“And I want you to have the best if I do say so myself.”
Roxy felt she might be blushing. “Oh, thanks,” she said. “That’s nice to know.”
“I really do,” he said steadily.
He came closer to the edge of the landing. Roxy took a step up, their eyes locked.
“Ow!” Something stabbed Roxy in the ankle.
“Are you okay?” Sam said, hurriedly. He looked down, concerned.
“Yes, I’m fine,” Roxy said grimacing and rubbing her ankle. She blushed but with pain now. “Oh, I’m such a klutz.”
Sam looked down and bent to pick up a screwdriver that was poking out of his toolbox. “Nope, I’m the irresponsible tradesman. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay! It’s fine, really. It’s just a scratch.”
“Are you sure you’re all right?”
Roxy smiled as she let go of her ankle despite the still-stinging pain. She attempted to stand upright. “Absolutely. Well, I’d better be going. I have some work to do. Thanks, again, it looks awesome. The guests are simply going to love this room.”
“Are you sure about that? It would be perfect for you.”
“I know, but it looks so fantastic I think we should make it pay. It’s too much of a lovely room to simply be my quarters.”
Sam looked around the room, a cloud crossing his face. His shoulders sagged minutely, and he gave a small sigh before picking up his tools and getting back to work.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
ROXY TOWELED HER short hair dry. She’d dressed casually in jeans and a shirt. Soon it would be time to leave for the botanica. She wanted to be early, but as she came out of her room, she found Sage and Elijah waiting for her. They both looked very grave.
“I might need you to play the part of Meredith, Sage.”
“Okay, just give me a call to let me know if you do, honey, and I’ll come straight there. Now though, we are here to get you ready,” Sage said. Roxy frowned. “As we promised. The angels sent me a message that you need to be prepared. We’re going to surround you with their gentle, powerful, protective force.”
“Ah yes. And George was going to…”
“He will work his own magic. All the positive forces will compound together to look after you. Come on through to the shrine I’ve built.”
Roxy looked at Elijah. “I’m just her assistant,” he replied, shrugging his shoulders.
Roxy went into the lounge, and in the corner, Sage had set up a table with a crystal grid in the center. Amber, clear, and black stones were placed in circles, a large clear rock in the center. Candles flickered, a water fountain tinkled, the room was infused with the fragrance of lavender. A granite bowl filled with dried leaves and flowers sat to one side.
“I’ve impressed each of these crystals with protective energies. And here in this bowl, I’ve mixed aloe, pepper, musk, vervain, and saffron. This will call the angels to you. Please light them for me, Elijah,” Sage said. “Sit, Roxy.”
Elijah whipped out a chair from the middle of the room and placed it in front of the table. With a lighter, he lit the dried flowers in the bowl. Immediately an earthy, spicy fragrance rose into the air.
“Close your eyes,” Sage said softly. Roxy could feel the heat from Sage’s hands as they hovered over her head. “Elijah, hand her the orb.” Roxy felt a glass ball being placed in her hands. It felt cold. “Imagine a purple light surrounding you, Roxy, all around you, from the top of your head to the tips of your toes. Feel it wrapping you in its warm, protective aura. Now imagine the crown of your head opening and a stream of healing white light flowing from the top of your head, into your heart, and out through your arms and hands. Imagine ropes from your feet traveling down, down, into the center of the earth, grounding you, holding you still. See the white light above you, keeping you safe.”
Roxy was feeling hot now. Her cheeks were burning; she could feel tiny beads of sweat on her upper lip. The glass orb in her hands was now warm too. Roxy felt Sage gently touch her head, then her shoulders, and finally her hands. “Take a deep breath in through your nose and out through your mouth.” A strong smell of lavender again assailed Roxy, and she stifled a cough. “You are now prepared to embark on your quest. When you are ready, open your eyes, and be on your way, knowing that the spirits will protect and guide you.”
Roxy opened her eyes. Before her, Sage pressed her hands together in prayer and bowed her head. Elijah reached over to take the glass ball from Roxy’s hands. He pressed his lips together, raised his eyebrows and winked. Roxy felt wonderfully calm. She rose from her seat and left the Funky Cat without saying another word.
