William Jarvis - Sky Valley 01 - Coffee, Cupcakes & Murder Read online

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Contents

  Chapter 1 Sweet Little Girl No More

  Chapter 2 A Blast From The Past

  Chapter 3 The Wedding

  Chapter 4 Coffee Most Foul

  Chapter 5 The Aftermath

  Chapter 6 Thinking Things Through

  Chapter 7 She Bleeds

  Chapter 8 Twisted Truths

  Chapter 9 Another Life Lost

  Chapter 10 More Questions

  Chapter 11 Stranger In Her Own House

  Chapter 12 Doubts

  Chapter 13 Inconsistencies

  Chapter 14 The House At The Mountain

  Chapter 15 Guilty Or Not?

  Chapter 16 Pretty Little Lies

  Chapter 17 Poison

  Chapter 18 It All Leads To This

  Epilogue

  What Happens Next

  About The Author

  Coffee, Cupcakes & Murder

  SkyValley Cozy Mystery Series

  Book 1

  By: William Jarvis

  Yap Kee Chong

  8345 NW 66 ST #B7885

  Miami, FL 33166

  Digital Edition

  Copyright 2015

  All Rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any way or form or by any means whether electronic or mechanical, this means that you cannot record or photocopy any material ideas or tips that are provided in this book.

  Get Notice of Our New Releases Here!

  http://eepurl.com/7jbzn

  Part 2 – Beaches & Coffee

  Part 3 – Mayhem At The Mansion

  Part 4 – Murderous Coffee Crumb

  Check Out Our Other Books

  Wolf In Disguise: Once Bitten

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PH8QGTO

  Wolf In Disguise: Never Forgotten

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PHJSF5Q

  Wolf In Disguise: The Past Bites

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PHJSF10

  Wolf In Disguise Trilogy

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00RD4JH1O

  Forbidden Passion

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PHF6YQM

  Second Chance

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PHQ6HO0

  Closure

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PHF6XZY

  Black & White Trilogy

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PHJSF10

  CONTENTS

  Chapter 1 Sweet Little Girl No More 6

  Chapter 2 A Blast From The Past 12

  Chapter 3 The Wedding 20

  Chapter 4 Coffee Most Foul 25

  Chapter 5 The Aftermath 29

  Chapter 6 Thinking Things Through 35

  Chapter 7 She Bleeds 39

  Chapter 8 Twisted Truths 44

  Chapter 9 Another Life Lost 50

  Chapter 10 More Questions 51

  Chapter 11 Stranger In Her Own House 55

  Chapter 12 Doubts 60

  Chapter 13 Inconsistencies 66

  Chapter 14 The House At The Mountain 71

  Chapter 15 Guilty Or Not? 77

  Chapter 16 Pretty Little Lies 82

  Chapter 17 Poison 87

  Chapter 18 It All Leads To This 95

  Epilogue 97

  What Happens Next 100

  About The Author 101

  CHAPTER 1

  SWEET LITTLE GIRL NO MORE

  With her blonde hair, and bright blue eyes, Emmy looked every bit like a Barbie doll. In fact, when her mother was still alive, she always called Emmy her “Darling Barbie.” She was always seen as the sweet, naïve, intelligent little girl—one who would have a bright future—but would just stay home in Sky Valley because that’s where she belongs.

  Sky Valley is located in the county of Rabun in Georgia. It’s a serene little piece of land that’s close to the mountains and boasts of lush vegetation. The willow trees, a trademark of Georgia, were big symbols of how safe the place is supposed to be. Houses were mainly modernized cabins, all in brown, beige, and white. They had gardens, and backyards, complete with swing sets. And Emmy’s house was one of the largest.

  Their family is one of the most popular, too. After all, they owned a series of diners and coffee shops around Sky Valley, one of which is a coffee shop located just two blocks away from their abode. The coffee shop has been there even before Emmy had been born. It was a small coffee shop, with a façade full of Pink and Brown Stripes, and a sign that read “Welcome”, in cursive white letters, on the door. It was called “Time for Coffee”, a simple, unpretentious name that makes visitors realize what they’re in for.

