Killer Chocolate -- A Valentine Mystery (#13)

Part 13 by Cara C. Putman

Something in Rouen's voice stopped Lovey in her tracks. She followed him, almost blindly, as he helped her onto the ledge, but all she wanted to do was curl up in a corner with Cupid and pretend that everything had been nothing more than a terrible dream.

She shivered as her wet clothes soaked through to her skin. Cupid yowled in her arms, furious at being subjected to the water. Lovey clutched the cat more tightly, determined not to lose her feline friend as she'd lost her fiance and best friend. Though as she watched Rouen through her daze she wondered...what if she was wrong...what if he was Ryan returning to her like a phantom in the night. If he was, the man in front of her had five-years worth of explaining to do before she threw him off the ledge.

A hand grabbed her ankle, and Lovey screamed.

"Don't think you can get rid of me that easily." Athena pulled herself up next to them, shaking water logged hair from her eyes. Her hands were conspicuously empty, but her eyes held a venom that terrified Lovey. She wouldn't be surprised if her "friend" suddenly threw her from the ledge into the climbing water.

Rouen studied Athena, his body set on high alert.

"Give me that diamond." The words hissed from Athena's mouth.

Lovey stepped back until she felt sharp rock poke into her back. Maybe if she hid in the shadows that terrible woman would forget about her. She held her breath as she waited for Rouen's reply.

"You know I can't give it to you, Athena."

"Going to continue to play the game are you, Ryan? Well, I'm sick of it. This isn't the time to ride in like a white knight and save the day. If you haven't noticed we're all trapped."

Lovey stared at Rouen/Ryan. Yes, she'd begun to suspect but to learn the truth in such a manner. She didn't know whether to hug or beat the man. Ryan glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, an apology hidden there. It would take more than a look to right the last five years.

Athena lunged at Ryan, grappling for the diamond he still clutched in his hand. Ryan fell to the ground as she beat at him, and then rolled on top of Athena. Lovey watched, a firm grasp on Cupid, and wondered if she should try to help. All she could do was kick and she was as likely to land a kick on Ryan as on Athena -- though at the moment she'd like to do a lot more than that to the man.

"Lovey, here. Take this." Ryan handed her the diamond. Athena took advantage of his momentary distraction to wriggle away from him. He lunged for her, but she side-stepped only to step right off the edge into the rushing water. Lovey screamed -- the sound richocheting off the rock walls.

Ryan grabbed her, clutching her to him. Cupid meowed a protest then snuggled in. "I'm so sorry, Lovey. This isn't how I wanted to tell you."

She sobbed against his jacket, savoring the feel of his hands brushing her hair. Being in his arms felt like a homecoming. Even after all the time that had passed.

Water brushed her toes, and she startled. "Ryan, we have to find a way out. The water's risen to our feet."

Reluctantly he stepped away from her. "See that slit up there. It's wider than it looks. It's how I got in here once before. If we can reach it, we can squeeze through."

He boosted her onto a rock and then took Cupid from her. Patiently, he told her how to find hand and foot holds until she reached the carved out hole and could shimmy out. Then he handed Cupid up to her and pulled himself out.

A moment later they stood staring at each other...

Killer Chocolate: A Valentine Mystery PART 12 Lisa Mondello

PART 12 - Lisa Mondello

As the grid disappeared, Rouen turned back and looked deeply in Lovey's terrified eyes. She looked up at him with eyes so vulnerable, yet strong and determined. And with such trust. It was if..

Did she truly not know that he was really Ryan? There was a moment when she'd uttered the date they were to be married 5 years ago that he wondered. The look on her face had brought him back to when she was his and they'd made plans for a lifetime together.

How could she have kissed him—even the brief kiss they'd shared—and not remember him? Rouen had shed his former identity 5 years ago when the Luxor Project had taken a turn for the worst and he realized that Creamer had betrayed everyone. He'd fooled everyone. But surely his Lovey would know him.

"Interesting that you just happened to have the combination to unlock the grid," Athena said. He'd almost forgotten about the gun Athena still had trained on Lovey. "All these years and I had the answer I was looking for right under my nose. I should have brought you here years ago, Lovey."

"How can you do this, Athena? I thought we were friends?" Lovey said, tears filling her eyes.

"Friends? Well, we had some laughs, sure. But there are more important things than friendship. Now walk on through ahead of me. If the information I uncovered in Egypt is correct, Ryan would have put the Luxor Diamond in this chamber. If you're lucky, it's still here."

