by Sonia Parin
Luna strutted up and gave her a fierce look. “You’re overstepping your mark, fairy. Don’t you go giving her advice. That’s my job.”
Looking up at the ceiling, Lexie spun around and called out, “Whip O’Rourke.” If she wanted answers, she needed to go straight to the source. She expected the detective to materialize on the spot. They always did. She only needed to be careful to call out the full name because if she only used the O’Rourke name a hundred of them would descend upon her.
They all turned and saw a man approaching. An O’Rourke detective, but not Whip.
He wore a blue shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows and faded blue jeans that hung low on his lean hips. He looked like every other O’Rourke detective she’d met to date. From experience, Lexie knew he would have his own distinct mannerisms. The last detective she’d met had been straight-laced with a suffer no fools attitude. This O’Rourke’s easy swagger gave her hope.
“What did you do that for?” Jonathan asked.
Lexie’s back teeth clenched together. “I have to get to the bottom of this. We obviously can’t do it alone.”
Hitching his hands on his hips, the O’Rourke detective greeted them, “G’day.”
“Huh?”
Cat smiled. “That’s Australian for good day.”
“Oh.” An Australian O’Rourke detective.
He looked at Lexie. “I guess you’re the Mackenzie witch in hiding.”
“If I say yes, please don’t take it as an admission of guilt.”
The edge of his lip kicked up. “I’m okay with that.”
“So which O’Rourke detective are you?”
“Slacker O’Rourke.”
“What sort of name is that?” Rebel asked.
One that reflected his attitude, Lexie hoped. “I actually called for Whip.”
He gave an easy shrug. “He’s obviously busy and this is my jurisdiction.”
When Luna took a few tentative steps toward him and sniffed him he scooped her up and gave her a scratch under the chin. “Is this the little biter?”
“That was an isolated incident and we don’t like to talk about it,” Lexie said. She lifted her chin and squared her shoulders. “Have you heard any news about Mirabelle?”
Slacker held her gaze for a moment. Smiling, he looked at her shoulder where Rebel had settled herself. “Who’s that?”
“Rebel.”
“Does she bite?”
“Not that I know of.” Lexie slanted her gaze toward Rebel and whispered, “Do you?”
Rebel shrugged. “There’s always a first time.”
Luna purred deeply. “He has a masterful stroke. I could stay in his arms all day.”
Lexie huffed out a breath. “Can we focus, please? We have to get to the bottom of this. Today.”
“How about a cuppa first?” Slacker asked.
“A what?”
“He means a cup of tea.” Cat gave him a warm smile. “I could whip up some scones.”
“Even better. Lead the way.” Cradling Luna in his arms, he followed Cat.
Lexie flapped her arms. “Does no one understand the severity of the situation?”
Jonathan patted her on the back. “Come on. You’ll feel better after you’ve had a bite to eat. I’m sure Cat can conjure up a pizza.” He smiled. “Actually, I’m surprised you haven’t figured out how to do that yourself.”
“Surprised? Huh. As if I’ve had the time to kick back and think about personal gain.”
“You have to eat.”
Lexie looked back. “I hope the wall is still here when we return.” They found Cat in the kitchen with her sleeves rolled up and her hands busy mixing the ingredients for scones. Her cheeks flushed as her eyes danced around Slacker O’Rourke.
Slacker sat at the table, a mug in his hand and Luna on his lap.
Cat giggled.
“What’s wrong with Cat?” Jonathan asked.
Lexie rolled her eyes. “I think she’s smitten.”
Slacker looked up. “Take a load off.”
Cat giggled again. “That means sit down.”
“Yeah, I get it.” Lexie sat down for a second and then shot to her feet again. “You didn’t answer me. What have you heard?”
Slacker took a sip of his tea and sighed with appreciation. Cat took that as a cue to giggle again.
“I’ve been told to assist you. That’s all.”
“So you didn’t come here to take me in?”
He chortled. “Nah. You’re safe.”
“Aren’t you supposed to be connected to all the other O’Rourke detectives? Surely you must know something.”
