A Taste of Magic (A Sugarcomb Lake Cozy Mystery Book 1)

by Alaine Allister

  But life was far from normal for Clarissa, who was currently unemployed and struggling to find her place in the world. Being a journalist was her calling. She was sure of it. But now there was no opportunity to pursue her dream career – at least not in her quirky, charming hometown.

  The thought of being forced to move away was gut-wrenching.

  Clarissa still felt foolish for being so gullible. Elwood Tweed had strung her along and she had fallen for his lies. To be fair, the reason she had been so trusting was that her former employer had been nothing but true to his word. The harsh realization that the world didn’t always operate that way had stung.

  But it was time to stop moping and do something productive.

  Clarissa still wasn’t sure where she was headed professionally. She wasn’t ready to give up her career or bid farewell to Sugarcomb Lake. That left her in a tough situation.

  But there was one thing that was under her control: the weeds in her garden.

  So now she was outside tackling the mess that was her yard. She’d been at it for hours, as the lawn was overgrown and covered in leaves, the bushes needed pruning and the weeds were getting away from her.

  Much to her relief, the gardening hadn’t been excruciating.

  On the contrary, it had been rather therapeutic.

  There was something so relaxing about just quietly enjoying nature. The fresh scent of grass and the feel of soft, rich soil between her fingers made Clarissa happy. Actually, the act of gardening itself was almost like meditating. It was exactly what she had needed.

  Clarissa lost track of the time.

  Eventually she looked up and noticed the sun was setting. Had she really been outside for that long? It was hard to believe. But when she stood up and felt how stiff her joints were, that was all the proof she needed. She had indeed been outside for the entire afternoon!

  Looking around, Clarissa felt a sense of pride at all she had accomplished. The yard was virtually weed-free, the grass was cut, the hedges were trimmed and the rose bushes had been pruned. Despite it being late in the season, the marigolds were still in full bloom, bright and cheerful in hues of orange and yellow along the pathway leading up to the quaint old house.

  All of a sudden, Clarissa was exhausted. She wasn’t used to marathon gardening sessions! She absentmindedly tried to estimate how many calories she might have burned, but her brain wasn’t interested in getting a workout.

  She decided she would reward herself with a box of chocolate chip cookies and call it a day. That seemed reasonable, right? Okay, fine, half a box. Realistically, though, Clarissa knew half a box always turned into the whole box.

  If she didn’t soon learn some willpower, she would have to take up jogging.

  Ugh, the mere thought of jogging made Clarissa want to fall over! In fact, she nearly did fall over when she tried to bend down to gently brush a ladybug off her boot.

  “Ouch!” Clarissa gasped, clutching her stiff, sore back. “I hate exercise.” If she could somehow convince Liana to push her around town in a wheelbarrow she would be all set, ready to live out the rest of her days like an Egyptian queen.

  Except she was pretty there would be no brawny, handsome young men to feed her grapes by hand. And riding around in a wheelbarrow wouldn’t really be very glamorous or Cleopatra-like.

  But still, shoving fistfuls of cookies into her mouth while being hauled around in a wheelbarrow beat walking!

  With a sigh, Clarissa admitted to herself that Liana would never agree to make her twisted fantasy a reality. If anything, her best friend would simply thrust a giant cup of coffee at her and tell her to toughen up.

  To make matters worse, Clarissa’s wheelbarrow was currently full of soil, finished plants and various other things destined for the garbage dump. It wasn’t exactly inviting. Actually, the thought of climbing into the wheelbarrow was pretty gross.

  “Who wants to ride around in a chariot of filth?” Clarissa murmured under her breath.

  Even she had her limits! So fine, it appeared she was simply going to have to walk. Oh, life was cruel. Why did the box of cookies have to be all the way in the house? Next time she gardened she would have to plan that better...

  Clarissa limped up the front steps. Then she took a seat on the porch swing on the veranda.

  “Oof,” she grunted, sitting down with a thud. Not even the lure of cookies could entice her to take another step. That was how she knew she was really, really beat. Every inch of her body hurt. She had definitely overdone it.

