by Harper Lin
“Still.” Aunt Astrid shook her head skeptically. “That was several years ago. She’s moved on, don’t you think?”
It was my turn to shake my head. “Have you ever known Darla to move on after someone did her wrong?” I folded my arms over my chest as if I had just cracked the case wide open.
“But this is magic, Cath. We got the book back from her. We watched you erase her memories and even helped put new ones in their place. You don’t think that we missed something? That her memories somehow grew back and she’s trying to hone her craft again, do you?” Bea asked nervously.
“I don’t know.” I shrugged. “But she’s as logical a first step as anyone else at this point.”
“If she is up to her old tricks again, she’ll be covered in residual magic,” Aunt Astrid said. “Based on the description you gave of the coroner’s office, she wouldn’t be able to shake that off of her for a couple of days. We just need to get a look at her to tell.”
I shivered at the thought of being anywhere near that woman. “Yeah, okay. How are we going to do that? Heaven knows she would be suspicious if I suddenly showed up at her door.”
“I know,” Bea said. “I’ll call her and tell her she’s won a free lunch at the café. We pulled her business card from the bowl.”
“We don’t have a bowl of business cards,” Aunt Astrid pointed out.
“Doesn’t matter. She doesn’t know that because she goes to the Night Owl Café. We can just say someone must have dropped it in for her. Whatever. It’ll get her there. She won’t turn down a free lunch and an opportunity to gloat.”
I nodded and smiled. “Nice one, cuz. I like your thinking. And I like how you’re going to wait on her and do all the talking while I hang out in the kitchen until she leaves.”
“Fine. Leave me to face the Gorgon alone,” Bea joked then yawned loudly.
“It’s late, girls. We need to get some rest. All of us. If it’s Darla, we’re going to have a heck of a mess on our hands. The better prepared we are, the better off we’ll be. So rest up, and I’d suggest we all wear a protection spell tomorrow just in case.”
We all agreed. Bea and I left Aunt Astrid’s, and I walked Bea to her car.
“Hey, before you go, I have a question.” I linked my arm through Bea’s. “What did you say to Blake that got him to take you back to see the body? Did you put a spell on him or something?”
“Of course not.” Bea smirked at me.
“Well, what did you do? Because had I asked, he would have had me on the ground, slapped in handcuffs, dragged to the backseat of the squad car, and on my way to the station before I could say hocus-pocus.”
“That is because I can attract flies with sugar, and you are still trying to do it with vinegar.” She slipped her arm gently out of mine and quickly climbed behind the wheel of her car.
I gave her a blank stare. “Okay. Be sure to use some of that sugar on your favorite person, Darla. Yup! Lots and lots of sugar!” I yelled as her car pulled away.
I turned and started to walk in the direction of my house when I froze. For a second, I thought I had heard Treacle. I strained to listen and held my breath. I called to him in my mind then waited. Nothing.
Did I imagine it? Was it just wishful thinking? I don’t know, but as I made my way home, I walked almost on tiptoe, breathing slowly and trying hard to hear past all the quiet.
Magic Residue
The next day, Bea called Darla to inform her she’d won the weekly business card drawing. In addition to a free gourmet lunch created by the new baker, Kevin, the drawing entitled her to a homemade dessert, an herbal tea infused with fresh fruit, and a small hot coffee the next time she came in.
“That means she’s going to come in one more time after this.” I wrinkled my nose.
“Afraid so,” Bea said. “Unless, of course, we find her guilty of death by witchcraft, and then, well, justice will have to prevail.”
“Now if that doesn’t give me mixed emotions about this whole situation, I don’t know what does.” I put my hand on my hip. “When is she coming in?”
Just then, the front door jingled, and I instinctively looked up. There she was.
“Hi, Darla,” Bea said in an overly sugary sweet tone. “Congratulations.”
Pulling her long, black hair behind her and letting out a deep breath, Darla reciprocated with a quick smile that squinted her eyes into tiny slits for a split second then snapped back to her normal grimace. She looked around the Brew-Ha-Ha. “I haven’t seen the place since it was a smoldering mess. I didn’t realize it, but the Night Owl has the most fantastic soups. I’ve been eating there at least once a week. I tell everyone I know they have to taste it to believe. Best food in town if you ask me.”
I was about ready to tell her to drag her sorry behind back to the Night Owl, but I remembered Bea’s reason for getting her to the café in the first place. I tried to peek in Bea’s direction but couldn’t tell if she had seen anything on Darla or not.
“Well, we really hope you enjoy your lunch,” Bea said sweetly.
Darla jingled her bracelets, several gold, sparkly things that I’m sure cost a small fortune, and pushed them away from her watch with perfectly manicured nails. “Yes, well, I’m meeting with my accountant this afternoon, so if we could hurry things up, that would be great.”
“Just give me a second to get it all together for you.” Bea turned and swiveled around the counter and into the kitchen.
Letting out a deep sigh, Darla looked me up and down. Within a split second, I was transported back to my sophomore year in high school, feeling awkward and out of place. I had to remind myself that we were in my café, my family was right there, and Darla couldn’t bully me like she used to. But still, old wounds ran deep.
