Bobby Sparks Witch Detective: Pet Shop Puzzle ( A Paranormal Cozy Mystery)

by Stacey Fields

  “And you argued about this regularly?” Don asked, leaning forward and raising his eyebrows.

  “I suppose,” Laura said with a shrug. “In all honesty, at the beginning of everything we got along very well. It’s just been in the last few months or so that things started to get tense.”

  “How long ago did you leave the pet shop, Laura?” Bobby asked.

  “I’d say about three weeks. Finally, it got to the point that I couldn’t take it anymore. After working with that woman for nearly a year, I suddenly saw a completely different side to her. I was thankful when she fired me.”

  “And you said that she changed a few months ago?” Bobby asked, verifying. “Did she tell you why she changed? Was she under stress or anything like that?”

  “She never told me anything. We only ever talked about the animals.”

  Bobby let out a soft sigh. She had more questions for Laura, but it was clear that in that moment she wouldn’t be getting answers. They needed more to go on before they could start putting pressure on anyone. At the moment, they had nothing.

  “If you think of anything, make sure you get in touch,” Bobby said, writing down her hotel number on a piece of paper and sliding it across the table towards the woman. “You can reach me here, or call the Sheriff at the Police Station.”

  By the time they exited Ms. Enchanting’s home, the sun was beginning to set in the distance.

  “I doubt she’ll be calling me at any point,” Don said, pulling on his coat. “She seems to believe, like other people I know, that shifters lack a certain degree of intelligence.”

  “She didn’t mean it like that,” Bobby said, feeling a slight pang of guilt work its way through her.

  “Were you listening to something different than I was?” he asked.

  “Look, Don,” Bobby said, stepping in front of him and looking up at him apologetically. “I know that it’s not just what she said. It’s me as well. I’ve also made my share of comments that didn’t need to be said about your kind, and I’m sorry.”

  He looked down at her, scrunching his eyebrows together in a look of hesitation. “Are you putting on your ‘I’m a nice person’ act with me now?”

  “I’m being serious,” Bobby said firmly. “I’m sorry, Don.”

  He continued to look at her suspiciously as he walked past her, heading down the street towards Daisy’s. “Let’s get something to eat,” he said over his shoulder.

  “Wait!” Bobby said, rushing to catch up with him. “You don’t believe me?”

  “I appreciate your comment,” Don said with a smile, “but I’m going to wait a little longer before I let my guard down completely with you, Ms. Sparks.”

  Rolling her eyes, she shrugged, “that’s fair.”

  “I’d say it’s more than fair,” Don replied confidently, “besides, I know you’re still harboring some angst towards me too. This way, I figure, things at least remain in balance.”

  “In balance?”

  “Yes. You don’t like me, I don’t want to like you. You don’t trust my abilities because I’m a shifter, I don’t trust yours because you’re a woman. We’re both being offensive and judgmental at the same time. It’s keeping things equal.”

  “Hold on,” Bobby said, stomping her foot and stopping in her tracks. “There are at least two things that you just said that need to be discussed further.”

  “Can they be discussed while we eat?” he asked, turning to face her. “I’m hungry.”

  Chapter 11: The Report is In

  They didn’t get the chance to discuss anything, however, because the moment they arrived at the diner, they were promptly met by Don’s Deputy Archer.

  Bobby felt her face turn red on its own accords as he quickly approached them.

  “Don, Bobby,” Archer said, his voice as strong and firm as she imagined his chest being. “I figured I’d find you here. You’re needed at the station—now.”

  “Can we grab something to eat first?” Don asked, craning his neck around to stare at a plateful of food that was being ushered past them to one of the tables.

  “Get it to go,” Archer said, “this is urgent.”

  “What do you want?” Don asked, turning to face Bobby.

  “Whatever,” she said absent-mindedly.

  “Whatever?” Don asked, amused. “You’re really going to give me free range to order you whatever I want off of Daisy’s menu?”

  Her attempt to keep a cool, collected, and open-minded air about her was failing miserably. She turned to look up at Don, and replied firmly, “get me something I would eat. I’m sure you can figure that out, can you not?”

  Don held up his hands and laughed, “I guess we’ll just have to see, now won’t we?”

  He walked over to the counter, where he waited to place their order, leaving Bobby and Archer alone at the entrance.

  “Is he always so difficult to work with?” Bobby asked, trying to avoid the urge to stare up at his deep blue eyes.

  Archer smiled, a perfect, charming, make-her-knees-shake type of smile. “He’s actually a really great boss,” he replied. “I’m sure he’s only giving you a hard time because he knows you’re up to the challenge.”

  Bobby let out an embarrassingly girly laugh as she turned her head away, hoping he wouldn’t see her cheeks flush red. Just as she spun back to face him again, the door behind her flew open, hitting her square in the back of the head and throwing her forward slightly. Archer reached out, just in time to catch her before she tumbled completely to the ground.

  The instant she felt his arms wrap around her shoulders, she pushed herself back, and yet another girlish giggle escaped her lips. Her hair had fallen out of the tie that was holding it back, and it now hung in her face. This time, though, she was thankful for it, as it was helping to cover up her crimson-colored embarrassment.