  Her long dark hair was a tangled, unruly mess and her button up work shirt was drenched with sweat. She was achy and sore but satisfied. A hard day’s work was good for the soul...or so Clarissa’s mother had always claimed when she had wanted Clarissa’s help with the chores!

  Clarissa was looking forward to having a long, well-deserved soak in the tub – while eating cookies, of course. But first she needed to muster up the energy to stand up and go inside. She would try to talk her body into cooperating soon. For now, she was content to stay right where she was. The less energy she had to expend, the better.

  “Meow.”

  When Clarissa heard that familiar noise, she didn’t dare look down. In fact, she stared straight ahead and pretended she hadn’t heard a thing. Maybe doing so would make that darn cat finally give up and go away once and for all.

  But Clarissa ought to have known better than that.

  Cats were, by nature, almost as stubborn as she was. They didn’t give up until they got what they wanted. She just wished she could figure out what this particular cat was after. Why did it keep coming back to her place day after day instead of seeking out someone who actually wanted its company?

  “Hey!” Clarissa exclaimed in surprise as the cat suddenly launched itself into her lap.

  The little black furred creature head-butted her chin rather violently. One would think doing so would hurt the cat’s head, but it seemed unfazed. Apparently that old tongue-in-cheek expression was true: no sense, no feeling.

  “I don’t have any more meatballs in the fridge, if that’s what you’re after,” Clarissa said.

  “Meow,” the cat argued, almost sounding as if it was talking back.

  “You ate all the meatballs yesterday, remember? And you turned your nose up at everything else I offered you, so you can’t be that hungry. Besides, you can’t keep hanging around here. Don’t you have someplace else to be?”

  The cat looked up at her.

  Against her better judgment, Clarissa scratched behind the cat’s ears. When the little creature began to purr, she scratched some more. Maybe she wasn’t a Cat Person, but she wasn’t a monster either. If the insufferable little beast wanted affection, who was she to deny it?

  Then, without warning, the cat batted at Clarissa’s silver charm bracelet.

  “Hey! Cat! Stop doing that before you break it,” Clarissa commanded, pulling her arm away. Then she examined the bracelet thoughtfully. “I can’t believe I forgot to take this off before doing all that yard work,” she told her uninvited companion conversationally. “That was dumb.”

  The cat went after the bracelet again. It must have liked the way it jingled or something, because it seemed pretty fascinated – not to mention determined. Its pupils had gotten wide and its tail was bushy with excitement as it plotted against the inanimate object. Even its nostrils were flaring with anticipation as it gave the bracelet an unnerving death stare.

  Cats were rather psychopathic when you got right down to it.

  Clarissa took the bracelet off and set it aside so the cat would stop treating it like prey.

  “Ouch,” Clarissa said as the cat head-butted her yet again. She looked down at it and felt an unexpected pang of – what, fondness toward it? That was certainly unexpected! But the darn thing was being awfully sweet...for a cat.

  “Meowmeow,” said the cat as it paraded around atop Clarissa’s lap as if it was king of the castle.

  “Who knew that you were so affect
ionate?” she smiled, reaching down to pet its furry, hard-as-a-rock head again. Despite her aversion to felines, this little guy was slowly but surely winning her over. How could she not fall for him when he was being so likeable?

  The cat abruptly leapt off of Clarissa’s lap. Clearly it was far more interested in the jewelry than in making a new friend. That was hardly surprising. Did cats even have friends, or did they only have what they perceived to be slaves?

  With all the stealth and cunning of an evil supervillain, the cat picked the bracelet up with its teeth. Then it shot off of the porch swing like a rocket. Before Clarissa could even comprehend what was happening, the little devil had disappeared into the forest.

  “Hey! Come back here with my bracelet! Come back here right now!” Clarissa shouted, because it was common knowledge that cats always obeyed humans’ orders.

  With a grunt, Clarissa hoisted herself to her feet. Then she staggered into the forest on legs that felt as though they were made of lead. She wasn’t about to let that infuriating cat steal her charm bracelet. Not a chance!

