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by Unknown

  TOIL AND TROUBLE (A GEEKS AND THINGS MYSTERY) Copyright © 2016 by Sarah Biglow.

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  If you enjoy this work, please consider leaving a review.

  For information contact; www.sarah-biglow.com

  Edited by Ken Marrow, M.A.

  Cover Design by: Ana Grigoriu

  Published by Sarah Biglow: April 2016

  10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

  Contents

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  Also By This Author

  About The Author

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  Find out more here: www.sarah-biglow.com

  CHAPTER ONE

  A gust of October wind picked up as Kalina Greystone pulled into a free parking spot behind the Olde Main Street Pub in Salem, MA. The gust rattled the windows of the car as she cut the engine and glanced sideways at her teenage nephew, AJ. By all accounts she should be the one who was barely awake—having driven out to the coast to her hometown of Ellesworth to pick him up that afternoon—but he’d passed out as soon as he’d buckled in for the short trip to Salem.

  “Hey, wake up. We’re here.” She nudged him in the shoulder before unbuckling her seatbelt.

  He let out a moan. “What?”

  “AJ, come on. You’re the one who wanted to come to the festival. Wake up.”

  She would never understand teenage boys and their desire to be unconscious for most of the day. She and her sister Jillian had certainly never been like that when they were his age. He yawned and straightened in his seat. The streetlights around the edge of the lot flickered to life around them as the sun sunk lower on the horizon.

  “Sorry, I’m up. Let’s go.”

  The pair climbed from the car and headed past the entrance to the pub to the main thoroughfare of the iconic town. Given the town’s rich history with the occult, it was no surprise the townspeople had embraced the time of year and banked on tourists coming to enjoy the corn mazes and walking tours. Having grown up not far from there, Kalina wasn’t as enamored as AJ but she indulged him because she knew his mother wouldn’t.

  “So what do you want to do first?” she asked and draped an arm around his shoulders.

  He looked around at the throng of people and his mouth dropped open in awe. Town festivals weren’t a new thing as a general concept but the costumed people leading tours and selling trinkets could be a little overwhelming.

  “I don’t know. There’s so much.”

  “We could go on a ghost tour. Or the Witch’s Maze is pretty creepy.”

  “I’m not a little kid, Aunt K., so don’t try to scare me.”

  “I’m only pointing out the things that the teenage boys liked when I was your age.”

  “That makes you sound so old.”

  She swatted him. “I am not old. Now, let’s find something fun to do.”

  “Not a ghost tour,” he said.

  She gave him a side eye and he smiled back at her. “I’m not scared. I just think it would be cooler if we did it later at night. Like when it’s dark out.”

  “Okay. Fine. Witch’s Maze it is.” They started down the street again, this time arm-in-arm.

  “Stupid question but why do they call it that? I mean from what I know about the Witch Trials, they weren’t exactly sending suspected witches into mazes to see if they were supernatural beings.”

  They dodged a group of Girl Scouts clustered around a woman in period dress. “It’s just a name. If I remember right they’ve got a mannequin dressed as a witch at the start and finish of the maze. It’s got all kinds of dead ends that make you think they’re messing with your head.”

  “Cool. Has anyone ever gotten lost in it?”

  “I don’t think so. They’ve got people throughout it to make sure if people do get too turned around there’s someone there to guide them to the exit.”

  “Thanks again for bringing me. Mom thinks it’s silly and a waste of money.”

  “That’s just how your mom is, kiddo. She doesn’t like to believe in the fantastical. She was always more grounded in real life.” Despite her business degree, Kalina considered herself something of a dreamer. She’d love spending her afternoons growing up sequestered in the back room of the family comic book shop reading the latest issues. Her father still owned the place and from what she’d heard it was still going strong, especially with the resurgence in popularity of Marvel and DC. She couldn’t turn a corner without some new show or movie popping up, drawing the masses to it.

  The maze loomed ahead of them, framed beautifully by the twilight skyline. Actual torches lined the walkway leading to the start of the maze. A bored-looking college kid sat at a table beside the walkway, staring at his phone. Kalina had to clear her throat twice to get his attention.

  “Two tickets for the maze,” she said.

  “Adult or kid?”

  “Adult.”

  “Twenty bucks,” he said and held out his hand.

  Kalina dug out a twenty dollar bill from her purse and handed it over. He tossed the bill into a metal box and held out a stamp.

  “Left hand.”

  She did as instructed and he pressed the stamp to her skin, leaving the blurry outline of a witch riding a broomstick in red. He did the same to AJ and then went back to whatever was so fascinating on his phone. Kalina and AJ walked up the path to the start of the maze. The rows of hay rose up to about shoulder height. Stray pieces floated on the breeze and Kalina wrapped her jacket a little tighter. A figure in an ankle-length dress and bonnet waited for them at the entrance to the maze. As they got closer, the tiny voice in the back of Kalina’s brain warned that something was wrong with the mannequin in front of them. When they were a few steps away, the torch closest to the entrance flickered and light washed over the figure’s face. The girl was pale but there was something off about the way her body hung on the fence posts.

