Witch Silenced in Westerham

by Dionne Lister

  “You know what would be even better?” Now my brain was really on fire. “What if we got one of our people to replace one of the guys who monitors the on-site cameras? It might be harder, but then we’d have someone inside who could help Ma’am quickly if she needed it.”

  Will nodded slowly. “You’re right: it would be more difficult, but it would be better. If they hire out their security to a private company rather than employing in-house, we’ll be in luck. James can influence them. It’s all legal. By the end of the operation, they’ll know why, but in order to keep it on the down-low, we’ll do it quietly.” He grinned. “Nice work, Lily.”

  “I do what I can.” I smiled.

  Will dialled Millicent and explained the situation. He took a few minutes convincing her, but in the end, she agreed to call James and run it by him. I had complete confidence in my brother to make the right decision.

  The day passed fairly quickly. Beren visited Angelica with the biscuits she wanted, stayed for half an hour, then left. I checked my phone. With only twenty minutes to go on our shift, the woman I disliked came into Angelica’s room. She held a chart and wore a kindly smile. Was this really the same woman I’d met the other night? Maybe she did like the old people. Although my gut was telling me otherwise. She had the hairs on my nape standing up.

  “Hello, Mrs Prestons. I’m Elizabeth, nursing manager of the home. How have you enjoyed your first day so far?” She stood at the foot of Angelica’s bed, holding the clipboard against her chest.

  “Breakfast was terrible.” Hmm, Angelica wasn’t going for amiable. I snorted. Elizabeth’s smile wobbled but stayed in place.

  Elizabeth looked at her notes or charts, whatever was on the other side of the clipboard. “It says here that you had the porridge. We use organic porridge. Was that unsatisfactory?”

  By the way the view moved, Angelica was shaking her head. She picked up the bear and cuddled it. “It was like watery sawdust; wasn’t it, Mr. Teddy?” Angelica cuddled the teddy to her and dropped her face, so she wasn’t looking at the nurse, but the teddy was. So we saw the look of frustration and the eye-roll that followed. Ha! I knew she wasn’t all rainbows and sunshine.

  Elizabeth made some notes on her clipboard paper. “So, what would you like for breakfast tomorrow? Is there something you’d prefer?”

  Angelica didn’t look up and mumbled, “Eggs, sunny side up, and toast, please.” I’d never heard her so timid before. She deserved an Oscar for this performance, but instead, she was just going to get killed. Argh. I was never going to be able to put it out of my mind.

  “Righto. Tomorrow morning, we’ll have two eggs, sunny side up for you. So, it says here your dementia’s advanced to the stage where you have paranoia and aggressive outbursts, but you still recognise family. Is that right?”

  Angelica didn’t answer, but honestly, what kind of question was that to ask someone with the condition? She couldn’t think straight to answer it, and maybe it would put her in distress. Was she trying to make her upset?

  “Do you understand my questions, Mrs Prestons?”

  “No.” She looked up. “Can I have a biscuit?”

  “I’ll arrange to have one brought up if you’ll answer a different question.”

  Angelica nodded.

  “Do you remember what it was like to be a witch?”

  “Yes. I could cook things when I wasn’t even in the room. I could make my teddy walk behind me like a dog. It was wonderful.” She waved her hand in front of her, then let it drop with a bomp to the covers. “It’s all gone now.” Dejection weighed in her tone.

  Weirdly, Elizabeth smiled. “Ah, I bet it was wonderful. A bit disappointed, are we?”

  Angelica nodded. “Where’s my biscuit?”

  “Don’t you worry. I’ll have someone bring it up in a minute.”

  The door opened, and Angelica’s gaze must have cut to it quickly. A man put his head through. He looked to be about forty, with straight brown hair and a short, neatly trimmed beard. He grinned at Elizabeth.

  Her face lit up. “Andrew. You’re early. You may as well come in and meet Angelica. She’s our latest… resident.”

  He slipped into the room and shut the door. After giving Angelica a quick nod, he grabbed Elizabeth and kissed her. With tongue and everything. Ew. Did we need to see that? Really? I almost laughed, wondering how Angelica felt, being in the same room.

