“The stuff is total garbage,” Lucy added with a grumpy look at the bottle in my hands. “I could get the same result by dumping half a bottle of polish remover into any one of our existing lines of polish.”
I wrinkled my nose and set the bottle down. The packaging was eye-catching and I was starting to see what the fuss was about. But surely people would give it a try once and then toss it when they realized how bad it was, right? How were they managing to stay in business?
“It’s a sad day when scammers like Praxle are allowed to sell their potions free and clear while I’m banned from even making them anymore.”
Evangeline and Lucy agreed with sympathetic looks.
The chime on the front of the shop chirped out a jingly little song and Ben sauntered into the shop. He took long, easy strides across the spa, heading for the back room where he had a massage studio, and flashed the three of us a wide grin. “How’s it going, ladies?”
His voice, which I normally found appealing, sounded like nails on a chalkboard. I bristled and hurried to turn back to face Evangeline before my expression could give away my irritation.
“Doing just fine. Your three o’clock is ready for you,” Lucy replied, her voice tart.
Ben nodded, seemingly oblivious to her venom, and passed through the emerald green curtain that separated the retail and salon space from the treatment rooms in the back where massages, facials, and waxing services were provided.
“Mind if I use your bathroom before I go?” I asked Evangeline, already making my way to the curtain before she could reply.
I pushed through the thick fabric and nearly ran into Ben. “Oops!” He jumped back. “Sorry, Holly.”
“No problem,” I replied with a friendly smile. “Hey, I think I saw you in the haven today.”
His face went white.
Busted!
“Actually, you were in the SPA building while I was on my way out. How do you know Sasha Pringle?”
He took another step back. “Who?”
I arched an eyebrow. Really? That’s how he was going to play it?
His eyes darted to the door of his treatment room. “Sorry, Holly, I’d love to talk but I have someone waiting for me. We’ll catch up later, okay?”
Before I could object, he yanked the door open and slinked into the room, closing the door soundly behind him.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Using the excuse that my carton of ice cream was melting, I heaved my bags out the door of the day spa and hurried back to the manor. My head was swimming with new theories that I wanted to run by Adam. When I reached the manor’s front porch—cursing the heavy bags a little more with each step—my phone started to ring. “Oh, bat wings.” I rolled my eyes, stashed the grocery bags on the top step, and retrieved my phone from the side pocket of my cross-body purse. “Hello?”
It was Harriet. “Hello Holly. Is this a good time?”
“Um, sure. What’s up?”
“I wanted to let you know that there’s been a development in Harvey’s case. An arrest, actually.”
I turned and plopped down on the steps beside the grocery bags. “Really?”
“They’ve arrested Dune Kasey. Agent Mache is the lead on the investigation and he’s keeping everything pretty close to the vest. However, I did a little poking around, and from what I can tell, it looks like he used the Magic Beans portal right after Harvey.”
“Whoa.”
Talk about timing.
“They brought him in for questioning and he went ballistic, railing about the last time they put him away. Things must have escalated quite a bit because an hour later, he was arrested. I think they’re still waiting to bring formal charges, but I wouldn’t be surprised if this ends up on the news tonight. I didn’t want you to be surprised, especially since we just spoke about him this afternoon.”
I nodded, taking it all in. With Harvey being so high profile within the SPA, there hadn’t been a doubt that the agency would throw all of their available resources into finding his killer, but the swiftness of it still surprised me. “Thank you, Harriet. I really appreciate you letting me know.”
“Of course. I know we both want the same thing. Justice for Harvey.”
“Sounds like we’re one step closer.”
“Absolutely. I’ll let you know if I hear anything else.” She paused. “Oh, and Holly, it would be best if you keep this between us. I’m technically not supposed to share things like this. I’m sure you understand.”
“Completely. Don’t worry, Harriet. Thanks again for keeping me in mind.”
