Iced Raspberry Cookies and a Curse Read online

  Iced Raspberry Cookies and a Curse

  A Fable Town Mystery

  RaShelle Workman

  Polished Pen Press, llc

  Copyright © 2020 by RaShelle Workman

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Edited by: Jen Hendricks and Debbie Davis

  Cover by: Novak Illustration

  For Debbie.

  Thanks for your magical friendship.

  Contents

  A Fable Town Mystery

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Also by RaShelle Workman

  About the Author

  A Fable Town Mystery

  In this fairytale cozy, it takes one curse, a whole lot of baked goods, and a dollop of sweet romance to equal a recipe for magical disaster in Fable Town.

  Prologue

  “Soon, I’ll be free of this curse and then Fable Town and the Oldenberg family will pay!” The threats puffed from Elsa’s mouth, warming the frigid air around her. It was the same everywhere. Cold. So very cold. An endless winter. Even her lair was frozen. The bits and bobs she collected over the years were covered in sheets of ice. The light dangling from her ceiling looked like a frosty chandelier, the jagged crystals angling toward her.

  Her only warmth came from a small fire in the hearth where her cauldron boiled. Above the mantel hung an oval mirror. She glanced at it, studying the empty room that had once belonged to her when she was a resident in the Oldenberg house. “Soon,” she repeated again, shuffling over to her work-table and collecting the final ingredient needed for her potion. The one that would allow her to escape her prison.

  She called her arctic residence the mirror realm. Cursed here more than fifty years ago, Elsa’s only social interaction was to catch glimpses of those in Fable Town. Any mirror would do, including a makeup compact as well as mirrors in bathrooms, entryways, bedrooms, and even offices.

  “In you go, frozen frog toe,” she whispered and dropped it into the boiling potion. With anticipation, she watched as the ingredients swirled together and gurgled, changing colors from green to red to blue and finally fuchsia. “You’re ready,” she said and cackled. Quickly, she ladled some of the potion into a glass, plugged her nose, and drank.

  It went down like chunky soup and she forced herself not to gag. Tingles ran the length of her body and she shivered. It was working.

  Anytime now she would be able to return to Fable Town. She didn’t care if it was as a witch or an opossum. As long as she could be free.

  Though it had been more than five decades, she remembered the moment she was cursed and worse, when they added a failsafe to the spell. If Elsa ever escaped the mirror realm, she would return as an opossum. Why an opossum? She knew it was so she would stand out. For most witches, they had cats as familiars. Everyone would know exactly who Elsa was and would steer clear.

  Creature or no, she had to get out of the mirror realm and when she did, she would do everything in her power to steal enough magic to break the opossum spell and become herself once again.

  “But freedom.” She sighed. That was her top priority.

  Chapter One

  “This thing is strangling me,” Miles said, pulling at the knot on his tie. “I’m going to pass out from lack of air.”

  Nate Decker, offensive tackle for the Colorado Cowboys, snorted. “Sorry, man.” He adjusted his own tie while he tapped his foot to the music, trying to make the best of the situation. He, Miles, and several of his other teammates huddled in one corner of the venue. They were all dressed to the nines in tuxedoes and masks for the Winter Masquerade Ball, a charity event to support Multiple Sclerosis. This year’s theme was Romeo and Juliet. While he had to admit the décor looked amazing, he wasn’t a fan of how the story ended, probably because he understood the lovers’ pain. Sure, he and his ex hadn’t taken poison and died, but their marriage had ended, killing off his belief in love conquering all. He snorted again, glancing around the room where several couples were already on the dance floor.

  “What’s wrong?” Miles asked, adjusting his mask. He was the team’s right guard. They were similar in height and weight but where Miles had dark hair, Nate’s was light, almost white-blond. Mainly because he spent so much time out of doors, even in winter. He loved to hike, ski, snowboard, snowshoe, ride horses… You name it, he liked to do it.

  “Nothing.” Nate usually didn’t mind charity events, especially since the money would go to a good cause. Plus, there were a lot of beautifully masked women here tonight. He didn’t even mind dressing up. Style was one of his favorite ways to show off his physique. He worked hard for it and liked dressing to impress. Tonight’s ensemble consisted of custom black and white checkered pants with a matching double-breasted vest and a medium blue jacket accented by a crisp white shirt, a medium gray tie and pocket square. His mask was the same gray as well.

  His only issue was the timing. Once the season ended, he booked himself a vacation. He planned to surf, scuba dive, snorkel, swim with sharks, and whatever else he could think of. But because of the ball, he had to push things back. Still, he was leaving tonight. His jet was fueled and ready to leave as soon as he arrived at the airport.

  “Guess we better ask someone to dance?” Miles made a beeline to a woman in a blue dress.

  “I suppose,” Nate mumbled, perusing the room. Each ticket to the ball had been enormously expensive. The team’s owner purchased tickets for all of the players and then ordered everyone to attend with the threat of dire consequences if they failed to show.

