Brimstone Witch Mysteries - Box Set 1

by April Fernsby

  Zarrina put her hands behind her back and shook her head firmly. “No. I can’t do that. Uriah wouldn’t like it.”

  “It would really help me if you could try. If you’re able to get through, then other residents in Brimstone can too. It might help me track down who killed Uriah.”

  Zarrina’s hands dropped. “Oh. Right. I could have a go.”

  She moved slowly towards the door and opened it with no trouble at all.

  Her eyes widened. “I can do magic.”

  “I don’t think it’s magic. I think you’ve always been able to open this door.”

  Zarrina pulled the door closed. “No. Uriah said I wasn’t able to. He would never have lied to me about that. Never.”

  I had serious doubts about that, but I didn’t say anything.

  I thought I’d seen Basil’s lights on in this room. He wasn’t here now, so that could mean he’d gone out through this door into my world. Should I wait for him? Should I use my magic on the door and seal it up?

  I considered the last option. No, I couldn’t do that. If Basil had gone through to my world, I didn’t want him to get stuck there. Uriah would have got away with looking like a human dressed as a vampire, but what would people make of Basil with his worm-like body and glowing tail?

  I decided to leave the door as it was.

  “Zarrina, do you know about Uriah’s book? The one he wrote in all the time?”

  “I do. It’s an important book. He detailed everyone’s crimes.”

  “Do you know where he kept it?” I looked around the room. “Did he keep it in here?”

  Zarrina shook her head. “No, he always took it with him.” She swallowed. “Wasn’t it with him when you found him?”

  “It wasn’t. While I’m here, I’ll have a quick look for it. Just in case.”

  “I’ll help you.”

  Zarrina and I spent the next twenty minutes looking through Uriah’s things. He had an awful lot of merchandise. He must have spent a good deal of time in my world to accumulate this stock. I wondered for a moment if he ever used the internet when he crossed over. He would have thought that was magic for sure.

  We didn’t find Uriah’s book. I noticed Zarrina getting fidgety and asked her what was wrong.

  She said, “I’d better go home. Zeke said he might check on me in between breaks at the club. He thinks you upset me earlier.”

  “Did I?”

  “No. But you made me realise how sick I was of sitting inside all the time. And how sick I am of seeing Zeke and Zuleika’s faces day after day. I think I need to get back out into the world again.” She stopped and glanced nervously around the room. “Do you think that would be alright with Uriah?”

  A flash of anger went through me. “Your life has nothing to do with Uriah. It didn’t when he was alive, and it doesn’t now that he’s dead. You have to lead your own life. Don’t let anyone tell you what do to.”

  Zarrina gave me a shy smile. “People have always told me what to do. Especially my brother and sister. They’re so protective of me.”

  Her comment caused me concern. Were they so protective that they’d commit murder to keep her safe?

  Before leaving the room, I took some photos using my phone. Zarrina was impressed, and a little afraid when she saw the images appear immediately.

  We left Uriah’s home and I walked Zarrina back to her house and up to her door. She said she was fine to walk on her own, but I said it was no trouble. I wasn’t going to remind her there was a killer on the loose.

  Once Zarrina had gone into her house, I got onto my broomstick and soared up to the sky. I flew round Brimstone a few times and looked at the scene below. I had no idea what I was looking for, but I felt I should be keeping an eye on the place.

  It was after midnight when I returned to the apartment. A quick search of the apartment confirmed Stanley wasn’t home yet.

  I tried to stay awake on the sofa to wait for my little friend, but my eyes had other ideas. I dragged myself into bed and settled down. Stanley was a grown cat and he could look after himself. I told myself that over and over, but I still didn’t stop worrying about him.

  The dirty stop-out came home at 4 a.m. I heard the cat flap bang noisily, and this was followed by Stanley singing to himself. I heard a few bumps and Stanley apologising to whatever he’d banged into. He was still singing as he came into the bedroom and flung himself onto his cushion. He was snoring within seconds.

  I didn’t know whether to be mad at him for coming home so late or to be relieved that he was home. I pulled the cover higher over myself and let out a sigh. Is this what it was like to have children? The constant worry?

