Witches' Diaries

by Morgana Best

  “Who yelled?” Aunt Agnes said at once. “Was it you?”

  “No,” I said.

  “It came from upstairs,” Lucas said. “You all wait here. Lock the door. I’ll come and get you when everything is safe.”

  “No way!” Aunt Agnes said.

  “What if another guest has been murdered?” I asked, terrified.

  “What if all the guests have been murdered?” he replied.

  “That wasn’t comforting.”

  We all hurried out of the room and charged up the stairs.

  Colonel Mustard and Demelza were standing in the hallway. Colonel Mustard was wearing a cucumber face mask and a gorgeous satin bathrobe, while Demelza was wearing ancient slippers with holes in the soles. One looked very glamorous, and the other looked frumpy—I was surprised to see who looked like what, when I thought the roles would have been reversed.

  Finn walked out of his door, rubbing his eyes. “What happened?”

  “Where’s Moxie Maisie?” I asked.

  We ran to her room. Lucas burst open the door. Moxie Maisie was on the ground, sobbing. She pointed to the door.

  “They were standing right there,” she cried.

  “Who was it?” I asked. “What happened?”

  “There was a knock on the door. It sounded like Mother. She said it was urgent. I opened the door a crack to see who it was, and whoever it was pushed the door open and stuck a gun in my face.” She burst into tears.

  “Did you see who it was?” I asked her.

  She shook her head. “I didn’t turn on the light. I thought it was Mother. It sounded just like her.”

  Lucas helped Moxie Maisie off the carpet.

  “They had a gun,” she whimpered.

  “We should search the grounds for the gun,” Colonel Mustard said.

  “Is that it?” Finn pointed to something at the end of the corridor.

  Colonel Mustard hurried over to it. “The culprit must have dropped it as they fled into the night.”

  “Don’t touch it!” Aunt Agnes screeched. “The police will need to fingerprint it.”

  We all hurried to the gun and peered at it.

  “That’s a fake gun,” I said all of a sudden. “That’s the fake gun we planted in one of the cottages. It was supposed to represent one of the weapons found in Cluedo. It’s not real. It’s just a realistic replica we bought.”

  “Which cottage was it in?” Lucas asked.

  “I can’t remember,” Aunt Maude said.

  “It was in Mother’s cottage, the dining room,” Moxie Maisie said. “I saw it there.”

  “Yes, that’s right.” Demelza nodded slowly.

  “It will be light soon,” Lucas said. “Let us all go to the living room and wait for the detectives. After this latest incident, nobody should be alone for the rest of the night.”

  We all went to the living room, where Breena was still asleep in front of the fire. She opened one eye and then went back to sleep.

  The detectives turned up half an hour later, both looking the worse for wear. They escorted the boarders upstairs.

  When they were out of earshot, Lucas said, “It had to be Demelza, Colonel Mustard, or Finn.”

  “Moxie Maisie thought it was Demelza,” Aunt Maude said.

  “Finn might have imitated Demelza’s voice,” Lucas said, before adding, somewhat reluctantly, “The same could be said for Colonel Mustard.”

  “But why a fake revolver?” I asked. “Surely, the murderer knew it wasn’t real. It doesn’t make sense.”

  “That was a good replica revolver,” Aunt Maude pointed out, “and this is Australia. Nobody here knows what real guns look like.”

  “Except farmers,” I added. “Farmers are the only ones in Australia with guns. Finn is a farmhand.”

  “Why do you want to protect him?” Lucas asked.

  I rolled my eyes. “Surely, nobody would think we would leave a real gun, and a loaded gun at that, in a cottage as a Cluedo prop!”

  Lucas agreed. “In that case, the motive was simply to scare Moxie Maisie.”

  “But why?” I asked.

  Nobody had a ready answer.

  The detectives returned with Moxie Maisie, Finn, Colonel Mustard, and Demelza. “The boarders have given us permission to search their cottages,” Detective Oakes said. “I want everybody to stay here until we return.”

  Demelza paced up and down in front of the fireplace. “Unthinkable,” she said over and over again. “Unthinkable.”

  “Would you stop that, Mother?” Moxie Maisie said. “You’re getting on my nerves.”

  “Eli has been murdered, if it escaped your notice,” Demelza snapped.

