by K E O'Connor
“That’s great to hear. I hope he makes a full recovery. I felt so bad. I should seal off that greenhouse, and let everything die. The toxic plants were Felicity’s passion, not mine. I remember her saying once that plants were never as dangerous as people. At least, you could measure a plant’s level of danger. She always struggled to figure out what other people were up to.”
“Do you know the latest from the police?” Helen asked. “They believe somebody poisoned Felicity.”
Zara nodded, and her eyes glistened. “I do. It’s horribly ironic that what she loved got her killed. I must do something about those plants. We can’t afford any more accidents. I’ll get right onto it after the party. From now on, we’re only dealing with safe plants. The pretty stuff that everybody likes.”
I nodded. It was an idea I thoroughly supported.
She patted Flipper’s head again. “Right, let’s get to work. I’ve got a meeting to go to, but I’ll be back in a couple of hours, and we can tie up the loose ends and get ready for this party.”
As Zara left the room, I noticed a ghost watching from the corner. It was Felicity, and she didn’t look happy.
Chapter 17
Felicity drifted over and looked down at Flipper. She shook her head.
“This is serious,” I said to her. “No one harms my dog and gets away with it. Somewhere in that greenhouse was angel’s trumpet. That was the plant used to kill you. Are you prepared to consider all the options and not fly off the handle when I suggest something or someone you don’t agree with?”
Felicity’s brow wrinkled, but she nodded.
“Good.” I settled in a chair next to Flipper. “Felicity’s here,” I said to Helen.
Helen raised a finger. “One minute. This interview requires treats.”
“We don’t need treats.” Helen ignored me as she sped out of the room, Milly hot on her heels.
Actually, treats wouldn’t be so bad. I’d hardly eaten since Flipper got sick, and my stomach was grumbling.
Helen hurried back with a tray of cookies. “These are peanut butter spider cookies with a caramel center.”
I took a cookie, trying not to linger on the fact it had a plump, glossy, all too realistic spider in the center. “They look great. Okay, how about—”
“Hold on, I’ve got more spooky surprises to bring in.” She dashed out of the room again.
Milly yipped and raced after her.
“The spooky cookies are fine.” I ate my cookie as I waited for Helen to return, laden with more goodies.
“These are my coffin surprises,” Helen announced as she strode in. She presented me with a coffin-shaped chocolate log.
“What’s the surprise?”
“Take one and eat it.”
I took a coffin. Helen was getting carried away with this Halloween theme. I bit into it, and my mouth filled with sweet crackles.
Helen grinned. “What did you get?”
“Popping candy!”
“The others have different fillings. Some are chocolate balls, others marshmallow. You never know what you’re getting.”
I licked my lips. “They’re fun. But it’s time to get to work on solving this murder. How about—”
“One more tray.” Helen dashed out.
Milly’s ears flipped up. She looked at me and yipped.
“I am powerless to stop her.” Helen always showed her love through food. I could tell she was upset about what happened to Flipper and wanted to show how much she cared by trying to put me in a sugar coma.
“I’ve got mummy meringues.” Helen returned and placed down a plate of fluffy white meringues with little eyes on them. “I had a rethink about my earlier design. These are so cute.”
“This all looks lovely but no more food. We need to discuss the suspects while we have Felicity here.”
“I’ll just bring in the tea. We can’t have cookies without tea.” Helen ran out of the room again.
This time, Milly followed the smell of the delicious food, but her gaze remained pinned to the open door as she waited for Helen.
I shook my head as I sampled a mummy. Flipper raised his nose and sniffed the air but didn’t beg for food. That was a sign he was still feeling under the weather if he didn’t want Helen’s treats.
I petted his head. “You’ll be okay. I’ll soon be scolding you for chasing after Helen for treats.”
Helen walked back in with a teapot and cups. She poured the tea and settled into a seat with a selection of treats on a plate.
“Ready to go?” I asked her.
“Of course. Get on with it. We have no time to waste.” She popped a spider cookie into her mouth.
I raised my eyebrows and looked at Felicity. “Okay, we can rule out Luke. Although he was stealing from you, he has witnesses that make it almost impossible for him to have poisoned you.”
“And Horatio was in the pub the night you died,” Helen said. “I also don’t think he has it in him to kill anybody.”
Felicity nodded.
“Which brings us to Julius,” I said.
“He is a prime suspect. We know about his money issues and his gambling problem. He cares nothing for the business and is only interested in making money,” Helen said.
“But he did help to raise Horatio and Felicity,” I said. “You’d think he’d want to keep them safe and not kill Felicity to get his hands on a bit of extra cash.”
“It’s not just a bit of extra cash,” Helen said. “This business is worth a small fortune. You saw how much money Luke made by selling off those rare plants and flowers. Add in this creepy old, ghost-filled place and the grounds, and you’re sitting on a goldmine.”
“Julius might have gambled on his freedom in the hopes of winning big.” I looked at Felicity to see her reaction. She was more interested in studying the chocolate spiders on the cookies than passing judgment on her uncle.
“There’s also Zara to consider,” Helen said. “As lovely as she is, she is thinking of selling the business. What do you think about that, Felicity?”
