Witch, Interrupted

by Amanda M. Lee

  I jerked my eyes to Landon and found him pursing his lips. “What makes you think we broke into the house last night?”

  “I have a witness.”

  I narrowed my eyes. “I see.”

  “Don’t look at him,” Chief Terry ordered. “He hasn’t said a thing. In fact, when I asked him if he was with you, he requested his own lawyer.”

  “Smooth.”

  Landon shrugged. “I wasn’t expecting the question. I’m not good at the lying thing.”

  “We definitely need a lawyer,” Thistle lamented.

  “Speak for yourself,” Clove countered. “I wasn’t with you last night, so I’m not in trouble.”

  “I decide who’s in trouble,” Chief Terry snapped.

  True to form, Clove’s lower lip started to tremble and her eyes glistened. “Why are you being so mean to me?”

  “Oh, geez.” Chief Terry paced away from her. “Don’t start that nonsense. You’re not a teenager any longer. That won’t work on me.”

  He said the words, but it was obvious he didn’t believe them because he couldn’t meet her gaze.

  “I don’t know what you want us to say,” I started. “We weren’t in the house. If someone told you otherwise, well, he or she was mistaken.”

  “So you want me to go back to Margaret Little and tell her she was mistaken? She has video of you guys. Thankfully for your boyfriend here, the video is too grainy to make a positive identification. Otherwise he would be out of a job right now. I know your voices, though.”

  I stilled, dumbfounded. “Wait ... Mrs. Little claims we broke into Dr. Hopper’s house last night?”

  Chief Terry nodded. “She does. She expects me to arrest you.”

  “How does she even know we were there?” Thistle asked.

  “She saw you.”

  “Why was she at Dr. Hopper’s house in the middle of the night?”

  “I ... don’t know.” Realization dawned on Chief Terry. “She said you left with what looked like files ... or maybe a box of something … and she seemed agitated that you might’ve taken sensitive case information.”

  “Maybe because she was a client of Dr. Hopper’s, too,” Thistle suggested. “But ... she’s single, and I don’t want to imagine them getting freaky together.”

  That made two of us. “What was she doing out in the middle of the night?”

  “I ... .” Chief Terry looked conflicted.

  “And why is she worrying we took important files?” Thistle added. “It seems to me you should be asking her questions instead of us. We’re the wronged parties here. We were minding our own business when she decided to spy on us. That has to be against the law.”

  Chief Terry’s eyes filled with fire. “Don’t push it, Thistle. You’re walking a tightrope here, kid.”

  Thistle shrugged as she shifted her eyes to me. “I had to try.”

  “Definitely.”

  Fifteen

  The idea that Mrs. Little could be a murderer was intriguing.

  Sure, Clove and Thistle were only interested in the idea for twenty minutes and then made their getaways, but it was a notion I couldn’t shake.

  Why would Mrs. Little make time to see Dr. Lovelorn? Last time I checked, she wasn’t dating. She hadn’t shown interest in a man since her husband died years before. He turned out to be a murderer because she was having an affair with Mrs. Gunderson’s husband (a violent jerk who had death coming to him) and he ended the man in something of a murder mystery for the ages, but I always heard good things about Mrs. Little’s husband. Er, well, mostly. In truth, compared to her, almost anyone would’ve been preferable.

  After Clove and Thistle abandoned me to return to Hypnotic, I planted myself on the bench in front of Mrs. Little’s Unicorn Emporium and watched her through the window. This was the worst time of year for tourists in Hemlock Cove — the weather called to absolutely no one — and her kitschy corner of the universe was empty. That didn’t stop her from pretending to look busy.

  She buzzed from one shelf to the next, a feather duster in her hand, and arranged her displays so that they were exactly as she liked them. Not a single unicorn was out of place.

  At one point she lifted her head and looked out the window, immediately snagging my gaze. She didn’t say anything, nor move to meet me on the sidewalk for a showdown of epic proportions. Instead, she merely held my gaze for several seconds before turning back to her task. A lot was said in that silent moment, but the answers I was looking for weren’t forthcoming.

