Creature Magic (Tabby Kitten Mystery Series Book 2)

by Constance Barker

  “Probably more than one by now,” Jesse joked.

  “Ha ha,” replied Thea. “I’ll check in later. Bye.” Thea hung up and set the phone down.

  “Hey, Sybil?” Thea called out to her familiar.

  The cat didn’t respond. She was probably downstairs with Granny. Thea used her magic to reach out across the ether and plucked Sybil from the other room, setting her down at the head of the bed.

  Sybil had obviously been asleep...when she appeared on Thea’s pillow she was still in a tight orange ball.

  Slowly, Sybil uncurled her body, stretching front and back legs as far as they would reach in opposite directions. She let out a huge yawn that gave her the appearance of a minuscule lion, and the orange fluff on her left side was matted down from sleeping on it for so long.

  “You know,” Sybil said drowsily, “I wasn’t far away. You could have just called me.”

  “Summoning you is kind of like calling you,” Thea responded and started petting Sybil’s fur back into shape. “Besides, it looks like it would’ve taken quite a bit of noise to wake you from your precious slumber.”

  “I suppose, but I was having such lovely dreams.” Sybil got in a sitting position and began grooming her front paws. “So, what was so urgent that you had to wake me?” she asked between licks.

  “I was hoping you could try scrying the gun.”

  Sybil stopped grooming herself. “I can try, but I don’t have high hopes,” she replied. Sybil curled her feet below her body and closed her eyes. Thea couldn’t help but notice that she resembled a loaf of bread.

  “Hmm, I’m seeing lots of possibilities,” Sybil told Thea. “Blaine was right. It seems it is a fairly common gun. And almost all of the ones I’m noticing are in motion. There’s no way I can get a solid fix on any of them.”

  Sybil blinked open her eyes and looked up at Thea. “Sorry,” she said.

  Thea scratched behind Sybil’s ears. “It’s all right, thanks for trying. Maybe Granny has some ideas.” She picked up Sybil and carried the orange lump downstairs.

  Granny was sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of tea in one hand and a book in the other when Thea and Sybil came down. Even though she was in her 80s Granny decided it was time enough that she read Twilight, but it wasn’t going well.

  “Oh, come on, this is not what vampires are like at all,” she said to the empty kitchen.

  “Frustrated, Granny?” Thea asked as she set Sybil down on the floor and pulled out a chair for herself.

  “That doesn’t even begin to cover it. You would think this author had never met a vampire before. It barely seems like she’s ever even met a human before.”

  Thea chuckled as Granny closed the book and set it to the side.

  “What’s up, kiddo? You disappeared pretty quickly last night.”

  “Yeah,” Thea replied. “Aunt Tiegen embarrassed me pretty good.”

  “Oh, what does she know anyway?” Granny said, shaking her head. She left it at that, sensing Thea would tell her what happened whenever she was ready.

  “Thanks, Granny. Do you think you could answer a magic question for me?”

  “Of course! I’m your gal. What question do you have?”

  “Well, we found a lot of quartz at the crime scene yesterday, and it seemed to interfere with Sybil’s scrying ability. Any idea why that was?”

  “Oh, of course,” Granny lazily waved a hand as if this was the simplest thing Thea could have asked. “Quartz is rather versatile, and its uses depend on what type of magic one’s trying to do. When it comes to scrying, quartz can make the whole process much more difficult. With other types of magic, like summoning, the spell is made far more focused and powerful.”

  “Hmm, okay,” Thea replied.

  “Any other questions?”

  “Yeah, but this one isn’t about magic. Granny, do you know if Eleanor owns a gun?”

  “A gun?” Granny replied, aghast. “Absolutely not.” She thought for a moment before adding, “Fred, on the other hand, does.”

  “Interesting,” Thea said before making herself a reminder to find out more about this later. Before she could investigate further, though, she had one more thing to discuss with Granny.

  Like ripping off a band-aid, Thea said, “Granny, I’m thinking of training more with Aunt Tiegen. Now that I know something strange happened to my parents, I think it’s important for me to learn more about my own powers. ” She waited for a response, unsure how her grandmother would respond to the decision.

  Granny sipped her tea before replying. “You know I love you and want nothing more than your happiness. If learning more from that… witch, will help you achieve that, I won’t stop you.”

  “Thanks.” Thea stood up and crossed over to Granny, giving her the biggest hug she could muster. “I’ve got some work to get done today, but I’ll see you a little later, okay?”

  “Of course, kid,” Granny said as she picked her book back up. “Meanwhile, I’m going to keep reading. Who knows, maybe it’ll get better by the end.” Thea laughed before she went upstairs to get dressed.

  Her joy didn’t last long, though, as she thought back to what happened the night before. If she wanted to get over this funk, the best course of action would be to throw herself into work.

  She called Blaine, barely waiting for him to finish saying hello before speaking. “Hey, I have a quick question for you.”

  On the other end of the line, Blaine could tell something was bothering Thea. He hoped he could help her. “Sure, what’s up?”

