CHAPTER TWO HUNDRED AND TWENTY FIVE – THE CAKE CONTEST

The next morning, Kayla awoke to the mouthwatering scents of nutmeg, cinnamon, and buttery pastry wafting up from the kitchen below. She inhaled deeply, already tasting Mildred's legendary homemade pies. After dressing in a flowy sundress and sandals to combat the late summer heat, she padded downstairs to find her grandmother hard at work. Flour dusted every visible surface in a delicious-smelling haze, pie tins and rolling pins strewn about in organized chaos. "There's my melon-buttered baker's assistant!" Mildred crowed in greeting, wrangling a sloshing ceramic bowl of vibrant red filling back under control. "I was just about to holler for you—we got us a whole mess of pies to whip up for the contest today!" Right...the annual Harvest Fest Pie Baking Competition. Kayla grinned, recalling all the hours she and Mildred had spent laboring over crusts and fillings every September in preparation for this quirky small-town tradition. The thrill of judging, the savory smells, the sweet