  “What are you doing out here?”

  I glanced over my shoulder at the sound of Landon’s voice. “What are you doing out here?” I challenged. “I thought you were off telling tall tales to Chief Terry.”

  “I saw that coming.” Landon didn’t appear especially bothered as he lowered himself to the bench. He let out a low hiss when his legs made contact with the cool metal. “Couldn’t you have picked a warmer place to spy from?”

  “Like where?”

  Landon shrugged. “How about the coffee shop across the way?” He gestured toward Mrs. Gunderson’s bakery. “There’s a clear view of the unicorn store, and they have hot coffee and doughnuts. In fact, that’s where I assumed you would be, so I headed there first.”

  I made a noncommittal noise in the back of my throat. “I don’t see any coffee in your hands.”

  “When I couldn’t find you I decided you were my highest priority, and I was willing to give up comfort to find you.”

  Part of me was angry, but I couldn’t stop myself from laughing at his earnest expression. “That was weak.”

  “I know.”

  “Really weak.”

  “It worked, didn’t it?” He linked his gloved hands with mine and stared at the shop. “You don’t really think that Mrs. Little is a killer, do you?”

  “We didn’t find a file on her.”

  “So? Maybe she didn’t warrant a file because she only went once. If I was Hopper, I would’ve sent her in a different direction the second she walked through the door. There’s no check in the world big enough to encourage most men to spend time with Mrs. Little.”

  “Yeah, but ... we found something in the stack of files this morning. That’s what propelled us to question Esther in the first place.”

  “I figured.”

  “There was an extra file. The name was ripped off the corner and there was only one diagnosis sheet inside. Everything else was gone.”

  “Diagnosis sheet?”

  “It was a photocopied page of the definition of a psychopath.”

  Landon shifted on his seat, clearly uncomfortable. “Wait ... what?”

  “I just told you.”

  “I know but that’s unbelievable. What are the odds we would accidentally grab that?”

  I wasn’t sure what he was insinuating. “What do you mean?”

  “We somehow grabbed that file even though we didn’t see it. That has to mean something ... or be a form of destiny.”

  I tilted my head, considering. “You’re big on the notion of destiny now, aren’t you?”

  Landon nodded without hesitation. “Things happen for a reason. Aunt Tillie has been saying it since the day I met her. Although ... I think I probably met her way before I realized I met her. I wonder what she said to me that day?”

  He was losing it. Thankfully it was in a cute way. Otherwise I would be worried. “So, you think we found the psychopath file by destiny?”

  “Yup. It’s going to lead us to a murderer.”

  “How?”

  “I don’t know yet. We’ll figure it out.”

  I flicked my eyes back to Mrs. Little. “Did you ask Esther if Mrs. Little was one of the people visiting Dr. Hopper?”

  “You know I can’t answer that question. It’s against the rules to share information with a civilian.”

  I frowned. “You broke the law with me last night. I wasn’t a civilian then.”

  “Technically, you were.”

  “But not real
ly.”

  “Well ... .” He trailed off and focused on Mrs. Little. “Truthfully, I think you would have to be a psychopath to be that obsessed with unicorns. Maybe she is our suspect.”

  He didn’t sound convinced. “Landon ... .”

  He barreled forward before I could get up a full head of steam. “Chief Terry knows we did something. He even knows we looked at files, although I didn’t confirm that for him. He doesn’t know we took files.”

  I wasn’t sure how to respond. “Okay.”

  “He wants to go through the patient files, but we need a special warrant for that. We expect to get it today. Things are moving glacially slow on that front.”

  My heart rate picked up a notch. “That means we need to get the files back in Hopper’s house before he notices. If you get the warrant today then we have to do it right now.”

  Landon squeezed my hand before I could scurry to Hypnotic to collect the files. “Chief Terry has stationed one of his officers at the house. We can’t get back inside without being noticed.”

