Wicked Decisions

by Lily Harper Hart

  “It’s time to get up anyway.” He moved his hand to the back of her neck and started attacking the tension there. “What are you thinking?”

  “Don’t you know?”

  “I’m not in your head.”

  “No?” This time the grin she graced him with was genuine. “I think you somehow managed to crawl into my head right from the start.”

  “Perhaps I’m simply slow this morning. It would be helpful if you could tell me what you’re thinking so I don’t have to wait until after my morning dose of caffeine to figure it out.”

  “I’m thinking that I used magic to find Maisie the first time and I didn’t even know I was looking for her.”

  “And you believe if you use magic again you’ll be able to find her.”

  “That’s the plan. I mean ... it can’t hurt, right?”

  “It’s a good idea. How do you plan to make it work?”

  That was the question, Ivy internally mused. “I don’t know. I need to think on it. How about we shower, get ready, and I cook you some breakfast? I should have a better idea of what I need to do once we’re finished with all that.”

  “Can we shower together?”

  Jack’s negotiating skills always made Ivy laugh. “Will you wash my back?”

  “Oh, you’re going to be so clean by the time I’m finished, you’ll be sparkling.”

  “Then we can shower together.” On impulse, she threw her arms around his neck and gave him a fierce hug. “Thank you for doing this with me.”

  A bruising train of emotion careened into him. “I wouldn’t do it with anyone else. We’ll figure it out.”

  Ivy had faith that was true. “We will. It has to be soon. I have this feeling ... .” She tapped the spot above her heart. “Maisie is in real trouble.”

  “Do you have any idea who we’re looking for?”

  “If I knew that, we would already be on our way. I mean ... I have a feeling that it’s one of Henry’s girlfriends. I’m not sure which one, though. Well, other than Aunt Felicity. She’s definitely not on my radar.”

  “Of course not.”

  “And it’s not just because she’s my aunt.”

  “I didn’t say anything.”

  “Hey, I can get inside your head, too. I know exactly what you’re thinking. She’s not capable of this. It has to be Lucy or Fanny. I just need to figure out a way to narrow down my suspicions to one of them.”

  “Then that’s what we’ll do.” He kissed her forehead. “After our shower, of course. That should come first.”

  “I happen to agree.”

  “See. We’re perfect for each other.”

  BRIAN ARRIVED AT THE COTTAGE BEFORE breakfast was finished, and he sat at the table with Jack even before Ivy invited him to join their meal.

  “You guys look like you’re planning something,” he noted as he sipped his coffee and glanced between them. “Do I even want to know what’s going on in those busy brains of yours?”

  “Ivy is going to use her magic.” Jack saw no reason to lie and the look he shot his partner was full of warning. “She’s debating how she’s going to approach it while cooking us a gourmet breakfast.”

  “I don’t know about gourmet,” Ivy contradicted as she handily flipped hash browns. “It was magic that led me to Maisie in the first place, though. I no longer think it’s because she’s guilty. That was my first inclination. I’m over that now.”

  To give himself time to absorb the news, Brian sipped his coffee. “Okay, as much as I don’t want to talk about this magic stuff — it gives me heartburn, if you must know — I’m willing to give it a shot. How does it work?”

  “Well, according to Susan, I’ve always been capable of casting spells. It’s only recently that I’ve found the strength, though.”

  Brian made a face. “And Susan is this ghost witch you started talking to a few weeks ago, right?”

  “Don’t say it like that.” Jack was stern. “Susan has helped us more than once. She’s the reason I was able to find Amy when Jeff was threatening her a few weeks ago.”

  Brian held his palms out to Ivy.. “I’m not casting aspersions. This is difficult for me, though. You have to understand that.”

  “We do.” Ivy transferred the hash browns from the frying pan to a platter. “No one expects you to believe what you can’t see. If I were in your position, I wouldn’t believe it either. You don’t have to be part of this.”

  “Actually, I do. If you manage to figure out what’s going on, it will be better if I’m with you to smooth any rough warrant edges. Technically, you’re still a suspect.”

  Ivy scowled. “I wish you would stop saying things like that.”