  Elizabeth finally swatted him off and giggled. “You know that’s not allowed. I could lose my job.”

  “Well, we don’t want that. You do such a wonderful job, sweet pea.” They both laughed as if it was the funniest thing they’d ever heard. “Are you ready to go?”

  She nodded. “My shift is over, Mrs Prestons. Have a good afternoon. I hope you enjoy your stay here. And try not to miss your magic. You should be grateful you ever had it—some of us aren’t so lucky. Rest assured, I’ll see you again… soon.” Why did that sound like a threat? Meh, I was probably being paranoid. She left and closed the door quietly behind her. I wasn’t quite sure what to make of the encounter. Why would she be trying to upset Angelica, or was she weirdly curious, or even just trying to get to know her better? I was sure Angelica had an opinion on what was going on; I just hoped she’d share it with us sooner rather than later.

  At least Elizabeth was true to her word—the biscuit arrived within a couple of minutes, and there were two, in fact. After the overweight lady who’d delivered the biscuit left, Angelica’s door opened again. The patient who had claimed to have been a nurse in her former sane life poked her head in. Her gaze took in the whole room before settling on Angelica. Penny—I was assuming the carer had called her by her proper name—slipped in and shut the door. She placed herself next to Angelica’s bed and grabbed her wrist. By the way she was concentrating, I figured she was taking her pulse. The fact Angelica was letting it happen surprised me. She wasn’t a touchy-feely person at the best of times, and this woman was getting creepier by the minute.

  Finally, Penny dropped her wrist. “Your pulse was up a touch there. Sixty-five bpm.” She put her hands on her hips. “I wish I had my sphygmomanometer. High blood pressure leads to heart attack. Did you know that? So many people die of heart attacks, especially where I used to work. So, so many.” She shook her head. “People should look after themselves more.”

  I shared a worried glance with Will. “I know who we’ll be researching as soon as we get back this afternoon,” I said.

  “At least they’ll have gotten a start on it. Looks like James and Beren have a lot of interviews coming up.” Will looked at his phone. “Shift change coming up.” Within a minute of his statement, the black curtain shifted, and four agents came out, one after the other. Two women and two men. Everyone said hello, and Will updated them on today’s events—it was evident he was the senior agent in our little group. He was so awesome, and he liked me. I smiled. I was one lucky witch.

  We all said our goodbyes, and Will, Agent Cardinal, Imani, and I travelled to the PIB reception room. Will and I went straight to Millicent’s office. Tim’s mum wasn’t in, so Will called out as we walked through, “We’re back.”

  “Hey, you guys. How did it go today?” Olivia, seated in her usual spot, smiled. Millicent wasn’t there, but her desk was full of neatly arranged piles of paper. It looked like she’d had a busy day.

  “Lots of action in the home today. Angelica’s made a new friend.” I sat next to Olivia.

  “The woman I’ve pulled up some info on? Penny who thinks she’s Elizabeth?”

  “That’s the one,” I said.

  Olivia turned and grabbed some papers off her table and handed some to me and some to Will. “Her employment history, going back twenty years prior to when she stopped working. She’s been retired for five years, in the care home for a year and a half. Her timeline fits, and there’s some interesting death stats on the four hospitals she worked at in that time. She was at the first one for four years, the second for three, the third one for five, an
d the last one for eight. She worked on the cardiac wards.”

  Will sat in one of the guest chairs in front of Millicent’s desk. We both got to reading. Olivia had done an amazing job with the research. She’d compared like with like, dividing the hospital death rates into departments and matching them against other hospital’s individual departments—not just an overall comparison. A disturbing picture was emerging.

  Beginning within six months of her starting a new job, deaths in her ward increased by forty percent. Death rates had been similar to surrounding hospitals but looked sickly in comparison while she worked there. As soon as she left, the death rates fell.

  Holy moly.

  I looked at Will; my brow furrowed. “Um, do you think we’ve found the culprit?”

  “Maybe. The evidence so far is compelling, but we’ll have to dig deeper. And until we can catch her in the act, we can’t pull the plug on this investigation. Also, what if we think it’s her, but it’s not? Coincidence could be a factor. And if we call this too early, Angelica’s cover will be blown, and they’ll be onto us.”

