Rainbow Mocha

by Verena DeLuca

  Contents

  Title

  Copyright

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Hill Country Mysteries

  Author's Biography

  RAINBOW MOCHA

  A Dragon Cozy Mystery

  Hill Country Mysteries Book 3

  By Verena DeLuca

  Rainbow Mocha by Verena DeLuca

  Published by Aconite Cafe

  P.O. Box 63

  Marble Falls, TX 78654

  www.AconiteCafe.com

  www.NAKBaldron.com

  © 2020 Verena DeLuca

  All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher, except as permitted by U.S. copyright law. For permissions contact:

  Staff@aconitecafe.com

  Cover by Aconite Cafe.

  CHAPTER ONE

  Thursday, April 9th

  The sun that slipped through the curtains was blinding so I barely cracked open my eyes when Aubrey shook my arm. Early mornings were not my cup of coffee.

  "You need to come downstairs. We've been tagged," Aubrey said.

  "What?"

  "The side of the cafe."

  What was she talking about? What time was it? Why had I gone to bed so late?

  My brain was so preoccupied by questions I forgot to respond.

  "Hailey?" Aubrey asked again as she shook my arm.

  I groaned and incoherently tried to respond out loud. I just needed five more minutes of sleep.

  "There's spray paint on the cafe wall!"

  Fire pulsed through my veins and I sat up quick, instantly regretting it as pressure rushed to my head. I was not fully awake, but the urgency in her voice gave me motivation to attempt it.

  I slipped my feet off the couch and held my head in an effort to slow the blood rush. It was a lost cause. I should get a door installed at the top of the stairs. Maybe a call button in the cafe, with a voicemail. That I would never check. Just like my cell phone.

  I shook my head to clear the exhausted fog that was setting in again. I still was not clear on what Aubrey wanted from me at . . . seven in the morning. It had better be worth this pain.

  "Who? What?" I mumbled, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. "I'm up! I'm up!"

  "Get dressed, and we'll talk downstairs," Aubrey said.

  She took the stairs and a minute later called up, "Are you still awake?"

  "Yes! I promise."

  "K. Just making sure."

  I fumbled around the living room in search of clothes, figuring whatever I discarded the night before had to be clean enough. She could have brought coffee. It would have made getting dressed as fast as possible a tad easier. But I sacrificed checking my hair and brushing my teeth just to get downstairs in record time. Aconite Cafe needed me, and I would not let her down!

  Avoiding a tumble down the stairs, I made it into the cafe without incident where Aubrey waited with a hot cup of coffee.

  "Drink this," she said, offering me the sweet elixir my body needed to function.

  Three sips later, I was feeling more like myself. We walked outside to see the sidewall of the cafe.

  "Oh my tea," I whispered.

  It was big. Spanned the entire height of the brick wall. Every person that drove up second street would see the tagging, in all its glory. I was speechless at the time it had to have taken someone to create it. When was the last time I looked at this wall?

  The quality of the artwork impressed me. Giant flowers in peach, purples, and light greens were a mirror image of each other. They stretched up the wall with an assortment of leaves to accent them. Would have been a brilliant addition to the cafe, had it not also boasted 'Roasted with Roaches' in near perfect script.

  "You know, standing out here now, it looks like wings," Aubrey said.

  She walked over to the wall and stood between the leaves that came together at the base and she was not wrong. It was obvious floral wings that one could not photograph without the blasphemy written across them showing up.

  "It's like it's asking to be a social media post," I said.

  "Take my photo," Aubrey said, posing with her hands stretched out in the air—soaking up the morning sun.

  "Aubrey Brooks, you are not funny!" I said and felt a scowl across my face.

  Even though I had to admit, she was cute as a button. Her jeans, and neutral colored blouse, made the flowers pop behind her.

  "Aw, come on. It's not that horrible."

  "I mean, the flowers are beautiful, but why did they have to be so rude?" I asked. "Who's that mad at the cafe?"

  "Don't know," Aubrey said, and placed her arm around my shoulder. "It was here when I arrived. Did you hear anything suspicious last night?"

  "No," I said. "But someone clearly needs a hobby."

  She laughed, and we admired the artwork as we drank our coffee.

  "Did you see anyone?" I transmitted to Azure.

  His late night flights glamoured as a bat had proven to be informative in the past on town happenings. Though, with something this big, I would have hoped he would have woken me up.

  Most of his prowls took place after I went to sleep. If anyone saw something, it would be him. As the downside to a small town was everyone was in bed by ten o'clock. Even the traffic lights switched to flashing red at ten.

  "Sleeping," he transmitted.

  "No sir, if I'm awake, you're awake."

  Snoring came through our mental link.

  "Azure!"

  "You answered your own question, leave me be," he transmitted.

  "You don't get out of this that easy," I transmitted.

  "Fine, I didn't stay out late last night, and there was nothing on the wall when I got home."

  "Tea!"

  "Nothing to be done about it now, I guess," I said to Aubrey. "Might as well start our day and get the cafe ready."

  "Sorry I woke you," she said as we walked in. "I figured you would want to know first thing."