We hung up and I sat on the porch for a long while, shuffling through everything one more time before going inside. Adam was still upstairs working, so after I put away the groceries I went to my room, got on my stomach, and fished the copy of the Haven Herald out from under the bed where Adam had recommended I keep it. Posy claimed that she never visited our rooms, but if I were a ghost and had a bunch of interesting tenants, it was exactly what I would do. She could deny it all she wanted, but Posy was just as curious as anyone.
I sat on the floor, my back pressed up against the side of the bed, and unfolded the front page. Boots jumped down from the bed, landing with a loud thump as his paws hit the wood floor. He wandered over to inspect what I was doing but quickly lost interest when he realized it didn’t involve food.
“Sorry, Bootsie,” I said, scratching his head. He purred and curled up into a ball beside me.
The front page article of the paper detailed the Praxle case. The image still gave me the creeps and I tried to avoid looking at Praxle’s arrogant expression as I read the words around it:
Bill Praxle is currently embroiled in a high-profile council proceeding that has captured the attention of the entire haven system. If convicted, Praxle will likely face a life sentence. A number of heinous crimes are listed in the charges against him, including but not limited to: harassment, assault, extortion, embezzlement, and lying to law enforcement agents.
“Charming man.” I shook my head and then continued reading.
For more on this breaking story, tune into The Witch Wire tonight at 5 p.m. for a statement from Praxle’s lawyer.
“Don’t mind if I do,” I said to myself. I had an hour to kill before the first broadcast of the news would start, so I went back to the kitchen and threw together a quick dinner, making sure there was enough for Adam whenever he was able to break away from work. I took my own bowl to the living room and flicked on the TV.
The Praxle case got the lion’s share of the coverage and was much the same as the article I’d just finished reading. Despite the article’s promise, there didn’t appear to be any changes in the course of the day, even though the council hearing had gone on for eight hours.
Frustrated, I raised a hand, ready to flick the TV off, when the anchor’s voice interrupted the tail-end of the story with a breaking update. I sat forward and listened intently.
“And in our top story of the night, the SPA has issued a public decree announcing that Vincent Mache has been appointed to the position of Grand Investigator here in the Seattle office. Following Harvey Colepepper’s untimely death, the agency has kept quiet about plans to fill his position within the organization. However, an arrest was made earlier today in connection to that investigation. The details have not been publicly released, but it certainly appears that the agency is confident in this development and is eager to move forward.
Mr. Mache has been a well-respected agent for nearly twelve years. He worked closely with Mr. Colepepper in his tenure at the agency and was, in fact, a former classmate of Mr. Colepepper’s at academy.
It is noteworthy that Mr. Mache, while close to Mr. Colepepper, is at the opposite end of the spectrum on several hot-button issues presently facing haven society. One example that will likely garner attention in the coming days is his stance on technological development and forward movement. While the SPA and the Haven Council have long ruled against integrating technology, particularly th
e internet, within haven society, Mr. Mache is in favor of merging the tech world with that of magic and supernatural abilities. It is not clear how these ideals will play out, but one thing is for certain: expect some shake-ups.
Mr. Mache was unavailable for comment but we will be back, after the break, with a word from an SPA spokesperson.”
The news transitioned to a commercial and I stared off into space, not fully seeing the flashy images showcasing some kind of enchanted hostess serving set that, according to the announcer, made fancy dinner parties a literal snap. My mind whirred back like a rewinding tape to the conversation with Adam after lunch. He’d mentioned that one of the companies he worked for had been contacted by someone within the haven to see about bringing the supernatural world online and finally bridging that technological gap between humans and supers. According to the news report, that was something Agent Mache would be in agreement with, but that Harvey would have rejected. So, how was it that the order had already been placed? Harvey had outranked Mache, so he would have been the one to vote in new orders.
I pushed off the floor and went upstairs to Adam’s room. I knocked twice, lightly, and was told to come in. Adam was hunched over his desk, his eyes bouncing between two huge monitors. “Hey, Holls. I swear I’m almost done here.”