  “Hmm, maybe.” I wasn’t convinced. If it looked like a dead fish and smelled like a dead fish, I was pretty sure it was a dead fish. But I had no say in how things were done, so I just had to go along with what others decided. Which was fine—I didn’t want the responsibility either. Imagine making the wrong call and causing many more deaths. No thanks. “So, can we access the autopsy reports on anyone who died in coronary care while she was working there?”

  “I don’t know if it would make any difference. Assuming Penny did kill anyone at her old jobs, she could have done it any number of ways and made it look like an accident; also, don’t forget she’s a witch. She could have done it with magic, which wouldn’t have been picked up on the autopsies. Any evidence would be long gone. If it was her, we’ll have to catch her in the act.”

  Will had a point. Gah, why couldn’t we just solve this now and get Angelica out?

  The outer door to Millicent’s reception room opened and shut. James walked in. “Hey, crew. How’s everything going?”

  Will, still in his seat, turned to look at James. “Hey, man. Getting there, sort of. What’s news?”

  “Millicent’s gone home early. She’s not feeling well.”

  I sat up straighter. “Is she okay? Do you want me to go and check on her?”

  “She’ll be fine. I think she’s just rundown. She’s been working late the last week or so, and the baby’s been moving a lot at night, keeping her awake. Anyway, I thought it was time for me to come and have a chat and confirm our next move.” He moved around the desk to sit in Millicent’s chair. “Before we start, I wanted to let you know that Beren and I visited the security contractors for the care home.”

  Ooh, that was good news… I hoped. “What happened?”

  “I had to influence them, but they’ve just hired Agent Cardinal. He’s out of the van, but he’ll be in the care home every night from seven. His shift will end at 5:00 a.m. If anything urgent transpires, he’ll call Beren first. He’ll travel to the van and Agent Cardinal will let him straight in. Beren, as you know, is our best healer, and of course, he has additional motivation to perform miracles because it’s his aunt’s life at stake.”

  “He won’t be in any danger, will he?” asked Olivia.

  James shook his head. “No. He’ll be perfectly safe. Whoever is in the surveillance van will accompany Beren. We’ll have more than enough agents to subdue our perpetrator. We’re assuming it’s one, or at the most two people, and none of them are black belts in karate.” He grinned.

  I snorted, thinking of the short, dweebie manager, petite Elizabeth, or elderly Penny. Yeah, it wouldn’t take much to take any of them down… except maybe Elizabeth. She had a hard stare, and I would bet she’d be vicious in a fight.

  Will handed his papers to James. “That’s great news. Now, interviews. Where are we on those? And I don’t know if Millicent had time to explain much, but this one looks like trouble.”

  James glanced at the information in his hand and met Will’s gaze. “Yes, she did, but Olivia hadn’t done all the research yet. Let me go through this first.” He read through it. “Hmm. I think this would be a good opportunity to utilise Lily’s unique skills. How do you feel about a trip to the hospital with your camera?”

  That was unexpected. “Um, sure. What do you need?”

  “I want you to take photos of Penny killing people.”

  “Oh, of course you do.” That didn’t sound like fun at all, but if my camera showed us what we needed, we’d know for sure if she was the murderer. “Okay. Can we go now? The sooner we get to the bottom of this, the better.” I’d put a no-notice spell on myself, and I’d be able to wander in and out of whatever room I wanted.

  “Will, can you go with her please?” James asked. “I’ve got way too much to do. I honestly don’t know how Angelica keeps up with running multiple investigations at once.”

  “Of course I’ll go with her. Someone needs to keep her out of trouble.” He smirked.

  “Just watch yourself, buddy. I can turn you into a toad, you know.”

  Olivia stared at me, mouth open. “Really? You could do that?”

  I shrugged. “There’s only one way to find out.” I turned to Will and wiggled my fingers.

  He folded his arms. “That’s such a cliché, Lily. Try and be more original.” The corners of his mouth twitched, ruining his serious façade. “Are you ready to go?”

  “I’ll just pop home and grab my camera.”

  “But you can just use your phone,” said James.

