Jenny Mae and I watched anxiously as Landry made his way around the room talking to each guest. My stomach was even more queasy, and a line of cold sweat had broken out on my brow as I nervously anticipated speaking with the detective.
Then that anxiety turned into a simmering rage. I glanced over at Garnet’s table, and the witch was serving cake. She had absolutely no respect for the dead. Only a few people stepped up and took the slices she was offering.
“Gross,” I said. “Look over there. Garnet is so determined to win Elizabeth’s business that she’s having no respect for the dead. Can you believe this?”
“Maybe you should cast a spell on her to give her sausage fingers,” Jenny said with a laugh.
“Oh, I wish I could,” I said. “But I imagine that would come back to bite me in the butt big time.”
Jenny turned back to the window, and I did as well. It’s not that I wanted to look at the dead woman, but I couldn’t help watching the police work. We were up pretty high too, and it added a sense of detachment to the whole thing.
The small police figures below were busy collecting things in plastic evidence bags. Some were dusting for prints, and another was taking a million photographs of the scene.
“I’m really hungry,” Jenny said just before I heard her stomach growl obscenely loudly.
“You should have had some of those hors d’oeuvres when you had the chance,” I said.
“I think you had enough for both of us,” she said before her stomach growled again.
“Obviously not,” I said with a chuckle. A few people turned to look in our direction, and I quickly faced the window again. “Come on, let’s sneak off to dark corner and you can have a piece of cake.”
“But that whole thing you said about respecting the dead,” Jenny countered.
“I think your stomach making that awful racket is far more obscene,” I said.
I grabbed a plate with a slice of cake, and Jenny and I headed off to a corner to hide behind a massive floor-to-ceiling balloon bouquet.
Jenny moaned when she took the first bite of cake, but fortunately the sound was muffled by a large crash of thunder. I turned in the direction of the windows just as more lightning flashed through the sky. It was so close that it lit up the room like a camera flash, and almost everyone gasped. More booming thunder followed.
When I turned back to Jenny, she was still happily eating her cake. I was pleased to see that it was making her feel calm and happy despite the situation and the weather, and I wondered if I should go ahead and hand out some of my cake to the guests. If it made people feel better, then it wasn’t really disrespectful.
As we were getting ready to walk back to the table, two staff members came over and stood on the other side of the balloons. They were having a conversation about the dead woman, and I picked up that she’d been a member of the manor staff. Her name was Janice Brown.
Jenny’s and my hopes of slipping out from behind the balloons unnoticed was dashed when one of the women saw us. She turned and smiled before taking Jenny’s plate.
“I can get that,” she said.
“Thank you,” I said and tried to pretend that my assistant and I hadn’t been caught hiding behind decorations eavesdropping and eating the cake that was supposed to be for the guests. “You said that the woman who died worked here at the manor? I thought I heard you say that.”
“I did,” the woman said and stuck out her hand for me to shake. “I’m Becky Byrd. It’s nice to meet you. You made such a beautiful cake. I can’t believe how gorgeous it is.”
“Thank you,” I said.
“Wow, this weather is something else. I just had a bad feeling when I woke up this morning, and now I know why. This horrible weather had to have been foreshadowing the fate of my poor coworker. It was sign. You know what I mean?”
“I do,” I said.
I hadn’t even known the weather was going to get as bad as it was, so I didn’t really think it was a sign. I wasn’t going to argue with her about it, though. It was just a tropical storm, not some plot device in a bad B movie.
“Well, I’m going to get these dirty dishes to the kitchen,” Becky said. “You ladies let us know if you need anything else.”
“We should have offered her and her friend some of the cake,” I said once Becky was gone.
“That’s a sweet gesture, but I’m afraid Elizabeth might not hire you if she sees you giving the cake meant for her guests away to the manor staff,” Jenny said.
“Or if she saw me giving it to you,” I said and poked her in the arm.
“Hey, I didn’t ask. You totally offered.”
