Doom and Broom

by Sara Bourgeois

  “You want to tell me about your confrontation with Langoria this morning?” he said in a far more official tone than I anticipated.

  “Are we back to you thinking I’m a suspect?”

  “No, but I need to know. I want to hear it from you and not the town gossip.”

  “I waited outside the courthouse for her and confronted her about the note. She told me to leave town and then told me I wouldn’t have much choice.”

  “What did that mean?”

  “It means that she was going to put a property tax lien on my house today and then ask a judge to allow her to foreclose and force the sale.”

  “Did she do it?”

  “I don’t know. I was going to check tomorrow.”

  “That would have been motive, Brighton. If she never got around to filing the paperwork, you will look like a suspect.”

  “I didn’t kill her,” I said. “Oh, and I was there at the cemetery this afternoon taking pictures. She wasn’t there then. I can show you.”

  I showed Thorn the first few pictures I’d taken at the graveyard, and that seemed to satisfy him. When we’d finished our first cup of coffee, Thorn picked up both of our cups and stood up.

  “Is it too late, or should we have another cup?”

  “I’d like it if you’d stay for another,” I said.

  He poured two more cups and returned to the table. When Thorn sat down, he pushed my cup gently across the table to me.

  For a moment, we both just sat there sipping our coffee. When I couldn’t take it anymore, I brought up the reason I’d wanted him to stay again.

  “So are you going to tell me why you are keeping your distance from me?”

  “I told you,” he began, “it seemed as though you and Remy are close. I don’t want to interfere.”

  “You’re not giving me the whole story,” I said.

  “It’s not something I think you should be concerned with, Brighton,” Thorn said.

  “You stayed, so I think you do want to talk about it,” I said and reached across the table to put my hand on his. “You can talk to me.”

  He studied my face for a few moments before letting out a puff of breath and cracking his knuckles. “I haven’t really talked to anyone about this, but for some reason, I do feel like I can talk to you.”

  I nodded my head and gave his hand a squeeze before putting my hand back in my lap. “Whatever it is, I’m sure it’s not as bad as you think. It will feel better when you put it out there.”

  “I was married,” Thorn began, “but she left me. We divorced a couple of years ago. Sadie said that Coventry was boring, and it had made me boring too. I knew she’d seemed a little down, but I was still shocked when she packed her bags and left one day. For a while, I had hope she’d come back. She called daily at first, and sometimes she’d admit that the city life wasn’t what she’d expected. Then after a few months, she called less and less. Eventually she stopped answering her phone and text messages. It was less than a month after that I was served with divorce papers. I tried to call her one more time to ask if she was sure, but when she didn’t answer, I knew she was. I signed the papers and didn’t see her again.”

  “And you believed what she said?” I asked cautiously.

  “I mean, I don’t know. I worry that it’s true, but I also tell myself that some people do think small-town life is boring. Maybe it’s not that she was right but that she just wasn’t right for me, Brighton.”

  “And I’m from the city,” I said.

  “You are, and you haven’t been here very long. The hair threw me off. I like it, but it’s more a city thing than a country thing to color your hair purple. I’m almost surprised there hasn’t been a town meeting about it,” Thorn said with a chuckle.

  “I’m divorced too,” I said with a shrug. “Donnie left me for another woman. They’re married now with a baby who will be here any day. We could never have kids. He blamed me for that, and I started to believe it too when his new wife got pregnant on the honeymoon.”

  “You can’t have kids?” he asked, and I couldn’t read his tone. I assumed it was probably a deal-breaker. It seemed to be for a lot of men, but there was no proof I couldn’t.

  “I don’t know. I’ve been to three doctors and none of them found anything wrong with me. Maybe it’s not that I’m not right, but maybe I wasn’t right for him.”

  Chapter Three

  When Thorn left, there was a heaviness in the air. Somehow, I felt closer to him and even further away. I wondered if it was wise for me to keep pushing him to open up, but I didn’t know how to stop. My heart and mind were not aligned when it came to Thorn.