  “How, um,” she stuttered, straightening herself out, “how long have you been here?”

  “In Pinecreek?” he asked.

  “Yes. How long have you been in Pinecreek?”

  “For roughly seven years,” he replied. His voice was so deep. Was it even possible that a voice could sound so deep yet so smooth at the same time?

  “Do you like it?” she continued to stutter.

  “I love it here, honestly,” he replied. “It’s definitely a very unique place.”

  She finally felt that her face had returned to its normal color—at least as much as it was going to. So, she brushed her hair away just in time to see Don waltzing back over to them, two bags in his hands and a large grin on his face.

  The blood that had rushed to her face in embarrassment just moments before suddenly drained, and found its way to her stomach, where she felt nervous knots quickly beginning to form. The smug look on Don’s face only served to increase her feeling of discomfort.

  “What did you get me?” she asked, reaching out and snatching one of the bags from him before he had the chance to say anything about her interactions with his deputy.

  “It’s a surprise,” Don said in a hauntingly amused tone.

  Bobby began digging through the bag, preparing to rip into the tightly wrapped to-go items when Archer cleared his throat, drawing her attention back to him.

  “We really should be going,” he reminded them.

  “Right,” Bobby said, letting the bag drop to her side and stepping forward to reach for the door.

  The police station was just around the corner. The entire walk was filled with silence, at least externally. Bobby felt suddenly frustrated at the fact that she was still without her abilities.

  Some witches, like Holly and Laura, had abilities to cast spells and to create magical potions. Bobby, on the other hand, did not possess an advanced ability with things like that. Sure, she could cast a few basic spells—move a few things around from time to time, calm a crying baby, heat up a pot of water, the basics. Her specialty, however, was something very different than most. She could read people. She hoped to one day advance her
skills enough to be able to read minds, but for the moment, she would be grateful just to have her ability to read emotions back.

  It was a very special gift and one that only a handful of witches and warlocks possessed. It's what made her so valuable on the police force, and one of the reasons she was so successful in her P.P.I. training. But, since arriving in Pinecreek, she felt nothing coming off of the people they had interviewed. She was forced to rely solely on her powers of observation, and it irked her very much.

  What she was curious about in that moment was the smug grin that Don continued to wear whenever he glanced over his shoulder at her.

  “This way,” Archer said as they entered the police station. The entire room was empty; everyone had already gone home for the day.

  “I know my way to my desk,” Don said as they followed Archer to the far end of the room.

  Archer didn’t answer. He simply grabbed the yellow file sitting on top of the wooden desk and handed it to Don, not waiting for him to even take off his coat or set down the sack of food in his hand.

  Don juggled the objects around until Archer finally reached out to help him. Before he even had the chance to set the bag of greasy food down, Don let out a confused sigh.

  “What does this mean?” Don said glancing from the file up to Archer.

  “Exactly what it says,” Archer replied.

  Bobby was beginning to feel frustrated at being left out of the loop, so she set her own food down on the table and grabbed for the file in Don’s hand.

  She scanned the chart and then the paragraph, written hurriedly in a very sloppy hand at the bottom of the page.

  “’It is my professional opinion’,” she read out loud, “’that this woman did not die of natural causes. While it is true that it was her heart that failed, there are no signs of any pre-existing internal condition that would cause this event.’ So it had to be something external?” she asked, looking between Don and Archer.

  “That’s what it says,” Archer replied with a nod.

  Bobby tilted her head to the side and stared intently at Don. "And you were so convinced that nothing of the sort could happen in your perfect little town," she said, with a tone of superiority very evident in her voice.

  Don let out a disgusted grunt and snatched the report out of her hand. “This is just the preliminary, correct?” he asked no one in particular. “The cause of death is still undetermined.”

  “The only thing they know for sure at this point is that it was not natural causes.”

  “So, it had to be one of the members of the community that possesses some degree of magical ability,” Don said thoughtfully. He looked at Bobby, a smug expression on his face. “A fairy, a witch, a warlock, or something of the like.”

  “Sure,” she replied.

  “So, it’s safe to rule out shifters, ghosts, elves?” Archer asked.

  Don handed the report back to Archer and crossed his arms over his chest. "Yes, we would have to rule them out, wouldn't we, Bobby? Rule out shifter like—I don't know—Barry?"

  Bobby still didn’t want to concede that her initial belief was wrong, although it was looking more and more like that as they progressed. “For the moment, I’d say our best bet is to focus in on the individuals who have access to potions and spells,” Bobby muttered, agreeing with Don’s previous point.

  “Do you have any suspects in mind yet?” Archer asked.

  Bobby reached into her purse to pull out her notebook, but Don answered before she had the chance to.

  “We’re still working on it, Deputy. We’ll need a little more time to review our notes before we decide what the next step is that we’ll be taking. For now, I would like it if you began preparing a statement. We’ll need to address the town in the morning.”

  Bobby rolled her eyes and muttered, “what I’ve been saying since the beginning.”