When Roxy got to the botanica, she was still feeling relaxed and composed. The setting sun, the darkening chalk blue sky, and the singing birds had kept her nerves settled. The bell above the doorway to the botanica tinkled and inside, she found Dr. Jack polishing crystals behind the counter.
“Greetings!” he said.
Roxy slipped noiselessly through the store to him. “Dr. Jack, I think I’ve done something rather…out of character.” A frisson of energy almost caused her to shudder. The slightly reckless feeling she’d had earlier was back.
“Oh?” he asked, concern in his soft blue eyes. “You seem pretty cool with it.”
“Yes, you see,” she said, “I’ve been doing some investigating and well, it seems like everyone has a motive for Meredith’s murder. I thought the best thing would be to reconstruct the crime scene. I thought that it might force some more evidence into the open.
“That sounds like a good idea.”
“But Royston Lamontagne was being difficult, and I didn’t think he’d cooperate, so when I rang him to tell him about the reenactment I pretended I was Officer Anna Brown of the NOPD.” She smiled sheepishly, still quite shocked that she, reticent Roxy Reinhardt, had gone quite that far. “I…I…well, I impersonated a police officer.”
“Ah,” said Jack.
“He was the only one I pretended that to. With the others, I was just myself.” She bit her lip. She couldn’t decide if she’d been brave or as George had suggested, crazy. Every time she felt proud of herself for her action, a small voice inside her argued that she was mad. “Do you think I’ll be arrested?”
Dr. Jack looked out the storefront window. “Hmm. You never know with that Johnson guy. He’s pretty unpredictable.”
“What about Officer Trudeau? Do you think he would take my side? Wait…I know! Trudeau!” said Roxy. “That’s it! He’ll understand.” He was the poor country kid trying to make good, a little bit like her. He’d be much more lenient. “I’ll give him a call.”
“That’s a good idea,” said Dr. Jack. “I would be more comfortable with the police knowing what you plan here tonight. What if something happened? Think about it. One of us must be the killer. I don’t want anyone else to get hurt.” Roxy looked at Jack, her hand poised over her phone, her eyes big. “You really should get their permission for your plan, Roxy. It would be much safer and more honest that way. And that means it would be more spiritually ethical and accompanied by better energies.”
“I’ll call Trudeau now,” said Roxy. She looked at the time on her phone. “Everyone should be here in about 15 minutes.” She went outside to call Trudeau.
“Ms. Reinhardt,” Officer Trudeau’s voice filtered through her phone’s speaker almost immediately. “What can I do for you?”
Roxy took a deep breath. “I thought I should notify you. I’ve invited all the people who were in the room when Meredith Romanoff was shot to Dr. Jack’s botanica for a reenactment of the crime scene.”
“You’ve done what?”
“Invited all the…”
“What did you do that for?”
“I thought it might help. Perhaps elicit some evidence or information that might result in an arrest.”
“Oh, man. You do know you’re meddling in an investigation? Detective Johnson isn’t going to like it. At all.”
“Yes, I know, but you don�
��t have to tell him, do you?”
“I’m in the squad car right next to him, Ms. Reinhardt.” Trudeau sounded genuinely sorry about that. “He already knows. He’s driving.”
Roxy heard Johnson bark in the background. Her stomach sank. She decided she couldn’t possibly mention she’d impersonated a police officer, not with Johnson listening in.
Trudeau began to speak, but his voice was muffled. She couldn’t hear what he was saying.
“Johnson says absolutely not,” Trudeau said coming through clearly now.
“I said I’ll arrest you!” Johnson hollered in the background.
Roxy kept her voice steady. “On what charges?” She could hear the two men talking loudly to each other.
Trudeau spoke into his phone. “He says whatever he can come up with. He’ll think of something. Stay put. We’re on our way.”
“No, no!” Roxy said to Trudeau. “It’s okay. I’ll just tell everyone to go home, and I’ll go back to the hotel.” She heard Trudeau talking to Johnson on the other end again. She listened hard to make out their words.
“We have to go to this other crime scene anyway, Detective,” Trudeau was saying.
