The Chocolate Magic Cozy Mystery Box Set Books 1 to 7 Read online

  “You two are packing lots of stuff into two weeks of holiday,” Alison said as they wound their way to their bedrooms.

  “And we love it,” Magda told her and kissed her goodnight on the cheek. “I love having an aunty as well.”

  “Especially one who lets me reorganize the whole building,” Sam added.

  “Tomorrow, I am definitely going to see if I can find where Jezebelle gets down into the stream tunnel. It must be close at hand because she is so quick to reappear,” Magda told Sam as she slid under the cover.

  “We can think about other things now that the spirits seem to be settled. Once the funeral is over, we can do some serious sightseeing,” Sam added as he pulled her close. “I love you, Magda. You and Branna were a great team with that protecting true love thing.”

  She giggled. “Jonno was a bit embarrassed but they will be good looking after the place.”

  The morning was misty but still comfortably warm and Magda told Alison that she was going to follow the cat and see where she went. “Then I can come in and tidy myself up for the funeral.”

  “Hang on, I’ll come as well,” Sam said and with jackets pulled on and boots, they opened the door and let out the little black cat. Jezebelle stared at them.

  “I think she knows what we are doing,” Magda said and pretended to turn away from the cat. Jezebelle gave them a haughty look and walked off uphill. Magda cautiously turned and watched and then took some quiet steps to follow.

  “Heading for the boundary fence to the field,” Sam whispered. Then suddenly Jezebelle vanished. They both rushed over to the spot where she was last seen, and Sam laughed.

  “It’s a field drain and somewhat narrow. She can squeeze through the metal grill easily. They probably did it when the fence was put up to stop the water off the hill from coming into the garden.” He knelt and listened at the entrance. “I can hear the stream running. It must only be a couple of feet down into the tunnel.”

  “And only about two or three yards from where we were chipping at the old foundation,” Magda added. “Mystery solved.”

  Sam picked up a stick and poked at the soil beside the entry grill.

  “It’s rather loose. I guess there has never been a tractor over it or anything because it is under the fence.”

  Magda gazed around at the view and exclaimed about how beautiful it was.

  “And we will own part of it and all of that history,” Sam said and slipped an arm around her shoulders. He fished his cell phone out and took a selfie of them standing on their own special part of Ireland.

  Back inside, they got ready for the funeral. Ricky had already arrived and collected his mum and the rest of them piled into Alison’s car and she drove towards the town.

  The church was historic looking from the outside and breathtakingly ornate on the inside. Magda stood in awe as she took it all in. Alison had told her that it was good manners to cover their heads in the Catholic Church and both had pulled scarves over heads and shoulders.

  Ricky came to say hello, then took Alison to sit beside his mum. Sam and Magda sat further back and then Ricky’s biker friends came and sat beside them. They were dressed in suits and looked like different people without the biking gear. Gradually the church filled up. They saw that Jenni and Barbara were sitting at the back and Magda nudged Sam as she saw that Inspector Donnelly was sitting quietly at the back of the congregation as well.

  The coffin had one simple wreath of flowers and the service was short. The priest gave a brief address and said that he hoped that the person who had caused this death would soon be found. Irene was upset, as you would expect, but Ricky held onto her and they all went outside for the actual burial. Afterwards, Irene introduced her friends from America to Father Carlton.

  The man was very pleasant and hoped they would attend some of his services when they were staying at Waterside Cottage.

  “Your aunt has been a great fundraiser for us. She will be missed.” As others were drifting away and Irene was engaged in conversation, he moved Sam and Magda to one side. “I understand that you saw this pentagram on the door. Can you tell me about it please?”

  Sam nodded and showed him the photo of the pentagram on the door and the horrible dead chicken. The priest crossed himself.

  “Superstition is a terrible thing,” he said. “I know there are people who still think they can conjure up the devil. We never find out who they are. If I can be of any help, you only have to ask.” He shook hands and went to chat with other people. Irene said that everyone was welcome at the buffet and she and Ricky led the way in their car to the small hotel set back in pretty gardens on the outskirts of the town. A large room had well-laden tables of food and drinks. Irene was trying to thank everyone for coming while the level of conversation rose to quite a level. Another large man and the woman, who seemed to be his wife, was helping her.

  “That is Patrick’s brother, Col,” Alison told them, “and his wife, Colleen. The two younger men with Ricky are their two sons.”

  “So, Patrick and his brother are both descendants from Seamus Carty, the vile butcher.”

  “But Padraig wasn’t, thank goodness,” Alison added. “Dinah and Jerry are related to Padraig but not to them.” She waved as she said it because Jerry and Dinah were at the door and looking around. Alison waved them over. There was a young woman with them who was extremely pretty and beautifully dressed. She was introduced as their daughter, Sienna. The girl was quiet and polite and did not have her mother’s penchant for purple hair and masses of jewelry. The three of them joined the group and the talk turned to wondering why Patrick had been murdered.

  “I still think that it must be something to do with the pentagram, dead chicken and the paint on our door,” Alison said.

  “But what? It doesn’t make sense. They seem to think Irene has something they want but we are no nearer to knowing what it is,” Sam replied. Sienna glanced at Sam and cleared her throat.

