by Morgana Best
Aunt Agnes nodded. “That’s right.”
“But that’s good, isn’t it?” I said in a small voice. “Won’t that somehow thwart their plans?”
Lucas dashed my hopes. “No, because it would be an empty seat, one less person to vote against them. An empty seat would be as good as having someone on their side. Have I got that right, Agnes?”
“Yes, you have. On the bright side, no one’s going to come after Valkyrie.”
It was only then that I remembered that the dying man had whispered either, “Beware of Lucas,” or “Beware of Lucas’s….”
CHAPTER 5
T he aunts hurried us all off to the police station, saying we should give our statements as soon as possible to get the unpleasant mess, as they put it, out of the way. I didn’t think I’d ever be able to get it out of the way, given that a man had died right in front of me. I was feeling a little nauseous, and what’s more, I didn’t know whether or not I should tell the aunts what the man had said before he died. I fully intended to tell Lucas; it’s just that I hadn’t yet had the chance.
The waiting room was stuffy, and reeked of body odour and stale cheap coffee. My stomach rumbled loudly, reminding me just how hungry I was. It was a strange sensation, being both starving and slightly nauseous at the same time. I shifted in my seat once more and looked at the officer behind the desk. I hoped the detectives wouldn’t keep us waiting too much longer. I shot a look at Aunt Agnes to see how she was coping. After all, she had known the man well.
It was a full five minutes before Detective Oakes appeared and ushered me into an interview room.
This room smelt marginally better, only because the detective’s sickly sweet aftershave overpowered everything else. By reflex, I looked around for a window, but realised within a split second that interview rooms wouldn’t have windows from which criminals, or innocent people for that matter, could escape.
While the detective was consulting his notes, I regarded the room. I wondered how people could continue to work in such bland, depressing surroundings, but I supposed they had more important things on their mind than interior design. This room was pale olive and beige, contrasting rather unpleasantly with the bright lime green plastic of the chairs. The cold metal table was in keeping with the ambience, or lack thereof. A low humming sound reverberated through the room, but I had no idea of its source.
I duly gave the detective a blow by blow description, omitting only the words that the man had said before he died. I felt absolutely no guilt about keeping it from the police. After all, they certainly couldn’t be told that the man was a vampire and that Lucas was a vampire Cleaner. I did, however, feel guilty about keeping it from my aunts.
When I returned to the waiting room, Aunt Agnes was not there. “We’ve already been questioned, Valkyrie,” Aunt Maude said. “Agnes is in there longer than we were.”
“That makes sense,” I said. “After all, the note said, Agnes, you’re next. I suppose he’s trying to find out who would have reason to harm her.”
“Well, he’s not going to find that out,” Aunt Dorothy said.
I nodded. “Sure, but he doesn’t know that. He’s only doing his job.”
“Quite so, quite so,” both aunts said.
When Aunt Agnes finally appeared, her face was white and drawn. Aunt Dorothy opened her mouth, but Aunt Agnes shook her head. “Not here.”
The four of us walked outside and climbed into her small car. “That was gruelling,” Aunt Agnes said. “He seemed to think I had a connection to the victim.”
“But you do have a connection to the victim,” Aunt Dorothy pointed out, but was silenced by a withering glare from Agnes.
“I’m hardly going to tell the police that we dated centuries ago, am I, Dorothy, or that we were both members of the Council?” she snapped. “Anyway, that detective seemed to think I was connected with the victim in some way because of the note left on him. He thinks whoever killed the victim is coming after me next.”
“That’s exactly what the note said,” Dorothy said a little too cheerfully.
“So what did you tell the police?” I asked Agnes.
“Not a thing,” Agnes said. “I just kept telling him that I had no idea, that I just assumed it was someone trying to throw them off the track. However, he thought it was strange that someone I didn’t know would be murdered on my porch and with a note saying that I was next. It does look very strange. Rather, I can see why it looks strange to the police.”
