Seven-Layer Slayer: MURDER IN THE MIX 5 Read online

  Seven-Layer Slayer

  MURDER IN THE MIX 5

  Addison Moore

  Contents

  Books by Addison Moore

  Book Description

  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

  A Note from the Author

  Books by Addison Moore

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  Copyright © 2018 by Addison Moore

  This novel is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to peoples either living or deceased is purely coincidental. Names, places, and characters are figments of the author’s imagination. The author holds all rights to this work. It is illegal to reproduce this novel without written expressed consent from the author herself.

  All Rights Reserved.

  This eBook is for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this eBook with another person, please purchase any additional copies for each reader. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return it and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Copyright © 2018 by Addison Moore

  Created with Vellum

  Books by Addison Moore

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  Mystery

  Little Girl Lost

  Cutie Pies and Deadly Lies (Murder in the Mix 1)

  Bobbing for Bodies (Murder in the Mix 2)

  Pumpkin Spice Sacrifice (Murder in the Mix 3)

  Gingerbread & Deadly Dread (Murder in the Mix 4)

  Seven-Layer Slayer (Murder in the Mix 5)

  Red Velvet Vengeance (Murder in the Mix 6)

  Bloodbaths and Banana Cake (Murder in the Mix 7)

  Romance

  Just Add Mistletoe

  3:AM Kisses (3:AM Kisses 1)

  Winter Kisses (3:AM Kisses 2)

  Sugar Kisses (3:AM Kisses 3)

  Whiskey Kisses (3:AM Kisses 4)

  Rock Candy Kisses (3:AM Kisses 5)

  Velvet Kisses (3:AM Kisses 6)

  Wild Kisses (3:AM Kisses 7)

  Country Kisses (3:AM Kisses 8)

  Forbidden Kisses (3:AM Kisses 9)

  Dirty Kisses (3:AM Kisses 10)

  Stolen Kisses (3:AM Kisses 11)

  Lucky Kisses (3:AM Kisses 12)

  Tender Kisses (3:AM Kisses 13)

  Revenge Kisses (3:AM Kisses 14)

  Red Hot Kisses (3:AM Kisses 15)

  Reckless Kisses (3:AM Kisses 16)

  Hot Honey Kisses (3:AM Kisses 17)

  Shameless Kisses (3:AM Kisses 18)

  Value 3:AM Kisses Boxed Sets

  3:AM Kisses Boxed Set 1-3

  3:AM Kisses Boxed Set 4-6

  3:AM Kisses Boxed Set 7-9

  3:AM Kisses Boxed Set 10-12

  The Social Experiment (The Social Experiment 1)

  Bitter Exes (The Social Experiment 2)

  Chemical Attraction (The Social Experiment 3)

  FREE with Kindle Unlimited!

  Low Down & Dirty (3:AM Kisses, Hollow Brook1)

  Dirty Disaster (3:AM Kisses, Hollow Brook 2)

  Dirty Deeds (3:AM Kisses, Hollow Brook 3)

  FREE with Kindle Unlimited!

  Naughty By Nature

  FREE with Kindle Unlimited!

  Burning Through Gravity (Burning Through Gravity 1)

  A Thousand Starry Nights (Burning Through Gravity 2)

  Fire in an Amber Sky (Burning Through Gravity 3)

  FREE with Kindle Unlimited!

  Beautiful Oblivion (Lake Loveless 1)

  Beautiful Illusions (Lake Loveless 2)

  Beautiful Elixir (Lake Loveless 3)

  Beautiful Deception (Lake Loveless 4)

  FREE with Kindle Unlimited!

  The Solitude of Passion

  FREE with Kindle Unlimited!

  Someone to Love (Someone to Love 1)

  Someone Like You (Someone to Love 2)

  Someone For Me (Someone to Love 3)

  BOXED SETS

  FREE with Kindle Unlimited!

  Spitfire Kisses Boxed Set

  Breakers Canyon Boxed Set (Books 1-3)

  Lake Loveless Boxed Set (Books 1-3)

  A Totally ‘80s Romance (Books 1-3)

  3:AM Kisses, Hollow Brook (Books 1-3)

  3:AM KISSES (Books 1-3)

  Just Add Mistletoe (Christmas in Gingerbread, Colorado)

  Young Adult Romance

  FREE with Kindle Unlimited!

  Melt With You (A Totally ’80s Romance 1)

  Tainted Love (A Totally ’80s Romance 2)

  Hold Me Now (A Totally ’80s Romance 3)

  Paranormal Romance

  (Celestra Book World in Order)

  Ethereal (Celestra Series Book 1)

  Tremble (Celestra Series Book 2)

  Burn (Celestra Series Book 3)

  Wicked (Celestra Series Book 4)

  Vex (Celestra Series Book 5)

  Expel (Celestra Series Book 6)

  Toxic Part One (Celestra Series Book 7)

  Toxic Part Two (Celestra Series Book 8)

  Elysian (Celestra Series Book 9)

  Perfect Love (A Celestra Novella)

  FREE with Kindle Unlimited!