I perched on the edge of his bed. “Sorry to interrupt, but I wanted to ask you something.”
“Shoot,” he said without looking away from his work. His fingers flew over the keys, typing so fast it was almost startling.
“You said something about the haven wanting to get some kind of supers-specific internet base set up.”
“Uh, yeah.” Click, click, click-click-click. “Stars Burst Enterprises was contacted to get a preliminary database set up for some bit meeting coming up.”
“Stars Burst?”
Adam laughed. “I know, it always gets me thinking about candy.”
I rolled my eyes. “What doesn’t?”
He craned around and gave me a playful scowl. “Why are you asking about it? I probably shouldn’t have even mentioned it. They’re keeping it under wraps. I’m assuming they don’t want to start a public debate until it’s officially happening.”
“Agent Mache has been named as Harvey’s replacement,” I said, still putting the other pieces together in the back of my mind. “It was on The Witch Wire tonight.”
Adam’s eyebrows lifted. “Wow. That was fast.”
“And they arrested Dune Kasey,” I added.
Adam looked down at the large face of his watch. “How long have I been up here?”
“Harriet called me. That part, the arrest, just happened this afternoon.”
“And they waited what, a whole two hours to name Mache as the new Grand Investigator?”
“Yeah. I don’t like it. It feels too rushed.”
Adam slung an arm over the back of his chair and spun to face me. “What are you thinking?”
“I don’t know yet,” I said with a small shake of my head. “But it doesn’t sit right.”
“I suppose the SPA needs to move on but it does seem kind of bam, bam, bam.”
“Here’s what I’m wondering: if Agent Mache was in charge of the murder investigation, which is what Harriet said and Agent Bramble implied, then would he be motivated to find the truth, or was he just trying to close the case so he could get on with his promotion? I mean, when I was with Agent Bramble she seemed a little annoyed with Agent Mache. There was that whole campaigning comment that sounded a little bitter. Harriet already told me that some of his comments were rubbing people the wrong way. Why should we trust his investigation if his real motive is getting a job promotion?”
“Sounds like you need to talk to Agent Bramble if you want to dig into this,” Adam said. “She was his partner. If anyone knows what’s going on, it’ll be her.”
I gave a half-cocked smile. “Do I need to brace myself for the part where you tell me I should stay out of it because I don’t need to get tangled up in another investigation, and that it will all work itself out?”
Adam returned my grin. “I’ve learned that you’re gonna do what you want regardless. It’s easier if I just step back and prepare to be your muscle if needed.”
I got up from the bed and sat in Adam’s lap, looping my arms around his neck. “You’re a very smart man, St. James. Have I mentioned that lately?”
He chuckled and put one hand behind my neck. He guided my lips to his and kissed me softly.
I pulled back and smiled at him. “Now, how about you turn off all these contraptions so we can get to our date?”
He ran a thumb over my cheek and gave me one more kiss. “Yes ma’am.”
I dozed through the end of the movie and woke up long enough to say goodnight to Adam before we padded off to our respective rooms. I’d been exhausted after dinner, but when I climbed into bed beside Boots, my mind kicked back into high gear and rambled through the different theories and worries all over again. I rolled over and buried my face in the pillow, wishing I could muffle the musings of my distracted mind.
It was pointless.
With an irritated sigh, I threw off the blankets and stuffed my feet into my slippers. I made my way to the kitchen, surprised to find Lacey and Posy already inside. That was an unusual late-night pairing. They both said hello as I wandered in and put on the kettle, intending to dose myself with some sleep-inducing tea to quiet my thoughts.
“I haven’t seen you in a while, Lacey. Everything okay?”
“Just fine,” she said before taking a long sip from her crystal goblet of faux blood. “You? Any progress with Nick?”
“Ugh.” I leaned against the counter and shook my head. “None at all. I stopped at a potion shop in the haven a couple days ago, but that was a total bust. The only thing the potion master had was something that would need to be administered each day. I don’t even see Nick every day, so unless I turn into a total stalker, that’s not really going to work.”