  “Then who was it? Aren’t you nervous that the police are searching your cottage?”

  Demelza frowned deeply. “Why would I care?”

  “The murderer would care, because the police will find some incriminating evidence.”

  “What makes you say that?” Demelza asked. She appeared genuinely worried.

  Was Demelza the murderer? I suspected Lucas was thinking the same thing as he caught my eye and nodded in Demelza’s direction.

  “Are you all right, Pepper?” Finn asked me. “You look troubled.”

  Within an instant, Lucas had his arm around my shoulders. “Pepper is quite all right. Thank you for asking.” He glowered at Finn.

  Finn shrugged and walked away.

  “Would you have any brandy?” Colonel Mustard asked Aunt Agnes.

  “Sure.” She went to walk out of the door, but Moxie Maisie called after her.

  “Nobody is allowed to leave the room. The detective said so.” Her tone was commanding.

  Aunt Agnes turned to her. “He was referring only to all you murder suspects.” With that, Aunt Agnes sailed out of the room.

  I did my best not to chuckle.

  Colonel Mustard was well into the brandy by the time the detectives returned. Detective Oakes walked straight over to Demelza. He held up a small, white container in a plastic bag. “Do you know what this is?”

  Demelza shrugged. “No. Should I?”

  “It’s lead acetate.”

  “Mother!” Moxie Maisie shrieked. “How could you? My stepfather!”

  “I don’t understand.” Demelza rubbed her temples.

  Detective Oakes turned to us. “Did any of you keep lead acetate in any of the cottages?”

  “Most certainly not!” Aunt Agnes said.

  Detective Oakes nodded. “We are taking this into evidence, Mrs Miles, along with your laptop.”

  “I don’t understand.” Demelza appeared genuinely distraught. “I didn’t put that lead stuff there, and why do you want my laptop?”

  “Are you stating that you did not purchase this lead acetate?” Oakes held up the bag again. “Have a closer look. It’s better for you if you tell us the truth.”

  “I am telling you the truth,” she protested. “I never bought that stuff. I don’t even know what it is.”

  Oakes lowered the bag containing the lead acetate container. “We have looked through your laptop, and you purchased this lead acetate online several months ago.”

  “No, I didn’t!”

  “The evidence is there, Mrs Miles. You purchased it some months ago, and Mr Miles has possibly died from lead poisoning.”

  Demelza’s hands flew to her throat. She backed away.

  “Mother! You’re the murderer?” Moxie Maisie shrieked. She burst into tears, and Finn rushed to comfort her.

  Colonel Mustard kept sipping his brandy.

  “You’ll have to accompany us to the station now,” Detective Oakes said.

  Demelza allowed herself to be led away. Moxie Maisie continued to sob.

  After an awkward silence, Aunt Agnes clapped her hands for attention. “I have decided the best thing to do is to make everyone a hearty breakfast, a pan-cooked breakfast. Follow me into the kitchen, now!”

  Everybody, even Moxie Maisie, followed Aunt Agnes into the kitchen. She heated a pan
, tossed in some oil, and threw in some mushrooms. The pan was so comically big that it looked as though she was feeding a giant. My stomach rumbled when the delicious smell hit my nose. Then Aunt Agnes cracked a dozen eggs and waited a few minutes until they cooked. Meanwhile, Aunt Maude toasted bread, and Aunt Dorothy opened avocados.

  They were efficient, my aunts. I had the feeling when I watched them cook that they had been making breakfast together for years, which, of course, they had. Centuries, even.

  Lucas made the coffee, because he refused to let anyone else make the coffee, and soon we all sat at the table and enjoyed our breakfast.

  Somehow, we were still hungry afterwards, so Lucas set about making ricotta and rosemary hotcakes. We all offered to help but soon discovered that Lucas was bossy in the kitchen and refused to believe anybody was as skilful as he was. When Finn suggested Lucas add another pinch of salt, I felt certain that we were going to need to solve another murder.

  Not that it would have been a difficult murder to solve.

  Chapter 18

  “I can’t believe it was Demelza. It was a bit silly of her to buy the lead acetate online under her own name.”

  The aunts and I were sitting outside the manor in the sunlight, although it was quite chilly. I huddled into my coat. Breena was running around in circles.

