A Charming Misfortune

by Tonya Kappes

  “I’ll let you know when you can leave.” Oscar was having a hard time keeping on his game face. “Stay around and I might have some more questions later.”

  Webster pushed himself up to stand.

  “I didn’t kill him.” He stalked off.

  Oscar and I looked at each other, the look that made us both pause.

  “I guess it’s my turn.” Paris walked over. “I’d like to go shopping too, so please hurry.”

  “Great.” Oscar was losing his patience when it came to people telling him to hurry up. Didn’t these people know this was a murder investigation? “State your name and how long you’ve been at the Audubon Society.”

  “I’m Paris Rush. I’ve been there for a really long time. Like ten years.” She shrugged and sat down on the edge of the couch, her hands in prayer position between her knees.

  “Did you know Adam and Cindy when they were married?” Oscar asked her.

  “No. I had no idea they were even married or divorced until he said something at the camp.” She was forthcoming with the information that Madame Torres had showed me.

  “Why did you decide to come to Whispering Falls?” I asked her.

  “The Spangled, of course. Plus, the National Audubon Society gives money for big finds. I was hoping I’d hit the jackpot. But I’m bummed Adam was killed because he offered me money to let him know if I saw the bird again or even got a photo.”

  That right there told me she was off the hook. She was as honest as the day was long, and nothing in my gut told me Paris Rush was the killer, though, my gut had misled me before.

  Rarely.

  But… it had.

  Chapter Fourteen

  “The victim decides he’s going to go look for the bird on his own. He did this because he didn’t get a good response from anyone else in the camp. He had an argument with someone before he left. Who was that someone?” Oscar asked on our way out of the Treesort.

  “Paris?” I asked. “She did say Adam had offered. What if he didn’t like taking no for an answer and it was her that I saw him arguing with before he was murdered?”

  “That’s a good theory. I want to get back to the station and get a look at Webster’s camera. And all the others’ cameras, but he was very worried about me having it.” Oscar made a good point.

  “Webster could’ve changed over the last years, but sometimes old wounds can be reopened. Even the Zen-est of people crack.” We stopped at the fork in the path.

  “Why did you stop?” Oscar asked.

  “I’m going to go see Eloise. I want to see if she saw anything in her morning ritual or if she remembered anything about finding Adam.” I hugged him. “Plus, she gives me comfort like a mama, and I need that right now.”

  “She loves you like she’s your mom.” Oscar and I were lucky to have his aunt. She was amazing. “I’ll let you know what I find in all the photos.”

  We kissed each other goodbye.

  Rowl! Mr. Prince Charming jumped out of nowhere and knocked my bracelet with his paw.

  “He still can’t stand it when I kiss you.” Oscar gave the ornery cat a look of disapproval.

  “Now, boys,” I joked and shook a finger at each of them. I looked at Mr. Prince Charming. “You knew I was going to Eloise’s and decided to join me.”

  I swear he smiled before he darted off down the opposite path Oscar took to head back to the village.

  “Eloise,” I trilled through the couple of trees where her two-story house was built off the ground on a platform.

  It was a gorgeous house that had wooden steps leading up to a cozy wrap-around porch.

  Darla loved it here. Every time I came to visit, I could feel Darla’s presence, and it comforted me. Eloise, though a dark-sider who once had been banned from the village, had to live on the outskirts of town. She wanted to keep an eye on her family, and that included Oscar when he was little. Darla had me, and since she was an outsider like Eloise, they bonded.

  Little did I realize, A Dose of Darla did have some magic to the potions, because Darla would give them to Eloise, who put the magic right on in. They were best friends. I cherished that in Eloise and how her loyalty to Darla was still apparent by her relationship with me.

  I walked around the side of the house, where I had a hunch I might find Eloise. Lanterns hung from the trees that dotted along the gravel pathway. I kind of longed for it to be nightfall since it was so pretty here during the dark hours.

