by Paula Lester
Of course, I’d had no way of knowing for sure she’d try to poison me. But I’d given her poodle the lowest marks of any judge during the first round that morning, so I was pretty sure she’d bite. It appeared she’d lost her patience waiting to win the show fair and square.
Still, seeing her standing there, with a bottle in her hand containing who knows what, meant to literally end my life, gave me a jolt.
But it wasn’t fear I felt. It was anger.
I shoved past Arthur and stomped my way toward Delilah, ignoring Crosby’s orders to stay back. I could hear people from the atrium entering the arena behind me, no doubt led by Dory Weston, gossip queen extraordinaire. But I only registered that at the edge of my mind. My focus was entirely on the woman in front of me.
Delilah smirked and dropped the blue bottle into her pocket. She rounded the end of the judge’s table and faced me, nothing between us but air. Rosalie shivered and squirmed in my arms, and I crouched to let her down. She scampered away, and Aly, standing with Julia and Korbin at an entrance to my right, scooped her up.
“Why did you do it?” I demanded.
Delilah tipped her head. “Why did I pour oven cleaner in your drink just now? Or why did I do it to Arthur?” She chuckled and waved a hand. “Well, both reasons are the same, really.” She leaned forward and spoke intently, keeping her eyes on my face. “I have lived in Superior Bay my whole life. I have a business here. I’ve been an upstanding member of the community. But I have gotten nothing but disrespect in return.”
I frowned. “How have I disrespected you? How did Arthur? How did those poor dogs you tried to poison in the kennel this morning?” I kept my gaze right on her, though I could feel Crosby moving closer behind me. There were dozens of people in the arena, but you could have heard a mouse drop a crumb as we all waited for Delilah to answer.
“Arthur didn’t care one whit about anything except money. He didn’t care about the dogs or whether they deserved to win. That much was obvious based on how he judged my pups. Nineteen years, and none of my top line dogs ever won. For the past ten years, it’s all I’ve worked on.” She came forward another step, running a hand over her brassy hair. “I spent every spare moment and dollar on high-quality food and training for my poodles. The only thing I didn’t do was bribe Arthur or any of the other judges. So, he judged my dogs low and the dogs whose owners lined his pockets, he voted up over mine.”
“So, let me get this straight. You killed a man because you were having trouble winning a dog show?” I couldn’t keep the scorn out of my voice. “He deserved to die because of that?”
Suddenly, Delilah’s expression transformed. She was no longer calm and oddly held together. Her face twisted into an ugly sneer. She reminded me of an angry wild cat. Her fingers even curved into claw shapes. “It wasn’t just that,” she spat. “He was completely out of control. Raising everyone’s rent all the time. I was close to losing my business.”
I narrowed my eyes. “Then maybe you should have spent more time at the bakery figuring out how to bring in more money instead of leaving Julia to do all the work while you played with poison.”
In the blink of an eye, Delilah Stroves was no longer a few feet away from me. She lunged at me so fast I didn’t have time to do anything, including get my hands up to block hers from closing around my neck.
It was amazing how fast I was in trouble. Her fingers pressed on my throat, and in the space of a few seconds, I wasn’t getting enough air. Delilah’s face was so close to mine I could see the red veins in the whites of her eyes. She looked wild. Crazy. In that moment, I had the ridiculous thought that Delilah was no wild cat, killing for food. She was a completely deranged person, trying to kill me because of her own twisted sense of right and wrong.
Vaguely, I could hear shouting and movement around me, but blood pounded in my ears, blocking most of it out. I didn’t move my eyes from my attacker’s as my lungs began to burn.
Panic surged through me, and I did the only thing I could think of to do. I lifted my right foot and brought it down as hard as I could on top of her left one. She howled in pain and the fingers around my neck released just a tiny fraction. I brought up my forearms between hers, pulled a tiny bit on my magic to give my oxygen-deprived muscles a little boost, and swept outward as hard I could. My arms crashed into Delilah’s, tearing her hands from my throat.
I stumbled back, and then Crosby was there, grabbing Delilah’s hands and twisting them behind her.
Aly and Julia were there too, each grabbing one of my arms. Rosalie barked and hopped up and down at our feet. I leaned heavily on my friends as I dragged air through my inflamed, throbbing windpipe. They helped me sink into a chair at the judge’s table, and I focused on getting oxygen into my body.
Crosby handed Delilah off to other officers and dashed over, skidding to a stop in front of me and dropping to his knees. He pushed back my hair and gently touched my throat, which I could tell was going to be swollen and bruised. “Are you okay, Will?”
I nodded, feeling unable to speak.
Crosby turned his head and shouted over his shoulder, “We need an EMT or a nurse or something! Is there a doctor here?”
All of a sudden, Jeremy was in front of me. He nudged Crosby, who scowled but moved out of the way. “I’m a medical professional,” he said, as though feeling the need to explain why he was shoving the officer. He knelt in front of me the way Crosby had. “Let me see your tongue.”
