Neither of the men had exactly been lightweights, but then both had been found in comprised situations by the killer. At least that appeared to be the case.
Ralph had been taken down to the ground by Mabel and Tommy, and Jefferson had likely been killed in his sleep. Another reason to suspect a woman killer, in my opinion. Most of us women knew the stack was dealt against us, strength-wise. It made sense to wait for a better opportunity.
I pulled a bottle of water from my pack and took a sip only to spray water everywhere when a hand touched my shoulder.
“What are you doing here?” Opie asked, kneeling beside me in the grass. And here I’d thought I had chosen my hiding spot well. Bushes covered me from just about every angle.
“Besides having a heart attack and watering the bushes, you mean?”
He gave that lopsided smile. “Yeah, besides that.”
I jerked my head at the club. “What do you think I’m doing?”
“I think you’re treading on an official police investigation involving not one but two murders.” His hand ruffled through his hair. “You need to go home, Amie. Let us handle this one. Please?”
I thought about it, then remembered the Goddess’ words. We were her army now. No, that wasn’t right. We were her guardians. As such, it was as much up to me as it was to the police. Not that the police would understand our jurisdiction.
“I’m sorry, Opie... I mean, Trevor. I don’t think I can.” I patted my pack. “But I’ve got my taser, and I’m ready for just about anything.”
He just looked at me.
“Okay, so you scared me. Bully for you.” I paused. “How did you know I was here?”
“Your car is pulled off down the road. Where else would you be this far out from town?”
Reminder to self. Next time make a bit more effort to hide my vehicle.
“You know I could take you in for obstructing the police, right?”
“Huh, really? Me just sitting here in the bushes minding my own business is keeping you from doing your job? In what way?”
He blew out an exasperated breath and gave up, finally settling in beside me on the grass. “Well, for one, you took my spot.”
Oh.
“Sorry about that. But I’m more than willing to share.” I scooted over closer to the bushes on the right to give him more room. “I kind of figured you and your dad would be focused on Crazy Al right about now.”
“Dad is taking care of that angle of things. But I don’t think it’s him. Might be someone that takes his words to heart a little too much though. That’s what Dad is trying to find out. Who Al’s biggest admirers were.”
“And you ended up here.” What do you know? Me and Sherlock had been right, coming to the same obvious conclusion that the law enforcement had. Kind of made me feel a bit of pride. I could so rock this investigation thing.
“Yeah, well, don’t get all full of yourself because you beat me here. We have other things we’re looking into too.”
“Like what?” I was going for a friendly conversational question, but he wasn’t biting. Instead, he laughed.
“Sorry, kiddo, you’ll have to get there on your own.” Then he sobered. “But I really do wish you’d sit this one out, Amie. If Dad is right, and we’re talking about a vigilante, it could get pretty ugly pretty fast. I’d rather you weren’t at the heart of it when that happened.”
I thought about it for a minute. “But if it is a guy or girl just trying to clean up the town, wouldn’t that mean I was actually safer? They wouldn’t hurt someone that wasn’t on their list, would they?”
He shook his head. “Don’t count on that. For one, they might start thinking about the old saying that you have to break a few eggs to make an omelet.” He leaned forward and kissed the top of my head. “I don’t want my little egg to be broken.”
Ah. He almost had me. Almost. But I didn’t want my big egg broken either.
“And what’s for two?”
He took a deep breath. “I’m not so sure that Dad is right. I’m thinking we might just be talking a run of the mill serial killer.”
“Any connections you found between the two victims besides the club?”
“Nice try, but I didn’t answer the other variation of that question, and I’m not going to answer that one either.”
I shrugged. Me and Sherlock would find them if there were any. Just give us time.
A car pulled in and parked in the building’s somewhat busy yard and a woman got out. A woman showing a whole lot of skin. I pulled out my binoculars and focused in on her.
Jean Pratchett.
“Where did you get those?”
I handed them to him. I’d seen what I needed to. For now, anyway.
“That’s Jean, isn’t it?”
“Yup. Must have decided to make the most of her kids being in school and her husband being at work.”
I shivered. I would never have thought her capable of selling herself like this. You really didn’t know what people could do, did you?
“Not someone I expected to see here,” he said, starting to hand me back my binoculars, then pausing. “Mind if I keep these for a bit?”
The thought crossed my mind to rub in the fact that I had them and he didn’t, but for just this once I let it go. “Sure. But if another woman shows up, you have to tell me who they are and how long they stay, okay?”
He considered that and then nodded. When I started to stand into a stooped-over position, he looked confused. “You mean you’re actually going to do what I asked and go home?”
“As it happens, yes. Opal’s expecting me. But I’m holding you to your word about telling me if another woman shows up. You agreed.”
“That was before I knew you were leaving.”
Like that mattered.
“I don’t suppose you have another bottle of water and maybe a granola bar or something in that pack of yours?”
I dug out a small heap of comfort food and a bottle of liquid refreshment, then kissed his cheek and started to leave. Then I remembered that we had a date for that night.
“Are we still on for tonight?”