Felicity stopped inspecting the cookies and shook her head.
“She doesn’t like the idea of Zara being involved,” I said. “Zara’s also done nothing to make me suspicious of her. Those tears were genuine. She was good friends with Felicity. I understand why she’d want to sell the business. She must have a lot of memories here. I’m not sure I’d want to keep doing this work if you weren’t around.”
“Steady on, I’m hardly going to die on you,” Helen said, looking startled.
“No, I know that. I have a feeling you and Gunner will start a family before long. We can’t bring a baby on our adventures.”
“Nonsense! Gunner can look after the baby while I work.”
“And give up his job?” I laughed. “I don’t see Gunner becoming a house husband.”
Helen’s nose wrinkled. “Not likely. He has trouble finding the laundry hamper to put his socks in it. But he can take time off when we work.”
“I don’t think that will fit his line of work. Criminals don’t wait for the cops when they take time off to raise a family.”
“Babies are a long way off. We’re getting used to life as a married couple. Even if I do stop working, you might like doing a few solo gigs without me around.”
“It won’t be the same. And it definitely wouldn’t be as much fun. Zara must feel the same about this business. She lost her best friend and her business partner when Felicity died. She wants a fresh start.”
Felicity nodded along as I spoke.
“We also need to consider Barnaby,” Helen said.
“He was seen fighting with Felicity, and, according to Luke, he had another woman on the go.”
Felicity scowled when I said that.
“That’s if we believe a criminal’s version of the truth,” Helen said. “We shouldn’t take what Luke said too seriously. He might have been trying to mess things up to throw us off his tail by suggesting Barnaby was seeing somebody else.”<
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“But his alibi is good. Lying about another woman doesn’t make sense.” I sighed and leaned back in my chair. “Felicity, your input would be appreciated. Who do you think killed you?”
She shrugged and floated around the room.
I groaned. “She’s not being helpful.”
Helen clapped her hands against her cheeks. “We can’t forget the CCTV footage. We have hours of that to watch. That could help.”
I’d almost forgotten the footage in my worry about Flipper. “We need more time. The party is almost here, and we won’t have a free moment to watch all the footage.”
“Nonsense! I can watch it while I’m baking. I’ve got my helpers arriving soon, and most of the prep is done. I’ll see if I can spot anything dodgy in the greenhouse. It might give us the clue we need.”
“I’m still thinking Julius should be at the top of the suspect list.”
“He is greedy and a gambler, and he’s extremely annoying with those silly costumes he insists on wearing.” Helen popped a meringue mummy into her mouth. “He enjoys frightening people. Honestly, he’s a grown man. It’s time he stopped messing around and took responsibility for things. Julius is head of this family, not the joker.”
My gaze shifted over Helen’s shoulder, and I gasped as I saw an enormous, furry werewolf. I recognized that costume and would place a lot of money on who was inside it. “Maybe we shouldn’t jump to conclusions.”
“I’m not jumping to anything. He has to be involved. Any man who thinks it’s sensible to dress up as a skeleton and scare you or race around in the dark jumping out at strangers has got to have something wrong with him.”
I continued to gape at the huge werewolf who had pulled a knife out from behind his back. It glinted in his hand, looking menacingly real.
“The next time I see Julius, I’m going to tell him it’s time he grew up,” Helen said. “He needs to take responsibility for what’s going on here. He should be leading in this hunt for his niece’s killer; otherwise, everyone will think he’s involved.”
I gestured behind her, hoping she’d stop talking, but she was too angry to notice.
“Julius needs to look out for Horatio and make sure the business is run properly. He should care about what happened to his niece and make sure no one did her harm. He shouldn’t be gallivanting around, frittering away money, and spending his spare time trying to scare us.”
I grimaced. There was no coming back from this. “Erm, Helen. You’d better look behind you.”
“What is it?” She turned and screamed before throwing a plate of spider cookies at the werewolf.
The werewolf tipped back its head and howled before plunging the knife straight into its guts.
Chapter 18
Helen screamed again as the werewolf fell to the ground, clutching the knife.
I jumped from my seat, my heart racing as I ran to the side of the fallen werewolf.
Helen yanked off its mask to see Julius grinning broadly at her. He lifted the knife. “Don’t worry. It’s a prank knife.” He pressed the blade into his palm, and it slid back inside the handle.
“You terrified us! Why did you do that?” Helen glared at him.
Julius’s grin faded. “I thought you might want me dead after I heard your comments. Since I’m annoying and silly, you’d probably be pleased to see me gone.”
“Oh, well, you weren’t meant to hear that.” Helen dropped the werewolf mask to the ground, her cheeks bright pink with embarrassment.
“Most likely not.” Julius climbed to his feet and picked up the mask. “But I’ve been called worse. Although, actually, no one has ever accused me of murder.”
Helen glanced at me and shrugged. “We’re worried about what happened to Felicity. I know we’ve only been here a week, but we can see how much the place means to everybody.”
“Of course.” Julius smoothed a hand over his werewolf fur. “It means a lot to me, as well.”
I picked up the food and plate Helen had thrown at Julius. “I don’t want you to think we’re interfering, but we spotted you going into a casino the night you were supposed to be at the movies.”
