Baby Broom

by Sara Bourgeois

  “I mean, it’s possible, but they left fingerprints on the knife that weren’t mine. That doesn’t really fit with them killing him to frame me,” I said.

  “Maybe they made a mistake,” Remy said. “It’s possible that someone came into the office during or right after the murder, and they got sloppy. Or they just got nervous because they’re not normally a killer.”

  “You think someone could have gone into the office this morning?” I asked hopefully.

  “It’s possible,” Remy said.

  “And unlike me, they didn’t venture back into Jeremy’s office and find the body,” I said.

  “Why did you do that?” Remy asked. “Why not just leave?”

  “Kinsley started making this really loud, mournful cry. I tried to leave with her, and it got worse. I started walking toward the hall where his office is, and she calmed a little. It was like she wanted me to go back there and find him.”

  “Hmmm,” Remy said and scratched his chin.

  “I know, right,” I said. “It’s so odd. Why would our baby want me to find the body, and how did she know?”

  “It’s not that odd if his ghost was there and she picked up on it,” Remy said.

  “But, I didn’t see it,” I said.

  “Babies and children are far more sensitive to that stuff than adults. Even witches,” he added. “Oh, and cats too.”

  “I didn’t take Meri with me,” I said.

  “I think you probably should from now on. He can ride in that bottom basket thing in the stroller or that bag you have for him. Or we can get a double stroller. In fact,” Remy said and snapped his fingers, “there you go. Next time you take out the stroller, you’ll find that it’s a double. Now there is room for both of your babies.”

  “Oh. My. Gourd,” Meri said as he walked into the room. “I am not riding in the stroller with the baby. That’s so… undignified.”

  “Really? You don’t even want to try riding around in the stroller? With your witch pushing you around like your personal slave?” I asked and narrowed my eyes at him.

  “I might try it,” he relented. “But if I don’t like it, I’m not doing it again.”

  “Thank you,” I said.

  “And I’m not your baby,” Meri added. “And I’m certainly not that… creature’s brother or any sort of nonsense like that.”

  “Okay,” I said with a chuckle.

  “Whatever.”

  With that, Meri ran up the stairs, and I turned my attention back to Remy. “So, if anyone was at the accountant’s office this morning, that news should make it around town quickly. You feel like going to the diner for some food? Unless you need to get back to work.”

  “I think the archives can do without me for the day,” Remy said.

  Chapter Four

  The diner had changed ownership in the last couple of months. Dumbledore’s had closed its doors one night and reopened as The Sunrise Café the next morning.

  No one even knew that the owners were thinking of selling, but they left Coventry in the night too. I don’t believe that anything nefarious happened. The rumor was that they had moved on to a new fandom and wanted a fresh start. Instead of rebranding the diner, they’d just sold it and bought a new one somewhere else.

  The new owners were Kitty and Blake Farmington. True to their names, they actually bought a small farm a few miles outside of Coventry. Kitty and Blake spent their time running their farm, and they’d hired staff to run the diner.

  They were pretty hands off when it came to the day-to-day business side of the diner except that daily specials were comprised of fresh-from-the-farm ingredients. The food they produced on the farm was heavily featured in the menu.

  My favorite food was the farm fresh eggs. The yolks were so colorful compared to what you got in the store. I was in luck that day because the eggs were on the specials board for the day.

  “I’m glad we came in today. I love the eggs,” I said as we waited to be seated.

  “Meri’s going to be sad he missed out on the fresh bacon,” Remy said.

  “Nah, we’ll get him an order to-go. It’s only fair since he can’t actually come into the diner.”

  “You’re right. Maybe that will make him relax a little around Kinsley,” Remy said.

  “I don’t know that bacon is going to do the trick given how much you’ve been sneaking him, but it’s worth a try,” I said with a smile.

  “I haven’t been sneaking him that much,” Remy protested.

  “Uh huh.”

  “I wonder what I should have for breakfast,” Remy changed the subject.

