by Zoe Arden
We made it back to the bakery just as Eleanor had finished cleaning up the back room from the special order. My dad had gone to deliver it, so she was alone. She looked up when we came in. She must have been able to tell by the expressions on our faces that something big had happened.
"Well?" she asked.
Trixie and I looked at each other.
"Brace yourself," Trixie said. "Kyrab was pregnant."
Eleanor's jaw dropped open. "Are you sure?"
"Positive," I told her. "Dr. Dunne confirmed it for us himself."
"How did you manage to get that tidbit of information out of him?" Eleanor asked. "I thought his lips were sealed on the doctor-patient stuff."
"It wasn't that hard this time," Trixie said. "He's worried about Kyrab just as much as we are. Only he's not just worried for her, he's worried for her child as well."
"A child," muttered Eleanor. "That changes everything, doesn't it?" She got a far-off look in her eyes. "Do you think if we told that to Perx, he'd let Zane out of jail?"
I looked at Trixie. "Why would he do that?"
"Because now..." Her voice trailed off. She shrugged. "I don't know. I just thought... if Zulubar isn't the last of the royal line, then Zane wouldn't have to take his place if something happened to him."
"That's great for Sheriff Knoxx," I said, "but I don't think that gets him off the hook for murder. In fact, it probably only adds fuel to Perx's flames. If Perx were to say that Sheriff Knoxx somehow knew about Kyrab's pregnancy before anyone else, then that gives him the motive to kill her as well as Zulubar."
Eleanor's face fell.
"He'll be okay," Trixie said. "We're that much closer to the truth now."
"I suppose."
There was a huge racket from outside. It sounded like a circus was coming down the street. A second later, the front door burst open and Rocky, Tootsie, and Snowball came running into the room.
"Mama, Mama, Mama!" Snowball shouted, jumping up and down at my feet. I reached over and picked her up. She licked my face.
"What is it?" I asked. "Did you see Colt? Is he back?"
Snowball nodded. "We all saw him." Rocky and Tootsie nodded. I set Snowball back down on the floor and turned to Eleanor.
"I'm going to Russell's," I said excitedly. "If Colt is there I can—"
Snowball was tugging at my feet. "Mama, detective man is not at Russell's."
"Where is he then?" I asked.
"We followed him into Goblin Territory," said Rocky in a deep voice.
"That's right," said Snowball. Her fluffy white fur was spiked along her spine.
"Goblin Territory?" I asked. "What was he doing there?"
Tootsie jumped in. "He went to see irritable goblin named Perx."
"Perx?" Eleanor, Trixie, and I said together.
"Do you know what they talked about?" I asked Snowy.
She nodded.
"Yes, there is a second hair on the throne." She said it triumphantly, as if she’d just revealed the greatest secret ever to us.
"Second hair on the throne?" I asked doubtfully. "Are you sure you heard them right?"
"Yes, Mama," Snowy said. "Detective man said that sheriff man is not guilty and there is a second hair on the throne who lives in Goblin Territory."
I looked at Eleanor and Trixie, who both shrugged.
"Tootsie heard the same," Trixie's familiar said.
"So did Rocky," said Eleanor's wolfhound.
I scratched my head, puzzled that they should all mishear the same piece of information.
"Second hair..." I said, playing with the words. "Second hair..." I felt something prickle at the back of my brain but couldn't quite decipher what it was.
Suddenly, my eyes widened.
"Oh, my roses." I shot a look at Eleanor and Trixie. "What if it's not second hair? What if it was second heir?"
Their eyes widened the same as mine.
"You mean someone other than Zane?" Eleanor said.
"It would have to be," I said.
"They could've been talking about Kyrab's baby," Trixie said.
I looked back at Snowball. "Did they say anything else about this 'hair?' "
"Snowball heard detective man say that second hair is a distant hair and ready to take Zulubar's place," Snowy said.
"Then it can't be Kyrab's baby," I told my aunts. "Her and Zulubar's child wouldn't be a distant heir, it would be a close one."
"As close as you can get," Trixie said.
"And an unborn child couldn't possibly be ready to take the throne," I added, shaking my head. "No, there must be another one."
"Just think," said Trixie. "Another person in line to the goblin throne."
I looked back at Snowball. "Did you hear any names mentioned? Someone the hair might have belonged to maybe?" I asked hopefully.
Snowy shook her head. Tootsie and Rocky did the same. Disappointment washed over all our faces.
"What did Perx say when Colt told him about the second heir?" asked Eleanor.
"Perx said detective man was lying to save his friend," Snowball said.
"Yes," Rocky agreed. "Colt was thrown from the office."
"Did anyone see you three?" I asked.
"Yes," said Tootsie, "but just the people outside the castle. Perx did not see any familiars."
Eleanor looked at me. "Do you think there will be any trouble from the people in the kingdom? That word will get back to Perx these three were there?"
"Trouble about Snowball, Tootsie, and Rocky?" Snowball asked.
"There will be no trouble," Rocky said, reassuring her. "Villagers like Rocky just as much as they like Tootsie and Snowball. Dogs and cats are most welcome there. Rocky received much bacon."