“I did, and I don’t think anyone saw us,” I said.
“Except those two manor staff members,” Jenny countered.
“I doubt they’re going to tell on us,” I said. “After all, we’re here to serve Elizabeth and her guests but we don’t work for the hotel. Technically, they are here to serve us too.”
“I like the way you think,” Jenny said and winked at me conspiratorially.
“I think it’s going to be our turn soon,” I said as I noticed Detective Landry getting closer.
“We should probably get out from behind the balloon display then,” Jenny said.
We walked out from behind it as casually as we could and took our places back by the table. That put us a little further away from Landry, but there still weren’t many people between him and us.
Chapter Three
Detective Landry approached us with a grim look on his handsome face. He was grimacing as if quite frustrated, and I could only guess that he wasn’t getting the kind of information he needed to solve the case. I wasn’t sure what he expected, though. It’s not like someone in the bridal party would have shoved an employee out the window.
Right?
“Mitch,” I said and offered him a soft smile.
“Do we know each other?” he asked, and I couldn’t lie, it stung a little.
“You come into my bakery for coffee,” I said. “I’m Fern Moonfall.”
I stuck out my hand for him to shake and he accepted it. He studied my face a moment with his emerald green eyes. They were lined with long, auburn lashes that matched the wavy hair on his head.
“Oh, right,” he said and relaxed a little. “You just look so different… out of context.”
“You mean not covered in flour,” I said.
“Right. Out of context. I’m sorry I didn’t recognize you. I feel like a heel. It’s just been a stressful day.”
“I understand,” I said.
“I have to ask you ladies some questions, but I assume you already knew that,” Landry said.
“I’ll go first,” I said.
“Very well,” the detective responded.
“Come find me when you need me,” Jenny said, but she didn’t go far.
"So, break down what happened for me," Detective Landry said. "And go over your whereabouts this morning for me."
"Well, I knew it was going to be a huge day for me. So, I got up around three in the morning and got to the bakery by four," I started.
"You get up at three in the morning to bake?" Landry asked incredulously.
"I do. Baking has to be done very early in the morning since most people like to have pastries with their breakfast,” I said. "Plus, it's the witching hour. Ha-ha."
"I thought midnight was the witching hour and three in the morning was when demons and malevolent spirits came out," Landry said completely seriously.
"Oh, right,” I said, and then I quickly changed the subject back to the matter at hand. "Anyway, I took a quick shower and drank a cup, okay two cups, of coffee and headed into the bakery. Once I was there, I just focused on getting my other special orders out of the way so I could concentrate on the cake for this bridal shower. When it was time to go, Jenny and I loaded up the delivery van and drove here. Although, the van broke down a half mile away. We had to run the rest of the way here to make it on time. You can confirm t
hat by looking for my van a half mile down the road."
"We already saw it," Landry said and he made a note in the little book he was holding. "Okay, and after you got to the manor?"
"We found out that the bridal shower had been moved upstairs due to the weather, so we rode the elevator up here,” I said.
"You didn't stop anywhere in between?"
"Nope. Jenny and I both came straight up. We set up the cake, and we've been here the entire time. Even when we used the restrooms, we used the ones right over there off the ballroom,” I said and pointed. "We haven't left at all."
"So how did you discover the deceased?"
"We heard a scream and saw everyone at the windows. Jenny and I went over and looked out at her. I didn't want to look, but Jenny and some others kept their eyes on things. I did look for a while after the police got here. I watched them dusting for prints and taking pictures and such,” I said, and then I thought of something. "Hey, if she fell from up here, why were they dusting for prints down there?"
"Probably just covering their bases," Landry said. "Also might have something to do with my next questions. Did you see anyone approach the body? I know you said you didn't look, but maybe before you looked away or someone could have been outside watching the police work from a distance. You'd have a good vantage from up here."
"I didn't. I doubt Jenny did either or she would have said something. You'd have to ask her, though," I responded.
