Doomed by Dessert
Page 13
Jill stretched her arms out and griped about being hungry. They'd eaten all the trail mix, snacks and fruit from Abby's carefully packed tote bag. "There's something coming up," she said, pointing to a roadside sign.
Abby steered off the road and into a gravel lot. Being as they were at a higher altitude, she popped open the trunk to get their parkas, grabbing Jill's first to toss it to her then reached for her own.
"Oh," she said, seeing the velvety black book with the swirly cover peeking out from underneath her jacket. That's strange. How'd it get in the car?
For a second, the golden swirls flickered, and she thought she saw the outline of a cat. This time, the cat had shining golden eyes that looked straight into hers.
Jill tugged on her arm. "I'm hungry."
Abby's gaze shifted to Jill then back to the book. There was no cat, just the velvety black cover with golden swirls.
"C'mon. Let's go. I'm starving."
Abby closed the trunk and let Jill lead her inside the burger joint. The book was soon forgotten as they checked out the menu and ordered cheeseburgers with fries.
Fifteen minutes later, they were back on the narrow road. Gray mist traveling down from the mountain top greeted them, making the massive fir and pine forest look mystical. A weathered road sign appeared: Moon Water, thirteen miles.
A frisson of excitement had Abby imagining a tiny mountain hamlet of quaint shops and inviting boutiques. Surely, there would be a bakery which, hopefully, needed another employee.
Night was falling by the time they reached Moon Water. Driving down Main Street took them directly to the town square with its one-story buildings of clapboard, timber and brick.
It was Sunday night so all of the shops were closed up tight, and there was only one working street lamp, which needed its dim bulb replaced.
"There it is," Jill said, pointing to the hump-backed two-lane wooden bridge which crossed over Moon Water Creek. Selene Adamas had described it in the directions she'd emailed.
Not long after the bridge, the road sloped up and soon Abby spied an oversized lantern atop a stone entrance marker. At the marker she turned right into Honeyberry Woods.
Slowly cruising through the neighborhood of mostly modest ranch-styled homes with a few stone cottages here and there, the Volvo turned right onto Curiosity Lane.
"Oh, my," she said as the car pulled up to 777 Curiosity Lane.
It looked like a fairytale cottage with flowers and vines climbing up to the roof and a cobblestone walkway leading up to the porch.
Jill nudged her mother's arm. "Let's go."
She was out of the car first, with Abby right behind her. They strolled from the curb toward the cottage with Jill slightly in front of her mother.
As they approached the vine-covered front porch, Abby gasped. There was a face staring at them from the front window.
A moment later, the paneled oak front door swung open, and a woman in a long, dark velvet cloak stepped out. "I'm Selene Adamas. You must be Abby and Jillian."
"We are," they chimed together.
Before they reached the front steps, Jill nudged her mother's arm. "Don't you think she looks a lot like Twila?"
Abby uttered a faint "hm." Selene Adamas did have a similar pointy chin and high forehead, and she wore her silvering hair in a loose chignon. Yes, there was definitely a resemblance to Twila.
A cool bluster of wind lifted Abby's hair, unfurling it like a banner in front of her, and as it caught the flickering light, she was startled at the now coppery red color.
But it was what Selene said next that caused her arms to pebble with gooseflesh. "I see you've brought the East Wind with you. It's a herald of change, my dears, a herald of change."
______________________________
Hello from Cece Osgood
Thank for reading DOOMED BY DESSERT!
Hope you enjoyed. Please sign up at my Blue Moon mailing list which goes out occasionally for a release, a giveaway or a contest.
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Oh, and the second book in this series, MURDER IN MOON WATER, is coming soon.
See a list of my other books on my Amazon Page
Or you can check out the links below:
Cozy Mysteries
Margaritas & Murder: Sunny Truly Mystery – Book One.
Merlot & Murder: Sunny Truly Mystery – Book Two
Mimosas & Murder: Sunny Truly Mystery – Book Three
My debut romantic comedy/chick lit:
The Divorced Not Dead Workshop