  Beautiful flowers were planted on both sides of the walkway. I couldn’t resist running my hand along the vibrant purple, green, red, orange, and yellow flowers. Wisteria vines provided a canopy and shielded the early morning sun to a clearing. It reminded me of the beautiful vine that covered the overhang of the front of A Dose of Darla because it was in fact from this vine it came from and lived on.

  “Over here!” Eloise called from the rows and rows of herbs that were neatly planted and proportioned perfectly. Mr. Prince Charming’s tail waved above the rows as he darted in and out of the herbs. “In the moonflower row!”

  Each row had a painted wood sign with the names of the herbs that followed in line. Herbs I had never heard of. I walked in front of each row, touching each herb sign and smiling, recalling the very first time I’d ever come to this magical place.

  “Rose petals, moonflower, mandrake root, seaweed, shrinking violet, dream dust, fairy dust, magic peanut, lucky clover, steal rose,” I whispered. “Spooky shroom.”

  “I heard you were coming.” Eloise popped up. Her short red hair glistened from the ray of sunshine peeking through the garden. “I’m just picking some moonflower. It snaps off the vine much better with a little love of the sun to warm the stem.” She held the magenta-and-white-petaled stem in the air.

  She stood up, and with her arms straight out and her head tilted back, she inhaled deeply and slowly exhaled. “You need a hug.”

  “I sure do.” I wasn’t going to give up a free one.

  We embraced, and my heart lost the heaviness from talking to all the Audubon Society members about Adam’s death.

  “Are you ready to eat?” She gestured toward the opposite end of the garden to a gazebo with twinkling lights twisted around the wooden spindles. In the center was a table covered in a hot pink cloth and a place setting for two with her rose petal china.

  “I love how you know I’m coming to visit.” Tension completely fell from my shoulders.

  “It’s my gift.” Eloise glanced over her shoulder and laughed. There was a spark in her eye. She threw the moonflower into a simmering pot and stirred it before she walked over to the gazebo, where I’d already picked up a Ding Dong and started to nibble at it.

  I sat on the rickety chair and finished my favorite treat. The assortment of scones, fruits, and quiches along with the Ding Dongs made my mouth water. She poured us a cup of coffee.

  “It seems as if you’ve had a full morning, and the day has yet to begin.” She was referring to the shop opening.

  “There’s so much to help Oscar with before the twenty-four-hour hold is up with the Audubon Society members that I’ve taken it on myself to help him.” I took a sip of coffee, and it tasted so good. The coffee I’d had at the Treesort didn’t relax me like having coffee with Eloise. “We talked to all the members about Adam, and each one could’ve technically killed him and had mortal motive, but nothing sent my intuition flying off the shelf.” I could hear my own frustration in my tone. “I hate it for Oscar because he’s running against the clock.”

  “He knew this was part of the wizard police job when he took it,” she reminded me. “He always has a time frame on crimes before the mortal police get contacted.”

  “I know, but he seems to really be bothered with this one. I’ve never seen him interview everyone in a case, and this time he’s really taking his time to listen and write the statements down besides recording it on the wand.” Most of the time, Oscar knew the wand was taping his conversations and would play those back, but when he wrote things
down, they stuck in his head.

  Each criminal case Oscar had was put with a time restraint. If the crime was against a spiritualist, the time frame was longer, but with mortals, it was different.

  “You have to let your protectors lead the way.” She glanced down at Mr. Prince Charming who had curled up in a ray of sunlight on one of the gazebo steps to catch some Z’s. “Someone has been on the prowl.”

  “They still don’t get along after all these years,” I groaned and helped myself to a scone.

  “And you are wondering if I had any more news.” It was as though she could read my mind. “I do not. I saw the crow. I knew it was odd, and that’s when I followed it. My immediate hunch was he’d been there for a while since he had already passed beyond before I got there. To my understanding, he’s come back in the form of the Spangled but seeking asylum here.”

  “Your understanding?” I asked, wanting her to clarify the position she’d put herself in.

