Crochet and Cauldrons: A paranormal cozy mystery (Vampire Knitting Club Book 3)

by Nancy Warren

  I didn’t feel very consoled, but it was kind of him to say that.

  "Tell me everyone who was here, and where they sat."

  I did. Seeing it all again, through his eyes.

  He hesitated, then asked, “Did there seem to be any animosity between Logan and anyone else last night?"

  "Quite the contrary. He and Priya left together. I don't know if there was a romance going on there, or whether they were just friends, but they seemed close."

  "Had he known any of those people before?"

  "I don't know. I think he recognized Pete, the Australian, from somewhere. But I really don't know."

  He nodded and asked, "This is purely routine, what were your movements last night? After dinner?"

  "Well," I said, "Logan and Priya left after dinner. Around nine o’clock, I think. Then the Miss Watts left after that. Maybe half past nine, or ten."

  "And the other student? Pete, I think you said his name was."

  It was ridiculous, but I felt heat climbing into my cheeks. I didn't want to blush in front of Ian. He and I had never even had a date, so to feel embarrassed telling him that I spent some time alone with another man was ridiculous. But I could tell myself that all I liked, and I still felt the heat of a blush rising to my cheeks.

  "Pete stayed later. He helped me do the dishes. My parents and their friend, Hamish Ogilvie, were in the other room still talking."

  "And what time did Pete leave?"

  "Closer to eleven."

  "And, then, what did you do?"

  “I walked back with him to his college, Barnaby College."

  He looked at me. "The same college where Logan was staying?"

  "I think so. But of course, I didn't see Logan. He’d left earlier."

  "And did you go in with Pete?" His voice was level, with only the slightest interrogatory inflection, but I felt his keen interest in my answer. I was pleased I could tell him that no, I hadn't gone in. "I walked back home again."

  "Let me get this straight. You left your home and walked Pete back to his college and then turned around and walked back again?"

  It did sound very peculiar when he said it like that. I put my arms up helplessly. "We’d all been drinking, it seemed like a good idea at the time. I thought some air would be good for me. It was a very pleasant evening for a walk. So, yes, I walked down to the college and back again."

  "And that's all you did?"

  Well if he wanted every detail of my evening, I guessed he could have it. I said, "Pete kissed me."

  I wasn't sure if he was annoyed or amused at my answer. It was hard to tell when he was in serious detective mode. He said, "I see. And this happened outside the college?"

  "Yes. As I told you, I did not go inside."

  "And then you walked back home."

  "Yes."

  "Did you see anyone?"

  I hesitated. A moment too long. I wanted to tell him that, yes, I had walked home all alone but it wasn't true. I said, "Rafe happened to be out on the street last night. I bumped into him and we walked back here together."

  "I see. You were well-escorted, then."

  "I was."

  He looked at me, then. He had a way of looking at me that made me want to tell him all my secrets. That was what made him so good at his job. His moss-green eyes were intent. "Is there anything at all you can tell me that might help in our investigation?"

  Apart from the fact that Logan had apparently been a wizard and was chasing a very bad supernatural character, I didn't have any information. And, somehow, I didn't think that getting Ian Chisholm involved in witches and wizards was going to be particularly helpful to any of us. So I stuck with, "No. I'm sorry."

  He shook his head, looking puzzled. "I don't know what it is about you, Lucy, but you seem to draw disaster to you."

  Oh, he had no idea.

  I had a sudden thought. "Have you spoken to Pete, today?"

  “Yes. Why do you ask?"

  "I wanted to make sure he was okay. That's all."

  “He looked well, when I spoke to him," he said, "but you can ask him yourself how he's doing. He told me you two were having dinner, tonight."

  I put my hand to my mouth. "Oh, my gosh, we are. It's been such a crazy day, I almost forgot."

  If a smile can be sarcastic, he gave me a sarcastic one. "I don't think he's forgotten."

  Then he left. And I wondered what that was supposed to mean.

  I knew that if the evil Egyptian demon had killed Logan, he was closing in on me, so I kept the mirror and the potion that Margaret had made for me close by for the rest of the day, but thankfully no one appeared to try and kill me.

