Witch Is When It All Began (A Witch P.I. Mystery Book 1)

by Adele Abbott

  “Do you think I'll get an invite to the wedding? I am family after all.” Kathy walked into the living room. She'd spent the last hour getting ready—I'd spent two minutes brushing my hair.

  “Give them a chance—they've only just got engaged.”

  “I do love a good wedding.”

  “I know.” I hated them. Expensive waste of time if you ask me—not that anyone did.

  “I hope the twins arrive before Pete gets back with the kids.” Kathy took a bottle of wine out of the fridge. “It'd be nice to have a few minutes to get to know them before all hell breaks loose. What time did they say they'd be here?”

  “They didn't.”

  “I hope you didn't give them directions.” She laughed. “If you did, they'll never find their way.”

  “You're so funny!”

  “You couldn't even find Candlefield. Remember?”

  “Are you starting with the wine already?”

  “Are you changing the subject?”

  I was. “No. I just don't want you drunk before the twins get here.”

  “I need a drink. And you will too once the kids get back.” She held up the bottle.

  “Just a small one then.”

  “Where are they?” Lizzie demanded, as she rushed into the room. “Have they brought us a present?”

  Peter had returned with the kids. If the plan had been to tire them out, he'd failed miserably. Mikey was running around the living room with a plane held high in his hand. Lizzie was bouncing up and down next to me on the sofa—I was beginning to feel sea sick.

  “They're not here yet,” Kathy said, grabbing hold of Lizzie and pulling her off the sofa. “And don't go expecting presents.”

  “Dad said they'd bring us a present,” Mikey said.

  Kathy glared at Peter.

  “What?” He shrugged.

  “If they don't bring presents,” Kathy took a slug of wine, “it's on you.”

  She needn't have worried because when the twins arrived just before seven-thirty, Amber had a huge package for Lizzie, and Pearl had a slightly smaller one for Mikey.

  “Lego Spaceport!” Lizzie screamed.

  “I've got a remote control car!” Mikey sent the red four-by-four crashing into Kathy's shin.

  “Take those into your bedrooms, please. I'll bring your supper through to you. Wait! Have you said thank you to Amber and Pearl?”

  “Thank you!”

  “Thanks!”

  The twins were dressed in polka dots—again. Amber wore a blue dress with white dots; Pearl's was white with blue dots. Amber wore her hair down; Pearl had hers in a bun. At least it would be easy enough to tell them apart.

  “Can I see the ring?” Kathy said. It hadn't occurred to me to ask, but then I'd never been one to get excited about other people’s jewellery.

  Amber stretched out her hand.

  “It's gorgeous,” Kathy cooed. “Isn't it, Jill?”

  “Yeah. It's lovely.” Seen one, seen them all.

  “It's too tight for her finger,” Pearl said.

  “It is not!” Amber turned on her sister.

  I wasn't about to take sides, but Pearl did have a point. The ring did look incredibly tight.

  “What's your fiancé’s name?” Kathy asked.

  “William.” Amber beamed.

  “What does he do?”

  Please don't say he's a werewolf. Please don't say he's a werewolf.

  “He's a were—”

  Oh no.

  “Warehouse manager. Well, assistant manager actually.”

  “He wears a yellow overall.” Pearl sniggered.

  “It suits him.”

  “He looks like a banana.”

  “What about you, Pearl?” Kathy stepped in. She was accustomed to playing the role of mediator with her own kids. “Do you have a boyfriend?”

  “Alan. He's in finance,” she said proudly.

  “Finance?” Amber scoffed. “He works in a pawn shop.”

  Pearl ignored her sister. “Would you like to see a photo of him?” She took out her phone.

  “Of course we would, wouldn't we, Jill?”

  “Sure.” I’d always thought it was impossible to take a photo of a vampire. Perhaps I was getting photos confused with mirrors.

  “He's very handsome,” Kathy said.

  “Very.” For a bloodsucking creature of the night.

  Not to be outdone, Amber pulled up a photo of William.

  “You're both very lucky girls,” Kathy said.

  To save Kathy from having to cook, we'd ordered in pizza. Thankfully, the kids were still enthralled by their new toys, so were happy to eat in their rooms.

  “Will you have time to show us around tomorrow, Jill?” Amber asked through a mouthful of pizza. “We'd love to see the shops.”

  “I'd rather see the sights,” Pearl said.

  “Shops!”

  “Sights!”

  “I'm sure there'll be time for both,” I intervened. So much for my Saturday.

  “I might join you,” Kathy said. “You'll have the kids, Pete, won't you?”

  “Do I have a choice?” He grinned. If I knew Peter, he'd take the kids over a shopping trip any day of the week.

  At eight-thirty, the kids were told to say their goodnights. Much moaning and groaning ensued, but eventually they gave us all a goodnight kiss.

  “Night!” The twins shouted.

  “Thanks for the present,” Lizzie called back.

  “Thanks for the car,” Mikey shouted.

  Peter disappeared into the bedroom to read them a bedtime story.

  “Now then girls,” Kathy said to the twins. “I’ve asked Jill when I can visit you in Candlefield, but she keeps fobbing me off.”

  The twins both looked at me, unsure what to say. I gave them my 'I got this' look, and cast the 'forget' spell.

  Kathy shook her head. “What was I talking about?”

  The spell had done its job.

  “You were asking the twins which shops they wanted to visit tomorrow,” I prompted.

  “Was I? Yes, of course.”

  Once the kids were asleep, Peter joined us. The five of us talked until after midnight. Well, when I say the five of us talked, Peter and I were pretty much consigned to the sidelines while Kathy and the twins planned the next day's shopping trip like a military exercise.