  Ephemeral (The Countenance Trilogy 1)

  Evanescent (The Countenance Trilogy 2)

  Entropy (The Countenance Trilogy 3)

  Ethereal Knights (Celestra Knights)

  Season of the Witch (A Celestra Companion)

  Celestra Forever After (Celestra Forever After 1)

  The Dragon and the Rose (Celestra Forever After 2)

  The Serpentine Butterfly (Celestra Forever After 3)

  Crown of Ashes (Celestra Forever After 4)

  Throne of Fire (Celestra Forever After 5)

  Book Description

  My name is Lottie Lemon, and I see dead pets. On occasion I see a once upon a human, too, but mostly it’s just cute little furry beasts who have come back from the other side to warn me of their previous owner’s impending doom.

  It’s January, and this month brings two special birthdays that the entire town is looking forward to celebrating: Eve Hollister and Nell Sawyer’s. Well, in truth, not many people are looking forward to celebrating Eve Hollister’s birthday. In fact, the way the people at her party are acting, you’d think she were the most hated woman on the planet. Add one ornery black bear who is well past his earthly prime, along with the Grim Reaper, and poor Eve’s birthday turns into a supernatural catastrophe. One thing is for sure—no one in Honey Hollow will ever be the same.

  Lottie Lemon has a brand new bakery to tend to, a budding romance with perhaps one too many suitors, and she has the supernatural ability to see dead pets—which are always harbingers for ominous things to come. Throw in the occasional ghost of the human va
riety, a string of murders, and her insatiable thirst for justice, and you’ll have more chaos than you know what to do with.

  Living in the small town of Honey Hollow can be murder.

  Chapter 1

  I see dead people.

  Okay, so it’s very, very rare, but I do seem to see creatures of the furry dearly departed variety on the regular. And, believe you me, it is never a good sign to their previous owner. It is always a harbinger of terrible things to come. Up until a few months ago, the horror used to amount to nothing more than a scraped knee or a horrible tumble. But these days, it almost always amounts to death.

  Just a few weeks ago, Tanner Redwood’s Golden Retriever, Dutch, bounded back into reality—my reality anyhow. Apparently, I’m the only one with vision that extends right into eternity. Wait—that’s not entirely true. I just recently discovered that my best friend’s Grammy Nell can see these fantastic phantasms, too. But anyhow, Dutch was the first creature that I not only saw but heard. He’s a beauty with long golden hair, wears a smile for most of the day, and loves to cuddle with my Himalayan cat, Pancake.

  I’m pretty sure Pancake can’t see or hear him, but he definitely senses a disturbance in the force. It’s probably best Pancake, nor anyone else can see the majestic beast—aside from his transparent qualities, he has eyes that blaze like fire, and it’s really quite alarming. Aside from that, Dutch is the first furry phantasm that has not disappeared after his owner’s murder was solved. Strangely enough, he’s taken up firm residency in my living room.

  “Lottie!” Mom waves to me, frantic as an entire herd of women stream into the oversized living room of the B&B. It’s not only the day that her historical book club meets up for the month, but it also happens to be the birthday of the founder, Eve Hollister. “Lottie, please make sure the dessert buffet is kept well replenished.” She jabs a finger to an elongated table near the entry of the room that I’ve laden with every sweet treat that the Cutie Pie Bakery and Cakery could muster. It’s especially laden down with Eve’s favorites, like the chocolate chip peanut butter swirl cookies, dark chocolate dreams, and rocky road brownies. Eve Hollister has had a sweet tooth for as long as I’ve known her.

  “Will do!” I note the brownies are running low and head to the kitchen to replenish the supply.

  I’m not halfway there before I come upon the birthday girl herself, Eve Hollister, and a couple of her guests. Eve is actually the same age as my mother, but she’s had a rough go of it, and unfortunately looks as if she could be my mother’s mother. In Eve’s defense, my mother has found the fountain of youth and is willing to deny its existence until her dying day.

  Miranda Lemon looks like she could be in magazines with her shoulder-length butter yellow locks, her svelte physique—and the fact she is always overdressed for any and every occasion doesn’t hurt either. I’m convinced my mother came out of the womb looking impeccably put together.

  In contrast, Eve looks like your stereotypical grandmother with short white hair, a hobble to her step, and wrinkles worn proud like a badge well earned. Both Eve and my mother lost their husbands around the same time many years ago. Eve hasn’t dated since, that I’m aware of, but my mother has more than made up for it for the both of them. Miranda Lemon has a steady rotation of men she likes to keep warm by her side. As of late, she’s dating an abhorrence of an individual, one that happened to be cheating on his ex-wife just a few months back—the same ex-wife who tried to poison him. Brad Rutherford has an insatiable appetite for both women and a wild time—clearly a double whammy of reasons why he should be nowhere near my mother, and I’d go as far as to say no one else’s mother either.

