Hallow Haven Cozy Mysteries Bundle Books 1-3 by Mara Webb (hardest books to read TXT) 📗

soil-covered spades and I flinched every time he swung it downward, dreading that he might hit her with it.

“What happened?” I asked.

“She heard you say a name that folk round here haven’t heard in a long time,” he said. “Robert Barton is a figure in our history that we learn about through whispers. I thought he was long gone, but here you are saying you found him in the bunker!”

The spade guy had a strange expression that I didn’t understand, a mix of relief and concern. Was he just worried about Honey? Or was something else going on?

“Well, we found someone holding a passport that had that name in it,” I mumbled. “That doesn’t prove anything just yet.”

“What do you know about Robert Barton?” Miller asked. Spade guy stepped a little closer and began speaking in a conspiratorial tone of voice.

“Well, some say that he was a man from old Skerry island. He would roam the waters barefoot and was as tall as a house! Some say he used to utter the stuff of nightmares in through the windows of the sleeping! Others say he turned into a swarm of bees and flew far away from here!”

I let out a strange breath that was simultaneously frustrated and confused. “Who was he? Why do you all talk about him?” I asked.

“He was ‘ere, then he wasn’t! That’s fishy if you ask me,” spade guy replied.

“Well, he’s been dead in that bunker for quite a while, puts a dent in your ‘swarm of bees’ theory,” Miller said.

“Hey, no need for them air quotes, sir,” spade guy grunted.

“My apologies. Look, I will make another call to the station and see if I can at least get someone to come and collect the body, that way Honey can rest easy,” Miller explained. “I’ll be two minutes,” he muttered to me before walking to the house. I think he said it to assure me that I would only have to listen to the lore of Robert Barton for a short while before Miller would return.

“I suppose you think this island is wacky, eh?” spade guy asked. “Old Tony-two-spades might not be the sharpest tool in the box, but…” he trailed off. “I don’t know how I was gonna finish that sentence.”

“Tony?” I repeated.

“That’s me! Tony-two-spades. Not a lot of folk on this island can brag about having two spades, but I sure can. Each of ‘em fine looking spades too, that’s genuine wood on the handle!” He pronounced genuine more like gen-u-wine and I wondered why he thought having real wood was such a point of pride.

“Well, Tony, when was Robert Barton last seen?” I asked. Tony looked over my shoulder and winced, causing me to whip my head round and stare out at the choppy sea. The weather had taken a sharp turn and still waters that surrounded the island were now crashing into the shore loudly. Even being high up on the cliff top I could hear it.

“Help me get Honey inside,” Tony asked. He slipped both spades over his shoulder and into some sort of back strapping so that they hung across his body in a cross shape, like a swordsman. He lifted Honey up from under her arms and I grabbed her legs, together we hurried back to the house and lay her down in the hallway.

The less-than-graceful dropping of her body was probably what roused her.

“D-d-did I hear what I thought I heard?” she stuttered.

“Robert Barton has been found!” Tony yelled. She squealed and then I saw the color drain from her face as if she might faint again. These people were weirder than the folk on the main island.

Miller came into the hallway and looked at the three of us huddled on the tile floor. “Do I want to know what’s happening?” he asked.

“The witch in the water is angry,” Tony yelled. “Causing a storm, a big one at that. It won’t be safe to get back to the main island with a body today.”

“Witch in the water?” I repeated.

“Why don’t we all get a cup of coffee and I can fill you in,” Honey said. I helped her to her feet, and we all followed her back to the dining room. I elected to take a seat by a window that faced out onto the pit. I doubted anyone would run up and steal a skeleton, but it didn’t seem like this island was home to many regular people, so who knows?

Tony and Miller joined me as Honey went to fill a coffee pot in the kitchen. “Anyone for food? I’ve only just seen the time and you’ve all been digging so much today!” she called out.

I wanted to point out that only Miller and I had been digging. Old Tony-two-spades had done nothing other than provide the spades, but I was getting snappy out of hunger, so I kept my mouth shut.

“Yes please, Honey,” Miller answered. “What do you have?”

“Never mind about that, I’ll make something you’ll all love,” she hollered. I’d learned quickly that in Hallow Haven, a witch offering to make something ‘she knows you will love’ typically means you are about to eat the best meal of your life. My stomach rumbled excitedly in anticipation.

“I take it you’ve already met up with toothless Pete?” Tony asked.

“We sure have,” I smiled. “He’s… a character.”

“Oh yeah, he’s a good guy for the most part. Won’t suffer any nonsense from the Skerry island inhabitants though. I guess you came over on account of him blasting his cannon their way,” Tony shrugged. “I’m not totally sure what’s upset him this time.”

“Do you know anything about the wall between Green Holt and Skerry?” Miller asked.

“All I know is that I’ve got two spades and an empty belly,” Tony laughed.

“All right, all right,” Honey called as she walked towards us with plates stacked up both arms. “I’m coming now, a little patience would do you wonders.”

She placed four plates down on the table. Each plate held a different meal and