  There were many beautiful women, but when his eyes landed on her, he couldn’t continue. It was something about the way she held herself, as though she didn’t want to be there any more than he did. Her arms were crossed, and she leaned back, a serious look on her face. Her hair had been swept up off her neck, revealing a delicate heart-shaped face. She wore a butterfly mask, the “wing” on the left slightly higher than the one on the right. It glinted and sparkled in the low lights thumping to the beat of the music. Her fuchsia dress hugged against her body and cascaded at the waist with yards and yards of gauzy fabric. She looked exquisite and he found himself moving toward her as though enchanted and determined to ask her to dance.

  She caught him looking at her and took a step back like she intended to bolt. He didn’t think he was that scary, but he slowed his walk, knowing his size, well past six feet and two hundred fifty pounds, could be intimidating. When he was no more than two feet in front of her, he smiled, his cheeks rubbing against his mask. “Hello, I wondered if you’d like to dance?” He held out his hand.

  Her eyes met his and a flicker of recognition filled his heart. “Nate. Um, hi.” Her voice was familiar, soft yet purposeful. Also, slightly confused.

  “Have we met?” It was hard to tell with the masks on.

  She snorted and chuckled. “Nate Decker. Seriously?” She took his outstretched hand and placed it on her waist. “Are you telling me you don’t recogn
ize your ex-wife?” She reached up, wrapping her hands around his neck.

  Realization dawned. His heart raced with a combination of horror and exasperation. “Ana?”

  “Hey.” She giggled and his heart clenched as memories of all the times he made her laugh bombarded his mind. He’d never admit how much he missed her.

  “You look different. Good.” He tried to smile though he wasn’t sure he accomplished the feat. “Beautiful,” he added.

  “So do you,” she responded, her gaze faltering.

  In that moment, their pasts rushed back through him. Their relationship started out like a fairy tale. They met through a friend. Ana was on her final year of medical school, intent on becoming a pediatrician. They were drawn to each other after just one date. By their one-month anniversary, he knew she would be his wife. After four months, he asked. They married a year later. It was the happiest day of his life, even more than when he accepted a position in the professional football league. After six months, Ana got pregnant. Nine months after that, she gave birth to a perfect baby boy and Nate had fallen in love all over again. It was a different kind of love. They named him Gus. For three years, they were blissfully happy. Then their perfect son started to fall down. After many terrible tests, the specialist they consulted revealed their son had cancer. It was terminal.

  Hearing the news, it was as though someone had ripped his heart out through his chest. Some days, he struggled just to breathe. As hard as he took the news, it was worse for Ana. As a pediatrician, she blamed herself for not seeing the signs earlier. Nate had tried to comfort her, but he’d been too wrapped up in his own grief.

  Gus died a few months later. Six months after that, Ana filed for divorce. That was over two years ago.

  Now, as he held her, he pulled her closer to him. “Ana.” He whispered her name against her hair and felt her shiver. The song ended, and Ana pulled away, but he held her fast. “Don’t go,” he said. She glanced up at him. There were tears in her eyes. He guessed she’d been thinking about their past and their beautiful son, the same as him. He twined her fingers with his as the next song started. “Shall we?” He thought for a moment she would leave. Instead, she leaned into him, resting her head against his broad chest.

  They stayed like that for the next several songs. As he held her, he couldn’t help but think about how much he missed her. He also felt guilty for the way he handled himself during Gus’s sickness as well as after he died. He’d been a mess. For days after the funeral, he couldn’t pull himself out of bed. He completely withdrew into himself. The fact was, he hadn’t been there for Ana. He could’ve supported her and asked for her support in return. Instead he’d been a ghost. A shell of a man. Their divorce was his greatest regret.

  As they swayed to the music, his heart seemed to unclench and start to beat again. In that moment he realized he still loved her. But could she love him again? Could she forgive him for pushing her away? His mind went through all sorts of different scenarios about how he might convince her to let him back into her life. They hadn’t spoken in two years. At that time, she was still a pediatrician. Since she was at this charity event he guessed that hadn’t changed. He was glad. She believed Gus’s death was on her. It’d taken her a month to go back to work after the funeral. Then she’d only gone in for two weeks before telling him she needed more time and had gone to stay with her family in Fable Town, Montana. He offered to go with her, but she refused. It wasn’t too many weeks after she returned that she asked him for a divorce.

  He agreed out of anger, allowing the grief that was eating him up inside to fester and turn his feelings against her. Once she was moved out, the team’s owner, who’d just suffered a loss of his own, had called Nate into his office and ordered him into grief counselling. He still went once in a while. Nate had learned a lot about himself over the last two years, including how to better communicate his feelings. “I’m sorry,” he whispered into her hair.

  She lifted her head, confusion dancing in her glorious hazel eyes. “Nate,” she began, but at that moment her phone rang. She took it from her handbag, checking who was calling. “It’s my mom. I need to take it.”

