by K E O'Connor
“It’s nothing that fun.”
“A pile of yeti poop?”
“Yuck! I do not touch the hard stuff.” Wiggles bounced on his paws. “It’s nasty. You’ll love it.”
“Okay, let’s take a look.” I was getting nowhere trailing around with Dewey and Bart.
Wiggles glanced at Rhett. “You’re drooling. Tempest doesn’t look that hot first thing in the morning.” He turned and raced away before I could yell at him.
I hurried after Wiggles and Rhett joined me. “Don’t mind Wiggles. He’s always rude when he’s hungry.”
Rhett chuckled. “He must get hungry a lot.”
“That hellhound is always starving.”
We followed behind Wiggles and entered a small clearing close to the swamp.
“What is it?” I asked Wiggles.
“I’m no police dog, but I’ve picked up the smell of blood. And it looks like there’s been a fight.”
I looked around the clearing. There were scuff marks on the ground as if people had been running around and dragging things. “Dewey, Bart, get over here,” I yelled.
They wandered over, looking miserable, pale and grumpy.
“Does this place look familiar?”
They both looked around and shook their heads.
“It all looks the same to me,” Dewey said. “It might look better after I’ve had breakfast. Your treat.”
“Wiggles is right.” Rhett examined the ground. “There’s blood here.”
“Blood!” Dewey said. “Is it a wounded animal?”
Rhett shrugged. “It’s hard to say. This doesn’t look good. There’s a lot of blood.”
I glared at Dewey and Bart. “Are you sure there’s nothing you want to tell me about what happened here last night? You didn’t have a fight with Serath and it got out of hand?”
“No!” Bart said.
Dewey nudged him. “It wasn’t a fight exactly.”
“You did hit Serath?” I glanced at Dewey’s puffy knuckles.
“We had a disagreement. It was nothing bad. I don’t think blood was spilled.”
“You and Serath met again after your argument outside Cloven Hoof?”
“Oh! Yes, we did. I remember.” Bart rubbed the end of his nose. “He charged after us and tackled Dewey to the ground.”
“He did not! I dodged him.”
Bart laughed. “You both hit the ground hard. It was hilarious.”
“The only hilarious thing around here is you,” Dewey muttered.
“How bad was the fight?” I asked.
Dewey raised his hands. “It was nothing. We had a few angry words, swung a few punches, and Serath flounced off. He’s lousy in a fight. He gets all girly and squeals. No offense, Tempest.”
“Offense taken.” I looked around and sighed. “I’d better alert Angel Force. If something bad went down, they’ll need to know.” I used my mobile snow globe to send a message to Dazielle.
I was tempted to scarper, knowing how officious Angel Force got with anything like this, but they’d only come after me later if I disappeared.
Whatever happened here, it was not good. I had a bad feeling Dewey and Bart had done something horrible to their missing friend.
Chapter 4
It took less than ten minutes before three angels descended from the sky.
Dazielle hurried over, her outfit its usual pristine white and her long, blonde hair gleaming. “Have you touched any of the evidence?”
“Good morning to you,” I said. “Wiggles has bounced around the scene a few times, but other than that, we’ve kept our distance.”
Dazielle introduced herself to Dewey and Bart before standing and staring at the clearing with her hands on her hips. “We need to get this area clear, so you don’t tamper with the evidence.”
“Of a crime that might not have been committed,” I said.
“You’re not the expert here,” Dazielle said. “Stand back while we see what we’re dealing with.”
I was happy to get out of their way and waited with Dewey and Bart while the angels did their work.
“You’d better not be hiding anything,” I said to them quietly. “The angels will question you about where Serath is. If your fight was serious, come clean. He could be lying somewhere, badly injured.”
Dewey shot me a sly look. “Nothing bad happened.”
“You argued at Cloven Hoof. What was that about?”
“A cute bit of skirt. Serath was interested in one of your bar staff. We knew he had no chance. We yanked his chain about it, and he took offense. He is lousy at taking a joke.”
