“What’s going on?” I asked a witch that I vaguely recognized from around.
“Apparently there’s been a murder in that building,” the witch replied in a hushed voice. “At least, that’s what I heard. The Enforcers are there and everything!”
I pushed through the growing crowd until I reached the red-and-yellow police cordon emblazoned with the town’s logo and the words “crime scene—do not enter.” I already knew it was magically enhanced so that no one unauthorized could get past it, so I didn’t even bother trying.
Instead, I absorbed the scene as best I could. Sure enough, the entire building had been cordoned off and declared a crime scene. Looking through the lobby, I could see a few witches, including one that I recognized as having walked out just ahead of Anne the other day, huddled together. They looked like they were crying.
My heart dropped. Anne wasn’t among them. Was she ok?
My eyes scanned the area, looking for any sign of Anne. Eventually, they settled on Jack. He was speaking with Chief Enforcer Loeb. If she was here, that meant whatever had happened here was serious.
I sent Willow a text, asking if they’d heard anything at the hospital, but she responded in the negative. She did add that she’d been busy all morning dealing with the aftermath of a firefight between two dragon shifters, though, and likely wouldn’t have heard any news.
My eyes followed Jack as he left Chief Enforcer Loeb and made his way toward the back of the building. I followed the cordoned-off perimeter until finally I was close enough to be within earshot of him.
“Jack,” I called out as loudly as I dared, not wanting to attract the attention of any of the looky-loos near the front of the building. He spun around, spotted me, and came over briskly.
“What’s going on?” he asked.
“I was going to ask you the same thing. Anne Leavis. Is she ok?”
Jack gave me a hard look. “She’s dead.”
“What?”
“Yeah. How do you know her?”
I pressed my lips together, and Jack put a hand on his hip.
“You do realize this is a murder investigation?”
“She was killed?”
“Yes. Around five this morning. Her two roommates had spent the night at a friend’s house to study. They came back during their mid-morning break about forty minutes ago to grab some food and get changed when they found the body. We’re trying to keep that information quiet for now.”
“It’s not working; one of the witches already told me someone was murdered. I didn’t know if she was right, though.”
Jack sighed. “Sometimes I hate small towns.”
“What happened to her?” Jack gave me a look. “Oh, come on, this way I don’t have to break into the office and find out myself.”
“You know, there is a middle ground that involves you going on with your life without pestering me or committing any crimes.”
“There really isn’t,” I replied, crossing my arms. Jack looked at me and sighed.
“Fine, but only because you would be the most annoying inmate ever if they locked you up in our holding cell.”
I grinned. “Thanks.”
“But you have to tell me how you know Anne Leavis first.”
I considered it for a moment, then nodded. “She was dating Blaze,” I replied. “They were keeping their relationship a secret, since his parents are super old-fashioned and didn’t want him dating anyone who wasn’t a shifter.”
“Ok. She told us that when we spoke to her after finding that text. Do you have any reason to think she might have killed Blaze?”
I shrugged. “No, not really. I mean, there was that text she sent him. I assume you saw it?”
Jack nodded. “Yeah. She seemed really confused about it.”
“Same here. I believe her.”
“Between us, so do I.”
“Willow doesn’t, though. She thinks it might have been Anne. I guess not.”
Jack sighed. “Honestly, I wish this case would get solved. Do you know how many people have tried to break into Jason Oakland’s house this week? At least four, that I know of. On the bright side, only you and your grandmother were stupid enough to break into the Enforcers’ office. But this reward money has everyone fighting each other for a piece of it, and I’m sick and tired of it. I wish the family would recall the reward and just let us do our job. Maybe then Anne Leavis would still be alive.”
“How was she killed?” I asked.
“Strangled. Don’t tell anyone that.”
“You know I won’t.”
Jack sighed. “Only because it’s going to help you try and find the killer you’re after.”
