by Tonya Kappes
“Hey,” I jumped out of the car just as Oscar was locking up the side door. “You going somewhere?”
“Yeah, work.” He turned the key. His strong jaw muscles flicked with each chew of his gum. He looked at me with a blank stare. Not the same twinkle in his eye a few days ago when he kissed me good morning.
Tormented by confusing emotions, I swallowed hard. “Do you have a minute? It’s about the case.”
He lifted up the cuff of his shirt and peered at his watch. He held up his hand. “Five minutes.” He unlocked the door and I followed him inside.
“It will only take a minute.” I paced back and forth in his kitchen and quickly explained the situations with Faith and Petunia. “Both of them will act like they know you, and really well, since I talk about us all the time.”
“Us? All the time?” His mouth spread into a thin-lipped smile.
“You know,” I wiggled my finger between the two of us. “We go together like peas and carrots.” If he only knew how well I did know him…but I had to shake off those thoughts. For now, those days were over. “Anyway, just pretend like you know them as well as they know you. Stick with the questions by doing the cop thing that you do. Don’t let them question you, because they are out to get me.”
“First of all, I don’t know what you said to the…” He looked at his notebook where he had been taking notes on what I was saying. “Short hair, blonde…Faith. But you can’t go around telling people how to run their business. You have never been in the newspaper business.”
“Right.” I nodded. If he only understood it wasn’t just a newspaper business. I listened patiently.
“And Petunia’s appearance scares me a little.” He tapped the notebook with the pen. “She has an ostrich that you are accused of stealing the feathers from/ Now you are some sort of city council president and she wanted the job?”
His questions were between the spiritual and physical world and were making me confused.
“All I’m asking is that you ask them questions about Kenny, if they knew him and where they were during all the other crimes.” I waved my hand around trying to avoid the hot hunk staring at me in amusement. It was difficult not to grab him, shake him, and tell him we are a couple. A real true romance, kissing and all. But I knew that wouldn’t help matters. What was done was done.
That won’t stop me from trying to spark some memory. Only that would have to happen after this whole mess was cleared up.
“Fine.” He gestured toward the door. “I’ve got to get going. Shouldn’t you be working?”
“They are investigating the shop,” I muttered. “When do you think you can go?”
“Tonight, maybe.”
I squealed and threw my arms around his neck. In a momentary lapse of what had happened, I grabbed the sides of his face and kissed him so hard I thought I was going to pass out.
“Umm. . .” He pulled away. Confusion set in his deep, dark eyes. His face was beet red. “That was weird.”
“Oh,” I put my hands up to my lips. “I’m so sorry. I just believe that if I have any chance of getting out of this, you can help me.”
“Okay.” He rushed to his car as if he was running from the plague. “I’ll call you.”
I stood in his driveway as he skidded out of it so fast, the gravel spit from underneath his tires.
“Great.” I mumbled before another car came barreling down the street, and not just any car, a car with a big cupcake on top.
Chapter Twenty-Two
“Okay,” I kept a good distance between the Green Machine and the cupcake, “Where are you going?”
Every turn Faith made, I made. Every swerve she made, I did the same, until she pulled into the Piggly Wiggly.
Dang! She was there delivering some baked goods. I watched as she got out of the cupcake car and grabbed a few of the packages before she disappeared into the store.
“Now what am I going to do?” I surveyed the lot to see if I saw Adeline’s car. I had only seen it a couple of times parked in front of A Charming Cure, so it was possible that I really didn’t know what it actually looked like. I beat my fingers on the wheel as I looked around.
It would be a great time to question her about the June’s Gems or even her thoughts about me not giving her a potion.
Glancing back to the cupcake car, a thought snapped into my head. What if none of the crimes are related to each other, but are only related because of me? Did Petunia kill Kenny because she was so out of her mind when they named me the village president that she couldn’t think straight? Or did the Karima sisters kill him because I was trying to save the world and they needed a dead body? What if Faith broke into Wicked Good to take the June’s Gems, making it seem like I did it? Then there was the ostrich…Petunia, Faith and the Karimas knew I was trying to help catch the bird. Never mind the reason behind it, but I know each of them had their grubby little paws in it.
Then there was Adeline. Love was a wonderful motive to kill. I couldn’t help but think if I didn’t give her what she wanted, then she was seeking revenge.
Out of the corner of my eye, Faith came high stepping out and got in the cupcake car.
Where are you going? I watched her as she pulled the car to the side of the building and not out of the parking lot. She got out of the car and leaned up against it. Her long blonde hair glistened in the sun and her tan legs looked a mile long. George?
Adeline’s hot hunky George propped himself up with one arm, while his other hand flicked Faith’s hair behind her shoulder.