“You were fighting over a woman?”
“It’s true,” Bart said. “Serath has the worst luck with girls. He has an eye for the ones who enjoy turning him down.”
Dewey nodded. “You’d think he was cursed, the way they reject him. He’s a total failure when it comes to finding a girlfriend.”
“And you continued that fight after you left Cloven Hoof?” I glanced at the angels who were busy doing I wasn’t sure what, but it gave me time to grill Dewey and Bart.
“Serath carried on the fight. He must have doubled back and followed us into the woods. Bart was telling the truth. I got jumped and defended myself,” Dewey said.
“Why use your fists?” I asked. “You’re both magic users.”
Dewey shrugged and scuffed a foot along the ground. “I’m not all that good when it comes to magic.”
Bart chuckled. “You’re lousy at magic. Even a basic spell backfires.”
“Shut it,” Dewey muttered. “You’re no better. You’d make a simple wart spell go wrong because you never concentrate.”
“My boys! My boys!” Puddles raced through the forest, her blue hair puffing out around her ruddy cheeks.
Dewey grimaced and forced a smile. “Auntie Puddles.”
She flung her arms around him. “I’ve been so worried about you. When I heard Angel Force had come into the forest, I panicked and thought that something bad had happened to you.”
“Nothing bad has happened to him,” I said. “But Serath is missing.”
Puddles continued to cling to Dewey as he struggled to get out of her embrace. “I’m sure Serath is fine. I’m just happy to have my Dewey back.”
So much for caring about all of her boys. “We found signs of a fight,” I said.
“Oh, I’m sure it’s got nothing to do with Dewey.” Puddles licked her thumb and wiped a smudge off Dewey’s cheek. “He doesn’t like to fight.”
“He liked to fight last night,” I said.
Puddles finally released her hold on Dewey and turned to me, a scowl on her face. “What are you suggesting?”
“I’m suggesting your precious nephew might have hurt Serath.”
“It was a disagreement,” Dewey whined. “No one got hurt.”
“You heard him. They had a small disagreement. A bit of rough and tumble, like boys always do. It’s nothing to concern yourself with. And you shouldn’t have involved the angels.”
I gaped at her. “Less than an hour ago, you were off to force the angels into action because you couldn’t find Dewey.”
She flapped a hand at me. “I overreacted. It’s not important now. Not now I have my baby back.” She rained kisses on Dewey’s cheek while Bart looked on with sly amusement.
Dazielle walked over and nodded at Puddles. “There are signs of a struggle. We think the blood on the ground is not from an animal.”
“Whatever happened here, it has nothing to do with Dewey, does it?” Puddles looked at her nephew, whose face was smeared in her sticky pink lip gloss.
“Of course not, Auntie. Serath is a friend of mine.”
“There you go,” Puddles said as if that settled the matter.
“We need to talk to you both.” Dazielle addressed her comment to Dewey and Bart.
“They will co-operate if they must, but they have nothing to do with whatever you’re looking at here,” Puddles said. “Come on, boys. It’s
time we left. You look like you need a bath with plenty of bubbles and a big breakfast after your adventures.”
“An adventure where one of their friends went missing.” I glowered at Puddles, but there was nothing I could do to stop her from taking them away. No one was claiming they’d been injured, and there was no sign of Serath, so the blood might not even be his.
I looked around and noticed Rhett had slipped away as soon as the angels arrived. He was not a fan of Angel Force. I guess I’d never find out what he was doing skulking around in the forest. It was probably better that way.
I sighed as I watched Puddles go. At least she had her nephew back and would stop hassling me to find him.
Before I had a chance to walk away and seek out my own delicious breakfast, a hand landed on my shoulder.
“Tempest, we need a word,” Dazielle said.
I gritted my teeth as I turned to Dazielle. “This isn’t my business. I was helping Puddles find her nephew. Now she’s done that, I’ll leave the rest to you. As you said, you’re the expert.”
Dazielle shook her head. “Let’s have a chat over coffee.”
