“Don’t worry!” Mollie chuckled. “There’s a spike with your name on it! Just as soon as you pass out! I’ll make sure someone is keeping a closer eye from now on!”

“No, I mean now!” Tara exclaimed with what was not quite a pout but well on its way to being one. “I want you to cut my head off!”

“Oh!” Mollie closed the box and stood up again, machete still in her hand. “I see! Are you sure? You could have a bit more time enjoying the stew.”

“It’s starting to get kinda boring.” Tara confided quietly, not wanting to hurt anyone’s feelings. Close beside her, Poppy nodded her agreement. “It’s like a long bath but there’s no toys to play with.” Mollie couldn’t help smiling at this idea and wondering if there was a cap in the market for edible boats or rubber duckies, maybe made from the that same stuff they used to make biodegradable cutlery and plates that were also technically edible. Some kind of bean husk if she remembered correctly? “And I think it would be really fun to get my head cut off!”

“Yes!” Poppy declared, moving back a little so she could point dramatically, thick red soup dripping from her outstretched arm as she shouted. “Off with your head! Off with you head!” Both girls burst into peels of giggles.

“Well, if that’s what you really want!” Mollie chuckled. The sweet little blonde nodded enthusiastically. “Here!” She took off Tara’s pith helmet and handed it to the man who had fetched the watering can. “Make yourself useful again and hold this, would you? Thanks!” She winked at him and blew a little air-kiss in his direction as he took it, making him blush. “You’re a star! Right!” She turned and addressed the guests who had gathered around to watch. “Selena’s heart had already stopped by the time we got to her but this little piglet’s likely to go off like Old Faithful when I take her head off so I’d give us a bit of distance if I were you!” She was pleased to see that Mrs O’Sullivan and her two daughters, the girls’ mums, had joined the small audience to watch the beheading and they all obediently shuffled backwards out of the splash-zone. “Ready?” she asked. Tara nodded, her pretty green eyes sparkling with excitement. “I’m going to start from the back,” Mollie explained, “so if your head doesn’t come off with the first chop, it will at least kill you, okay?” The sweet blonde nodded again. “I know you’ll want to watch,” she smiled kindly at Poppy, “but the blood will really sting if it gets in your eyes so just be careful, okay?”

“I will!” Poppy agreed. “Promise!”

“Good!” Mollie smiled, twisting her now-ungloved fingers into Tara’s hair and lifting her light, skinny little body out of the soup to just below her belly-button. “Here we go!” The audience fell silent and many of them were either filming or taking photographs as Mollie pulled her machete back then swung it hard at the back of the little girl’s neck. Tara shuddered and her eyes went blank as her spinal chord was severed. Blood began to spray under high pressure from the wound and Mollie had to turn her head slightly as she yanked the blade out from where it had embedded itself in the little girl’s neck then took another swing. This second chop was enough to sever the head entirely and blood sprayed upwards like an ornamental fountain then forward towards Poppy for a few seconds before the body sank below the surface just as Selena’s had done.

“I warned you this one was going to be messier!” Mollie laughed as she rammed Tara’s head onto the spike next to Selena’s, took her hat back from the man and placed it playfully back on her head. Fresh, crimson blood was covering her chest and splattered over one side of her face while poor little Poppy, who was still giggling and joining in the applause for the beheading, had taken the brunt of the spray straight to her face! “I think we’re going to be needing a top-up!” Mollie grinned, picking up the empty watering can and passing it to the man who obediently ran off to get it refilled.

Just at that moment, Cole returned, looking distinctly sheepish.

“Sorry!” he exclaimed, seeing the gathered crowd, the heads on spikes and the sticky red splatter on the grass. “I just went for a quick…”

“We don’t need to know what you were doing!” Mollie rolled her eyes. “You abandoned your post! Luckily Mollie and Tara were on the ball or the stew could have been ruined!”

“I didn’t think it would…” Cole gulped. “I was only gone for a couple of minutes!”