  I checked my phone to see if Remy had texted me. He had, but his message didn’t make me feel any better either.

  Sorry. I just need some time.

  When I was about to give up and go to bed, my doorbell rang. I expected to find Remy or Thorn on my doorstep, but it was Annika. Her eyes were red, and her cheeks were puffy from crying.

  “Come in,” I said and pulled her over the threshold for a hug.

  I didn’t know she’d been so close to Langoria, but my heart hurt for her. It didn’t matter if her aunt had wanted to run me out of town. If Annika was hurting, then I was hurting.

  “I’m so sorry,” I said. “I didn’t know the two of you were close, but I’m sorry for your loss.”

  “I know, right,” she said and started to sob again, “I mean, he didn’t even call first. He just didn’t show up. It was so embarrassing, and I just sat there for two hours like a total dweeb.”

  “What?” I asked and stepped back. “Jacob stood you up? That’s why you’re crying?”

  “Yeah, the jerk,” she said and sniffled. “Why else would I be crying?”

  She didn’t know. Annika had been out being stood up by the guy she was seeing, and she hadn’t heard about her aunt’s death yet. I had to be the one to tell her.

  “I take it you haven’t been home and no one from your family has tried to contact you?”

  “No, why? What happened?”

  So I told her about Langoria and how Remy and I had found her when we went to work in the cemetery. I told her about Remy leaving after Thorn took his statement and not coming back too. She scrunched up her nose and then walked into the living room to plop down in one of the wingback chairs that faced the fireplace.

  “Langoria’s dead, huh?”

  “Yeah, and that’s not all,” I said.

  “What else is there?”

  “Well, she broke into my house this morning and stole the protection amulet Meri helped me make. She left a note behind saying that Tuttlesmiths weren’t welcome in Coventry. I went to the square this morning and confronted her on her way to work. That’s when she told me that she was putting a lien on Hangman’s House for back taxes and moving to immediately foreclose.”

  “Did you kill her?” Annika asked with a chuckle.

  “No,” I said seriously.

  “I wouldn’t blame you if you did, Brighton. That old witch was the worst of our family and no one seemed to see it. My grandmother acted like the sun rose and set on Langoria’s skinny behind, but I never bought it. I’m not surprised someone offed her.”

  “I didn’t do it,” I said again.

  “Yeah, but people around here are going to think you did. Especially since you confronted her in public, and you being new and weird isn’t going to help.”

  “I’m weird?”

  “Yeah, you’re from the city and you have purple hair.”

  “I can’t help the hair,” I said.

  “You and I know that. Heck, most of the witches in Coventry probably know it too, but that doesn’t stop them from thinking you’re weird. Plus, my Granny really needs to lighten up about you. I doubt that’s going to happen until we figure out who really killed Langoria.”

  “So you believe me?”

  “Of course, I believe you. I was just kidding when I asked if you’d killed her. Hey, I’ll do what I can to
keep my family off your back.”

  “I’m sorry that you lost your aunt,” I said. “And I’m sorry that jerk stood you up.”

  “We weren’t close,” Annika said. “She seemed to avoid Remy like the plague, and Remy is my favorite Skeenbauer. And about Jacob, I feel better. You have effectively distracted me from my hurt and humiliation. So let’s just let that be water under the bridge. Besides, he’ll probably call in a couple of days begging me to take him back. He always does. ”

  “I wonder why Remy took Langoria’s death so hard,” I said because I didn’t feel like it was the right time to discuss Annika and Jacob’s dating life further.

  “Maybe it wasn’t that Langoria died. Perhaps it was just the shock of finding a dead body?” Annika offered. “But it is strange that he didn’t come here to make sure you were okay. That’s really out of character for him especially since he likes you so much. Oops. I’m not sure if I’m supposed to say anything about that.”

  “I kind of already had an idea,” I said. “I mean, I suspected as much.”

