**
Uncle Harry’s Store and Miss Caroline
You can hear more if you don’t talk.
-Harry Finkle
The next morning after breakfast, the Finkle children were eager to start their day. Before they could go where they wanted, however, they had to perform chores. The family teamed up to clean the general store from top to bottom.
When they were done, William and Emma left to go inform the residents of Finkleton that Uncle Harry’s shop was open for business again. They left the children in charge of going through the supplies and selecting items from the storeroom to fill any empty spots on the shop’s shelves.
Jack was in charge of unpacking and organizing categories of items. He opened barrels, boxes and packages. He then placed anything to do with baking in one area of the shop, anything to do with fabric and sewing items in another area, and so on.
Lizzy sorted through the general groups of items Jack created and arranged them into smaller sections. She placed baking goods such as sugar, flour, wheat, and spices on a lower shelf because of their size and weight. She bundled coffee and tea in small burlap bags tied with twine, labeled them, and placed them on a higher shelf just above the baking goods.
Lizzy also placed various sized empty tin cans with lids on a separate shelf. They would use the tin cans whenever someone wanted to purchase a small amount of an item, such as lard, herbs, or spices.
Jack and Robert decided pre-filling some of the tin cans with items customers most frequently requested would speed things along. They placed sugar and flour in the larger tin cans, and cinnamon and cocoa in the smaller ones.
Robert was in charge of the weight scale, filling each of the bags with a precise weight. He also created a ledger with the entire amount of each item in stock at the top of the page. He then subtracted from it the amount of any item placed on the shelves for sale.
After they’d worked hard for several hours, a bell chimed over the door. The children spun around, expecting to see their parents. Instead, they stood gaping at a rather plump lady with white hair and a large floppy hat as she bustled through the door.
“Hello there, hello,” the lady said cheerily.
“Hello, Miss,” Jack replied, and gave a little nod. He felt since he was the eldest of the children that he should be the one to speak.
Lizzy smiled, and returned to rummaging through several scattered items sitting in front of a long shelf near the counter. Robert adjusted his glasses, then logged the weight of a coffee bag he’d just placed on the scale.
“I am Miss Caroline Florentine,” the woman announced. “I was a friend of dear Harry Finkle.”
“Is that so?” Jack asked. He decided to take a break and chat with her.
“Yes, indeed. And you must be his nephew’s children!”
“We are,” said Jack. “How did you know?”
“After your great uncle passed, the solicitor posted a notice on the door of the shop to confirm your arrival. And here you are!” She clapped her hands together and smiled.
“How may I help you today, Miss Florentine?” Jack asked.
“Call me Miss Caroline, dear. All my friends do,” she said, smiling. “I am in need of sugar, flour and some fruit for my pies. I make pies and sell them to the bakery just down the way. I shall bring your family one of my famous pies to welcome you to Finkleton. I have been running low on supplies, and eagerly waiting for you to come and reopen the store.”
Jack walked to the back to gather up sugar and flour, and to see what fruits were available for Miss Caroline to purchase. The many baskets were normally full of a variety of fruits, but when Jack looked they were empty.
“Oh, I wish we had a little rain. My flowers are starting to wither away,” Miss Caroline said with a sigh.
“Every day I have to carry water from the stream to fill my barrels,” she continued. “I don’t have running water yet, but will very soon. I’m saving my coins for it. But in the meantime I fell while carrying water and am having a hard time walking. My old bones are not what they used to be.”
Robert listened closely to Miss Caroline’s one-sided conversation. He wondered if Uncle Harry would have made it rain just enough to accommodate Miss Caroline so she wouldn’t have to walk to the creek for water every day.
While Miss Caroline continued to chatter about this, that and whatever, Robert slid his hand under the counter and slowly pushed the magical lever back.
Rain immediately began to fall.
“Oh, how wonderful!” Miss Caroline exclaimed, looking out the shop window with wide, happy eyes. “It’s raining! Thank the clouds and the rain that falls from them! I just don’t think my old bones could have hauled any more water today,” she said, smiling with relief.
Just then a man stormed into the shop. He pushed through the door, removed his hat and shook it violently, cursing the rain under his breath.
“I don’t need any more rain for my crops! Blasted rain! Much more of this and they’ll all drown!”
“What do you mean, Andrew?” Miss Caroline asked, looking confused. “I’ve barely had a drop of rain.”
Still shaking the water off his cap, Andrew said, “Oh, hello there, Miss Caroline. It’s very nice to see you out and about these days. But if you remember, I live deep in the valley. We tend to get a little more rain for our crops than you village folk do.”
He turned to Robert, who was still standing behind the counter. “I need a bag each of coffee, tea and sugar. That should do until next week as long as my crops don’t die before then. Oh, and I also need some flour; and cinnamon, if you have any.”
Jack and Lizzy brought the items requested to the counter. Robert bundled the goods in a sack. The man paid him and headed for the door.
“Blasted rain!” the man cursed again. He pressed his cap tightly to his head and stomped out into the wetness.
The room was quiet after he’d gone. Not sure what else to do, Robert slowly slid his hand back under the counter and pulled the lever forward.
The rain immediately stopped. The clouds moved away, and the sun shone. A rainbow gleamed over the valley, showing off its magnificent colors.
Lizzy gasped. Robert glanced at her and was shocked to see she was staring right at him, covering her mouth with her hand. She knows! Robert thought. Lizzy knows my secret! Robert looked away, ignoring Lizzy and hoping he was wrong.