“Adam probably loves that idea,” Lacey quipped with a grin.
“Did the potions master have any other suggestions, dear?” Posy asked.
The kettle boiled and I paused to mix up a large cup of tea. “He told me to find someone skilled at mind magic. Which is not helpful in the slightest.” I carried my tea to the table and sat down. “For starters, I’m really not sure where to even look for someone like that. After all, it’s not exactly the kind of thing people advertise for on billboards.”
“Isn’t it illegal?” Posy asked.
“Technically yes, since it involves a human. I might have left that part out when talking to the potion master.”
“The potions master didn’t have any names for you?” Lacey asked.
I shook my head. “No. Or at least none that he offered up.”
“See, this is why I avoid the haven,” Lacey said defiantly. “The whole thing is so complicated!”
“And the vampire life isn’t?” I countered with a pointed look. “I think after that whole mess with Raven and the so-called Vampire Council, I’ll take my chances with the haven.”
Lacey shrugged. “Suit yourself. To me, the afterlife is complicated enough; why make it harder with all these rules and regulations?”
“You’re not saying you agree with the Vampire Council are you?” Posy asked, trying—and failing—to hide the disgust on her face.
“I’d rather not be a part of either, but at least with the Vampire Council, things are more cut and dried. If I want to change someone’s mind about something, I can glamour them. Now, if I did that inside the haven, they’d flip out and have me arrested!”
Glamour? I sat up straighter. “Lacey, could you glamour Nick into forgetting about the night of the raid?”
Posy’s silvery eyebrows hiked up her forehead as her eyes whipped toward me. “Holly!”
“I’m sorry, Posy, but I’m getting desperate. Nick needs to forget the events of that night and I’m afraid that if I report it to the SPA, they’ll take him
and lock him up for some kind of testing to see why the original spell didn’t work. Or they’ll just obliterate his entire memory to be safe. I can’t allow that.”
Posy scoffed. “Well I’m not going to be a part of this!” With that, she surged up toward the ceiling, as fast as I’d ever seen her move, and vanished.
“And somehow I get labeled as the dramatic one? At least I don’t shake the house off its foundation when I’m having a bad day.” Lacey rolled her eyes. “As to your question, yes, I could glamour him and pluck out those memories, but it would have to be soon. After a certain amount of time passes, it becomes harder to isolate certain memories and I’d be no better than some SPA goon with a wand.”
She hopped down from the counter, rinsed her crystal goblet in the sink, and returned it to its cabinet by the fridge. Before leaving the kitchen, she stopped at the door, tossed her long platinum hair over her shoulder, and shrugged. “Let me know, okay?”
I nodded. “I will. Thanks, Lacey.”
She pursed her lips and pushed out of the kitchen.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
The next morning I took the portal into the haven with Evangeline at my side. Adam was still swamped with work, so Evangeline offered to tag along and keep me company. As we walked through the haven streets, I filled her in on the strange late-night conversation with Lacey and Posy.
“I don’t know if glamouring is the best solution,” she finally said.
“Why not?”
Evangeline glanced over at me. “Well it’s illegal for a reason, right? I mean there must be some types of danger or risks associated with it.”
“Honestly, I don’t know anymore. After all that hubub with the Vampire Council vs the Haven Council, it seems like the Haven Council might make it illegal simply because they don’t want the vamps to have any kind of edge.”
Evangeline frowned. “That’s very political of you.”
I shrugged. “When I used to live in the haven, I never really saw it, you know? Now that I’ve lived outside of the haven for a year and met so many different kinds of people, supers and humans alike, it’s really opened my eyes to the way the haven works. They say they’re inclusive, but just last night on The Witch Wire, they were talking about the controversy surrounding the appointment of a shifter to the Grand Investigator position and whether or not it’s a good idea to have non-magic wielders in such positions of power. And as for vamps, I don’t think a single one works for the SPA.”
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