  “Me, too,” Jack muttered. “She’s not a suspect. You’re being a turd. Stop being a turd.”

  “Don’t call me a turd.”

  “Fine. You’re a turd fondler. Is that better?”

  Ivy sputtered out a laugh, practically choking in her glee. “You guys are funny. You should have your own reality show. I mean, seriously, you’re so much more entertaining than those Real Housewives and Kardashians.”

  “I wholeheartedly agree,” Brian enthused. “He stole that turd fondler line from me, by the way. I’ve called him that more than once.”

  “Then you’re a master.” Ivy placed a bowl of scrambled eggs on the table before grabbing the platters of toast and hash browns. “Does anyone need anything else?”

  “No.” Jack shook his head. “You’ve done enough. If we need anything, we can get it ourselves. You need to sit down and eat while it’s hot. I would’ve helped with breakfast if you hadn’t informed me I was a menace in the kitchen.”

  “You are a menace in the kitchen. Besides, I’m simply faster on my own.”

  “You’re a control freak is what you are,” Jack grumbled. “We need to focus on your plan, though. Do you know what you want to do?”

  “Kind of.” Ivy honestly wasn’t certain. “I think the reason I managed to get my magic to work in the first place was because I let go of the fear. I was worried that I wasn’t doing it right. When I stopped doing that, something inside took over. That’s what I want to try today.”

  “That doesn’t sound like much of a plan,” Brian argued, his mouth full of food. “Basically you’re saying you want to do nothing until magic happens out of nowhere and then you want to do something. That’s pretty vague.”

  Ivy couldn’t argue with the sentiment. “That’s what I have.”

  “Then we’ll give it a try.” Brian looked resigned rather than enthusiastic. “What have we got to lose, right?”

  Jack clapped a hand on his shoulder. “That’s the spirit.”

  BRIAN DROVE BECAUSE JACK WANTED TO BE AVAILABLE to help Ivy if something came up. She instructed the older detective to drive around and basically ignore her. She wanted to slip into a flow state — which is essentially what she believed happened the previous day — and she wasn’t capable of doing it if they paid her too much heed.

  “I don’t want to be a bug under a microscope,” she explained as she climbed into the backseat of the cruiser. “If you keep watching me then I’m going to feel self-conscious.”

  Brian was dubious, but he knew better than voicing his doubts in front of Jack, who looked as nervous as Ivy clearly felt. “Okay. Do you have any idea where you want me to drive?”

  Ivy hesitated. “Actually ... drive past Fanny’s house first. She was the one who burned the binder, right?”

  “She claims she didn’t,” Jack argued. “It’s possible someone else burned the binder. I mean ... have we considered looking at Larry more closely?”

  “You think Larry killed her?” Brian was intrigued as he navigated onto the highway. “What would his motivation be?”

  “Maybe he had feelings for her. He’s a weird guy.” Jack forced himself to relax and carry on a normal conversation with his partner. It would be better for Ivy if she couldn’t sense his anxiety. He made a conscious effort to pretend she wasn’t in
the car trying to tap into her powers — actual magic — to aid in their investigation. “He said he was fond of Zelda. Maybe he felt something more for her, admitted his feelings, and reacted badly when she shut him down.”

  “Maybe, but that doesn’t feel right,” Brian countered. He laid out his arguments to the contrary as they headed into town. He was familiar with the landscape, the players, and had no problem finding Fanny’s house. Once on the correct street, he parked on the corner and flicked his eyes to Ivy. “Anything?”

  She didn’t immediately answer. Instead, she focused on the house, pressing her eyes shut and extending her magic as far as she could manage. After a full three minutes of silence, she opened her eyes and shook her head. “There’s nothing here. I don’t know what I was expecting, but ... there’s nothing.”

  “It’s okay.” Brian forced a bright smile. “It was a long shot anyway. You tried. Do you want me to take you back home?”

  Ivy’s lips curled. “We’re not done. Go to Lucy’s house next.”

  Brian let loose a heavy sigh. “Seriously? You think it was Lucy? She’s the one who has been most realistic about the way Henry operates.”

