Total pages in book: 68
Estimated words: 65042 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 325(@200wpm)___ 260(@250wpm)___ 217(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 65042 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 325(@200wpm)___ 260(@250wpm)___ 217(@300wpm)
“Hey—where did it go?” I muttered. I looked all around frantically, but there was no sign of the door. It was just gone—utterly gone as though it had never been there.
I was all alone, standing in the middle of the street in a strange town in my nightclothes and I had no idea where I was.
4
DANNI
The wind gusted around me again and I shivered and pulled my bathrobe tight around me. I looked up and down the street, wondering if anyone had noticed my strange entrance or the fact that a magical door had appeared and then disappeared almost as quickly right in the middle of the town.
At first I didn’t see anyone…but then the door to the grocery store opened and out stepped a woman with large, bat-like wings attached to her back.
I frowned—what the hell? Was that some kind of a costume?
She saw me watching her and gave a friendly nod before continuing down the street. Okay, well… it was getting close to Halloween. Maybe they liked to celebrate early here.
My theory seemed to be confirmed as another door opened and a man with a very large, realistic looking bull head mask came out. I supposed he was dressed as a Minotaur, though I swore I’d never seen such a life-like costume before. He was even drinking a cup of what looked like hot chocolate with whipped cream on top. When he got some of the fluffy whipped cream on his upper lip, a long, realistic-looking tongue curled out of his mouth and swiped it off. Wow.
Not knowing where else to go, I headed towards the end of the street. The guy dressed as a Minotaur had come out of the shop called “The Lost Lamb” and the smell of caramel, which I had noticed earlier, had gotten stronger when he did. Maybe they were some kind of bakery. If so, I could buy something and casually ask some questions to find out where I was.
But did I have any money? I felt in the pockets of my robe and found a crumpled five along with the envelope and the piece of paper with the door drawing directions.
It was going to be awkward walking around in public in nothing but my ratty nightshirt and bathrobe and slippers, but I didn’t really have a choice. I tightened the belt of my robe and headed for The Lost Lamb.
A small bell jingled as I stepped inside, and I was instantly surrounded by delicious smells. Caramel…vanilla…and the sweet, warm aroma of hot chocolate all teased my nose. I was relieved to feel the toasty warmth inside the little shop.
It seemed I was the only customer. There was a glass case filled with goodies and to my surprise, some of them were super-sized. I saw cinnamon rolls as big as hubcaps sitting right beside regular sized ones. A row down, I saw a cupcake as big as a real cake. But it was obvious by the cupcake paper and the way the top was decorated that it actually was a super-sized cupcake. Weird. There were also Frisbee-sized chocolate chip cookies next to normal-sized ones and some almond croissants as big as my head.
I was just about to ring the little silver bell on the counter beside the old-fashioned looking cash register when a man dressed in an extremely realistic demon looking outfit came out. He had reddish makeup on and two curving horns coming out of his forehead. Also, his golden eyes appeared to glow. I wondered how in the world he’d managed that. Special contacts, maybe?
“Oh, hello—how can I help you?” he asked in a deep, pleasant voice.
“Oh, um…hi.” I waved weakly. He was extremely handsome and I was reminded all over again that I was a middle-aged, overweight woman dressed in a bathrobe and slippers and not exactly looking my best.
“Can I help you?” he asked again, frowning a little.
“I’d like a hot chocolate,” I blurted, hoping it didn’t cost more than five dollars. I only had that in my pocket because it was change from a delivery I’d ordered a few days back.
“Coming right up!” The handsome devil smiled at me. “You must be new here—I don’t think I’ve seen you around before.”
“Yes, I am. Very new.” I nodded and then tried to think of how I could ask where the town was without sounding crazy. Nothing immediately came to mind so I just stood there mutely, watching as he poured out a thick, creamy-looking hot chocolate.
“Whipped cream?” he asked. “Most of our human customers love it.”
Human customers? He really was taking his Halloween costume seriously!
“Er, sure.” I nodded. “Whipped cream sounds great.”
“All right.” He sprayed a mountain of whipped cream onto the top of the cup and then stepped to the cash register. “That’s one silver please.”
As he spoke, he worked the register with his hands. But as he did, a perfectly formed, forked tail wrapped around the hot chocolate cup and raised it towards me.