A Charming Corpse: :A Cozy Paranormal Mystery

by Tonya Kappes

  “Not at all. I do have a suspicion that Gabby’s best friend might have a motive, but I’ve got to go to Locust Grove to check out a few things.” I grabbed the business card and stared at it. “I don’t want to burden you with the details because you already have a lot on your plate, but the rules never stated that you can’t work in a shop in the village, you just can’t work in your shop or perform your gift.”

  “What are you saying?” Her head swung to the side and she looked at me with a suspicious look.

  “What are you doing today?” I tucked the business card in my back pocket and grabbed my bag, strapping it across my body.

  “Whatever you need me to do,” her words dragged out in a mysterious way.

  “I want you to work for me here today. If someone needs something special, there’s box in the back room that has Piggly Wiggly written on it. It’s its own magical bottle for clients. So just sell them one of those. Other than that, just answer the phone and take the money.” I darted around the counter and across the shop floor. “I’ve got an idea. Don’t tell anyone where I’m at. Just tell them I had some business to take care of.”

  Without another word, I scurried out the door and up the hill to my house not surprised to see Mr. Prince Charming was already on the dashboard, curled up and waiting for me. I had no idea how he got in there and didn’t care. There was a nip in the air that told me the Elders were closer than I cared for them to be.

  The drive to Locust Grove took thirty minutes along curvy and windy roads. I knew them like the back of my hand and the closer I got to the Locust Grove border, the heavier my foot got on the pedal. Though this was a trip on business, it always filled me up from the bit homesickness that I was used to feeling since I moved to Whispering Falls.

  The house that Darla and I lived in and I still own, was just inside the city limits and I had to pass it on my way into town. Oscar’s house was right across the street and the big tree we use to spend hours under eating Ding Dongs was still there. We still owned the houses, but we rented them out. It was nice to see the pulse of the houses, alive and happy with the new tenants and their children.

  As much as I’d like to say that houses were just houses, I had to believe there was a little magic in the walls, carpet and roof to keep them safe and happy.

  I slowed down to get a good look at them as we passed without stopping completely. It was the only time Mr. Prince Charming had looked up from his slumber.

  Meow. Meow. He looked at me.

  “Yeah, I miss it too.” I gave a flat smile and gripped the wheel before pushing the toe of my shoe down on the pedal and speeding off into town.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  I pulled the Green Machine into the strip mall parking lot and double-checked the address on Nina’s card. It didn’t appear to be that big of a company. Anyway, I put the car in park.

  “Are you coming?” I asked.

  Mr. Prince Charming stretched out his front legs and dug his claws into the dash, letting out a big yawn before he decided to get up.

  “Let’s go.” I opened the door, letting him run across me and jump out.

  The door didn’t even have a sign on it, just the address. I double-checked the card again. It was the right place according to what was printed on there. I slipped it back into my pocket and tugged open the door.

  Inside was a different story. There was a receptionist on the phone with a room filled with cardboard boxes. While I waited for her to get off the phone, I walked around and looked at the labels. It had the Lifestyle logo and some of them had Gabby’s name on them.

  “I’m not sure about the party, ma’am,” the receptionist was talking to the person. “We had no idea that she was going to pass away. But if you hold on a second, I’ll check with her boss.”

  I looked over at her.

  “Hi.” She held up a finger to me. “I’ll be with you in a minute.” She jabbed a button on her phone. “Nina, I have a very angry customer on the phone and she said that Gabby was supposed to do a party at lunch. She’s got a lot of local business owners and even someone with a tie to a big perfume chain coming. What can we do?”

  Before I could even turn back around, I heard a door slam followed up by heavy footsteps coming from the only hallway in the place. Suddenly, Nina Teeter appeared.

  “June.” She looked between me and the receptionist. “You didn’t tell me June was here.” Her face stilled and grew serious when she looked at the receptionist.

  “I just walked in.” I held out my hand for her to shake.

