The Inn at Holiday Bay: Note in the Nutcracker

by Kathi Daley

“Adam has told me so much about his cousin from the States who tracked him down after learning of her heritage. I have to admire your commitment to your project. I’m not sure I would have stuck with it for as long as it took for you to get your answers.”

  “My trip to Ireland four years ago had a profound effect on me. I was really drawn in by it all, especially Catherine’s story. Once I found Adam, I knew I needed to meet you all, so when he invited me to your wedding, I knew I needed to rearrange things to attend.”

  “I understand that we have you to thank for arranging for us to be wed in the castle. Thank you so much. Living in the village below during my childhood made the place seem magical, and it has always been my dream to be married here,” Alyssa said.

  “It wasn’t a problem at all. Lord Dunphy and I have become friends since my last visit, and when Adam mentioned your dream to wed in the castle, I figured it wouldn’t hurt to ask. I was really happy that it worked out. I understand you no longer live in the village.”

  “We don’t. Although we both grew up there. We live in Dublin now,” Alyssa answered.

  “And your families?” I asked.

  “My parents divorced when I was young,” Alyssa said. “My father moved to Belfast shortly after, but my mother stayed in the area until after I went off to college. She lives in Cork now. Adam’s parents lived in the area until maybe five years ago, when they decided to move to London. His brother, Tyson, still lives in the village, as does Adam’s Uncle Walter.”

  “I can’t wait to meet everyone.”

  “Let me introduce you to the other Donovans who are here,” Adam offered. “I’m sure they’ll want to welcome you as well.”

  As I was to find out over the next several hours, the majority of the wedding party, as well as most of my Donovan relatives other than Adam, were an odd bunch with stories to tell and secrets to hide. Based on my first impression of the group, half the people in attendance had been or were currently in some sort of feud with the other half of the people in the room. There were a few instances when I half expected the room to erupt in violence, and I realized that if I didn’t want to end up with my foot in my mouth, I was going have to figure out a way to keep everyone’s alliances straight. It seemed obvious that Alyssa’s mother, Carolina Mason, was not speaking to her father, Roderick Summerfield, who’d shown up with a woman closer to his daughter’s age than his. I seemed to remember her name as being Victoria. Or maybe it was Veronica.

  And then there was Adam’s brother, Tyson. Adam had mentioned that he still lived in the village, which made sense since he seemed to know Lizbeth, the maid, who had stayed to help serve the food, Maeve, the second server, and the bartender, a man named Buford. Tyson had come to the party with a woman named Heidi, who looked to me to be of Scandinavian descent, yet someone had mentioned that she, like Tyson, lived in the village.

  There were a handful of others from the village who looked to be around the same age as the bride and groom, so I assumed they were friends or members of the wedding party. There were a lot of names and faces to put together, and I seriously wondered how I’d keep it all straight, although perhaps keeping everyone straight wouldn’t be necessary since Zak and I were only going to be here for five days.

  By the time we returned to our room, Alex was asleep on the sofa, and Charlie seemed antsy. Zak agreed to walk Alex back to her room, and then stay with Catherine while I took Charlie out for a quick bathroom break. Luckily, it had stopped raining, and Charlie seemed motivated to do his business and get back inside, so hopefully, I wouldn’t need to be out long.

  It was just after midnight, which meant that it would be late afternoon back in Ashton Falls. I’d meant to call my parents and let them know we’d arrived safely once the plane had touched down, but there had been a lot of activity involved in getting everyone settled in the limo and all the luggage transferred from the plane, and I’d forgotten. I decided that now was as good a time as any to check in, at least briefly.

  “Hey, Dad. I’m just calling to let you know that we made it to Ireland safe and sound.”

  “I’m glad you called. I figured you must have landed hours ago.”

  “We did,” I answered. “I meant to call, but things were pretty hectic, and I forgot. I wish you and Mom and Harper could have come. I met a handful of Donovans tonight. I think you would like most of them.”

  “Most of them?”

