“I have an idea!” Francine said while the other two women were mid-bite into their burgers.
Her idea wasn’t anything earth shattering. Francie proposed they go over to New Salem and walk around the party store.
“It’s huge,” Francine said excitedly. “I always find that I feel better when I’m up moving around. If we can’t do anything about the magic right now, maybe we could make some progress with the party. You never know what will come to you when you least expect it. But, it’s better than moping around here for the rest of the day.” Francie said.
“I have to go back to the library,” Murielle grumbled.
“Can’t you call in?” Bella asked. “Tell them you got sick on your lunch hour and you’ll try to be back tomorrow.”
“I wish. I just got back. You guys have fun, though.”
Murielle walked back to the library, and it took every ounce of her strength not to turn around and go back to the salon. She’d had such a good time on vacation, and going back to work to face Mattie, her boss, had been dreadful. It was as if the wretched woman had saved all of her nastiness up while Muri was gone.
She decided right then that she didn’t need to be banished to the basement, Muri was going to hide down there all on her own. The library had gotten a used scanner from one of the larger libraries in the state, and many old newspapers had been waiting to be scanned into digital records.
Nobody wanted to be down there scanning, so there was a ton of unfinished work that could keep her busy for a long while. Murielle breathed a sigh of relief when she walked in the back door of the library and saw that Mattie was still away at lunch, or at the very least wasn’t in her office.
Murielle made her way to the basement stairs as quickly and quietly as she could. If she’d gotten stopped by a library patron, it could have meant being trapped out on the floor when her boss came back around.
She used her key to unlock the door to the basement stairs and locked it again behind her. Mattie would never look for her in the lower level because it might mean she had to do some work too.
Muri’s stomach turned when she heard the click and snap behind her. She turned around just in time to see the lock break and fall off the door. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the kind of break that opened the door. It was the type of break where the locking mechanism was stuck in place with no way to open the door.
For good measure, whoever was on the other side of the door had cast a spell. Murielle could feel the darkness radiating like sickening heat off the door. She could only see the shadows of feet under the door, and it was impossible to tell if the person on the other side was Lexi or one of her minions.
She tried to break the magic seal on the door, but all it did was drain her of her energy. It was a witch trap. The more magic she used when she attempted to break the spell, the weaker she would get.
Her choice was to stay put until help came or keep trying to open the door until she was so drained that even a novice witch could squash her like a bug. This was the type of magic young witches told stories about around the campfire. It wasn’t supposed to exist anymore, but there it was. Muri felt it draining her just because she stood so close to the door.
She moved down the stairs into the basement. Her purse was on her shoulder, and while her cell phone was useless in the basement, she had a few magical supplies she’d gotten while in the Caribbean. An island witch had warned her to keep the mojo bag on her at all times when she returned, and now Muri was thankful to the Goddess for putting that particular sister witch in her path.
Some of the island magic was different from what the Nightshade witches practiced. It all had a hint of darkness to it. There was just a trace in everything they did, but it wasn’t enough to upset the balance.
“Nature has a hint of darkness in everything it touches.” She remembered the old witch saying to her one evening. “Even the sun makes shadows.”
Now, all she had to do was figure out how to use the supplies the woman sold her to get out of the basement. Murielle had to keep her head on straight because Belladonna was completely exposed. Her family had gone home to research the curse, her best friend was locked in the library basement, and her only ally might be a spy for the enemy.
Eight
“You missed something in the woods.”
Ben spun around in his office chair, but there was no one behind him. He looked around, but he was alone. The thought that maybe Linda had yelled something from the jail cell and he’d heard it wrong crossed his mind, so he went to check on her. She was fast asleep. The stress of being in jail was intense, so Linda took a long nap most afternoons.
Chief Frost was still M.I.A., and Luke was out on patrol. Ben decided the best thing to do was listen to the disembodied voice and go look around the woods where they’d found Nick. If nothing else, he could grab some food for Linda on the way back.
Ben called Luke and told him where he was going. Luke offered to join him, but Ben asked that he go back to the station and check on Linda when he was done.
“Sure, buddy. I’m just going to drive by the new station and see how construction is going. I’ll head back in soon.” Luke said.
“Thanks. I appreciate it.” Ben responded.
He grabbed his coat and headed out the back door to the small parking area. If it had been warmer out, he would have walked across town to the cemetery to stretch his legs, but the day was much too chilly for a long walk.
The drive to the edge of the cemetery only took a few minutes. He parked his car on the side of the narrow road at the far edge and walked to the tree line that acted as a border between the graveyard and the forest.
From the moment Ben crossed the barrier between the cemetery and the woods, he sensed that something wasn’t right. With one step over that imaginary line, it went from being bone-chilling cold to feeling so hot and humid that it was harder to take a deep breath.
Ben walked a little further into the woods, but he had to stop and take his coat off. He was sweaty and starting to feel a little sick to his stomach. The forest around him still looked the same, but it smelled tropical. He could pick up the scent of jungle flowers, but something about the fragrance was off. It was almost as if someone had tried to use tropical flower air freshener to cover the scent of death.
