by Cindy Stark
In fact, she needed to leave right now before she overthought it.
She needed to step toward the door, grasp the knob and turn it. She couldn’t let her fears get the best of her.
And she wouldn’t. She wouldn’t.
Hazel exhaled a deep breath and strode to her front door with purpose. She opened it, pushed in the lock that would keep out intruders, and…paused.
Everything in her front yard seemed normal, from the green leaves on the trees to the pink roses blooming in the gardens. Birds chirped, and no black clouds full of evil hovered overhead. She was fine. She was safe.
She could do this.
She stepped across the threshold and pulled the door shut behind her.
All was well.
Or was it? She could try to convince herself all she wanted, but her anxieties were spiking off the charts, and her gut warned that she should be careful.
After a moment of standing frozen by unseen fears, she realized she didn’t have to be a helpless victim. She had her senses, and if she listened, they would serve her well.
She opened herself to her surroundings and soaked up the atmosphere.
Delightful energy surrounded her. The trees, bushes and flowers supplied her with fresh oxygen. The negativity that had encircled her before was gone. Cora’s items had worked.
With her confidence building, she climbed into her car, which started without problem, and drove the road leading toward the center of town. She’d pop into the grocery store, grab a few items, and have a chat with Valerie’s friend. Afterward, she’d head to the teashop to relieve Gretta for lunch and spend her afternoon there.
But, as she neared the police station, her fears crippled her once again. She felt more uncertain now than she had when crazed bees had swarmed the town and when she’d almost been exposed as a witch. She couldn’t help but think a hug from Peter would do her good.
She wouldn’t bother him with her unsubstantiated problems, but she could soak up the good feelings that came with seeing his handsome face. She’d also have the added bonus of asking about the case.
Without another thought, she slid into an open space alongside the old historic courthouse that housed the police department. She hurried up the steps and breathed a sigh of relief once she was inside.
Margaret’s space sat empty, so Hazel headed straight for Peter’s open door.
She paused when she caught sight of him staring down at the papers strewn across his desk, and she smiled. It still amazed her that a man so sweet and so handsome could be the one for her. She knew everyone wasn’t so lucky.
Hazel took a moment to appreciate how sexy and serious he looked in his uniform.
He lifted his gaze as though he’d sensed her and smiled. “I caught a whiff of your perfume and thought I must be imagining it because I miss you, but here you are.”
She strode forward, and he stood. The second she was near, he pulled her to him and buried her in his strong embrace. She tilted her face up to meet his kiss, and then fell into the dreamlike state the taste of him inspired. Her favorite place of all time.
When he pulled away, she offered him a breathless response. “I missed you, too.”
He reclaimed his seat while she found her way to hers on the opposite side of his desk. He grinned. “Let me guess. You want to know what’s going on with the case.”
She smiled, loving that he knew her so well. “You know I do.”
A sly look crossed his features. “Okay. I say let’s make a trade.”
She narrowed her eyes in confusion. “A trade?”
He nodded. “I’ll tell you what I know, if you tell me what the heck happened between you and Bob to cause him to throw pie in your face.”
She closed her eyes for a moment as her cheeks burned with embarrassment. “Heard about that, did you?”
He chuckled. “You didn’t really think Stonebridge had a citizen that would keep that good of a story under wraps, did you?”
She groaned. “I was hoping that only Cora saw what had happened.” She leaned closer. “It wasn’t Cora who told you, was it?”
His eyes twinkled. “No, it wasn’t Cora. I’ve actually had five people tell me so far this morning, including Mrs. Lemmon and one of my officers, Kennington.”
She let her shoulders sag and dropped her head back. “I’ll never live that one down.”
“Welcome to Stonebridge,” he said with a chuckle in his voice. “You’re not an official citizen until you’ve been publicly embarrassed.”
She snorted sarcastically. “I guess that’s better than being publicly stoned or executed like others were in the past.”
“Funny. But seriously, keep joking. That’s the best way to handle it, and don’t worry. I’d say it’ll be two, three days at the most, before someone else does something to steal your limelight.”
“Bring it on,” she said with mock enthusiasm.
“How about you bring on what caused the topic of discussion? I need to know whether I should arrest Bob for assaulting my fiancée. Though if we press charges, it might be more embarrassment than it’s worth to stand before a judge and explain.”
“That,” she said with emphasis. “Is not going to happen. Besides, I’m sure a judge would say I deserved it for pestering the guy.”
He studied her for several long seconds, and she sensed the laughter hiding beneath his serious gaze. “Perhaps you and I need to have a talk about harassing citizens. I am duty-bound to protect all the people in this town.”
She shot him a sarcastic grin. “Oh, hush. I was only having a friendly conversation with the guy. He’s Valerie’s neighbor, and I’d heard rumors he’d threatened her in the past because she didn’t control her dogs, and he thought they were a nuisance.”
He lifted encouraging brows. “And…”
She tossed up her hands. “I’m sure you’ve met him. He’s every bit the cantankerous cactus that Cora says he is. I’d thought I’d softened him enough to ask questions, but he flipped straight back to cactus when I asked if he’d threatened Valerie. I thought I might get a little more out of him, but he shut down and left me with his dessert.”