“I tune out. They’re a noisy lot. Can you imagine always hearing a hundred voices in your head? It’s enough to drive anyone batty.”
Lexie’s eyebrows shot up. “How… How does that help me? Who’s in charge of the investigation? Please tell me there is one.”
“Sure. There must be, otherwise why would I be assigned the task of assisting you?”
Lexie had trouble pushing the words out without snarling. “Do you know if there are any suspects?”
Slacker nodded.
“Okay. That’s a start.” She drew out a chair and sat down. “Who is it?”
Slacker took his time sipping his tea.
Lexie’s eyes rolled backward. “Oh… No. Don’t tell me it’s me.”
Slacker smiled. “Okay.”
“It can’t be me.” Lexie erupted out of her chair. When she swung away, Rebel slid off her shoulder and landed in Cat’s mixing bowl.
Slacker snorted, Cat yelped and Rebel tried to take flight but her wings were dusted in flour.
Jonathan plucked her out of the mixing bowl and shook the flour off her.
“Okay.” Lexie drew in a calming breath. “I know everyone will come to their senses and realize I can’t be held responsible because… I’ve obviously been framed.”
“That actually makes sense.” Jonathan set Rebel down on the countertop well away from Cat.
Lexie clicked her fingers. “Yes. Someone has masterminded my downfall.” She nibbled on the tip of her thumb. “As crazy as this might sound, I wouldn’t be surprised if someone from the Coven Disciplinary Board is behind all this. They’ve had it in for me from the start.” She jabbed her finger in the air. “And that’s not crazy talk. It’s been one complaint after another.” She looked from one to the other. Seeing their surprised expressions, she threw her hands up in the air and stormed out of the kitchen.
* * *
It took Lexie a while to get her breath under control. Finally, she sat down under the old Oak tree and felt an instant buzz of energy flow through her. Looking up she wondered why Rebel had referred to it as old. According to Cat, the tree had appeared from out of nowhere. That meant it had been somewhere else before…
A leaf drifted down, swaying gently from side to side until it landed on the mossy ground. A peppercorn fell, bounced a couple of times and rolled off the mound. Lexie spent a few minutes wondering how she’d handle falling. She decided her arms would windmill about, and she’d probably scream all the way down. Or maybe she’d accept her fate, look up at the sky and smile.
She closed her eyes and focused on breathing. Her mind grew so quiet she could hear a bee buzzing nearby.
When she opened her eyes, Lexie saw Rebel hovering in front of her. “I thought you were a bee.”
“Yeah, I buzzed around a bit. I didn’t want to disturb you, but I also didn’t want you to feel cut off from everyone.”
Luna torpedoed out of the cottage and came bounding toward them. “What is she doing? What is she saying?” She took a giant leap and landed on Lexie.
Lexie laughed. “How did you manage to tear yourself away from Slacker’s mesmerizing strokes?”
Luna’s breath came hard and fast. “I… I’ll admit I was torn. My loyalty to you won out. And here I am, better late than never. What did Rebel say to you?”
Rebel folded her arms and smirked at L
una.
“I can see you two are going to be a source of amusement.” To say the least, Lexie thought.
“I’m here to offer my services as a sounding board.” Luna gave a firm nod. “We’ve worked well together until now. I don’t see why we shouldn’t continue to do so. Just the two of us.” Luna brushed her head under Lexie’s chin. “So what’s on your mind?”
Lexie lifted a finger. “One. We don’t have a body and without a body we don’t have actual proof of a crime.” Another finger went up. “Two. Who raised the alarm about my involvement in Mirabelle’s death?”
Luna’s tail swished. “I’m guessing you want to point the finger at the Coven Disciplinary Board.” Luna watched her for a long moment. “Is there a third point?”
Everything happened for a reason. The darkness she’d felt during her meditation had to mean something. Had someone infiltrated the Coven?
Hearing Lexie’s thoughts, Luna said, “At first you thought the light looked pretty and then it turned into something horrifying enough to make you lose your balance.”