  “I think I’m going to have the egg special and ask if I can substitute the sausage for more home fries.”

  “So, eggs with a double portion of potatoes?” Remy asked.

  “Yeah. I love potatoes. Especially when they are fried in butter,” I said.

  “I’m thinking biscuits and gravy,” Remy said. “It’s been a while since I had it, and it sounds good.”

  “I didn’t even know you liked biscuits and gravy,” I said. “I could make it for you at home too.”

  “Well, like I said, it’s been a while. Let’s see if I still like them after breakfast today.”

  “Adventurous. I like it.”

  Our waitress came over to the table a minute later. She wore a nametag that said Linda, but I recognized her. Linda had worked in the diner when it was still Dumbledore’s, and apparently the new owners had kept her on.

  “Hey, kids, what will it be?” she asked and pulled a pen out of her bun.

  Linda had silver hair that she wore up in various styles ranging from buns to chignons and even the occasional beehive. She always had on shimmery blue eyeshadow and bright red lipstick. Despite being in her early seventies, she managed to pull the look off.

  When the place was still Dumbledore’s Diner, the staff had worn themed uniforms. The new owners let the waitresses wear slacks and a black top with an apron over it. The apron had a sunrise on it with the diner’s name embroidered underneath.

  “I’m going to have the egg special, but can I get double potatoes instead of the meat?” I asked.

  “Sure thing, jellybean,” she said. “And for you, honey?”

  Linda was the only woman allowed to call my husband honey. It was funny watching him blush a little when she said it.

  “I’ll have the biscuits and gravy with a side of sausage patties,” Remy said after clearing his throat. “Oh, and can I get a side of bacon in a to-go container?”

  “Two or four pieces?” Linda asked.

  “Four please.”

  “Comin’ right up, kids. Oh, sorry. I thought the hostess was going to get you drinks. What can I get you?”

  “I’ll have black coffee,” Remy said.

  “I’ll take a soda with light ice,” I said.

  “I’ll be right back,” Linda said.

  And she was. Linda returned with the drinks in what had to have only been about two minutes.

  “I’m going to get your order in. The cook’s pretty good. Shouldn’t be too long. Is there anything else I can get you for now?”

  “Well, if you have a minute,” I said thinking that it was a good time to ask about the word around town on Jeremy Dyer’s death.

  “For you, I have five,” she said and stuck her pen back in her bun.

  “I assume you heard there was a murder in town this morning,” I said.

  “Yeah, and I heard you got thrown in the clink cause that hot buns new sheriff thought you did it.”

  “Did you just call Gunner hot buns?” I asked.

  “What? I’m old, not dead,” Linda said with a laugh. “Anyway, you’re here so that must have all worked out.”

  “It did,” I said. “What I was hoping you could tell me is if you’ve heard anyone say they were at the accountant’s office yesterday morning before me.”

  “That would be interesting,” Linda said. “But I’m sorry, sweetie, I haven’t heard anything like that. I i
magine if that were the case, it will get out soon. No one in this town would be able to sit on gossip like that.”

  I felt a little defeated. I’d hoped that someone had already blabbed about being at Jeremy’s office that morning, but Linda was right. If someone was there, it would get out soon enough.

  After that, Linda left to put our order in with the cook. She said she’d get ahold of me if she heard any gossip that might interest me and told us we should come back into the diner soon. We didn’t eat there very often, but we decided we might just take her up on that invitation if it meant figuring out who killed Jeremy sooner rather than later.

  I’d been released from the jail because my fingerprints didn’t match the ones on the knife, but I knew deep down inside that I still wasn’t completely in the clear. I wouldn’t really be safe from being arrested again until I found the real killer, and I couldn’t take the chance of being separated from my baby again.

  A little while later, Linda brought us our food. Remy and I ate quietly while Kinsley snoozed in the car seat next to me.

  I was starving and Remy ate silently so as not to disturb me while I scarfed down my eggs and potatoes. For that, I was eternally grateful.