She sensed he was trying to withhold a laugh and was dangerously close to failing.
“Go ahead. Have a good laugh. In all reality, he was the one who lost. Cora’s apple pie is the best.”
His features brightened. “It sure is. Okay, well it sounds like we’ll let this matter go, though I am curious what he said.”
“Not much, really. He talked about Valerie’s annoying dogs and how he tried to keep things civil between them, and then just to annoy me, he said I should be looking at Amanda as a murder suspect instead.”
Peter frowned. “Amanda? Are you sure he said Amanda?”
“I’m positive. Do you know her?”
He shook his head. “I don’t know of anyone named Amanda in town. No last name?”
“Nope. I half wonder if he made up the name just to taunt me for interrupting his evening.”
Peter rubbed his knuckles across his lips. “I wouldn’t put it past him.”
“Cora says I should ask Katelyn. If anyone knows, she might.”
He leaned back in his chair. “I can’t say we’ve gotten much farther than that. We interviewed a brown, not red-haired Liesl, who seemed insulted to her core. She wasn’t much help.”
“I saw her yesterday evening, too, when she stopped by my shop, but I swear her hair was red that morning.”
“Yes, you and Cora both said the same in your statements.”
She folded her arms, trying to ward off her edginess. “We’re not lying, and we’re not crazy.”
He reached across the desk, offered her his hand, and waited until she reluctantly slid hers across his. He folded his fingers around hers. “Of course, you’re not. Which means either you both didn’t see what you thought you did, or she’s lying.”
She snorted. “I bet you can’t guess which one is the right answer.”
A hint
of a smile quirked at the corner of his mouth. “The next puzzle is if she’s lying, why?”
That wasn’t hard to figure. “Because she’s hiding something.”
“Yes, but is she hiding a murder or something less menacing.”
Despite Liesl’s odd behavior, Hazel couldn’t picture her strangling someone. Then again, it wouldn’t be the first time a person with an unblemished reputation surprised everyone. “For her sake, I hope it’s the latter.”
He nodded thoughtfully.
She caught the shadow of someone walking outside Peter’s office window and startled. When she realized it was only the postal worker, she relaxed.
His gaze grew more pointed. “You okay?”
She tried to shake off her niggling fears. “Yeah, it’s nothing. I did wonder, though, if your guys managed to catch all of Valerie’s dogs?”
He snorted and rolled his eyes. “Not yet. We had an incident last night when Bertie Andrews found a German Shepherd going through her garbage. One of my officers tried to tackle and leash it, but he ended up eating mud instead.”
She fought to control a laugh. “That’s a better story than a pie in my face, don’t you think?”
He grinned. “Not quite.”
She shot him a mock disgusted look. “Whatever.”
“Trying to get someone to foster the dogs until we can find them a new home has been a challenge, too.”
A warm smile bubbled from inside her. “I’m so glad you didn’t immediately call animal control.”
His expression softened, and she lost her heart all over again. “You can thank Margaret for that.”
“Yes, but you as well. You’re the one who agreed to give her time.”
“I’m also the one who has two of them staying at my house.”
She snorted a laugh. “Two? Oh, my goodness. How did that happen?”
He shook his head as though he wasn’t quite sure. “All I can say is Margaret can be very persuasive.”
“Yes, she can. Hey, I might know someone who’d be interested in adopting one or maybe two of them. My neighbor Anya mentioned she might want a dog for protection a few weeks ago. Would you like me to ask her?”
His interest piqued. “The answer would be yes, of course. I have a poodle and Pomeranian staying with me. They seem like buddies, and they’re well-behaved. If she’s interested, have her call me. The poodle is getting on in years, and he needs a loving home. I’d keep them, but with my long hours, I don’t think it would be fair to the pups. They need more attention than I can give them.”
She nodded in agreement. “Any other news on the case? Other suspects?”
He gathered some of the papers on his desk into a pile. “One interesting thing. When we looked at Valerie’s schedule for the day, some pages out of her appointment book were missing, including the day she was murdered. Then others at random. I’m guessing the murderer tried to erase evidence of a relationship with Valerie. We’re looking at phone records right now and trying to match names with known clients and comprise a list of the rest. It’s a long shot, but at least it’s a direction.”
“Yeah, at least it’s something.”
“It seems Karl Donahue is happy that Valerie’s gone. A year ago, he accused her of stealing his chihuahua, and now he has his dog back. He told Dottie Fingleton that little Bessie ran straight to him first chance she had.”
“Now, that’s interesting. Did Valerie steal Bessie?”
He shrugged. “It’s a gray area. Sources tell me that Valerie said Karl sold Bessie to her because he no longer wanted her. Valerie had doggy sat for him many times and had fallen in love with Bessie. The chihuahua was his ex-wife’s dog that she’d left behind, and Karl had told everyone in town that he resented being stuck with the dog. Plus, he wasn’t taking good care of her.”
“Did Karl change his mind then?”
“Yeah. When Karl thought he might have a chance of reconnecting with his ex, he demanded Valerie give her back, but Valerie refused.”