He grinned up at me. “Oh yeah. And remember the comfortable clothes. Yoga pants and a T-shirt would work great.”
“Where are we going, the gym?”
His grin got bigger, but he zipped his lips and threw away the key.
Yeah, real adult.
But then so was sticking out your tongue at someone.
Chapter 19
I GOT HOME WITH TEN minutes to spare. That was early, dang it.
Far too early to find my aunt Opal outside on the porch with her purse resting beside her in the swing. It took that sight to make me realize that her car wasn’t parked out front where it should have been.
“What’s up, Opal?”
She looked at me with troubled eyes. “No lesson today, Amie. And I have a favor to ask you. I loaned my car to Ruby and Arc, and now I need to go into town. Could you please give me a lift?”
That stopped me in my tracks. Aunt Opal rarely asked for favors. Especially from me. I must really be improving for this to happen.
“Sure thing.” Then I glanced at the house. I’d drank a lot of water in my short time on the stakeout. “Could I take a minute to use the restroom first?”
She nodded, and I ran. I was back, and we were headed down the drive in less than three minutes. That’s when it hit me that I had no idea where we were actually going. Opal must have realized that too.
“If you could take me to the sheriff’s office, please, and wait outside for me a bit, I’d greatly appreciate it.”
I stole a glance at her. “Not a problem. Can I ask why, or is this a secret meeting?”
“No secret. The sheriff told me you helped out with the pictures at the trailer park this morning, so you know what happened there.”
“I do.”
She looked out the side window, not meeting my eyes. That had me worried. Please, Goddess, don’t let Opal ha
ve done another karma spell. Or worse, two.
“The foster parents they use for temporary housing for children are at their capacity. There isn’t any place to send poor Nancy. Sheriff Taylor reached out to me, and I agreed to take her in.”
The car swerved as I jerked my head toward her then back to the road. “How do you think the town will feel about a family of witches taking in a poor, innocent little girl? Won’t they think we’ll corrupt her with our evil ways?”
Opal grunted. “The townsfolk that think like that can go get themselves stuffed. The girl needs help right now, and there isn’t anybody else stepping up to the plate to give it.” She hesitated. “Probably just as well too. Nancy has shown traces of real talent. I’ve been watching her for a while now.”
Then why was I just now hearing it?
“Does she have ancestral power?” Most true witches, the ones with real magic, came from a long line of witches. Generation upon generation of them. Like us.
“Not that I’m aware of, no. But not every birth is written in the books. Especially when it comes to the fathers involved. A few sneak in that we don’t find out about until later. The earlier we get to them the better.”
I thought of what the girl had been through, and it was enough to create more than a little of worry. “You know she’s likely to be pretty messed up.” I paused. “If you’ve been watching her, then you know her father was abusive, right?”
She continued staring out the window. For a long moment, I thought she wasn’t going to answer me.
“I knew. But the sheriff said there wasn’t anything we could do. The child protective services got involved at one point, but she fell through the cracks. Not nearly enough manpower to help all the children who need it. Something needs to be done about that.”
I swallowed, not without difficulty. “You didn’t, did you?”
Finally, she looked over at me. “Didn’t what?”
“Do something about it. In Nancy’s case in particular.”
“No, Goddess help me, I didn’t. But I’m not saying that thought didn’t cross my mind. I know that murder is an awful thing, but I can’t help but think that the world is a better place without those two men in it. Now, maybe, Nancy has a real chance at life. At least, if I have anything to say about it.”
Two very different thoughts hit my brain at the same time, causing me no little distress. The first was that the sheriff just might be right about the town rallying behind the vigilante killer. If that was the case. I would even admit to feeling a bit the same way myself. Right or wrong didn’t really come into it. The men simply deserved to die. Which kind of left me in a moral quandary. Maybe the rest of the town as well. At least I wasn’t quite ready to light my pitchfork on fire and join in. Hopefully, none of the other people in town would reach that point either.
The other thought was a more personal one. That one won out in the end.
“So, bringing Nancy home isn’t a temporary thing?”
Opal was back staring out the window. “Only time will tell on that one. But I will say that I’m open to that.”
Good to know.
NORMALLY, GOING INTO the Sheriff’s Station didn’t bother me much. Maybe because I have friends who work there.
Today was different.
I couldn’t stop thinking how very scary this place had to be to a girl that hadn’t even hit her teen years yet. Not to mention the fact that she’d already been put through the wringer today. I couldn’t imagine what she must have felt when she found her father. Sadness with a touch of relief? At least she wouldn’t have to worry about coming home to a beating for no other reason than her worthless father had lost another hand at the cigar club.
That didn’t change the fact that she was now an orphan. Opal had told me before we got here that Nancy’s mom had died at childbirth. Yet another reason for Jefferson to treat the girl like dirt instead of a person, I guess. As far as I could remember, I don’t think I’d ever met the man in life. I was kind of glad of that now.
Opal had said I didn’t have to go in with her, but I did anyway. Nancy had been through enough, and I know how intimidating my aunt can be even at the best of times. I was hoping me being there would help put the girl at ease a little.