  He was unnaturally calm given what he was telling me. “Landon, you could lose your job over this.”

  “I could,” he agreed.

  “Why aren’t you freaking out?”

  He shrugged. “Because I made the decision to break the law with you last night. I didn’t think anything of it. I don’t know when that even happened. I used to be very law and order, totally by the book. You changed that for me.”

  “I’m guessing not in a good way.”

  “No, I think everything that’s happened since we met has made my life better. Sure, there were a few times where you almost died or I wanted to pull my hair out because you did something stupid, but on the whole, things are better.”

  “You could lose your job.” I kept my voice low. “We have to come up with a plan to make sure that doesn’t happen. I can take the files back, admit what I did. Chief Terry will yell and have a meltdown, but he won’t arrest me. He’ll find a way to protect me.”

  Landon’s eyebrows rose speculatively as he cast me a sidelong look. “That might change if you keep going after his girlfriend.”

  I wrenched my hand free from his grip and flapped my arms. “And here we go. I told you I’m going to think about what I want to do before acting. You don’t have to accuse me of doing something before it’s actually happened.”

  “Hey, don’t yell at me.” Landon turned serious. “I’m simply trying to make you see reason before you hurt someone you love. I know you want Chief Terry to be with your mother, but it’s not about you. It’s about him.”

  I wanted to argue the point, but now wasn’t the time. We were far too exposed on the street. Anyone could hear us. “Let’s talk about something else,” I growled.

  “Fine.” Landon’s eyes fired and I knew the argument would be coming around for a second showing when we got home tonight. “Let’s talk about the files. We can’t return them. That means we’ll have to own up to how we got them.”

  I didn’t like that idea one bit. “I’ll own up to it and leave you out of it. He’ll take it better from me.”

  “No. I’m the one who should admit what happened.”

  “You’ll lose your job.” I was starting to sound like a broken record.

  “Maybe. Maybe not.”

  I pictured Chief Terry’s furious face if he found out exactly what our late-night excursion entailed. “No, I’ll tell him. He’ll be angry but he’ll get over it. He never stays angry at me very long.”

  The sound of a throat clearing caught my attention and caused my spine to stiffen. When I swiveled slowly to look at the sidewalk behind us, I found Chief Terry listening to the conversation with his hands on his hips.

  “Oh, crap,” I muttered, my cheeks burning despite the cold air.

  “Why do I feel as if we’re about to be sent to the principal’s office?” Landon complained as he shifted on the bench. “I’m an adult and I feel like a kid.”

  “Maybe it’s destiny,” I remarked.

  “No one needs your sarcasm.”

  “No one needs sarcasm from either of you,” Chief Terry countered, his eyes busy as they bounced between us. “Is there something you want to say to me?”

  That had to be a trick question. “You look very handsome. Have you been working out? We’ve been talking about the fact that Hemlock Cove doesn’t have a gym. I think it’s something we should definitely consider because the town needs one.”

  “He’s probably been working out at the yoga studio with Melanie,” Landon pointed out, causing me to scowl. “I bet he’s ten times more flexible now than he was two months ago.”

  I fought the urge to snap at him. “Right.”

  “Don’t say things like that.” Chief Terry flicked Landon’s ear and shook his head. “It’s uncomfortable for all of us.”

  “I’m not uncomfortable discussing your sex life,” Landon countered. “I’m fine with it.”

  “I can’t believe we’re having this conversation.” Clearly mortified, Chief Terry shifted from one foot to the other. “Wait a second ... I know what you’re trying to do. You want to embarrass me so I’ll leave, giving you guys a window to escape and put back the files you stole.”

  My heart sank. “I figured you heard that.”

  “Of course I heard that.” Chief Terry’s eyes fired. “I knew you guys were up to something. You were acting squirrelly at Esther’s house — and that’s saying something because you always act a little nuts — and I could tell you were sticking your noses into the investigation.