  That was basically how life at Sky Valley was—or how it’s supposed to be. It had this All-American, cookie cutter image that made Emmy feel nauseated at times. And when her mother died due to Cancer just weeks after she graduated from High School, she knew that she had to leave right away. She needed a change of scenery—and the fact that she passed the entrance exam for Fashion Design at the Paris American Academy was an opportunity that she didn’t want to let go of. So, much to her father’s surprise, she opted to leave Sky Valley, and face the real world.

  That was seven years ago. She is 25 now, had a pretty healthy career abroad, but just like she felt when she was eighteen, she knew that she had to leave again. And this time, she had to go back to Sky Valley. She wanted to open up her own wedding gown store, and let the people of Sky Valley explore their options—instead of just buying gowns from the nearest RTW store.

  Emmy always had this obsession with weddings. Ever since she was a little girl, she dreamed of having her own, grand wedding in the future. She has seen too many backyard weddings—it was a small town, and it was common—and she wanted that, too. Although, sometimes, she’d dream that she wanted her wedding to be done in a courtyard, because every princess deserves their prince, right? She even had a couple of Barbie Dolls who wore wedding gowns, and married their Kens.

  She has changed a lot since then, but her obsession with weddings hasn’t changed. She still loves looking at wedding gowns and designing them too—and that’s exactly why she’s back. She knew that she had a lot to give, and she wanted to help the people of her community make their wedding day dreams come true. Or something like it.

  And, well, her father wrote her a letter a couple of months ago, too, asking her to come back. Emmy felt guilty because she really hasn’t been back since she left all those years ago, and her father needed extra help at Time for Coffee since Gloria, his helper, had to go back home to Savannah because her husband is sick. So, it’s just her father and Audrina, a half Mexican, half French woman in her late 20’s who’s manning the shop now.

  Emmy got out of the cab with a wheeled luggage in tow. The fresh early morning breeze greeted her, and the smell of roses was everywhere. She really was back in Sky Valley.

  She walked towards Time for Coffee, impressed at how it still stands, and how beautiful and chic it still is. The word “Welcome” seemed to be calling her, asking her to come in, and face what she left when she was 18.

  Emmy opened the door and found her father, Troy Byrne, standing next to one of her childhood friends, Annabeth Meyer, and her ex-boyfriend, Matthew Mills, by the cupcake stand. There were photos of various cupcakes and pastries on the walls. Emmy could still recognize her father’s famous Apricot-Berry Cupcake, and her mom’s Strawberry Rhubarb Pie. There were colorful cupcakes and macarons on display, too.

  “Emmy!” Troy said, and rushed to hug her daughter, “You’re back!”

  “Hi, dad,” Emmy smiled. She then looked at Annabeth and Matthew and smiled at t
hem, too. Emmy and Matthew were together during their junior year in High School. He was the Quarterback, and she was Miss Popular. They were pretty much a big cliché, so the relationship easily fizzled out. She caught him cheating on her with a Senior right after dancing together at their Junior Prom. Emmy took a bathroom break and when she came looking for Matthew, she caught him lip-locked with Sofia Moriety, an upperclassman. She broke up with him right then and there.

  “You didn’t tell me you were coming home today!” Troy said, “I should have picked you up from the airport.”

  “Nah, it’s okay, daddy,” she said, “I wanted a quiet entrance.” she smiled. Emmy always had a sweet smile.

  “Don’t be silly,” Troy said, and smiled.

  “Emmy!” Annabeth greeted and rushed to hug Emmy. They were never really close but they were forced to spend a lot of time together, especially when they were kids because their parents worked for the food industry, and had also been friends when they were young, too.

  Emmy felt that Annabeth has always harbored some hatred for her. Well, she can’t say that she thinks of Annabeth highly too, but she always felt like Annabeth only tried to be nice when other people were around. It probably started when they were six and Annabeth wanted to bag the lead role in a kids’ production of The Nutcracker, but Emmy beat her to it. Then, the rivalry was heightened when Emmy graduated with top honors during Middle School, and when she dated Matthew in Junior Year. But well, Annabeth has Matthew now, so she really doesn’t have anything to be envious about, does she?