I stuck it out.
Jeremy nodded. “Nice and pink.” He pulled a stethoscope out of his lab coat pocket and listened to my chest. “I have no idea how many respirations per minute a human should have, but her lungs sound clear.” He rose and squeezed my shoulder. To Crosby, he said, “She should be checked out at the hospital, but I think she’s okay.”
Crosby nodded once and reached down to put an arm under mine, lifting me from the chair. “I’ll take her to the ER.”
“I’ll go with you.” Jeremy’s tone made it clear he wasn’t asking for permission. He slipped an arm under my free one, so my feet only had to graze the ground as the two men carried me across the arena.
I wanted to wriggle out of their grasp and insist I could walk on my own, but when I tried, nothing happened. I didn’t have the strength to get out of the guys’ grip let alone walk. I thought about trying again but gave up on the idea and tried to relax.
After all, how many times in my life was I going to get to have two handsome men carry me to a vehicle? Probably not more than this once.
I may as well enjoy it.
Chapter 20
“The show must go on.” Aunt Dru handed me a glass of lemonade with ice and then placed a cool hand on my forehead.
I smiled up at her. Of course, I didn’t have a fever. I wasn’t sick. Other than a slightly sore throat and some bruising, I was completely fine. But her hand on my forehead made me feel loved and cared for, like when I was young and she’d performed the same maneuver with the same concerned, loving expression whenever I didn’t feel quite right. “Yes, it went on, all right. Just missing a judge.” My voice was a tiny bit scratchy. It had only been a day since Delilah Stroves tried to choke me to death. I considered myself lucky that I was doing so well.
A sharp bark drew our attention off the porch and onto the front yard, where Juliet was play-bowing at Dragon. The puppy leaped at the border collie but tripped and landed on his nose. Then he got distracted by a dandelion and stayed there munching on it while Juliet danced away.
“He’s such a cutie.” Julia and Aly both had lemonade too. Crosby was sipping hot coffee. Julia studied my face. “You’re for sure keeping Dragon? Because I’ll take him if you aren’t.”
“We’re keeping him,” Aunt Dru answered firmly before I could even get my mouth open.
Everyone laughed.
“You could always adopt Rocky Wiggins,” Crosby suggested. “He’s a good dog, and Catherine doesn’t intend to keep him forever.”
“Did you e
ver figure out who took him from her porch?” I asked.
He nodded. “It was just the kid next door. He’d been wanting a dog and heard Rocky barking. But the terrier was feistier than he expected and got away almost immediately. The kid’s mom confirmed she’s not going to let him have a dog.”
“Ladies, could I impose upon you to help me put together a veggie tray and cheese and cracker plate? I think we could all use a bite to eat.” My aunt gestured for Aly and Julia to follow her into the house.
“I’ll help too.” Crosby started to get up.
Aunt Dru shook her head and jabbed him in the shoulder to shove him back down. “No, no. You stay here and keep my niece comfortable. I don’t want her alone yet.”
He settled into the chair but didn’t look happy about it.
When the others were inside the house, I took the opportunity I knew my aunt had intended to give me. “I’m sorry.”
He swiveled his neck to look at my face. “For what?”
“For not telling you about my . . . gift. I should have trusted you with it.” I shook my head. “To be honest, it’s never really felt like a big, huge thing to me.”
“It is a big thing, though.” He turned to look back out over the yard toward the sheep paddock. “But it’s okay. I get it. Everybody has secrets.”
What does he mean by that?
He seemed to shake off a dark thought, shooting me a charming smile. “Like Delilah Stroves. She sure had a lot of secrets. But they’re all going to come out in front of the judge. I don’t think she’ll be getting away with Arthur’s murder.”
I nodded, remembering how Cheyenne had said Arthur was worked up about something and had coffee from Stroves’ Bakery the morning he died. And later, Delilah had told Julia she’d used the last of the oven cleaner that morning when she opened the shop. I imagined the two of them having an argument and Delilah slipping the oven cleaner into his drink. “Good. She’s crazy. She needs to be kept away from people. I wonder what’s going to happen to the bakery.”
“Julia’s going to run it for now. Delilah still owns it. That building is one of the ones Arthur left to the city. So, I guess it’s status quo for now until the place is bought. Then, its fate will depend on the new owner.” He stared into his empty mug with a trace of sadness and reached over to set it on the table.
“How did you find that out? About the bakery being a building going to the city?” My heart started thumping along faster, and I leaned forward eagerly.
“The will became public yesterday afternoon. I saw the enforcement orders come through the station while I was there booking Delilah.” He folded his hands over his abdomen and leaned farther back in the chair, like he was settling in for a nice rest.
I felt like I was going to jump out of my skin. “Well?”
He flopped his neck over to look at me and raised his eyebrows. “Well what?”
“Well, what’s going to happen to my clinic? Who gets it?” I felt like jumping up and rushing over to shake the information out of him.
“Oh. Your building?” He made a confused face. “Was that one of Arthur’s? Hmm.”