“Did somebody say coffee and cake?” Wiggles raced over and bounced on his paws.
“Nobody mentioned cake,” Dazielle said. “It’s not even nine in the morning.”
Wiggles glared at her, and his eyes flared red. “You call yourself an angel and you deny a hungry hound a treat. I was the one who found the murder scene.”
“It’s not a murder scene,” I said.
Wiggles snorted. “Well, the scene of evil doings. You don’t find blood like that and figure a fairy picnic went down.”
“You might. Fairies can be spiteful,” I said.
Wiggles nodded. “True. They have sharp teeth and attitudes, especially the ones with sparkles.”
Dazielle sighed. “I’ll see what I can do about cake, so long as you stop talking about fairies.”
I was tempted but could not be swayed by the offer of cake for breakfast. “We’ve already eaten, and I’ve got a bed waiting. You can deal with this without me.”
“I’ve no doubt I can.” Dazielle arched an eyebrow. “However, you were one of the last people to see Serath before he vanished.”
I took a step back. “You’re thinking I’ve done something to Serath?”
Dazielle nodded sagely. “Let’s go to the cafe. All I want to do is find out what you know.”
It looked like it would be cake for breakfast after all. I grudgingly followed her through the trees with Wiggles as we left the other angels at the scene and headed to the Unicorn’s Trough.
Dazielle was true to her word as we settled at a table. She ordered hot drinks and three large slabs of coffee and walnut cake.
I decided she should go first since she’d insisted on this interview. We had great fun staring at each other in tense silence as we waited for the food.
Brogan Costin brought over our cake and coffee. “Starting early on the sweet stuff, ladies.”
“I need it. The angels are being spiteful.” I cut off a large piece of cake and stuffed it in my mouth. I groaned at the perfect combination of sweetness and slightly bitter walnut.
Brogan grinned. “Let me know if you need anything else.” He walked away from the table.
Dazielle ate her own cake, sipping on her coffee delicately as if showing me how a person with table manners ate.
I felt a little better after I’d finished my cake. I sat back and raised my eyebrows. “Okay, question me. What do you need to know?”
“Are you friends with Dewey Lavern and his buddies?”
“Definitely not. I grew up with Dewey. He always played the fool and never took anything seriously. I haven’t seen him for over a year. He comes to visit Puddles, but I think it’s because he gets his arm twisted by his mom. I don’t think he enjoys his visits.”
Dazielle nodded. “I’m also not a fan of Dewey Lavern. He’s got a record, you know.”
I leaned forward. “I didn’t know that. What’s he done?”
“It mostly involves his inability to hold his alcohol. A few fights, nothing serious.”
“Dewey needs to grow up.”
“I don’t disagree.” Dazielle placed her mug down. “Puddles informed us you threw them out of Cloven Hoof last night.”
I grimaced. Puddles needed to learn to keep her mouth shut. “They were hassling the customers and staff. When Dewey started on me and Axel, I decided that was enough. It was all above board. They were given fair warning. They threw the first punch, and Suki and I ended the fight.”
“I heard Dewey say something about an argument over a girl.”
“I know nothing about that. They annoyed nearly everyone they spoke to in Cloven Hoof. I should never have allowed them in.”
Dazielle brushed crumbs off her fingers. “We should head over there and speak to your staff.”
I checked the time. “I’ll speak to my staff. It will only be Merrie there this early.”
“Your bar manager?”
“That’s right.”
“Then she should have seen what happened. She can shed light on who Dewey and his friends were sweet talking.”
I grimaced. I didn’t want Dazielle, or any of her angels, poking around Cloven Hoof. “She’ll help if she can. But it will be easier if I ask the questions.”
“Why? Does Merrie have something to hide?”
“Merrie is one of the most honest people I know. If there’s anything useful to tell, she’ll reveal it.”
“We’re going now,” Dazielle said. “The sooner we find Serath, the better.”
“He’s drunk and asleep in the forest. Go look for him there.”
