by E. M. Moore
Poor Maxie was jumping around when I got back to the apartment. I leashed him right away and took him out. When I got back in, I couldn’t believe I didn’t notice the smell when I first walked in. The unmistakable aroma of sage filled the air. I flipped the light on and sure enough, there were wisps of smoke still hovering in some areas.
Mel.
Sage was another form of protection. It warded off evil spirits and omens—if you believed in that kind of thing. She had to have just left. It was possible she’d hid when I first walked in to get Max and had hightailed it out of here after taking him out.
I knew I shouldn’t have given her my spare key.
Chapter 10
Walking into the library first thing in the mornings was like walking into a world of possibilities. Everything was dark until I turned on the main light switch, then everything illuminated as if beckoning the world to come find answers.
Mornings were my favorite part of the job.
I went through my routine, switching on all the technological equipment as I went through. The display for George Sanders still looked really nice. I turned to head toward the front desk and almost ran straight into Ray.
I put my hand over my heart. It was beating like crazy. “Oh my goodness. Ray. You scared me.”
“I’m sorry, Maddie. I didn’t mean to. I thought you saw me standing with you.”
I took a deep breath and then let it out before smiling and continuing to the front desk. “And how are you doing this fine morning?” I moved around the desk to put my stuff away. When he didn’t answer, I looked up to find him running his hands through his hair. “Ray? What is it?”
He shifted his gaze toward me and then back to the floor. “It’s my sister, Clare.”
Oh no. My mind immediately went back to the conversation the three of us had about Clare and her brother last night. Was Mrs. Ward right after all?
Ray came forward and put his forearms on the desk. “She’s a mess. Detective Ward came to speak to her last night. She had an affair with Mr. Sanders. But it wasn’t like that,” he assured me. “I know it seems impossible, but she loved him. She wanted to marry him. I kept telling her there was no way he would leave his wife for her and it turns out I was right, but… she’s fragile right now, Maddie.”
“I had no idea. I’m so sorry for her loss.”
Ray kept staring straight ahead and I didn’t know if he’d heard me or not. “She wouldn’t kill anyone, you know. It’s not in her nature. Especially not someone who she loved so much. It’s tearing her apart. Detective Ward said she should’ve come forward with the truth about their affair before they found out another way.”
Playing stupid, I asked, “If she didn’t come forward, how did they find out?”
His face hardened. “Sandy Sanders. She and Clare are friends. Or they used to be anyway. Sandy won’t even talk to her anymore. Which is a bunch of righteous BS if you ask me considering it’s just come out she had an affair with John Williams.”
I sat on my chair and leaned forward. So much drama and intrigue going on in this place. I was glad I kept out of it. “I heard about that one. I’m sure Sandy feels betrayed by Clare. Just a terrible situation all the way around.”
Ray narrowed his eyes. “Sandy just used my sister, anyway.”
“What do you mean?”
“Little Miss Prim and Proper wanted to take a walk on the wild side. Or, I guess I should say, the poor side. Clare never listened to me about it. Both of them always wanted to live in the others world. I think my sister almost felt like she’d found her ticket. It was never going to happen though.” He shook his head, his dark hair sliding over his forehead. His eyes lightened a touch when he looked at me. “I tried to get her to come see the small memorial you put up, but she said it would hurt too much right now.”
The lights dimmed in that area and Ray and I both looked toward the sudden shadows. My eyes started to focus on something. I shook my head, and it disappeared.
“I was wondering, Maddie, if you thought Mrs. Ward might talk to her son and tell him not to interview my sister again. It hit her hard. She hasn’t stopped crying since last night. She’s convinced they think she killed him. Plus, telling someone about the affair just ripped her in two. It made it more real and now that he’s gone… “
Based on their conversation last night, there was no way Mrs. Ward would speak to Jackson about it, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t. I wasn’t going to tell him who to interview and who not to, but I could at least tell him what a toll this was taking on Clare Greene. Looking up into Ray’s face sold my decision. He was desperate. “I’ll do it myself, Ray. Even if she is on the suspect list, I’m sure with her natural and fierce reaction to Mr. Sanders’ death, she can’t be anymore. Jacks— Detective Ward is good at reading people. He’ll straighten all this out and then Clare will have time to grieve.”
Ray’s face softened. Instant relief washed over him. His shoulders slumped forward as if he’d been relieved of a lot of weight he’d been carrying around. Probably trying to bear some of his sister’s burden. “Thank you, Maddie.”
I pat his arm. “You take care of the both of you. This will all blow over soon enough.”
He gave me a small smile and walked away. I looked toward the corner near the elevator again, but nothing. The lights were shining just as brightly as before. It must have been a trick of the mind when the lights dimmed. I booted up my computer to email Jackson and ask him to lunch so I could talk to him about Clare and Ray. No sense in hiding what I wanted to talk to him about. If he said no, I’d just show up, anyway.
When I opened my email program, a single name stopped me. Mary Adams. Mrs. Adams. The subject line read, ‘Meeting?’
Oh no. My heart dropped as I read through the contents of the email. She wanted to discuss my progress with the fundraiser and other activities in light of what happened at the library recently.