“I don’t get it,” I said. “I’m sure Jason is the killer, but he wouldn’t even have known about Anne. There’s literally no way. They kept their relationship completely secret.”
“You still think Jason is the killer?” Jack asked, and I shrugged.
“Everything about it makes sense. Everything except that one text. He had the means, he had the motive, he had the opportunity. Even if he was in town just before nine the morning Blaze was killed, he had a broom with him. He could have flown to the lookout. But the text message doesn’t fit. I don’t know how he sent the text.”
Jack looked at me, nodding slowly. I felt like he was holding something back. “What is it?”
“Nothing,” he said, shaking his head.
“Are you close to making an arrest?” I asked, and Jack shrugged.
“It’s not up to me. And you know I can’t tell you that.”
“Do you think Jason is the killer?”
“I genuinely don’t know. I don’t like to jump to conclusions without having all of the facts. I will say, if Anne’s death and Blaze’s death are linked, the key to solving this case will be finding out who knew about their relationship.”
Jack was right. They had to be linked. There was no way someone would randomly kill Anne a few days after killing Blaze. Not in a place like Mt. Rheanier, where murders were virtually unheard of. There was no way this was a coincidence. Absolutely none.
But if that was the case, I had a different problem: what reason could Jason possibly have to kill Anne Leavis?
“Fine,” I said. “Keep your secrets.”
“That’s sort of my job,” Jack replied.
“Yeah, well, your job is stupid.” My mind raced with thoughts; I didn’t have time to be either mature or clever. Besides, now that I’d gotten the information I needed, I was back to being mad at Jack.
“It was lovely helping you out, too. Anyway, I have to go.”
I watched Jack’s retreating form as I turned over all of this new information in my head.
Who knew that Blaze and Anne had been seeing each other? That was the key here.
Chapter 21
I needed to speak to the assistant Healer students that Anne lived with, but I also needed to speak with Jason Oakland. And fast. I wanted to get to him before anyone else did, and it sounded like there were a lot of people on that track.
I raced down to his building and began pounding on his door.
“Hold on, hold on,” I heard him mutter. He opened the door a moment later, bleary-eyed, wearing only a pair of boxers. The dude looked like death. His skin was pale, his breathing was ragged, and I wasn’t even completely sure he recognized me.
“Hey, what’s up, pretty witch?” he said, leaning casually against the doorframe. Seriously? The guy was trying to flirt with me? He looked like he needed to be begging me to call an ambulance, not trying to get me to bed.
“I need some answers, idiot,” I said, pushing him backward and storming into his apartment.
“Woah, hey,” he said slowly, as if it took his brain a few seconds to catch up to the rest of him. “What’s going on? Who are you?”
“Did you know Blaze was dating Anne Leavis?”
“Woah. Wait, what?”
I rolled my eyes and went to the kitchen, popping open cupboards until I
found a box of instant coffee. I cast a quick spell, poured some boiling water into a mug, and dropped in the instant coffee, stirring it with a dirty-looking spoon that still looked cleaner than most of the stuff in this apartment.
I was going to have to take a shower in bleach after touching this stuff. I pushed the mug toward Jason. “Drink.”
He obeyed, taking the mug from me and sipping the coffee. “You’re insane. What are you doing in my apartment?”
“Trying to get answers. I’ll try again. Did you know Anne Leavis was dating Blaze?”
“I don’t know Anne Leavis, but she’s a witch, right? I know some of the Leavis family,” Jason replied. “No, I didn’t know she was dating the dragon. I had no idea. Why were they dating? They were different species.”
“It’s 2019, that sort of thing happens now. But so you genuinely had no idea they were dating?”
“What would I know? All I know is that dirtbag of a dragon wanted me to stop selling my stuff. It’s like he doesn’t care about my livelihood at all.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “I heard you got a job working at Magical Pharmaceuticals.”
“Yeah, well, they fired me after I mixed up silverweed and white hemstail. Who on earth can tell the difference between those, anyway? They claimed I ruined an entire batch of potion. Who cares? Now that Blaze is dead, I can keep making money my way, anyway.”