  "Don't worry about it," I said. "Unless you're the one that did it?"

  I smirked at her face as it changed with the realization of what I said.

  "Hey now, you know I can barely stay in the coloring book lines as it is."

  With the two of us working to open, it took half the time, and it was only 7:45 AM. While I hated mornings, I did love the look of the cafe prior to customers arriving. The way the morning sun hit the bean roaster in the front window made the rest of the cafe shimmer with anticipation for the day.

  "I'm going to run upstairs for a shower," I said, gesturing to my appearance.

  "I wasn't going to say anything," Aubrey laughed.

  "Oh, thanks a lot," I returned her laugh.

  There was no rush, so I took my time in the shower, using it to think about who would have wanted to hurt the cafe. No one came to mind. No matter how much Tanner, my arch-nemesis from the teahouse, and I did not get along, there was no way he would deface the cafe to get back at me. Even he had some standards.

  I thought back to the rat incident. Well, he was not artistic as far as I knew, so he had that going for him at the very least.

  There just was not a single person who came to mind. After I dressed for the d
ay, I drank my second cup of coffee on the couch admiring my clean apartment.

  It had taken a few girls' nights, but we redesigned the living area and kitchen. Coffee themed, of course. With added accents of my favorite animal—narwhal—thrown in. It finally felt like home, with only most of the bedroom to go as far as decluttering.

  I kept most of Tona's furniture and posted mine in yard sale sites. All of it was thrift store special anyway, so it saved me trips up the stairs to downsize mine.

  I enjoyed the cream color we chose for the wall—it reminded me of the foam on an espresso. The l-shaped kitchen and bathroom were at the far back of the apartment, sharing the back wall. From there, the retro couch sat against the bathroom wall with a mounted tv opposite it, attached to the wall shared with the bedroom.

  Next to the couch was an end table, then Aunt Tona's favorite chair. A table and four chairs sat in the middle of the right-hand side of the open living area, with a china cabinet and dresser against the wall that spanned from the staircase to the bedroom door.

  Once the bedroom was usable, I could drop my apartment lease completely, and finally have all my belongings in one spot.

  I was thankful for the love and understanding friendship I received from my landlord. Julie was in her eighties and was the sweetest Nana I never had. She originally did not want to charge me for keeping my belongings there while I sorted out Tona's apartment, but I insisted. It was not like I was hurting for money.

  After I finished my cup I came down to the cafe again, to discover it was busier than usual. No doubt the town saw the latest tagging and decided what better place to gossip about it, than right inside where it happened.

  Aubrey handed Ben a to go cup of coffee. He ran a small accounting business, Because 7 8 9. Aunt Tona paid him to manage the payroll and taxes for Aconite Cafe for as long as I could recall.

  When I took over, there was no reason to switch. Ben was excellent with numbers, and I had no interest in learning all that went into it. Best to pay him and wash my hands of it.

  "Morning Hailey," Ben said as he sipped his coffee. "This batch is roach free, right?"

  He was a tall lanky gentleman. I guessed to be in his mid-forties. He always wore pressed suits and struck me as very by the book. I did not actually know if he had kids or a wife. Thinking back to the last time I was at his office, I felt like it was very plain and pristine.

  "Hopefully we can trust Aubrey enough to use the correct beans," I said, giggling at the look she shot me. "I'm looking into what it will cost to clean up the wall. I can write that off, right?"

  "Absolutely," Ben said. "But for what it's worth, I agree with Aubrey, it's kind of nice. Anyway. Back to the salt mine for me."

  I laughed. His dark humor around accounting always made me laugh, even though I was no friend of math. Maybe it was because I was sarcastic myself and felt a kindred spirit with him?

  "Been going around town, got me on Tuesday night," Jeremiah said to a small group of locals who rarely came in. "Tagging, they call it. More like defacement of property. Sheriff Brooks better discover who it is soon. Though I have my own suspicions."

  "Who do you think did it?" Jenny asked.

  I could not remember the last time I saw her in the cafe. She was my usual teller at New Horizons Bank, but hardly ever made it in here. The llamas were thirsty for drama this morning.

  I just hoped they were all thirsty for coffee as well. If I was going to be the gossip hot spot, I should at least be able to sell out because of it too.

  "Those darn skater punks," Jeremiah said.

  "Now Jeremiah," I said, walking over with a fresh French press of coffee. "There's no reason to go pointing a finger at someone with no proof. Those kids aren't hurting anyone. Jason stepped up and helped David with the feed store last month, and he's one of those skaters you're pointing at."

  "The exception proves the rule," Jeremiah said.

  "Exactly," Charlie said, back to his usual grumpy self. "They used taxpayer money to build that eyesore of concrete for them, right in the park. Blocks half the view. But those punks would rather deface the town. Bunch of heathens, if you ask me."

  His daughter may have cleaned up his reputation around town, but no one would change Charlie from the old grump he had become. Besides, the town would not be the same without the constant criticism from its senior members. It stemmed from a place of love. Love for the memory of a town long gone, but love all the same.

