Chamber of Vengeance

by Joslyn Chase

About the Author: Joslyn Chase is a prize-winning author of mysteries and thrillers. Any day where she can send readers to the edge of their seats, chewing their fingernails to the nub and prickling with suspense, is a good day in her book. Joslyn’s stories have appeared in numerous publications, including Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, Fiction River, Pulphouse Fiction, and Mystery, Crime, and Mayhem.

Excerpt

Dozens of body parts lay scattered across the room like the aftermath of a bomb.

Tamsin sneezed, then sneezed again as dust motes danced in the beams of yellow light glowing from recessed bulbs in the dim hall. Mood lighting. Decisively spooky. Probably more so now, in the grisly disarray, than when the wax exhibit had been open to customers.

Trying to hide her dismay, Tamsin surveyed the long, narrow chamber. Limbs from discarded mannequins jumbled alongside moth-eaten costumes, their musty odor sending her into another sneezing fit, loud in the stuffy space.

"You said you wanted the display ready by Halloween?"

Vanessa Bradley, of the family-operated Costumes & Curiosities, gave a brisk nod. "Yes, we'd like to host the grand re-opening of our Chamber of Horrors on Halloween."

"That gives us less than three weeks."

An acid voice cut in. "I told her it couldn't be done." Ingrid Bradley, matriarch of the business and holder of the reins.

Tamsin glanced at Kurt, her employer, but he didn't meet her eye. "We can make this happen," he said, "but we must begin immediately."

"Of course," Vanessa said. "Today, if you wish."

Kurt pursed his lips. "Is the original designer still alive?"

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