I had to hide the smile that threatened to appear; I was glad Jason had ruined an entire batch of potions for that company. It served them right.
“So now that Blaze is dead you’re dealing again. And apparently sampling the merchandise, too.”
“Hey, gotta make sure it’s alright to take.”
No wonder dragons were ending up in the hospital. If I cared a little bit more about Jason, I probably would have dragged him over there myself. He looked like he was going to keel over and die any second.
“Where were you this morning at around five?”
“Uhhhh…sleeping? Making potions? Honestly, I’m not really sure,” he said, scratching the side of his head. “Sorry.”
Great. That was about as solid an alibi as he had for Blaze’s murder. I was starting to get sick and tired of this guy.
“Do you have any poisonous potion in here?” I asked. After all, if he really was high right now, there was a chance he’d answer me and solve all my problems.
“Nah. I’d never mess with that stuff. I’m all about good times. And speaking of good times…”
“Ugh, not on your life,” I said, scrunching up my face as Jason looked toward the bedroom. “Gross.”
“Hey, you could have left it at no. You didn’t have to insult me.”
“You insulted me just by offering,” I shot back. “Anyway, I think that’s my cue to leave.” I didn’t think I was going to get any more information out of Jason. And I wanted to get to the hospital. I needed to speak to Willow, and hopefully the friend that Anne’s roommates had spent the night with.
As I left Jason’s apartment, I ran into Grandma Rosie and Connie making their way down the street. My eyes narrowed. “You’re not getting into any more trouble, are you?”
“Who, us?” my grandmother replied, doing her best to look as innocent as possible. “Wouldn’t dream of it. How dare you accuse your grandmother of such a thing?”
“Right,” I replied with an eye roll. “I forgot, you’re a sweet little thing who wouldn’t dream of causing any sort of mischief.”
“That’s right, and don’t you forget it,” Grandma Rosie said, wagging a finger at me. I looked past her at Connie, who was now standing with her feet spread apart and her arms crossed, like a five-foot-two-inch bodyguard with big white curls.
“Where are you going, anyway? If you want to bug Jason, he’s currently super high, so there’s no point.”
“Right, like you’d tell us the truth,” Grandma Rosie replied. “We’re looking for information. Can’t let ourselves get distracted by the other murder. That one’s far less promising; I know Anne Leavis’s family, and they don’t have any money to put up a reward.”
I smiled to myself; Grandma Rosie and Connie didn’t realize there was a link between Blaze and Anne. At least this meant I was one step ahead of them.
“Is that your only motivation to stop a murderer? Money?” I asked.
“Well, I must admit, it has been a good way to get out of the house. And my Healer has been telling me I need to stay active in my twilight years.”
“I’m not sure committing crimes while trying to catch a murderer is exactly what he had in mind.”
“Well, he should have been more specific, then.”
“Alright, well, I’ll leave you to it,” I said. I had to make my way to the hospital. I wanted to speak to the assistant Healers before anyone else got there, but as I walked off, I realized Grandma Rosie and Connie actually had the same thought as everyone else investigating this crime would: that the murders of Anne Leavis and Blaze were completely unrelated.
On the bright side, that meant I wasn’t going to have to push my way through hordes of paranormals trying to bother grieving witches and wizards.
I texted Willow as soon as I arrived at the hospital and she met me in the cafeteria, where I grabbed the only thing I could afford—a cup of free water from the cooler next to the cutlery stand.
Her hair stood on end and she looked like she could use a coffee—or ten.
“I heard about Anne,” she said as soon as she plonked herself down. “It’s just awful. What an awful day.”
“I’m sorry,” I said, reaching a hand across the table and placing it on top of Willow’s. She gave me a weak smile. “It sounds like today’s not been great.”
