far as I can tell. That wasn’t even Tanya.”
    “What? Did you ask her who she really was?”
    “No. I thought it would be better to let her talk. She left before I could learn anything useful.”
    “Oh, Peggy. This doesn’t sound good.” Selena wrung her hands.
    “She said she wanted her father’s bag, the same one Reggie was talking about this morning, I think. She didn’t ask anything about him personally, not the normal questions you’d expect from a grieving daughter, even a fake grieving daughter.”
    Selena shrugged. “You should call the police. Or call Steve. He’s like the police.”
    A real customer came in the door next and asked about the painted pots outside. To Peggy’s surprise, she bought two of them. Maybe Mandy knew what she was doing after all.
    After that, several other customers came in looking for mulch and blackberry bushes. Peggy routed the customers to Sam for him to take care of. He might even be able to convince her to let him plant a berry garden for her. Sam was very good at persuading customers to become landscape devotees. It always helped when it was a woman. They found him, and his Norse God good looks, irresistible.
    While Peggy was walking the new customer to the back of the shop where Sam was working, another woman came in and asked about water plants for her pond.
    “I only have a small pond I keep on my balcony. I’d have a much bigger one if I didn’t live in an apartment.” Starr Richards laughed as she introduced herself. “I work over at the bank and I’ve almost stopped in here several times. If I’d known you had this huge pond in here, I would’ve stopped sooner.”
    And that’s the problem , Peggy thought. How was she supposed to tell people about everything she had in the shop if they didn’t come inside? She couldn’t have a sign outside that was large enough for her whole inventory. She was at the mercy of drop-ins to discover her, become great friends, and loyal customers.
    “How deep is your pond and what do you have in it now?” Peggy asked her.
    “It’s not very big. Maybe a foot deep. I put some water lilies in it last year. They filled the whole thing up, but it’s only leaves now, no flowers. Any ideas?”
    As Starr and Peggy talked, they realized that Starr’s pond wasn’t getting enough afternoon sun to make the flowers bloom.
    “You probably get enough sun for water irises,” Peggy told her. “Mine aren’t blooming in the pond right now, but they’re sensational. I have a couple of white ones and a few purple irises. They aren’t hard to grow at all.”
    Sam had joined them while