Page 23 of Secrets of the Eternal Flame

‘Old?’ she huffed. ‘It isancient.I’ll have you know that my family were the first goblins to settle in Witchlight Cove before all those fae types arrived, not to mention the nasty shifter types and those horrible vampires.’

O-kay then. Distrust of other sects wasn’t uncommon – unfortunately – but Gwen was displaying more than a hint of prejudice. I’d bear that in mind when I was lookingfor suspects; maybe she’d pissed off the wrong horrible vampire or nasty shifter type. Assuming, of course, that the items had actually been stolen.

Grimoires and Goblets was one of the few shops in Witchlight Cove that wasn’t on the high street; instead, it was situated opposite the beach. As well as Gwen’s place, there was a fish and chip shop, a couple of shops selling crystals, jewellery and expensive tourist tat, and another one selling everything you needed for a day at the beach: inflatables, buckets and spades, snorkels, crabbing lines. You name it, they had it.

As the sea came into view, Eva looked up at me and whined pointedly. Darn! I’d forgotten that I’d promised to take her to the beach if she queued nicely, which she’d done. ‘Sorry, girl.’ I reached down to stroke her. ‘I need to help this lady first, okay? But I’m sure it won’t take long, and I promise I’ll take you there straight afterwards.’

I waited to see the beat of her tail to show me she understood but instead she gave me a low rumble. It wasn’t often that Eva got pissed off, but I could totally understand where she was coming from. The day was already sweltering and I couldn’t imagine how much worse it would be if you were covered in fur. Not to mention that for the last six weeks she had been ferried back and forth and had spent far more time in a car thanany dog would want to. She was desperate for a proper splash about, one with no time limit.

‘Soon,’ I promised again, feeling guilty.

My gaze landed on a small ice-cream cart and its owner, just as the seller looked up and caught my eye. It was a socially awkward moment but it also gave me the perfect solution to my problem. The lady sold dog ice cream.

I turned to my Eva. ‘How about this? I get you an ice cream that you eat outside the shop, then when I’m done we have a swim? For as long as you want. How does that sound?’

Eva’s tail twitched; she was trying to keep her glare in place, but she couldn’t maintain it. Glaring wasn’t in her nature – though running, romping and retrieving were. Even so, she wasn’t fully on board so I sweetened the pot. ‘I’ll let you have a double scoop.’

Her tail wagged hard and her tongue lolled out of her mouth as she anticipated the cool treat. We had a deal. ‘Come on then, let’s go get it.’ I turned to Gwen. ‘Do you want to head to the shop? I’ll meet you there after I’ve bought Eva her icecream.’

I watched as Gwen’s prune-like face considered the question. ‘It’s alright,’ she said shortly. ‘I’ll wait with you.’ She eyed me. ‘You talk to your dog like it understands.’

I smiled. ‘She’s very bright.’

Gwen shook her head and it was evident that in a few minutes flat I’d gone down in her estimation from hero PI to crazy lady who talks to her dog. Clearly, she didn’t have pets. Everyone with animals speaks to them: that’s the whole point of having them. They stave off loneliness. If Yanni and Ernie hadn’t started making whoopee, I would totally have bought her a dog. I thought I still might.

Clearly Gwen was concerned that I’d change my mind and do a runner before I could help her find the missing items, so she stuck to me like a limpet.

The ice-cream seller was a woman in her early twenties dressed in a blue pinstripe apron. Her little cart had been painted in white-and-blue beach colours. Her sunny blonde hair was pulled back in an austere bun that didn’t reduce her friendly vibe, butdidmake sure she didn’t drop strands into the ice cream.

As was often the case when I met someone new in Witchlight Cove, I couldn’t help wondering where her magic lay. She was working close to the water – was she some sort of shifter or mermaid? But maybe it wasn’t the water that drew her here but selling ice cream? Maybe she was a fae or a witch who used ice magic to create it. It made me think of a twisted little elf boy who’d once used ice to capture other elves to keep him company. I wondered if he was okay now; I hopedso.

Whatever flavour of supernatural she was, she had a warm smile, and judging by the number of people waiting to be served her ice cream was good. That was all Eva cared about – me too, come to think of it.

‘Two scoops of dog ice cream, please,’ I said when I reached the front of the queue.

‘It comes in pots,’ the woman said politely.

‘Two pots, then. Thank you.’

‘And what about you, lovely? It’s such a hot day!’

I admired her easy upselling. ‘Sure, why not? Gwen?’

‘No. Thank you,’ the goblin mumbled, looking at me like I’d suggested root-canal treatment.

The woman beamed. ‘You’ll have to tell me what flavours you’d like,’ she said. ‘But you only have to tell me them once. I don’t forget!’ Her eyes twinkled.

‘What have you got?’ I asked.

‘All the classics – vanilla, chocolate, strawberry,—’

‘Vanilla and strawberry, please.’

She nodded at Eva. ‘Your dog is lovely. Is she your familiar?’

‘Oh, no,’ I said. There were definitely some similarities between my dog and a witch’s familiar, such as her intuition and above-average intelligence, but familiars were born into that role and were more often cats than dogs. Eva had been born in a puppyfarm in London, albeit a puppy farm run by a demon. ‘ She’s my pet.’

Beside me, Eva gave a rumbling growl. ‘Okay, okay! My companion, then?’ I amended. ‘Is that better?’ She growled again. ‘Best friend?’ I tried.

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