“It’s been straight-up awful. Those dragons are going to be scarred for life. What kind of idiots decide to play chicken with flaming fire breath? We’ve got assistant Healers creating salve potions right now, and if it weren’t for what happened, we’d have all the students out getting ingredients for more. The strongest potion we have requires a bunch of fresh basil, fresh silverweed, and fresh rose petals. We don’t have the supplies to make enough.”
“I’ll do it,” I immediately replied. “I know where the basil and silverweed are. You’ll have to send someone else to go buy rose petals somewhere they’re still in bloom, since it’s too late in the season here, as you know, but I can take care of the other two. I’ll get as much as you need.”
Willow shot me the world’s most grateful look. “Are you sure?”
“Of course. I don’t want any of the assistant Healers to have to go out and work, not after the news they’ve just gotten. Heck, I’m saddened about her death. I can’t imagine how the students who worked side by side with her every single day are coping.”
There wasn’t a doubt in my mind that this was the right thing to do. The chat I wanted to have with the student the roommates had spent the night with could wait. This was more important. If the hospital needed supplies for potions, I’d much rather it be me sent out to do it.
“Can you do it now? I’ll let the hospital administrator and the Healer in charge of the dragons know.”
“Yeah,” I replied, getting up. It was a good thing I’d eaten that second donut after all. “How much do you need?”
“Literally as much as you can get. Of both. The dragons are going to need the salve put all over themselves for the next few weeks. We’re probably going to have to get some extra supplies from elsewhere, but for now, we’re just trying to keep up with the demand while not having any assistant Healer students to use for help.”
“Got it,” I nodded. I immediately made my way back home, grabbed my bag for collecting plants, and made my way back outside. I pursed my lips as I looked at the broom. This sort of situation was urgent; I had heard from Willow that the strongest burn salve—the one I assumed these ingredients were for—had to sit for six hours before it was ready to be used. Time would definitely be of the essence if they were running out.
But I really didn’t enjoy flying.
Still, it was important. I sighed, grabbed the broom, and hopped onto it. Soaring up into the sky, I pushed down the wave of anxiety I usually felt when I started flying and made my way toward the lookout. There was definitely no time to admire the view today. Besides, it wasn’t as nice when the clouds were overcast and so low I felt like I was about to hit the ceiling as I flew upward.
If there was one thing I definitely hated, it was flying in clouds. I always lost all sense of direction and usually ended up upside down when I did it.
Swooping over toward the lookout, I kept an eye out for the Enforcer guarding the place and was surprised to see a familiar face.
Chapter 22
“Andy?” I called out, and the wizard spun around to face me.
“Oh, hey, you’re Ali, right?” he said in his Australian drawl, and I nodded.
“Sorry, you’re not allowed here,” he continued. “This part of town is currently out of bounds until the investigation into Blaze’s death is concluded.”
“I know,” I rushed. “I’m not here to see the crime scene. There’s a basil field not far from here, and I need to get to it.”
Andy looked at me skeptically. “Jack told me to watch out for you, that if anyone in town was likely to lie to me to get around the law, it would be you…or your grandmother.”
“Wait,” I said, suddenly realizing there was something wrong with this picture. “You’re an Enforcer?”
“That’s right. Chief Enforcer Loeb thought there was need for a second wizard to be brought in to beef up security after the break-ins at the offices, and I was looking for a change of scenery. Plus, there aren’t all that many Enforcers’ offices that are happy to have wizards on board. Chief Enforcer Loeb is an outlier for sure.”
“So you’re not gay.” There went my mouth again, speaking before my brain had time to tell it what a terrible idea that was.
Andy laughed good-naturedly. “I’m afraid not.”
“Good,” I replied, immediately clamping a hand to my mouth. Andrew raised an eyebrow. “I don’t mean ‘good’ in that I think there’s anything wrong with that,” I quickly added. But I didn’t know where to go from there. How did I explain that I meant “good” as in I wanted to be all over him, without letting him know in any way that I wanted to be all over him?
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