It made sense, really.
Billy had mentioned that he and the band liked to eat at Chef Amereldine’s restaurant every other month or two. Rebecca had probably made the reservation under her name. Such an innocuous task had led Liam to question the trio, all of whom had also been asked to help with Mom’s wedding.
It was clear that Cecelia had lied about being in the city, but why would the others have backed her alibi? From what I was gathering, the others hadn’t even known that she’d left early. How in the world was that possible?
I continued to read over the information in front of me, astounded by how much Liam had been able to discover in such a short period of time. Leo was right in that I didn’t give Liam enough credit. Granted, a lot of the small mysteries that went on in Paramour Bay had to do with the supernatural, but Liam was amazing when it came to police work in the regular realm.
“Leo, it says here that Cecelia had taken the week off, but she maintained contact with the chef and Debra through phone calls. They had no idea that she’d hired a car service to take her to a car rental place, where she then ended up renting a vehicle with cash. Only she had to give them her driver’s license number, and it appears that ended up being her downfall.”
I realized that Leo’s overhearing the two women arguing about murder must have been because Debra had figured it out, but what on earth would Cecelia’s motive have been for killing Rebecca?
Truthfully, Debra was very lucky that Leo had overheard the two of them arguing. Debra might very well have been Cecelia’s next victim.
Leo wasn’t adding to this conversation, and the reason why became evident from the soft snores emanating from his nose. I shook my head in wonderment of his ability to sleep anywhere, at any time.
I mean, this was a huge break in the case.
Huge!
Liam had already planned on making an arrest, and Leo overhearing the women had been icing on the cake. If Liam could get Debra to turn on Cecelia, then he’d all but be able to get a confession out of the woman. I still wasn’t quite sure why Cecelia would want Rebecca out of the picture, but an image of her looking at Billy with such longing gave me a pretty rough idea.
It didn’t make sense for Cecelia to try and warn my mother off of marrying Beetle, though. Wouldn’t the woman want Mom to marry someone else? And Chef Amereldine mentioned that he and Debra were in the beginning of something brand new.
Was Debra now in danger? Had Liam been able to convince her to turn on her friend and co-worker?
A lot of things weren’t adding up, but I still called Heidi to tell her the news while waiting for Liam to return. I told her everything that I knew up to this point, grateful that Mom had been taking a bubble bath and hadn’t been able to overhear what had been said. As for Rye, I didn’t bother to call him because I still found it hard to believe that Cecelia would have known how to sabotage a circuit breaker.
The incantation that he planned to cast, and hopefully was in the process of doing so right this moment, would give us more insight on the problem we had closer to home.
I truly believed that we were looking at two different guilty parties.
“You’re still here,” Liam said a bit relieved as he walked into the office. I’d known he’d entered the station, but I hadn’t wanted to interrupt his conversation with Eileen. He had been asking her to get some forms together. I always made sure that I didn’t interfere with his job. “I was hoping that you’d wait, because Sheriff Kline arrested Cecelia Murray a half an hour ago.”
Would you two keep it down? You’re making me want to make an arrest for disturbing the peace!
Leo began to stretch out on the desk as he slowly awakened from his morning nap. I’d let him continue sleeping, knowing that the rest of the day was bound to become quite hectic. We still had several errands to run before I was able to head back to the cottage and get ready for the wedding.
Does that mean we saved the day? Will my undead supplier survive to see another day?
Leo cackled at his own sentence full of irony, but I never took my attention from Liam as he continued to tell me what had taken place over the last hour.
“…turns out that Cecelia was infatuated with Rick “Billy” Gastonville.”
Liam motioned for me to take a seat in one of the guest chairs. I hadn’t realized that I’d been pacing this entire time, and my legs actually ached with relief when I finally sat in the seat.