  “Once upon a time, Enda Carty, the bigger of the two over there, asked me if I was interested in the devil.”

  “What?” Magda gasped. “When was that?” Sienna smiled and told her that it was about five years ago when the man was trying to get her to go on a date with him.

  “I think it was to try and shock me or to get me to think he had some sort of special powers.” She laughed. “Look at him. If he had special powers, he would tidy himself up.”

  “Not short of money to do that,” Alison said. “That business has done remarkably well.”

  “Do you think he really was interested in the devil?” Sam asked but she shook her head.

  “He had some strange friends, but I think most of them wanted to be friends with a rich man’s son.”

  “The good news is,” Magda said, “that when we traced back the family tree, it turns out that your family and their family are not descended from the same ancestors. It’s a long way back but definitely there. Jerry is related to Padraig but not to Patrick and Col.”

  “And it turned out that Padraig wasn’t related at all to any of that line.”

  “My Lord,” Dinah exclaimed. “We are not related to that Col Carty and his brats. I am glad about that.” Sam looked at Jerry and asked if his family ever mentioned about a stone garden ornament that was stolen in the past. The man nodded his head.

  “They did indeed,” he answered.

  15

  “My granddad used to joke about the stone altar that should be ours but had disappeared.” The real joke was that whoever had the altar would always be wealthy and his granddad kept saying they would always be poor. “Turns out that we have all done okay anyway without the bloomin’ stone altar.”

  “Maybe the idea that it was an altar was just a story anyway. Might just have been a birdbath or a sundial or something,” Magda added.

  “Jerry’s mum always said that she wouldn’t want anything that had been used for such horrible things,” Dinah said.

  “It must have existed,” Sam mused.

>   “Probably sitting in somebody’s garden,” Alison remarked. At that point Irene brought across Col and Colleen Carty with their two sons, Enda and Cameron. Introductions over, they found seats and asked how the visitors were liking Ireland.

  “We love it,” Magda smiled. “We will definitely be back.”

  “Such a shame that you have to fit a funeral into a holiday,” Enda Carty said and gave her a look that made her shiver inside. She glanced at Sienna who smiled and nodded that she understood. Sienna gave the man a most vicious look. It had obviously stuck in her memory when he had tried to get close to her. Magda smiled at the man, although it was difficult to do, and told him that Irene had made them so welcome, it was no hardship to come and support her.

  The other son, Cameron, who was not as large or loud as his brother, asked how long they were staying.

  “Just a few more days really,” Sam answered, “but when the sale has gone through and Aunt Alison has had time to move back to America, we are coming back to do some renovations.” The father looked interested at that point and Sam told them about finding the original beams in the roof. The construction company owner was interested, and the two men continued to chat about various building methods.

  “I work on a small scale at home,” Sam said, “Conversions, some houses and smaller things. It is mostly wood construction.”

  “Is there any chance that I can see the original beams before you make any changes?” Col asked and Sam said that it was no problem but looked at his aunt.

  “Come over in the evening,” Alison told them. “The funeral will soon be over.”

  “You need flashlights. There is no electricity up there,” Sam added. “It is moderately large and will make a good loft conversion. It’s dry and sound and I think, probably never been used even when it was first built.”

  “Fascinating,” Col said. “We sort of take history for granted here. It’s everywhere. Takes someone coming in from somewhere else to make us think about it.” He stood up and said that he had better visit with some other people.

  “Enda made you feel awful, didn’t he?” Sienna said quietly to Magda who nodded.

  “One of those men that makes you think he can see through your clothes.” Magda shivered.

  “Even with all of that money, he still manages to look a mess,” Dinah added. She shivered as she spoke and Magda asked if she was feeling unwell. The woman shook her head and said that she was fine.

  The funeral finally over, they drove home. Irene said that she would lie down for a bit. Before she did, Magda made her a hot chocolate. Then she sat with one herself.

  “Sam,” she said, and he looked sharply at her. “When that family came over, the pendant vibrated like a phone in my pocket.”

  She took it out and held it by the thong.

  “Dowse with it,” Sam suggested. “Ask it if Col Carty is — dangerous.”

  “More like if Enda is dangerous. He makes you feel like he wants to undress you.”

  “He had better not try anything,” Sam said quickly. Magda shook her head.

  “Sienna felt the same. I think he has the same effect on most women.” She held the thong and the pendant hung still.

  “Is Col Carty dangerous?” she asked and waited and then asked again. There was a slight movement in the hanging stone, and then it moved slowly anticlockwise. “That seems to be a no.”

  Sam took the pendant from her and held it still.

  “Does the Col Carty family practice witchcraft?” he asked. Alison came and watched as well as the stone pendant swung decisively but in a clockwise direction.

  “Wow,” Magda said. “That gives us something to think about?”

  “If they look at the loft and go home again, we can just do nothing.” Alison pointed out.

  “I never mentioned the well or anything,” Sam said. “So, if we make them welcome, show them the loft and then we’ll enjoy the last few days of our vacation.”

  Cameron is the one who is taking over the family business,” Alison said. “He is a quieter character altogether. I always liked him.”

