Haunted Hearts

Chapter One

I tucked the stray strands of black hair behind my ears as I brewed the cup of espresso, the smell filling my body with a sense of calm.

"You know, you're probably the only business owner who actually works the floor with their employees." My best friend Eden said as she leaned against the counter with her arms crossed, waiting for her drink.

I chuckled at her as I finished her drink and slid it across the counter. "I'd never make my employees do something I can't do myself."

"Ok, but since you're the boss that means you can skip out for a bit to get lunch with me." She said, sipping her coffee.

I laughed and wiped my hands on my apron, leaning on the counter with my elbows. "What are you thinking?"

"I'm dying for a fat, juicy burger." She said, eyes almost rolling to the back of her head. "Parker is on some health nut, no red meat kick and I am this close to losing it." She said, holding her pointer finger and thumb up with a minuscule amount of space between them.

"So you come to your best friend who isn't scared of a messy burger." I said humorously while I untied my apron, tossing it into my office as I walked past the open door.

"I prefer my best friend for most situations, thank you." She said, throwing her arm around my shoulders. "Tilly's coming. Parker got Hudson on his health nut kick too and she's even more hangry than I am."

I laughed and wrapped my arm around her waist, my head landing just a couple inches shorter than hers. I laid my head against hers and squeezed her waist, both of us humming happily.

"Eleanor Dubois?" A man questioned, standing in front of us.

We stopped walking and my heart dropped at the sight of the tall, burly man. A pit settled in my stomach that could only be explained by this man being sent by my family.

"Who's asking?" I questioned, taking a step in front of Eden.

The man handed me a manila folder with a nod. "This is for you. Have a nice day." He said before spinning on his heels and leaving my shop.

I furrowed my brows at the folder before opening it, breath catching in my throat at its contents.

"The hell is that?" Eden questioned, looking over my shoulder.

I sighed and grabbed her arm to pull her outside. "Remember everything I've told you about my family?"

"How they're super rich and murderers so you had to run to the other side of the country to hide from them? Yea, rings a bell." She said sarcastically.

"Hey guys, what's going on?" Tilly's voice came from behind us.

We turned to face her and I held up the folder as she walked closer, confusion on her face. "Special delivery from the family."

"Oh, god." She said once she got to us.

I sighed and tucked it under my arm before linking my arms through both of my best friend's. "Let's get burgers and tackle this."

They let out dramatic sighs. "Have I mentioned how much I love you?" Eden said as we began walking towards the burger joint on the corner.

We walked in and ordered, choosing a booth in the back corner so we could be out of the line of sight for whatever the folder's contents were. We silently munched on our burgers while we stared at the folder, as if it'll open itself up so I didn't have to. I sighed deeply and set my burger down, wiping my hands on the napkin before picking up the folder. Tilly and Eden sunk into the booth as if an explosion was about to happen, hiding behind their burger shields.

I chuckled at them as I opened the folder, swallowing the lump in my throat at the first page. A picture of my entire family's lifeless bodies in their New York mansion caused the air to rush out of my lungs and my hand to cover my mouth. I saw plenty of lifeless bodies in the 18 years of being back in New York, but it's entirely different when it's your parents, siblings, and extended family.

"What is it?" Tilly asked, peeking around her burger.

I sighed and set the picture face down on the table. "Just my murdered family."

Eden choked on her burger, causing Tilly to smack her back. "You have a morbid sense of humor, El." She said after catching her breath.

"I wish I was joking." I mumbled, reading the next page. My eyes got wide and I dropped the paper onto the table, staring at it in shock.

"What? What's wrong?" Tilly questioned, grabbing the paper I was reading. Her and Eden read it over for a bit before gasping, smacking their hands over their mouths. "Oh my god El, you're officially rich."

"Like, rich rich. With a damn castle." Eden said, reading the paper again.

I sighed and took a bite out of my burger. "I don't understand why they would leave it all to me." I said through my mouthful.

"Because you're literally the last one to inherit everything. And by the looks of it, it's literally everything. Like, decades of everything." Eden said.

I sighed and chewed on my lip as I finished reading over everything in the packet. I put all the pages back and set it on the table, mulling over all the information floating around in my head.

"Crazy idea." I said, looking my best friends in their eyes.

"You give me the worst heartburn every time you say that." Tilly said.

I squinted my eyes at her before continuing. "Edie, you reminded me earlier that I own my own shop which means I can come and go as I please." I said, causing the girls to nod in confusion. I took a deep breath and slowly let it out before continuing. "I'm going to France to sort through this damn castle. Get time off from work and I'll fly you and your men out too." They both gasped before excitedly clapping their hands.

"We're going to France!!"