Witch Cake Murders (Sweetland Witch Women Sleuths) (A Cozy Mystery Book) Page 4

  My bottom lip trembled. I quickly scooped up my belongings, wishing I could transform myself into a snail and hide in my shell. I'd been here exactly five minutes and already I'd fallen in the water, embarrassed myself, and broken a major rule of the witching world.

  The two men in the boat were arguing with each other now. I had no idea what they were saying, but they looked mad. Somehow, I had the feeling they were arguing about me. But that was ridiculous.

  "It's okay," Eleanor said, calming down. "I don't think anyone saw."

  I didn't want to upset her again by mentioning the guys in the boat. I'd made enough mistakes for one day.

  "You know," Eleanor said, smiling now as she led the way toward the taxi the porter had secured for us. "That was actually pretty great. You successfully cast a spell on your first try! Not many witches can do that. You must take after your mother."

  "You think?" I smiled at the idea of having something in common with my mom.

  Settled into the taxi, Eleanor seemed more at ease.

  "When we get home, make sure you lock your wand up good and tight," Eleanor said. "There's a special drawer in your room where you can keep it. We'll show you. If you're ever uncertain where we keep something, just ask. Tootsie and Rocky will be glad to help you out as well."

  "Tootsie and Rocky?" I asked.

  "Our familiars. Tootsie is Trixie's cat. Rocky is my wolfhound. He looks vicious, but he's just a playful pup."

  "Oh, okay. Um, thanks," I said as we drove away from the pier. Familiars? I didn't want to sound stupid, but I was dying to know if Tootsie and Rocky could talk. Like in the movies.

  I reached into my purse to check my phone. My dad had already sent me a dozen text messages pleading with me not to go to Heavenly Haven. I'd read them, but not yet responded. I didn't know what to tell him. I guessed I could start with telling him it was too late. I was here.

  I opened my purse, but my phone wasn't there.

  "Oh my roses," I said, remembering now that I'd had it in my back pocket when I fell into the water.

  "What's wrong?" Trixie asked.

  I reached into my pocket and checked for my phone, but it wasn't there.

  Something pricked uncomfortably at the back of my neck as a new, even worse thought occurred to me. I sat straighter in my seat, looking around the cab. It felt like a brick had just landed in the pit of my stomach. A large lump formed in my throat. I dumped everything out of my purse.

  Nothing.

  I felt in all my pockets. Still nothing. My heart began to race.

  "What's wrong?" Trixie asked again.

  "I lost my phone," I told them, looking out the window at the pier now fading in the distance.

  "That's too bad," Eleanor said. "But normal phones don't work very well on Heavenly Haven anyway. We'll get you a proper witching phone after you've settled in."

  "Thanks," I said, biting my lips so hard I tasted blood. The phone wasn't the problem. Or rather, it wasn't the big problem.

  I had no idea how to tell my aunts, so I said nothing at all. The fact was, I hadn't even been a witch for one full day yet, and already I'd lost my wand.

  * * *

  0 6

  * * *

  I stood in the back room at The Mystic Cupcake, my head swimming with all the information Trixie and Eleanor had gone over with me since early this morning.

  I'd awoken at five to Trixie and Eleanor's smiling faces hovering over me in the dark. They had startled me so much that I'd screamed and socked Trixie in the mouth with my fist. Luckily, she'd thought it was hilarious. It had taken some prompting on their part, but I'd gotten out of bed and dressed, ready for my first day as a full-fledged witch.

  Tootsie, Trixie's feline familiar, wove his way between my ankles as Eleanor tested me.

  "What's this?" Eleanor asked, pointing at a container of bronze powder.

  I tried to concentrate, but my mind kept returning to the wand I'd lost the day before. I still hadn't told Trixie or Eleanor.

  Tootsie coughed lightly, and I looked down at him. His long orange fur fluffed out in all directions. Like he'd been through the fluff cycle one too many times. "Meowww... luffernut roo—"

  "Tootsie!" Eleanor glared at him. "Do not help her."

  Tootsie sat down and blinked innocently at Eleanor, licking his paw. "What did Tootsie do?" he asked, pretending to be interested in a piece of cookie that had fallen on the floor. He batted it around with his paws.

