02 Pies and Potions - Mystic Cafe

by Rose Pressey

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Since there had been only a few customers in all day, it was no big deal to close the café early. Perhaps the bright yellow crime scene tape was a tiny deterrent to customers. Tom had gone out to start asking around about the magic and I was going to catch up in a few. When I looked up from closing down the register, I noticed Rory walk by, but he didn’t look toward the café. I hurried across the floor, flipped the sign to Closed, then locked the door behind me.

  When I turned the corner, Rory was walking toward Tom. They were headed on a collision course right there on the sidewalk. Neither of them appeared to notice me watching, so I stepped behind the building. Lucky for me, I was close enough to hear their conversation. And even better, I was close enough to step between them if things became heated.

  “Hey,” Tom said with his usual cool tone.

  “I’ve been wanting to talk to you,” Rory stated matter-of-factly.

  Oh boy. They were already off to a bad start. I knew by their testosterone-laced words.

  “What’s up?” Tom asked.

  I didn’t need to look at Tom to know he said that with a smirk on his face. As if he didn’t know Rory’s beef with him. I couldn’t believe there was this much tension between them. But what girl wouldn’t get some thrill out of having two men interested in her? I’d certainly never had this problem in the past. It made me wonder if Grandma Imelda was somehow responsible for my newfound love triangle.

  “Look, I don’t want any problems with you. I don’t know you, so I have no real beef with you. Well, other than one thing,” Rory said.

  Uh-oh. Here we go.

  “I’m guessing that one thing is Elly Blair. Café owner and the sweetest person I’ve ever met,” Tom said with softness to his tone.

  That was probably not the answer Rory had wanted to hear. Although the sentiment was very sweet of Tom. Did he really feel that way, or was he just yanking Rory’s chain?

  “Yes, it is Elly Blair. I don’t know why you came back to town. Why didn’t you stay away? You came and stirred up trouble for her and I don’t appreciate it. And you’re right.” He pointed at Tom. “She is sweet and probably too nice to tell you that you shouldn’t be here.”

  I didn’t want Rory speaking for me. That wasn’t how I felt at all.

  “I didn’t come back here to cause problems.”

  “Then why did you come back?” Frustration flooded his words.

  Silence filled the air. I held my breath waiting for the answer. Why had Tom come back? He could have gone anywhere.

  “I’ll be leaving soon, so there won’t be any more problems. As soon as I help Elly figure out what’s happening here. I won’t leave her here to figure it out on her own.”

  “You should help here. You’re the one who caused the problem,” Rory said.

  “Since I’m not involved with the Organization anymore, there’s no need for me to come around.”

  Why did I have a sinking feeling in my stomach when I heard those words?

  Tom’s frustration mounted. “The magic is really none of your concern.”

  Rory’s tone lightened. “Look, I know you’re trying to help Elly. I appreciate that, but she’s a strong girl and she can handle a lot.”

  Tom came right back with a response. “Yes, she is strong, but there’s no need to add to her stress. I just want to see her happy. She deserves it.”

  Should I let them know that I had been listening? That I didn’t need either of them to make decisions for me? I had a feeling the magic spell would have gone wrong whether or not Tom had come back to Mystic Hollow. I peeked around the side of the building. Both of them stood in front of each other in a stare-down. How long would this last?

  Just as I stepped out from behind the building, a loud screech grabbed my attention. Jill ran down the sidewalk at full speed.

  “Don’t you touch him.” Jill lunged at Tom’s back, using her little fists in rapid succession as if they were meat tenderizers. She worked at the bank and thought Rory Covington was the most handsome man she’d ever seen. At least that’s what she told me every single time I went in there to make a deposit.

  Hmm. It seemed as if she was being affected adversely from the spell also. Tom stumbled backward and spun around. Jill had reached up and draped her arms around his neck. She dangled like a rag doll when he moved.

  “What the hell? Jill what do you think you’re doing?” I yelled and ran toward the mayhem.