  When Aunt Maude caught my eye, she said, “I think she’s chasing her tail. I know she doesn’t have one, but I suppose old memories die hard.”

  I smiled. “I can’t believe it was Demelza,” I said again. “Murdering her mother! And trying to murder her own daughter!”

  “She was only trying to scare Moxie Maisie,” Aunt Agnes pointed out. “The gun was fake, after all.”

  I shook my head. “All those years of Priscilla being horribly mean to her had obviously taken their toll.”

  “That is, if the motive was revenge.” Aunt Agnes sipped some Witches’ Brew and then set her goblet down with a thud. “Maybe the motive was financial, after all. Moxie Maisie did say her mother was convinced she would gain from Moxie Maisie’s inheritance.”

  “But why murder her ex-husband?” I asked them.

  The aunts all chuckled. “You obviously haven’t had an ex-husband, or you’d know the answer to that one,” Aunt Agnes said. Aunt Maude and Aunt Dorothy nodded sagely.

  Aunt Agnes pushed on. “It seems they weren’t working for The Other.”

  I agreed. “It seems as though they weren’t witches or werewolves either.”

  Aunt Agnes took another sip of Witches’ Brew before responding. “I’m not so sure about that, Valkyrie. After all, Moxie Maisie’s diaries were each labelled Witch’s Dairy, and Eli said we were nasty old witches.”

  Aunt Maude agreed. “That has to be more than a coincidence. And if it is more than a coincidence, then they had another reason for coming here, a not so good reason.”

  I was perplexed. “Like what? What possible reason could they have?”

  The aunts exchanged glances. “I wish I knew,” Aunt Agnes said. “I am glad none of them have attempted to harm us, although I did wonder if they were going to try to pin the murders on one of us.”

  “Has anybody seen Lucas?” I asked them. “He hasn’t been around much lately.”

  “I’m sure he’s not doing anything wrong,” Aunt Maude said.

  “I didn’t think that he was.” I frowned and looked at her. She fidgeted. Did Aunt Maude know something I didn’t? For a moment, I considered asking her but knew she would only deny it.

  “Lucas was around all last night,” Aunt Dorothy said. “Maybe he’s gone to his man cave.”

  “Man cave?” I echoed.

  “It’s just a figure of speech,” Aunt Dorothy said. “Men like to be alone, in the shed at the back of the garden, mixing up potions and watching football while muttering to themselves and using power tools.”

  “Honestly, Dorothy, there is no shed at the bottom of the garden,” Aunt Agnes snapped. “Where do you get these ideas from?”

  As the aunts bickered, I zoned out and didn’t hear Aunt Agnes addressing me at first.

  “Valkyrie!”

  I looked up. “Sorry, Aunt Agnes. I was a million miles away.”

  “Would you like to come to town with us? We’re going to spend an hour or two in the antique shop.”

  “Such fun!” Aunt Dorothy said.

  “Thanks for the invitation, but I think I’ll pass,” I said. “Maybe I should stay here and keep an eye on the boarders.”

  “But the murderer has been apprehended,” Aunt Maude said.

  I shook my head. “No, I mean to see if they are all right. Colonel Mustard has fallen to pieces.”

  The aunts all nodded solemnly. “Yes, he’s taking it much harder than Moxie Maisie,” Aunt Agnes said. “You’d think she was the one who would take things badly, considering her mother murdered her grandmother and her stepfather.” To Breena, she said, “Would you like to come with us? We’re going to the antique shop.” Breena shook her head, but then Aunt Agnes added, “We’ll go to lunch afterwards. You can have salmon.”

  “I’m coming.” Breena trotted over to Aunt Agnes.

  They all left, leaving me alone in the sun and the cold wind. I thought about going back inside to get something warmer, but I was in that very state of cold where somebody is too chilled and apathetic to fetch more warm clothing.

  Finn wandered over to me. “It’s chilly, isn’t it?” he said by way of greeting.

  I readily agreed. “Are you going to go for a walk along the beach?”

  “I was planning to, but Moxie Maisie and Frances are too busy having an argument.”

  That surprised me. “I thought they got along fine.”

  He shrugged. “For the most part, although Moxie Maisie does complain about Frances all the time.”