  “Cat!” Clarissa called as she forced her exhausted body onward. “Here, Cat!”

  It was nearly dark out and the dense trees blocked out what little daylight was left. Clarissa had to pay very close attention to where she was going so that she wouldn’t get lost. Cursing the cat under her breath, she gingerly stepped over fallen tree branches and rocks.

  This was not how she had intended to spend her evening!

  There was a rustling in the bush behind her.

  With a gasp, Clarissa turned. Her heart was beating wildly as her imagination played tricks on her. What if she ran into a bear or a coyote or something? Venturing off into the woods alone at dusk hadn’t been such a bright idea...

  “Meow,” said the cat.

  “Oh, it’s you,” Clarissa said with equal parts relief and annoyance. “Give me my bracelet.”

  Then it occurred to the young woman that if the cat was meowing at her, then obviously the charm bracelet was no longer in its mouth. That wasn’t good. That wasn’t good at all!

  She looked all around but of course, didn’t find what she was searching for. That would have been far too easy.

  Sugarcomb Forest went on forever. Considering how fast that cat had moved, there was no telling how deep into the woods it had gone. As infuriating as it was to admit, finding the bracelet would essentially be like searching for a needle in a haystack.

  It was most likely gone for good.

  “And I really liked that bracelet too,” Clarissa grumbled, her shoulders slumping in defeat.

  But the charm bracelet wasn’t worth getting lost over.

  Turning around, she prepared to retrace her steps and head back to the house. That long, hot bubble bath was still calling her name. And so were the chocolate chip cookies she couldn’t stop thinking about. They were practically screaming her name.

  The wind picked up all at once.

  “Was that - ?” Clarissa said out loud, pausing to look up at the rapidly darkening sky. The first of many raindrops hit her squarely on the nose, confirming her suspicions. “Just my luck, I get caught in the rain. Thanks a lot, Cat.”

  The cat stared at her unflinchingly, looking completely unremorseful. Clarissa just knew that behind those long whiskers and that soft fur was a cold-blooded psychopath.

  Suddenly there was a loud bang – and it sounded close!

  “What was that?!” Clarissa gasped, jumping at the unexpected, deafening sound. Then, feeling foolish for overreacting, she looked down at the cat. Since when was she worried about trying to save face in front of the furry four legged little creature? Had she really become that pathetic?

  Apparently she had, because she felt the need to discuss the matter further.

  “It was probably fireworks,” Clarissa told the cat authoritatively, even though she wasn’t quite convinced herself. “Anyway, we should get home.” Then she caught herself. “I should get home,” she corrected herself.

  The cat looked up at her.

  Clarissa felt a tug at her heartstrings.

  She sighed and said, “I can’t just leave you outside in a storm. I suppose if you need someplace warm and dry to sleep you can stay with me tonight, just this once.”

  The cat acted every bit as ungrateful as Clarissa had expected.

  Actually, it didn’t even seem to be listening to her.

  Its head cocked to the side and its ears twitched as it listened intently to a sound Clarissa couldn’t hear. Then it arched its back as though it was feeling threatened. Perplexed, the young woman stared at it wondering if the animal was, in fact, insane.

  That was when something – or someone – stampeded through the forest. It sounded like a herd of elephants...or more accurately, a very noisy human in a very big hurry. Clarissa admittedly didn’t know much about elephants, but she was pretty sure they didn’t curse under their breath.

  Instinctually, Clarissa jumped behind a tree. She wasn’t sure what had possessed her to do that. Maybe it was because the cat’s jumpiness had her on edge, or maybe it was because the man’s tone of voice made him seem incredibly agitated.

  Whatever the reason, her gut told her to hide. So she did.

  Unfortunately, Clarissa’s gut was less adept at predicting weather-related threats. At that precise moment there was a sudden crack of thunder coupled with a flash of lightning. The tree trunk Clarissa had been hiding behind split right in two and sparks crackled, illuminating the dark, starless night.

