Wicked Beginning: An Ivy Morgan Mystery Books 1-3

by Lily Harper Hart

  Ivy forced a small smile for his benefit. “It’s going to be okay. We’ll figure it out.”

  Felicity couldn’t hide her grin as she watched the interaction. It was if they were in their own little world. She couldn’t help but wonder if that world would strengthen or crumble in the coming weeks. Personally, she was rooting for it to strengthen.

  Jack Harker might just turn out to be the man her tempestuous niece needed to finally break through and touch her well-protected heart. Of course, Ivy might also be the person to soothe Jack’s troubled heart – if he gave her the chance, that is.

  It was certainly going to be entertaining to watch either way.

  Nine

  “Do you want to tell me what’s going on?”

  Ivy lifted her eyes from the book she was reading at Felicity’s store counter and fixed a quizzical look on her face. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  After the computer search took longer than expected, and Jack and Ivy couldn’t take another second of fighting the urge to touch one another, Shadow Lake’s newest detective bid them farewell and promised to keep in touch. The second he left the store, Ivy’s mood lifted.

  “Oh, don’t do that,” Felicity said, smiling at her only niece. “You’re like a daughter to me. I know when something is up with you. Something is definitely up with you.”

  “He just rubs me the wrong way.”

  Felicity snorted. “I think it’s actually the opposite, but if you need to tell yourself that, then go ahead.”

  “Excuse me?”

  “You’re attracted to him,” Felicity said, refusing to back down. “It’s written all over your face.”

  “I think you read auras better than you do faces,” Ivy replied, nonplussed.

  “Your aura says it, too.”

  “Maybe you’re just off your game today.” Ivy focused back on the book. “I haven’t found anything that helps us yet. How much longer do you think the computer search will take?”

  She was trying to change the subject. There was no way Felicity was going to let that happen. “He’s very handsome,” Felicity said. “There’s something rather pleasing about his face. I think it’s that strong jaw of his.”

  “I guess,” Ivy said, refusing to meet her aunt’s probing gaze. “If you like that kind of thing.”

  Felicity couldn’t help but grin. Who didn’t like that kind of thing? “I touched his shoulder, too. He feels like he works out quite a bit.”

  “Maybe you should date him,” Ivy suggested. “He’s new in town. The vultures are circling, but if you move fast enough you can probably cut Ava and Maisie off at the knees and claim him for yourself.”

  “I think I’m a little old for him.”

  “Maybe that’s what he likes.”

  “I think he likes you,” Felicity said. There was no way she was going to let Ivy wriggle out of this conversation.

  “Oh, good grief,” Ivy said, rolling her eyes until they landed on her aunt. “We have spent a grand total of two hours together now. He doesn’t know me. We’ve talked about a murder, he’s spied on me, and I’ve yelled at him. That’s the extent of our relationship.”

  “I didn’t say you were in love with him,” Felicity said. “I said you were attracted to him. Love is emotional. Attraction is physical. There’s a big difference.”

  “I suppose you’re going to enlighten me on the difference, aren’t you?”

  “You don’t know him well enough to love him,” Felicity said, ignoring the sarcasm. “That doesn’t mean your skin doesn’t hum whenever he’s around. Don’t bother denying it. I saw your auras touch when you grabbed his wrist. He was about to fly off the handle, and you managed to center him with a simple touch. It was … beautiful.”

  “I think you’re reading a little more into our interaction than what is really there,” Ivy said. “He just needed a second to collect himself. You threw him off his game. You need to stop blurting stuff like that out, by the way. Some people don’t like it.”

  “He’s been through something truly horrible,” Felicity said.

  “How do you know that?” Despite herself, Ivy was interested. She’d sensed the same thing about Jack. She couldn’t see auras like her aunt, but she trusted her instincts.