“What are we going to do?” Aunt Maude asked her.
“Obviously, we are going to have to solve this murder, because the police won’t have a hope of doing so,” Aunt Agnes said. “Let’s all get coffee and cake. I need to take my new car for a spin.”
I had totalled Aunt Agnes’s old car only recently, when a murderer had run me off the road. Fortunately, Aunt Agnes had received a handsome payout figure from her insurance company, and had recently bought a bright yellow Ford Fiesta.
The other aunts readily agreed, but just then I had an incoming text from Linda. Are you all right? I’ve heard about the body on your porch. Want to meet for coffee now? I’m at the Lotus Bean if you can make it.
I read the text to the aunts. “Would you mind dropping me off at the Lotus Bean?”
“Sure, that’s fine,” Aunt Agnes said. “But Valkyrie, please be very careful what you tell Linda. You can’t tell her that the note said I was next, and obviously, you can’t tell her anything about the Council.”
“Yes, I realise that,” I said. I texted Linda to say that I was already in town and would be right there. “I’ll ask Linda to drop me off home afterwards,” I told the aunts.
Linda was waiting for me at the Lotus Bean, the newest coffee shop in town. Unlike the police station, the decor here was pretty: greens and purples intertwined on the most interesting logo I had ever seen, and the tables and chairs were of handcrafted wood. Rather, I’m sure they were mass produced, but made in such a way as to resemble handcrafted wood.
Linda waved to me to get my attention, a rather unnecessary move given that she was sitting alone. The gentle breeze had driven other patrons inside. People in beach towns generally felt the cold far more than their inland counterparts.
“I ordered your regular coffee for you,” she said by way of greeting. “I ordered your usual cake as well. I hope that was all right.”
I thanked her and took a seat opposite her, with my back to the wall and with a good view of the empty tables and gently waving blue umbrellas in front of me.
Linda clasped her hands and leant forward. “Okay, tell me everything! I mean, I don’t want to sound ghoulish, but another dead body? What are the chances?”
I rubbed my forehead. Before I could say anything, she pressed on. “Do the police know who it is? Have you ever seen him before? Was he one of the guests?”
Linda had become a good friend, but this wasn’t my secret to tell. “I’ve never seen him before,” I said, and that was the truth. “I don’t know what he was doing on the porch.”
Linda leant back in her chair. “The scary thing is that the murderer must’ve been really close to you when you found him.”
I was startled. “What makes you say that?”
Linda was unable to reply because the waitress deposited our drinks and cakes in front of us. As soon as the waitress was out of earshot, Linda continued. “Because his injuries were serious and he died when you found him.”
My jaw fell open. “How did you know that?”
“The lady staying a few rooms from me is in town for her daughter’s birthday, and her daughter is married to one of the paramedics who attended.”
“I should have known.” I said dryly. “People in small country towns know your business better than you do.”
Linda nodded. “Yes, the paramedic told this lady’s daughter, who told me. He also told her about the note with the knife. Agnes, you’re next, wasn’t it?”
Now I really was shocked. “I think that
was meant to be a secret.”
Linda took a large bite of her cake, and swallowed it before answering. “Well, she did swear me to secrecy.”
I sipped my coffee to try to calm my nerves, but upon reflection, coffee probably wasn’t the best choice for calming nerves.
“Is Lucas on the job?” Linda asked me. Linda knew that Lucas was a Cleaner, and Linda herself was a Shifter wolf. I had met her as soon as I arrived in town, and her husband too, a most unpleasant man. He had been murdered. I shuddered at the thought. After a rocky start, Linda and I had become firm friends, and she had decided to stay in Lighthouse Bay. She was currently looking around for a house to buy.
“No, because this murder isn’t anything to do with vampires or Shifters,” I said, trying my best to sound convincing.
Apparently, Linda bought it. “Of course. Silly me, I wasn’t thinking. Still, the note makes me wonder if it could be something to do with vampires.”
