The Chocolatier's Ghost by Cindy Lynn Speer

Author:Cindy Lynn Speer
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Dragonwell Publishing

William was trying to not think too much about the murders, because his first and most important responsibility for the day was to turn out some chocolates, but he was already distracted. Tatu was perched on his shoulder, clinging to his ear lobe or curled in his collar. When he tried to engage her he got nothing but silence, so he just let her stay there. Sometimes she unbalanced and pulled on his hair, but mostly she clung to the shell of his ear. Even when he held a chocolate covered spoon up she did not shift or take some of the tempting treat, which worried him even more, because generally the sprites couldn’t resist it.

He finished making raspberry filled truffles, and moved on to making chocolate truffles. He kept looking at the pantry, where the sprites seemed to center themselves. They usually surrounded him in a gentle, warm cloud of chaos, but the nest seemed to be taking all their time.

He turned his head and asked Tatu, softly, “What is going on with all of you?” Her answer was to just cling harder to his ear.

He patted the space where he felt her very gently, and kept working. When he didn’t have company, he would take Tasmin away from any invisible ears (if he could) and try to come up with a plan. He did not like what was going on. Perhaps it is just Magda, he thought, but he feared that the ghost storm, sitting off shore like a gray smudge, was scaring them.

Point of fact, he did not care for anything that was going on. A letter from his brother was well over due, his sister-in-law was sending pitiful notes from her prison, making him feel guilty for neglecting her.

Then, the bodies. He dreamed of them, hanging from the ceiling, quietly whispering to him. One of the bodies held a hand out to him, whispering things in Tasmin’s voice. It did not take a dream reader to tell that he was frightened for his wife. He sighed softly, stirring the chocolate over the fire constantly, anxious that it should not stick. He did not wish to curtail her movements, but he was worried. She had magic, was female, and abroad and unprotected often. Exactly as a Wise Woman would be and exactly, William had in mind, the reason why they were dead. He took the chocolate off the fire and started pouring.

Tasmin came into the kitchen. “A letter from your mother has been delivered,” she said in a falsely bright voice.

“Oh, how lovely!” he said, attempting to sound at least as cheerful. He wiped his hands and took the paper and opened it, while Tasmin grabbed a cloth and used it to pick up the molds and gently tap them to chase the air bubbles. “She wishes you to accompany her on a visit to Bonny.”

She leaned slightly away from the letter, which he laid on the edge of the table in case she wanted to read it.

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