"So, you didn't see or hear anything suspicious?" he asked.
"Nope. Sorry,” I said. "I take it you guys think this really was a murder?"
"Yes, it appears that the victim, Janice Brown, was pushed out of the window by someone at the bridal shower. We know that because she fell backwards. People don't usually jump out of windows backwards. She also didn't leave a suicide note. I've talked to a few people who knew her, and it seemed like she had plenty to live for. Janice had not been acting suicidal and from what I understand, she has no history of depression," Landry said with a sigh.
"That's true about the jumping out the window backwards thing,” I said. "It would be a lot more dramatic, though. If she jumped out backwards... "
Detective Landry just looked at me for a moment, and I felt embarrassment creep into my cheeks. Not only was that a humiliating thing to say, but it was probably pretty macabre too. Detective Mitch Landry wasn't a witch, so he didn't quite get our dark sense of humor. He couldn't understand that I was just trying to deal with the stress of the situation with gallows humor. I probably just looked like a huge jerk.
"I'm sorry, that was... a weird thing to say," I sputtered. "I didn't know her. She probably did have a lot to live for. It's very sad."
"It's fine,” he said with a dismissive wave of his hand. "I hear a lot worse in my line of work. Not that we get many murders out here. but if you don't have anything else for me, I'll go speak with Jenny Mae now."
"I don't,” I said.
"Wait, one more thing. Garnet Guillory is here. She's over there with a table just like yours handing out cake with a Cheshire grin plastered all over her face. I thought you said you were doing the cake," Landry said.
"I was. I mean, I am. Garnet shouldn't be here, but Elizabeth said she couldn't choose between us. The bridal shower cakes were a test to see which one of us gets to do the wedding cake,” I said.
"And there is... magic in the cakes?" Landry asked.
"There is. Some pretty potent stuff."
"That explains why everyone else is so cheerful despite the tragedy that just took place,” he said with a sigh. "I can't get a read on anybody. There's no way for me to tell who is acting suspicious and who isn't."
"I'm sorry,” I said.
"No need to be sorry, Fern. You were doing your job, and by the looks of things, you did it well," Landry said and offered me a reassuring smile. "I'm going to go talk to Jenny now. If you think of anything else, come get me. Or if you think of anything later, call me."
He walked away and found Jenny by the window. I watched as they talked for a few minutes. There was a lot of Mitch nodding his head and Jenny Mae talking with her hands.
They looked like they were almost done talking, and I was about to walk back over to Jenny when Stephen Pope entered the room. Mr. Pope owned Praline Manor, and it was a bit of a shock to see him at the bridal shower. It wasn't like he dropped in on all of the events at his hotel, but then again, Elizabeth was a bit of a local celebrity.
"Can I have everyone's attention?" Mr. Pope called out. "Please, I have something very important to say."
The room got quiet, and everyone turned to look at Stephen. He took a deep breath, and then proceeded with his announcement.
"First of all, I'd like to apologize to Elizabeth and all of you. Here at Praline Manor, we pride ourselves on giving our guests everything they expect and deserve. So, I'm sorry to announce that there is a horrible tropical storm headed our way. Everyone must stay here. No one can leave the manor until it passes. The winds are too high and the sea is rising."
A gasp went through the room. Personally, I thought they were all being a little dramatic. Most of us were witches. A little tropical storm wasn't something to get all panicked over. We were, like, one with the elements and stuff.
Mr. Pope continued. "Don't worry, folks. You’re perfectly safe here. Praline Manor has stood through far worse. The main problem is that the road out is already too flooded. Again, don't worry. Praline Manor will provide everyone who hasn't already booked a room for the evening a place to stay. All of you will be able to stay here safely free of charge."
You could hear the sigh of relief make its way through the room like a breeze. Personally, I was happy the rooms were complimentary because I didn't want to pay Praline Manor prices for a room when my house was so close.
"I hope our van didn't get washed away,” Jenny said when she approached me.