  “Not really.” Ivy had been thinking about this all night and she’d come to a realization. “Lucy is just better at hiding her feelings. She’s as wrapped up in Henry and his ridiculous drama as Fanny. She tries to put on an act, but she said it herself. Henry told her they would be together.”

  “Which he admitted was a lie,” Brian argued. “That’s something he tells his harem because he knows it will placate them for a bit. He doesn’t like the drama. He wants all his women to play well together, which isn’t even remotely feasible and yet he still strives for it.”

  “And Lucy was invested in that lie,” Ivy supplied. “She tried to pretend otherwise, but she was crushed when Henry admitted the truth last night. What if she believed he needed time to say goodbye to the other women, but it wasn’t working fast enough to make her happy? What if she decided to eliminate the competition?”

  “You think Lucy killed Zelda because she considered her competition?” Brian tilted his head, considering. “I don’t know. That seems like a stretch.”

  “It does,” Ivy agreed. “We’ve both known Lucy a long time. She’s been a regular fixture in our lives. We know her to be practical and no-nonsense. But love is a funny thing. It makes you act out of the ordinary. It also makes you act like an idiot.”

  “Thank you, honey,” Jack drawled, amused despite himself. “I can’t tell you how much I like being called an idiot.”

  “It’s not just you,” Ivy pointed out. “I regularly act like an idiot where you’re concerned, too. It goes with the package. Lucy acts strong but that doesn’t mean she is strong. Maybe her feelings for Henry twisted that strength we always saw inside of her. It’s entirely possible.”

  Brian rolled his neck. “I guess. I just don’t see it, though.”

  “I could be wrong.” In truth, Ivy hoped she was barking up the wrong tree. It would be better for all concerned if Lucy wasn’t the guilty party. She couldn’t shake her suspicions, though. “We won’t know unless we go over there, though. You said it was worth a shot. It can’t just be worth a shot for Fanny.”

  “I guess not.” Brian looked at Jack. “If we find nothing at Lucy’s place, we need to put this away and go back to old-fashioned police work. I feel as if I’ve been a good sport. We can’t continue wasting time, though.”

  “We don’t know that we’re wasting time,” Jack countered. “I’m with Ivy. It’s worth a shot. There’s nothing to lose here.”

  “Fine. I still don’t think it’s Lucy, though. I’ve known her forever.”

  “Then you have nothing to worry about.”

  Nineteen

  Ivy’s adrenaline started coursing the minute they turned onto Lucy’s street. She lived on the outskirts of town; her aged Victorian located on a corner lot. It looked quiet, but Ivy instinctively knew better.

  “Maisie is here.” She unbuckled her seat belt and reached for the door handle. Because it was a police cruiser, though, the back doors automatically locked. “Let me out.”

  “To do what?” Brian was perplexed. “How do you know she’s in there?”

  Ivy opted for honesty. “I can feel it.”

  “That’s lovely, but I don’t feel it.”

  Jack’s eyebrows drew together as he regarded his fiancée. “Tell me what’s going on, Ivy. Is the magic telling you Maisie is in the house?”

  “No. I ... no. My gut is telling me she’s in the house.”

  “We can’t go on your gut.”

  “Why? You work on gut instinct all the time. It’s a cop thing. I know because Jack told me.”

  “Well, that’s all well and good, but we can’t just break into Lucy’s house because you have a feeling.” Brian used his most reasonable tone. “That’s not how this works.”

  Ivy tried to tamp down her anger, but it was difficult. “If Maisie is in that house and in trouble, you’re never going to forgive yourself if you don’t at least look. We both know it.”

  Brian pursed his lips. “We have no evidence. In fact, of all the women involved, Lucy is the one who seems the most stable.”

  Ivy’s eyes narrowed. “Aunt Felicity is not a murderer.”

  “I didn’t say she was. Fanny makes the most sense, though.”

  “Except it’s not Fanny.” Frustration bubbled up and grabbed Ivy by the throat. “I know it. She’s too ... scattered. She couldn’t have pulled this off. It’s Lucy.”