  “I won’t let you hurt Rory,” she spat out.

  Rory moved toward Jill and pulled her from Tom’s neck.

  “I really appreciate your concern for me, Ms. Smith, but things are fine,” he said as he eased her to the ground.

  Tom stared at her with wide eyes. She was like a giant gnat.

  “I’m not going to let some stranger come to town and beat up on one of our townsfolk.” She tossed the words at him with venom.

  Tom held his hands up in surrender. “I had no intention of beating up anyone.”

  At this point, several people had started to gather around.

  “Nothing to see here folks. Move along.” I motioned. My comment was met with frowns. They didn’t move.

  Jill finally looked at me after the bizarre incident. She appeared somewhat dazed and confused.

  She continued to glare at me. Her cheeks were scarlet red. “I’m sorry, Elly, but if you won’t protect your boyfriend, someone has to.”

  I nodded. “Of course.” Humoring her was probably the best bet. “It won’t happen again.” I plastered a smile on my face that was faker than a plastic Christmas tree.

  She turned around and stumped away, letting out a loud huff.

  Tom turned around and walked away. I wasn’t sure if he’d seen me. Rory turned to me with his eyes wide at the sight of me, as if he’d been caught doing something he shouldn’t be doing.

  “What was that all about?” I asked, acting as if I had no idea about what they’d been discussing.

  Would he tell me the truth or act as if nothing had happened?

  “I have no idea what is wrong with Jill. Tom and I just kind of ran into each other,” he said, looking down at his boots.

  Uh-huh. He was conveniently going to leave all the details out of the conversation. I had to decide if I’d allow him get by with it, or tell him that I’d snooped on the whole exchange. I decided to confront him with it. I didn’t like keeping secrets. Nothing good ever came of keeping things in like that. Okay, I’d been keeping a lot of secrets lately, but this served to proof my point… nothing good came of my secrets. So why did I continue to do it?

  “I have to tell you the truth. I overheard your conversation with Tom.”

  Rory looked up from his boots and met my gaze. “You did?” A gentle melancholy came over him.

  I nodded.

  “Elly, I’m trying to protect you. If Tom is trouble, then of course I don’t want him to come around and cause more problems for you.”

  “Rory, don’t you think I can tell him how I feel? Tom didn’t cause any of this.” I crossed my arms in front of my chest. Anxiety gnawed at my insides.

  “He brought the investigators here looking for him and now one of them is dead and the other is threatening the whole town. I’d say he did bring at least some of this trouble to you.”

  “The problem with the way the town is acting has nothing to do with Tom. The investigators would have come here no matter.”

  “But this started when he arrived. How well do you know Tom, anyway?”

  “Are you asking that because you want to know about the magic? Or because you want to know how involved I am with him?”

  His expression softened with my questions.

  “Both.” He shoved his hands in his pockets.

  I chose my words carefully, hoping that he’d understand. “I told you before. Tom and I met when you got the wrong spell. I’ve known him just as long as I have you. But I do trust him. I know he wouldn’t do anything to Mystic Hollow. It
’s just a feeling I have.”

  Rory wrapped his hands around mine. “I’m sorry, Elly. I should let you handle the situation. I just want to help you. I hate to see you upset.” He pulled me close and wrapped his arms around me. It was hard to be mad at him when I knew he really did just want to help. But I had to let him know there were some instances he shouldn’t get involved.

  “You know I can handle this.”

  He shook his head.

  I stepped back from his embrace and looked him in the eyes. “Rory, I know things are crazy, but everything will work out.” I spoke the words, but I hoped they were true. I needed to believe that they were.

  “I trust you, Elly. But you say the word and I’ll have another talk with him.”

  Men.

  I squeezed his hand, then kissed him softly. “I have errands to run so I’ll talk with you tonight, okay?”

  No way did I want Rory to know what I was about to do with Tom. I didn’t like keeping secrets, but he’d only worry… not to mention grow angrier with Tom.

  Rory pulled me into a kiss that left me breathless and dazed.