  “Let’s just say these woods are a good cover for many creatures who don’t want to be found.” A smile curled on the corner of her lips. “Until the proper lifelong aliases are to be seen, Adam…” She hesitated, licked her lips. Carefully choosing her words, she continued, “The Spangled Smoky Momoko will remain in seclusion until that time is present to it.”

  “Petunia reported the Spangled missing.” Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a suitcase by one of her garden benches. “You’re telling me the bird is fine?”

  I knew she wasn’t allowed to tell me the particulars, but if she could report the bird was safe and out of harm’s way, that would make me feel so much better.

  “I am reporting the bird is fine.” She shifted her eyes to where mine had led. Her body turned in her chair, and she pointed to the suitcase. “Yes, I’m going to make a quick trip somewhere, but that’s not here nor there.”

  “You can’t tell me where you’re going, or can you?” So many strange things were happening here that I couldn’t put my finger on them.

  “June, please don’t try to read me.” Eloise was putting me in my place as a mother would a child. “Trust in your gifts.”

  “Then that means I need to leave so I can get this solved in the next twelve hours.” I stood up, and she did too. “Please, be careful.”

  “You know I will.” There was a slight tension in her arms when she hugged me. She ran her hand down my arm and stopped at my wrist. She used her fingertips to look at each charm until she got to the newest one. “The meeting that took place in the teepee was the meeting.”

  Before I could even respond, Eloise had snapped her fingers and disappeared along with the suitcase.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Eloise had something up her sleeve. It was something she didn’t want me to know about, and I had to trust she knew what she was doing. She’d never failed us yet, and when it came to Oscar, she always put everything aside in order to make sure he got what he needed. Right now he needed time. It was not on our side.

  “Where are you going?” I asked Mr. Prince Charming when he darted down the path in the complete opposite direction we needed to take to get back to town.

  I stood there watching and wondering what it was that he needed me to see.

  “Why?” I threw my hands in the air. “Why are you doing this to me?” I asked him, knowing it was almost time to open the shop. Deep down I couldn’t help but wonder if the Audubon Society members who had decided to go shopping for the day would even set foot in my shop.

  It was so tempting to read them. I was looking forward to it. All the distractions of the Treesort during Oscar’s questioning them really messed with my intuition. When they were in my shop… that was a different story. I would be able to truthfully get to their souls and see where they really stood with Adam Vedder.

  I reached down into my bag and grabbed my phone. My phone chirped a text. It was Faith. She beat me to texting her to see if she could open the shop for me since I was going to be late.

  The wind told me you were busy and I’m on my way to the shop. Take your time, she texted.

  I laughed and looked around me, secretly thanking the wind. I slipped the phone in my back pocket.

  Leftover branches from a few months ago when it was winter and fall were nice and dry, so they crunched under my shoes when I stepped on them along the trail. The trail was covered with old pine needles and dried leaves, telling me this was a path not traveled too much.

  Mr. Prince Charming was around the bend and sitting on an old tree stump as though he was waiting for me. His tail was swinging as he batted at the buzzing flies in the air until I caught up to him.

  “Okay. I’m all yours.” I scratched the top of his head. His eyes closed for a moment, and then he jumped down, trotting in front of me. This time he didn’t run ahead.

  “This is familiar.” I looked around when I noticed we were coming to the campsite. “What do you have me coming back here for?” I asked.

  The rustling of leaves from the other side of one of the teepees alerted me. I was not alone.

  Suddenly, Oscar darted out from the teepee and ran down the path we’d taken to find Adam.

  “Oscar!” I yelled after him, stopping him in mid-run.

  He turned around, heaved a big breath, and smiled.

  “Good. You’re here.” He walked back. Sweat beaded along his thick brows.

  “You two?” I gestured between them, knowing Mr. Prince Charming led me here. “You two talked?” I asked, shocked since they weren’t the best buddies.