“Rebecca had discovered that Cecelia obtained a copy of the man’s housekey, of all things.” Liam leaned against his desk, causing Leo to give him a side-eyed glance of annoyance. “By that time, Mr. Gastonville had fired Rebecca for pushing him to not cancel a rather big gig that he had scheduled in North Carolina for your mother’s wedding. That didn’t stop her from still attempting to reach out to Billy, but he wasn’t accepting her calls.”
“This is all so terrible.”
“Cecelia confessed that Rebecca had called her to warn her that she was aware of what she’d done, and it was that phone call that set things in motion. Cecelia managed to find out what hotel Rebecca was staying at and drove there to basically threaten her to keep quiet about the whole thing. One thing led to another, and then the two of them got into a struggle that resulted in Rebecca Dunsbury’s death.”
Case closed! Let’s go get your death contraption so that we can head back to the cottage so my short-term memory can kick in. I don’t think I’ve ever used my necromancy consequence as an excuse before, so this will be perfect! I plan to curl up in front of the fireplace after dinner and then…
“Did Cecelia happen to confess to leaving Mom the notes?” I asked, still not sure how the two crimes tied into one another. “You’d think that Cecelia would want Mom out of the picture, but—”
“I hate to say this, Raven, especially so close to the wedding,” Liam said with a shake of his head. His frown told me everything that I needed to know, which meant that Rye’s plan had better work before wedding. “Cecelia couldn’t possibly have left the notes for your mother. We have proof that she was in New York after she left Rebecca Dunsbury’s hotel. It was the sole reason that Chef Amereldine and Debra Rubric never even suspected Cecelia until she let it slip to Debra that she hadn’t been home the night of the murder.”
I leaned forward, setting my elbows on my knees as I digested the news.
This might be a little bit off topic, but your thought about digesting news has got me thinking about lunch.
“Leo, we still don’t know who sent the notes to Mom,” I said with a groan of frustration. “How can Mom even enjoy her wedding if we can’t figure out who is behind the threats?”
Exactly. They cancel the wedding, we enjoy a festive Christmas, and then we can start the new year off with copious amounts of blueberry catnip edibles that my undead supplier will continue to procure from his unnamed sources.
“I ordered you some, remember? The treats are being delivered on Monday.”
I’ll admit that you have good intentions, but nothing will ever beat out my undead supplier’s stash of blueberry goodness.
“You two can talk about edibles later,” Liam intervened, reaching into the pocket of his coat that he hadn’t taken off. He sprinkled some of the cat treats he now usually kept on him onto the desk. Granted, they didn’t have any catnip in them, but they would keep Leo busy for another minute or two. “Raven, the notes to your mother don’t necessarily threaten Beetle’s life. No crime has actually been committed, though I will make sure that Otis is aware of what has been taking place. He can keep an eye out while he’s officiating the ceremony, and I’ll do the same from my position near the back.”
I will have you know that I’m not so easily distracted. It’s more of the case that these edibles are still confounding me in the sense that they aren’t really good, but yet I can’t stop eating them. They also get stuck in my teeth, like I’m chewing Laffy Taffy…only without the laughs.
“Rye should be casting the incantation on
the circuit breaker as we speak, so Leo and I will stop over at the bakery before picking up my car,” I said, my mind spinning with questions. “I’ll be honest, Liam. I hate the fact that Mom and Beetle’s wedding is overshadowed by someone having a problem with them spending the rest of their lives together.”
My jaw might be stuck, Raven. I…can’t…get…
“Raven, I never said that I’d stop looking for who is leaving your mother notes.”
Pop!
Did you hear that? Did you? That was my teeth finally coming apart from practically being glued together. The worst part? I’d actually eat more. I think there’s something wrong with me.
Liam straightened and then held out his hand until I slipped my fingers into his. He pulled me up and into his arms, giving me the comfort that I so desperately needed after two days filled with turmoil and confusion.
Really? I’m sitting right behind the two of you. I’m going to blame you if I throw up on his paperwork.