"And if we're not?" Rouen said. Of course, he knew the Luxor Diamond was here. It was only recently that he deciphered the cryptic notes his partner had left him just before his death. There were five different places the Luxor Diamond could be. He'd checked 4 of them already. The last place was here.

"Silly me. I guess I'll be the only one who is lucky. You two will just be dead. Too bad Ryan isn't here to see me steal back the diamond he stole from me."

"Diamond? This is all about a diamond?"

"Keep moving," Rouen said quietly watching the two glowing lights meander toward Athena's back. "And stay behind me."

Athena's face showed twisted satisfaction as they slowly moved in the darkness of the chamber toward the platform where his partner stowed the artifacts Creamer and his cronies were selling for profit instead of giving them to the government. The platform was high enough that the water wouldn't reach it. All the artifacts were here, waiting for the time when Rouen had solid proof of Creamer and Athena's criminal dealings.

But there was only 1 piece that Athena and Creamer had been interested in. The Luxor Diamond, a 32 carat uncut diamond that when cut would be worth nearly 8 million dollars.

As he flashed the light onto the wall, the boxes of artifacts came into few.

"Which one is it? I know you know, Rouen. Ryan must have told you."

He knew. But only because of the description of the box his partner had left for him. His eyes immediately found the one brown leather box in the center of the shelf. His hands touched the dusty leather before flipping the lid open.

Lovey gasped when she saw the diamond nestled on blue crushed velvet. Even uncut, Rouen had to admit the stone was magnificent.

What should have brought hope and prosperity for the developing country that mined the diamonds, only brought despair when the riches were used for evil. Two key people on the project, his partners, had been mysteriously killed as well as their families. Everyone he was close to was in danger, especially Lovey.

How could he have married her and put her at risk? And for what? The chocolate diamond that would one day be cut and shine a brilliant canary yellow and be worth a fortune. Soon after his disappearance, Creamer had planted himself across the street from Lovey's chocolate shop and Athena had gone to work for Lovey. They were too close. They were watching her every move in the hopes that Lovey would lead them to Ryan.

That's when Ryan had become a ghost of the past and his fictitious twin brother was born as way for him to safely uncover the Luxor Diamond. And everything he'd wanted for himself…and Lovey was suddenly out of reach. If he'd contacted her to tell her the truth, she would have been used as a pawn to get to him. Only when he was able to deliver the diamond to the proper authorities and expose Creamer's criminal dealings would he and Lovey have a life together.

That is, if she'd still have him. After seeing her today, feeling her next to him, he prayed that she would. If they could make it out of the cave with Luxor, they had a chance.

"Out of my way," Athena snarled, snatching the diamond from the velvet box.

Just then, the glowing lights that had stealthy moved into the cave came into view. Only this time from above on the shelf. Cupid screeched and jumped onto Athena, scratching her face, startling her enough that she dropped the gun.

With Athena screaming in pain, Rouen grabbed the diamond from Athena's hand. Cupid whined and weaved around his feet as the sound of rushing water echoed in the cave.

"High tide?" Lovey asked. A rush of cold breeze blew Lovey's hair across her delicate face as a rush of water filled the floor of the cave and submerged them to their knees.

"We can't go back the way we came in," Rouen said. With the diamond in his hand, Rouen scooped Cupid up out of the water and handed her to Lovey. "Hold on to her tight. This is going to get rough. But I think I know a way out."

Taking Lovey by the hand he turned as a wall of water hit them in the back. He was able to climb onto the ledge and lift Lovey and Cupid up as well. The slice of light above was their only way out. It was either fight for life or die trying. Rouen knew one thing. He wouldn't lose Lovey again. He prayed with every fabric of his being that God would lead them out of the darkness and into the light before the tide swallowed them.

Killer Chocolate--A Valentine's Mystery part 8

by Terri Reed

The tunnel reeked of brine, decay and some unfamiliar foul odor that choked the breath from Lovey’s lungs. She wished she were back inside her shop where the decadent scents of rich chocolates were a constant. She couldn’t believe she’d led them all here. What had she been thinking?
She’d been thinking she didn’t want the cat, Athena, Rouen or herself to be shot by Mr. Creamer and his nasty looking gun. She’d done the only thing she could.
A decision she hoped wouldn’t prove to be fatal.

