Poisoned

  Chapter One

  Cassie swept a strand of dark hair out of her amber colored eyes as she stirred her famous triple chocolate brownie batter in her favorite stoneware bowl. Early morning, before the bakery opened was her favorite time of day. She enjoyed the quiet as the rest of the town slept before the sun had even peeked its head over the horizon.

  Once her brownies were in the oven, Cassie smiled as she kneaded dough for the breads, and pastries she would serve to her customers in the bakery. As a child she would beg and plead with her parents to let her stay with her grandmother at the old Victorian. She would wake to the sound of humming and slip down to the bakery’s kitchen in her favorite flannel nightgown, “Cassie, what are you doing up at this hour?” her Grandmother would always say, a smile on her face as she gestured to the little apron hanging on a low hook by the staircase. Cassie would smile and pad over to pull the apron off the iron hook slip it over her nightgown, then run over to join her grandmother in making baked goods to fill the bakery cases.

  Cassie smiled at the fond memory. Her grandmother had handed over the bakery, along with the stately Victorian, to Cassie a few years ago. At first, she’d moved to the mother-in-law cottage beside Cassie’s parents’ lake house, but later left to travel with her lifelong friend to wherever the wind blew the two of them. Cassie’s grandmother had grown up in the bakery, as had her mother. Both her grandmother and great-grandmother were witches who offered their special brand of baked goods to the townspeople. Her great-grandmother and great-grandfather were one of the founding families of Silver Falls, Montana as well as the original owners of the stately Victorian that housed both the bakery and the family’s residence. A thick leather-bound cookbook full of recipes—all handwritten by the women in her family, each with a sprinkle of magic, landed on the wooden counter in front of her. The pages turned, stopping at a recipe for her great-grandmother’s raspberry tarts Cassie chuckled. “I guess someone will need a little boost today.”

  Cassie sprinkled a little magic into each of her delicious baked goods. Each person who walked into the bakery found something they needed in their selected treat. Some got a bolster of courage or a boost of confidence, others a balm for emotional pain. People got just what they needed when they came to the Secret Ingredient bakery. People came from miles around to stop in just for one of her tasty treats. Recently, she started an online store and was now overnighting her baked creations all around the world. It was a small thing to be able to give people a nudge in a positive direction.

  “I believe it is time for my kippers and saucer of cream, mistress,” an affluent British accent said in a bored tone. Cassie looked up and smiled as a sleek chocolate colored cat strolled down the staircase from her upstairs residence.

  “Of course, little man I’m here to serve.” Cassie smiled as she walked over to her large glass-fronted built-in refrigerator. She took out a pitcher of cream and a covered dish of kippers.

  Cassie leaned down, pouring the cream into a porcelain bowl, and placed the kippers beside the cream. Anubis strolled over to inspect his breakfast. People always believed that a witch's familiar was a raven, a crow or a black cat. For her it had been a small, furry, chocolate brown kitten in a pet shop window in Bozeman three years ago.

  She had been on her monthly buying trip, getting supplies for the bakery, when she had walked past a pet shop. Hearing a little meow from behind the front display window, she stopped and looked into the tawny eyes of a sleek, brown kitten the color of a good chocolate ganache. Its tawny eyes stared intelligently back at her. The little kitten meowed again and pawed at the window of the pet store.

  Cassie felt drawn to the little kitten. She decided on the spot he had to be hers.

  She’d smiled as she walked into the store and up to the kind-looking older woman behind the counter.

  “Hello, dear, we have been waiting for you. Anubis has been very cranky, and anxious waiting for you to arrive. He says he is tired of being cooped up in this store.” She smiled at a dumbfounded Cassie. “Don’t worry, dear. You two will get on swimmingly. I have seen it.” She tapped the side of her head. “He is a bit prickly, that one. Claims to be reincarnated Egyptian royalty.” The woman ignored Cassie’s wary glance at the cat, who appeared to be watching her.

  The kindly woman leaned over the counter and whispered conspiratorially into Cassie’s ear. “He sounds like a grumpy British toff to me.”

  Cassie smiled. She had stumbled into the pet shop of a fellow witch. She walked over to the display in the window and scooped the small kitten into her arms. “It looks like you’re coming home with me.” Cassie rubbed her cheek against the cat’s soft fur. He answered with a deep purr, and Cassie knew that they were fated to be together. He was her familiar. She had felt it as soon as she had lifted him into her arms. There had been an instant snap of connection.

  Cassie paid the witch behind the counter, still snuggling the cute little kitten.

  “Thank you, dear. Anubis I hope you enjoy your forever home.” The woman reached across the counter and gave the kitten a little scratch behind the ears. The woman walked around the counter, a cushion in one hand, and a brown bag with the logo of a cat curled on a book in the other. “These are his things I will follow you out to your car and help you get him settled.

  Cassie thanked the woman, leading the way to her car. Her shopping trip had been quite a bit more eventful than just ordering sugar and flour.

  Cassie opened the passenger door allowing the other woman to set down Anubis’ things. With a last wink at Cassie the woman waved and started the walk back to her shop.