  “Well, you haven’t blown him off yet. Does that mean the feeling is mutual? ‘Cause, I like you a lot but if you hurt Remy, I’m going to turn you into a toad. If he’s not the guy for you, that’s fine, but please don’t string him along,” she said.

  “I don’t know how I feel. I mean, I know I like being around him. Every time I think I’m ready to pursue something more exclusive with Remy, provided that’s what he really wants, something holds me back. I don’t want to end up hurting him because he’s a really good guy, so I just keep it as casual as possible.”

  “You know that Remy would commit to you in a heartbeat if you even hinted that’s what you wanted. He’s a good guy, and he’s loyal. Does the thing that’s holding you back happen to be a person named Thorn Wilson?”

  “I don’t want to say anything because I don’t want you to get mad.”

  “Why would I get mad?” she asked. “It’s okay. I totally understand the appeal. He’s good-looking for sure.”

  “So is Remy,” I countered. “In a different way, sure. But he’s handsome and he’s been a lot less weird and standoffish with me than Thorn. At least up until recently.”

  “Do you want me to talk to him?” Annika asked.

  “No, he said he needed some time. I’ll give him that,” I said. “I just wish I had some idea of who might have killed Langoria. I’ve got no idea, and that makes solving the murder an issue. Do you have any idea who might have killed her? You said lots of people didn’t like her, but do you know of any of them who might have hated her enough to murder her?”

  “Before you moved here, I wouldn’t have thought anyone in Coventry was capable of murder,” Annika said. “She upset a lot of people.”

  “Anyone recently?”

  “Well, she was trying to get Ralph Badersmith removed as the head of the historical slash magical preservation society. Langoria told the witches that a Skeenbauer should be in the position, and she’d told the humans that he was irresponsible with his allotted budget. It’s why I was surprised you got that contract to restore the cemetery. But maybe he did it to stick it to her.”

  “Maybe he stuck it to her in more ways than one.”

  “Oh, was she stabbed to death?”

  “I don’t know,” I said. “I didn’t really see how she died. I walked away from the body too fast.”

  “That’s understandable. I’m sure Thorn will tell you since you’re involved… again…” she said. “You’ll have to let me know what he says.”

  When she left, I heard a scratching noise coming from one of upstairs bedrooms. I started up the stairs figuring that Meri had managed to get himself shut into one of the rooms accidently. The thought that he had tunnels in the walls and couldn’t get stuck in a room never even crossed my mind.

  “I’m coming,” I called out when the scratching got more insistent. “I’ll let you out in a second.”

  “Who are you letting out?” Meri said as he ran up the stairs and cut me off at the landing.

  “Meri?”

  The scratching grew more frenzied. “Let’s go downstairs,” he said. “Slumber party in the living room tonight?”

  “That sounds good…”

  I was cut off when the scratching stopped but the sound of someone scurrying across the living room floor took its place. Meri and I froze. I was just far enough up the stairs that I couldn’t see what was making the noise.

  “You really seem to attract some crazy stuff,” Meri said.

  “That’s not helping,” I retorted. “What should we do?”

  Before he could answer, the scurrying headed toward the kitchen and a moment later, the basement door slammed shut. Whatever it was had gone into the basement, and my first instinct was to just barricade the door.

  “We could just push something in front of the door,” I said. “That would keep it in, right?”

  “It went from the spare bedroom to the living room without using the stairs,” Meri said. “I don’t think pushing the kitchen table in front of the door is going to help.”

  “What about a sealing or protection spell? If we hurry, we could trap it down there,” I said. “Ugh, but the washer and dryer are down there. I need those.”

  “We’ll go down, figure out what it is, and cast it out,” Meri said. “I’m tired and I don’t want to mess around anymore.”

  “Are you crazy?” I asked. “You want me to go down in the dark creepy basement looking for the scratchy, skittering entity? Maybe I should just seal the door with a spell and buy a new washer and dryer. I could get a cheap set with some of the book money. I still have some left, and I wouldn’t even need to tap into the graveyard restoration money.”