I was so engrossed in reading the email for the tenth time that I didn’t hear or see Mrs. Ward come in and sit down. “What’s wrong? You’re going to bite a hole through that lip of yours.” She walked over. “Oh. It’s probably nothing, Maddie. Don’t you worry. It’s natural for her to want to know your next steps.”
“They can find that out at the next board meeting.”
“But with the sensitive nature of this, maybe she wants to know now. Don’t fret. It will all be okay.”
I exited out of the email and pushed away from the desk. “I think I’ll start weeding the zeros today.”
“You weren’t going to start that project until next week.”
There was no way I was going to sit at that desk all morning. I’d just keep reading that stupid email and worrying about it. “I was,” I said. “But I walked through there the other day and saw how truly outdated it iss. It’s been bothering me.”
It wasn’t a lie. The old books in that section were giving me nightmares, but I wouldn’t have found it quite so urgent if I hadn’t felt the need to get out of there and do something active. Weeding was a good way to blow off steam. It was like taking out the garbage in your life. Uplifting.
Chapter 11
It was 11:30 by the time I realized I never emailed Jackson about lunch. I’d just gotten through the entire zero Dewey section and had two carts labeled Withdrawn to delete from the catalog. I found Teddy in the stacks and asked him to stamp the books Withdrawn and either Mrs. Ward or myself would do the honors of deleting their records from the system.
“I’m heading out for lunch,” I called out as I walked through.
“Glad you’re feeling better,” Mrs. Ward said as she waved goodbye.
If the station were closer, I would’ve walked. It was a beautiful day. The sun was high in the sky and only one or two clouds were out. My car was like an oven when I got in. I rolled down all the windows and drove to the police station, the wind ruffling my hair. Hopefully, Jackson would be able to have lunch on such short notice. If not, he surely had five minutes so I co
uld tell him I didn’t think Clare killed George Sanders at all. Then, I’d tell him everything Ray said. He would have to believe me after that. No one could be that upset about a death they intentionally caused. It went against human nature.
I found a spot across the street and parked the car. Since I knew where Jackson’s office was now, I headed straight there this time. What I didn’t expect when I walked into the station was the blonde screaming her head off in the front lobby. And not just any blonde—Sandy Sanders.
Jackson did a double-take when I walked in. I could tell I interrupted his supervising of the scenario. He made his way over to me, his frown pulling even further down. “What are you doing here?”
“I was hoping we could have lunch. I was going to email you earlier, but then Mrs. Adams emailed me about a meeting and I got distracted.”
“Yeah. Mom told me. She said you were upstairs throwing books around to make you feel better.”
I tore my eyes away from the scene in front of me and blinked at Jackson. What a ridiculous thing to say. “I would never throw books around.” That was book abuse at its worst and not only would it be physically impossible for me to do such a thing, every fiber in my being revolted at the idea.
Jackson shook his head, smiling the whole time. “It was a joke, Mads.”
“You must be a mama’s boy. Is there anything she doesn’t text you?”
Jackson narrowed his gaze. “I can’t have lunch today, Maddie. We’re kind of in the middle of something.”
“I see that. What happened?”
“Sandy Sanders attacked Troy Levine.”
Whoa. I didn’t see that one coming. “Wow. Really?”
“She’s been screaming like this for an hour. We’re trying to book her, but she won’t calm down. If she doesn’t stop, we’ll have to throw her in a downstairs cell. We’re trying to avoid that, but she’s doing a great job of forcing our hand.”
“Have you got out of her the reason why she attacked Troy?”
“Not out of her. Out of Troy though. She requested a meeting with him and then asked him to sell his shares of her father’s company to her. He refused. Like I said before, my guess is he plans to do the exact same as soon as things calm down. He wants to be sole owner of Sanders, Inc. So does Sandy.”
“Is Troy okay?”
Jackson waved my worries away. “He’s fine. His assistants pass as bodyguards. He wasn’t injured, and neither was she. She’s close to having a mental breakdown though. If she hasn’t already. Troy didn’t even want her charged, but it’s not up to him.”
Her fragile mental state reminded me of John’s painful cries from the other night. “Well, that’s good. About them both being uninjured, I mean. I guess I should go, but I do have something to talk to you about.”
“Later, okay? I wish I could go to lunch with you, Maddie. Next time.”
I nodded and turned to leave, all my bravado about telling Jackson to leave Clare alone gone with Sandy’s harsh cries. I got through the first set of doors when John Williams himself came barreling through. He grabbed me by the shoulders and forced me back into the building. Cold metal lay against my temple, my mind not registering anything until he screamed, “Everybody stop!”
I winced. His booming voice practically took out my ear drums. In the reflection of the glass door at the other end of the foyer, I saw what John held to my head. A small silver gun.
My knees buckled underneath me, a cold shiver crippling any rational thought. John’s grip tightened. I heard Jackson say my name and then go into cop mode. “John…,” his strong, stern voice echoed through the large space.
Sandy whimpered on the other side of the room, her cries barely audible now. I could see the whole scene distorted in the glass door. The officers were all frozen in place. Jackson was the closest to me and his hand was outstretched toward John in a non-threatening manner.