No. Shock and awe set in. Was George cheating on Adeline? Yes!
I rapidly blinked my eyes. Did Raven know about this? No wonder Adeline had always come to the shop to get potions to make sure George was in love with her.
“That nogoodsonofa…” I gritted my teeth, remembering how much George loved the June’s Gems. “Poor Faith.”
Even though I wasn’t sure why Faith would frame me or be so angry when all I was trying to do was help her get better at her predictions, I still cared for her and didn’t want her to get used for the chocolatey treat.
My skin crawled watching George play up his good looks and Faith soaking it in.
“I wish I could see Raven and tell her about this.” I put the car in drive and headed out of the parking lot.
Reaching into my bag, I pulled Belur out. He was glowing. I put him on the seat next to me and then retrieved Adeline’s address that was wadded up in the bottom.
I popped off the lid of Belur’s jar.
“Do you want something?”
Two little puffs of smoke came out of the bottle like the little engine that could before Belur appeared in the passenger seat.
“I just don’t understand why you won’t let me come out.” His bottom lip was plump as he pouted. “I get tired of staying in that little bottle all day long.”
He cracked and popped as he put his hands way above his head and stretched them to the sky.
“Because, I don’t want a genie.” I ignored Madame Torres glowing in my bag. “I can barely handle the crystal ball I own, much less a genie.”
“But you are my master.” He crossed his arms. “I do not feel worthy.”
“You are worthy, just not for me.” I tapped the top of his bottle and in a flash he was gone. I tucked him back in the bag where he would be safe and sound until I figured out what to do with him. But, first things first.
Adeline.
The street she lived on was tree-lined on both sides, creating a beautiful canopy over the road as I made my way toward her house.
Just like every other house in Locust Grove, she owned a small Cape Cod that was much older than she was. Her car was nestled in the driveway.
Did she come straight here from Kenny’s funeral? Did she know that George was cheating on her?
The first time she came in the shop, she had a sneaky suspicion he was cheating on her, and that was when I gave her the June’s Gems. She said she’d do anything to keep him. Does
that mean she would steal June’s Gems from the Wicked Good?
Even though she was getting them delivered to the Piggly Wiggly now, a few days ago she wasn’t receiving June’s Gems. I wanted to know exactly why she was at Kenny’s funeral.
The window shades were drawn. Tapping on the door, I looked around. The flowerbed running along the front of the house was neatly kept and the yard was perfectly manicured.
“June?” Adeline’s short hair was sticking up all over the place. Her eyes were half closed. She didn’t look like she had only a couple of hours ago. “What are you doing here?”
“I told you that I was going to come over to do some yoga.” I lied. She stood like a brick fireplace, not moving. I had to worm my way in there somehow. “And I had a feeling you weren’t up to your best.”
“You’re right.” She didn’t look amused. “I thought I told you to call me.”
“You did, but I went by the Piggly Wiggly and you weren’t there, so I thought I’d take a chance.” I shrugged.
“You went to the Piggly Wiggly?” She held the door open. I couldn’t help but think I was walking into a lion’s den. “Did you see George?”
“I didn’t see your car, so I didn’t go in.” I was vague in my answer. “So what is going on with you?” There was no way I was going to get anything out of her by beating around the bush.
“Come on in.” I followed her into a magical place of its own.
The gray colored foyer was neat and decorated with black hardwood floors and there was wainscoting on the bottom half the wall. A delicate crystal chandelier hung from the center of the ceiling.
I followed her into her kitchen that was just as charming as the foyer. The whitewashed kitchen cabinets and stainless steel farm sink went perfectly with her butcher block island and lacey window treatments.
“I love your house.” Everything was nice and neat and in its place. A sure sign of a perfectionist killer, I noted.
“Thanks. I’m a shabby chic kinda girl.” She smirked. She held up the freshly made pot of coffee. “I’m a little tired. I’ve been burning at both ends lately. Do you want a cup?”
“No, I’m fine.”
I bet you have been burning at both ends. I wanted to point a finger at her and ask her point blank why she was at Kenny’s funeral, if she killed him, and if she broke into Wicked Good, but I had to proceed with caution.
“Do you want to tell me what is going on?”
“No.” She shook her head as she slowly poured cream and sugar in her coffee. “I’m taking care of it.”
“You don’t want me to get you a remedy?”
She stiffened, her jaw clenched, and she stopped stirring. “You couldn’t help me a few days ago. Why are you so eager to help now, June?”
“I…” I didn’t like the way she asked. “I need to use your bathroom real quick.”
“Fine.” She pointed in the opposite direction from which we came from. “Second door on the right.”
I couldn’t get to that second door quick enough. From behind the door, I took a big whiff. Something had to come to me. I had to tap into Adeline’s soul and see if she was going to kill me.