  “Brighton, listen to me carefully,” Meri said. “You are a witch from an ancient family of powerful witches. When you find your true power, you will be scarier than anything you’d find in the dark.”

  “Nice pep talk, but I haven’t found my true power yet and whatever that thing is, it’s way scarier than me right now.”

  “Well, I’m going down. You’ve either got my back, or you can just let the boogeyman get to me.”

  “Meri, wait,” I said as he shot down the stairs and into the kitchen.

  I got there just in time to see him wiggle his nose and make the basement door open. Meri darted down the steps into the dark before I could stop him.

  “Fine,” I said.

  I was thankful that I had my phone in my pocket. Each step down toward the cold, damp basement made me feel more and more like I was being buried in darkness. I got to the bottom and flipped on the bare bulb that lit the laundry area, but it did almost nothing to illuminate the rest of the basement. Meri wasn’t near the washer and dryer so that meant he’d gone into the part that I usually just pretended didn’t exist.

  After a deep breath that filled my lungs with clammy and dusty air, I turned on the phone’s flashlight app and prepared myself to walk into the abyss.

  Before I could take a step, Meri streaked past me from the darkness. “Back upstairs now,” he called out as he sailed up the steps and over the threshold.

  “What?” I asked, but I heard something skittering toward me in the dark.

  It was growling, and I felt the air charge with malevolence. My heart began to pound, and I was frozen with fear for half a second. Then my adrenaline kicked in and I turned and ran up the steps two at a time.

  I didn’t even get the chance to turn around and see what had chased me before Meri used his nose wiggle to slam the door shut again.

  “I thought you said that couldn’t keep it in,” I said. “What are we going to do?” I pleaded as the growling thing thumped up the steps.

  “We’re going to wait,” Meri said. “Three.” Thump. “Two.” Thump.

  It was there on the other side of the door. I could hear it growling and hissing. The smell of putrid rot and sulphur leaked under the door and made my eyes water.

  “One,” Meri s
aid and took a step back from the door.

  Instinctively, I did the same as a loud boom shook the house. White light poured under the door, and the thing shrieked. And just like that, it was gone. You could feel that the air in the house was lighter. The stench was gone.

  “What did you do?” I asked.

  “I made it go away,” Meri said.

  He turned and sauntered over to his food bowl. I knew what he wanted.

  “You already had dinner,” I said.

  “I made it go away,” was his only response before he looked down at his bowl expectantly.

  “Are you going to tell me how?”

  “It’s a familiar trick. I protected you, didn’t I? Now it’s made me very hungry. So, please could I have some of that smoked salmon? I think I’ve earned it.”

  “I guess you have,” I said. “Thank you.”

  I gave him a double portion of the smoked salmon which Meri wolfed down like he hadn’t eaten in days. Whatever he’d done must have taken a lot out of him, so I made sure to give him some extra deep head scritches before we went to sleep.

  Chapter Four

  The next morning, I sat up in bed and immediately checked my phone for a text from Remy. There wasn’t one, and I debated going to the archives to see him but decided against it. He would let me know when he was ready to talk, but I hoped that wouldn’t be too long.

  There wasn’t any reason to put off working on the cemetery if Thorn’s investigation was done. Remy most likely wouldn’t be joining me after work, and I didn’t feel right delaying the restoration. Instead, I asked Meri to go with me.

  “I want to go over to the cemetery and make sure they didn’t destroy anything while they were investigating the murder scene,” I told Meri. “Would you come with me? I need to get started working over there too, and I don’t want to go alone.”

  The memory of seeing Langoria’s specter had stuck with me, and I kept expecting her to pop up at any time. More than that, I was afraid she could still hurt me even from beyond the grave.

  Plus, there was the thing from last night. Meri had gotten rid of it, but for how long? Specters kept popping up in Hangman’s House, and sooner rather than later, I’d have to figure out why. Maude had never mentioned that the place was infested with spirits. Something new was going on, and I’d have to find out what.