Spotlight & Giveaway: Black Cat Comes Back by Emmie Lyn

Today, HJ is pleased to share with you Emmie Lyn’s new release: Black Cat Comes Back

I’m Audrey Fernsby, just a ghost of my former self floating around Moonlight Mansion in Frog Hollow, Georgia.

My death was ruled accidental… but nothing is farther from the truth.

When my precious black cat, Mocha, returns on the same night that two friends, Tilly and Sunny arrive from Maine, I plan to out my ghostly self and enlist their clever sleuthing capabilities.

Mocha knows the truth but can she help catch the killer before someone else ends up dead in my rose bushes?

Black Cat Comes Back can be read as a stand-alone. Chronologically it fits as the PREQUEL before Scents and a Suspect in the Accidental Ghost Detective series.

Black Cat Comes Back has characters from the Mint Chocolate Chip Series. Get started with Book 1 Claws of Justice or catch up with the full series.

Enjoy an exclusive excerpt from Black Cat Comes Back 

My dearest Tilly,

I need your help.

I know, I know, we haven’t spoken since meeting fifty years ago when we were both twenty and crossing the Atlantic together. You, heading off south through Europe then to Africa, and me to England to meet my future in-laws. All of our letters back and forth over the years were wonderful, but now I need you here with your outside perspective. Strange oddities have been happening, and I simply cannot trust anyone. Especially family and friends closest to me.

So, let me get to the details of my proposal. I own a beautiful bed and breakfast named Moonlight Mansion here in the Peach Plains region of Georgia. Frog Hollow is a tiny but beautiful dot on the map. I’m having a weekend soiree in exactly one month. The goal? Outing a traitor. You, my dear friend, will be my second set of eyes and ears. If my memory serves me accurately, you have a unique ability to see through all the bluster people surround themselves with, drilling straight to the nitty-gritty.

I’m counting on you, Tilly. I know you never refuse an adventure or a challenge. I’m giving you both.

I can promise luxurious accommodations. You’ll stay with me in my third-floor apartment with everything you could possibly want or need—beautiful views, canopy bed, private bathroom with a Jacuzzi, and maid service at the touch of a button.

Bring a friend with you; I have plenty of room.

I look forward to seeing you again, dear Tilly. Ta-ta for now.

Always,

Audrey Knight Fernsby

P.S. 142 Live Oak Lane, Frog Hollow, Georgia

Chapter Two
So, here I hovered on the balcony of my mansion in my little town of Frog Hollow, Georgia, waiting for Tilly to arrive. Would my friend drive from Pineville, Maine, because I hinted at a problem and asked her for help?

Of course, everything had changed since a month ago when I sent that letter. And, not in a good way.

Headlights pierced the swirling mist below me. I waited, full of hope as my clock chimed midnight. In an odd kind of way, that seemed appropriate.

Yes! I watched as Tilly, an older, gray-haired version of the young woman I remembered, pulled into the driveway and shut off her engine. I’d recognize her anywhere. Even after these fifty years. Sure, her silver hair was now cropped short instead of those long tresses she sported years ago. But what hadn’t changed was her stately posture that said, Here comes Tilly, watch out world.

She pulled her sweater around herself. Likely the chilly night air seeped into the car windows even before she quietly slipped out of her Volkswagen beetle. An owl hooted overhead. The midnight stillness magnified every frog peep, leaf rustle, and twig snap. I could see excitement sparkle in her eyes as I waited for her to make the trek inside.

But then someone stirred in the passenger seat. A younger woman sat up straight and wiped a string of drool off her face. She looked in the visor mirror, and I could lip-read her question to Tilly. “Where are we?”

I was antsy to catch up with Tilly, but I had to let them settle in at their own pace.

Tilly bent down and looked through the open door. The night mist magnified her voice, and I heard her say, “Come on, Sunny. We’re here. Get out and take a look at Moonlight Mansion. It’s even grander than I’d imagined with turrets, and rooms galore with shutters framing all the windows. It’s a magnificent stone monstrosity.”

I knew she’d like my mansion with its unique intrigue.

Tilly’s companion yawned and groaned and stretched. She looked to be around thirty I guessed, attractive with two dark French braids framing her face. I was anxious to meet Tilly’s friend. She’d told me about her in our correspondence, so I already knew I liked her.

Tilly squeaked, then chuckled when my cat, Mocha, came up behind her and rubbed against her legs.

“Aren’t you the cutest black cat I’ve ever seen,” she said, cradling the feline in her arms. Mocha rewarded the attention with loud purrs and friendly head butts.

