Cooking With The Dead (A Millerfield Village Cozy Murder Mysteries Series 2)

by Carrie Marsh

  “I'm ready for a weekend away,” Howard said slowly, sitting down beside Laura.

  Laura looked into his brown eyes and smiled. “Me too.”

  “Mrs. Merrick offered us a stay in her new property in Storms Bay,” he observed carefully.

  “Did she?” Laura smiled. “Funny,” she added, “how she has turned out to be very wealthy indeed.”

  “It is,” Howard agreed. “The Hereford on the Rocks turned out to be worth quite a lot when it was sold.”

  “I am so glad,” Laura agreed. “And she has a good adviser in her lawyer.”

  “Indeed,” Howard smiled. “He wouldn't let anyone cheat her.”

  “Good,” Laura said with feeling. “It's time she was looked after a bit better than she has been.”

  “Indeed.”

  They sat together on the sofa and, at length, Monty stood up and jumped down, padding through to the bedroom.

  Laura snuggled closer to Howard.

  He put an arm around her shoulders and held her close.

  They kissed.

  “So, Miss Howcroft – Detective Howcroft – how does a weekend by the seaside sound to you?”

  Laura giggled, and wrapped her arms around him, kissing him again.

  “I think, Doctor Lucas – Detective Lucas – it sounds absolutely wonderful.”

  Together they sat and watched the sun set.

  THANK YOU

  for reading my book and

  I hope you have enjoyed this story as well.

  “DINING WITH THE DEAD” is a standalone story.

  If you have enjoyed reading this book so far, I believe you will be interested in checking out “Dining With The Dead”.

  This book will be focusing on a young and pretty receptionist of a small hotel, Ms Laura Howcraft on her mysterious adventures in Millerfield Village.

  How long does it take to get accused of murder…?

  Leaving behind a bad relationship is not the only changes Laura Howcroft has made in the last three months. A newcomer to the quiet life of Millerfield Village and receptionist for The Woodend Cottage Hotel, Laura can’t help but notice the suspicious, untrusting glances towards her. Fortunately, the villagers don't know just how unusual she is. Charmed with the unique ability to talk to animals, including her cat Monty, Laura is simply content to keep her head down.

  But when a guest of the hotel, a businessman visiting from London, is found dead, Laura realizes just how serious the villagers are about protecting their own from outsiders.

  With the finger of suspicion pointing at her, Laura, the gentle Doctor Howard Lucas and Monty must brave dangerous threats, ghostly sightings and stale apple pie, to delve into the dark side of life in the quiet little village. But the real mystery is this…

  Can Laura clear her name of a murder she didn’t commit?

  Or will the unfriendly inhabitants of this close-knit community be the least of her worries?

  With plot twists, turns coupled with interesting characters that you will sure love.

  I have enclosed a preview of “Dining With The Dead”.

  Check it out below…

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  CHAPTER ONE

  INTRODUCTIONS

  Millerfield is a small village.

  That means, for those of you who don't know, that there is only one street in total, the population is divided equally between the extremely old and the very young, and, most importantly: everyone knows everyone else.

  Laura Howcroft, standing behind her desk at the Woodend Cottage Hotel, realized, not for the first time that day, just how small Millerfield was. The thing that made her realize it was that nobody knew her. And that, surprisingly, hurt.

  “Eh...who's the new girl?” she heard a farmer say as he headed past her.

  “Dunno...she's not from here – never clapped eyes on her afore.”

  “Oh,” the farmer said, eying her with mistrust, “a foreigner.”

  Laura rolled her eyes. It was, she thought, rather rude. To say nothing of unreasonable.

  I'm from Cambridge, she wanted to shout. That's a hundred miles away! She suddenly realized that, for people whose entire world was slightly over two square miles, a hundred miles away was another galaxy. For them, she was practically from outer space.

  She leaned on her desk and sighed. Not for the first time, Laura wondered why she had moved here from her own larger village of Cambridge.

  “It seemed like a good idea...” she said under her breath.

  Just then, a voice interrupted her thoughts.

  “Miss?”