  “I had Aunt Eloise tell him to lead you here. She said you’d stopped by and apologized for leaving abruptly.” He leaned in and kissed my cheek.

  “Do you know where she was going?” I asked. “She had a suitcase,” I followed up. “And I think she’s got the Spangled Smoky Momoko, which is really Adam.”

  “She said that she thinks she can help out the species but not really help out in the case.” He shrugged. The corner of his lips dipped down. “I didn’t feel like questioning her about it since my mind is filled with this.”

  “This?” I asked, glancing to the path.

  “I looked at all the cameras. It appears you were right about a fight. I’m not sure who, but Webster’s camera was set up outside of his teepee. He videoed himself at the beginning of it and said into the camera how he didn’t trust anyone in the camp not to go ahead and look. So he wanted to set up a video to see if anyone would be dishonest.” He pointed to where the camera was set up. “It had a good view of Adam’s teepee.”

  I followed Oscar over to where he believed Adam to have taken his last few moments.

  “In the video, Adam leaves his teepee. He’s without his walking stick.” Oscar looked at me with a raised brow. “The camera was set on a special night vision lens for bird-watching. He had set up a 400mm camera lens with autofocus. The camera picked up Adam but not the person who took off after him. The sound was off.”

  “That’s odd.” I wondered why Webster would turn off the sound. “Do you think he set up the camera as a premeditative murder plot?”

  “Did he eat the stew?” Oscar asked a really good question.

  “I’m not sure who ate what at this point.” I gnawed on my bottom lip. “I was for sure Adam ate it. He had a bowl, and he was eating. Petunia had nothing else to offer.”

  “The sisters gave a fifteen-minute spread for the time of death. The path we found him on is a path not traveled. To me, I couldn’t help but wonder how someone followed him out there, knocked him in the head hard enough for him to get the aneurysm to bleed out and die before the midnight hour, and got back in time for you to find him. And without you hearing anything.” Oscar was rambling to me.

  “I’m not following what you’re saying.” My phone chirped, and I pulled it out of my pocket.

  “Everything okay?” he asked.

  “Yeah.” I shook my head. “Instagram notification.” I put the phone back in my pocket. “Ophelia swears I need to be on there for the shop, so
she started me one. Now I’m getting these notifications when someone follows me or likes a photo she put up.”

  I waved it off.

  “Back to what you’re trying to tell me.” I put my hands on my hips and looked around. All the bowls from the campfire supper Petunia had prepared were still stacked up in one another near the charred fire.

  “I’m saying someone had to have walked down the trail before he was killed. What if the person told Adam they saw the bird down that trail? It’s just far enough away that no one would hear them. Adam took off, and the killer let him get just enough distance down the trail before they followed. In the video, someone followed Adam, but they weren’t in the full view, giving the killer a shadow. I couldn’t make out who it was.” Oscar’s face clouded. “I just think this was premeditated like you said, but the person knew that trail. Whoever goes down that trail? Like Eloise said, it’s the bee trail where all the hives are. Was the killer bit?”

  “Did the killer somehow know this was where the bees were?” I questioned.

  “June. Did Petunia eat the stew?” Oscar looked at me with a deep sadness in his eyes.

  “No.” I shook my head. “Not Petunia.”

  I honestly couldn’t wrap my head around the idea that Oscar would even think Petunia could do this.

  “June, she knows this forest. She knows these animals. She can get bees to do whatever she wanted. If she thought the Spangled Smoky Momoko was in danger from any of these people, you and I both know Petunia would do whatever to keep the animal safe.” Oscar was all about the motive, and it was true, but murder? “Think about it. She didn’t eat the stew because you and she had planned for them to nap at midnight so the meeting wouldn’t take place. What if she went to Adam’s teepee to discredit Paris’s story like the two of you have been doing, and when he wasn’t buying it, she told him the bird was down the path? She gave the bees enough warning to let them have him pass. You said he mentioned he was allergic to bees. She overhead, and that’s the murder weapon.”