  “I’ll talk to you later,” he said softly.

  I watched Rory hop in his pick up and drive away. Now I stood on the sidewalk wondering what to do next. Where had Tom gone? Maybe he’d taken what Rory had said to heart and left. It would be up to me to question the other business owners.

  As I stood there trying to figure out my next move, footfalls from behind me caught my attention. I whipped around to find Tom standing right there.

  “You look lost.” A hint of a smile materialized on his lips.

  I grinned. “I am.”

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  I blew out a deep breath and tucked a stray strand of hair behind my ear. After studying his face for a second, I said, “I wasn’t sure where you’d gone.”

  “I thought I’d give you some time alone with Rory,” Tom said in a low tone.

  The weight in my chest grew heavier. I nodded. “I’m sorry about what happened.”

  “Don’t be,” he said. “He’s just looking out for you. I’m glad you have someone who cares about you that much.”

  Before I could respond, he said, “There’s a trail of magic around the café. It’s on the outside as well as the inside.” He gestured around the area.

  “A trail?” I asked.

  “From the murder scene,” he said.

  “So you know that magic was involved.” The thought had crossed my mind. Someone wanted one of the higher-ups with the Organization dead.

  “Yes, I’m sure,” he said with an air of certainty.

  “Could it be residual from Mr. Wibble?” I asked.

  He frowned. “No. The magic would have disappeared when he died.”

  “Well then, can you tell who the magic is from? What spell did they use and where did they go?”

  “Aren’t you just full of questions, Nancy Drew.”

  “Oh hush. I can’t help it. My mind is working overtime. Your brain would be in overdrive too if you’d found Mr. Wibble like I did.”

  “I can’t argue with you on that one.”

  “I thought you said that magic puts off a vibe and that you can tell who’s been doing the magic. That’s what you told me on your last visit, remember?”

  Tom sat on the step in front of Mystic Café, then ran his hand through his hair. His expression let me know this was serious. Finally, after an awkward pause, he looked up at me. “The magic usually does send out a signal, but not this time. Some people are able to perform a spell to cover their tracks. The spells are virtually untraceable. It’s rare and forbidden for someone to have this talent, but of course that doesn’t stop them.”

  “So why doesn’t everyone do this? Why is it so rare?” I sat beside him. Not too close, though. “Do you know how the Organization finds out about the spell casting? I mean, if it’s untraceable, then how do they ever know who’s responsible?”

  “They’ve developed spells to counteract the blocking spells in the past, it just takes them a while. It’s kind of like developing a medicine, but as soon as that spell is eradicated, it doesn’t take long to develop a new one. It’s an ongoing battle, obviously. Not everyone can do this magic. Like I said, it’s very rare.”

  “You still didn’t tell me why it’s so rare.”

  “Only a few people have this hidden talent. We don’t know why they possess this skill.”

  “What can we do? I hate to see you blamed for something you had no involvement in.”

  “Me? Why are you worried about me? What about you? It’s your café. I shouldn’t have come here.” He ran his hand through his hair. “Maybe Mr. Wibble would still be alive if I hadn’t come to Mystic Hollow.”

  “Don’t say that. You had no way of knowing. Besides I’m glad you came back to the café.” Why had I said that aloud? It was one thing to think it, but an entirely different disaster to say it. He looked over at me with a shocked look on his face. There was a spark in his eyes and I didn’t want to know what that spark meant. Okay, I wanted to know, but I didn’t know how I would react to it.

  “I wanted to see you,” he said softly.

  A lump formed in my throat and my stomach did a dance. What could I say to him? I needed to steer the conversation away from his last statement. Tom’s gaze was focused on mine, then it moved downward locking on my lips. I jumped up and began pacing the sidewalk. If I couldn’t speak, at least I could remove myself from that situation. What if Tom had kissed me and Rory had walked up and saw us? How would I explain that one? I wouldn’t have been able to. I certainly wouldn’t have been able to explain why I hadn’t stopped Tom from kissing me. Because once his lips touched mine I was pretty sure I wouldn’t be able to tell him to stop. Perhaps I wasn’t being fair to Rory. I shouldn’t have these feelings for Tom. I was torn. Rory was fantastic and he made my stomach do that little dance too.