“Maybe the murderer is a disgruntled former guest,” I said in an attempt to deflect. “The business was a real mess when I arrived.”
Linda laughed. “I don’t mean to make light of such a serious business as murder, but if guests threatened all substandard accommodation businesses, there wouldn’t be many people left. Besides, the note shows that your aunt was connected in some way with the victim.”
I was beginning to think that we should have removed the note, after all. “Yes, it’s a mystery for sure,” I said, and then popped a big piece of cake in my mouth to save me having to answer any more questions.
Luckily for me, the conversation soon turned to Linda’s search for a new house. “They all look much better online,” she said. “The agents must take those photos with a special lens, to make the rooms look much bigger. Also, some houses are on a very steep block, but they look perfectly flat online. Did you know that most people don’t clean their houses when they’re for sale? Why, some of those ovens I have seen are absolutely filthy, and so are most of the glass shower doors, too.” Finally, Linda stopped her tirade about houses for sale and insisted on paying for our coffee and cake. She disappeared inside, while I looked out over the busy street.
I thought I saw Lucas over the other side of the street, but the figure appeared to be acting furtively. Maybe he was on secret Cleaner business, something to do with the murder. He was wearing a baseball cap and large dark sunglasses, something he never did. I stood up and crossed the road, intending to talk to him.
As I approached, he ducked into a little café. I looked over my shoulder for Linda, but she hadn’t emerged from the coffee shop yet, so I went inside to speak to Lucas. His head was bent over a menu, and strangely, he was still wearing his sunglasses.
“Lucas.”
He did not look up. I walked over to him. “Lucas.” He looked up at me and smiled, but did not speak.
“I haven’t had a chance to tell you, and I haven’t told the aunts, but the dead man, that is, Collier Cardon, mentioned you just before he died.”
Lucas looked shocked. “What did he say?”
“I’m not quite sure. He either said, ‘Beware of Lucas,’ or ‘Beware of Lucas’s…’. I mean, I think he actually said ‘Beware of Lucas’s…’ but I didn’t know if he was stammering because he was dying, the poor guy.”
Lucas tapped his chin.
“What do you think he meant?”
“I have no idea, but it’s obviously important. I’ll get to the bottom of it. Did you tell the police?”
I slid into the seat opposite Lucas and leant across the table. “Of course not! I haven’t even told my aunts.”
“Why not?” Lucas whispered.
I thought the answer was obvious. “Because they might suspect you, of course,” I said wearily. “I haven’t told a soul.”
Lucas looked pleased, as far as I could tell in the dark room. “Promise me you won’t tell anyone. This could be very significant.”
“Do you have any idea what it means?”
Lucas shook his head. “Not exactly, but it does give me a lead I can look into. Now then, promise me you won’t mention this again?” I opened my mouth to say something, but he held up his hand. “I mean, even to me, even when we’re in private. We have probably said too much now, but I have reason to believe that there might be a listening device close to my person.”
I was shocked. “What do you mean? A bug?”
Lucas shrugged. “This murder has far deeper implications, so I have to be especially careful. The walls have ears, as they say. Never mention what Collier Cardon said to anyone, even me, even if you’re sure no one can overhear the conversation, because there could be a listening device trained on us at that very moment.”
Curiouser and curiouser. “Sure, if that’s what you think, but will you keep me updated on your investigation?”
Lucas nodded. “I will. Just don’t mention to anyone that you saw me here. I’m watching someone and I’m trying to be incognito.” He gestured to his cap and the huge sunglasses. “Don’t even mention to me later on that we had this conversation, not unless I think it’s safe and I bring it up first. I’m sorry to be so mysterious, but there’s a lot going on here.”
“If you think that’s best.” It wasn’t like Lucas to be so overly dramatic, so I figured he had good reason to say what he did. “I’d better be getting back to Linda.”
A red flush travelled up his skin.
“Lucas, are you all right?”
He fanned himself with a menu. “This disguise is making me hot.”
