The Twelve Books of Christmas by Kate Carlisle

Author:Kate Carlisle [Carlisle, Kate]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Published: 2023-10-24T00:00:00+00:00

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• • •

An hour later we were safely ensconced back in the castle, where we all decided to convene in the blue parlor to consider what the plan was for tomorrow.

“We’re having a wedding, after all,” Claire said. “But I’m beginning to think we should postpone it to the afternoon, at least. Or even push it back another day. There’s just so much going on.”

“I hate the thought of postponing it one more hour,” Cameron said, running his hands through his hair in frustration. “But it has been a long night, and I’m afraid we’ll be dealing with hangovers and worse tomorrow.”

“Hangovers might be the least of it,” I said, scowling. “Did anyone besides me see Olivia at the bonfire?”

Claire’s mouth fell open in shock. “No!”

“Damn it!” Cameron shook his head. “Pardon my language, but no, I didn’t see her. I should’ve.”

“You were involved in the burning,” Claire said. “And we knew she might show up.”

“And there were hundreds of people out there,” Derek said. “She hasn’t been fired yet, so why wouldn’t she come to the Hogmanay bonfire with everyone else in town?”

“Indeed,” Cameron said. “Why wouldn’t she?”

“She was heading toward the castle,” I said, and frowned. “Not sure that means anything.”

“Well, she didn’t cause any trouble tonight,” Claire reasoned, “so I think we’re safe for now.”

“At least until I fire her,” Cameron said. “Then we may indeed see some trouble.”

“Speaking of Olivia,” I said, “with everything that’s been going on, we’ve never really discussed all the missing books.”

“Do you have a theory, sweetie?” Mom asked.

“I have a couple,” I said with a smile. “I can’t help but think Olivia took them herself and sold them. She is fond of money, after all.”

Mom heaved a sigh. “I thought the same thing after I spoke with her.”

I took a sip of my tea and Scotch. I had never been a Scotch fan, but I was beginning to enjoy the flavor and wondered if I would continue drinking it once we got back home. Probably not. I rarely indulged in a nightcap, but when in Scotland . . .

“I’m still bothered by her,” I said. “Even if she didn’t steal the books herself, she managed to lose twelve important books from your collection. The fact that they’re all Christmas books is particularly upsetting. But I was also surprised to hear that they were taken one at a time. It makes me think we should check the castle rooms. Maybe someone took a book to one of the rooms to read and left it there. You never know. We might find one or two, and we can return them to the shelves.”

“It’s all about the books with my girl,” Dad said jovially.

“Thank you, Brooklyn,” Cameron said. “If you can find even one of the missing books, I’ll be grateful.”

I remembered the shadow I saw in the tower window and knew I had to climb up there tomorrow. What if the book thief had left one of the books up there? What if they’d left more? I would try to get Derek to come with me.

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