  “That Thorn guy you told me about, where I can find him?”

  Blaine was quiet, weighing whether he should share the information with Thea, but he ultimately decided to help her out. “Yeah, he’s staying at that cheap hotel on the edge of town with those other robed tourists.”

  Thea couldn’t remember the name of the hotel, but she knew exactly which one Blaine was talking about. She took a mental note to go check it out.

  “One more thing. Could you look up a B&E charge against Sandra Holden?” Thea asked.

  “Sure thing.” She could hear the faint click-clack of the keyboard as Blaine investigated. “It looks like Marcel filed the charges, but he dropped it before it got to court.”

  Thea didn’t respond as she processed the new information.

  “Hey, Thea, is everything okay?” Blaine asked on the other end.

  Thea sighed and tried to let go of the tension she’d been carrying around since the night before. “Yeah, I’m just ready for this all to be over, one way or another.”

  “I hear you,” Blaine replied. “I’ve got to get back to work here, but good luck. Let me know if you need anything else.”

  “Thanks, Blaine. You too.” Thea hung up the phone and began getting ready for the day.

  She had lots of questions she needed answered, and not a lot of time to look into them. She figured she’d start by looking into the piece of information she’d just received from Granny.

  Fred had a gun.

  Chapter 19

  Thea left Sybil at the house to get her beauty rest when she went over to the Witt’s End Diner. If she really needed her familiar, the cat was only a spell away.

  When Thea arrived at the restaurant, she walked straight to the kitchen. The staff knew her well enough at this point not to stop her lest they incur Fred’s wrath for upsetting Granny Denver’s pride and joy.

  Thea walked past the closed office door, noticing Fred busy inside on the phone. She entered the kitchen and found Eleanor cooking like her life depended on it. Uncooked and cooked pies littered the kitchen counters and bowls full of various fillings and dough surrounded the chef. Eleanor’s back was turned when Thea came in.

  “Hey there,” Thea announced herself so as not to surprise the busy chef.

  Eleanor turned to look at Thea and smiled. “Hello, sweetie. Sorry, I can’t stop to talk. I’ve got to keep cooking for the pie contest tonight.”

  “That’s no problem. I can
talk with you while you work, if you don’t mind.” Thea pressed.

  Eleanor dimmed a bit, but replied, “Sure, just don’t be surprised if I get distracted. This is very important work. Of course, I doubt Cuisine Maline has any chance of defeating me tonight. My home-style pies are a local favorite.” Thea noticed the malice in Eleanor’s voice when she recalled the rival restaurant.

  Thea looked at the pies Eleanor had been putting together; each one was adorned with small, intricate pastry leaves. Thea’s mouth watered as she inspected the assortment of pies surrounding her.

  “What was it you wanted to talk about?” Eleanor asked.

  Breaking her gaze from the scrumptious-looking pies, Thea bluntly asked “What was it that you and Marcel were arguing about when the Best Restaurant award was announced?”

  If anything could stop Eleanor from her work, even momentarily, it was this question. The chef stopped all her preparations for just a second before carefully setting down her rolling pin. Eleanor turned to face Thea directly and crossed her flour-covered arms in front of her chest.

  “Now, I’m not sure what exactly you’re talking about,” Eleanor replied crossly, “but any rumor about Marcel and me is a big, fat lie.”

  “Are you sure?” Thea prodded.

  Eleanor huffed. “Of course I’m sure! As if I actually cared what the Better Business Bureau has to say about which restaurant is best. I know it’s the Witt’s End and that’s all that matters to me.”

  Thea wasn’t sure how much she believed the woman. The restaurant was Eleanor’s greatest treasure, and she was a proud enough woman that she adored the attention her 30-year standing as Best Restaurant brought her. Still, that front wouldn’t get Thea anywhere. She decided to take a different approach.

  “All right. Well, can you tell me if Fred has a gun? There was one at the crime scene and —” Before Thea could finish her sentence, Eleanor interrupted angrily.

  “That’s enough young lady. I don’t care who you’re related to, I think it’s about time you get going. It’s bad enough that you would accuse me of something, but to bring Fred into it is too much.” Eleanor approached Thea and began shooing her out of the kitchen.

  “I think it’s best if you leave the diner for today,” Eleanor said coldly before turning her back to Thea and reentering the kitchen. Thea, not one for confrontation, agreed, and made her way to the front door.

  As soon as she had left the restaurant, however, she heard the door open up again behind her.

  “Thea, wait!” Fred called out.

  Thea turned. “Hey, Fred. Sorry for causing a scene. I hope you know that wasn’t my intent.”

  Fred smiled and shook her head. “No, no, you did nothing wrong. I’m sorry Eleanor can be so… difficult, sometimes. She’s just protective, really. She told me you were asking if I owned a gun?”

  Thea reddened, not sure if this question would upset Fred too. “Well, yeah, but—”

  “It’s all right, hon. Yes, I do own a gun. In fact, if the police want to take a look at it, they’re more than welcome to.”

  “Wow, thanks, Fred,” Thea replied.