“Sunny. I have a surprise for you,” Tilly said.

The passenger door squeaked open. Sunny walked around the front of the red VW, rubbed her eyes, and looked at the mansion. “Are you sure we’re in the right place?”

“According to my GPS, this is 142 Live Oak Lane in Frog Hollow, Georgia.”

Mocha jumped out of Tilly’s arms, and with her tail pointing up to the sky, walked silently to the front door, sat, and licked her paw.

“Our tour guide,” Tilly said and followed the cat up the stone steps.

She was about to push the Victorian brass doorbell when Sunny grabbed her arm and stopped her. “It’s late. Should we just wait in the car until the sun comes up?”

No! Don’t wait, I wanted to shout.

“What. And waste six hours of catching up with Audrey? I don’t think so, Sunny. Besides, the cat wants to go in.” Tilly said, and that seemed to satisfy Sunny.

I heard the deep ding-dong-ding echoing through my mansion.

Mocha looked up at them, stretched, and put her front paws on the door.

It opened with a long squeaky sound.

I glided down to the second-floor landing, careful to stay hidden but still in a position to see what they’d do next.

“I wasn’t expecting the cat to open the door, but maybe Audrey decided to leave it unlocked for us. This is a bed and breakfast, after all, and it seems like a safe neighborhood,” Tilly said. She fluffed her short hair and adjusted a colorful scarf tied around her neck.

“Creepy if you ask me,” Sunny whispered. She leaned forward, swiveling her head to scan the foyer, but staying firmly rooted outside. “You aren’t planning to go inside, are you?”

Mocha disappeared into the dark hallway. In answer, Tilly linked her arm through Sunny’s and pulled her across the threshold. She nudged the door with her elbow, pushing it closed behind them.

“No sense letting any night insects get in,” she said. I appreciated her thoughtfulness, not that those pesky mosquitoes could bother me anymore.

“Now what?” Sunny asked, as they waited in the dark interior.

Then, a blinding light from hundreds of flame-shaped bulbs in my overhead chandelier burst the room into a midday brightness.

“Who are you?” Birdie blurted out in an angry hiss at this unexpected intrusion. In her early fifties, she wore a scowl under her copper and gold hair that stuck out in every direction, and she hated anyone disturbing her beauty sleep. As she moved further down the stairs, her purple satin robe swished around her plump frame.

I called Birdie my manager, but really, she was so much more. Where would Moonlight Mansion be without her eagle eye watching all the details. However, nothing about her businesslike demeanor offered a welcome to Moonlight Mansion.

Tilly, blinking the blindness from her eyes, stared at Birdie. I imagined this was the opposite of the warm greeting she’d expected.

“You’re not Audrey. This is the Moonlight Mansion, isn’t it?”

“Ya got that right, hon, but who the heck are you?”

“Tilly Morris and my friend Sunny Shaw, from Pineville, Maine,” she answered. She put her arm around Sunny’s shoulders and drew her close. “Audrey invited us for the weekend,” she added like that would clear everything up.

“Ya don’t say.” Birdie leaned against the elegant banister that curved from the grand entry to the second level. I waited in the shadows as Birdie tried to dispatch my guests. “We’re full. Or, at least we will be tomorrow.”

I wanted to say something but didn’t dare reveal myself. They needed to get away from Birdie and up to my apartment, or they might decide to turn around and leave. I couldn’t risk that.

Looking exhausted from their long drive, Tilly asked, “Where’s Audrey? She’ll clear everything up.”

“Well, hon, that’s the problem … Audrey died a month ago.”

I was sure I let out a sob, but no one seemed to notice.

Excerpt. ©Emmie Lyn. Posted by arrangement with the publisher. All rights reserved.
 
 

Giveaway: An ebook copy of BLACK CAT COMES BACK + one additional Tule ebook of the winner’s choice

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Meet the Author:

Emmie Lyn grew up in a small town in New England, much like the towns where her female characters live—scenic, quaint and filled with colorful characters. She loves to create mysteries with twists and unexpected turns that draw readers in and capture their imagination.

Emmie lives in rural Massachusetts with her husband and a black cat with an extremely bad attitude. She shares twelve acres with a wide variety of wildlife including deer, bunnies, turkeys, and many songbirds. When she’s not busy thinking of ways to kill off a character (for a book, of course!) she enjoys a cup of tea and chocolate in her flower garden, hiking, or spending time near the ocean.
https://tulepublishing.com/authors/emmie-lynn/

https://www.amazon.com/Black-Comes-Accidental-Ghost-Detective-ebook/dp/B0CW1H2BJN