  “Wow, they go really life-like,” AJ said.

  Kalina reached out a hand and pressed her trembling fingers to the side of the girl’s neck. Her throat went dry and her stomach clinched uncomfortably. Her fingers came away sticky and wet. The torchlight glinted off the angry red color of blood. “This isn’t a mannequin. This girl’s alive. Barely. You need to call the police. Right now!”

  CHAPTER TWO

  AJ turned back the way they’d come and sprinted back to the guy selling tickets. She watched him try—and fail—to get the guy’s attention before snatching the phone from his fingers.

  “Hey, what the hell are you doing, kid?”

  “It’s an emergency,” AJ answered and stepped out of reach of the frat boy.

  Kalina turned her attention back to the girl. She checked for a pulse a second time just to be sure she’d felt right. It was faint but definitely there. She fought the urge to untie her wrists and try to get more color in her cheeks. This was a crime scene now. That didn’t mean she couldn’t do a little looking before the police and paramedics arrived. Her love of superheroes and the fantastical had always roused her innate curiosity. When she came across a puzzle, she had to solve it.

  She took a step back and turned on her phone’s flashlight app to get a be
tter look at the girl. Her brown hair was shoved up under a bonnet but Kalina could see where the blood was coming from. Someone had cut a pentagram into her chest that was still oozing blood. So the wound was probably fresh. Her wrists were bound to the fence posts behind her, bearing her weight awkwardly. Something silver on the girl’s right wrist caught the light and Kalina leaned in close. It was a charm bracelet with three letters:.

  Snapping a picture for later, she listened as her nephew frantically tried to fill in the operator on the other end of the 911 call.

  “I’m at the Witch’s Maze,” he said. “In Salem. Where else would I be?”

  Kalina marched off and motioned for AJ to hand her the phone. He offered it up without a word. The frat boy at the table sat glaring at them.

  “I’m sorry, my nephew is a little upset. We have a young woman who needs medical attention. There aren’t any street signs in view where we are,” she said as calmly as possible.

  She heard the telltale sound of keys clicking on a keyboard over the connection.

  “Ma’am, we have your location. We’re sending officers to you now. Please stay on the line until they arrive.”

  “Thank you.”

  Kalina set the phone down on the table and glared at the frat boy. “Leave it alone until the cops get here.”

  “What are you talking about? You people are nuts.”

  She pointed to the young woman tied to the fence posts. “You see that girl? She’s hurt really badly. Were you sitting here before she showed up?”

  “What? No way. I showed up for my shift like a half hour ago.” He pointed to the girl. “That was already there.”

  “Aunt K., shouldn’t we get her down?”

  “No. This is a crime scene. We can’t touch anything. We wait for the police to show up and we tell them what we saw. They’ll handle it from there.”

  She knew if she told her nephew that she intended to see this through, he’d want to get just as involved and then her sister would kill her for sure. Finally, she spotted the blue and white lights of a police car and high-pitched wailing of an ambulance siren. She scooped up the phone and said, “The police are here,” and ended the call.

  “Thanks for the phone.”

  A tall, slender black man in a windbreaker and jeans approached them. He held up a badge. “I’m Sergeant Evan Whitman. You called in about an injured woman?”

  Kalina stepped up and offered her hand. “Yes, sir. My nephew and I were about to enter the maze when I noticed some blood on her neck. I felt for a pulse and it’s faint.” She hoped it would explain the blood smears on her fingertips.

  “And other than checking for a pulse you didn’t do anything else?”

  “No, sir. We waited for you to arrive.”

  “Please wait here. My associate, Officer Larkin, will take your statements.” Sergeant Whitman turned to the frat boy. “What about you?”

  “Man, I was just sitting here. I didn’t anything. She was here when I got here. I swear.”

  Sergeant Whitman didn’t seem pleased with the answer but said nothing more. Paramedics climbed out of the back of the ambulance and approached the young woman with a backboard and oxygen mask. One of the medics produced a knife and cut the rope free. His partner caught the girl’s weight as she came off the fence posts. Officer Larkin cleared his throat and motioned for Kalina and AJ to join him away from the frenzy.

  “I’m going to need your names and contact details for the report. And I’ll need you to give statements down at the station. Sorry to ruin your evening.”

  “That’s fine, Officer. We want to help. Whatever statements we need to give I’m sure we can do them here.”

  “I’ll get the forms from the car.”

  As soon as Officer Larkin was out of earshot, AJ nudged Kalina hard in the ribs. “You’re up to something, Aunt K. I can see it in your eyes. What’s going on?”

  “Nothing. Look, your mother would kill me if I let you get involved in something like this. It’s just curiosity.”

  “Please. I can help. We’d be a great team.”

  “Fine. We give our statements and then we’re going to find out if any of the volunteers tonight were from a sorority.”

  “Why would that matter?”