  I was still trying to get used to the idea of a talking cat. Rocky, Eleanor's gray and white wolfhound, lay silently in the corner, his head buried under one paw while he tried to get some sleep.

  "Don't mind Tootsie," Eleanor said. "He was your mother's familiar before... before he was Trixie's..." Her voice trailed off. "He's eager to help you. But don't you listen to him. You have to learn these things for yourself."

  I stared down at the orange ball of fur. Tootsie had been my mom's familiar? My heart suddenly warmed that much more toward him. I stroked the top of his head with one finger and he purred loudly.

  "So?" Eleanor asked.

  I stared at the bronze powder, thinking. A long purple stem with tiny white balls was lying in a box on the table. I absently picked it up and twiddled it between my fingers.

  "Ava!" Eleanor snapped. "Don't touch that!" She grabbed the stem from me and set it back in the box, closing the lid.

  "Sorry," I said, surprised at how upset she seemed. "What was that thing?"

  "Nothing. A plant. They're... delicate." She took a deep breath and when she expelled it her smile had returned. "So?" she asked. "The bronze powder? What is it?"

  "Fluffernutter root?"

  "Correct!" Eleanor said, beaming. "And where does it grow?"

  "Um... in the shade?"

  "Yes, but more specific."

  "A... dark shade?"

  "Whisper Crossing."

  Beside her, Trixie hopped from one foot to another.

  "I knew she'd be a natural extractor!" Trixie shouted gleefully.

  Eleanor's brow scrunched together. "Maybe you should go home and get your wand."

  "No!" I shouted, a little too vehemently. When we'd arrived at the bakery his morning, I'd told my aunts I'd forgotten my wand at home. "I mean, I don't want to stop. Not now. I really think I'm getting the hang of this. Besides, you said I shouldn't need a wand."

  "Once you got good enough," Eleanor interjected. "But you're still learning, Ava. A wand at this stage might help speed things along."

  "Oh, let her keep going," Trixie said. "She's doing just fine without it. She's got her mother's skills."

  I looked at Trixie, grateful for her confidence. I only wished I shared it. The chime over the front door rang. The bakery opened at nine. It was only five after and already people were coming in.

  Rocky raised his head sleepily off the floor. "Cookie for Rocky?" he asked. Eleanor took a cookie from a jar on the table and Rocky carefully ate it out of her hand. He lowered his head and went back to sleep.

  "Come on!" Trixie cried. "A customer!" She grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the door. "Quick, grab your tray!" she said, then grabbed it for me. It was my first official tray of cupcakes. Vanilla cake with coconut frosting and happy, peppy mood extract.

  "Trixie," Eleanor said, "we haven't even tried those cupcakes yet."

  "Oh, they're fine," Trixie exclaimed. "Just look at them."

  The pearl-white frosting sat twirled high on top, a perfect swirl. Coconut flakes cascaded up and down the sides, looking like snow. I still couldn't believe I'd created something so elegant. Until this morning, I'd never touched a pastry bag.

  "Ava's a genius!" Trixie declared. I felt my face flush as Trixie pulled me out front.

  A man with longish blond hair and a light five o'clock shadow stood peering at the shelves. He looked up when Trixie and I came in. His hazel eyes were warm and friendly.

  "Good morning, David," Trixie called, waving at him.

  He looked vaguely famil
iar, though I couldn't say why. I looked at him with a critical eye. I had still found no way whatsoever to distinguish humans from witches and wizards. I had to remember to ask Trixie and Eleanor if there was a trick to it.

  "Hey, Trixie," David replied. He saw the cupcakes in her hand and his eyes widened. "What's that there? Is that coconut?"

  Eleanor came out behind us and David smiled brightly at her.

  "Hey, Eleanor," he said.

  "Good morning, David."

  I guessed David was a regular. He was in his early twenties and wore tight jeans with a dark button down shirt and sports jacket. He was probably on his way to work.

  "Here," Trixie said, prying his hand open and placing one of my cupcakes in it. "On the house."

  He looked at her quizzically.

  Trixie pushed me forward. "This is our niece, Ava. She's only just arrived on the island and is going to be helping us here at the bakery. This is her first batch of cupcakes. Ever."

  I thought about telling Trixie that I had made cupcakes before, but I supposed that Betty Crocker didn't really count.