“What have I gotten myself into?” I murmured.
“What did you say?” Adeline asked. There was a small shadow coming from the crack at the bottom of the door.
“I love your bathroom too.” I lied again, and bent down to put my nose next to the crack, inhaling deeply.
She knows. The smell of a cheater filled my lungs. She was a woman scorned and she was going to do what she needed to do to keep George.
Did she plan on breaking into A Charming Cure to steal a potion the night Kenny died and Kenny got in her way? When that backfired, did she resort to breaking into Wicked Good?
Was George next?
Oh no! Faith’s beautiful little face came to mind. Was Faith next?
Thrusting my fists to the side, I knew I had to do something before it was too late.
Chapter Twenty-Two
“I’m loving this,” I whispered when I landed in A Charming Cure, referring to the teletransporting gift. The shop was dark and dusty, it had only been a couple days since any customers had walked through the door. The place looked dead.
The drapes were pulled, a few of my precious bottle looked like they had been taken, probably from Officer Gandolf, and it was freezing.
Luckily, I knew the place like the back of my hand so I didn’t have to turn on the light to feel my way around. All I had to do was count down the ingredients on the shelf to know exactly what I needed for the first potion.
There were two cures I needed to put together before I came out of Adeline’s bathroom. I had to work fast. I could only pretend to be going to the bathroom for so long before she got suspicious.
I had to get Oscar to Adeline’s house without telling him why. I had to get him a lead. I hated to put magic into it, but I had to protect George and Faith from turning up dead like Kenny. And I couldn’t directly go to anyone because I didn’t have any proof.
What was I supposed to do? Go to Oscar and tell him I had a hunch? I couldn’t tell him that I’m a spiritualist – well, it would be a witch in his vocabulary.
Flipping the cauldron on, I went down the row.
1, 2, 3, 4.I counted the ingredients.
“Wormwood.” I took the bottle from the shelf knowing it was a great ingredient to help banish anger. Anger was one thing that needed to immediately be taken from Adeline. Going back down the line, I gathered the bottle of graveyard dirt for a little sleepy time and a couple sprigs of spearmint to help Adeline breathe in some clear thoughts.
With Adeline in mind, I threw in the ingredients in no particular order. There wasn’t time to go slow. I had to get this potion to her. I needed her to go to sleep so I could get to Oscar.
The bubbling oily tonic, that is black with crimson, glows. It smells exactly like vegetable soup, but with a hint of chocolate.
That was the strange part about being a homeopathic spiritualist. When I make a potion with a specific person in mind, the potion takes on the smells and tastes of the recipient. The vegetables didn’t smell good to me, but the chocolate smelled delicious!
With the substance at a fast boil, I put my hands over the cauldron and chanted, “Angels of power, Angels of might, Let Adeline sleep through a few days and nights.”
The cauldron shut off and the liquid stopped rolling. A bright denim glowed from the empty bottle shelf, illuminating the dark shop. The bottle let me know it was the one that I had to put the potion in and somehow get it down Adeline’s throat.
Just looking at and holding the flask with the enamel light pink roses and light green stems made me relaxed. It was perfect for a few days sleep.
Setting it aside, I had to get to work on a potion for Oscar. Thank goodness he wasn’t a spiritualist anymore or I wouldn’t be able to do this. I had to get him to Adeline’s house. This potion was guaranteed to not only get him there, but to put the suspicion in his mind to investigate her for the crimes. He won’t stop until he figures it out. He might not know he’s in love with me and I’m the one for him, but he does know he can’t stop helping me until he figures it out.
Quickly, I cleaned out the cauldron so the potions didn’t mix. The last thing I needed was the only person on my side sleeping on the job as well as the suspect sleeping. That wouldn’t solve anything.
“Dirt.” I bit my lip. I needed dirt from the Locust Grove police station. This potion is meant to be sprinkled around Adeline’s house to attract the police. “Dang.”
I thrust my fist to the side with the front of Locust Grove’s Police Department in mind and instantly I was standing there. I hurried to the side in fear someone might see me. The last thing I needed was to explain to Oscar, if I saw him, where my car was.
“Hey, man.” A male voice boomed from the front of the building. “Where are you off to?”
“I have to run into Whispering Falls for a few minutes.” O
scar answered the man’s question.
I peeped around the brick building and saw Oscar standing on the sidewalk with another officer.
“I’m doing June a favor.” He shuffled his feet.
“When are you going to tell her?” The man asked.
Tell me? Tell me what? I leaned in a little more.
“It has all changed since she moved to Whispering Falls.” He squinted in the sunlight as he looked up. “It’s like she is too busy to remember our friendship, much less have time to go on a date.”