“Ah. Well, I changed my mind.”
“Zara said you went to the movies every week on the same night. Is that your secret code for I’m going gambling?”
He ducked his head. “I have a flutter now and again.”
“It sounds a lot more like you flutter all the time,” Helen said, “and not with your own money.”
I nodded at him. “Maybe you’re only interested in Fleur de Bloom because of what it provides in the way of gambling money.”
“Steady on,” Julius said. “I mean, everyone needs a hobby. A little fun isn’t going to break the bank.”
“Frittering away this business is hardly a hobby,” Helen said. “This could be Felicity’s legacy but only if it survives. Don’t you want that?”
Julius’s shoulders sagged. “I might have a tiny issue when it comes to gambling.”
“What about the money you borrowed from Felicity?” I asked.
His head jerked back. “What do you know about that?”
“More than you’d like us to,” I said. “She kept a record of everything she loaned you.”
“My intentions were good, but I kept getting drawn back to the casino. It’s a fun place. I can forget my worries and enjoy myself. I never meant any harm. I’ve gotten in over my head and have a hefty line of credit at the casino. They never press for their money back, providing I keep spending more.”
“Did Felicity know how bad your problem is?”
“No. She just saw me as an annoying uncle. She never noticed my struggle.” Julius sighed and twisted the werewolf mask in his hands.
“Do you have a family of your own?” I asked.
“Good lord, no! No children that I know of, nor a wife. I did what I could for Felicity and Horatio after they lost their parents, but I’m not a natural father figure. The best I could do was keep them out of care until they were old enough to stand on their own feet. I’m not perfect, but I guarantee that I had nothing to do with Felicity’s death.”
“What were you doing the night she died?” I asked.
His smile was rueful. “Gambling. I have plenty of witnesses at the casino.”
“And you really know nothing about plants? There’s no way you could have poisoned her?”
“Not a thing. Gardening bores me rigid. Give me a little balcony and a few pots that never need any attention, and I’d be happy. Show me a couple of acres and tell me to look after them, and my blood runs cold. Felicity had the green fingers in the family.”
Helen cleared her throat. “That means I owe you an apology. But you have to stop jumping out and scaring people, or they’re going to be mean about you.”
Julius chuckled and looked at the mask in his hand. “Maybe I am a bit old for pranks, but I can never resist. You two should try it. You might enjoy dressing up. I saw a French maid’s outfit somewhere in the pile.”
“That’s a hard no to the French maid’s outfit,” Helen said sharply. “And no more scaring us.”
He grinned. “I’m not sure I can guarantee that. There will be hundreds of people to terrify at the party, so I won’t target either of you.”
“That’s a start,” Helen said.
Julius nodded, and his expression became serious. “I do appreciate what you’re doing to help out here, and for whatever reason that you’re helping make sure things are put right by my niece. She deserves it. She was one-of-a-kind.”
Julius’s alibi would be easy enough for the police to check. It sounded like he was in the clear. “We were wondering about Felicity’s boyfriend, Barnaby. Have you got any thoughts about him?”
“I can’t see him being involved. He’s one of these young, hip kids. Not the sort to want to get his hands dirty with murder.”
“But he wouldn’t have gotten his hands dirty. No one laid a finger on Felicity. Poison is a very hands-off way to
kill someone.”
Julius shook his head. “Barnaby knows as much about plants as I do. He never had time for Felicity’s fascination with those strange creations in her greenhouse.”
A memory pinged in my head. Zara was outside talking to Barnaby when we arrived back from the vet. I’d been so pre-occupied with Flipper that I’d barely registered it. I rarely saw them together. The only time I’d seen them in each other’s company they’d made it obvious they disliked each other.
“What about Barnaby’s secret girlfriend?” I asked. “Have you seen him out with anybody other than Felicity?”
“He had a bit on the side! The crafty devil.”
“A crafty devil who was cheating on your niece,” Helen said.
“Oh, well, yes. That would be terrible.” Julius appeared shame-faced. “The only time I ever see him is when he’s here. What makes you think he has a secret girlfriend?”
“Someone mentioned seeing them together.”
Julius stroked a hand down his beard. “Who do you think it is?”
My thoughts returned to Zara. Maybe her dislike of Barnaby was a sham. They’d been convincing enemies when I’d seen them at the dinner on the first night. Could it be possible that Zara was Barnaby’s other woman?
“How friendly is he with Zara?”
“Not at all. They’re always snapping at each other.”
I looked at Helen. “They appeared friendly when we came back from the vet. Now I think about it, they were standing very close to each other.”
Felicity had been drifting around the room until I made that comment. She darted about, making the curtains sway and upsetting the other ghosts, who stood guarding Flipper.
“That could be the reason Zara told us about Felicity being involved with Luke,” Helen said. “She wanted to distract us from delving into her relationship with Barnaby and make us think Felicity was the one cheating.”
Julius roared with laughter. “Felicity and Luke an item? You have got to be making this up. Luke thought she was a quirky little thing. He liked the fact she knew her way around the garden, but as for a romantic couple, not a chance. Those two couldn’t be more different.”