  "They smell great," David said, smiling at me. "Thanks." He blinked once and tilted his head like he was trying to place me.

  "Trixie," Eleanor said, trying to keep her voice light. "We really should try them ourselves first, before we start giving them out to customers."

  David's eyes gleamed. "You mean I'm your Guinea pig?" He winked at me. My cheeks reddened. I looked away, pretending to pick a hair off my apron.

  Before Eleanor could stop him, he stuffed the cupcake into his mouth and swallowed it in three swift bites.

  "Delicious," he declared, looking right at me as he said it.

  His shaggy blond hair swiveled around his head and it suddenly hit me where I knew him from. He'd been one of the men in the boat when I'd arrived. I wasn't sure if he'd recognized me.

  "Here," Trixie said. "Take another." Before he could protest, she shoved a second cupcake into his hand.

  "Well, I guess I've got my sweet fix for the day," he said. "I came in for something chocolate, but this is even better." He swallowed the second cupcake even faster than the first.

  "You can always take some chocolates to go," Eleanor piped up.

  He smiled. "That's probably a good idea. Those afternoon munchies tend to hit me hard." He selected half a dozen chocolate cookies that I suspected he would devour before lunch, and left the store smiling. As soon as he was gone, Trixie started in on her happy jig.

  "Oh, Trixie," Eleanor scolded. "If we give cupcakes away for free to everyone who comes in, we'll never make a profit."

  Trixie stuck out her tongue at Eleanor and continued with her jig.

  "Oh, for witch's sake," Eleanor said, finally smiling. "Let's all try one of Ava's cupcakes."

  Trixie took a step toward me and Eleanor, holding out the tray. Her feet got tangled up as she tried to switch from her jig to a walk, and she toppled to the ground. The cupcakes fell to the floor along with her and when she stood up, she had a face full of frosting.

  "Well, I guess David will be the only one tasting Ava's first batch," Eleanor sighed.

  "Not so fast," Trixie said, running her finger over the frosting that had caked itself to her cheek. A large dollop gathered on her fingertip. She licked it off and smiled. It's delic—"

  Her face turned from smiling and happy to contorted and blue. She started gagging, then fell over. I screamed.

  Trixie lay on the ground. She wasn't moving.

  * * *

  0 7

  * * *

  "Trixie!" Eleanor cried, running to her sister. She clapped her on the back and Trixie let out a loud gasp. Her face was a deep shade of eggplant. I stood frozen, no idea what to do.

  Tootsie appeared out of nowhere. A silver flask fluttered through the air just ahead of him.

  "Eleanor!" Tootsie shouted. Eleanor turned her head, saw the flask, and plucked it from the air. She held it to Trixie's lips. Two swallows later and Trixie's face was a light lavender and her breathing had returned to normal.

  "What happened?" Eleanor asked.

  Trixie slowly rose to her feet. She scratched Tootsie under his chin. "Thanks, Toots." He nuzzled her leg with his head.

  "I think... I think there was quartz ink in there," Trixie said.

  Eleanor turned to look at me. Her face had gone scarlet.

  "Did you use quartz ink?" She sounded mad. "In combination with peppy extract?"

  "I..." Tears were welling in my eyes. "I don't know."

  "You can't use quartz ink with peppy extract. The combination is lethal for witches! Thank the sunshine Tootsie thought to get the cacti airium juice. Or else Trixie..."

  "I'm sorry," I whispered. "Maybe... maybe I'm a dim-witch after all."

  Eleanor's face softened. "No," she said, shaking her head. "Of course you're not. You're far too powerful a witch... that's the problem. You've grown up with no formal training."

  Trixie's face was a light rose color now. She was holding Tootsie in her arms, stroking his head. Rocky was still in the back room, sleeping.

  "I... I'm sorry I raised my voice," Eleanor said. "This is our fault. Not yours."

  "No, it's not. I'm the one who made the cupcakes. I mixed up the powders."

  "If we'd been watching you more closely," Eleanor said, "we would have seen what you'd done and been able to stop you. I think, for a moment, we forgot just how new to this you are."

  "Can you forgive us?" Trixie asked, her eyes watery.

  Were they kidding? Forgive them? I'd almost killed my aunt and they were asking for my forgiveness?