“And those couple of minutes could have made all the difference!” Mollie brandished the bloody machete at him which, coupled with the rapidly-congealing blood clinging to her face, torso and arm, made for a rather alarming and intimidating image! “Count yourself lucky the girls called me otherwise I might be making you pick out Selena’s hair by hand!”

“I’m sorry!” Cole exclaimed. “It won’t happen again!”

“You’re damn right it won’t!” Mollie glowered, stepping forward and levelling the end of the machete at his stomach as if planning to run him through with it, or at least give him a nasty poke! There’s one more spike and it’s got your name on it! I’m invoking clause seven seven two of your contract! On your knees!”

“But I didn’t…” Cole stammered. “I was only… Please?” Seeing the fearsome look on Mollie’s face, the young man did drop to his knees but held his hands up in supplication. “At least let me call my mum and tell her…”

“Tell her that you’re a neglectful employee who let everyone down and nearly made this lovely girl stew go to waste?” She tutted angrily. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure she knows! Now, put your hands behind your back or am I going to have to tie them?”

“No…” Cole sighed, defeated. “I’ll cooperate. But please, if I could just…”

“I didn’t say you could talk!” Mollie told him sharply. “Now lean forward. Head down and let’s get this over with.” Cole silently did as he was told and Mollie stood over him. He winced as he saw her shadow on the glass raising the blade high then closed his eyes and waited for the blow. Instead, the assembled guests and Mollie herself erupted into peels of laughter and Mollie gave him a playful kick on the backside which made him fall forward. He got up shakily, looking confused.

“Honestly!” Mollie laughed playfully. “It’s way too easy with you boys sometimes! Everything’s fine!” she grinned. “Don’t worry! The girls called me and there’s plenty of us around anyway. I must say,” she teased, moving the raffia of his grass-skirt aside with the tip of her blade and inspecting the front of his black trunks underneath, “it’s a good job you’ve just been to the toilet or I really think you would have peed your pants just now!”

“It was close!” Cole admitted, trying to cool his emotions and join in the joke with good humour. Mollie ruffled his hair and tapped the end of his nose.

“As if I’m going to contaminate this lovely girl stew with… you!” she teased, pulling a face of mock disgust. “Who knows where you’ve been!” Poppy giggled from within the pot. “Now, go swap with Natasha, would you? I expect she’d like to get a picture with the heads.”

“Ooh lovely idea!” Mrs O’Sullivan beamed as Cole went over to the grill area on slightly unsteady legs. “All my pretty, delicious granddaughters together!”

While Mollie had been teasing Cole, the other man had returned with the watering can which Mollie used to clean herself up a little then poured some over Poppy, hat and all, feeling grateful that the cheap costume accessory was easily washable and not likely to stain, then she lifted the hat off and rinsed off the little brunette’s cute, round face.

“So what about you, Missy?” she asked with a smile. “Ready for the chop? Or do you want to wait until you check out naturally like Selena?”

“Chop for me!” Poppy grinned cheerfully with her infectious, gap-toothed smile. “Off with my head!”

“As you wish!” laughed Mollie, passing the hat to Natasha who had come over on Cole’s instruction. “Ready?” She grabbed hold of Poppy’s hair and lifted the giggling seven year old up just as she had done with her cousin then took a hard swing with the machete. Maybe Poppy’s neck was thinner than Tara’s had been, perhaps there was more force behind her blow this time thanks to the adrenaline or maybe Mollie was just getting the hang of beheading but this time, one blow was all it took and Poppy’s neck stump sent a fountain of crimson blood high into the air before sinking straight down and in no time at all, Poppy’s head was on the third spike, still grinning broadly and complete with explorer hat! “Ooh, wait!” Mollie cried, dropping the machete as Natasha got ready to pose beside the row of pretty, severed heads. “Selena needs her crown!” She retrieved the wreath of artificial flowers that the pre-teen had taken off just before climbing into the pot and placed it carefully back on her head. “There we go!” She stood back to admire her handiwork. “Much better!”


To be continued...