“I know that you never knew your father, so this is a chance for you to create a bond with the man who makes your mother happy,” Liam whispered against my hair, pulling me even closer. “Not everyone is given a second chance like this.”
What…is…happening? Father? My undead supplier is going to be your stepfather, and I’m only now being told this? Hack…hack…hairball!
Chapter Fourteen
Leo and I stood right outside of the police station, neither one of us saying a word as we stared straight ahead at nothing in particular. It was clear that each of us were affected a little bit differently by the conversation that had just taken place. I feigned having difficulty putting on my gloves as I tried to gather my emotions. Having a few moments to myself to collect my thoughts allowed me to notice the stillness in the air as snow flurries fell sporadically and slowly all around us.
It astounded me that Liam had realized something that I hadn’t been able to put into words ever since Mom and Beetle had announced their engagement.
Truthfully, I experienced a calming peace now that my scattered emotions weren’t so…well, scattered.
“Do you know who my biological father is, Leo?”
I didn’t regret the question that fell from my lips before I even realized what had happened, and I looked down to find that Leo’s left eye was doing that bulging thing it did when he became overly stressed.
“You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to,” I replied softly, thinking back to my childhood. I took time to arrange my scarf a little more securely over the lower half of my face. “Mom never replied whenever I inquired about his identity, and I quickly realized that the subject actually made her quite sad.”
Leo didn’t speak, but he also didn’t move toward the bakery, which was our next stop. The joyous sounds of the festivities being enjoyed during the lunch hour in town square drifted in the air, but I sensed that Leo and I wouldn’t be appreciating the holiday spirit until much later this evening.
I was your grandmother’s familiar, and I spent the majority of my time with her as I do you now. I remember having a few suspicions as to who your mother might be sneaking off with every now and then, but that was about the time that an acorn hit me in the head. A budding war was brewing within a faction of the neighborhood squirrels and no one was the wiser but me.
I wasn’t even angry or upset that the conversation had turned to the squirrelpocalypse. It was rare that Leo and I discussed the past, mostly because he harbored a deep resentment that Mom had kept our lineage a secret from me. The end result of that catastrophe had been him having to endure the necromancy spell that Nan had cast, which in turn had kept him here in the prime material plane while she passed through the veil into the next world. His existence here and now was a direct consequence of my mother’s actions.
This wasn’t exactly the time to go strolling down memory lane, especially when we had so much to do before the wedding ceremony. Still, I found myself lowering to the front stoop of the police station and settling in beside Leo.
Of course, it wasn’t Skippy or his band of ninja squirrels who caught my attention back then. Their family line dated way back when, and they’ve carried on the family goal of taking over the world. I’m sure that I’m some type of legend in the squirrel world. Think about it—a feline opponent who lives so much longer than them? Stories have clearly been passed down through a generation or two regarding the most amazing and astounding hunter ever to grace this earth.
“Oh, Leo,” I said with a chuckle, having gotten the gist that he had no idea about the identity of my biological father. “You haven’t really changed, have you?”
Leo didn’t do well with sentimental conversations, but I wanted to add one more thing.
“We’ve been doing so much running around, trying to figure out who has been sending Mom these warnings about marrying Beetle, that we haven’t really had time to enjoy the days leading up to Christmas this year.”
I glanced down the street toward town square, remembering last year when a reindeer had gone missing from its pen. A lot had happened since then, but what mattered most was the family that we’d created all on our own.
“I might wonder who my biological father is from time to time, but there isn’t one piece of my heart that isn’t filled with love for what I did have,” I divulged with a small smile. “You’re a big part of that, Leo. I probably don’t tell you that enough, but I figured we had a bit of time. It’ll be hectic come this evening.”
Leo mumbled something that I couldn’t quite figure out, but I’m pretty sure that he’d mentioned having something in his eye. He pawed his face a couple of times before what sounded like a sniffle came from his nose. I decided to cut him a break, though. Watching him being overcome with emotion was enough for me.