Up ahead in the inky blackness, twin red dots, like unblinking eyes, glowed bright.
Sharp talons of terror clawed through Lovey. She stumbled
to a halt, sent up a silent plea for protection and clung tighter to Rouen’s hand.
Athena let out a small gasp.
“What is that?” Lovey whispered, her voice shaking as thoughts of wild beasts rampaged through her mind.
“I don’t know,” came Rouen’s soft reply.
Creamer bumped into them. “What’s the big idea? Keep moving.”
Rouen tugged Lovey behind him so that her back was against the cold, damp side of the tunnel. His big, broad shoulders blocked out the glowing lights. “Do you have a flashlight, Creamer?”
“No. Don’t you?” he snapped.
Rouen snorted under his breath. He released Lovey’s hand. A second later light from a small pin size flashlight illuminated the tunnel. He shined the bean on toward the red dots revealing a keypad fastened to the wall. Lovey could barely make out the visible lines of a door. What was on the other side?
Waving his gun in Rouen’s face, Mr. Creamer, said, “Open it.”
“And how do you suppose I do that? Do you have the combination?” Rouen asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm.
“Figure it out,” Creamer demanded.
Lovey thought about the watch attached to her wrist and the matching one on Rouen. Was the combination somehow hidden on the watches?
Just then the light winked out.
“Hey!” Creamer shouted.
Lovey groped for Athena in the dark. She found her and held on tight as the sound of feet shuffling on the earthen floor filled the air. Grunts came from the direction of the two men. Lovey could only assume Rouen had made a grab for the gun. The sound of a fist slamming into bone made Lovey wince. Please, Lord, protect Rouen.
In such a short space of time she’d found herself drawn to the tall mysterious man who looked like her lost Ryan, yet there was something different, something dangerous and exciting all at once, about Rouen that fascinated Lovey. She thought of a truffle with a hard dark chocolate exterior protecting an inner core of creamy, delicious goodness. Would Rouen prove to be good inside? Or would her judgment prove to be off, as it apparently had been about Ryan, who’d kept so many secrets from her?
Suddenly, the simultaneous loud retort of the gun firing and the flash from the muzzle filled the dark tunnel. The brief second of light revealed the two men still locked in battle over the weapon.
Lovey’s ears rang. Beside her Athena went down, taking Lovey with her.
Then darkness once again descended.

Killer Chocolate -A Valentine Mystery

Part Seven
By Debby Giusti

Lovey had to do something. She couldn’t let Mr. Creamer harm Cupid. “Stop,” she shouted. “I know what you’re after, and I’ll take you there.”

Rouen raised his brow and stared down at her with questioning eyes. “Lovey, you said you didn’t have knowledge of the Luxor Project.”

“But I can read maps, and the one in the desk shows an area not far from here.”

“Take me there at once,” Mr. Creamer demanded, dropping Cupid who landed with a mew on the soft cushion of the Victorian sofa. Pointing his gun at Lovey, Creamer nodded toward the door. “Get going and don’t pull any funny business.”

Glancing first at Rouen and then at Athena, who had palmed the cell phone and was trying to inconspicuously slip it into her pocket, Lovey gathered her courage and, buoyed by Rouen’s closeness, walked with determined steps through the door and onto the street.

“Follow me, everyone,” she said with more gusto than she felt. Surely, someone would see them and come to their aid, but when she glanced around, she realized the other shops were closed and the street deserted.

Rouen grabbed her hand and squeezed, sending a signal of support and encouragement with his touch. For an instant, Lovey forgot about the gun Creamer had concealed in his coat pocket, which was still aimed at her, and thought only of the handsome man at her side. Silently, she prayed her plan would work.

“What are you doing?” Rouen whispered so only she could hear.

“Praying we get out of this alive.”

“Amen to that,” he answered.

His eyes were warm, and a hint of a smile played over his full lips. If they survived this ordeal, Lovey wanted to tempt him with her dark chocolate clustered almonds and a cup of love-at-first-sight hot chocolate topped with marshmallows and a sprinkle of mocha. She envisioned sharing Valentine’s Day with Rouen, and her pulse purred like her tabby cat.

The caw of a gull quickly brought her back to reality. As dismal as the day seemed, at least, Rouen was at her side.

Dark clouds signaled an approaching storm as they made their way along a desolate back alley to the rock seawall, a sturdy barrier that kept the ocean water at bay during high tide. Lovey glanced at the white caps on the incoming surf and then at the filigree watch Ryan had given her. They had to move quickly before the waves covered the tiny sandy beach that edged the wall.