  “The mother and father were okay,” Magda observed.

  In the evening, they welcomed the other Carty family into the house and told them that Irene had gone out with Ricky.

  “She has had a bad time,” Alison remarked, “And maybe she can find a new house and leave it all behind.”

  “What actually happened with the paint on the door and everything?” Cameron asked and they told him what they knew.

  “The Garda are no further forward,” Sam added. “The neighbor saw a black car but it could have been anybody and there are no cameras or anything.”

  “Maybe we’ll never know who killed my brother. The two of us were not close but it was a sad way to end his life,” Col told them. Then he looked up and smiled. “What about this loft?”

  Sam got the ladder and led the way to the loft space.

  “There are just beams to stand on,” he warned. All three men laughed and said they were used to balancing on metal beams and in high places. They were genuinely interested in the way the roof was jointed and held together from all of those years ago.

  “It really is a big space,” Col observed and flashed his light around the loft. Sam explained what his conversion plans were and then the four of them climbed back down.

  “No secret witchcraft signs,” Cameron joked, and his father told him not to be so daft.

  “Well the stories seem to stick around,” Magda said. “I wonder if Belinda really did live here all those years ago.”

  “Over the years, I guess people think all of the stories are real,” Alison said.

  “But she is recorded as being a real person who was burned as a witch,” Sam added.

  “This is the cottage by the waterside, and everything seems to say that this was where she made her potions and other remedies. There must be water somewhere to give the place its name. Probably a well that was used at the time,” Cameron pondered.

  “Did they never find anything in Irene’s house?” Colleen asked and Alison shook her head.

  “She just got such a fright that she doesn’t want to go back. There were some old papers that were hidden but they were worthless.”

  “What sort of papers?” Col asked. Sam broke in and said that it was old newspaper cuttings from a long time ago. “Have you got them?” Col added.

  “Irene will have them,” Magda said and pulled the pendant in the cover out of her pocket. She kept it folded in her hand, but Sam knew she was telling him that it was shaking.

  “Was it about demons and stuff?” Enda asked and smiled at her. Again, it sent a little shudder through Magda’s whole system. She gripped the pendant hard and saw that Jezebelle had come in from the kitchen.

  “It was about a robbery, I think,” Alison said. “I am sure Irene will let you have them. They are no use to her. Although I guess it is family history. I think the robber was called Carty.”

  “I’ll give her a call tomorrow,” Col said and stood up. The rest of his family followed suit and then stared at the little black cat who had prowled in and was circling the whole group and looking very fierce. Her legs were stiff, and her tail was straight up in the air, but she wasn’t hissing or spitting.

  “Puss, puss, puss,” Colleen said and held out a hand. Jezebelle gave her a glaring stare and stalked off into the kitchen.

  “Oh, dear. I’m sorry. She is a strange little thing,” Alison apologized. “Padraig bought her from a farmer.”

  “Not a problem,” Col said. “We’ll be in touch.” He looked at Sam. “If you need any contacts for building just let me know. I’d like to see the loft when you finish it.”

  “Of course,” Sam said and followed them to the door. Back in the living room, Jezebelle came back in just like a normal cat and jumped onto Magda’s knee.

  “You’re a little villain, Jezebelle,” Magda said and received a solemn stare from the cat in return.

  “Do you suppose t
here is something in that article that we missed? Maybe it does mean something to somebody,” Sam asked. Alison got up and went to the chest of drawers at the far side of the room. She found the papers and the copies they had printed off and handed them over. The room was silent as they read carefully through the old papers.

  “What do you think of the extra bit about what was stolen?” Alison said. “I never really gave that any importance before.”

  “The stone ornaments from the garden had been in the family for many generations and had some connection to religious ceremonies,” Magda said as she read. “The article did say that whoever owned the stone ornaments would have good luck and become wealthy.”

  “It goes on to say that no sign of the stolen goods was ever found. It was thought that Jeremiah Carty had hidden them away until he was released, but he died in prison and the goods were never found. Although, it was thought that he may have had an accomplice.”

  “I wonder if we should try looking up more articles on the actual altar and see if it appears at any other time,” Sam suggested.

  “Good idea.”

  “It says here,” Alison looked up from the copy she was reading, “that the stone pieces had always been in the same family and brought them protection. It says that it is sad that they were taken away.”

  Magda flicked her tablet back to where she had been saving the information which she had found about the family history.

  She studied the sheets for a little while and then looked up.

  “Jeremiah Carty was the cousin of Mary Miller and Mary Miller is in the family tree of the Col and Patrick ancestors.” Sam came and looked at the tablet over her shoulder.

  “Maybe she got the things back in the end,” Alison wondered.

  “There are Millers way back in Padraig’s family tree as well. The whole family must be descended from the same beginning,” Sam added.

  “She is actually the direct ancestor of the family,” Magda added and keyed in the name to search.

  “Mary Miller became Mary Connell and had three children. One of them married a Carty and the name came back into the family. They had an address on the census for the time; they must have looked really wealthy because they had a house of their own and could employ servants.” She pointed to the page and Sam made notes. Alison asked what the address was and told them that she had heard about it.