  I called that a win, that and the fact that sales were way up. Every single vampire who’d come in to waste time in Cardinal Woolsey’s ended up being pressured by Eileen, the super salesperson, into buying something. Usually, more than they intended to buy. I was glad they were all so rich or I might have felt guilty.

  I missed my grandmother. Of all times for her to be away, this was the worst. I needed her calm, good sense, and her guidance. She’d been a witch, she’d know what I was going through, maybe help me with spells to keep me safe. My parents were great and I loved them, but I couldn't tell them the truth about what was going on. And besides, no one gave good advice like my grandmother.

  She’d have made me feel better. I'd always thought I'd have enjoyed more attention from my parents if I’d been about two thousand years old, wrapped in linen cloth and they’d dug me up instead of giving birth to me. It wasn’t that I blamed them; they were wonderful people, just slightly obsessive about the archaeology.

  Apart from Gran, I missed Nyx. Even though I knew all my vampire friends were keeping a close eye on me, I was enough of a witch that I missed having my familiar around. She might only be a young and fledgling familiar, but I was a young and fledgling witch, so we matched. I hated to think of her trapped upstairs in Margaret Twig’s stone cottage. I bet Margaret didn’t feed her the special tuna she liked.

  As soon as I’d dealt with his evil warlock, I had a spot of cat-napping in my future.

  After Ian left, I walked into Cardinal Woolsey’s to find Eileen explaining to Silence Buggins that Lucy would be back soon. It was a very odd picture these two made. Eileen looking every inch the comfortable pink-clad matron and Silence looking like she'd stepped out of a Victorian photograph. I could only suppose that people in Oxford either thought she was an actress or perhaps a member of some religious sect that insisted women be covered from neck to ground in natural fabrics.

  Silence was, as usual, chattering up a storm. Eileen had a slight dazed look on her face and I thought even her endless patience was being stretched.

  Eileen saw me first and said, with relief, "There she is. Here's our Lucy back."

  Silence turned and looked clearly relieved. I don't know what my vampire body guards’ signal was to call for help but I got the feeling that she had been close to pulling whatever alarm bell they'd agreed on.

  She said, "Good afternoon. I'm so pleased to see you." She placed her small, white hand to her chest. "I've been having such trouble with this piece of knitting. But your assistant very kindly helped me sort it all out."

  "I'm so pleased," I said. "And you're in good hands, she's a much better knitter than I am."

  This wasn't saying much, of course, nearly everybody who'd ever picked up needles or a ball of wool was a better knitter than I was.

  A couple of young girls about twelve came in at that moment with their mothers. Silence looked at them with deep suspicion, as though they might suddenly morph into killers. When, instead, one of the moms explained that the girls wanted to learn to knit Silence said, "I think I'll just settle on this nice chair here, and work on my knitting. Then, if I run into trouble again, one of you nice ladies can help me."

  I said that was fine and suggested to Eileen that she go and have a break while I dealt with the novice knitters. She glanced at Silence. "Perhaps I will pop out and get
some air." When she left, she glanced back through the window, as though deeply hoping Silence wouldn't be there when she returned.

  Silence seemed to take a real interest in the young girls. She said, "Oh, what lovely young ladies. You must be very proud. And what a fine pastime knitting is. So ladylike.”

  The mothers nodded and thanked her, then ushered their kids over to where I was sorting out some of the easier knitting patterns. Thanks to Eileen, I was able to suggest that they start with a simple square, but once they’d done that, it was an easy step to a scarf.

  Silence had been listening, and now she said, “Yes, a scarf is very important, particularly when the weather grows chilly. Look how fine their skin is. And the throats still unmarked, not a wrinkle to be seen."

  I didn't like the way this Victorian vampire was eyeing those sweet young throats and probably thinking about how delicious their sweet, young blood would taste. I always kept a good supply of solid wooden knitting needles and a couple of extra fat ones that I had sharpened back when I was particularly nervous about the vampires. I made sure they were within easy reach just in case.