Descending the stone steps from the street level to the beach below, she stepped onto the sand and headed toward the bend in the sea wall. Rounding the corner, she pointed to a narrow tunnel-like opening cut deep into the rock. “You’ll find what you’re looking for in there, Mr. Creamer.”

He stepped close and peered into the darkness, but before Lovey or Rouen could make a move to overpower him, Creamer straightened and, after freeing his gun from his pocket, aimed it, once again, at Lovey.

“Ladies first,” he said with a snarl that sent her heart crashing against her chest as forcefully as the waves that now swirled around her legs.

She hesitated, hoping to hear the sound of sirens and the approaching police who would come to their rescue after receiving Athena’s call for help. That is if Athena had been able to make the call.

Glancing back at her friend, Lovey’s heart sank as she watched the cell phone—as if in slow motion—slip through Athena’s nervous fingers and drop into the water.

“Oh, Lovey, I’m so sorry,” Athena said, her eyes filling with tears as the phone was carried out to sea.

“Get going,” Creamer demanded, pointing toward the tunnel. “All of you.”

Swallowing down the fear that lodged in her throat, Lovey pulled in a fortifying breath and looked into the eyes of the man at her side.

Rouen’s jaw tightened and his free hand fisted, but his other hand held hers with a firm, yet gentle touch that steeled her resolution. He gazed down at her, and she knew they would get out of this alive.

But she changed her mind when she stepped into the darkened tunnel. What she saw frightened her more than Mr. Creamer or his gun.

Killer Chocolate: A Valentine Mystery PART 3

PART THREE - Lisa Mondello

"Not so fast. I want answers," Rouen said. "It's been five years of wondering what happened to my brother and if you have any information for me, then I want to hear it now."

Lovey closed her eyes for a brief moment. "But I don't have any information for you."

"I don't believe that. Why else would Ryan send me here?"

"I don't know. I'm wondering the same thing," Lovey said, trying to remember any conversation they'd had during their engagement that may have indicated Ryan had a twin brother. It was so long ago and yet seeing Rouen, and how much he looked like Ryan, made it seem like it was yesterday. "Just like I'm wondering why my fiancé didn't bother to tell me he had a twin."

Rouen swayed. "Fiance? You and Ryan…"

"Yes, we were going to be married." Lovey sat down on the red velvet sofa, feeling the weight of grief she'd kept hidden. "The week after he disappeared."

Looking at her suspiciously, he said, "Then you must know about the Luxor Project he was working on."

Lovey looked at him confused. "Luxor Project? What is that?"

A veil of anger washed over Rouen's expression. His jaw tightened and his eyes turned cold. Cupid seemed to sense the tension in the room and decided to intervene by purring and rubbing up against Rouen's designer pants in an effort to soothe the anxiety in the room. Rouen seemed unaffected by Cupid's attention.

"If this is some joke," Rouen said through clenched teeth.

Lovey grasped the arm of the Victorian sofa and tried to get her bearings. "If it is, then it's being played on both of us."

"I find it hard to believe that you would be a week away from marrying my brother without my even knowing of your existence and without you knowing about the most important project he'd been working on."

He had a point and it became abundantly clear to Lovey that she may not have known Ryan at all. They'd fallen in love in a rush of romance and immediately decided to marry. When you knew, you knew, Ryan had said. And he'd told her over and over again that she was a blessing that God had brought into his life. She felt the same and saw no reason to wait through a long engagement before making their love for each other official. But that never happened. He'd gone missing at sea soon after.

Abruptly, the door to Hearts and Flowers sprang open. Athena raced through the flower shop door along with a rush of cold breeze and then locked the door behind her. She was breathless as if she'd run a marathon to get to the shop.

Taking in Rouen's presence, Athena said, "Good, you're here. I was afraid you wouldn't come."

"You were afraid? Ryan was the one who told me to come here," Rouen said.

Athena shook her head. "No, he didn't."

Confused, Lovey said, "He didn't? If Ryan didn't send Rouen here, then who did?"

Athena looked out the window as if she was searching for something…or someone. Lovey had never seen Athena like this and it was beginning to scare her.

"I did," Athena admitted.

Lovey gasped. "What? Why would you do something like this?" Lovey had known Athena for a long time. Athena was well aware of how much pain Lovey was in when Ryan disappeared. How could she open up a wound that had taken Lovey so long to close?

Biting her bottom lip, tears welled in Athena's terrified eyes. "Because Ryan asked me to, Lovey. I'm sorry, but you're in danger. We all are."