  I expect she complains about everybody all the time, I thought. Aloud I said, “It can’t be too bad because I can’t hear anybody screaming.”

  I hadn’t meant it seriously, although Finn seemed to think I was serious. “Oh no, Moxie Maisie and Frances are good friends. They tell each other everything. She never screams when she’s arguing with Frances. She’s always worried about what other people will think.”

  I hadn’t noticed Moxie Maisie particularly careful about other people’s thoughts or feelings, but of course, I wasn’t about to voice my thoughts to Finn. I simply nodded.

  He sat in the garden chair beside me. “I can’t believe Demelza is the murderer,” he said.

  “Neither can I, but who else could it be?”

  Finn didn’t appear to realise I was speaking rhetorically. “It only leaves Frances.” He tapped his chin. “Still, the police have arrested Demelza.”

  “They haven’t exactly arrested her, have they? Not as far as I know.”

  “They didn’t tell us that, but it’s obvious that’s what’s going to happen,” Finn said. “Moxie Maisie said that’s what happens in these cases. They make a good case before they arrest somebody. I doubt we’ll see Demelza again, not until the trial. Moxie Maisie doesn’t think they’ll let her out on bail, not for murder.” He shook his head. “Amazing how you can know somebody. You think you know them well. but they turn out to be a murderer.”

  “It’s terrible,” I said. “Moxie Maisie must be so upset.”

  “She’s relieved more than anything,” Finn told me. “She knew it was her mother all along, but she didn’t want to say so outright, because she knew nobody would believe her.”

  I was shocked. “You’re kidding! She knew it was Demelza from the beginning?”

  Finn nodded.

  I pushed on. “So, she didn’t even suspect Colonel Mustard?”

  Finn shook his head. “No, they’re good friends. She told me…” He hesitated and looked around. “Well, I suppose Moxie Maisie won’t mind me telling you, now that the police have Demelza in custody.”

  “What?” I prompted him.

  “She told me that she was certain Demelza was setti
ng up Frances to take the fall for the murder. Demelza knew Frances would be going to Priscilla’s cottage that night, so Moxie Maisie said that Demelza murdered Priscilla so he would find the body and be the main suspect.”

  “But he screamed,” I pointed out. “Demelza wouldn’t have been able to plan that.”

  “Frances screams at the drop of a hat,” Finn told me with a chuckle. “We all know that. Moxie Maisie told me that Demelza would have known he’d scream, but she said he was such an old fool—her words, not mine—that it wouldn’t look good for him.”

  “It must have been very hard for Moxie Maisie to find out that her mother was the murderer.” I was doing my best to feel sympathy for Moxie Maisie and coming up short.

  “It’s not like the usual mother-daughter relationship,” Finn told me. “Otherwise, I’d be quite worried about her. No, Moxie Maisie is terribly resentful of Demelza. They were very poor growing up.”

  “But that wasn’t Demelza’s fault.”

  Finn shrugged. “Moxie Maisie is very resentful of Demelza because of her upbringing. Demelza is an old fuddy-duddy, while Moxie Maisie is glamorous. She feels as though she missed out a lot in life.”

  “Well, I’m sure the inheritance will make up for that,” I said brightly, thinking all sorts of rude thoughts about Moxie Maisie.

  Finn’s face brightened. “Yes, it will. And now there’ll be no opposition to our marriage.” He cupped his hand over his mouth. “Oh, that sounded so unfeeling of me! I didn’t mean that how it sounded.”

  “Do you mean that Demelza and Eli would have tried to prevent you from getting married?”

  “They couldn’t have stopped us, but they would have made our lives a misery,” Finn said. “Now with Demelza going to jail for a long time, and Eli, um, not being around, Moxie Maisie and I can get on with our lives. It’s been horribly stressful, you see. Families! And Moxie Maisie’s family was certainly a toxic one.”

  I didn’t know what to say, so I nodded awkwardly. “Oh, Finn, there’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you, but it’s silly and trivial.”

  He shot me an encouraging smile. “What is it?”

  “Someone, I forget who,” I lied, “told me that Moxie Maisie’s diaries each had the words, Witch’s Dairy, on the cover. Does Moxie Maisie practise witchcraft?”