  Brian looked to Jack for help. “She’s a part of this because you insisted. It would be helpful if you explained why we can’t simply accuse Lucy of being a murderer and bust into her house unannounced.”

  Jack felt caught. Brian and Ivy were the two people he was closest with and he was being tugged in two distinctly different directions. Ivy was adamant, though, and he trusted her more than he’d ever trusted anyone in his entire life. He wouldn’t shut her down. She needed this.

  “We don’t have to bust into her house,” he said after a beat. “All we have to do is knock on the door, ask if we can come in, and question her. We might see something out of the ordinary once we’re inside.”

  “And what if she says no?”

  “Then at least we’ll know.”

  “What if she’s not even here?”

  “Then at least we’ll know that, too.”

  Brian chewed on the inside of his cheek, frustration evident. “I don’t know. This feels ridiculous.”

  “It does,” Jack agreed readily. “It feels ridiculous ... and yet I think it’s necessary.”

  Brian stared out the window for a long beat and then nodded, resigned. “Fine. We’ll knock on the door and ask if we can enter. If she says no, though, that’s it. We can’t force the issue.”

  Jack readily bobbed his head. “Fair enough.”

  Excited, Ivy reached for the door handle again.

  “You’re not going with us, Ivy.” On that single statement, Brian was firm. “We can’t explain your presence and you technically have no reason to be present for an interview. You have to stay here.”

  Ivy’s heart sank. “But ... I need to be inside the house. I can find Maisie once I’m inside. I know it.”

  “Well, that’s too bad. You’re not a police officer. You’re staying here.”

  Ivy’s gaze was beseeching when it landed on Jack. “Please.”

  “You have to stay here, honey.” He didn’t like denying her, but Brian was right. “That’s the only way this is going to work.”

  Ivy was mutinous. “This is crap.”

  “Yeah, well ... it is what it is.”

  Brian exited the cruiser first. He was anxious to get away from Ivy. He could see the pink-haired woman gesturing wildly in the backseat as Jack tried to talk her down. He didn’t want to be part of that discussion. After a few minutes, Jack reached over the seat and squeezed her hand, his expression sympathetic. Ivy was stil
l complaining when her fiancé exited the vehicle.

  “She’s going to make you pay for that, isn’t she?” Brian queried.

  Jack nodded. “You have no idea. Let’s get this over with.”

  From her spot in the car, Ivy watched the two men trudge toward the front door. She was angry — to the point where she felt like shaking Brian until some common sense started filling his empty head — but she also had a plan. Jack made sure she had options before he fled, including slipping the fob that unlocked the back door into her palm in a secretive manner before joining his partner. It was obvious he didn’t want Brian to know what he was doing.

  Instead of immediately exiting the vehicle, Ivy remained rooted to her spot. She would have to bide her time until the men disappeared into the house. After that, all bets were off.

  BRIAN FELT RIDICULOUS KNOCKING ON Lucy’s door. It took her longer to answer than he expected and his smile was rueful when he fixed it on the woman.

  “Did we wake you? I’m sorry for the early hour.”

  Lucy frowned. She looked disheveled, annoyance etching its way across her face. “I was awake ... although it was my day to sleep in. What are you doing here?”

  “We have a few questions,” Jack replied calmly. “We were hoping to be able to sit down with you.”

  Clearly confused, Lucy clutched her housecoat tighter. “Me? Why?”

  “Because Zelda is dead and Maisie Washington is missing,” Jack explained. “You’re tied into this situation because of your relationship with Henry. We’re sitting everyone down this afternoon — all three of you — and going over every detail. We decided to hit you first because you’ll be the easiest.”

  Brian slid his partner a sidelong glance but managed to keep his expression even. “Felicity and Fanny are in a different situation from you. We still need to mark you off the list. It’s procedure. I’m sorry.”

  “Well, if it’s procedure.” Lucy rolled her eyes. “Can’t this wait until later? I haven’t even showered yet today.”

  “It honestly shouldn’t take long,” Jack prodded. “Once we mark you off the list you’ll have the rest of the day to do whatever you want.”