  The two younger women standing with Eve appear to be locked in a heated argument with the poor frazzled woman, and on this her birthday. They have a familiar look, and I can’t quite put my finger on where I know them. One girl looks to be about my age but far more polished, with her chocolate brown hair slicked back into a bun, her pencil skirt and heels both something I would eschew. I’m more of a pony, jeans, and sweater girl myself. My cozy shearling boots are perfect for running around the bakery and making deliveries this frozen time of year.

  January in Honey Hollow, Vermont rarely calls for stilettos, but you can’t tell my sister Lainey that or apparently this woman either. The other girl locked in the heated debate looks younger, with pleasant wide-set features that would appeal to any man, a shock of red lipstick, and sleek glossy hair dyed a jarring shade of silver.

  The one with gray locks leans in—it’s an ironic hair color, considering the fact she looks younger than I do at twenty-six. “You won’t get away with this forever.”

  The brunette is quick to wave off the ingénue. “You know, ever since Daddy died, she’s been tighter than those shrunken jeans you’re wearing. You can’t teach an old horse new tricks.”

  “It’s dog,” the younger one corrects.

  “Woof woof,” Eve bleats with a laugh.

  I try to boot scoot my way past them, and Eve’s eyes light up like that Christmas tree my mother still has lit up in the corner.

  “Lottie Lemon!” she cries. “You remember my girls, Daphne and Brenda Lee?” She points to the uptight brunette and the angry gray-haired girl respectively.

  “Oh my goodness,” I say, stunned as both girls glare back at me as if I’ve just let a noxious odor fly. Upon closer inspection, I do see traces of Eve in their features. Both are wildly attractive. The brunette, Daphne, has that nude makeup palate look going, and with her upscale skirt and navy silk blouse, she looks elegantly understated.

  Brenda Lee has a boho chic vibe with a jacket that looks as if it was made out of a psychedelic quilt, and a sweater that looks as if someone ripped off the midsection, which would explain why it’s unraveling at the base—a purposeful look, I’m tragically sure—and let’s not forget the aforementioned shrunken jeans.

  “Yes!” I try to match Eve’s enthusiasm, which only makes her daughter’s glower all the more in my direction. “I mean, I knew you had children.”

  The Hollister kids are all about my age, but they were more or less what amounted to an urban legend here in Honey Hollow. We’re such a small, close-knit town, that it’s a miracle they managed to evade the entire state of Vermont for the duration of their childhood. The three of them—a rumored brother included—all went to boarding school in Switzerland. I believe Eve once mentioned a couple of them live in Ashford now. Too good for Honey Hollow, I suppose.

  Eve Hollister herself has more money than she knows what to do with, and she’s just as happy to live in Honey Hollow as the rest of us.

  “So nice to meet you both. I’m Lottie. I run the bakery on Main Street. If you’re ever in the area, please stop by. It would be my pleasure to send you home with a box full of goodies. Our mothers are very good friends.”

  The younger one smirks and scoffs. “Our mother has friends? How much does your mother charge a month?”

  The two of them break out into cackles, and my mouth falls open as I look to Eve. Surely they’re kidding—right?

  Eve winks my way. “Oh, they’re just being silly.” She offers them a curt smile. “Lottie here was kind enough to bake her famous seven-layer cake for my birthday. It’s my absolute favorite.”

  “I sure did, and it was my pleasure! Four layers of rich decadent chocolate and three with French vanilla. And don’t forget the generous layers of Bavarian cream and berries sprinkled on top. It was a feat finding berries in January, but I tracked them down for you. I’m baking the same cake for Nell in just two weeks.” Nell Sawyer is my best friend, Keelie Turner’s grandmother—Grammy. Nell also happens to be the only one I have ever shared my supernatural secret with. Well, I told Everett, my new neighbor, the judge, but he sort of wrangled it out of me.

  Regardless, Nell not only knows my secret, but I just discovered this past Christmas Eve that she shares the same gift. She saw and heard Dutch, too. Suffice it to say, I’ve been itching to have one long sit-down wit
h her ever since that night. No sooner did I discover Nell’s own supernatural secret than her daughter shuttled her out the door. Nell promised we’d get together after the holidays, but she’s been under the weather as of late so I thought I’d wait until she felt better.

  “Ooh”—Brenda Lee rolls her eyes—“seven-layer cake.” She twirls a finger in the air and makes a crazy face at her sister. “How very creative, Mother.”

  Wow. Eve Hollister must have inadvertently reared the rudest children—daughters anyway—on the planet. I’m beginning to think it was pure luck I evaded them all these years.

  I hold up a finger. “Brenda Lee?” It comes out curt, and I don’t mind one bit. “That’s a very beautiful name, and I think it indeed proves that your mother is very creative.”

  “Brenda Lee!” Eve snaps her fingers and dances a spontaneous jig. “She was my favorite singer growing up. Oh, she was just the best.”

  Brenda Lee shoves her finger down her throat and pretends to gag.

  Daphne elbows her. “Would you stop with the theatrics? Let’s get this over with.” She drags her sister into the living room, and I’m left to shrug at Eve.