  “Well,” I hesitated. “There were a few loose cannons in the group. Adam, the man who is getting married, is super nice, as are his parents, Harry and Gwen. Harry’s father is named Luke, just like Grandpa. I found it interesting that Adam and I both have grandfathers named Luke Donovan.”

  “That is interesting. Was he charming like our Luke Donovan?”

  “I didn’t actually meet him. Luke lives in the village at the foot of the castle and is not staying at the castle, so he didn’t attend the dinner, but I understand he will be here on Saturday for the wedding and reception. I guess I’ll meet him then. I did meet Adam’s brother, Tyson. It seems he is a bit of a black sheep. As far as I can tell, he doesn’t really get along with the rest of the family, and the rest of the family only seems to tolerate him. He lives in the village, but apparently, he is staying in the castle with the wedding party and out of town guests.”

  “It’s too bad that Adam and his brother aren’t close.”

  “Yeah. I sense a story there. No one I spoke to really explained why Tyson seems to be estranged from the rest of the Donovans, but we’ll be here at the castle until Sunday, so I’m sure I’ll get the rest of the story at some point.”

  “Be sure to fill me in.”

  “I will. How’s Mom doing?”

  “Better.”

  The reason my parents hadn’t been able to come to Ireland with us was because my mother had come down with a bad case of pneumonia that had landed her in the hospital for almost a week. Everyone had been really worried about her, but eventually, she began to feel better, and she’d been released eight days before we left to make the journey overseas. Still, even though she was home now, there was no way she was up to a trip like that.

  “I hope she is feeling well enough to enjoy the holiday,” I voiced my concern.

  “She tires easily, so we’ve been taking it easy, but she seems to be doing better with each day that passes. Harper’s Christmas Pageant is on Saturday, so we are hoping she’ll feel up to attending that. I know she really wants to. Harper is excited that she was able to accept a part in the pageant after our trip was canceled.”

  “I’m sorry that I’m going to miss it. It’s been so much fun having a little sister who participates in such things. Please take a video.”

  “She just has a small part, but we’ll film it.”

  Charlie came running over to where I was standing. “It looks like Charlie is ready to go in. I’m exhausted, so I guess I’ll ring off for now. Kiss Mom and Harper for me. I’ll bring lots of photos to share at the family dinner Zak and I are planning to cook for everyone on Christmas Eve.”

  “Do that. I’m really curious about our Donovan heritage now that I know there are relatives to meet and get to know.”

  When I returned to the castle, I decided to head in through a side door, which had been left unlocked, and was closer to our suite than wandering in through the main living area of the first floor would have been. When I came to the end of the first hallway, I hesitated. There was a passage to the left, as well as one to the right. I suspected the hallway to the right led to the main part of the castle where the library, kitchen, and dining area were located, so I took the hallway to the left, figuring it would lead to the stairs to the rooms on the second floor. When I reached the end of the hallway, I found a door. I turned the handle and opened it to find that the door actually led to the old part of the castle that had not been occupied for generations. I was preparing to turn back, closing the door behind me, when Charlie squeezed through the opening and took off down the dark and dusty passage.


  “Charlie, get back here,” I called.

  He paused and waited, but did not come to me.

  “This is the wrong hallway. Now come on back.”

  Again, he didn’t move, which was both odd and alarming, since he was normally a very well behaved dog. In fact, in the past, the only times he hadn’t minded was when he had something to show me. Usually a body. It was late, and I was tired, and I really, really didn’t want to find a long-forgotten skeleton at this late hour, but Charlie seemed quite determined to show me something, so I pulled out my phone, which had a flashlight, and started forward.

  I’d explored the old and crumbling half of the castle when I’d been here before, and I knew it would be easy to get lost in the labyrinth of hallways, but I supposed I could trust Charlie to know instinctively where to go. At least I hoped his canine instincts would keep us safe. I was pretty sure this was the same hallway I’d explored the last time I was here while following the ghost of Lady Catherine to the room where she’d left items for me to find. Unlike the occupied part of the castle, the corridor I entered had no power and no heat. The flashlight on my phone only penetrated the darkness so far before the glow it provided was swallowed up in the void.