Yes, shards of darkness had shot through her.
A flock of ravens took flight and filled the clear blue sky. Rebel hovered until she was level with Lexie’s eyes and she pointed at the ravens. “Anyone might take that as a sign. It doesn’t necessarily mean there is danger approaching.
Lexie looked around to make sure no one else could hear her. “My mom gave me this chain mail dress. She is the High Chair. If she hasn’t been in touch with me by now, then the situation must be really serious.”
“You’re forgetting the memory loss,” Luna purred. “It affected all of us. Whoever is behind all this has a lot of power at their disposal.”
“A rogue High Chair?”
“Possibly.”
“When did I show the first sign of talking in gaps?” Lexie asked.
“At your apartment.” Luna’s whiskers twitched. “So did Jonathan.”
Lexie closed her eyes and tried to remember the last few days. “We are not getting a butler.”
Luna tilted her head. “Pardon?”
“A few days ago, I had to listen to your lengthy dissertation about the merits of employing a butler. We were at the Kitty Café.” Lexie’s voice filled with excitement as the memory rolled in. “We went there for breakfast and stayed for brunch to avoid having to trek out again. That’s never been a problem with us.” Lexie jumped to her feet. “We were trying to avoid someone and that’s when you suggested we needed to get a butler because they were trained to slam doors in people’s faces…”
Luna leaped up in the air. “Yes. A butler would be ideal for your dilemma because they can be snooty. In reality, I tried to convince you to get a butler because I wanted to show my sister Venus that living in a small, cramped apartment didn’t necessarily mean I’d hit skid row.”
Lexie and Luna danced around singing, “We remember. We remember.”
Rebel flew between them. “Yeah, and then what happened?”
Lexie smiled. “And then we… because… and also…”
Luna groaned. “Gaps.”
Chapter Twelve
“We thought we’d had a breakthrough,” Lexie explained.
Everyone in the cottage had heard Lexie and Luna rejoicing and they’d come out to see what had happened.
“And?” Jonathan asked.
“We might be experiencing some sort of residual effect from the ‘thing’ that caused us to forget.” Lexie tapped her chin. “We think it might have started at my place.”
“Are you suggesting someone put a spell on your apartment?” Cat asked.
“We can’t rule it out. Mostly because we need to start somewhere and it might as well be with unfounded suspicions.” Counting to ten, Lexie focused on keeping herself relatively calm. When she got to ten, she erupted. “Ugh! I feel like a lab rat in a labyrinth.” Her teeth clenched. She looked up at the sky, raised her fisted hand and waved it. “When I get my hands on you…” She performed an anger dance on the spot.
“Feeling better?” Jonathan asked.
Lexie lifted her chin. “Look at me. I’m dressed for battle. What does that tell you?”
“That you will quite possibly come up against a formidable opponent,” Jonathan said. “How did you get that dress?”
“It came to me in my hour of need.” She turned to Cat. “Are you sure we are where you think we are?”
Cat looked around her. “Yes, this is my cottage and my enchanted forest. Where do you think we are?”
“I’m right outside my comfort zone.” She’d been there since her cousins had caught up with her on her birthday, but she’d managed to somehow navigate her way through all the obstacles they’d set for her.
Obstacles, Lexie mouthed.
“Lexie, we don’t read lips,” Cat said.
“Obstacle course.”
Jonathan cleared his throat. “Are you suggesting you’re being tested?”
“Maybe.”
“Then why are we here?” he grumbled.
“Because… Because you’re always there. I mean, here… with me.”
Cat gave an indignant huff. “Are you saying we’re your lackeys?”
Lexie shrugged. “You’re never too far and you’re always ready to help, in one way or another. If I’m being tested, you’re here to help me.”
Jonathan’s eyes brimmed with amusement. “Sounds like a conspiracy theory.”
Lexie jabbed her finger in the air. “Right. And it’s just the sort of shenanigans the Coven Disciplinary Board would get up to. They’re a sneaky lot and if I ever set eyes on them, so help me, I’m going to use one of my fireballs.”