“Um, Cath?”
I snapped out of my trance and turned toward the kitchen to see Bea peeking around the corner.
Aunt Astrid had taken her usual seat at the small table for two at the end of the counter. She was filling sugar holders, folding paper napkins, and watching Darla as inconspicuously as possible.
When I looked at Bea, she mouthed, “It’s not her.”
I nodded and bit my lower lip. I was glad Darla didn’t have the telltale residue of magic spells on her since we knew from our last experience with her that she wasn’t very capable. Magic requires patience and common sense. And if you’re going to do it right, magic requires that you have a heart to guide your decisions. As far as I could tell, Darla didn’t have a heart.
Aunt Astrid went back to filling the sugar holders and nodded slowly. I could tell she was thinking about what we should do next.
Darla looked around the café, and her eyes homed in on the only man sitting by himself. I’d seen him in the café before. He was a nice-looking guy in his early thirties, with light brown hair going gray at his temples, and an athletic build. He was just Darla’s type—male.
Darla took a seat at the tiny table next to him. After crossing her long legs, only a few minutes passed before the man struck up a conversation with her.
Aunt Astrid watched discreetly with mild amusement. I wasn’t as discreet and openly stared at Darla. Something inside of me hoped to see a sign of shiftiness or deceit on her face that might give her away. Maybe I could catch something Bea missed.
Unfortunately, all I saw was the same girl from high school who always got whatever she wanted. I don’t know how long I stared at her, but she caught me and gave me a look, tilting her head with the attitude of a Hollywood prima donna.
I rolled my eyes and went back to wiping down the counter.
“You sure you got nothing?” I asked, turning my back to the counter and leaning against it. “Not a sliver, not a shred, nothing that we could use to lock her up for a couple of days?”
“Give me just a second.” Bea quietly scooted past me with a fantastic-smelling veggie sandwich and a tall glass of our homemade iced tea with raspberries. She also handed Darla a fork and knife wrapped in a napk
in, and I saw their fingers touch. When Bea turned around, she shook her head. “Other than a slight case of constipation, she’s clean.”
“Well, that’s something.” I felt a little satisfaction.
“Of course, after she eats my healthy, complementary lunch, that won’t be a problem for her either.” Bea frowned at me. “Sorry, Cath. I should have given her something with beans in it. I wasn’t thinking.”
“I know you would have, Bea. Thanks.”
By early afternoon, I was busy helping Kevin in the back with inventory when Aunt Astrid called my name. “Cath, someone here to see you!”
Toffees
As I came around the corner, I saw that Darla was still there. Her new friend had pulled up a chair and made himself comfortable at her table, leaning in to talk.
“Cath.” I turned to see my best friend Min Parks.
“Hey!” I suddenly felt happy and confident.
Min and I had met in high school and had been glued at the hip until we graduated. Min had recently moved back to Wonder Falls a retired millionaire, and I could honestly say nothing had changed in him. He was still the sweetest guy I’d ever known.
I gave him a big hug. “What brings you in here at this hour? Let me guess. It’s the people.” I jerked my head to the right, making Min turn toward Darla who was obviously trying her hardest to look as though she weren’t paying attention to us.
Min’s fortune never made a difference to me. Whether he’d come back rich or poor wasn’t the issue. I was just thrilled he’d come back to Wonder Falls.
Darla, on the other hand, hated the fact he’d come back to town a multimillionaire. Not only was he the richest resident in ten counties, but he had no interest in Darla, and that was what bothered her the most.
His disinterest in her wasn’t just because she was mean to me for sport or because of idle gossip or teenage teasing. Her affiliation with Ruby Connors was why Min would never have anything to do with Darla.
Ruby Connors’s big brother tormented Min. One horrible moonlit night, Ruby’s brother stuffed Min in a sack and dumped him in the river. It took some fancy maneuvering on my part and a deal with the Lady in the Lake to rescue him. He almost died that night. But that is a story for another time.
Darla turned to stare at me. I knew it was killing her that Min and I were still such good friends, and that he had heaps of money.
Of course, I liked Min before he made his fortune. Rich or poor never made a difference to me, which was probably part of the reason Min and I were such good friends and the reason why Darla and I would probably always be mortal enemies.
The sweetest thing about his success was that without trying, Min had achieved the most divine retribution against the bullies he’d had to deal with. He was happy, healthy, and just happened to be rich.
“Can I get some of that chocolate you guys have? The little toffees?” In all the years I’d known Min, he’d never had a huge sweet tooth. A man after Bea’s own heart, he liked fruit and maybe, if he were splurging, a little honey as sweetener. But he usually came in for green tea and not much else.
“Of course you can.” I pulled out one of our delicate little bags with The Brew-Ha-Ha written in antique script across it. “But eat them slow. We won’t be getting anymore of this quality for a while.”
“Really? Why is that?” he asked.
Darla had shifted in her seat and was trying to hear what I was saying. I turned my back to her and slipped my arm through Min’s to pull him down closer to me so I could talk semi-privately. “Marvin the chocolatier at Sweetie’s is dead. Died of a heart attack just yesterday morning.” I released Min’s arm and folded the top of the little bag over then added a gold sticker to hold it shut.