  “Oh look at you!” Annabeth continued, and took a layer of Emmy’s hair in her hands, “Don’t you look sharp?” She smiled, flipping her own brunette curls away. “Your hair doesn’t make you look like a sweet little girl anymore, though…” She let go of Emmy’s shoulder length bob.

  “Maybe I never really was the sweet little girl.” Emmy retorted.

  “That’s not true,” Matthew interjected. “You were sweet.”

  Emmy looked at him and smiled lightly. He’s still full of himself, she thought. She also caught Audrina, who was manning the counter, roll her eyes. She smiled at her lightly and Audrina smiled back, too. Emmy looked at Matthew. “And you would know, huh?” She said coyly.

  Matthew smiled, “Of course."

  Annabeth rolled her eyes and cleared her throat, “Hey, we actually have some news,” she said and smiled, “You tell her, Matty.”

  “Oh,” Matthew said, “Right,” he went on, “Uhm…”

  “Oh come on,” Annabeth said, “Fine, I’ll tell her then,” she smiled then held up her right hand, letting Emmy see a ring with a huge diamond on top, “We’re getting married!”

  “Wow,” Emmy said, “That’s great,” she smiled, “Congratulations! So, when’s the big day?”

  “It’s in two weeks, actually,” Annabeth replied, “We’re here to talk to your dad about helping us with the cake and all…I thought we could also give pretty cupcakes to the guests and all that…And maybe, you could make us some macarons, too? I knew you came back to help Troy.”

  “Actually, I didn’t just come back to help my father.”

  Troy, sensing the tension in the air, spoke, “Actually, Emmy’s here to start her own wedding gown store.”

  “Is that right?” Annabeth asked, her Southern twang strong. “Wow, that’s amazing!” She said, albeit exaggeratedly, “Maybe you could make my gown!” She smiled, “That would be cool, right? You could make my gown?”

  “You’re getting married in two weeks and you don’t have a gown yet?”

  “Oh, it’s a whirlwind thing,” Annabeth giggled. “So, are you up for it? You would be, right?”

  “Annabeth, she just arrived,” Matthew said.

  “Yeah, but, yeah, fine, sure,” Emmy said, “Why not?” She smiled.

  “Oh that’s awesome!” Annabeth said and hugged her, “And your dad and Audrina can make cupcakes, and our tall cake, and everything’s going to be perfect!”

  “Of course,” Emmy smiled.

  “I just can’t wait,” Annabeth laughed!

  Emmy smiled. She couldn’t wait either---she couldn’t wait to leave, and just go back to Paris, or go somewhere else.

  It surely was going to be a long day.

  CHAPTER 2

  A BLAST FROM THE PAST

  Emmy opted to stay at Time for Coffee that evening, after closing time. She told her father that she needed some time for herself and that she won’t stay in the shop too late.

  “Emmy,” Troy said before getting out of the door, “I know you’re not familiar with the way things go around here anymore, but don’t worry…” he went on, “you’ll be okay. We can start working on your shop tomorrow. We can turn one of my offices at home as your own office.“

  “Yeah, thanks, dad,” Emmy smiled, “I just need some peace and quiet for now,” she went on and laughed, “Annabeth could be a handful.”

  Troy laughed, “Yeah, she could be,” he said, “So…alright then…I’ll see you later?”

  “Yeah,” Emmy said, “Thanks, dad,” she smiled.

  She went inside the kitchen and looked for some supplies. One good thing about staying in Paris was that she was able to hone her baking skills. She especially loved concocting her own dishes, and was fond of lemon cupcakes especially when she was feeling out of it.

  She opened the refrigerator and luckily found some lemons there. She prepared the ingredients on the table: whole milk, sugar, vanilla extract, heavy cream, lemon zest and lemon juice. She then proceeded to pre-heat the oven and used paper liners to line cupcake pan cups.