  “We don’t allow animals in here in case of allergies with clients.” She took my hand but her eyes were focused on Mr. Prince Charming who was currently taking advantage of her dislike of cats by doing figure eights around her ankles.

  “It’s a therapy thing.” I lied knowing that I couldn’t just blurt out that I was a witch that did real potions to help people and he was my fairy-god cat.

  “Oh.” She pulled her hand away. “If you give me one minute. I’ve got something to take care of.”

  “Actually,” I said and stepped in between her and the receptionist desk. “I overheard the conversation and I was here to let you know that I’d like to give this a shot. Selling your product. I promise I know a lot about oils and obviously you’ve seen my shop. If I could do a trial party, then we can sit down tomorrow and discuss me being a consultant under you and possibly getting a display in my shop in Whispering Falls.”

  “I don’t know.” She acted as though she were playing hardball, but deep in my gut I knew the thought of getting into a shop in Whispering Falls was exactly what she and Gabby had been trying to do with Leah.

  “It helps us out even if it’s only one time,” the receptionist chimed in and gave Nina the big-eyed look, like she better jump on my offer.

  Nina let out a big sigh. She stared at me with an open mouth, the tip of her tongue played with her back teeth as her mouth contorted.

  “What’s the worse thing that can happen? They buy me out?” I laughed.

  “Fine,” Nina said with stiffness in her tone. “Angie, get her the directions and one of the new consultant bags.”

  “A new product box?” Angie called after Nina.

  “No.” She looked at me. “Give her what Gabby was using. Might as well get rid of her stock.”

  “Sounds good.” Angie clicked back on the phone and told the customer that June, a consultant would be there in under an hour to set up and start.

  They hung up and she got up out of her chair. She walked over to the closet and took out a package.

  “Here is the new consultant bag.” She took the package back to her desk and ripped it open. She took out a bag with the Lifestyle logo on it. Also, inside the package were samples of the products. “We are featuring the new summer line, though it’s not technically summer.” She took out a brochure type paper and flattened it out. “Here is how we’d like for you to make your display on the table. You don’t have to, but we’ve found it best that the products are seen while doing a presentation.”

  “Got it.” I nodded.

  “Let me get Gabby’s leftover products.” She hurried down the hall where Nina had appeared then disappeared back in to.

  I put all the products from the package into the bag while I waited for her.

  “These are cash and carry oils. They can either order the product or take what we have.” She handed over a big box. “Obviously, we want you to push these products to get them out of inventory.”

  “I guess I better get going.” I looked at her over the top of the box. “I just need the address of the client.”

  “No problem.” She walked back to her desk and scribbled something on a post it note before she came back and smacked it on the top of the box. “If you have any issues, my number is on there.”

  “Okay.” I nodded. “Can you get the door for me?”

  “When you are done, you need to call me with the sales numbers,” she instructed me and held the door op
en. “Got it?”

  “Got it.” I walked out and couldn’t help but smile. This had gone much better than I thought.

  Mr. Prince Charming jumped up on the hood of the El Camino. I sat the box on the ground and opened the car door. The box for Adeline at the Piggly Wiggly, that Faith was unable to deliver for me, was in the floorboard, so I stuck the new box of Lifestyle on the seat and we got in.

  Rowl, rowl! Mr. Prince Charming batted at the post it note. I picked it up and read it.

  “Oh no,” I groaned when I noticed it was Adeline’s name and the Piggly Wiggly. “This was her favor to me.”

  I crumbled the note up in my hand and threw it on the ground.

  “Well, it looks like we can kill two birds with one stone. I’ll drop off our potions and then give her the news about Gabby. Not all is lost.” I started the engine. “At least Nina might give me another one of Gabby’s parties so I can get in with some insight.”

  Mewl, mewl. His tail tapped the lawsuit papers of Leah’s that was sitting on the seat.