  “He’s been terribly hurt,” Felicity said. “Part of it was physical. I didn’t see a lot. He likes to hold his troubles close to his heart. He almost died, though. I did see that. And whoever was responsible for hurting him physically also betrayed him on a personal level. I don’t know the specifics. I just know that he’s a man who can’t let go of something very bad.”

  “That makes me feel guilty,” Ivy said. “I was pretty mean to him yesterday.”

  “That’s what I heard.”

  “He had it coming, though,” Ivy said. “I don’t care what he says. He was spying on me.”

  Felicity pursed her lips. “First off, I don’t think he was technically spying on you,” she said. “I do think he wanted to check out the crime scene. I also think there’s something about you that calls to him.”

  “Oh, whatever,” Ivy grumbled.

  “I want to know why you’re letting him believe Max is your boyfriend.”

  “He jumped to that conclusion,” Ivy said. “I’m not rewarding his spying by telling him the truth.”

  “Did you ever consider he jumped to that conclusion because he was jealous?”

  “He just met me. We’re not dating. He has nothing to be jealous about.”

  “If it’s any consolation, I don’t think he realizes he’s jealous,” Felicity said. “He’s not looking for a relationship – just like you. He just has all these … feelings, for lack of a better word … and he has no idea what to do with them.”

  “He should figure out a different way to deal with them.”

  “I know someone else feeling the exact same thing,” Felicity said pointedly.

  Ivy slammed the book shut and hopped down from the stool. “And on that note … I’m going.” She kissed her aunt on the cheek. “Call me when you find something. I can’t put up with another second of your meddling.”

  “Is that because you know I’m right?”

  “Auntie, Jack doesn’t have feelings for me,” Ivy said. “Even if he was attracted to me, we both know that wouldn’t last for more than a few weeks before all the … witchy stuff … drove him away. I’ve gone through it too many times. I’m not going through it again.”

  “You don’t know that he would walk away.”

  “Yes, I do,” Ivy said. “I’m used to it. I know my lot in life. I’m fine being who I am. I’m fine being alone.”

  Felicity wasn’t so sure, but she snapped her mouth shut and let Ivy keep whatever delusions she needed to cling to as she walked out of the store. She had no doubt this situation was going to explode. It was probably best to let Jack and Ivy deal with their feelings in their own time. It was the only way they were going to learn. Some things are inevitable, after all.

  JACK was frustrated. Hours of research to find the meaning of the symbols had proved fruitless – although he was sure Felicity was toiling away. Brian was still trying to track down the victim’s identity, and until they knew who she was, there was no way they could figure out what to do.

  He literally had nowhere to go in the investigation without more information.

  After leaving the office, he drove home, visions of starting restoration on the front porch of his new house flitting through his head. He got exactly one hour of haphazard work done before he gave up. He couldn’t focus on the house when there was so much about the murder left unexplained.

  Who was she? Who killed her? What did the symbols mean? Why was her body dumped in front of Ivy Morgan’s house? Was that just a coincidence?

  The coroner put the time of death about nine hours before Ivy discovered the body. Due to the lack of blood on the ground beneath the woman – who was believed to be about nineteen years old – it was ascertained that she was killed el
sewhere and dumped in the ditch. That was something. At least Ivy could let go of the guilt. There was nothing she could have done to save the woman. Of course, since the final autopsy report didn’t hit his desk until right before he left, there was no way she could know.

  Maybe I should tell her?

  Jack had no idea where the idea came from, but the moment it occurred to him it was all he could think about. Ivy was troubled by the notion that she could have saved the woman. It was only fair to tell her that wasn’t the case. It would help her sleep better.

  Before he realized what was happening Jack was in his truck and on his way to Ivy’s house. He would just stop in for a second, he told himself. He wasn’t going to see her. He was going to make sure she knew what was going on. That was an important distinction. Besides, it would give him another chance to study the ditch. There was something there he was missing. He just knew it.

  Instead of parking in front of Ivy’s cottage, which would be a dead giveaway, Jack parked down the road and walked up the highway. He left the cracked pavement so he could traipse through the trees, studying the ground for signs of disturbance.