"You three did really good tonight," I told them. "Rocky, Tootsie, I'll give you both extra bacon when I get home this evening. Snowball, you can have as much tuna as you want."
Snowball jumped high into the air. "Yay! Tuna!" The three of them left the bakery and went home to await their well-deserved treats.
My dad entered just as they were leaving. They nearly ran him over in their excitement. "Whoa!" he said and looked at us. "What did I miss?"
* * *
CHAPTER
THIRTY-TWO
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"We can't just take their word for it, can we?" asked my dad. "This is important information. What if they were wrong?"
We were sitting in the back of Mystic after hours. We were all reluctant to go home until we'd figured this out.
"Snowball seemed pretty sure to me," I said.
"So did Tootsie," said Trixie.
"So did Rocky," said Eleanor.
My father sighed, somewhat exasperated with us. We'd been going around in circles for the last hour.
"We just need one person to confirm this for us," my dad said again for the umpteenth time.
"Dr. Dunne?" I ventured.
Eleanor shook her head. "I don't want to risk us sneaking back into his room. Nothing would probably happen if you were caught, but we can't take any chances just now. We're already down one person with... with... with Zane being locked up." She burst into tears.
Trixie and my father both put one arm around her and pulled her into a giant bear hug.
"All right then," I said. "Who does that leave?" I tapped my fingernails on the table. "The obvious choice is Colt, but good luck finding him."
"There's one other person involved with this who might have some answers he hasn't disclosed yet," Trixie said, looking at us. "Melbourne."
"Melbourne's a tough cookie to crack," I told her.
"Leave him to me," Trixie said. "I'll crack him."
The next morning, Trixie and I went to Coffee Cove in search of Melbourne.
"He's not here," Lucy said. To me, she whispered, "What's going on, anyway? I mean with Sheriff Knoxx? People are saying that he killed a goblin and kidnapped King Zulu
bar."
"Don't believe any of it," I told her.
She was about to ask another question, but a customer walked up just then. I gratefully stepped aside. I had no desire to rehash everything with Lucy just now. She'd just have to wait.
"What now?" I asked Trixie.
"To his house," she said.
"Lead the way."
I followed her to Melbourne's house. There was no answer when we knocked and rang the bell. We went around to the back, where Trixie lifted the welcome mat and picked up the key.
"Is that seriously where Melbourne keeps his spare key?" I asked her. "Doesn't he know how dangerous that is? Everyone knows to look under the mat."
"He doesn't have much to worry about, does he? He's a vampire. If someone broke into his house, he could snap them like a twig. "
"Oh. Right. I forget that sometimes."
She unlocked the door and we went inside. "Mel?" she called out. There was a loud groan from upstairs. She turned to me. "Stay here a minute."
"Will do."
She went upstairs, and I busied myself looking around his home. I wasn't snooping, I was just looking. Melbourne had an odd assortment of things you wouldn't find in other people's houses. Probably because he'd lived such a long life. He'd collected things from different decades, even different centuries.
There was a Ming Dynasty vase sitting on one shelf of the bookcase; I was scared to touch it and see if it was real. With my luck, I'd probably drop it and break a priceless work of art. On another wall was a beautiful, detailed painting of a lonely looking woman sitting by a river. I went up to it for a closer look and saw the name Leonardo da Vinci scrolled across the bottom, a tiny signature.
"It's real," Melbourne said from behind me. "A gift from an old friend."
I smiled but was kind of freaked out. If Melbourne had known Leonardo da Vinci, then he must've been older than everyone thought. Trixie was eyeing him strangely.
"I thought you said you were turned in the 1800s some time," she said.
"I may have told you that," Melbourne said.
"So, which is it?" Trixie asked. "Were you turned in the 1800s or weren't you?"
"Asking a vampire their age is a lot like asking a woman her age," he said. "Would you want people going up to you every day and asking how old you were?"
She blushed. "I suppose not," she said and dropped the subject. I suspected she might bring it up again later when I wasn't around, though.
"So, from what Trixie was telling me upstairs," Melbourne said, "you have learned that there is a second heir to King Zulubar's throne."
"Yes," I said.
He looked from me to Trixie and shrugged. "I suppose there's no harm in telling you that when I was escorting Kyrab and Zulubar to Sweetland Hospital, I did overhear them talking a bit. Zulubar said something to Kyrab about a second heir, but I didn't catch much more than that."
"Would you tell us if you had?" asked Trixie.
"At this point? Yes. You two already seem to have figured out most everything else, I don't know why I would withhold this one last piece of information if I had it to give."
"They didn't say anything else that might be able to help us?" I asked.
Melbourne paused and cocked his head to one side. "There is nothing else in particular that they said, but I did detect a certain tone when Zulubar was speaking about the second heir to his throne."
"A tone?" Trixie asked. "What sort of tone?"
"A negative one, I'd say," said Melbourne. "Whoever the heir is, Zulubar didn't seem to think very much of him."
I looked at Trixie. It was better than no information at all.
"I'll call you later," Trixie said. She kissed him goodbye and we hurried from the house.
"Now what?" Trixie said on our walk back to the bakery.