  Laura looked up, and carried on looking. She was staring into the darkest eyes she had ever seen. Mesmerizing and almost-black, framed by long, dark lashes, the eyes were warm and intelligent.

  “Good afternoon,” she replied, swallowing.

  Something in those eyes tugged at her heart, making her feel things that sensible, practical Laura Howcroft did not feel. Ever. The love of her life was Monty – her cat – and that was just fine.

  “I think I have a reservation,” the man said, genially. His voice was warm as melted butter on a crumpet, and Laura felt something peculiar happen in her heart.

  “Uh...” she went blank. What was the Maître d' of a restaurant supposed to ask, again? “...name?” she remembered, relieved.

  “That would help,” the man agreed.

  Laura bridled. That was, she thought, a bit cheeky. Even though he was her age, or maybe even older, she felt a need to reprimand him.

  “No need to be rude, you know,” she said crisply, not looking up from the list of the day's reservations.

  “Apologies,” the man replied frostily.

  “Fine,” she mumbled, secretly pleased that she had made him feel uncomfortable. “Since it would help so much, could I have your name?” she smiled sarcastically.

  “Well, most people in the village know me,” the man said distantly. “I'm Doctor Lucas.”

  Oh, heck...Laura thought, shutting her eyes. Rule number one of village life: never, ever offend the only doctor.

  “Fine,” she said, quietly. She ran her finger down the list of surnames. “Dr. Howard Lucas...we put you at table Three. Enjoy,”

  “I shall do my best,” the doctor said archly, and walked off without a backward glance.

  As soon as he had gone, Laura collapsed on the desk. Why, she thought, sadly, am I doing this? I should have stayed at home, and joined Emma when she moved into a caravan...

  Laura ran a hand through her blonde hair, and, turning, caught sight of herself, reflected in the mirror behind the counter. Of middle height, with delicate features and blue eyes, Laura had never quite known how to classify herself. A friend had told her she looked like Sharon Stone and Laura, not being one for movies, had had to look her up on the Internet. Laura grinned at herself.

  I'm sure Sharon Stone never had under-eye rings like that, she thought critically. Fine bloody film star I'd be.

  “Laura!”

  A bright, genial voice broke through her miserable reverie. Laura blinked. Inwardly, she quailed. It was not that Janet was unwelcome, exactly...she was just so loud!

  “Janet,” Laura said, giving the red-haired receptionist a watery smile. Miss Janet Lister worked at the front desk of the hotel, a position she had held for a few years before Laura arrived. Janet had also been an “incomer”, and had sympathy for Laura.

  “What's the matter?” Janet asked convivially. “Not enjoying your first day at work...?”

  “Not at all...” Laura said indistinctly, “...what makes you think that?”

  “Come on, Laura!” Janet boomed, “I've seen more cheerful murder victims!”

  Laura sighed. “I am enjoying it, Janet,” she began, “...it's just that everyone seems so – so unfriendly! So suspicious of me. And I can't seem to do anything about it.”

  Janet laughed.

  “That's not your fault! It's just the way it is around h
ere. You know, small village, tight-knit community? They'll get used to you – you'll see.”

  Laura swallowed. She was not too sure how reassuring that was. The day these people got used to me is the day I move out she thought.

  How could she be absorbed in this small, mean-spirited community? She shuddered at the thought.

  “Never mind,” Janet said carefully. “I brought you a scone. That'll make it better, you'll see.”

  She produced the scone, arranged on a little plate, and left it at Laura's side. “Nothing ever happens here, and no-one ever changes,” Janet added, “...but you can be sure a scone will make it all all right.”

  Patting Laura on the shoulder, she turned and left, headed back to the hotel reception desk.

  Watching her go, Laura felt a lump in her throat that had nothing to do with the scone-induced hunger, and more to do with feeling truly moved.

  “Perhaps this village, and its inhabitants, aren't too bad after all,” she muttered under her breath. Looking around the restaurant to make sure she wasn't needed, she went into the office and bit into her scone. Creamy and covered in strawberry jam, it was warm and crumbly, fresh out of the oven.