  Despite his late night, Stanley was bright-eyed the next morning. He didn’t look the slightest bit groggy as I managed to open my tired eyes and focus on him.

  He bounced on the bed near my face and declared, “Cassia! Wake up! I’ve got so much to tell you.”

  Chapter 24

  I groaned, “Stanley, stop bouncing. Stop shouting. Why aren’t you tired? You haven’t had much sleep.”

  He stopped bouncing. “I don’t need much sleep. I’m too excited. I want to get on with my day. I want us to get on with our investigation. Shall I tell you everything now?”

  I swept my tongue around my dry mouth and pulled myself into a sitting position. “Let me make myself a cup of tea first.” I pulled the cover back and got wearily to my feet. Wasn’t there some magic I could perform on myself to give me some energy? I filed that away as another question for Gran.

  Stanley followed me into the kitchen and asked for some breakfast for himself. Once we were both loaded with breakfast things, we returned to the bedroom and sat on the bed.

  I took a welcome drink of tea and then told Stanley to begin.

  ‘Cassia, I had an amazing time last night. Rascal took me to a secret place where cats meet up. It’s at the foot of the mountains and a bit of a trek, but I didn’t mind. We met the oldest cat in Brimstone there. He’s called Quesby, and he’s even greyer than me! Rascal said he’s as old as Blythe. A three-hundred-year-old cat! Can you imagine that?”

  I nodded and picked up a buttered crumpet. “We are in Brimstone.”

  Stanley continued, “Quesby lives in the mountains but he knows everything that goes on in Brimstone. He knows all about us and what we’ve been up to.”

  “How does he know that if he lives in the mountains?”

  Stanley’s eyes narrowed. “I’m finding it hard to say this next bit.”

  “Try.” I shoved a good piece of the crumpet into my mouth. It’s a good job I was so at ease with Stanley and could stuff my face like this in front of him. I didn’t need to mind my manners at all.

  “Quesby has an army of small friends.” Stanley shivered. “Mice! Quesby has an army of mice. He talks to them as if they are respectable creatures.” He shivered again. “It turns my stomach.”

  “Stanley, it’s not like you to have opinions like that. You normally like everyone.”

  “Not mice. I can’t help it. I’ve tried to like them. But they’re sneaky creatures. You don’t see how they look at us cats. I’m not the only one to feel this way. Rascal nearly threw up when Quesby started talking about his tiny friends.”

  “If Rascal took you to this old cat, didn’t he know about his association with mice?”

  Stanley nodded. “Rascal said he can’t help it. It’s just a reflex. Cassia, the mice at home are cunning and evil, but they’re even worse here. Don’t ever be taken in by one of their nasty tricks.”

  “I’ll try not to. What did Quesby tell you?”

  “He knows about the investigation and thought we might need some help. He got his army of devious creatures together and asked them to gather as much information as they could about the night Uriah was last seen alive.”

  “Did he? That was kind of him.” I shoved the remaining crumpet into my mouth.

  Stanley said, “According to the furry little tricksters, Uriah came out of the
nightclub the other night, stood a short distance from the nightclub doors and started to insult everyone who passed by. He does that quite a lot, but it seems he was even louder and more abusive that night. No one was safe from his nasty comments. One of the mice said it was like Uriah was trying to get his insults in all at once.”

  “As if he was going away?” I suggested.

  Stanley nodded. “That’s what the mouse said. He could be lying. Mice lie all the time. Don’t ever listen to what a mouse tells you.”

  “I won’t. Apart from the shouting, what else did Uriah do?”

  “Zuleika came out of the nightclub at one point and walked over to him. He didn’t shout at her. They had a quiet conversation which became heated. Zuleika put her hand on his arm and pleaded with Uriah over something.”

  I asked, “What were they talking about?”

  “The mice didn’t know. They didn’t want to get too close to Uriah because they were scared of him. So they claim. Zuleika talked with him for five minutes. Uriah threw his hand off her arm and shouted, ‘No.’ Zuleika went back to the nightclub with tears running down her face.”