  "All I'm suggesting, is that maybe you give the kids a break until William has a chance to find some evidence?" I asked, pouring the four of them fresh coffee.

  They grumbled something that could have been taken as an agreement. Well, that was how I would take it, anyway. It was unlikely I would get better out of those old men.

  I left them to grumble, and I smiled to myself. The retired guys had to be my favorite customers. Hard exteriors, but loveable interiors.

  I leaned against the back counter with Aubrey, enjoying a third espresso. This day would not happen without a lot more coffee.

  "Are you going to the Bluebonnet Jamboree this weekend?" Aubrey asked.

  "I don't know yet. Between Jess and Kendrick, I'm not needed here anymore. I guess I need to find a weekend hobby."

  "You know you deserve those days off, right? Come with us, I'm taking the kids on Sunday."

  "It just feels wrong, you know?" I aksed. "That will be fun. They are old enough to ride a few, yeah?"

  "You're the boss. Bosses get weekends off. We'll see if they'll be brave enough to get on any."

  "Oh, Aunt Hailey is going to make those babies scream with joy, right after I pack them full of sugar."

  "Oh, geez," Aubrey said, and shook her head at me.

  "Only kidding," I laughed into my coffee. "About the sugar part, anyway."

  CHAPTER TWO

  Thursday, April 9th

  The day continued very much business as usual, aside from the uptick in non-regulars. It was hard to believe I made it past three without needing to go upstairs to catch a nap. Knowing that Jess was on her way with Aubrey's kids left me with an exhausted feeling.

  The last few hours on days I woke before nine am were the worst. I was thankful that Jess and Aubrey set up a school carpool, as it meant that Aubrey stayed later every other week. I was still astonished at how quickly she stepped up and became a true partner in running the cafe, just as Aunt Tona and I had been.

  Really, after spending so many years listening to the cafe patrons complain about how hard it was to find reliable, competent workers, I knew I should thank my lucky stars to have the staff I did. In just a few short months, I had interviewed and hired Jess and Kendrick, leaving me with open weekends for the first time in my adult life.

  The comradery of the cafe staff filled the void of losing Aunt Tona. Not that they could replace her entirely. But the friendships we were developing gave me hope that we would be able to conquer anything that came our way. I knew every one of them would take the tagging personally and cringed at the thought of what Jess would say when she arrived.

  "Salmon time?" Azure transmitted.

  "Diet time is more like it," I transmitted back.

  He sent me an image of his blue tongue stuck out. If he really were a cat, I would be concerned about his weight and follow through with a diet, but as a dragon, I did not know what a healthy weight looked like.

  "Large as a house," Azure transmitted.

  "How's that working for you? Last I checked your belly was nearly as wide as you are long," I laughed through the transmission. "Soon I'll have to install a ramp so you can roll downstairs."

  "Har, har. It's called storing fat, soon I'll grow and you'll be eating your jokes."

  "What happens when you get too large to pass as a cat?"

  "Not an issue," Azure transmitted. "I can make myself look any size I want. But I suppose at some point I might want to take on the form of a larger animal."

  "Oh! Can you become a tiger? I'd love to snuggle a benga
l."

  "My form is not meant to amuse you," he transmitted in his most regal voice.

  "What if I give you salmon every day?"

  "Great idea, start now, and I'll consider your request."

  Checkmated. There was no way to argue with that.

  "Hey Aubrey," I said as she worked the espresso machine.

  "Yeah?"

  "I'm going to go feed Azure. Be right back."

  "Okay," Aubrey said. "Jess should be here any minute."

  "I'll only be gone a second."

  Azure was waiting at the top of the stairs, cleaning himself. For not being a cat, he sure had the behaviorisms down.

  I took him showing me his cat glamour as a sign that he was serious about the tiger idea. How cool would it be if the actual reason Texas had a larger tiger population than that of in the wild, was because they were all secret dragons? Goals for future Hailey to achieve.

  "Salmon?" I asked aloud.

  Azure darted to the food bowl, ready for his afternoon treat. When I opened the can, the smell of overly ripe fish filled the kitchen.

  How did he enjoy that?

  "Thank you," he transmitted.

  "You're welcome, but I'm not going to stick around to smell it."

  "Yet you'll hang out in your own filth daily," he laughed, and it came out as a meow.

  "Hailey!" Jess called from the downstairs storeroom. The panic in her voice gave my heart a rush.

  "This conversation isn't over mister," I transmitted and ran down the stairs in a mad dash to see what had happened.

  "Yes," I panted, short of breath.

  Aubrey rushed in from the cafe, wiping her hands on a towel. She kept the door ajar, and I realized their kids were sitting at the counter.

  "Have you seen your wall?" Jess asked.

  "Oh yeah, it happened last night," I said, relieved it was not something more serious.

  "The way you dropped the kids at the counter I thought there was an emergency," Aubrey said.

  She giggled, and I knew she had to be thinking the same thing I was. Overdramatic much?

  "And you didn't think to text me?" Jess asked. "What does that make? The fifth business?"