“You’re kidding,” Min said in a hushed voice.
I shook my head as I handed him the candy. When he reached for his wallet, I waved my hand. “On the house, as always. And no, I’m not kidding. You didn’t hear anything about it?” I probed a little. Min didn’t know about my bewitching family history, and I preferred to keep it that way. If our friendship were to ever progress in a more intimate direction, I’d fess up, but at that moment, I was just your average woman asking about the latest town gossip.
“No. Nothing at all.” He looked down at me with shock on his face. “I have been spending a lot of time at the nursing home. I haven’t had a lot of time to even see my parents, let alone get the scoop on what’s happening with the locals.”
“You’re right. You have been very busy. I haven’t seen your bright face around here as much. Is everything going okay with the Wonder Falls Retirement Community? Are they liking their new Chairman of the Board?”
One of Min’s goals when he returned to Wonder Falls was to give back to the community. He chose to start volunteering at the old folks’ home. Maybe it was his Asian heritage that made him feel more indebted to the older members of our community since it was part of his tradition, or maybe it was just that he had a kind heart. Either way, he was helping, which was ultimately what he wanted to do.
“Oh, I think they are liking me fine.” His cheeks reddened as he looked down at his shoes and smiled.
“Min? Are you…blushing?” I bumped him with my hip. “Something is up. Tell me now before I have to resort to violence.”
Finally sitting on a stool at the counter, Min made himself comfortable and ordered tea. I hopped around the other side of the counter, propped my head up on my hands and waited.
“Her name is Amalia.”
My jaw dropped. A girl?
“She’s a nurse at the Home. She’s been there for over two years but had worked the graveyard shift…”
“Not a good term to use in regard to the ‘old folks’ home.’” I used air quotes to emphasize my point. Any talk of graves, tombstones, or death should be avoided at all cost for fear of bad jokes ensuing.
“Right?” Min chuckled a little. “When her schedule changed due to one of our older nurses retiring, I got the chance to meet her.”
I smiled. “I see.” Was I happy about this? I don’t know. It was the first time Min had ever mentioned a girl—no, a nurse. A woman. It was the first time he’d ever mentioned a woman to me. I had to admit I was feeling a little weird.
“You’d like her, Cath. I know you would.”
“I’m…sure that I would, Min. I’m really happy for you. You’ll have to bring her into the café sometime.”
Just then, Darla stood, making a spectacle of herself by flipping her hair and giggling at something her new boy toy had said. He was already grabbing her purse to carry for her, and they both scooted out of the café. How did she train them so fast?
“She didn’t even say if she liked the meal,” Aunt Astrid scoffed, shaking her head in disgust as she finished the last of her napkin folding.
“Well, she did everything but lick the plate clean,” Bea said, holding up the plate, which looked as if no food had even been served on it. “She didn’t stay for her dessert.”
“She couldn’t, remember? She had a very important meeting with her accountant,” I said, not holding back the sarcasm.
“It’s about time someone made her handle her own finances. We all know she’s been mooching off these poor men long enough.” Aunt Astrid slowly stood and stretched her bones. The lunch rush was over.
“She’ll be back, you know, to collect on that. It’s just an excuse for her to come in and do a little snooping. She’s so obvious.” I didn’t try to hide my feelings, yet I felt a pinch of irony since we lured her there to do the exact same thing.
“Your feelings for her haven’t changed,” Min said sympathetically.
“It would take divine intervention to make me even consider changing my opinion of Darla. Sometimes, high school brings out the jerk in people, but when they remain that way years later, then you know the problem is them. If I never saw her again, it would be too soon.”
Min patted my hand. “She’s like that because she’s jealous of you, you
know.”
“Of course she is. I have this good-looking guy that I call my best friend. Who could blame her?”
Min smiled broadly and puffed out his chest. “So, you started to tell me about the chocolatier before. Tell me what happened.” He cupped his hand under his chin and leaned forward. I scooted a little closer, and it felt as though we were back in high school discussing our secrets and stories at one of the lunch tables.
I never would have imagined that at any time our secrets and stories would involve a dead chocolatier…and a new girlfriend. I certainly wasn’t prepared for there to be a connection between the two.
Cat Attack
Another day had gone by without a word from Treacle. I was beside myself with worry and couldn’t relax. Even when I was sitting, my nerves were stretching and pulling inside of my skin.
Finally, I decided I couldn’t just sit around and wait for him anymore. I had to go out on my own and see if I could find a furry associate of his who could give me a tip or point me in a new direction.
The funny thing about being able to talk to cats is that I have to alter my mind to think like they do. It was easier than learning Chinese but harder than talking to yourself inside your own head.
Thinking like Treacle was going to take me in a myriad of directions I had never even imagined. Most cats loved to prowl at night, so I waited until the sun went down. Cats were connected to the supernatural, so they left a sort of footprint when they were out stalking about. It was how they could find their way back home so easily.
Unlike dogs that got lost and couldn’t find their way back home, cats left a very light trail of energetic breadcrumbs they could pick up on. Even the smallest traces could linger for a long while, especially if it hadn’t rained. And lucky for me, it hadn’t.