  “Really? She never said anything to us about having a conversation with Uriah. I haven’t been back for her statement yet. I’ll speak to her about that when I do.”

  Stanley went on, “Zuleika wasn’t the only one who approached Uriah. Flint turned up too.”

  “That doesn’t surprise me. That werewolf turns up everywhere.”

  “I know. He had a short argument with Uriah. They were both shouting so their words were clearly heard. Flint said they had a deal, and that Uriah had to go through with it. Uriah laughed and said he doesn’t make deals with werewolves. They argued a bit more and Flint threatened to attack him. Steve, the doorman, interjected and told Flint to leave. He told Uriah to go home, but Uriah said he wasn’t going anywhere and Steve couldn’t make him.”

  “Wow. Uriah wasn’t scared of anyone, was he? Did he argue with anyone else?”

  Stanley’s head bowed. “He did. I don’t like this next bit. I’m sure there’s nothing in it. I’m sure she’s got nothing to do with Uriah’s murder.”

  “Who?”

  His head lifted. “Gisela. I haven’t met her yet but I know you have. And I know she’s Gilda’s sister. She approached Uriah after Flint had gone and asked him to go home as he was causing a disturbance. They talked a bit more quietly, and then Uriah said he didn’t have a choice and the matter was out of his hands. That upset Gisela and she gave him a hard look before walking away.”

  “What did he mean by that?”

  Stanley shrugged. “I don’t know. It sounds as if they had some sort of agreement that went wrong.”

  I frowned. “I can’t imagine Gisela doing a deal with Uriah. I’ll have to talk to her about it.” I sat back on the bed. “Phew! That’s a lot to take in.”

  Stanley tapped his paw on the cover. “There’s something else. The mice noticed Basil looking out of his room above the bookshop. He was watching Uriah for a while and his tail was glowing red. They said that was unusual because Basil goes to bed early.”

  “Blythe told us that too. I haven’t told you about my evening yet. I haven’t told you about Uriah’s hidden room.”

  Stanley listened as I told him about my adventure the previous night. I showed him the photos I’d taken.

  When I’d finished, he said, “We’re going to have a busy day. We’ve got a lot of questioning to do.”

  “I know. I’m going to need another cup of tea before we start.”

  Chapter 25

  Stanley and I prepared ourselves physically and mentally for the day ahead. Stanley asked me to take my broomstick just in case we needed to do some flying. He said he’d told his new pals about his trips on the broomstick and they’d been mightily impressed. They thought Stanley knew no fear.

  As soon as we walked out of the main door and onto the streets of Brimstone, I knew where we should go.

  Stanley knew too and said, “Look, Basil’s bookshop is open. Are we going to talk to him first?”

  “We certainly are. I’ve got many questions for him.”

  We walked across the square with a determined air. I wasn’t going to take any nonsense from anyone today.

  The doors to the bookshop were wide open, and Basil was inside talking to a customer. My steps slowed as I looked at the customer. Or what I could see of them.

  The customer was clad in a long cloak with a hood pulled up over their face. They had their back turned to the door so it was impossible to see who it was.

  Basil was listening intently as the customer mumbled something. Basil nodded and then pointed to a curtained off area at the side of the shop which I hadn’t noticed before. The customer put a bag of something into Basil’s hand, inclined their head in a nod, and headed through the curtains.

  Interesting. What was Basil hiding back there?

  Basil jumped slightly as we entered the shop. He quickly pasted a bright smile on his face and opened his hands wide. “Cassia! Stanley! I’m so pleased to see you this morning. I’ve got a lot of apologising to do. I’ve treated you in an abominable way. Please, forgive me. The distress of those damaged books made me act in an inexcusable manner. I shouldn’t have shouted at you like that. It was most uncivilized.” He moved smoothly towards us still smiling.

  I didn’t trust him. Not one bit.

  Basil said, “I’m glad you’re here. Firstly, I apologise for my behaviour. Secondly, I’d like you to forget all about those damaged books. They don’t seem important in the light of certain recent events. Poor Uriah. May he rest in peace.” He crossed his hands over his chest and he looked downwards.