  “Absolutely. I think the best thing for everyone will be when this whole mess is behind us. I know that’s what Eleanor is thinking, too, she just has trouble when she’s so stressed. I know she might be acting suspicious, but I trust that woman with my life. We’ve always been there for each other over the years, you know?”

  Thea smiled, thinking about her friendship with Pippa. Someday, the two of them would be old ladies reminiscing about the adventures they’d had in their youth.

  “I get it,” she replied. “And I really am sorry for upsetting Eleanor. I can go in and apologize.”

  “Oh, no need,” said Fred. “Let’s let her cool off a bit. Maybe when you see her later you can tell her how wonderful the pies are. Complimenting that woman’s cooking is the quickest way back into her good graces.”

  “Well, any compliment I give her cooking won’t be a lie. I can’t believe I went at her like that. I’ve just been so caught up in the case and I need to focus on the facts instead of just what I come up with in my head.”

  “I’m sure you’ll figure this whole thing out and have the town back to normal in no time, Thea. And when you do, we’ll have a big pie with your name on it.”

  Thea and Fred hugged before Thea left. The middle-aged woman was surprisingly solid and warm.

  Thea really, really hoped that neither Fred nor Eleanor was a murderer.

  With that thought in mind, she said good-bye to Fred and took off for the edge of town. It was time to talk to this “Thorn” character.

  Chapter 20

  Walking into the dim-lighted hotel brought Thea an indescribable feeling of dread. She wondered if she was just allowing her paranoia to get to her head as she imagined shadows everywhere. Coupled with the eerie silence, Thea didn’t like being in that place one bit. She wanted to get out of there as soon as possible, but she needed to find Thorn first.

  After following around a few signs along the walls of the hallways, she was eventually directed towards a conference room. Faint mumbling could be heard inside. Her heart was thumping loudly within her chest as she reached out and took the door handle within her grasp, making her way in.

  “Quiet!” a voice exclaimed in the dark room. “Who is that? Who are you?”

  Thea was already preparing herself for the worst when she opened that door, but what she didn’t expect was to see numerous pairs of glistening eyes staring back at her in the darkness. Some of their faces were illuminated by the candles they were holding. All of them looked vacantly at her.

  Her right hand desperately searched the wall behind her, feeling around for a light switch. When she found it, she flicked it on. Multiple groans were heard as the cult members shielded their eyes from the sudden brightness.

  “Which one of you is Thorn?” she asked, disregarding the person who wanted her to identify herself. “I need to speak with him.”

  From near the back of the room, a small man raised his hand before quickly dropping it. He stood up, straightening out his clothes to appear more presentable.

  “I’m Thorn,” he said with a confident flare. “If you’d like, we can speak outside.”

  As she scrutinized him, her eyes drifted towards the long boardroom table in the middle of the room. Based on the way their chairs were orientated, they were paying close attention to the magical items found on that table.

  She recognized a few things immediately. Herbs, symbols, and stones of various materials. She could have sworn she spotted a few chunks of quartz scattered amongst the items.

  Taking a few deep breaths, Thea focused and tried to repeat the magical meditation that Aunt Tiegen taught her to do. She was transfixed, close to achieving her goal. However, a cold hand wrapped itself around her wrist and ruined her progress.

  “Come,” Thorn said, before stalking out of the room.

  With all eyes on her, she had no choice but to follow him outside.

  “Now,” he started, leaning against the wall. “What did you want to talk with me for? You interrupted a very important meeting, you know.”

  “Do you know why someone would want to kill Marcel?” she asked bluntly, wasting no time to get straight to the point. “It seems like a lot of people had it out for him. What would you say was the clear cut motive?”

  Her words were enough to make Thorn’s face go pale. Hastily, he reached out and closed the door to the conference room to make sure no one could overhear their conversation. After all, this was a sensitive topic for all of them.

  “I-I…” he fumbled out, wetting his lips. “Look. I’m not sure I’m supposed to tell you this. It’s a secret.”

  “I’m trying to figure out who killed your friend, Thorn,” Thea replied as a way to get him to open up. “If you’re able to help me out, we’ll find out who his murderer is.”

  Although reluctant, Thorn sighed and conceded. “He was a demon. Half-demon
. Spawn of Satan, if you will. At least, that’s what he told us.”

  “And you believed him?”

  “Why wouldn’t I?” Thorn asked, perplexed. “It makes sense why someone would want to kill a demon! Their blood… their life essence….”

  He patted his chest a few times, right above his heart.

  “Do you know how powerful demon’s blood is when creating potions? When using them for spellwork? It’s rare to even get a drop of it. I’m guessing someone wanted to capitalize on that,” he explained. “I saw it for myself. The horns on his forehead. They were tiny, but they were there. His blood would have held a lot of magic.”

  “And how did you see those horns?” Thea prompted, remembering how Marcel would always wear a hat to conceal them. Only the people who saw his dead body up close would have known.

  Thorn chuckled. “Why, I snuck into the police department. Made my way down to their morgue where they kept his body to see it for myself.”