Lizzy strolled over to the window where Miss Caroline stood admiring the glorious rainbow.
“Miss Caroline,” Lizzy asked. “What did he mean about the valley getting more rain than the inner village? When it rains, does it not rain all over?”
“Oh, that Andrew,” Miss Caroline said with a sigh. “He’s been on edge these days.”
Lizzy looked confused, so Miss Caroline continued. “You see, my dear, Andrew, or Mr. Cornerly to you, inherited his grandfather’s farm here in Finkleton about a decade ago, but he hadn’t wanted to move. Then the town he lived in had several years of drought, and his crops failed year after year.”
Lizzy loved stories. She urged Miss Caroline to continue. Miss Caroline was only too happy to oblige.
“So his moving here was inevitable, you see. Andrew sold all he had left and moved his family to Finkleton to take over his grandfather’s farm. We were glad when he came. It was good to have corn growing again.”
“What about the rain, Miss Caroline?” Lizzy asked.
“Oh, yes, the rain. I seem to have gotten off track. I do tend to ramble on a bit.” Miss Caroline smiled apologetically. “The rain in Finkleton is very curious, my dear. The outer valley tends to get more rain than the inner village. Sometimes it rains hard in the valley but not here at all.”
“That seems a bit odd, don’t you think?” Lizzy asked, scrunching her nose.
“Some may think it’s odd,” Miss Caroline said, “but I prefer to think Finkleton is full of magic.”
Lizzy’s eyes grew wide. “Magic? What kind?”
“It’s the sort of magic that keeps this village alive, my dear. It’s the kind that provides each farm with the precise amount of rain needed for its crops. For as long as I can remember, not a single crop has failed in Finkleton. We Finkletons are very proud of that fact,” she said, grinning.
Then Miss Caroline changed the subject. “Your Great Uncle Harry’s store, which is your store now, buys produce from each farmer in Finkleton and sells it to the rest of the village. Harry always kept the store fully stocked. It was much easier for me to buy the fruits for my pies here than trying to hunt down Mr. Appleton.” She chuckled. “Me hunting down Mr. Appleton, now that would be a funny sight.”
“Who is Mr. Appleton?” Lizzy asked.
“Oh, Mr. George Appleton grows the most wonderful apples you have ever tasted. I pray every day that his apples flourish so that I can make my scrumptious apple pies,” Miss Caroline said. She couldn’t seem to stop herself from licking her lips. Lizzy did, too.
“Mr. Louis Burberry grows the most delicious berries. Mr. Charles Parchetty grows the finest Peaches. Marcus Grapling grows the largest and the juiciest grapes,” Miss Caroline said. She took a deep breath and watched a few folks stroll past the store window, then turned back to Lizzy.
“Our crops do better than anyone else’s crops,” Miss Caroline continued. “The land in Finkleton is the most sought after in all of England. Outsiders frequently travel to our little village trying to buy land, but nobody here wants to move away.” She spoke quickly, only stopping long enough to take a breath.
“When someone passes away, and his or her relatives don’t want to take over the farm, they can usually sell the land for a very high price. But only certain kinds of farmers are able to buy the property. You see, only a berry farmer would want Mr. Burberry’s farm, because it’s ideal only for growing berries. In the same way, Mr. Appleton’s farm is best for apples, Mr. Parchetty’s farm is right only for peaches, and so on. Someone who grows corn wouldn’t want a farm that was perfect for peaches. You get the idea, dear,” Miss Caroline said. Lizzy nodded.
“Oh, I almost forget Mr. Simon Beanly,” Miss Caroline added.
“Let me guess,” Lizzy said. “Mr. Beanly grows beans?”
“Oh no, my dear,” Miss Caroline replied. “Mr. Beanly has a dairy farm. And the milk and butter are sinfully delicious.”
Lizzy raised an eyebrow in surprise, but didn’t say a word.
“Look at the time!” Miss Caroline exclaimed. “Oh, how it flies. I have enjoyed our conversation, my dear, but I must be going. I need to get a good start on my pies. It was very nice to meet you.”
“I’ll help you with your packages, Miss Caroline,” Jack said. He held several items in his arms, but still managed to hold the door open for Miss Caroline.
When the door shut, Lizzy hurried back to the counter and placed her hands on her hips. She glared at Robert.
“What?” Robert asked, avoiding her gaze. He kept looking down, trying to appear busy with the scale.
“You know what, Robert! What did you do?”
“What do you mean? I didn’t do anything.” Robert said, trying to sound innocent, but he heard his voice squeak and swallowed hard.
“You did something. You did something to make it rain!”
Robert gasped at the accusation, then held his breath.
“I saw you reach under the counter just before it started to rain,” Lizzy continued. “I didn’t give it a second thought—until you reached back under the counter again and the rain suddenly stopped! Just as it did the day we arrived!”
Robert kept silent. After all, what could he say? Lizzy stomped behind the counter with determination and started to look underneath it.
“What are you doing?” Robert was suddenly scared that Lizzy would find the magic lever. It’s my lever, he thought. It’s my secret.
“I’ll find it, Robert! Whatever it is that you did is back here somewhere. You tell me, or I’ll find it myself!” Then Lizzy saw it. The lever was slightly hidden. Lizzy reached out to push it backward.
“No!” Robert yelled.
Lizzy pushed the lever all the way back, then quickly stood up to peer out the large window.
It started to rain.