  Don shot her a quick look before turning to Archer and saying, “the statement needs to remain as vague as possible. All we need is for anyone to come forward who might have information on Holly—her personal life, her friends, what she did when she wasn’t in the shop—things like that.”

  “We’re still not going to say that it was murder?” Archer asked, his mouth hanging open slightly.

  “Not just yet,” Don replied.

  Chapter 12: Full-Fledged Panic in Pinecreek

  Surprisingly, whatever Don ordered her, Bobby actually enjoyed. She didn’t ask what it was, and he didn’t tell her either, which was probably for the best because the entire time she ate, he had a hint of a smile just forming at the corner of his lips.

  “So, what do we have so far?” he asked after they had finished eating.

  Archer had left to prepare the statement he would share with the town, leaving Bobby and Don to discuss their next steps for the investigation.

  “Nothing,” she replied dryly, looking through her notebook. “All we know is that the parents didn’t approve of her husband, her husband remembers her fighting with her former employee, and Laura only remembers her being overly agitated the last few months.”

  “We also know that it has to be someone with access to magic,” Don reminded her. “We still haven’t spoken to the high-school admirer, and I’m still not sure I trust that Laura woman.”

  “You just don’t like her because of what she said,” Bobby replied.

  “Not just that,” Don said quickly and defensively, “let’s remember that she is a witch, she would want to get rid of the competition when it comes to the pet shop, and,” his voice drifted off.

  “And what?” Bobby urged him to continue.

  “And she’s rude.”

  Bobby laughed as she closed her notebook and slid it back into her purse. “We never finished talking about her earlier,” Bobby reminded him.

  "Oh, that's right. You were going to make a comment on my comment, but then Archer came along and…” Don finished his sentence with a soft, girly giggle, clearly mocking her earlier interaction with the tall, handsome elf.

  “Very funny,” Bobby said, collecting up her stuff and letting out a frustrated grunt.

  “I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” Don said, sounding somewhat genuinely apologetic. “What did you want to say to me earlier?”

  “I just wanted to point out that your assumptions about women are offensive.”

  “And your assumptions about shifters are, too,” Don replied bluntly.

  “Must you insist on being so stubborn?” Bobby exclaimed.

  “You said there were two things,” he said ignoring her accusation.

  “No, just the one,” she said. She knew he was right, there were two things about his former statement that had drawn her attention. The first—his comment on wanting to dislike her—was suddenly and significantly unimportant.

  “If you say so.”

  “I do have a question,” Bobby said. “Why are we still not telling the town that Holly’s death was a murder?”

  “Because that information would definitely have negative repercussions. We don’t want a full-fledged panic on our hands right now, do we?”

  “But, shouldn’t they be aware that there’s a killer on the loose?”

  “I don’t think it’ll turn into a serial-killer type of situation.”

  “You also didn’t think she was murdered in the first place.”

  “I might have been wrong about that, but I’m right about this.”

  “You sound sure,” Bobby said, the disbelief heavy on her tone.

  “I am,” he replied. It was clear that there was not a hint of doubt in his voice. “I know this is for the best. Whoever did this will not strike again.”

  “Well, they definitely won’t if we hurry up and catch them,” Bobby said, knowing that there was no point arguing with him.

  “Speaking of which, what’s our next move?”

  “I still want to talk to the high school admirer,” Bobby thought out loud. “And I think that we should start questioning her friends and the shop owners
and employees who worked near the pet shop. Maybe we should question Mrs. O’Leary again.”

  “I have a feeling that all of those people, and many more, will be coming to us once word of this gets out tomorrow.”

  Bobby had no idea how right Don would be. Archer made the official statement in front of the town hall at 8:00 a.m. sharp. Bobby and Don stood shoulder to shoulder on the steps behind him as he spoke.

  “At the moment, we cannot say for certain what caused the tragic and unexpected death of our dearly beloved Holly,” Archer said. “We are looking into every possible angle, and we have the best of the best working on this case, hoping to provide all of you who knew and loved her with answers as soon as possible.”

  As he spoke, a small murmur started to hover over the crowd. Archer raised his voice slightly, so as to ensure he would be heard as he continued.

  “We are asking that anyone with any information that they feel may be useful to this investigation to come forward, at their earliest convenience. We will have officers in the station, waiting to take your statements, whatever they may be.”

  Bobby felt a wave of fear suddenly wash over her. The looks in the eyes of everyone in the crowd looked like those of a crazed mob. It was as if they were all thinking of whatever little piece of information they could bring forward, just for the sake of bringing something forward.

  As Archer stepped down, that all-too-eager mob seemed to move forward as one, large mass. Questions were yelled out, and an excited, heavy tension fell over the town square.

  Don stepped forward, lifted his arms in the air, and summoned the crowd to silence once again. “We will not be answering questions at this time. As the Deputy said, if you have any information you would like to share with us, please proceed in an orderly fashion to the police station. There, your statements will be taken, and you will be dismissed. As soon as we have any further information, we will come forward and provide you with it.”