  In a bowl, she beat flour and salt together, not caring if her cowl-necked, long-sleeved top, and high waist shorts got bombarded with flour. She beat each egg until the mixture was fluffy then she added the lemon zest, together with vanilla extract. It smelled good, and she smiled.

  Then, she added flour, lemon juice, and milk into the mixture and poured the batter into the cupcake cups and placed them inside the oven.

  Suddenly, she heard the wind chimes from the door. Someone came inside. “Damn, Emmy,” she said to herself, “Why’d you forget to lock the door?”

  She wiped her hands on some paper towels to see who came in and was surprised to see Daniel, an old friend from school. Well, he was more than a friend, too. They got together in Senior Year but they’ve been friends for a long time.

  Daniel was really nice, and helpful. He was intelligent too, plus he looked good. Emmy thought that he looked even better now—his face was chiseled, and that cute cleft on his chin made him look a whole lot more endearing. His eyes still magnetized her—they were Hazel eyes that always made him seem mysterious.

  But above all, Emmy would always remember Daniel as a guy who really loved her, and who would do everything for her. They had to break up, though, because Emmy had to leave for Paris. But somehow, she still thought of him while she was away. She wondered how he was, what he was doing, and whether he’s with someone, or god forbid, married already.

  And now he was here.

  “Jesus,” Daniel said. It sounded more like “Jay-sus”, “Emmy,” he said, “Wow…wow…you’re…you’re back. "

  “Hi,” Emmy muttered.

  They looked at each other for a while without saying something then Emmy realized that she did not want to be in this uncomfortable situation with him. She walked towards him and gave him a hug. It wasn’t tight, but in a way, she hoped he knew that she was glad to see him. She smiled.

  “You’re back,”

  She grinned, “Yeah,” she said, “I’m back.”

  “Sorry,” he laughed, “Sorry I’ve been acting like an idiot…I was just…surprised,” he said, “I heard from your father that you were coming back but I didn’t know the big day would be today…”

  “He also didn’t know, actually,” Emmy smiled, “You know him. If I told him I was coming back, he probably would have staged a welcome party or something,”

  Daniel laughed, “Yeah, you’re
right about that,” he said.

  “What are you doing here?”

  “Oh, that." Daniel said, “I was just surprised that the shop was still open. I mean, it’s past 9…so I thought, someone must be here, but why? So, I decided to go in and…yeah, well, you’re here."

  “Sorry." Emmy said.

  “Why would you be sorry?”

  “I don’t know,” Emmy chuckled, “I just…yeah, whatever…I had a long day.”

  “A long day?” Daniel asked, “Why? What happened?”

  Emmy shrugged, “Well, when I came, they were here, talking to my dad about cakes for their wedding and all that, then next thing I know, Annabeth’s asking me to design her wedding gown…and you know her, she’s pretty crazy about details…”

  Daniel laughed, “Right,” he said, “I bet she asked you to design her gown right away."

  “You bet she did,” Emmy said, “She told me she wanted to look like Grace Kelly."

  “Annabeth as Grace Kelly,” Daniel said, “Now I couldn’t imagine that!"

  Emmy laughed, “I know right,” she said and smiled. It was nice to have a free-flowing conversation with Daniel.

  Just then, Daniel noticed the smell of lemon coming from inside the kitchen. “What is that?”

  “Oh my god,” Emmy said, “the cupcakes!” She then ran to the kitchen, followed by Daniel, and arrived just in time to take the cupcakes out of the oven. “Whew,” Emmy said as she wiped her forehead with the back of her hand.

  “Wow, they smell nice,” Daniel said, “Lemon cupcakes?”

  “Yeah,” Emmy answered, handing him a piece, “They were my stress-relievers back in Paris,” she said, “Careful, they’re hot."

  Daniel smiled at her and bit into the cupcake, “This is good,” he said, “Wow…you plan on selling these here? People will love them, I’m telling you,”

  Emmy laughed, “No, no, not really,” she said, “Actually…my plan is to open a wedding gown store. I’ll be helping around here, of course, but that’s not the main plan…Dad said I could make use of one of his home offices as my own office, so…we’ll see…”