  I’d never had this feelings for two men before. Was the universe punishing me? What kind of sick joke was that to bring two gorgeous men right to my front door? Yeah, not exactly a bad problem to have, but I was a one guy kind of girl. I enjoyed being in a relationship, but not with two guys at once. For now, I just needed to keep romance out of the picture. I had many more problems to worry about. Like was there a killer in Mystic Hollow? Stupid question. Obviously there was because Mr. Wibble was now in the county morgue instead of on his way back to New York City. Plus, I had to solve who was responsible for the crazy spell that now had a hold on the residents of Mystic Hollow. If in fact I wasn’t the guilty party. Sure, Tom had said I wasn’t guilty, but maybe he was just being nice before the Organization sent me to jail. Other than putting in too much potion, I’d followed the spell to the letter. Until now, I’d never had any problems with getting the spell right, only getting it to the correct recipient. That had all changed now. Tom was watching me pace, so I forced myself out of my musings.

  Finally, I said, “We have to do something. You don’t think I’m going to sit around and let this happen to us, do you?”

  “I didn’t think you would for a second.” He winked.

  “What is Sydney doing?”

  “The same thing we’re planning to do, getting statements from practitioners, talking to anyone affected, and following the trail.”

  “First, we need to find out who made the spell go bad. We can’t figure out what happened to Mr. Wibble with the town in chaos like it is.”

  Heck, everyone was acting so crazy that it would be hard to question successfully. Maybe Tom was acting crazy in a way. He had to be for wanting to be near me.

  “You’ve got spunk, I’ll give you that,” he said as he stood. “I’m not supposed to investigate anything. I’m no longer a part of the magic, but at this point what have I got to lose? I can try to trail the magic. We can at least see if the person who did this to Mr. Wibble went anywhere else. It’s a stretch but maybe we’ll get lucky and it’ll lead us straight to the killer.”

  Th
at didn’t sound like such a great idea now that he said it out loud. Finding the killer would be great, but I didn’t want to end up as the next victim.

  “So you’re going to sniff this magic trail kind of like a bloodhound?” I asked.

  “That’s the gist of it, yes. You make it sound so glamorous.” He laughed.

  “It is what it is.” I laughed.

  “We’d better get started. The longer we wait the more the magic imprint fades. We won’t be able to do anything once that’s gone.”

  Suddenly I was a crime-fighting team with Tom. My magic world grew crazier by the minute.

  “We should start at the back of the café where the body was found. I don’t want to get a false start by picking up on the magic here.”

  Somehow, what he said made sense to me, so I followed him to the back of Mystic Café. A small parking lot was behind the building with a small wrought iron fence surrounding the area. It kind of gave off this creepy, gothic vibe, which didn’t help my uneasiness. As much as I didn’t want to go back there, I knew I had to eventually. The area behind Mystic Café had changed forever. It would never be the same now that Mr. Wibble had been murdered back there. The tree branches rustled as they had when I’d discovered Mr. Wibble. Were they still trying to send me a message? A warning?

  “Mystic Hollow hadn’t been on the Organization’s radar, but the town sure is now,” Tom said as he walked.

  “Great. The minute I take over, all chaos breaks loose in town. Why am I not surprised?” I shook my head.

  “You do have a way of finding the mishaps, don’t you?”

  “Aw, you’re so sweet. Way to put it delicately,” I said sarcastically.

  He grinned. We both knew it was the truth though. I kept my distance from the Dumpster. Eventually I’d have to take out trash instead of asking everyone else to do it for me. As Tom stood in front of it, he closed his eyes, as if he was trying to tune into the magic.

  “Did you notice anything odd when you found Mr. Wibble? I know you don’t like to talk about it, but I have to ask.”