“Beetle being my stepfather doesn’t change anything, you know.” I stood up and brushed off the snow flurries that hadn’t melted against my jacket just yet. “He’ll still order your favorite blueberry catnip edibles, he’ll still think of you as his best friend, and he’ll still be a vampire.”
I guess when you put it like that…
Leo began to walk beside me as we made our way to the bakery. We’d pop in, check on Rye, and then head over to the garage to pick up my car. Newt’s repair shop wasn’t located on the main thoroughfare of town. He operated a mechanics repair shop and not a service station, so it was on a side street down from the local pub. Leo and I would have to backtrack a block from the bakery, but I couldn’t stand not knowing if Rye had been able to cast the spell successfully.
Don’t think that little moment we had is going to get me to wear that hideous bowtie.
“It was worth a shot.”
I had no doubt that Leo would cave in the end, not only about wearing the bowtie, but also with being the ringbearer. He might put on a stubborn front, but he was a sentimental fool who enjoyed the limelight, for the most part. He and my mother actually had a lot in common, not that either one of them would ever admit to such a thing.
We hadn’t even reached the bakery yet when Rye came around the corner with a determined expression on his face. His dark hair was slightly damp from the snow flurries and his nose was a little red, all of which told me that he’d been outside for an extended period of time.
“Were you able to—”
My excitement was immediately cut off by the shake of his head. He patted the pockets of his black leather jacket, though.
I’m going to go out on a limb and say that he’s not carrying around a stash of premium organic catnip.
“I’m going inside now to do what we talked about, but you can’t come with me,” Rye warned, even going so far as to shoot Leo with a sideways look of warning. “I’m serious. Bree still has no idea about who and what we are, and I need to keep it that way for now. It took me a while to gather what I needed due to the part’s constant exposure to electricity. The last thing we need is to catch the bakery on fire while attempting to figure out who is blackmailing your moth
er. It would only make matters worse, and Bree would lose her place of business.”
I conceded that my presence inside the bakery once again would cause Bree to be suspicious, especially if I was hovering over Rye next to the circuit breakers. I had to trust in Rye’s abilities to handle the incantation accurately, while also trusting that he was being honest about Aunt Rowena not wanting to stop this wedding.
At most, he likely had only ten or fifteen minutes before Aunt Rowena arrived in town.
Handwritten notes aren’t really the Wicked Witch of Windsor’s style, Raven. If she really wanted to stop this wedding, she would fireball the town square without notice during the ceremony. We’d never see it coming.
Leo made a valid point, which meant there really wasn’t much for us to do right now, other than to finally pick up my car from the garage. I figured by the time that we were able to drive past the bakery, Rye should have some answers for us.
“You should know that Liam and Sheriff Kline from the neighboring town made an arrest in Rebecca Dunsbury’s murder.” I shook my head when Rye’s dark eyes lit up in earnest. He’d gotten the wrong idea, and that was completely my fault. “It’s not what you think. The woman’s murder apparently has nothing to do with Mom’s blackmailer.”
“Run it down for me before I attempt to cast a spell within six feet of the woman I love.”
Someone is clearly having relationship issues.
I almost veered off topic, because Rye didn’t technically need to keep such an important part of himself hidden from Bree. As Leo had just mentioned, keeping something so important away from the woman of his dreams wasn’t the best way to start a relationship. Honestly, me telling Liam about my gift and lineage had been the best thing that had ever happened to me.
Once again, I’m somehow lower than chopped liver when just mere minutes ago you had me up on a pedestal. And on another note, we’ve been over what would happen if someone didn’t react the way the good ol’ sheriff and my soulmate had upon hearing that vampires, werewolves, ghouls, and other things that go bump in the night exist…and walk among them.
Frosty Blend (A Paramour Bay Cozy Paranormal Mystery Book 15) Page 12