“Sounds like Valerie was looking out for the dog’s best interest, then.”
He tilted his head to the side. “Or, she wanted to stick it to Karl to punish him. They’d had other altercations in the past about how much he owed her for pet services and possibly other things.”
The last part of his statement caught her attention. “Other things?”
A sexy smile crossed his lips. “I thought you might pick up on that. Yeah, other things. One neighbor suggested Valerie might have had something to do with the marital problems in Karl’s relationship.”
Hazel pondered for a moment. “Sounds like a big mess. My question is, who’s the good guy then, and who’s the bad?”
He chuckled. “Like I said, gray area.”
“Yeah,” she agreed. “There’s too much of that for my liking.”
“Don’t worry. We’ll get to the bottom of it.”
She stood and cast a glance out his window again. A strong sense of someone watching her persisted. “Speaking of solving the case, I should get going. I need to visit Katelyn at the store and see if she knows of this Amanda person, and then get to work.”
He sighed. “Okay. I need to get busy, too.”
She met him at the corner of the desk and hugged him.
He peered deep into her eyes. “You’re not going to tell me what’s bugging you?”
She hated and yet loved that he could read her so well. She considered lying and casting his concerns off as nothing, but then she remembered she’d promised to tell him everything, even if it was something he didn’t want to hear.
“I’ve been hit with a bad omen.”
He didn’t blink, didn’t react at all, only stared for the longest of moments, leaving her anxious.
Finally, his gaze narrowed the slightest. “What exactly does that mean?”
She hoped she’d made the right decision telling him. “It means that, for whatever reason, an omen visited me in the form of an owl, and I’ve had nothing but bad luck ever since.”
He waited, looking as though he expected a more in-depth answer.
She inhaled a steadying breath. “First, I found Valerie’s dead body. Then Liesl chastised me for pointing her out to you, and lastly for yesterday, Bob nailed me with his pie.”
“So, you think you’re somehow cursed because all of those things happened?”
“In one day,” she countered. “After finding an owl on my windowsill that morning.”
Doubt shadowed his features. “Could be a coincidence.”
“Cora doesn’t think so and offered to help me. I tripped down my front steps this morning when I tried to greet her.”
He gave her a dubious look. “It’s not the first time you’ve fallen.”
If he reminded her of her twisted ankle after Mr. Kitty tripped her or the time when she’d faked falling down the riverbank, she’d punch him. “Look, you asked me to tell you everything whether you wanted to hear it or not. If you’re just going to make fun of me, then all bets are off.”
He stared at her for a long moment and then sighed. “You’re right. I’m sorry. You know much more about supernatural things than I do, and you could very well be right.”
She softened in his arms. “I know it sounds crazy, but those are a lot of coincidences in a short period of time.”
He nodded. “And you’re worried.”
She dropped her forehead against his chest. “I am.”
He placed a finger beneath her chin and tilted her face toward him. “How can I help? What do we do to fix this?”
She fished the two crystals from her bra and the acorn from her pocket. “Cora gave these to me for protection.”
His look told her he was as uncertain about their strength as she was. “An acorn and two rocks?”
She shrugged. “Elements from the earth can be very powerful.”
“But you’re not convinced?”
She shook her head.
He snuggled her tight against him. “But you
do trust Cora, and so do I. If she says these will help, then we have to believe her, right?”
She nodded, bumping her head against his chin.
“Okay, then.”
He placed a warm, possessive kiss on her lips. “If, at any moment, you think you might be in harm’s way, run first, and then call me, okay?”
She laughed at her idiocy. “I’m only going to the store and then work. I’m sure I’ll be fine.”
“Can you put some salt and lavender at your store, too?” he asked. “Like you did to protect your house?”
“Only if I want to look like a witch. I’m sure someone in town would question it.”
“Yeah. On second thought, that might not be a good idea.”
Now was her turn to reassure him. “Really, I just needed a hug from you to make everything okay. I’m sure I’ll be fine.”
He nodded. “Just remember what I said.”
“I will.”
“I’ll call you in a while to check on you.”
She nodded and then kissed him. “Thank you, Peter. I love you.”
He grinned. “I love you, too. Be safe out there.”
She smiled in return. “Will do, Chief.”
Seven
Nothing odd or concerning happened to Hazel on her way to the grocery store. That, combined with Peter’s reassuring hugs, helped to settle her worries. Even so, she kept her senses wide open as she stepped out of her car and headed inside for shopping.
Cooled air greeted her and sent a little shiver racing over her skin. She tried to focus, to see if her reaction had been caused by something more than the temperature, but she still couldn’t discern anything that concerned her. A mom with three little kids bickering with each other sent off frazzled emotions, but that would be normal.
Hazel glanced toward the checkout counters and then let her shoulders sag when she didn’t spy Katelyn at one of the registers. She knew she’d been taking a chance, expecting her to be at work right after losing a good friend, but she’d hoped. Now, she’d have to find another way to bump into her for a conversation.
Shopping carts clanked as Hazel pulled one free, and she headed for the fruits and veggies first.