  “It’s just you and me now, little man,” she told the kitten as she settled him onto his cushion in her car before she slipped into the driver’s seat.

  “I will require kippers and cream for breakfast, mistress,” a male voice with an upper class British accent came from the little kitten.

  “What the hell?” Cassie was thankful she had not pulled away from the curb, because she probably would have driven into a store. Her kitten’s comment explained the woman’s British toff comment. She should have known he was special, he was a witch's familiar after all.

  “Do not attempt to return me to the pet store. It will be gone. Familiars-R-Us appears only long enough to match witch with familiar then disappears until it is needed again,” the cat haughtily informed her.

  “So now I have a talking familiar. Wonderful.” Cassie sat back in her seat with a long sigh. “If you have spent past lives with pharaohs, why do you have a British accent?” She turned to her new companion.

  He sighed, laying down and making himself comfortable. “It is extremely simple. I have had many lives as a cat. The Abyssinian breed, my current incarnation, originated in Great Britain hence the accent. Now, shall we toddle on home?”

  Shaking herself out of the memory, Cassie set the kippers and cream on the floor. “Here you are, Anubis. Enjoy.”

  Anubis licked up the cream in a dainty way before devouring the kippers in a less dainty way. Cassie chuckled. After the initial shock of a talking cat had worn off, she’d come to enjoy his sharp wit and haughty demeanor.

  Cassie turned back to her work, humming to herself as finished the last of the baked goods as the sun came up, and it was time to open the bakery.

  Chapter Two

  Later that same morning, Cassie smiled at a customer as she handed her a blueberry muffin and black coffee. She had brushed against the woman’s hand during the exchange of cash, and Cassie sensed the woman felt as if she just wasn't desirable to her husband anymore. The blueberry muffin she ordered would give her a much needed boost of confidence. Cassie could see with the pale light of a seer that things would soon be much better for the couple. The bright smile on Cassie's face caused t
he woman to reply with a small smile of her own. The woman walked out of the bakery with a spring in her step and smiled at two young women, who were just entering the bakery.

  "We see that the Cassie Effect is in full force this morning,” Bailey said as she approached the counter.

  Cassie cocked her head to the side. "The Cassie Effect?"

  "The woman who just left,” Lily said. “You could see a bit of light in her aura, just a spark in the darkness of her unhappiness. We call it the Cassie Effect."

  "She hasn't even started eating the muffin yet. You two are just being silly." Cassie said as she shook her head at her two friends. Well witches in front of her.

  "Nope, we’re not. You have that effect on people. Your cheeriness just lifts their spirits," Bailey said.

  Cassie chuckled at the two of them. Bailey, with her sable hair in a French twist and warm, dark brown eyes, her tall, slim dancer’s figure in straight legged jeans topped with a black cashmere cardigan buttoned up the front. A pair of black short boots peaked out beneath her long wool coat. She always reminded Cassie of Audrey Hepburn. The comparison apt as Bailey tended to favor the clothes of that era.

  Lily, by contrast, dressed her petite form in a long sleeved, tie dyed T-shirt over a pair of well-worn jeans with her ever present Converse high tops, today’s design was a colorful crayon drip. She always spelled her waist length hair in some outrageous color. Currently, it was midnight blue at the crown of her head, lightening to a beautiful turquoise at the ends, she had it pulled back in an intricate braid, little flowers wound into the design. Her bright blue eyes sparkled with mischief, as always.

  "What can I do for you ladies today?" Cassie asked, gesturing at the case full of tempting baked goods.

  "I want a slice of that yummy banana bread and a cappuccino." Lily turned and looked to Bailey.

  "I'll take a small slice of the lemon bread and a black coffee." Bailey said.

  "Do you have a few minutes to take a break with us?" Lily asked as Cassie plated their choices and turned to make Lily's cappuccino.

  "I can in just a few minutes. Lucy will be in to help me with the counter." Cassie told them, referring to the lady who worked the counter part-time.

  "We have some news." Lily said, but her smile slipped a bit, and Cassie frowned. Lily was perpetually upbeat, something was amiss.

  "Why don’t you take a seat, and I will join you as soon as Lucy comes in," Cassie said as she finished the cappuccino and poured Bailey’s black coffee. She put both drinks in their colorful footed cups on the counter, along with their food on matching pottery plates. The two ladies took their food and drinks over to a small Formica topped chrome table with four red and white, shiny chrome and vinyl chairs.

  "Hey boss, how has business been this morning?" Lucy said from behind Cassie as she tied on her apron.

  "Lucy, prompt as always." Cassie turned and smiled at Lucy, a stay at home mom whose youngest had just started first grade. The late morning to early afternoon job at the bakery allowed her to make a bit of pocket money and still be able to pick up her kids after school.

  "Bailey and Lily dropped by for a chat. I’m going to take a short break and leave you to hold down the fort." Cassie said as she removed her own apron.

  "No problem." Lucy said, stepping up to take Cassie's place at the counter as two of the local business people approached.