  “No. I didn’t figure out if this is the Lifestyle lawyer,” I informed him since he wasn’t happy I’d taken this job so quickly. “Listen, I saw the opportunity and took it. How was I to know that it was for Adeline?”

  He took his tail and tapped the tip of it to my bag. Like an x-ray machine, Madame Torres light up inside.

  “Alright.” I put my hands up in the air before I pulled down on the gear shift. “I should’ve asked her first.” I gripped the wheel and gave him a quick glance. “Since when did you two become friends?”

  He batted my bracelet that was dangling from my wrist.

  “Okay. I get it.” I sucked in a deep breath and headed towards the Piggly Wiggly.

  On our way over, my phone rang.

  “Oscar, you aren’t going to believe what I’m doing.” I answered the phone and immediately started talking.

  “No. You aren’t going to believe what I’m going to tell you.” His news sounded much more important than my little undercover scheme.

  “What? You’re scaring me.” I sucked in a deep breath, ready for the hit of whatever he was about to say.

  “Sonny, you know my buddy from the Locust Grove Sheriff’s department?” He paused.

  “Yeah. You used to work with him.” They were partners before Oscar took the job in Whispering Falls.

  “He’s got the go ahead on the Gabby Summerfied case. It appears her boss went to the police. She also told him about Leah LeRoy and how there was some evidence and a witness that Leah had motive to kill her. Since it’s across the county line, the judge ruled a warrant for them to come to Whispering Falls and do what was necessary to aide in the investigation.” This was the worst news other than the Order of Elders.

  “This means that we can’t do any more magic to try to get the answers.” My passion on figuring out who really killed Gabby had just intensified, not only for Leah’s sake, but now Whispering Falls was going to be in the spotlight and that was never good for a spiritualist world.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  “June.” Adeline greeted me.

  I’d found her in the employee break room in the back of the Piggly Wiggly.

  “Let me help you with that.” She hurried over when she noticed I had the box of my product from A Charming Cure. “Your friend will be here soon to give a presentation to some of my managers and a few friends.”

  “About that.” I followed her to the stock room where she had me put the box on a shelf with my name printed on it. “Gabby Summerfield has been murdered.”

  I pushed the box on the shelf and turned to face a stunned Adeline.

  “Yeah. I figured you’d react that way, but,” I knew she was going to think I was nuts. “you know that I’ve stuck my nose in a case or two.”

  “June, no.” She shook her head. “Don’t tell me you’re looking into who killed her.”

  “I won’t tell you then.” My words met with her pacing back and forth. “Just listen.” I put my hand out to stop her from walking a hole in her floor. “I’m helping Oscar out on this one and I’ve got some good leads. Only it means that I have to do her show for you today.”

  “What?” Adeline’s jaw dropped. “Her product isn’t nearly as good as yours and I was only doing this as a favor.”

  “I understand that and I’m prepared with a plan where you don’t have to purchase a thing,” I assured her.

  “This is ridiculous.” Adeline wasn’t happy. “I don’t even have space in any of my grocery stores for her product. Let me just make a few phone calls.”

  “Don’t do that,” I assured her. “Just let me do the presentation and that way, it gets my foot in the door for Oscar.”

  She stood there for a minute. I could tell she was contemplating.

  “You know, I could call her friend Beth,” she said, getting my full attention.

  “How do you know Beth?” I asked.

  “She came in here saying that Gabby had told her that she had her foot in the door here. Beth said that she’d be willing to undercut Gabby’s prices if I cancelled Gabby and had her do the presentation instead.” Her word sent my intuition into a tailspin. “Do you need a Ding Dong?”

  “Yes.” I nodded and melted down on the floor in cross-legged position.

  Mr. Prince Charming stood in front of me, dragging his tail underneath my nose. Sometimes when I got dizzy and my gift took over my body, as it was doing now, the tickle of his tail brought me back.

  “This is just another thing that makes Beth have motive,” I told him and ran my hand down his fur.