None of this made any sense and trying to wrap his head around what was going on just made Ben’s head hurt. A deep throbbing started inside his brain and sharpened to a stabbing sensation behind his left eye.
He rubbed his eye trying to lessen the pain with counter pressure, but all that did was make him dizzy. The pain was annoying, but it did keep him focused. If not for a migraine threatening to overtake him, Ben would have been lulled into a dreamlike state by the magic surrounding him.
The sound of snakes behind him make him jump, but again when he turned around, there was nothing back there. Something tried to lead Detective Benjamin, but he couldn’t be sure if it wanted to push him toward a clue or a trap.
Ben took a deep breath and decided to keep going. He figured if nothing else, he was already there and he might as well look around the scene where they’d found Nick.
He shuddered when he reached the spot where Nick was laid out on the ground. Ben couldn’t chase the images of the man’s body twisted and drained of blood from his mind.
No, that wasn’t right, he thought. Nick had been pale because a vampire had killed him, but he wasn’t twisted. That was Jeremy. He wondered why his mind was combining them that way.
Ben walked around the area where he had found Nick. He kicked the tall grass and the low growing vegetation aside with the toe of his shoe. He worked his way around in tight circles at first and then started widening his search away from the original scene.
He did this for about an hour until he got so far away from the place where Nick was found, that Ben figured it was impossible to find any evidence. The moment he was about to give up and go back to his car, is when Ben saw a little piece of paper sticki
ng out from a clump of deep green grass.
Detective Ben bent over and plucked the paper from the tuft of grass. He was almost shocked to see that it was a library book due date slip. The kind that had been stamped with a rubber date stamp at one time but was now printed out with a small printer and stuck into books when you checked them out.
Something like that would have never held up as evidence in court, but it could have told him who had attacked Nick. Ben decided to take the paper to the library and so he could ask Murielle who had checked out the book.
There was only one problem. When he looked up from the paper, Ben didn’t recognize his surroundings. The forest around him had completely changed.
He rubbed his eyes with the backs of his hands and tried to erase the nightmarish edges the area had taken on since he’d picked up the scrap of paper. The smell of flowers had faded, and the scent of death was stronger.
Ben’s heart pounded, but he tried to keep his terror checked. Taking long, slow deep breaths brought the world around him back to focus. The trees were covered with thorns, and the sound of giant insects and other nightmarish creatures hummed around him.
It was enough to drive someone insane, and Ben felt himself slipping into despair. Just as he felt a scream rising up from his stomach into his throat, a tiny light appeared on a path ahead of him. The light darted around as if it were a being, and that’s when Ben saw the tiny wings.
Ben was ready to accept whatever help he could get to take him out of this nightmare that grew thicker by the second. He focused all of his attention on the small fairy in front of him and blocked out the horrific scenes playing out like movies around him.
After a couple of minutes of putting one foot in front of the other and keeping his eyes on the light, he was back at the tree line. The cold wind blowing off the cemetery hit him in the face, and Ben chuckled. He was never so glad to see a graveyard in his life.
He took a few deep breaths and then remembered the small creature who’d helped him out of the woods. Ben turned around, but she was gone. He remembered his grandmother telling him a story about the Will of the Wisp as a child. Ben made a mental note to bring some honey and other sweets to leave at the edge of the forest as a thank you gift.
Ben strode back to his car. He stomach clenched for a moment because the paper he’d retrieved in the woods wasn’t in his hand. Was that an illusion too?
He reached his hand into his pocket and sighed with relief when he found it tucked deep inside. At least he’d had the foresight to keep it safe while he was attempting to escape the woods.
The drive to the library felt like it took forever. Time seemed to be stretching out in front of him like taffy. He hoped that being around other people would help bring him out of the stupor he’d gone into in the forest.
Ben parked his car in the square just down the block from the library’s main entrance. He went inside and looked around for Muri, but she was nowhere to be found. After circling the main floor and all of the stacks on the second floor several times, Ben went to the checkout desk to ask about her location.
Mattie, Murielle’s boss, was working at the counter, and she looked grumpier than usual. Her thin, bird-like face was pulled into a tight scowl, and she kept having to push her thick black glasses back up her nose. The simple act looked like an ordeal for the cantankerous woman, and she sighed a heavy, disgusted sigh every time she slid them back up the bridge of her nose.
Ben waited in line behind two other patrons who were both checking out a few books apiece. Once it was his turn, he debated for a moment about asking for Muri or just inquiring with Mattie about the slip of paper.
Mattie rolled her eyes at Ben when he said hello, so he decided to ask for Murielle. If there was any chance he could speak with her instead of this woman, he wanted to take it.
“Mattie, I’m looking for Murielle. I’ve searched all around for her, and I can’t seem to find her.” He hoped that if he told her he’d already attempted to find Muri himself, it would cut down on the venom Mattie would spit at him for bothering her. “Could you please tell me where she is.”
“Employees aren’t allowed visitors during working hours,” Mattie replied curtly.