  I'm not sure whether he had some sixth sense, or whether he felt he'd inflicted Silence on us long enough, but just as Silence had risen from her chair to 'help' the girls choose a simple pattern, Rafe appeared. I sighed with relief and eased my grip on the sharpened wooden needles.

  At the sight of Rafe, Silence picked up her knitting. "Well, I'd better be on my way." His appearance must have flustered her because, instead of going out the front door, she began heading toward the back room, which led to the trapdoor into the tunnels.

  I ran after her and said, "Miss, the door’s that way."

  She looked startled and then laughed, a high, artificial sound. "Oh, how silly of me. I don't know whether I'm coming or going, some days."

  When she left, I breathed a sigh of relief.

  The girls and their mothers were happily poring over patterns, and arguing about colors for a scarf. At least one of the mothers seemed to be quite an experienced knitter, so I left them to it and said to Rafe, "I think Silence was getting peckish."

  He glanced out the window, where she was walking quickly toward Rook Lane. I knew there was an entrance to the tunnels partway down the lane. Hopefully she’d visit their private blood bank before coming up here again.

  "I shouldn't have let her take a shift, but she wanted to be helpful. You know what she's like."

  "I do. And I appreciate the thought, but she was eyeing those two girls like they were a very tasty midnight snack."

  "I'll have a word with her."

  He asked me how I was holding up and I told him, quite honestly, that my nerves were stretched to breaking point. Actually, I think they’d snapped, like overfilled balloons.

  He said in a low voice, "I want you to stay inside tonight. I'm trying to find out more about Logan's murder. The initial autopsy report is inconclusive. They can't find a mark on him. That is some very powerful magic."

  "I can't stay in tonight. I have a date."

  He rolled his eyes. "Do you really think this is a good time to begin a relationship?"

  I rolled my eyes right back at him. "Do you really think you are in a position to give me dating advice?"

  He glared at me for a long, steely moment. "Where are you going on this date?"

  "I don't know."

  "All right. I’ll find somebody to keep an eye on you."

  "Oh great, just what I need. A chaperone. This feels just like the fifties."

  He looked at me puzzled. "The fifties?"

  “Yes. The 1850s."

  I was tempted to cancel dinner. The idea of being spied on by the undead was enough to put anyone off their food. Especially if he sent Silence Buggins. But, then I thought about Pete and how sad he must be right now. At least we could talk about the loss. I felt like I owed him that.

  Rafe picked up a knitting magazine and, while pretending to flip through it, asked, "Where is your assistant?"

  "I think Silence almost literally talked her ear off. I told Eileen to go and have a short coffee break. She should be back soon."

  He nodded and began to look at shelves as though he were thinking about beginning a knitting project. I suppose it was rather sweet that he wanted to keep such a good eye on me, but it was also somewhat controlling. The door chime went off and I turned to greet my new customer and, to my surprise, saw the older gentleman who had applied to be my assistant, not so many days ago. Given his allergies to wool and cats, I was surprised to see him back in Cardinal Woolsey’s. He looked a bit surprised, too. "Mr. Cruikshank. How are you?"

  He looked as harried and woebegone as before. He was neatly dressed, like an accountant off to work, and still carrying that attaché case. He said, "I took the liberty of taking a decongestant before I walked in." He glanced around the shop, no doubt looking for my cat, but, sadly for me, she wasn't there.

  I said, "Can I help you with something?"

  "Yes. My wife said I didn't try hard enough in our interview. She thinks I should learn how to sell myself." When he said ‘sell myself’ he lifted his fists and made a motion as though he was banging on a heavy door. I could see him being forced to practice that gesture in front of his no-doubt horrible wife.

  Rafe turned to look at him and narrowed his eyes. Before I could tell the man that I had already hired an assistant, Rafe asked, "Why don't you make Mr. Cruikshank a cup of tea, Lucy? I'll keep an eye on things out here. He can practice his interviewing skills on you."