I shrugged. Suddenly, a new idea hit me like a bolt of lightning. "We need to get back into Goblin Territory," I said.
"Why?"
"I just thought of someone there who might be able to help us."
"I thought you said Perx took the key back."
My face fell. "Crud. I forgot all about that." My face tightened in concentration. A minute later, I had it figured it out. "We don't need the key," I told her. "Getting in should be easy. Come on, I know just what to do."
* * *
CHAPTER
THIRTY-THREE
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Snowball trotted along ahead of us, her tail wagging happily as the goblins oohed and ahhed over her. She loved the attention. Every few feet, a goblin ran out of their home, offering her tuna or some other delectable treat. Snowball looked at me each time before accepting, but each time I said yes. What was I supposed to do? She'd helped us get into Goblin Territory without being chased, shot at, or killed.
Thanks to Snowball, getting inside had been surprisingly easy. All we'd had to do was stand by the boulder in the forest and wait for a goblin to come along. When they did, Snowball ran up to them and rubbed against their legs, purring the whole time. The goblin had practically fallen over themselves to let her into their kingdom. When Snowball insisted that Trixie and I accompany her, the goblin couldn't say no.
"Who are we looking for?" Trixie asked as we walked through the marketplace.
"When I was here last time, there was this gypsy goblin Eleanor and I met who turned out to be a historian."
"Goblins have historians?" Trixie asked.
I shrugged. "Apparently."
"And you think this historian might be able to help us?"
"Who better to go to than an expert?" I said. "And who's a better expert on goblin history than a goblin historian?"
"Point taken," said Trixie. "But whoever the second heir is it can hardly be common news. If it was, then Perx would've known about it."
"Let's just see what she says. Sometimes experts know things that others ignore, especially when they are things that others don't want to know. When scientists first realized that the Earth revolved around the sun, people didn't want to listen." I paused and looked at Trixie. "It's entirely possible this historian knows about the second heir, but no one's listened to her when she tried to tell them."
"What was her name? Do you remember?"
"Esha."
Snowball ran up to a vendor who squealed with delight. "A kitty! A kitty!" They were hopping up and down on their feet and only dared to bend over and pet Snowball once she gave her permission.
"Do you know Esha?" Snowball asked.
The goblin paused, but just barely. "Yes, of course. You can find her at the south end near the willow tree."
"Thank you," Snowball said and licked the goblin's hand. The goblin looked so excited that I was afraid they might faint.
Snowball hurried ahead of us, making sure to clear our path. Any time a goblin looked at us funny, Snowball would run up to them and begin to purr. Several times, she batted at their feet and once she even climbed onto a goblin's shoulder. That goblin had stopped me and Trixie to ask for a picture.
"There," I finally said, pointing just ahead of us. I spotted a goblin dressed like a gypsy, the same long skirt, the same gold hoop earrings that I remembered from before. We hurried toward her.
"Esha!" I called, and she turned to look our way. She looked surprised for a moment, but the surprise was soon replaced with joy when her eyes fell on Snowball, who ran to her and began climbing up her skirt.
"Oh, my goodness," Esha exclaimed. Snowball licked her face. I'd never heard such squeals of delight from anyone before. Esha looked like a schoolgirl who'd just gotten straight A's on her report card.
"Hi," I said. "I don't know if you remember me, but I was here not long ago looking into Zulubar's disappearance."
"Yes, of course, I remember you."
"This is my aunt, Trixie."
Trixie shook her hand. "Pleased to meet you."
Esha was looking at us warily. "It is y
our uncle who's been arrested for the murder of King Zulubar."
"He's innocent," I said defensively.
"It is not safe for me to talk with you." She turned to go, but Snowball stopped her. She jumped in front of her path and began to paw at her feet.
"Pet me," Snowball purred.
Esha looked shocked at the request but immediately bent down to comply. Snowball rubbed her head against her hand, pushing her nose into Esha's palm as if sniffing her. Esha smiled.
"Snowball's friends have a question," Snowball said, looking at me and Trixie.
"These are your friends?" Esha asked and Snowball nodded.
After a moment, Esha said. "I cannot deny the request of a feline. What is your question?" She looked up at me with wide, worried eyes.
"You are a historian of your people," I said.
"That's correct."
"I was wondering if you could tell me whether there was any truth to the rumors I've heard about an heir to King Zulubar's throne?"
Esha hesitated. Snowball crawled into her arms and allowed Esha to pick her up. Esha cradled her gently in her arms, rocking her like a baby, looking at us with glazed, glassy eyes.
"There have always been rumors,” Esha said.
"Have any of them proven true?"
"Your sheriff is the only one who has been proven to be an heir."
"You know about that?" I asked.
"Yes. The discovery was announced two months ago."
"Who made the discovery?" Trixie asked.
"Myself and another historian. I have been sending letters to Sheriff Knoxx on the castle's behalf ever since, urging him to accept his inheritance."
Trixie and I exchanged a look.
"You're the one who's been sending the letters?" I asked.
"Yes. Zulubar placed me in charge of it when I first told him the news. Once he disappeared, I took it upon myself to continue, even though Perx urged me to stop."