“You don’t think I know that?”
“She says she’ll cancel everything and go back to her hotel,” Trudeau said.
“Tell her she’d better,” Johnson barked. “Because we’ll be over there the second we’re done, and if she’s still at that botany store or whatever it is, I’ll lock her in a cell. TONIGHT!”
“You heard that, I guess,” Trudeau said to Roxy.
“Yes,” said Roxy, sadly.
“Better cancel it and go back to the hotel, huh?” Trudeau said, in an unexpectedly kind voice. “That’s the right thing to do.”
“Okay,” Roxy said meekly. “If you say so.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
ROXY FELT CRUSHED, like all the life had gone out of her. Why had she come up with this mad idea? Why had she compromised herself to get everyone there? How was she going to find out who killed Meredith now? She slumped against the sidewall of the botanica and kicked a rock with her foot.
Behind her, she heard a car pull up. Roxy turned to see a blacked-out Mercedes pull up in front of the botanica. Royston Lamontagne stepped out. He whipped shades from his suit pocket and slipped them on, despite the fading early evening light. Under his arm, he carried his little dog, Fenton. Lamontagne didn’t look in Roxy’s direction, but Fenton did. He bared his teeth and growled.
A swell of anger roiled up inside Roxy. She bared her teeth and growled back, wrinkling her tiny nose, and narrowing her eyes. Lamontagne didn’t notice, he walked straight across the sidewalk and into the botanica. Roxy, her anger at her impotence propelling her forward, hurried after him. She’d been frustrated at every turn of this investigation. She’d been stonewalled, abused, diverted, suspected, and patronized. She would hold this reenactment even if it got her thrown in jail, even if meant the entire kingdom of angels turned against her, even if Fenton was treated like Lamontagne’s handbag for the rest of his life! She had had it!
“Mr. Lamontagne!” she said as she crossed the botanica’s threshold.
He half-turned toward her. “Don’t talk to me,” he said, roughly.
“Why not?” Roxy said.
“I have important business matters to attend to. When’s this reenactment going to start, do you know?”
“In just a few minutes!”
Lamontagne held up his smartphone and gave her a withering look. She could see earbuds plugged into his ears. He sat down, still holding Fenton under his arm. He began texting.
Roxy looked at Dr. Jack behind the counter.
“How did your call go, my dear?” Jack asked.
Roxy took a deep breath. “Fine,” she lied. She was piling lies upon lies. It didn’t feel good, but she was in so deep now, she couldn’t see what else she could do. Roxy leaned on the counter. Johnson and Trudeau would be here soon. What was she going to do? “Man…”
The tinkling doorway bell sounded, and Roxy turned to see Nat and George enter the botanica, deep in conversation. Roxy’s heart flipped into her stomach. She wasn’t expecting to see Nat. If Lamontagne recognized her from the club, there would be a commotion. Charles trailed behind them, jangling car keys with a rental company key fob in his hand.
“Hello,” George said to them all.
Roxy dashed forward and put herself between Nat and Lamontagne.
“What are you doing here, Nat? Shouldn’t you be getting dinner ready or something?”
“I thought I’d come and give George some moral support,” said Nat, then added quickly, “as a friend, of course.” She frowned at Roxy and leaned in. “Are you all right?” she said quietly.
“Yes, of course. Why?”
“You’re acting all weird.”
“No, no, I’m not.”
Behind Roxy, Royston Lamontagne took his headphones out and looked up at George with interest. “Meredith Romanoff’s assistant, correct?” He seemed to not notice Nat at all. Nevertheless, Roxy took a step closer to her and turned around slowly to face Lamontagne. She hoped to shield Nat from the music producer’s view, even though her friend stood smack-dab in the middle of the store.
“Yes, sir.” George looked more confident in himself than Roxy had ever seen him.
The big man turned to Dr. Jack. “Give us a room, man.”
Quickly, Roxy leaned in to Nat and whispered. “Look, why don’t you go back to the Funky Cat and prepare supper for us for when we get back? We’ll all be starving and have lots to talk about.”