  As her eye fell on Dr. Lucas, sitting by the window with a sandwich and the local paper, she felt somewhat less certain that a scone could improve everything.

  “I shall forget about him,” she told herself primly. “For the moment, I shall allow that scones, while not making things better, can make them more bearable.” Even, she thought, in villages where nothing ever happens.

  CHAPTER TWO

  A COMFORTABLE EVENING

  The late evening sun slanted through the window of Laura's rented cottage. She sat at the kitchen table, looking idly through the newspaper while she drank her last coffee of the day. She sighed, enjoying the immense peacefulness of the countryside.

  She heard something solid thump in the sitting-room. She grinned.

  “Monty!” Her whole face lit up as the large, black cat walked in through the kitchen door. “How are you?”

  Not too bad actually, the cat's thought-voice replied. The field up there is full of mice, did you notice?

  “No,” Laura grinned. “Is that good?”

  Depends, Monty grumbled, as he sat himself firmly down on a fallen sheet of newspaper, and began to clean his paw, on what you mean by good.

  The answer was characteristically laconic, and Laura smiled. Monty had been part of the reason why she had taken this job...her other offer had been in York, and she knew pet-friendly apartments were hard to find in a big city.

  “What's good about a field of mice?” she asked.

  Well, Monty replied, looking self-satisfied, it means that the neighborhood cats all go there. I'm meeting people around here.

  “Oh, Monty,” Laura chuckled. “I'm glad you're settling in. I would that I was.”

  You will, he said cryptically.

  Laura sighed. “I hope so.”

  Trust me.

  Laura smiled a little sadly, and finished her coffee. She wished she could make some friends, but no-one she had met so far had really captured her imagination. Except one person, that was.

  He isn't so bad, that Dr. Lucas, she thought. Not when you actually meet him... She grinned at herself. Why was it that she could not stop thinking about him?

  The conversation she had with Dr. Lucas the day before kept playing around her head: She's very funny, doctor. Is she, indeed?

  She recalled the way Dr. Lucas had looked at her, and the warmth in his eyes when he smiled.

  I rather like him, she said to herself. She blushed.

  “Laura Howcroft, you are acting like a teenager,” she told herself, sternly. She laughed. Perhaps she was, but she didn't really want to stop.

  She wished she could talk to Monty about it, but Monty was always non-committal when it came to the subject of relationships. He liked some of her friends, disliked others and left the house altogether for some.

  Just then, the doorbell rang.

  “Janet?” she asked, surprised.

  “Hi!” Janet grinned. “I went up to the Hogarth farm, and bought some strawberries. I thought you might like to share?”

  Laura smiled. They did look delicious.

  “Thank you, Janet.”

  Janet stayed where she was on the doorstep, clearly bursting to tell Laura her news.

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  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Carrie Marsh writes cozy mysteries and suspense novels, along with occasional blog post on her website. Her objective is to entertain, and amuse people that reads her books. Her approach is to combine witty ideas with excellent writing skills.

  She lives in Florida, USA. When she's not writing, she likes to take long walks with her dog observing the world around her. Her inspirations of her stories come from these long walks.

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  ALSO BY CARRIE MARSH

  The Sleepless Detective Murder Mystery Series

  1. LINK: The Case Of The Hated Body

  A Millerfield Village Cozy Murder Mysteries Series

  Link to Book #1: Dining With The Dead

  Link to Book #2: Cooking With The Dead

  Link to Book #3: Paying Back The Dead

  Acknowledgement

  Thank you for taking your time and energy to read “Cooking With The Dead”. Without your continuous support, I would not have written this book.

  Wherever you are, I appreciate you from the bottom of my heart. I also want to thank my wonderful Facebook fans, my advance copy reviewers and beta readers in advance for making this series a success

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  Publisher’s Notes

  This book is copyright © 2017 by CARRIE MARSH & SMILING HOUSE PUBLISHING CO.

  This book is a work of fiction. Any similarities to real or dead people, places, or events are not intentional and are the result of coincidence. The characters, places, and events are the product of the author’s imagination and are used fictitiously. All rights reserved.

  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission from the author/publisher. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.