Slacker stood back silently listening. Luna sauntered up to him and rubbed against his boot. Lexie wished she’d use her feline wiles to get information out of him. He had to know something.
Could Luna spy on his thoughts?
“I’ll try,” Luna purred mentally. “But I can’t promise anything. He seems to be fixated with those scones Cat is making for him.”
Sniffing the air, Cat took off at a trot. “My scones. My scones. I nearly forgot about them.”
Slacker followed her inside with Luna scurrying by his side.
“Scones? Is that all she can think about?” Lexie performed another rage dance, her boots stomping on the spot.
Rebel hovered up to Lexie and crossed her arms. “Looks like your loyal feline companion has ditched you.”
“Yeah, she’s a sucker for anyone who’ll pay some attention to her.” She turned to Jonathan. “The gnome, Mr. Ellsworth, is on a reconnaissance mission but won’t be back for five days. I can’t wait that long.”
“What’s on your mind?”
“I have to find out how that doorway opened and why I was on the other side. We didn’t all imagine it. Unless… Unless… Could it be the result of a spell?”
He shrugged. “Yeah, it’s possible. After all, we all fell under the same spell and had our memories stolen.”
“If you’re about to suggest Cat’s cottage has also had a spell cast on it, then I’ll have a serious bone to pick with the Coven. They’re the only ones capable of doing it.”
“The question is what did they do and why did they do it,” Jonathan said. “Your mom is the High Chair. Do you think she’d agree to become involved in duping you?”
Her mom had given her the dress. She’d never agree to anything that would put her in peril. And yet… Everything Lexie had done since returning to the Coven had forced her to take risks.
She grabbed hold of Jonathan’s arms and pulled him along.
“Where are we going?”
“To look at those drawings of yours.”
“What about the scones? They must be ready by now,” Jonathan said as they strode inside and headed toward the sitting room.
“I’m sure Cat will bring some in.” Lexie looked at the drawings scattered on the floor and taped on the wall. “Which are the latest ones?”
He pointed
to the middle of the room. One drawing showed Lexie walking along the hallway with Luna and Rebel trailing behind.
“Is nothing sacred? Do you know everything I get up to?”
“Only when I put pen to paper. That’s when I seem to connect to the details of what you’ve been up to.”
Lexie picked up the first drawing showing the shape of the doorway. “Where’s the one you showed me?”
“I left it on the windowsill back where the doorway opened.” He pointed to another drawing. “I couldn’t make sense of this one because it had these other two blurred shapes. I guess that’s Mirabelle and Whip.”
She’d met the O’Rourke detective just before Halloween. How had he become involved? Slacker O’Rourke had to know something. He could pretend all he liked—
Lexie gritted her back teeth.
“What?”
“Slacker is holding out on us. To be fair, he might have fallen under the same spell we did, but the O’Rourke detectives are made of…” Lexie shrugged. “Who knows what they’re made of? It’s definitely not compliance. They’d never bend for anyone, and I think anyone would have a hard time manipulating them.”
Jonathan chuckled under his breath. “You seem to have a knack for wrapping them around your little finger.”
Yes. They were all strong-willed. But, eventually, they all caved in and played nice with her, assisting her with investigations, or rather, allowing her to assist them with investigations.
“Oh, and you’ve pushed at least one of them to the brink.” Jonathan clicked his fingers. “What was his name?”
Lexie smiled. “Gunner O’Rourke.”
“Yeah, that’s the one. You turned his Patek Philippe watch into a Mickey Mouse watch.”
Remembering the incident, Lexie nodded. “And his sleek suit into a purple velvet tuxedo.” She’d managed to put a dent in Gunner’s granite like attitude and he’d eventually come around. Lexie grinned. “They always fold.” And she didn’t even have to use her powers. Who knew what a powerful witch with evil intentions could do? Lexie grabbed a blank piece of paper and pencil.
“What are you writing?”
“My suspect list. It’s about time I draw one up and Mirabelle and Whip are going on it.”