"Ah, well. It seems Jules has previous form. Nearly twenty years ago, he was working with a troubled pop star. They died from an injected poison, but there was no evidence of whether she had injected herself or if someone else was responsible. We were on our way to take him in for questioning and had a warrant to search his room.”
“How’s Margaret doing? Is there any news yet?”
“Ah well, yes there is.” Alex looked around him to make sure no one else was in hearing distance and pulled me to one side...
Chapter 13
Nord Isles Blog
Death by Chocolate Cake? Bwytheney’s Bake the Cake Competition
I’ve no doubt you’ve already read about the latest drama here on the Nord Isles in the national newspapers. But I also know that regulars of this blog are waiting to hear from me about it too.
Every year, like many British towns and villages, we have a summer fête. It lasts for the weekend, and all the local businesses come together to put on a great event. And this year was no exception. In fact, we were excited to learn just days before the fête that there would be a new event: The Bake the Cake Competition. Not only that, but we were incredibly lucky to have Margaret Flowers visiting us to judge the cakes and announce the winners.
All started well with the first round featuring two-tier cakes. This round was won by Pam Jessop for the amateur’s competition. If you’ve visited us recently, you may know Pam. She now runs the Seaview Campsite that so many of you have stayed at over the years. And most of you will also know Emma from Cupcake Café, who won this round for the professionals. I don't think there's a single person who's visited the village of Islethorpe on Bwytheney and not enjoyed one of Emma’s cakes. Celeste from the patisserie on Port Ynys came a close second.
Round two took place on the following day. Contestants were to bake a chocolate fudge cake, and oh my, they looked delicious as they were lined up on the front bench for judging. Before the taste testing, we took a quick recess, which was when things took a terrible turn.
Now, what most people don’t realise, is that Margaret Flowers was in business with a man called Jules. They had been working together for many years. However, Jules was doing very little and taking half of the money. Before coming to the islands, Margaret had tired of Jules never listening to her or what she did or didn’t want. She made some enquiries and was moving forward with breaking up the partnership to start afresh.
It seems that Jules had somehow found out that something was going on and was trying to work out what to do. He had already decided that he wasn’t going to allow Margaret to be successful without him. Having already taken the life of someone he had worked with nearly twenty years ago, it seemed that poisoning Margaret was one of his ideas. But it was during the second round of baking, Jules received a phone call from a lawyer giving him an ultimatum. And only then did Jules realise that he was going to be entirely cut out. Something in him snapped. He took his opportunity to sneak back to his room and retrieve the vial of poison stored in his suitcase. When Margaret and I visited the ladies during the short break, he snuck back into the tent and injected poison into the nearest cake, which happened to be Emma's. He then dropped the vial with the remaining poison into Emma’s bag. Jules didn’t really care who took the blame, as long as it wasn’t him. He was just motivated by greed and revenge. With Margaret dead, there would likely be a surge in sales of her books and merchandise, and Jules would effectively profit from her death. But it wasn’t just the money. It seems that with both Margaret and the pop star almost twenty years ago, Jules was unable to cope with rejection and chose to take deadly revenge.
Fortunately, his plan has failed. What the papers don’t yet know is that Margaret has made a full recovery. Not only that, but she has decided it’s time for a quieter life here on the islands, and we can't wait to welcome her. She has confirmed that she would like to run some small workshops, so now you have even more reason to visit the Nord Isles for your next holiday break.
But that is not the only announcement that Margaret has made recently. Just a few hours ago, we repeated the second round of the competition, and she announced that Pam Jessop was the overall winner of the amateur’s competition. Emma from Cupcake Café was also confirmed as the winner for the professional category. Congratulations to both!
But there is something else I would like to address. There has been much speculation in the press about Celeste from the patisserie on Port Ynys. Firstly, I want to let you know that she came a close second to Emma in the competition. Next, I can tell you that the rumours were only partially true. Yes, she did take a bribe from Jules to keep quiet about seeing him coming out of the tent, but she believed he was innocent and had her own pressing reasons to accept the money. It is easy for all of us to judge others for their actions when we are walking a different path. The truth is, far more of us would have done the same in her circumstances, despite the fact we’d never willingly admit it.
But I am pleased to say that things are now much improved for Celeste. She has started a new path with none other than Emma. While they seemed like sworn enemies during the competition, as soon as Emma heard about Celeste’s situation, she saw an opportunity that would benefit them both. Celeste’s beautifully delicate creations are now on sale in Emma’s café. Yes – even more delicious treats are awaiting your next visit!
Finally, I want to thank you all for the well wishes and messages of support I have received on behalf of Shadow. He really is a special dog – a one of a kind. He, too, has made a full recovery. So much so, I had to stop him trying to tuck into some chocolate fudge cake that fell to the floor. With chocolate being poisonous for dogs, the last thing we needed was another near-death by chocolate cake on Bwytheney!
That’s all for now, but I hope you’ll visit us soon to indulge in some very special cakes and bakes.
Stories, Secrets and Missing at Sea Preview
Chapter 1
I felt sick to my stomach. Why had I let anyone persuade me to do this? In less than a week my soul would be exposed to the world ready for ridicule. I enjoyed writing books but that didn’t mean I wanted them to be published. At least my crime fiction novel manuscripts were still safely hidden beneath my bed. This one was more for Beryl than me, but it was me that put pen to paper and poured forth. What if people hated it? Beryl was 83 and had lived on Bwytheney all her life and this book was about the island she knew. But it wasn’t the whole truth.