  “Yeah, I could, but the shot quality is definitely better, and I enjoy using my camera.”

  “But the phone is subtler to use. The no-notice spell should work, but every now and then, people can see past it, and if there are any witches there, they’ll definitely notice you pointing a massive camera at people.”

  I pulled my phone out of my pocket and checked the charge. It had 60 percent. “Okay. I’m good to go. I will miss my camera though. I kind of feel naked without it.” I placed my palm on my chest. It was so vacant.

  Will pulled me in for a hug. “It’s for a good cause.”

  I inhaled and sighed. He smelled almost as good as coffee. My face had a new favourite spot: his chest. It was firm, yet there was a slightly squishy layer on top, perfect for nuzzling into.

  James cleared his throat. “Time’s a wasting.”

  I looked at him. “You’re just uncomfortable with us cuddling, aren’t you?” I laughed.

  He shook his head, then nodded. I snorted. “Always the big brother. Okay, let’s get going. Oh, where are we going? I need the coordinates.”

  James sent the coordinates of the last hospital Penny had worked to both Will and me. I made my doorway, stuck the coordinates on the front, and walked through.

  Before walking out of the cubicle, I cast my no-notice spell. A toilet flushed as I slipped out the door. I hurried through the hand-washing area and through the main door. The hallway looked like the typical hospital hallway from the seventies. The men’s toilets were right next door to the women’s, and Will came out at the same time as me. He grabbed my hand and looked down at me. It wasn’t exactly the most romantic place, and we had a job to do, but the stupid butterflies in my stomach didn’t know that. They were ready to party.

  Will placed a soft kiss on my lips. “That’s for good luck.” He smiled.

  “You know you don’t need an excuse.” I smiled. Using my magic to try and solve crimes was always a little nerve-wracking, but having him here made it easier. Agent Crankypants was fast becoming my rock.

  “I know, but you do need luck. And it was killing two birds…”

  I chuckled. Okay, I didn’t like that word. Chuckling belonged in horror movies. Maybe it was because it sounded like Chuckie. A chuckle might sound like an evil laugh rather than a short, lesser-effort one. Hmm.

  “Lily?”

  “Um, sorry.” I gav
e him my apologetic “whoops” face. It was one I used way too often. “So where’s the cardiology ward?”

  “I have no idea. We’ll find the main hospital foyer, and there should be signs from there.”

  We set off down the corridor. One left turn, followed by a lift ride down one floor, and traversing two long corridors later, we reached the main entry.

  Hospital visitors ambled in and out, some bearing flowers or teddy bears, others clutching each other and walking slowly. A few lucky people were leaving, newly released patients in tow.

  A sign hanging from the ceiling, proclaiming Cardiology Ward, pointed straight ahead. It took us to a T-intersection where another sign pointed to the right.

  The late afternoon hour meant dinner trays were being delivered. The fragrance of cooked meals wafted around me and made my mouth water. Crap. It reminded me that I hadn’t eaten since twelve thirty. My stomach grumbled. I rubbed it. “Yeah, I know. I’ll get you something when we’re done here.”

  “What?” Will looked at me.

  “Sorry. I wasn’t talking to you.”

  His eyes widened. “Can you see actual ghosts now?”

  I scrunched my face, my mouth in a huh? frown. “What?”

  “Who were you talking to?”

  I snickered. “My stomach. I haven’t eaten since lunch, and I’m starving. That food actually smells delicious.” I pointed to the trolley stacked with meals.

  “When we’re done here, I’ll take you out, if you like.”

  Argh, the thought of going somewhere else after such a huge, and at times emotionally draining, day was more than I could bear. “What about we get Indian takeaway and go to Angelica’s? I can ask Beren and Olivia if they want to join us.”

  Will smiled. “Good idea. Sounds nice.”

  “I’m already tired, and after using my magic for this”—I jerked my head towards one of the patient rooms—“the last thing I’ll want to do is anything other than sink into the couch.”

  He rubbed my back, and I sighed. “I totally understand.”

  I took my phone out of my jacket pocket. That’s one good thing that could be said for the PIB getup—pockets galore, even the women’s suits. Someone got something right.