  When we were done eating, Remy went to the cash register to pay the check while I took Kinsley out to the car to get her situated.

  A woman was walking down the sidewalk past the diner, and when I stepped outside, she stopped. I only sort of noticed her out of my peripheral vision, but she walked straight up to me.

  In fact, she sort of stepped between me and the car, and I had to stop suddenly to keep from running right into her with Kinsley’s car seat. “What a beautiful baby,” she purred.

  “Thank you,” I said, but I moved the car seat away when the woman reached down to touch Kinsley.

  “Can I hold her?” The woman asked.

  I found it off-putting that a stranger would walk up to me on the street and ask to hold my baby. She wasn’t anyone I recognized, and while I didn’t know everyone in Coventry, this woman seemed especially unfamiliar.

  “No,” I said. “I don’t let people hold her.”

  “Well, that’s rude,” the woman said.

  Instead of engaging with her, I stepped to the side to walk around her to my car. I wasn’t about to get into an argument with a stranger about my manners.

  “I need to get going,” I said as I tried to step around her.

  Her arm shot out and blocked me. “What’s the hurry? You can’t really expect to go out with your baby and not have people want to see her. She’s so beautiful.”

  “Ma’am, please step away from me,” I said firmly.

  Before the confrontation could escalate any further, Remy came out of the diner and noticed what was going on. He hurried over to me, and I instinctively handed him Kinsley.

  "Is everything all right?" he asked as he looked between me and the woman.

  "Everything is fine," I said with a tight smile. "Could you please put Kinsley in the car?"

  "You know, you really ought to let your family see the baby," the woman said.

  The hair on the back of my neck stood up. Suddenly, it occurred to me that I was probably standing in front of the person who put the gift basket on the porch. That woman might have been who Brody was using to get to me.

  "You know my brother," I said coolly.

  "He's a good man. All he wants is to see his sister and his niece," she said and smiled a smile that didn't reach her eyes.

  "You should go now," I said. "You should go now and stay away from my baby."

  "Brighton, what's going on?" Remy closed the car door and stepped between me and the woman.

  He raised one hand about halfway, and I knew he was about to do something to the woman. Possibly capture her or maybe try to strip her of the illusion spell that was masking her real appearance, but there were too many regular folks around. I gripped his arm and gently pushed it back down.

  "Go," I said one last time.

  With that, the woman turned and ran. I don't know if she knew what we were capable of doing or if she just sensed the feral power of a mother's love surfacing, but she scooted out of there fast.

  "What was that?" Remy asked.

  "She wanted to hold the baby. I think she's the one helping Brody get closer to me," I said.

  "Well, at least we know what she looks like now. That was pretty silly of her to just show up like that."

  "I don't think we do," I responded. "I'm pretty sure she was using some sort of illusion spell. I have this weird feeling that I recognized her, though. Not from her looks, but something else."

  "If she's a witch, we can probably find out pretty quickly."

  "I don't know if she was. Brody could have made her a potion. We'll need more information, but I don't think that's the last we'll see of her," I said. "Wow, I wonder if the cook burned something. Do you smell that?"

  I'd picked up the scent of smoke in the air, and it was unpleasant, to say the least. It took me a second to realize it didn't smell like burnt food.

  "Oh, no," Remy said.

  I turned to look in the direction he was facing. A thin column of smoke rose up a short way off in the distance. It was coming from the courthouse.

  Chapter Five

  "I have to get to the archives," Remy said.

  I wanted to protest, but he jumped into the driver's seat of the car. I figured that perhaps I could talk him out of it while we drove the short distance to the courthouse, and I got into the passenger side. At least he hadn't taken off running. That little mercy was short-lived though when we pulled over again after a block.

  "What are you doing?" I asked as he put the car in park.

  "I'm going to run the rest of the way. It's only a block. I don't want to get too close. Fire trucks will be coming. It's going to be a mess."

  "Remy, you cannot run into a burning building."

