Autumn Alibi
Page 29
“Yeah, for a week. Wes helped his brother move to Seattle. He’s supposed to get back later today. I’ll see him tonight.”
“Well, maybe he came back early,” said Pammy, her eyes still on the gold box.
“Maybe,” I agreed. I lifted the lid and tore off the protective plastic covering to reveal an assortment of fancy chocolate candies. It was a somewhat odd gift, coming from Wes. He knew I wouldn’t eat milk chocolate because I’m vegan. On the other hand, he would also know I’d share the candy.
I replaced the lid and handed the box to Julie. “Would you take this up front and leave it on your desk for all to share? I’ve got to get going.”
Pammy followed Julie out of my office, while I slipped on my long black coat and tied the belt. I grabbed my shoulder bag and hurried to the elevator. It was a short ride, four flights to the ground floor lobby. I pulled on my gloves as I walked over to join Crenshaw where he waited for me by the revolving door. I almost laughed when I saw what he was wearing.
In a Victorian-style overcoat, long scarf, and short top hat, Crenshaw looked like a character straight out of Dickens’s A Christmas Carol. In fact, as an amateur actor, he probably was. Outside his law practice, Crenshaw was active in the local theater circuit.
“Nice outfit,” I said. “Where are you performing?”
“I beg your pardon?”
“The caroler getup,” I said, gesturing toward his coat. “Aren’t you . . . Never mind.”
With Crenshaw, it was sometimes hard to know when he was being serious and what he was really thinking. At times, he could be incredibly sweet. More often than not, he was just obnoxious. My best friend, Farrah, called him the “original pompous ass.”
We stepped outside into the crisp, breezy air and made our way down the sidewalk toward Main Street. We walked carefully, knowing there could be slick spots in spite of the rock salt sprinkled like breadcrumbs in our path. Snowflakes stuck to every surface, from the cars parked along the curb to the tops of signs and the large red bows decorating every light post. The bows had been up since Thanksgiving, but it was the fresh snowfall that really made the scene look a lot like Christmas. It ought to, I thought, since the holiday was only a week away.
We turned right at the corner and continued down Main Street, walking past downtown shops with cheerfully decked-out storefronts. When we passed Moonstone Treasures, I slowed down to admire the window display: gracefully draped garland and glittery five-pointed stars framed an artful arrangement of red and gold candles. Just then, the door opened and the store owner herself hurried out, raising her hand in greeting.
“I had a feeling I would see you today, Keli,” she said. She approached us and gave me a hug, enveloping me in the scent of rosemary, patchouli, and orange blossoms. I smiled in return. I had known Mila Douglas for years, but we had become closer friends last February when I had helped catch the criminal who had been harassing her and breaking into her shop.
Crenshaw regarded Mila with a raised eyebrow. With her white velvet tunic over black leggings and the strands of silvery ribbons crowning her brunette shag, she looked like a cross between a snow queen and rocker Joan Jett. I ignored Crenshaw and complimented Mila on her window display.
“Thank you, dear,” she said. “I can hardly believe Yule is only four days away. I still hope you’ll join—” She stopped mid-sentence at my warning look. Mila was forever trying to coax me into joining her coven, but I preferred to follow a solitary spiritual practice. Only a small number of people knew I was Wiccan. Crenshaw was not one of them.
“Will you stop by later?” she asked. “I have something important to tell you.”
“Um, is tomorrow okay? I’m not sure what time I’ll get off today, and Wes is coming by tonight.”
Crenshaw crossed his arms and tapped his foot on the snow-covered sidewalk.
“Oh, I’ll just tell you now,” said Mila. She took my hand and spoke quickly, her breath forming puffs of fog in the cold air. “I had a vision this morning,” she said, “and you were in it. So was Mercury, the messenger god.” She paused, and squeezed my hand. “There are two things you need to know. One: You will soon have a visitor from your past. Two: Someone in your midst is going to die.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
JENNIFER DAVID HESSE is an environmental attorney by day and author by night. Born and raised in Central Illinois, Jennifer now makes her home in Chicago with her husband, guitarist Scott Hesse, and their daughter, Sage. When she’s not writing, Jennifer enjoys yoga, hiking, and movie night with her family. Please visit her at www.JenniferDavidHesse.comoronFacebookatfacebook.com/AuthorJenniferDavidHesse.
MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S MISCHIEF
As the Summer Solstice approaches in idyllic Edindale, Illinois, attorney Keli Milanni isn’t feeling the magic.
She’s about to land in a cauldron of hot water at work.
Good thing she has her private practice to fall back on—as a Wiccan. She’ll just have to summon her inner Goddess and set the world to rights . . .
Midsummer Eve is meant for gratitude and celebration, but Keli is not in her typically upbeat mood. The family of a recently deceased client is blaming her for the loss of a Shakespearean heirloom worth millions, and Keli’s career may be on the line.
With both a Renaissance Faire and a literary convention in town, Edindale is rife with suspicious characters, and the intrepid attorney decides to tap into her unique skills to crack the case . . .
But Keli weaves a tangled web when her investigation brings her up close and personal with her suspects—including sexy Wes Callahan, her client’s grandson.
The tattooed bartender could be the man she’s been looking for in more ways than one.
As the sun sets on the mystical holiday,
Keli will need just a touch of the divine to ferret out the real villain and return Edindale, and her heart, to a state of perfect harmony . . .
BELL, BOOK & CANDLEMAS
A new year has barely begun and Edindale, Illinois, family-law attorney Keli Milanni already has her hands full at work. But her private practice—as a Wiccan—may cause her worlds to collide . . .
The Wiccan holiday of Candlemas is right around the corner, but when vandals target the New Age gift shop Moonstone Treasures, the mood is far from festive. Frightening threats and accusations of witchcraft aimed at the owner have some Wiccan patrons calling it a hate crime. And when things escalate to murder, the community turns to Keli . . .
As a friend and customer, Keli wants to help. But there’s one problem: she’s fiercely private about her religion. How can she stop the harassment, not to mention catch a killer, while keeping her faith hidden from her colleagues, clients, and her promising—and long awaited—new boyfriend? At a time meant to banish darkness, will Keli have to choose between risking the spotlight and keeping her beliefs locked in the proverbial broom closet?
Or will she call on her deepest convictions to conjure the perfect path?
SAMHAIN SECRETS
It’s that haunted time of year, when skeletons come out to play. But Edindale, Illinois, attorney Keli Milanni discovers it isn’t just restless spirits who walk the night . . .
After her recent promotion to junior partner, Keli is putting in overtime to juggle her professional career and private Wiccan spiritual practice. With Halloween fast approaching, her duties include appearing as a witch at a “haunted” barn and handholding a client who’s convinced her new house is really haunted. But it’s the disappearance of Josephine O’Malley that has Keli spooked.
The missing person is Keli’s aunt, an environmental activist and free spirit who always seemed to embody peace, love, and independence. When Josephine is found dead in the woods, Keli wonders if her aunt’s activities were as friendly as they seemed. As Keli comes to terms with her loss—while adjusting to having a live-in boyfriend and new demands at work—she must wield her one-of-a-kind magic to banish negative energy if she’s going to catch a killer this Samhain season.
Because Keli isn’t ready to give up the ghost . . .
MAY DAY MURDER
Spring is in the air, but for Edindale, Illinois, attorney Keli Milanni, murder is the only thing blooming . . .
Keli’s looking forward to Beltane, the time-honored Wiccan holiday that celebrates life with feasting, ceremonial dancing, and ancient Celtic rituals. But since recently leaving her law firm and opening her own practice, Keli has more on her plate than simple abundance. Still, she always has time for a friend. Erik, a Druid from a neighboring town, has had a run of bad luck he blames on a curse cast by his ex-girlfriend Denise, a practicing witch whose expertise in the dark arts can’t save her from her own deadly end.
When Keli finds herself a person of interest in the investigation, she begins to wonder if she herself might be cursed. With a little help from her friends, including her devoted boyfriend Wes, Keli aims to find out who poisoned Denise.
What she uncovers is a witch’s brew of spells, hexes, and black magic that raises questions about her own Wiccan worldview. As the community gathers for the May Day festivities, it’s up to Keli to stop a killer from springing ahead to another murder.