  It made more sense for the murderer to have used a vehicle to discard the body than carrying dead weight through the woods. Ivy’s house was set back from the road. Even if she was staring out the window at the exact moment the body was dumped, she wouldn’t have seen a car on the road – especially if the lights were disengaged.

  Jack emerged from the woods, landing on Ivy’s driveway and shifting so he could take in the entire area as he turned. Why dump someone’s body in front of a house when there was so much empty land surrounding it? If the murderer was trying to hide what he’d done, wouldn’t it make more sense to pick a completely isolated spot? It was almost as if someone wanted the woman’s body to be found. That couldn’t be it, could it?

  Jack was so lost in thought he didn’t notice the furtive figure shooting toward him from the other side of the driveway until it was upon him.

  “Oomph.”

  The figure was tall and built, and even though Jack worked out every day, he was no match for the interloper’s fury or determination. Jack was already on the ground, his hands moving up to protect his face when he recognized who was on top of him. It wasn’t some crazy madman – or, at least he didn’t think so. No, this was a whole other level of annoyance. It was Ivy’s boyfriend.

  “Don’t you even think about going near my sister!” Max slammed his fist into Jack’s face.

  IVY, her hand moving through Nicodemus’ soft fur as she flipped through a magazine, tensed out of nowhere. Something is going on. She shifted the cat, his angry cry ignored as she moved to the front door. Someone was outside. She had no idea how she knew, but she did.

  Without thinking of the possible ramifications, Ivy threw open the door and scanned her small yard. Since the cottage was set back from the road, the trees hid its existence from prying eyes. There were plenty of places to hide, though.

  The unmistakable sound of scuffling assailed Ivy’s ears, and she turned her attention to the far end of the driveway where she saw two men grappling with one another. She didn’t recognize the figure on the ground, but the one on top belonged to her brother. “Max?”

  Max didn’t look up. Whoever he was wrestling with was strong, and before her brother could secure him in a wrestling hold the other figure gained the upper hand and flipped Max over, toppling him to the ground.

  Ivy broke into a run, her heart pounding as she raced toward the two men. If this was a dangerous situation, she might well regret intervening. Max was her brother, though. She would never abandon him.

  By the time Ivy made it to the end of the driveway the second man managed to subdue Max and was holding his struggling body against the uncomfortable gravel. It took Ivy a second to recognize her visitor, but when she did, she couldn’t contain her anger.

  “You let him go right now!”

  Jack shifted his eyes to Ivy, causing her to take an involuntary step back when she absorbed the full brunt of his emotional fury. “He attacked me.”

  “Let him go,” Ivy said, keeping her voice firm. “That is my brother.”

  Jack faltered, letting his grip on Max loosen. He glanced down at the man on the ground, his eyes roaming over the familiar features. Now that she’d said it, Jack didn’t understand how he hadn’t recognized the family resemblance. Max was taller and broader, but they had the same eyes and bone structure. “I … .”

  Jack rolled off Max, taking a step back and raising his hands to ward off a second attack.

  For his part, Max was mortified. He jumped to his feet and angrily started dusting his clothes off. “I caught him wandering around in the woods over there. I think he was going to attack you.”

  Ivy tilted her head to the side, conflicted. Was he spying again? “Why are you here, Jack?”

  “Jack?” Max rolled the name through his mind. “Is this the new cop?”

  Ivy nodded.

  “Why are you stalking my sister, man?”

  “This is your brother?” Jack asked, never moving his gaze from Ivy’s expressive face.

  “Yes.”

  “Why didn’t you just tell me that?”

  “I … .” Why hadn’t she? “I was mad at you. I wanted to bug you as much as you were bugging me.”

  Jack barked out a hoarse laugh, running his hand through his hair. “I guess I deserve that.”

  “Does someone want to tell me what’s going on here?” Max asked, frustrated.