  I turned to stare at Rafe and saw him cut his eyes very quickly to the bag where I kept the mirror and the potions Margaret had given me. Was he seriously thinking this sorry-looking, henpecked man was Athu-ba, stealer of souls? But then, of course, if evil could choose a shape, what better one than someone as nonthreatening as poor Ned Cruikshank?

  The older man perked up. "A cup of tea would be most welcome. It's very hard work looking for a job. Especially at my age."

  I put on the kettle and made tea. Eileen had brought in, not only a kettle, but two china tea mugs for us, both patterned in roses, and some tea bags, sugar and some single portion containers of long-life milk.

  Mr. Cruikshank took me through his resumé, line by line, elaborating on the extra responsibilities he’d held, beginning as a junior accountant and working his way up to management. I interspersed a few questions, allowing him to expand on his answers. He began to grow visibly more confident as I encouraged him.

  I slipped a little of the revealing potion into his tea, putting the bag with the mirror on my lap and practicing the spell Margaret had given me. I was glad Rafe was in the other room, because the thought of confronting an evil demon who’d already killed a man, just last night, was terrifying.

  But, Mr. Cruikshank didn't turn into any kind of monster as he drank the tea. If there was any change, it was that he grew into a more confident individual. After about fifteen minutes, I said, “I’d hire you in a minute, if I were an accounting firm looking for an experienced professional.”

  As he’d been speaking with me, Ned Cruikshank’s voice had become increasingly nasal, as though he were coming down with a cold. Now, he sneezed, put his teacup aside, and said, "Thank you, Lucy. I feel so much better now. I know exactly what I'm going to do."

  I smiled at him. "I suspect it won't have anything to do with working inside a shop that sells wool."

  He chuckled. "No, it certainly won't. You’ve helped me enormously. I see, now, how accomplished I am. What I'm going to do, is volunteer for a charity that would appreciate my accounting skills. I don't need the money; I’ve got a nice pension. My wife simply wants me out of the house.”

  “I think that’s an excellent idea,” I said. “You’ll be really helping people who need it, and using your skills and experience.”

  He seemed so pleased with himself at that burst of bravery that he was a like a new man as he left the shop.

  I shook my head at Rafe even though he could
clearly see that Mr. Cruikshank wasn’t a monster.

  Rafe left as soon as Eileen returned and the rest of the day was uneventful, if you didn't count the constant stream of vampires coming in to check up on me.

  When closing time came I did a mental accounting and calculated I’d had more vampires in the shop that actual humans.

  Chapter 14

  I went back upstairs and found my mother alone, busily working on her computer. She looked up, blinked a few times before realizing she was wearing her reading glasses, and pushed them onto the top of her head.

  "Lucy, your dad's got a dinner meeting that will probably go late. I thought we’d go out ourselves. It’s too grim having dinner here, when that poor boy ate his last meal with us last night."

  "I'd love to, Mom, but I already have plans for tonight.” Then I thought of her all alone up here and felt bad. “But I could cancel, if you want me to."

  When I told her that Pete had asked me out for dinner, her face lit up. "He’s so charming, and an archaeologist, too."

  I thought that his being an archaeologist trumped his niceness in my mom's eyes. I insisted that I could cancel if she didn't want to be alone but she assured me she had lots of work to catch up on. There was plenty of food in the fridge, so she’d be fine.

  She went back to her computer while I went upstairs to shower and get ready for my evening.

  I put on my best jeans and, after hesitating, I chose the exquisite midnight blue V-neck silk knit with the bell sleeves that Sylvia had knit me. She’d told me to wear it on a date, and this was a date. I fastened the diamond necklace, the perfect accessory as she’d no doubt known. I took a selfie, so I could show her when she returned from Dublin.

  I styled my hair the way the salon stylist had showed me, applied a little makeup and then debated whether to take my potions and the mirror along with me. I already knew that Pete wasn't the evil demon, since he'd eaten the potion-sprinkled food last night and been fine. Also, the mirror and potion were bulky so I'd have to take a larger bag, which was a nuisance. However, I’d be out in public. I'd be vulnerable.