Chapter 4

The Tavern of Terror is located at the foot of Honey Lake, along the strip that houses other restaurants and businesses, in a giant run-down mansion that just so happens to overlook the water. The building is tall and dilapidated and looks as if it's worked hard its whole life to turn into the perfect haunted house for Honey Hollow.

"How do I look?" Niki asks, adjusting her ears and tail. She's donned a black leotard and not much else, with the exception of those pink glittering ears sitting over her head and that whip she's wielding that she's trying to pass off as a tail.

"Like a cat in heat." I adjust my own tail. "How do I look?"

"Like a bunny who showed up at the wrong mansion."

"If Cooper is here, then it's the right one," I say, adjusting the pink ears sitting on top of my head. I, too, have opted for a leotard, white with matching tights, along with a pink tutu and sparkling pink heels that are guaranteed to give me a parting gift—blisters. "The things I do for love," I say, smashing my toes to the edge of the shoes in hopes to stave off the obvious. "Not that I'm in love with him," I quickly correct. "I'm just dressing to impress the man?—"

"The man you're destined to bury not marry?" she teases.

"I was going to say the man who is the father of my puppy. And I am not going to bury or marry the man."

"You may not be the one burying him, but you'll be the reason someone out there has to."

"I don't want to talk about it," I say as I snarl at the haunted hovel before us. And I'm using the word hovel loosely.

Can a mansion qualify as a hovel?

If any oversized house can qualify, it's this one. Spiderwebs and skeletons abound, there's a shadow of a creature with horns that stands fifteen feet tall pressed against the house, and purple and red lights flicker throughout every last window.

The sound of eerie mood music emanates from the speakers and the fog machines surrounding this place are pumping out so much mist it's seeping over half of the lake from what I can see.

The sun has set, and all of the ghouls and boys of this spooky town have dressed to the haunted nines for the night. It doesn't hurt that there's a big sign out front that reads, wear a costume and get a free cannoli or five dollars off the haunted house attraction!

I think we all know I'm here for the free cannoli. My life has inadvertently become a haunted house attraction that I can't seem to escape from. And the costume I'm forced to wear day to day clearly didn't come with a thinking cap because if it had, I wouldn't get myself into half the bullet-shaped pickles I'm in.

A spooky dressed crowd passes us by as they head inside, and I pull Niki in close.

"We'd better get in there before they run out of dessert," I tell her.

"They're not running out of nothin'," Niki says. "I stopped by Hairway to Heaven before I got dressed. And while Mom did up my do, she gave me the rundown on this place. It turns out, this haunted house is just a gimmick for the grand opening to get the town to try out the new restaurant. Once the calendar turns to November, they'll be hanging a sign with the real name, The Tavern on the Lake. It's an Italian joint owned by two brothers. According to Mom's connections, they're already giving Mangias a run for their money as the best Italian food in town."

"No kidding?" I gasp at the thought.

Mangias is a cute little Italian eatery right across the street from the Cutie Pie Bakery and Cakery. And seeing that Main Street butts right up to the lake, it's just a stone's throw from here.

And let's hope they don't throw any stones. Italians can be a competitive bunch. Let's hope they don't throw any meatballs either.

"Well, Mangias is still my favorite," I say. "I know which side my garlic bread is buttered. Let's get inside and see what they're up against."

We head through the double door entry and the foyer is black as pitch, save for a candle next to the reception counter. And standing before us just so happens to be the scariest witch I've ever seen—Naomi Turner.

"What are you supposed to be?" she snarls my way. "Cute cat ears, Niki," she seethes without ever taking her eyes off of me.

Figures. Why do mean girls always love Niki?

"Don't mind me," I tell her. "I'm just here to hop right through your worst nightmare." I'd laugh if it wasn't true. The thought of me pumping a bullet into the heart of the man we both seem to be vying for sounds like a nightmare for everyone involved—Cooper included.

"You are my nightmare," she says with a malevolent smile. "Or am I yours? Will you be dining first or walking through the house of horrors in order to work up your appetite?"

"We're cutting right to the chase—free cannolis," Niki says and I can only dream she's right.

Those just so happen to be two of my favorite words, free and cannoli. Put the two together and you've got a delicious dream come true.

"Dinner for two it is," she says, pulling out a round wooden dish and then promptly taking off her head and placing it onto the platter.

Naomi's head blinks up at us and smiles. "Happy Halloween."