  “I’m Jack Harker.” Jack extended his hand by way of greeting, and Max reluctantly shook it. “I was just going through the woods over there because I wanted to make sure that no one carried the body to the ditch. I wasn’t spying. I was just … looking around.”

  Max exhaled heavily. “I … I’m sorry. I jumped to conclusions. Ivy is all alone out here. When I saw a man I didn’t know going through the woods by her house I thought … well … I think you know what I thought.”

  “You were trying to protect her,” Jack said. “I get it. Don’t worry about it.”

  “I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

  Jack rubbed his shoulder. “You knocked the wind out of me, but I’m fine. I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

  “You’re freaking strong, man,” Max said. “I see you did some wrestling back in the day. That was a nice move to flip me over.”

  “I see you did, too. You caught me completely off guard when you tackled me. I barely saw you coming.”

  Ivy rolled her eyes as the two men lapsed into a high school athletics conversation. It seemed the crisis had passed, even if she wasn’t sure exactly what happened out here. What is it with men? They can beat the crap out of each other and then immediately get over it. That was not the way of the world where women were concerned.

  Ten

  “Why did you want to meet here?” Jack slid into the booth across from Brian and fixed the older man with a pointed look. “Shouldn’t we be working?”

  “What do you suggest we work on?” Brian asked, lifting an eyebrow as he sipped from his coffee mug. “We have no idea what the symbols represent, and we still don’t have an identification on the victim. We have nothing.”

  “So … we’re going to have breakfast?”

  “I figured now would be a good time for you to meet some of the regulars,” Brian said. “Plus, a solid breakfast never hurt anyone, and this place has the best breakfast in town. Although, you strike me as an oatmeal guy.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “Because you don’t look like you eat a lot of greasy food,” Brian said. “You look like one of those ‘my body is my temple’ guys.”

  Jack snorted. “That shows what you know.”

  “Did you eat breakfast this morning?”

  “Yes.”

  “Was it oatmeal?”

  “I had fruit with it, too,” Jack replied, annoyed.

  Brian grinned. “Try the eggs. They’re amazing. They’re fresh fr
om a local farm.”

  “I’ll consider it,” Jack said, reaching for a menu. “So we still have nothing?”

  “Absolutely nothing,” Brian said, studying his new partner’s face. “What happened to your cheek? It looks like you’ve been in a fight.”

  Jack’s face burned under Brian’s gaze. “I … um … had a thing last night.”

  “What was her name?”

  Jack scowled. “His name was Max Morgan.”

  “I see you finally found out that Ivy’s boyfriend was actually her brother,” Brian said, chuckling. “How did that happen?”

  “I was checking the woods by her house to see if there was any reason to suspect the victim was carried to the dump site instead of driven and he tackled me,” Jack said.

  “Why did he tackle you?”

  “He thought I was there stalking his sister,” Jack said. “I don’t blame him. He had no idea who I was, and his sister lives alone. He was just protecting her.”

  “How did Ivy take all of this?”

  “After a little yelling she was fine,” Jack said. “She’s kind of loud on a normal day, though, so she was especially loud yesterday.”

  “Hmm.”

  “What is that supposed to mean?” Jack asked, irritated.

  “It doesn’t mean anything,” Brian said. “I just find it … interesting … that you found yourself at Ivy’s house again. You seem to come up with reasons to be out there quite a bit these days.”

  “I don’t need a reason,” Jack said. “I think the dead body being discovered on the premises is plenty reason for me to want to look around the woods there.”

  “If that’s your story … .”

  “I don’t have a story.”

  “Whatever,” Brian said, exhaling heavily. “I’ve seen the way you look at Ivy. I’m not blaming you for it. She’s an attractive woman. You might even have a shot with her. I’ve seen the way she looks at you, too. There’s something there.”

  “I’ve already told you, I’m not looking to date anyone,” Jack said. “I’m doing the best I can. I’m not interested in Ivy Morgan.”