“Yes, why don’t you do that, Nat? It would be lovely to have some of your gorgeous food to come back to.” George beamed at Nat. She beamed back at him and after a moment’s hesitation said, “Okay, toodle-oo.” She waggled her fingers and walked out of the shop. Roxy inhaled deeply and closed her eyes. Her shoulders relaxed and dropped two inches as she let out a huge sigh.
Lamontagne was still talking to Dr. Jack, oblivious to the exchange that had taken place behind him. “The police aren’t here yet so we can’t progress with the reenactment. I need a reading immediately.”
Dr. Jack said, “You can use the same room as…well, the same room as before. Please.” He opened the door to the backroom and stood aside.
George and Lamontagne filed past Dr. Jack. Lamontagne reached for the door handle, but Jack put his hand out to stop him. The big man turned to look back. “We need the door closed. We are discussing sensitive business matters. They are strictly confidential.”
A shot of fear traveled through Roxy’s body. Lamontagne and George in the same room? Alone? With the door closed? When Lamontagne may have already shot Meredith who along with George had nearly ruined Lamontagne’s business?
“I don’t think…” Roxy said warily.
“Roxy’s right,” Dr. Jack said. “I think we should keep the door open.”
“That won’t work for me at all, and it’s completely unnecessary,” Lamontagne said. Fenton yipped in agreement.
“It’s fine, Dr. Jack,” George said. His voice was sharp. Roxy felt the hairs on her arms stand on end. This was a much more confident George than she was used to.
“Are you sure?”
George lifted his chin and with his gaze firm, said clearly, “Yes.”
The two men walked into the back room where Meredith had been shot. Dr. Jack closed the door after George, his eyebrows drawn together in a frown.
Roxy bounded up to the counter. “What if one of those two is the killer, and something happens in there?” she said in a loud whisper to Dr. Jack. Her cheeks were flushed pink with alarm.
“My thoughts exactly,” Dr. Jack said. His expression was grim. His eyes were dark and his lips were pressed into a thin line.
Just then, Roxy’s face brightened. Her mind worked quickly. “The bathroom!” Roxy darted over, slipping inside and locking the door quickly. She sat on top of the toilet lid as Trudeau had done before her and
pressed her ear up against the wall. Yes! Just as she’d hoped, she could hear George and Royston’s conversation through the wall.
“Before we start,” Lamontagne was saying, “do you know who killed Meredith?”
“No,” said George.
Lamontagne snorted. “Some spiritual gifts you’ve got. Shouldn’t they reveal things like that?”
“Not necessarily!” George shot back. Roxy could imagine the tops of his freckled ears turning pink.
“Look, you were just Meredith’s assistant. You’re nothing special. The only reason I’m talking to you now is that I have some very important business going down, and I need guidance.”
“I am very capable, sir. The only reason you aren’t familiar with the strength of my gifts is that Meredith prevented me from showing them to you. She didn’t want me to outshine her. But now that she’s gone, my powers are unfettered, and the spirits are talking to me loud and clear.”
There was a long silence, and Roxy’s racing thoughts rushed to fill it up. Royston Lamontagne was not acting like a killer who had a vendetta against George, and Roxy imagined the younger, shorter man’s cornflower blue eyes blazing as he talked back to him. Had someone got to George, boosted his confidence? Nat perhaps? Or had George pretended to be sweet and wholesome this whole time? Roxy shook her head, trying to shake some sense into herself. George couldn’t be the murderer, surely? If that were true, Roxy would feel for Nat. George was the best friend she’d made in a long time. Oh, this was all so confusing.
“Whatever,” said Royston through the wall. “Right now, you’re my only option. Give me my reading. I want to see what comes up.”
Roxy continued to listen, her heart thudding so loudly that she worried they’d be able to hear it on the other side of the wall. George began to give Royston a reading from the cards he now carried in his pocket. As he did so, she looked in the bathroom mirror at herself. She noted her small body and short blonde hair. Other people may have seen a sweet, pliant, kind young woman who looked younger than her age, but as Roxy stared into her own eyes, all she saw was grit and determination. “Whoever you are, I’ll get you,” she whispered. “I will.”
3 Louisiana Lies Page 18