He sure was acting strangely. I gave him a little nod and then hurried back over to the café, just in time to catch Linda emerging from inside. “Pepper,” she said urgently, “is your phone turned off?”
I looked in my purse for my phone and found that I had inadvertently switched the sound off. Several missed calls showed on the screen. I moved to turn it back on, but Linda spoke again. “I have to take you back to Mugwort Manor in a hurry. Agnes just called. Something terrible’s happened.”
CHAPTER 6
I clutched my throat. “What? What’s happened?”
Linda took off at a fast pace towards her car, with me hurrying beside her. “The police are at the manor with a search warrant.”
“A search warrant?” I parroted, my heart racing furiously.
“Yes. Apparently the knife in the murdered man was one of your aunt’s kitchen knives.”
I gasped, although a few moments later after I thought it over, it didn’t seem quite so bad. “He was murdered at the manor, so it’s not so strange he was murdered with something from inside the manor, surely?”
Linda merely shrugged.
When we arrived, I was concerned to see several police cars at the manor. “Will you be all right by yourself?” Linda asked me. “Do you want me to come in with you?”
I thanked her, but declined. “If they’re going to suspect one of us, the less you have to do with it the better.”
Linda nodded. “Call me later.”
I said I would, and then shut her car door. The aunts were outside, standing by a particularly tall rosemary bush.
“Rosemarys don’t last very long,” Aunt Dorothy said. She was bending over, her nose only inches from the blue flowers. “They’re much the same as lavenders in that regard.”
Aunt Agnes held her hands skyward. “Honestly, Dorothy, sometimes I wonder about you. There are far more pressing matters at hand.”
“Do the police suspect one of us?” I asked, coming straight to the point.
Aunt Agnes shrugged. “Who knows? I think it strange that they got a search warrant, though. I would have let them look through the place without one.”
“No, you wouldn’t,” Dorothy said.
“Hush, Dorothy,” Agnes and Maude said in unison.
“The room!” I said. “They’ll find your secret altar room!”
Aunt Agnes shook her head. “It’s magically protected. They won’t see the door; they’ll only see wall panelling. Beside
s, they’re more interested in the knives in the kitchen.”
“Can we sit down?” I asked them. “This is all a bit overwhelming.”
The aunts walked over to a wooden seat in the garden by way of answer. The three of them sat side by side, leaving me perched precariously on the edge of the seat. “Does this mean the murder wasn’t premeditated?” I asked them.
“What do you mean?” Aunt Dorothy said.
Agnes swivelled her head. “She means that poor Collier was stabbed with a knife from our kitchen, which seems to suggest that he turned up here, and then someone killed him with the nearest thing to hand, namely one of our kitchen knives.”
“But that doesn’t fit with the note on his body,” Maude pointed out.
I shifted my position ever so slightly to try to get more of the seat. “That’s true. Perhaps someone lured him here and then stabbed him with one of your kitchen knives to make it look like one of you did it.”
“But like I just said, that doesn’t fit with the note on the body,” Maude said. “That makes it look like Agnes is the next intended victim. If the murderer wanted to throw suspicion on Agnes, then the murderer wouldn’t have left the note.”
“You know, something just occurred to me,” Dorothy said, tapping her chin. The act of tapping caused her elbow to lodge firmly in my ribs, so I pushed back against her a little to make her move up the seat. Unperturbed, she continued. “Perhaps the police will think that Agnes did do it, and left a note there to cast suspicion off herself.”
Kookaburras in the tree overhead cackled. It was amazing how much their cry sounded like raucous laughter. I expected Agnes to respond just as scornfully to Dorothy’s suggestion, but she did not. “You do have a point there, Dorothy. For once you said something sensible.” Dorothy beamed from ear to ear.
“Did you get the impression the police suspected any of you?” I asked the aunts.
Aunt Agnes bit her lip. “They didn’t say so in as many words, but the fact that they have got a search warrant tends to suggest otherwise.”