You see, everyone has their secrets. It wasn’t something I used to believe. But the last few months have given me a different view on things. Behind the cupcakes, sandcastles and quiz nights, there’s a darker Bwytheney. Investigating the island’s mysteries was showing me that every family has skeletons in their closets and a past they were trying to escape. But living in such a close island community like Bwytheney made it impossible for these things to stay hidden. Long buried secrets in deep graves have a way of getting dug up when you least expect it. Many of the families have been living here for generations, stories whispered from grandmother to mother to child.
Beryl knew more stories than anyone else. But, until now, she had kept them to herself. You see, her children weren’t interested in hearing the oral history of these isles. They simply rolled their eyes every time she tried to share one of her stories with them. But when she discovered I was a writer, she made me promise that I wouldn’t let the past die with her. However, not everything she told mewas for public consumption. There were salacious secrets and terrifying tales that could tear apart families and threaten the relative peace we enjoyed.
But there were some that Beryl wanted everyone to hear. She was proud of the history and heritage of these islands, with its myths and traditions. It wasn’t without its own heroes too. It was these stories that we were sharing in a book that was being released in six days. The closer we got, the less I slept and the more convinced I was that I was about to walk into an ampitheatre complete with lion and gladiator.
Bwytheney w
as lucky enough to have its own independent bookshop and for some reason, I had agreed that it would be a good idea to have a book launch event at the shop. If it wasn’t bad enough that everyone on the Nord Isles knew about it, something had possessed me to share it on my blog, Nord Isles Living. Now, every time I saw either Pam from the campsite, or Matthew at the bed and breakfast farmhouse, they would delight in telling me how busy they were with bookings from those looking forward to attending the book launch.
I pushed open the door to Books & Words and inhaled the smell of the pages. Unlike most other bookshops, this one sold both new releases as well as second hand books. Many on the islands would pass along their previous reads to get sold on again. It was never something I could do and instead, my shelves bent under the strain of the books I piled up on them. Sat at one of the tables that usually displayed books was Beryl, signing copies of Stories of Bwytheney, ready for the launch night next Thursday.
“There you are, Cara. Come on, love. We’ve got a lot of books to get signed. Did you know that all of these are pre-orders? Who would think so many people would want to read our stories, eh? Hello, Shadow, how are you?”
Shadow was my welsh border collie and he had a soft spot for Beryl. It was probably the gravy bones she always seemed to have in her pocket. He sat next to her, tongue hanging out and tail waggling, waiting patiently. Sure enough, he was quickly rewarded with a treat which he ate before curling up on the floor.
“They’re your stories, Beryl. I’ve simply helped you to get them on the page.”
As always, she was immaculately dressed and her hair perfectly permed. This was all for her. That’s all I needed to remember when my nerves got the better of me. This was Beryl’s dream and the excitement of it all seemed to have given her a new lease of life. She was no longer just passing the days pottering around her house alone. Instead, there was a lightness about her and a new found energy as she spent more time in Islethorpe village. I sat down with pen poised for signing.
“How are the nerves?” asked Beryl.
I guessed I looked as green as I felt, then. “Terrible,” I said.
“What are you worried about, love? You’re an incredible writer and my stories are pretty special, even if I do say so myself.”
“Oh, I don’t know. Rejection. Hate. Criticism. Something going wrong…”
To continue reading Stories, Secrets and Missing at Sea, get the book on Amazon here.
A Letter From The Author
Dear Reader,
I hope you enjoyed this fourth book in the Nord Isles Cozy Mystery Series. While the Nord Isles must seem like somewhere full of crimes, I promise they offer an idyillic way of life most of the time! Although they are fictional islands, they are very much based on my surrounding here in the North West of England near the border of beautiful North Wales.
I know that the past year or so has been difficult for many, but I hope this stories bring you some light relief and comfort. Deciding to write them has certainly filled my life with more joy. I’m currently writing the next Nord Isle Cozy Mystery which features another murder. Amongst the suspects are a mother and her fifteen year old son.
If you’d like to be the first to hear when this next story is released and receive a free story, Theft of The Cupcakes, you can do so by clicking here and signing up for my weekly emails. I even share photos of my border collie, who was the inspiration for Shadow. He’s rather cute, even if I do say so myself.
Finally, a big thank you for downloading this book and allowing my dream of being an author to come true. If you enjoyed this book, it would make me even happier if you could leave a little review or rating for it on Amazon.
Well, I must get back to writing. Thanks again for reading Death by Chocolate Cake.
Elizabeth M. Newby
Also By Elizabeth M. Newby
The Nord Isles Cozy Mystery Series
Book 1: Murder on Bwytheney
CLICK HERE TO GET BOOK 1
Book 2: Murder By The Beaches
CLICK HERE TO GET BOOK 2
Book 3 : Stories, Secrets and Missing at Sea
CLICK HERE TO GET BOOK 3
Keep In Touch
Want to hear the latest news from the Nord Isles? Join the Nord Isles Newsletter here and receive regular updates as well as being the first to know when new titles are released.
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