"Oh, no. I hadn't thought of that,” I said.
"We've got good insurance,” she said with a shrug. "Better the van than us."
"You have a point. Well, I guess the bridal shower is over. We should get this stuff packed up so we can go downstairs and get our rooms."
"You don't want to try and make a break for it?" Jenny asked with one eyebrow cocked up.
"I thought about it, but no. If it's that bad, we should just stay."
As we were packing up the flowers and decorations, a few people approached wanting a slice of cake. I handed them out with a smile to everyone. The cake would go far to soothe the nerves of Elizabeth's guests. Hopefully, when it was all said and done, she'd appreciate it.
Chapter Four
Jenny and I took our stuff and rode the elevator back down to the lobby. It seemed like we had to stop at every floor on the way down. The mirrored elevator car with its brass rail and shiny buttons started to feel like a cage by the time we made it to the bottom.
The air felt stale too, and I was thankful for the rush of air conditioning that hit us when we stepped out into the lobby. We'd practically left the ballroom last, so there was a line of Elizabeth's guests at the check-in desk. Garnet and Byran came down with the rest of Detective Landry's team. They all got in line behind us, and I made sure to keep my eyes forward. Standing so close to Garnet made my skin crawl, but I didn't have to look at her.
I finally got up to the counter, and the woman behind the desk informed me that there weren't enough rooms left for everyone to have a single. "You'll have to share with someone. I'm sorry. We'll be putting a double order of our famous pralines in the room, and maybe you'd like a bottle wine or champagne too?" She offered hoping I wouldn't get upset.
"Hey, you should bunk with Garnet,” Jenny said with a chuckle. "You two could finally work out your differences. It would be great."
"I would rather sleep outside and be blown away or swept out to sea than share a room with Garnet Guillory,” I said loud enough for everyone nearby to hear.
"Whoa,” Jenny said. "So I guess you can share with me.
"
"Thank you. That's so kind of you,” I said in a high-pitched sing-song voice.
Jenny cringed. I think the woman behind the desk did as well. The fact that I was more stressed than I was willing to admit was starting to seep out the cracks.
The woman checked Jenny and me in. She gave us two sets of keys and a coupon for a bottle of wine from the bar.
"Excuse me," I said as she started to turn to another guest. "We don't have anything with us. Is there somewhere we can get a toothbrush?"
"I'll get you both a complimentary toiletry package, but you can also purchase additional supplies and sundries in our boutique."
“Thank you,” I said.
I watched as she headed through a doorway behind the front desk area. When she emerged again, the clerk was holding two monogrammed pouches. She handed one to each of us and smiled.
They were nice. Far nicer than I’d expected. Far nicer than anything I’d ever gotten at any hotel I’d spent the night in previously.
"Let's go see if they have any underwear in this boutique,” Jenny said too loudly.
My cheeks burned with embarrassment, but she didn't even notice the entire police team plus Garnet and Byran looking at us. "I don't think they are going to have any underwear in a bag," I whispered. "If they have anything, it's probably going to be expensive. Look at these toiletry bags. This is high-class stuff."
"Let's go look anyway. Or we can ask if they have a laundromat on the premises, but I don't know what underwear we're going to wear while we wash the ones currently on our behinds." She hadn't lowered her voice at all. My whispering didn't tip her off in the slightest.
"Okay. Let's go,” I said. "Anything to get you to quit hollering about our underwear in the middle of the lobby."
It was then that she finally looked around and saw everyone staring at us. "Oh, right."
We both put our heads down and walked quickly in the direction of the sign that pointed to the boutique. We did, in fact, find underwear in the boutique. I could see that Jenny Mae was about to begin hollering about the fact that they were twenty dollars a pair for the cheapest ones, not that I hadn't warned her, but I offered to buy her a pair. Not that I ever thought I'd be buying expensive vacation underthings for my assistant, but it kept her from going on a rant.
Cauldrons & Cake Page 2