  “Of course.” Nate released her and she answered.

  “Hello.” She pushed a finger to her ear and started away.

  Nate followed as though he were tethered and listened intently, noticing the necklace around her neck. A butterfly covered in flowers hung from a silver chain dotted with fuchsia beads and small pearls. It was delicate and beautiful, and it reminded him of Ana.

  She ended her call. “Thanks for the dance, but I need to go.” She started to walk away, but Nate caught hold of her bare arm. Soft, yet strong. Muscled.

  “What’s wrong?” He couldn’t help the feeling of dread spreading through his stomach.

  “It’s my sister, Lox. She’s in the hospital in Fable Town.” As she spoke, worry filled her voice. “I need to catch a flight. I need to get to Montana. It’s important I’m there for her.” She glanced at her phone, the light illuminating the anxiety on her beautiful face. “I need to cancel my appointments for the next—I don’t know—few days, a week.” Her eyes welled with tears as she clenched her hands together around her phone, strangling it.

  “I can take you. I have a plane gassed and ready to leave.” His recently unbound heart filled with determination. He hadn’t been there for her before, but he could be there for her now.

  Chapter Two

  “You have a plane?” She couldn’t hide her surprise, but he also saw relief.

  “I do.” Nervousness tumbled around in his chest. “Come on. I’ll call an Uber to take you home so you can pack a bag and then we’ll head to the airport.”

  She opened her mouth to say something but changed her mind. “Okay.”

  He nodded. “I need to let Gage know why I’m leaving. Want to meet up in…” He stopped, knowing if they separated, she would leave without him. The woman always struggled to accept help, always choosing to do things herself. Her tenacity had taken her far, a quality he found both endearing and exasperating. In this instance, he had to help her see he was her best bet to get to her sister fast. “Come on.” His hand slid from her arm to her hand. She allowed him to hold it and didn’t pull away. He tried not to read too much into it.

  Nate found Gage seated at a table. Their eyes met and Gage stood.

  “What’s wrong?” His gaze went from Nate to Ana and back again.

  “It’s her sister. Something’s happened and she’s in the hospital. I’m going to fly her out to Montana tonight. Right now.” He paused.

  Gage took another quick glance at Ana and then nodded. “Say no more. I understand. Safe travels.” He smiled at Ana. “I hope your sister is okay and that everything works out.”

  “Thank you.” Ana removed her mask, pulling out some of her honey-brown hair as they walked together toward the exit.

  His team mate, Miles noticed him leaving and raised his hands in question.

  Nate shrugged and turned away, following Ana, who now led the way out into the lobby. They didn’t need to call an Uber. There were several cabs sitting outside at the curb. Obviously waiting for just such a necessity. She went to one. Nate sped past her and opened the door. Once inside, the cab signaled to pull into traffic.

  “Where to?”

  “Denver International,” Ana responded.

  “Don’t you want to change?” Nate glanced at her dress and realized she was shivering. He took off his jacket and wrapped it around her. Even though she was five eight, his jacket still made her look like a child wearing her father’s clothes.

  “Let’s just go.” She fixed her gaze on him a moment before turning away and setting her mask on the seat. He removed his mask as well. She pulled his jacket tight around herself and Nate sat back.

  “All right.” To the cab driver, she said, “Go to the airstrip assigned for private planes.”

  The cabbie glanced at Nate in the rearview mirror.

  “You heard
the lady,” Nate said, sitting back, hoping the driver knew where he was going.

  “Got it.” The cabbie looked away and pulled out.

  As they drove, Ana called her office, advising them to cancel and reschedule her appointments over the next week. Nate called his pilot and told him he would be there in twenty minutes and about the change in flight plans. Once they finished their calls, they sat in silence.

  When they arrived at the airstrip, the plane’s stairs were already down. Thanking the driver, Nate paid the fare and motioned Ana toward the steps. She stumbled once as her shoe caught on the back of her dress and it tore. Nate grabbed her waist, making sure she stayed upright until they were inside the plane.

  Inside, the attendant introduced herself and directed Ana to a seat. “I’m Nikki. Have a seat over here, please.”

  “Thanks.” Ana took her seat in the place Nikki had indicated.

  “I’ll be right back. I’m going to talk to the pilot.” Nate advised Ana, studying her, trying to determine her needs. Her brown eyes sparkled with worry. He’d seen that look before. Too many times to count.

  She nodded, numb.

  He moved away, toward the flight attendant. “Will you get her a hot water with lemon?”

  The young woman smiled readily. “Of course, Mr. Decker.” He gave Ana another glance, but she was looking out the window.

  Satisfied she would be okay by herself for the next few minutes, he went to the door separating the cabin from the pilot and knocked. Whatever happened to Lox, please help everything to be alright, he thought, knowing another loss would probably destroy Ana. Thankfully the flight to Montana from Denver would be quick. He was grateful he’d been with her when she got the call.