  I wasn’t falling for his act and said, “What’s behind the curtain over there?”

  Basil’s hands dropped. He gave me a beady look. “Nothing. There’s nothing over there.”

  I felt a nudge on my legs, glanced down and saw Stanley wink at me. He then quietly padded towards the curtained area.

  I turned my attention back to Basil. “Why don’t you want to proceed with the damaged books incident? Is it because you know Uriah damaged them?”

  “Uriah? Really? Have you got proof of that?”

  “Almost. Did you find out that Uriah did it? Did you confront him? Did that lead to an argument?” I took a step forward with every question, and Basil moved back each time.

  He let out a nervous laugh. “Cassia, you’ll be asking me next if I killed him.”

  “Did you? I saw how angry you were the other day when you were talking to Stanley and me. Did you lose your temper when you confronted Uriah?”

  That nervous laugh again. “Of course not.”

  “Why were you spying on him the night he was last seen alive?”

  Basil’s glance slid to the left. “Spying? I wasn’t spying on him.”

  “Enough!” I declared. “I am dealing with a murder enquiry and I want answers. Basil, you were seen standing at your window watching Uriah as he shouted at everyone. Uriah’s body was found behind your shop the next day. That sounds suspicious, don’t you think? And you’ve been missing for a while. Where have you been?”

  Basil pulled at the collar of his shirt. “I don’t like the tone in your voice. I don’t have to explain myself to you, young witch.”

  “Yes, Basil, you do. I’m not leaving until you answer my questions.” I gave him the hardest stare I could manage.

  “I can say with all honesty that I didn’t kill Uriah. I’ll confess that I was watching him the other night. I heard the ruckus he was making. I heard him insulting everyone. I was hoping someone would hit him. That werewolf, Flint came close to it. Yes, I suspected it was Uriah who damaged my books. He saw me looking at him that night from my window, took a pen from his pocket and waved it at me. He was taunting me.” His head dropped. “I didn’t kill him. I wasn’t brave enough to confront him.”

  I studied him for a few seconds. Was he telling me the truth? Hmm. He was telling me most of the
truth. But he was hiding something too.

  Stanley came back to my side. “Cassia, you won’t believe what’s behind that curtain.”

  Basil snapped, “Curtain? My curtain? How dare you go behind there, you flea-ridden pest.”

  “Oi!” I held my hand up. “Don’t talk about my partner like that.” I looked down at Stanley.

  Stanley said, “I don’t have fleas. Tell him, Cassia.”

  “This isn’t the time, Stanley,” I said. “What’s behind the curtain?”

  “Books,” Stanley began. “Books from our world. There are all the Twilight ones along with the Hunger Games series. And there are rows and rows of Harry Potter books. That’s not all. You should see what Uriah is charging for them. It’s more than ten times what you’d pay for them in our world.”

  Basil backed away. “I can explain. It’s not a crime to sell books. This is a bookshop after all.”

  “Stop moving away,” I told him. “I know where you got these books from. I saw your tail light inside Uriah’s secret room last night. Don’t deny it. You somehow found out about that room and the door that leads into my world. You got those books from my world, at a good price I would imagine. Then you brought them back here to sell at extortionate prices. Is that right?”

  Basil sighed heavily. “Yes, that’s right. That’s where I’ve been these last few days. I’ve been stocking up. As soon as Uriah’s house is sold, I doubt the new owner will let me go back through that magic door. These new books are popular with my customers. I need to meet the demand. I haven’t done anything wrong.”

  “I’ll let Blythe be the judge of that,” I said. “How did you find out about Uriah’s secret room?”

  “I followed him. It was the day when my window was broken. I saw him smirking at me from the other side of the square when I was having my window replaced. I knew he had something to do with the damage. I followed him to his house and watched through a dirty window as he went through the panelled door. I knew he was up to something. I waited until he left and then I went in. I found that magic door in his room and went through. I didn’t go very far because I was scared. I did see the posters of Uriah, though. I saw he was advertising himself as a performer.