  "I'll be fine, Brighton. You always seem to forget we're witches when you panic," he said with a reassuring smile.

  "Witches or not, I still don't want my husband and the father of my child running into a burning building," I said.

  "Go home, honey. I'll be there soon," Remy said.

  "You've lost your mind if you think I'm just going to go home and sit while you go into a fire," I said.

  "I admire your spirit, but you need to get Kinsley out of here. It won't be good for her to wait near the smoke," he said. "I love you."

  And then he ran off too. I tried to protest as he got out of the car, but he was laser focused on getting to the courthouse.

  I got out and watched him go, casting a protection spell over him before I lost sight of his figure moving toward the building. If he could protect himself enough to actually go into the fire, then I could protect my daughter enough from a little smoke. I opened the back door of the car and took her out of the car seat. She fit in the crook of one of my arms, and with my free hand, I waved a spell of purity and protection over her small form. We wouldn't get any closer, but the smoke wouldn't touch her if we stayed where we were and just watched.

  While I didn't walk toward the burning building, I did cross the street so I could get a better look. The smoke was getting thicker, but I saw a few of the Aunties, including Amelda who must have come out from the library, standing around the square. They were keeping most of the smoke contained, and I had to wonder if they were using magic to control the fire too. They probably could have put it out quickly, but there were so many people around. Following the mass memory erasure they'd done after the zombie thing, they weren't in a hurry to use magic in any way that required them to mess around in the regular citizen's brains. Still, it must have been hard for them to not just put the flames out and then move along with their day.

  My eyes instinctively darted up to the window where I usually saw the malevolent specter that haunted the courthouse. I'd half expected not to see anything as I'd sworn she'd been there and retreated earlier. For some reason, I thought that the ghost was a
fraid of Kinsley.

  So I was a little shocked when I looked up and she was there. Not only was she there, but the ghoul smiled down at me. The black hole of a gaping maw that normally served as her mouth was twisted up into a rueful smile. It sent a chill down my spine. I got a bad feeling that the fire had been a trap.

  I'd said I wasn't going to get any closer, but I had to get to Amelda. I ran over to where she was standing, and startled her enough that she jumped a little.

  "Brighton, what are you doing here? Go home."

  "I can't. Remy is inside. He's in the building, and I think the fire was a trap."

  "Do you need a nap, dear? We've already received word that everyone is out of the building. Remy wasn't even there. He's home with you today. Did you inhale a bunch of smoke?"

  "No, Remy was with me, but when he saw the fire, he ran in. We were eating at the diner," I said. "You didn't see him go in?"

  "Ugh, that boy," Amelda said with an eye roll. "He's so dedicated to everything he's involved with. It wasn't a very smart move, but I'm sure he's fine. We'd put the fire out right now if there weren't all of these normal folks hanging around. As it stands, all we can do is keep the fire contained and keep anyone from getting hurt. Anything else would look very suspicious, and Goddess knows, we can't have the good folks of Coventry finding out about us."

  "But I really do think it's a trap," I said. "I don't think this is a normal fire."

  "Of course it's a normal fire. Look at it," Amelda said. "Why do you think it's a trap? For who? A fire is a terrible trap for such an accomplished witch."

  "I don't know," I said. "But there's this ghost that haunts the courthouse. I usually see her in one of the upstairs windows. She's super creepy with black holes for eyes and a mouth."

  "That does sound pretty creepy, but I can get rid of her after the fire is out. Probably nothing more than a nuisance spirit. If you'd mentioned her before, I would have made light work of her already," Amelda said.

  "But it was weird because earlier today, she seemed to be afraid of Kinsley. After the fire started, I looked up and she was smiling this really creepy smile down at me. And just before the fire, a woman approached me on the street. She wanted to hold Kinsley. She said I should let my family see Kinsley. I think she's the one who brought the basket to my house. I think she's working with Brody. I'm going in to get Remy out," I said. "Here, hold the baby."