  “I figured you broke into the house last night so you could go through the files, but I couldn’t very well accuse you of that in front of Esther because it would make the rounds through town in five minutes flat,” he continued. “You shouldn’t be involved in this. It’s police business.”

  I pressed my lips together and glanced at Landon, my guilt growing to mammoth proportions. “Here’s the thing ... .” My voice cracked as I tried to gain control of my emotions.

  “I stole several files from Hopper’s house last night,” Landon interjected quickly as I tried to find my courage. “He’s been sleeping with women as a therapeutic tool and I figured he did it with more than just Maxine, so I wanted to see if I could get a jump on things and figure out which women he focused on.”

  I was dumbfounded. “Wait a second.”

  Landon ignored me. “I know it’s against the law, but I thought I could go through the files there and no one would be the wiser. I needed a place to start looking if I expected the investigation to move forward. Once I did, I made a rash decision to take the files. It was wrong and I’m sorry. It’s done, so we need to figure a way to move on.”

  Chief Terry’s eyes filled with something I couldn’t quite identify. It was an emotion I recognized from my childhood, but he only whipped it out a few times when he was so angry he couldn’t find words and had to refrain from throttling someone … usually Aunt Tillie. “You personally stole files?”

  Apparently he could find words this time. I didn’t take that as a good sign.

  Landon nodded. “I did.”

  His simple confession snapped me back to reality. “I stole the files,” I said hurriedly, earning a furious glare from Landon. “It was my idea to break into the house. I’m the one who talked to Maxine. I knew she couldn’t be the only one he manipulated. I wanted to see who else was involved.”

  “So Margaret was right?” Chief Terry stroked his chin as he regarded me. “She really did see you guys breaking into Hopper’s house last night. She said Tillie and Thistle were with you. I didn’t want to believe her because that was a ridiculous combination, but she was right.”

  I wasn’t sure what to say to make things better. “If it’s any consolation, Aunt Tillie made us miserable the entire time,” I offered finally.

  Now it was Landon’s turn to make a face. “Smooth, Bay.” He exhaled heavily and collected his patience. “We just wanted to look at the files. We didn’
t intend to take them. That was a whim. I really don’t regret it because Bay found something else in the stack this morning and it might lead to a suspect.”

  Chief Terry was apoplectic. “How can we arrest a suspect with information we gleaned illegally?”

  “I’m sure we’ll figure something out.”

  “Oh, well, if you’re sure.” Chief Terry paced behind the bench. “This is unbelievable. You know, I expect this sort of crap with Bay, Clove and Thistle. They were partially raised by Tillie and they never met a rule they didn’t want to break. Tillie encouraged it because of who she is and what she believed the girls would grow up to become. You know better, Landon. You’re a duly sworn agent, for crying out loud. What happens if someone other than me finds out?”

  Landon held out his hands and shrugged. “I don’t know.”

  “You could at least be a little sorry about it!”

  “I’m not.” Landon refused to back down. “I broke the law last night, and I’m not sorry. Do you want to know why?”

  “No.”

  “I’ll tell you anyway,” he persisted. “I know we did the right thing because Bay found something in the files today, something only she could find because she’s ...magical.”

  “Oh, geez.” Chief Terry slapped his hand to his forehead. “Here we go. You are the schmaltziest piece of work I’ve ever met.”

  “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

  “It wasn’t meant as one.”

  “It doesn’t matter.” Landon refused to back down. “I think Bay was meant to find that other file. I think she was meant to go to Esther’s house. I think she was meant to cross paths with Mrs. Little. I think it was all destiny.”

  Chief Terry turned to me, incredulous. “What is he even talking about?”

  “He’s been a little whimsical since he found out we went to summer camp together,” I admitted. “Do you remember the year I discovered the former camp counselor’s body? Landon was at that camp. He was one of your campers.”

  “Yes, I’ve heard.” Chief Terry didn’t look nearly as thrilled by the development as Landon clearly felt. “So what?”

  “He thinks that means we’re meant to be together. Apparently that also means he’s embracing the idea of bigger forces controlling our lives.”