Imagine my surprise when the girl ran into Opal’s arms and the hug was immediately returned. I think maybe Opal had downplayed just how much she’d been ‘watching’ the girl.
“Thank you for agreeing to do this, Opal.” Sheriff Taylor stood from behind his desk and walked over to us. Then he looked at me. “I had a female deputy go over to their trailer and start packing up Nancy’s things. If you could swing by there and grab them on your way home, I’d appreciate it.”
The girl shivered in Opal’s arms.
“Maybe I should go after I drop her and Opal off at the farmhouse,” I said, watching the girl shake.
“Even better.” He reached out to touch Opal’s shoulder. “I put in a rush on the paperwork to get you registered as a foster parent, but it will take time. You ready for that?”
She nodded. “Will there be a problem with me keeping her at the farmhouse until the forms get pushed through?”
He rubbed his chin. “I shouldn’t think so. If there is, I’ll do everything in my power to make it go faster. I can’t really promise you more than that.”
“I understand.” Opal pushed the little girl back just enough so that she could look into her eyes. “Are you ready to come to the farmhouse, Nancy?”
The girl nodded, then looked over to me as if asking if that were okay by me. I smiled at her.
“I think you’ll like it there, Nancy. And I have a funny feeling my new kitten is going to really take a shine to you.” I wasn’t lying. There was something about the newly orphaned that brought out the Goddess in all of us. Destiny would probably not let the girl out of her sight for a few days.
But that reminded me. “What about school?”
The sheriff smoothed down his mustache in a scratching type motion. “I’ve talked to her teacher, and I don’t think that will be a problem. There is only a week left of school before summer break, and Nancy here is quite the smart little girl. Missing one week won’t hurt her.”
“Can I get the stuff out of my locker?” The girl’s voice was soft and very hesitant. Like she was jinxing something by even asking.
“I’ll make sure of it,” the sheriff said.
I noticed the girl’s shoulders relaxed a little after that. Then I realized that her school locker was probably the safest place the girl had to keep things important to her. The things there probably meant much more to her than the few items I’d seen in her room.
And when you think about how tiny those lockers are, that was an incredibly sad thought.
We all piled in my tiny bug. Opal surprised me yet again by squeezing herself into the back seat with Nancy. I was seeing a whole new side of my aunt lately. It looked like maybe I’d been wrong about the kind of unbending person I’d always thought her to be. But then, I was growing by leaps and bounds lately too. That could well be part of it.
Maybe I was just seeing her out of wiser eyes.
When I pulled up at the farmhouse, Opal turned to me. “Why don’t you show Nancy around—give her the grand tour, so to speak, while I fix things up inside a bit?”
Nancy didn’t look so sure about leaving Opal’s side, but whatever Opal had planned, there was a reason for it. When I saw Lily’s van pull into the drive with both her and Mom in the front seat, I kind of guessed what was up.
“Maybe you two could start by exploring the backyard and the upstairs, and then join us downstairs in oh, say... an hour?”
Nancy took a deep breath and nodded, but her head was down. I could tell she really didn’t want to be with strangers right now. I didn’t blame her. The world of strangers is a very scary place when you didn’t have a family that had your back.
I put my hand gently on her shoulder. “Let’s start with our new meditation garden. B
illy Myers is building a gorgeous gazebo for us.”
She jerked her head to look up at me. “Billy’s here?”
A few seconds of listening confirmed that. “Sure sounds like it. I take it you know him?”
Nancy gave me a timid smile. “He’s nice to me. Sometimes Dad forgot to put money on my lunch card, and I guess someone told Billy about it. After that, every morning when I went to school there was a brown paper bag on my desk with a note from him.” The color rose in her cheeks. “The food was nice, but the notes are what really helped.”
Ah. Unless I was mistaken, there was a little bit of schoolgirl crush going on. That was fine, but I’d need to have a talk with Billy about it. He’d have to know not to encourage her.
When we rounded the corner, and he came into view, she called out to him. When he turned, his eyes lit up when he saw my companion.
“Nancy! I’ve been so worried about you.” He jogged over to us and gathered her up into a big bear hug, actually picking her up off the ground. “When I heard what happened, I tried to find you, but no one would tell me where you were.” He put her down and knelt down in front of her. “I’m so sorry you’re the one what found him.” He started to say more but stopped himself before the words came out.
Her eyes were welling up with unshed tears so I changed the subject back to something a lot nicer. There would be plenty of time for tears later. Probably for a long time too. But right now, the girl just needed a little breathing room from her grief and pain.
“How’s the gazebo coming, Billy? I wanted to show it to Nancy.”
He looked up at me, startled, like he’d forgotten I was even there. He recovered quickly though, and stood, holding out one hand to Nancy. “It’s almost done. Come see.”
I let the two of them lead, following close behind. When we got to the structure, which was indeed practically finished, Destiny was waiting on the step up to the shelter.
From where I was, I couldn’t really see the girl’s expression, but I heard her quick intake of breath. “Is that your kitten? She’s beautiful! I’ve never seen one with so many colors before!”
Un-Familiar Magic (Accidental Familiar Book 3) Page 12