“Crosby Patterson!” I barked. And, with the scratchy note to my voice, it actually sounded a little menacing.
He laughed and held up his hands. “Okay, okay. Your building went to Jackson.”
I groaned.
Crosby shook his head. “It’s okay. I already talked to him. He was at the station for questioning, along with Angelique and Mike Gentry. Sounds like Jackson is going to keep all the buildings his uncle gave him, including yours. He offered Mike a job managing a quarter of them.” His face broke into a wide grin. “You should have seen how mad Mike was when he turned down that offer. Turns out he’s been blackmailing Jackson since Arthur died. Mike knew Jackson was Arthur’s nephew and he’d probably get some buildings. He also knew Jackson has a minor drug possession rap on his record from years ago, when he was a teenager.”
Dragon tried to get up the porch steps, but he was too short. Crosby went down to retrieve him and then sat in the chair next to me with the beagle puppy on his lap.
I reached over to stroke the pup’s head. “So, Mike was blackmailing Jackson over the drug charge?”
“Yeah. Jackson’s done with drugs. He wants to get into politics. Mike wanted the kid to sell him Arthur’s buildings for a pittance in return for keeping his mouth shut about the record. Jerk.” Crosby tickled the puppy’s tummy and laughed when he received a lick in return.
“And Angelique was trying to help Jackson,” I said. “Well, she should be an actress. She and Korbin both did a great job staging that fake argument and giving Delilah time in the empty arena to prepare to poison my drink.”
“They did do a good job, but the whole thing was your idea.” He bumped me with his elbow. “You’d make a good investigator.”
The rumble of an engine drew my attention. Jeremy pulled into the driveway and got out of his car. My pulse did a weird little dance at the sight of him. I looked back at Crosby, who was frowning and avoiding looking at the newcomer.
I was beginning to think Aunt Dru might be right about Crosby having feelings for me.
Did I have them back for him?
I watched Jeremy climb the porch steps. Did I have feelings for him?
As Aunt Dru, Aly, and Julia returned to the porch and greeted Jeremy, I sighed and relaxed into the chair, enjoying the play of the breeze on my cheeks. I felt good. It was surprisingly comfortable for me to know that my three best friends knew my secret. I didn’t have to hide it anymore.
I looked at Jeremy and then Crosby. I had no idea which one of them I wanted to date—or if I even wanted to date either of them. Maybe I was better off avoiding dating altogether. After all, I needed to focus on getting my business up and running at full tilt.
Crosby leaned close and whispered in my ear, “Jackson’s planning on giving you the deed to the clinic. Free and clear. Said it’s his gift for catching his uncle’s killer.”
For an instant, I couldn’t breathe, and I wondered fleetingly if my throat was closing off again. But then joy surged through me, and I took a deep breath.
I closed my eyes and listened to my friends laugh, chat, and eat, basking in the good feeling filling my chest. Things were looking up. My clinic was going to be paid for, and I wouldn’t have to worry about paying rent every month. That was huge. I had two gorgeous, smart men interested in me, and I was going to be learning more about my power.
I felt Dragon’s wet nose nudge my arm and opened my eyes to pet him, realizing he was a sweet gift too, along with Juliet, Dixon, and all the other animals in my life.
Yeah, things were looking up, for sure. And the best thing was that, regardless of whether Crosby thought I was good at it, I could retire my amateur investigator hat.
I’d never have to solve another murder again.
About Paula Lester
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See all works by Paula Lester
Beachside Books Magical Cozy Mysteries
(Co-Authored with Lisa B. Thomas)
Pasta, Pirates and Poison
Apples, Actors and Axes
Grits, Gamblers and Grudges
Candy, Carpenters and Candlesticks
Meatballs, Mistletoe and Murder
Honey, Hearts and Homicide
Crystal Springs Cozy Witch Mysteries
(Co-Authored with M.E. Harmon)
A Witch Too Late
Dead Witch Talking (novella)
A Witch Too Hot
A Witch Too Bright
A Witch Too Dead
A Witch Too Frozen
A Witch Too Soon
Cruise Ship Cozy Mysteries
(Co-Authored with M.E. Harmon)
Cruising for a Bruising
Angling for a Strangling
Yearning for a Burning
Tessa Randolph Grim Reaper Cozy Mysteries
(Co-Authored with Christine Zane Thomas)
Grim and Bear It
The Scythe’s Secrets
Reap What She Sows
Sunnyside Retired Witches Community Mysteries
Ghostly Trails (prequel novella)
A Bottle Full of Djinn
Loony Town
Mummy Issues
Clairvoyant Clues
Boss Blues
Engine Repairs
Wedding Whack
Sunnyside Magical Bakery Cozy Mysteries
Sugar Skulls and Suspects
Tea Tarts and Trespassers
Mint Macarons and Murderers
Superior Bay Witch Doctor Mysteries
Witch Doggone Killer?
The Affairs of Witches
Witch Way Out? (Coming Soon)