  "There's nothing to forgive," I stammered. Trixie and Eleanor both rounded on me at the same time, gathering me into their arms in a giant hug that left me breathless.

  A soft voice spoke from our feet. "Tootsie does not think Ava can breathe."

  Eleanor and Trixie let me go and I drew in a deep breath. A second later, we were all laughing.

  "Come on," Eleanor said. "We'll resume our lessons."

  I paused halfway to the back room, my face growing pale.

  "Oh no!" I cried. "That customer! David! He ate two of my cupcakes."

  "It's okay," Eleanor said. "David's human. Quartz ink with peppy extract is only a lethal combination to witches. Even warlocks are immune."

  I breathed a sigh of relief and followed Eleanor to the back. Trixie skipped in behind us. Eleanor spun around and held up one long finger to stop her.

  "Oh no, you stay out here. You sell. Ava and I will bake."

  "Hmmph," Trixie said. I watched as she swirled her finger in the air and the cupcake that had stained her apron disappeared. The bell above the door chimed and a new customer walked in. Trixie turned her back without another word.

  Almost twelve hours later, I was exhausted. Aunt Eleanor was like a reform school teacher. She was strict to the point of making my head spin. She'd drilled me again and again on the different types of syrups, powders, and chocolate.

  "What's this?" she asked me just when I'd thought we were done.

  "Plain white chocolate," I said, smiling because I knew I'd nailed it.

  Eleanor nodded approvingly. "And this?"

  I thought for a second as I looked at the ramekin of chocolate chips. "Venus chocolate?" I asked.

  "Precisely. And it's named so because...?"

  "Because... it makes people feel warm like the planet Venus and romantic like the Goddess Venus. The name is actually a misnomer because there's no Venus dust in it, just pixie dust. It's used primarily in love potion cakes."

  "Very good, Ava," Eleanor said, smiling. "I think we're through for today." She set the ramekin down and begin to wipe off the counters.

  "How do you make two people fall in love using cake?" I asked suddenly.

  Eleanor looked up at me. "You don't. That type of thing is strictly forbidden by both the Witch's Council and the Council on Magic and Human Affairs."

  "Then what does love potion cake do?"

&n
bsp; "It opens you to the possibility of love," Eleanor said. "Sometimes, people try to deny their true feelings. All love potion cake does is prevent you from doing that."

  "I see," I said. Though I wasn't at all sure I did.

  "Oh, my roses," Trixie said, coming into the back. "Ava, did you make all these?" she asked, looking around the room at the stacks of cookies and cakes I'd been busy with.

  Eleanor beamed proudly at me.

  "Caramel calming cupcakes with Venus chocolate frosting," I said, pointing at a decadent-looking bunch of cupcakes that stood piled high on a cupcake tower. The moist, buttery cake was more fragrant than New York in springtime.

  "And these?" Trixie asked, pointing at a stack of golden brown rolls with a silvery-cream frosting. They shined like precious metal.

  "Crispy morning cupcakes—"

  "Crispy morning cupcakes?" Trixie asked. "I've never heard of such a thing."

  "Ssh!" Eleanor hushed her sister. "Let her finish."

  "—deep fried in happiness-infused butterscotch oil and topped with thick layers of satisfaction frosting." I smiled at her, proud of my own creation. "So that whoever eats them will feel satisfied not just with their cupcake, but with their day. Get it?"

  Trixie wiped a tear from her eyes and embraced me. "It's wonderful! Your mother would be so proud!"

  The bell above the door chimed. Trixie turned to go back out front, her arms still wrapped around me so that she pulled me with her.

  "Oh, hello, Sheriff Knoxx," Trixie said, wiping the corners of her eyes. "How are you? This is our niece, Ava." She pushed me toward him, showing me off. "She's here helping out. She's taking over her mother's side of the business."

  Trixie smiled brightly at me. I didn't have the heart to tell her that I wasn't sure about 'taking over' my mom's side of anything. I was here to learn, and I'd see where that led me. Sheriff Knoxx turned to me and nodded. He was smiling, but the smile looked unnatural on his face.

  If Trixie hadn't just called him Sheriff, I might have suspected he was a criminal. There was something dark about him. He was tall and wide. Not fat, just big. Like a wrestler. He had an oafish face with dark bushy eyebrows and eyes that distrusted everyone he met.