John needled the gun into the side of my head and I grimaced involuntarily.
“Get back,” John seethed. “I’m calling the shots right now. One, we’re letting Sandy go. Two, I am never going back to that hospital again. Three, if everything goes smoothly, I’ll let Miss Styles go. If not, she’s dead. It wouldn’t be the first time I took someone’s life.”
Somewhere in the back of my head, my brain must have been functioning, not paralyzed like the other parts of me. John, sweating and acting nervous at the fundraiser. John and Sandy having an affair. John and Sandy arguing. John trying to throw himself off the parking garage. John with a gun to my head.
He killed George Sanders. And now he had me.
My whole body trembled. I heard Jackson say, “It’s going to be okay, Maddie.” Then, I remembered him touching my bracelet outside his mom’s house and how Mel made it for me and the smell of sage in my apartment. Protected. I chanted a protection spell in my head. Some things were just like riding a bike. I didn’t need to think of the words, they flowed through me. They were me.
“What are you saying, John?” Sandy screamed. “What did you do? What did you do?”
John pulled me so we faced his love now. “I told him, Sandy. I told him the night of the fundraiser that I loved you. You know what he did? He laughed at us. He said we would never be anything. I told him I didn’t feel right about still being his business partner when I was in love with his daughter and that I’d met with Troy to sell my shares to him. He got angry. Angrier than you got with me. He was furious. And all he did was laugh at me and laugh at me. I don’t know what happened. All of a sudden I was standing over him with my pocket knife jutting out from his body.”
Jackson came forward and John moved us backward in sync with him. “You need to let Miss Styles go,” Jackson said. “You’ve already done one terrible thing. You don’t need another. Let her go.”
“Let Sandy go,” John countered. “Let us walk out of here together and I’ll let Miss Styles go. You have my word.”
Sandy choked on a sob. “I don’t want you, John! I never did. Now you’ve killed my father because of me. Because of me…”
I heard a thump. John twisted, leaving space between him and I and I saw my opportunity. I started to run, but he grabbed my wrist.
“Ahh!” John Williams screamed out in pain. He’d grabbed my bracelet. He pulled back his arm and stared at his scalded palm. At the same time, heat emanated from the bracelet, scorching my wrist. I took his momentary lapse in concentration for what it was: a blessing.
I ran and Jackson moved in front of me, shielding me with his body. “Get around the desk,” he whispered. “Get down.”
I moved to turn, but John raised the gun in our direction, cementing my steps where they were. The barrel shook. “How did you do that?”
“Put the gun down,” Jackson said, his arms raising in front of him. “You’ve made some bad choices, but you can turn it all around here. There doesn’t have to be any more senseless deaths.”
John stepped closer, and I pulled back on Jackson’s shirt. I didn’t want to be anywhere near him. He was crazy. Someone shifted to my right. My gaze moved toward it, then everything happened in a blur.
Dezi lunged for John. The gun fired. I squeezed my eyes shut, my fingers digging into Jackson’s side as I repeated the spell in my head.
John let out an agonizing scream. Jackson leapt forward out of my grasp, my fingers clutching at nothing now, and he and Dezi wrestled John to the ground. I opened my eyes to find Jackson kneeling on John’s hand. The gun had discharged, but it backfired. His fingers and palm were a mangled mess. Smoke filled the air as John screamed. The smell of sage wafted toward me. The familiarity, the meaning immediately calmed my nerves.
I stepped backward until I felt a flat surface hit behind my legs. I sat and moved my head down, between my knees, breathing in and out, trying to steady my breaths as best I could.
Sandy was still crying. John was still screaming. Sage stilled filled my nostrils. And as I gripped my ankles, my bracelet was still warm on my skin.
What the hell just happened?
Chapter 12
I’d never sat on a bumper of an ambulance before. The slight breeze moved my hair in front of my face as the nice EMT guy took my blood pressure. He smiled, said it was high, but that was understandable considering what just happened. After he said I didn’t need to go to the hospital, I looked up at Jackson.
“Fine. I guess you’re right. You sure, though?” he asked the EMT.
“There’s nothing physically wrong with her.”
Jackson was the lucky one. If the gun hadn’t backfired, the bullet would’ve hit him. It was a good thing it got stuck in the barrel somehow. Mel had already called me almost a billion times—the first time when my head was still between my knees. She said she felt something…off. I assured her I was fine, and she made me promise to call her when I got home so she could come see me right away.
Mrs. Ward, of course, scrambled from the library as soon as she’d heard what happened. She was sitting next to me now, looking back and forth between Jackson and I mixing her emotions between frowning and smiling. “I’m just so glad you’re both okay. I was so worried.”
“I told you it wasn’t the mistress,” I said, hoping to lighten the mood and scare away my own negative thoughts.
“I suppose I should apologize to Ray,” Jackson’s mom said. “I may have given him a bit of a hard time after you left for lunch.”
“Mrs. Ward…”
“Just a little,” she said, her face clearly apologetic as she stared at me.
“Mom, you should leave the police work to me.”
“Who did you think it was?” I asked, blinking up at him, the sun shining directly into my eyes.