The Key to Extraordinary

Back at the cafe, Blue whisks Earl away while Emma and Cody Belle review everything. Connecting Lily Kate and the Conductor to the Civil War, Emma asks Peri for more information, but he knows little about the Conductor. He shares, however, that their corner of Tennessee did not immediately side with the Confederacy. This reminds Emma of Rachel Miller, a Wildflower. Rachel’s Destiny Dream directed her to protect her family, who had been hiding deserters from the army. When a Confederate soldier came for her dad, Rachel alerted her family to hide. She refused to tell the soldier anything, so he burned her house and hit her with his rifle, leaving her scarred and blind in one eye.

The conversation turns to the abundant hiding places in caves nearby. Then, Waverly arrives and asks about ghosts in the Wailing Woods. Cody Belle admits to never seeing one but always feeling sad while passing through. This prompts Peri to explain that a Civil War battle occurred there and that the woods were filled with screams of the dying. Since then, people still hear wailing, believed to be the shrieks of mourners. When Waverly spots Cody Belle’s sketch of the compass rose, she claims that she saw it on a chimney in the woods, which turns out to be part of the Abernathys’ old property. Locking eyes, Emma and Cody Belle assume that the treasure is there. Suddenly, Waverly drops her mug and angrily greets Topher. There is palpable tension between them. Flinging a muffin at Topher, Waverly storms out in tears. Without explanation, Topher races after her. When Cody Belle suggests following them, Emma urges her to stay focused on the treasure and go get Earl.

As the kids trudge through the Wailing Woods, Penny Lane swoops overhead. Suddenly, Cody Belle slips on the muddy edge of a ravine. When Emma and Earl lunge for her, they also slide down the embankment. At the bottom, they see the Abernathy chimney with Penny Lane perching on top. Telling Vines nestle in the ivy. Holding the flowers close when a breeze blows, they hear “Darlin’ Daisy” sung by a little girl. Remembering the Conductor’s song, Emma notes the ridge but wonders about a path that no one can follow. Using the metal detector, Earl finds something, and they unearth a box. Inside are Keeping Susans and a church hymnal dated 1850. Despite the book’s beauty, Emma is crestfallen that there is no treasure. Her friends lean in to comfort her.

Suddenly, the ground rumbles, and Beretta Simpson, the school bully, appears on a four-wheeler at the top of the ridge. When she insults them, Cody Belle does not back down, and she whispers that Emma should not cover her mouth. After staring at Emma’s scar, the bully mocks Earl for being with Emma, but he just steps closer to his friend and stares Beretta down. The mean girl insults them again before zooming away. Then, Cody Belle encourages Emma not to give up and promises to meet her later. Earl walks with Emma, and he eventually takes out a notebook and writes down a question about her dad. She shares that he died before she was born. Earl writes another question about living near a cemetery, and Emma says that it comforts her. Before she can say more, Earl scribbles that his safe space is beneath his house. They sit in the cemetery, and Earl asks about Beretta. Emma explains that she was born with a cleft lip and has had many surgeries. Beretta has always mocked her for it. When Earl writes that her smile is pretty, she blushes. They continue talking, and when Earl laughs out loud, Emma hopes that he will talk soon.

As thunder rumbles, Earl sprints home. Emma notice Warren Steele’s trucks and his men walking around the premises. The cafe is closed before the jamboree, but Granny Blue is inside dancing, an uncommon sight. Blue stops when Emma enters, and the girl points out how happy the cafe makes Blue and begs her not to give it to Warren. Ignoring this, the woman offers to teach Emma the secret recipe for Boneyard Brew. After melting the chocolate and stirring in thick cream, Blue retrieves the secret ingredient, a dark, sparkly powder of “pure, undiluted hope” (166). Then, she explains how she bought it long ago from a man who collected dust from the North Star. The tiniest amount fills a person with hope. When Emma asks why there is sadness if they drink hope all the time, Blue admits that “hope doesn’t take sadness away” (168), but it is a reminder that there is still good in the world.

Then, Blue shares her Destiny Dream: boxing gloves. She traveled the country to become a champion but always lost in the finals. Along the way, she accumulated flower tattoos. She got her last one, a rose, when she met her husband. She felt immense grief when he died, but Club Pancake supported her. Blue confesses that it is her loved ones who really give her hope. Emma declares that Blue did fulfill her destiny because she fights for her family and friends.

Later at the jamboree, Emma sits alone. When Topher asks her to dance, Emma agrees, but only if he tells her about Waverly. He says that he met her last summer while he was working at a camp on the Appalachian Trail. They fell in love, but Topher could not shake his grief for their mom; one day, when he had planned to play a song for Waverly, he chickened out and came home instead, thinking that he would never see her again. After he finishes, Topher pulls Emma onto the dance floor, but she is paralyzed by the Big Empty. Topher takes her to the back porch, where he reveals a recording of their mom’s music. They are enveloped by her raspy singing and soon join in, with Topher playing the violin and Emma tapping her drumsticks. When Waverly appears, they stop.

Then, Emma realizes that her bag is in the graveyard, so she retrieves it. When she turns a page of the Book of Days, a Telling Vine blossom falls out. The air becomes still. With her heart racing, Emma listens to a child singing “Darlin’ Daisy” mixed with the Conductor’s tune. Suddenly, she realizes that there are star-shaped holes on the cafe floor and deduces that the treasure is beneath it. When she returns, the place is weirdly empty. She finds a note from Granny Blue saying to call her immediately, but she ignores it. Descending into the cellar, she sees dusty footprints, indicating that someone else is down there. Summoning courage, she steps through a door into a cave. Until now, Emma had been unaware of the caves beneath the cafe. Steadying her light, she tiptoes forward until she hears a click. As her flashlight shines on a trunk, she jumps on it. Then, a voice whispers from above.