“It’s actually police business.” He tried to be more polite than she had been, but he instantly regretted telling her anything.
“Well, then you definitely don’t need to talk to her because this is my library,” Mattie said it in a way that made it sound as if she actually owned the library.
Ben started to wonder if she was arrogant or delusional. Either way, he wanted to keep his contact with Mattie to a minimum from that moment on.
“Please, Mattie. I understand that you’re in charge here, but I do need to speak with Murielle.” Ben tried to sound as deferent as possible.
Mattie stood up and gripped the desk in front of her with both hands so tightly that Ben was afraid she’d break her fingernails off if she moved an inch. He cringed and took a step back.
“Detective Carmichael. Whatever it is you need, I assure you that I can handle the request. I am the Head Librarian. If your business here is in fact police business, I’d ask that you state your purpose and let me handle the issues. I have other patrons waiting for my assistance.” A little bit of spit shot out of Mattie’s mouth as she spoke. “But, if you’re here on personal business and just saying that it’s police business, I’ll thank you for leaving now and talk to Murielle once her workday is over.”
If Ben were a witch, he would have picked up on the fact that Muri was trapped somewhere in the library, but he was not. Instead, he was just annoyed. He still needed an answer, so Ben took the chance that Mattie would actually answer his question.
He pulled the paper out of his pocket and handed it to Mattie. “I found this, and I need to know who checked it out and when.”
Ben watched as Mattie’s face turned bright red for a split second, and then she quickly regained her composure. She squared her shoulders and stood up a little bit straighter.
“Do you have a warrant?”
“You want me to get a warrant so that you’ll tell me who checked out this book from the public library?” He was skeptical of her defense.
Nine
Ben’s next stop was the Mayor’s mansion. Everyone knew that Mattie was only the head librarian because she was the Mayor’s niece, and Ben wanted to ask Brynhildr about her hostile relative. When he arrived at the mansion, Ben found Brynhildr in her office working at the computer.
“She’s not actually related to me. I believe she’s related to Lexi somehow. That was all a part of the spell Lexi had over me. I’ve meant to get rid of the little rat, but she’s been behaving herself as far as I can see. Keep your enemies closer, you know what I mean?” Brynhilder asked. “So, with the campaign and everything that’s been going on in Winterfield lately, I hadn’t decided what to do with her yet. I don’t think running her out of town just yet would be wise. Do you believe that we should keep watching her?”
“Yeah. I think that’s a good idea. If Mattie is one of Lexi’s minions, she might lead us to information or even Lexi. I’ll make sure the department is watching her at all times.” Ben promised.
He left the Mayor’s mansion and went back to the police station. Ben was worried because Chief Frost was still missing, and so far no one could contact him.
Officer Lucy Cornwall was waiting at the station for someone to come in and make her assignments for her shift. She’d brought Linda some food and coffee, and it appeared that the two women had found a way to get along.
“It’s actually good that you’re here, Officer Cornwall.” Ben was impressed with how official he sounded and puffed his chest out a bit. “I have an important assignment for you that requires lots of discretion.”
Ben went on to explain how he wanted Lucy to watch and investigate Mattie. Under different circumstances, Ben would prefer to do the investigation himself.
The problem was that without Chief Frost, someon
e had to lead the department. He couldn’t spare Luke either. Part of him wondered if this was a good idea because the thought that Frost was in on everything had crossed his mind. Alex was the only person who’d vetted Lucy Cornwall, but for the time being, he’d have to trust her.
“I’ll start here, then. After I run her through our databases and check out her information from before she moved to Winterfield, I’ll go to the library and watch her for a while. I’ll make sure she goes home after work, and if not, I’ll let you know where she does go.” Lucy seemed genuinely enthusiastic about her new assignment.
Ben relaxed a little and went in to check on Linda. When he came back out into the office area, Lucy was completely engrossed in her records search.
He still had no idea whose book slip he’d found in the woods. The brain fog that had overtaken him in the forest was starting to fade, and he realized he still needed an answer.
Murielle’s cell phone went right to voicemail, so Ben called Luke to ask him if he’d heard from her recently. Ben was glad when Luke picked up the phone. If one more person vanished on him, he thought he would start to go insane.
“She sent me a text message when she was on lunch. I haven’t really heard anything after that. She does forget to charge her phone a lot. She was probably hiding somewhere in the library trying to avoid Mattie, and her phone went dead. Do you want me to swing by there?” Luke asked.
Ben thought about it, but Luke didn’t sound concerned, so he decided not to worry too. His cell phone rang, and Ben was relieved to see Chief’s Frost's number flash across the screen.
“Alex, are you okay?” Ben asked when he picked up the call.
“Ben, sorry I left in such a hurry. I had a family emergency. I’m not sure when I’ll be back.” Alex said in a hurried whisper.
“Sir, are you okay? I was concerned when you left without saying anything to anyone, and your phone was turned off.”
Party Hexed: Cozy Witch Mystery (Witches of Winterfield Book 4) Page 5