  A strange, woozy feeling came over Clarissa.

  She felt herself swaying as her heart beat erratically. Then standing became too difficult. She wobbled precariously for a moment and then fell straight back. The last thing she remembered seeing was the cat standing over her as she stared up at the sky.

  Then there was only blackness.

  Chapter 03

  “Eeee!” Clarissa shrieked at the top of her lungs when she opened her eyes.

  “Aaah!” the woman crouched over her wailed in response, every bit as alarmed as she was.

  Both women jumped to their feet as if ready to fight or flee. Had anyone been watching, the sight would have been rather hysterical. They circled each other like two alley cats feuding over territory. Neither of them made a move. They simply stared each other down.

  But then Clarissa’s head felt funny. She put a hand to her temple and sat back down on the cold hard ground. Blinking a few times, she tried to clear the fogginess from her vision. Then she cautiously snuck another look at the woman, who still hadn’t moved an inch.

  Now that she wasn’t feeling quite so panicky, Clarissa easily recognized the woman, who was maybe in her early forties. It would be impossible not to recognize her. She wasn’t exactly the sort of person who faded into the background.

  With her long, straggly black hair and habit of wearing no less than six long, flowing dresses all at once, she was easy to place. She was the offbeat, eccentric woman who panhandled in the town square. She had arrived in town a few years earlier and had just sort of…never left.

  Some days the woman sang strange songs that apparently weren’t intended to have any melody or rhythm. Other days she danced, if one could call it dancing. Actually, to call it dancing was probably far too generous. It more closely resembled spastic flailing.

  Then again, maybe that was catching on. At twenty-eight, Clarissa felt totally out of touch with what was popular with the kids these days. She was, horrifyingly enough, reaching the point where certain music sounded like noise and certain dance moves reminded her of attempts to swat a pesky mosquito. Could it be that the strange, forty-something year old panhandler was hipper than Clarissa?

  “Ommmm,” the woman chanted, closing her eyes and swaying.

  The woman was easily the most eccentric person in Sugarcomb Lake. But as far as Clarissa knew, she was basically harmless. That was a relief, because the last thing Clarissa wanted was to be out in the middle of the dark forest with
someone dangerous! Being out there with that psychotic kleptomaniac of a cat was bad enough...

  “What happened?” Clarissa asked, trying again to stand. This time she was more successful.

  “Lightning strike,” the woman said, offering no further explanation.

  “It struck the tree I was standing beside,” Clarissa recalled, the memory coming back to her. Then she stopped in her tracks. Furrowing her brow, she put her hand back to her head. “You don’t mean the lightning struck me, do you?” she asked in disbelief. “I wasn’t hit by lightning, was I? I mean, I couldn’t have been, right?”

  The woman gave her a long, knowing look but didn’t answer the question. Instead, she asked a question of her own. “How do you feel?” Her tone that suggested she already knew the answer.

  “Like I was struck by lightning,” Clarissa quipped – but she was only half-joking.

  The woman didn’t even crack a smile. Instead, she just kept right on swaying.

  “I should be getting home,” Clarissa announced, finding the whole encounter rather bizarre and uncomfortable. “Thanks for uh...doing whatever it was you were doing? I mean uh, thanks for your help,” she clarified.

  The woman simply looked at her, neither confirming nor denying that she had been trying to offer assistance. Then her eyes rolled back in her head dramatically and she began to hum even louder than before.

  Well that wasn’t creepy or anything. Yikes, time to get out of there!

  “So um, okay. Bye!” Clarissa said, giving a big, goofy half-wave that made her discomfort more than apparent. Then she practically ran back to her house, eager to get away from the bizarre woman who apparently had all the social skills of a fallen tree.

  It wasn’t until Clarissa was back at the house and about to immerse herself in a hot, steamy bubble bath that she noticed her bracelet was back on her wrist.

  ***

  “What happened to you?” Liana demanded the next morning. She had turned up unannounced bright and early and had then proceeded to bang on the front door until Clarissa dragged herself out of bed to answer it.