  “Because the victim is wearing a bracelet with Greek letters on it. I’m guessing she belongs to a sorority and if we can figure out which one, maybe we can find out who she is and, more importantly, who might want to hurt her.”

  “Won’t Sergeant Whitman get upset?”

  “He won’t know. We’ll stay out of his way and let him run his investigation. Besides, we are free to go once we give our statements and there’s so much more of the festival to see.”

  CHAPTER THREE

  Officer Larkin returned with the paperwork and they gave their statements. Kalina kept an eye out as the paramedics put an oxygen mask over the girl’s nose and mouth and bandaged her chest and head. They loaded her onto the backboard and carted her back to the ambulance.

  “I think that does it,” Officer Larkin announced.

  “If you need anything else from us, I put my cell phone number down,” Kalina said and pointed to the spot on the form.

  “Good, thanks. I know it sounds kind of heartless but do try to enjoy the rest of the festival.”

  Kalina gave him a smile and led AJ back to the center of town. They stopped under a streetlight and she pulled out her phone to show him the picture. The ambulance went speeding by them as she pulled up the photo.

  “See there”—she pointed to the charms on the bracelet—“I’m not sure what sorority it is, though.”

  “Can you make it bigger?”

  She zoomed in on the “” and AJ pulled out his phone too, to look up what they were. “OK, it looks like there is a sorority that exists with those letters.”

  She closed down the photo and pulled up the event page on Facebook, hoping it listed the groups of volunteers. It took some scrolling and flipping through sections of the page but she found it.

  “Got it!” She leaned over so AJ could see it, too. “Tours will be given by the sisters of Sigma Beta Epsilon.”

  “But they aren’t involved with the maze,” he said.

  “That doesn’t mean one of them can’t help us identify the girl.”

  “How are we supposed to check if they know her? It’s not like we have a picture or something.”

  Kalina gave him a devious grin and tapped her phone screen. He broke out in a matching grin and gave a small fist pump.

  “The real issue is going to be figuring out how to get some of them alone to talk to them,” she said and looked around.

  The volunteers were all in period dress and not exactly flaunting their Greek Life affiliations. They’d have to get creative. Kalina stepped out into the middle of the street and turned in a slow circle until she spotted a sign pointing to the information area. That was as good a place to start as any. She waved her nephew onward and they made their way to the middle of the town square and booth marked “Information and Tours”. A middle-aged woman sat behind the booth wearing a jacket and fingerless gloves. She flipped through a magazine and only looked up when Kalina’s shadow fell across the page.

  “Can I help you?’

  “I hope so. We’re looking for the sisters of Sigma Beta Epsilon. We heard they’re giving tours.”

  “They’re doing the historical walking tours. The next one starts in five minutes over there. There’s only one more tour after that for the day.”

  “Do we have to pay anything?”

  “Tours are free.”

  “Great, thanks.”

  Only a handful of people waited in line by the sign marked “Start”. AJ shoved his hands in his pockets and looked around. The sun had disappeared beyond the horizon. The ghost tours would start soon. She hoped they would still be able to do one of those. The maze was likely out for good since it was an active crime scene.

  “Do you think that girl is go
ing to be OK?” AJ whispered as a tall girl in a long dress approached.

  “I don’t know. I didn’t get a look at her injury but we can hope.”

  She wrapped an arm around his shoulders and squeezed tight. He didn’t pull away like she thought he would. Apparently, happening upon a gravely injured teenage girl had shaken him out of trying to be cool in his aunt’s presence. Their guide came to a stop in front of the small group and forced a smile.

  “Hi, everybody. My name is Melody and I’ll be your guide today. Thanks for taking the tour. Let’s get started before it gets too dark and the ghost tours take over.”

  The group fell into step behind Melody and Kalina did her best to maneuver to the front of the pack.

  “Thanks for doing this,” she said.

  Melody tugged at the bonnet strings under her chin and a few tendrils of fiery red hair fell across her cheek. “Sure. We try to give back to the community when we can.”

  “We?”

  “Oh, my sorority sisters and I. We’ve been helping out with the festival for like five or six years now.”

  “What sorority?”

  “Sigma Beta Epsilon.”

  “It’s nice to know there are some Greek organizations out there who are focused on philanthropy rather than keg parties.”

  Melody smiled. “Oh, we aren’t above parties, too.” She waved to a couple of girls wrangling small kids. “Those are some of our pledges. You don’t get to be a tour guide until you’re a fully initiated sister.”

  “Interesting. Do you help out in any of the other parts of the festival? Like the Witch’s Maze?”

  “Nope. That’s the Kappa Kappa Rho girls.”

  “Rival sisterhood?”

  “Not really. They’re a nice group of girls but we do vie for pledges sometimes. We tend to attract the same types of girls: smart, academic and driven.”

  “So how many of you are out in force tonight?”

  Melody stopped to point out one of the buildings they were passing before turning back to Kalina. “I think there are five of us”—she counted on her fingers—“me, Ashley, Tania, Mags and Tasha.”