  He purred in delight. My bag warmed to my leg. Madame Torres glowed, her light shot out of the bag like a beam. I pulled her out and put her up to my face.

  “Look deep into the depths of the raging water to see.” The glass ball swirled with a deep pink. “It’ll be me you seek and be. The mix of smells will bring you closure, but not until a few days will be over.” Madame Torres said the exact same thing she’d said to me a couple of days ago.

  “It’s been a few days,” I said to her. “Does this mean that I’m right? Is it Beth that killed Gabby out of jealousy?” I asked the raging ball and watched as the pink deepened and deepened into a crimson with black ribbons running through it until the black got bigger and took up more space, leaving the entire ball black.

  “Here you go.” Adeline handed me a box of Ding Dongs. “Just eat them all. You look like you could use a few. Have you been eating lately?”

  “I’m fine.” I pushed Madame Torres back into my bag so Adeline wouldn’t ask any questions. I opened one of the tasty treats and practically shoved the entire thing in my mouth, letting the chocolate seep into my soul, causing me to take deep breaths and calm my nerves.

  “Now, why don’t I call Beth,” Adeline suggested.

  Deep down, I knew that the owl KJ had sent to watch Beth was watching her every move. So whether or not I did the show, I’d know where she was if she did the show. It would buy me some time to take my facts back to Oscar and see what he thought.

  “Are you sure?” I asked.

  “Positive.” She nodded. “Let’s go back to my office and get her number.”

  Adeline helped me up and once we got back to her office, she called Beth, who was all too eager to get the opportunity.

  Before we could barely restock my product on the Piggly Wiggly shelf, Beth was there and not alone. She had a helper. I continued to stock my product since I had to put the final touches of magic on them and it was in the contract that I was the one to place the product on the shelf because I told her that I was the only one who knew the order. In reality, I just had to touch each one before they made their way out into the mortal world.

  The man carried in her boxes of product and followed Adeline to the back into the employee room where she’d already set up the tables for Gabby.

  “Will that be all?” he asked and caught my attention.

  I leaned around the aisle my product was in and
took at look at him.

  My world went completely black after I zeroed in on the white eyebrow.

  “June. June.” I could hear Adeline’s voice, but had to blink several times before she came into focus. “That’s it. Look at me.”

  “I’m. . .I’m . . .” I sat straight up when I realized what’d happened. “I think you’re right. I’ve not been eating good lately.”

  Behind her stood Beth and the man.

  “I think you know Beth.” Adeline looked over her shoulder. “At least she said she met you at the police station in Whispering Falls when she saw you.”

  “Yes. Hi, Beth.” I looked at the man.

  “This is her boyfriend, Brent.” Adeline pointed to the man.

  “Brent,” I whispered to myself and wanted to say, the daddy of Gabby’s baby, but I kept that to myself.

  There was a lot more going on here than selling Lifestyle products.

  “Yes, ma’am.” He looked down at me and extended his hand. “Can I help you up?”

  I took his hand. There was an electrical shock that stunned me, knocking my intuition into high gear. Images of him and Gabby played like a movie in my head. There was a brief moment of them embracing that led straight into a fight with someone but not Beth. My mouth dried, I swallowed as the image of the black locust seed packet came to the forefront of my vision. I blinked a couple of times before the vision turned to the cashmere pink blanket that the teens lead me and Eloise to in the woods, ending with an image of Brent sobbing with his head buried in his hands. My palms began to sweat out his left over tears that triggered my vision.

  “Are you sure you’re okay?” He asked.

  “I’m fine. I’m just a little thirsty.” I smiled at him. He must’ve noticed me looking at his eyebrow.

  “I’ll grab a water.” Adeline hurried off, leaving me standing there with Beth and Brent.

  “That’s a birthmark.” He smiled. It was warm and gentle. My heart sank. I knew right then that he wasn’t the killer and he was in love with Gabby, but he was Beth’s boyfriend.