“Most likely he is, but we need to make sure, especially if Puddles is involved. She can be a little... trying.”
I couldn’t argue with that. “Puddles doesn’t seem worried now Dewey is safe.”
“I like to be thorough.”
“You’re wasting your time thinking anyone at Cloven Hoof is involved in Serath going missing,” I said as we left the Unicorn’s Trough and walked along the main street toward my bar. “I vet my staff. I trust them all.”
“I’m sure you do, but it doesn’t hurt to ask.” Dazielle glanced at me. “And I hear you have a new batch of Mexican dried mushrooms in stock.”
“Do you want a taste test?”
“How kind of you to offer. That’s put me in a good mood, so I won’t be too tough on your staff.”
I snorted a laugh. Who knew angels could be so devious?
As we entered Cloven Hoof, I spotted Merrie behind the bar. Her smile dimmed, and her gaze cut to Dazielle. “Is everything okay?”
“It’s nothing to worry about,” I said to her.
“It is something to ponder, though. A customer has gone missing,” Dazielle said. “I need to know what your involvement is.”
So much for her not being tough on the staff.
Merrie’s eyebrows shot up, and she lowered the glass she was holding to the bar. “Who’s disappeared?”
“Serath Duckle,” I said. “Dewey Lavern’s friend. He was the tall, blond one.”
Dazielle slid me a glare. “What can you tell me about his activities last night?”
“Not much.” Merrie glanced at me, and I nodded. We had no secrets to hide from Angel Force.
“What did he do? Who did he talk to?”
“He mainly spoke to his friends,” Merrie said. “They’d had a lot to drink.”
“Did they bother you?” Dazielle asked.
I headed around the bar and returned with some speciality Mexican mushrooms. I placed them in front of Dazielle and gave her a pointed look.
She shrugged and took a mushroom.
“It wasn’t anything I couldn’t handle,” Merrie said. “Dewey was a bit suggestive, but I shut him down. They were sensible enough to know not to annoy the staff too much, or we’d have refused to serve them.”
Suki strolled into the bar from the cellar, s
tretching her arms over her head. She froze when she saw Dazielle, and her eyes grew wide.
“Don’t worry, Suki,” I said. “She’s not here for you.”
“I do want to talk to you,” Dazielle said. “You might have been the last person to see Serath before he disappeared.”
Suki slowly lowered her arms. “Serath?”
“He was one of those three guys we tossed out of here last night,” I said to her. “One of them has gone missing.”
“And we’ve found evidence that suggests he may have been injured,” Dazielle said. “In the forest. The forest you know extremely well.”
“Hey, no interrogating Suki.” I grabbed the mushrooms away from Dazielle. “She’s not involved with this. And you know what happens when Suki gets nervous.”
Dazielle shifted in her seat. She’d been knocked on her behind by Suki before. “What did you see after you threw them out of Cloven Hoof?”
Suki twisted a long dreadlock around one finger. “Nothing! They walked away. It looked like they were arguing, then the blond one walked off on his own. They didn’t come back. I wouldn’t have let them in if they had.”
“Serath is most likely licking his wounds somewhere,” I said. “He’s sulking after the fight.”
“Maybe those wounds are too severe for him to lick,” Dazielle said.
“Or he could have left Willow Tree Falls,” I said. “Serath didn’t want to hang around with Dewey and Bart, so he left early.”
“Did he speak to any other bar staff while he was here?” Dazielle asked.
“He had a few words with Izzie,” Merrie said. “When I realized they were a handful, I took over and served them. The girls don’t need to be hassled.”
“What words did Serath say?”
“The stupid words drunken guys say when they’re trying to impress their friends. It was nothing. Besides, the team can handle boys like Dewey and his friends. We do it almost every night.”
The snow globe on the bar shook, and I activated it.
“Tempest, you need to come take a look at something.”
I was surprised to hear Rhett’s voice. “What’s up?”
“I think I’ve found Serath, and he’s not looking good.”
“You found our missing guy?” Dazielle butted in on the conversation.