  “Charlie,” I called. “Maybe we should do this tomorrow.”

  He waited but still didn’t come to me, so I continued to follow him. When we came to a fork, he took the right-hand passage. I remembered the hallway would lead to stairs that would take us downward toward the dungeons. I slowly walked along the stairway as the echo of waves crashing onto the shore echoed up through the passage. The passage was narrow and made of stone, and there were no windows or exit points. I had to fight a feeling of claustrophobia as I made my way deeper and deeper into the inky darkness. After Charlie and I had traveled three or four stories downward, we came to a door at the bottom of the stairs. I knew exactly where I was. Just as I knew it would, the door opened into a windowless room. I stepped into the center of the room and looked around. This circular room was made of stone, with no windows or other exits.

  “I remember you. Do you remember me?” I said into the void.

  Charlie sat down at my feet and looked up at me. I supposed he thought I’d been talking to him, but I’d actually been talking to Catherine. I listened for an answer and was sure I heard voices, but they seemed to fade as soon as they sounded.

  For a moment, I stood in the empty room, which should have felt hollow, barren, devoid of life and energy, but somehow didn’t. I could almost imagine the echo of music and laughter and memories of years gone by. I slowly walked forward until I reached the much smaller room that had been filled with childhood treasures the last time I’d been here. The room was empty now. I supposed Lord Dunphy might have moved the items that had been contained within.

  I called to Charlie and turned to retrace my steps back toward the doorway that would lead me to the part of the castle currently in use. I’d just reentered the dark and cold hallway when I heard a noise. Charlie heard it as well since he began to growl deep in his throat. It sounded like it was coming from the hallway that had veered off in the direction away from the small room I’d followed Catherine to four years ago. I paused and listened, and then walked toward the sound.

  “Hello,” I said as I walked along the dark, windowless passage. “Is anyone here?”

  I supposed the noise I’d heard might have come from one of the resident ghosts. When Zak and I had visited the first time, we’d learned that the castle claimed five very active ghosts. Catherine, who I most wanted to connect with, but suspected had moved on; Megan Dunphy, who had been married to Lord Aiden Dunphy in the eighteen hundreds, but had fallen to her death less than a month after moving to the castle; Birte Dunphy who’d been married to the Lord in the mid-seventeen hundreds, and was rumored to run things even to this day; Rowena Dunphy, the current Lord Dunphy’s mother, who passed away ten years ago; and Finnian Newton, Rowena’s brother, who passed away six years ago.

  “Hello,” I called again. I paused to really listen, but the noise I’d heard seemed to have passed even though Charlie had continued to growl.

  I knew that Zak was waiting for me and would become worried if I didn’t return to our suite soon, so I was about to turn around and head back down the hallway when Charlie darted down the hallway in the other direction. I called him repeatedly. When he didn’t come back to me, I decided to follow.

  When I got to the end of the hallway, I noticed something on the floor. It was a large lump, but at first, I couldn’t tell what it was. I continued slowly forward until the image became clearer. I shone the light on my phone toward the object and gasped when I realized that the item on the floor wasn’t an object as I had suspected, but a body. The body of Tyson Donovan, to be exact.

  Books by Kathi Daley

  Come for the murder, stay for the romance

  Zoe Donovan Cozy Mystery:

  Halloween Hijinks

  The Trouble With Turkeys

  Christmas Crazy

  Cupid’s Curse

  Big Bunny Bump-off

  Beach Blanket Barbie

  Maui Madness

  Derby Divas

  Haunted Hamlet

  Turkeys, Tuxes, and Tabbies

  Christmas Cozy

  Alaskan Alliance

  Matrimony Meltdown

  Soul Surrender

  Heavenly Honeymoon

  Hopscotch Homicide

  Ghostly Graveyard

  Santa Sleuth

  Shamrock Shenanigans

  Kitten Kaboodle

  Costume Catastrophe

  Candy Cane Caper

  Holiday Hangover

  Easter Escapade

  Camp Carter

  Trick or Treason

  Reindeer Roundup

  Hippity Hoppity Homicide

  Firework Fiasco

  Henderson House

  Holiday Hostage

  Lunacy Lake

  Celtic Christmas

  Zimmerman Academy The New Normal

  Zimmerman Academy New Beginnings

  Ashton Falls Cozy Cookbook

  The Inn at Holiday Bay:

  Boxes in the Basement

  Letters in the Library

  Message in the Mantel

  Answers in the Attic

  Haunting in the Hallway

  Pilgrim in the Parlor

  Note in the Nutcracker

  Blizzard in the Bay

  A Cat in the Attic Mystery:

  The Curse of Hollister House

  The Mystery before Christmas

  The Case of the Cupid Caper – February 2020

  Whales and Tails Cozy Mystery:

  Romeow and Juliet

  The Mad Catter

  Grimm’s Furry Tail

  Much Ado About Felines

  Legend of Tabby Hollow

  Cat of Christmas Past

  A Tale of Two Tabbies

  The Great Catsby

  Count Catula

  The Cat of Christmas Present

  A Winter’s Tail

  The Taming of the Tabby

  Frankencat

  The Cat of Christmas Future

  Farewell to Felines

  A Whisker in Time

  The Catsgiving Feast

  A Whale of a Tail

  The Catnap Before Christmas

  A Mew Beginning – Early 2020

  A Tess and Tilly Mystery:

  The Christmas Letter

  The Valentine Mystery

  The Mother’s Day Mishap

  The Halloween House

  The Thanksgiving Trip

  The Saint Paddy’s Promise

  The Halloween Haunting

  The Christmas Clause

  The Puppy Project – Early 2020

  Rescue Alaska Mystery:

  Finding Justice

  Finding Answers

  Finding Courage

  Finding Christmas

  Finding Shelter – Early 2020

  The Hathaway Sis
ters:

  Harper

  Harlow

  Hayden – Early 2020

  Writers’ Retreat Mystery:

  First Case

  Second Look

  Third Strike

  Fourth Victim

  Fifth Night

  Sixth Cabin

  Seventh Chapter

  Eighth Witness

  Ninth Grave

  Tj Jensen Paradise Lake Mystery:

  Pumpkins in Paradise

  Snowmen in Paradise

  Bikinis in Paradise

  Christmas in Paradise

  Puppies in Paradise

  Halloween in Paradise

  Treasure in Paradise

  Fireworks in Paradise

  Beaches in Paradise

  Thanksgiving in Paradise

  Haunting by the Sea:

  Homecoming by the Sea

  Secrets by the Sea

  Missing by the Sea

  Betrayal by the Sea

  Thanksgiving by the Sea

  Christmas by the Sea

  Sand and Sea Hawaiian Mystery:

  Murder at Dolphin Bay

  Murder at Sunrise Beach

  Murder at the Witching Hour

  Murder at Christmas

  Murder at Turtle Cove

  Murder at Water’s Edge

  Murder at Midnight

  Murder at Pope Investigations

  Seacliff High Mystery:

  The Secret

  The Curse

  The Relic

  The Conspiracy

  The Grudge

  The Shadow

  The Haunting

  Road to Christmas Romance:

  Road to Christmas Past

  USA Today best-selling author Kathi Daley lives in beautiful Lake Tahoe with her husband Ken. When she isn’t writing, she likes spending time hiking the miles of desolate trails surrounding her home. She has authored more than a hundred books in eleven series, including Zoe Donovan Cozy Mysteries, Whales and Tails Island Mysteries, Tess and Tilly Cozy Mysteries, Sand and Sea Hawaiian Mysteries, Tj Jensen Paradise Lake Series, Inn at Holiday Bay Cozy Mysteries, Writers’ Retreat Southern Seashore Mysteries, Rescue Alaska Paranormal Mysteries, Haunting by the Sea Paranormal Mysteries, Family Ties Mystery Romances, and Seacliff High Teen Mysteries. Find out more about her books at www.kathidaley.com