  Cassie plated a triple chocolate brownie, poured herself a cup of coffee, added a dash of cream, and hurried over to where her friends were whispering fiercely to each other.

  "Ok, spill." She set her plate down on the table, took a sip of her coffee, and looked at them expectantly.

  Lily and Bailey looked at each other for a moment before Lily gestured to Bailey.

  "We went to the town hall meeting this morning,” Bailey said. “Mayor Silverman stood up and announced he has decided to sell all the land his family owns on Main Street."

  Cassie frowned. "We knew our leases had ended. We’ve been on borrowed time for a while now. The mayor has been extending our leases six months at a time for the last two years. He makes noises every time about selling us the land."

  "He has decided to go a different route," Lily said through clenched teeth, her arms wrapped around her chest.

  "He’s been approached by a developer who wants to turn Silver Falls into a resort town. The developer has offered the mayor a huge sum for the land, as well as a share of the profits. He wants to build a resort hotel, complete with exclusive shops on the land." Bailey said quietly.

  Lily snorted. "We were even encouraged to lease the new shops in the resort!"

  Cassie held up her hand. “Hold on. Our families made an agreement with the Silverman family to buy the land our businesses sit on at the end of our hundred-and-sixty-five-year leases.”

  "The attorney the mayor brought in said our leases didn’t include an option to buy. The agreement our great-grandparents made with the Silverman family was just a gentlemen’s agreement based on a handshake. Nothing in writing, not binding according to him," Bailey looked down, but not before Cassie glimpsed tears in her eyes.

  "He’s willing to let all of us lose our businesses? Doesn’t he realize that would bankrupt the town?” Cassie's bakery had been the family home. Lily had taken over her flower shop, Flower Thyme from her mother. Previously, it had been the sundry store run by her family. Bailey’s business, The Silver Fairy Inn had been in her family for generations. “There has to be something we can do.” Cassie looked from one of her friends to the other. An icy finger of dread found its way down her spine.

  Lily leaned in to whisper, “Ladies, our homes and businesses are not the usual brick and mortar buildings. If we need something different in a room, or more room, our houses supply it for us. Remember the story the grandmothers tell us every Founder’s Day about how, when our great-grandparents went to leave New Orleans, their houses and businesses shrunk down to fit in the palms of their hands?”

  “In this digital age, they can’t shrink down again so we can move them. It would be all over the internet in a second,” Bailey whispered.

  “The mayor’s own home and all the original houses at the lake were brought here just like ours.” Cassie shook her head. “He has to know these buildings can’t just be torn down.”

  “He only sees dollar signs,” Lily said with disgust as she stood and reached for her royal blue down jacket. “I have to get back to work, while I still have a place to work.”

  “I’ll go with you.” Bailey slipped on her coat. “Talk to you later, Cassie.” Both women squeezed Cassie’s shoulder as they walked out of the bakery. Cassie sat for a moment and finished her coffee, took a deep breath, gathered up their dishes, and went back to work.

  Cassie looked up from helping a customer, smiling at the next person in line her automatic smile softened into one more genuine.

  “Harmony! Taking a break from the Emerald Quill?”

  Harmony sighed and flipped a lock of her long auburn hair over her shoulder causing the whimsical star and moon earrings she wore to dance cheerfully. “I wish this was a break but it’s a pastry emergency.” She sighed causing Cassie to laugh.

  “I totally misjudged my order this morning, and I’m shortly going to run out of goodies in the coffee shop. I don’t know what you put in my order today but it seems to be drawing the crowds.” Harmony winked at her friend. “Not that I’m complaining we’re doing a brisk business.”

  “Not a problem we can fix you right up.” Cassie reached behind her grabbing a large white box and began filling it with an assortment of treats from the display case.

  “You just missed Bailey, and Lily. They stopped in to tell me about the mayor’s proposed plan for our town.” Cassie placed the last treat in the box and slid it over the top of the case.

  “I heard, it’s all the customers at the bookstore wanted to chat about, the meeting is probably what brought in all the extra customers. How does he plan on pulling it off?” Harmony lowered h
er voice.

  “’I’m not sure, he knows it’s impossible to tear down the old Victorian’s in this town.”

  Harmony rolled her eyes. “The Silverton’s have always been a contentious lot. Both the mayor and Charity,” she said referring to the mayor’s daughter, “have always thought they’re a step above the rest of the town.”

  Cassie nodded at her friend in agreement, “Very true.”

  “Thanks for the chat and the baked goods, I better get back to work, Julie will be overrun.”

  Cassie waved as her friend turned to leave looking up as the bell over the door chimed and the Mayor himself walked in.

  “Speak of the devil.” Harmony growled under her breath, she walked out giving the mayor a glare as she passed him.

  Cassie narrowed her eyes as Mayor Silverman walked into the bakery. She had a few choice words for the scheming mayor. He whistled as he walked into the bakery with a bounce in his step. He waved and smiled at the people scattered around the bakery’s tables. His son-in-law was the only person who waved back. The other patrons glared daggers at him.