  The twins and I arrived back at my flat just before one in the morning. I was dead on my feet—the twins were still as lively (noisy) as ever. They shared a double bed in the spare bedroom, which was right next to mine. It was almost two o'clock before they finally fell asleep. That's when the snoring began. In stereo.

  “Morning, Jill.” The first of the twins surfaced at seven the next morning. She had a bad case of bed-hair, so I had to check for the beauty spot before concluding it was Amber.

  “Morning, Amber.”

  “Sleep well?” She yawned.

  “Yeah.” For about twenty minutes. “You?”

  “Pearl kept me awake with her snoring.”

  “I wasn't snoring.” Pearl appeared behind Amber. “It was you.”

  “I do not snore.”

  “Breakfast?” I asked. It was going to be a long day.

  “Just coffee for me, please,” Amber said.

  “Tea and toast for me, please.” Pearl pushed past her sister. “I'll make it.”

  “It's okay.” I jumped off the stool. “You're my guests. I've got it.”

  “Could I have toast too?” Amber said. “With lots of jam.”

  “I thought you were on a diet?” Pearl joined her sister at the kitchen table.

  “I never said that!”

  “Right, I must be hearing things then.”

  “How do you like your toast?” I shouted.

  “Crispy, please,” Amber said.

  “Lightly toasted for me, please.”

  “I love your flat,” Amber said, dropping crumbs onto the floor, as we moved through to the living room.

  “Thank y
ou.”

  “Me too.” Pearl walked across the room to the stereo. “What's this?” I cringed as she ran her buttery fingers over the polished top.

  “It's a stereo. It plays vinyl.”

  “Vinyl what?”

  “Records, music.”

  “Like CD's?”

  “Yeah. A bit like CD's but older.”

  “Cool!”

  My poor flat. My poor, poor flat. By the time we left, the place was a tip. There went my Sunday—I'd have to spend the whole day tidying and cleaning. For the life of me, I couldn't understand why the twins had decided to live together. They argued all the time—about anything and everything. My head was spinning.

  I didn't have the shopping gene. Kathy, on the other hand, enjoyed nothing better. She'd think nothing of spending six hours looking for the right outfit. I trailed along behind the three of them as they cooed over dresses, and handbags, and make-up and a million other things. Would they notice if I sneaked away? It was very tempting, but Kathy would never have forgiven me.

  “Do you think Alan would like these?” Pearl held up a skimpy, lacy lingerie set.

  “Any man would love those.” Kathy grinned.

  What about vampires, I wondered.

  “You aren't a D cup!” Amber laughed.

  “I am too!” Pearl's cheeks reddened.

  “You're the exact same size as me, and I'm not a D.”

  “I've grown recently.”

  “Let's compare.”

  “Whoa!” I stepped in between them. “Let's not. I'm ready for a sit down. How about a coffee?”

  “Come on girls,” Kathy said. “Your cousin Jill is getting too old for this shopping lark. She needs regular breaks.”

  I glared at Kathy. She ignored me. At least world war D had been averted.

  “These aren't as nice as ours,” Pearl said as she sampled the cakes.

  “Agreed.” Amber had jam on her top lip.

  At least the twins could agree on something.

  “Who's looking after the shop?” I said.

  “Shop?” Kathy’s ears pricked up at the word ‘shop’.

  “The girls have a cake shop and tea room.”

  “Cuppy C.” Pearl beamed.

  “Cuppa tea?” Kathy said.

  “Not cuppa tea,” I corrected her. “Cuppy C. C for cake.”

  “You're no bigger than a C,” Amber said to her sister.

  “I am too.”

  After that particular storm in a 'C' cup was over, we moved on to the high street. Within an hour, the twins and Kathy were laden with carrier bags. Peter would be pleased.

  “Why don't you buy something, Jill?” Pearl asked, swapping the bags from one hand to the other.

  “Jill doesn't do 'high street',” Kathy said. “She buys all her clothes from a little boutique called 'Stuck in the Sixties'.”

  I ignored the jibe. I couldn’t help it if I was the only one in the family with taste.

  The three of them were waiting in line to pay for their purchases. I was bringing up the rear trying not to look as bored as I felt.

  “I wish we had those in Candlefield,” Amber said, pointing to Kathy's credit card.

  “You're better off without them,” I said. I dreaded to think what Kathy's next credit card bill would look like.

  “How can you say that?” Pearl was staring at the card. “It's way better than money.”

  “We wouldn't have to work.” Amber was drooling over the card too.

  “Hold on,” I said. “You do realise that you still have to pay for everything you buy, don't you?”

  “Don't be silly, Jill,” Pearl said. “You just have to give them your card. Look!”

  Perhaps it was just as well that plastic hadn't made it to Candlefield.

  “Ouch!” Amber cried out.

  “Are you okay?” Kathy said.

  “It's her own fault,” Pearl said.

  Amber had caught her finger on the counter top.

  “Let me see.” Kathy was used to dealing with her kids’ cuts and scrapes. “That looks sore.”

  It did. Her ring finger, now minus the ring, was red and swollen.

  “She had to use the soap to get the ring off this morning,” Pearl said. “I told her it was too tight.”

  “Shut up, Pearl,” Amber snapped.

  “It'll be okay in a few days,” Kathy said. “You'd better get the ring resized before you put it on again though.”

  I stared at Amber's finger, and something clicked.

  “Sorry, I have to go,” I said.

  “Jill?” Kathy looked daggers at me. “You can't just—”

  “I have to. Something urgent just came up on one of my cases.”

  I could tell that Kathy didn't believe a word I was saying.

  “Girls, I'm really sorry about this,” I said.

  “Don't worry about it, Jill,” Pearl said. “Go catch the bad guy!”

  “Yeah,” Amber chirped. “We'll be fine. Make sure you come and visit us soon!”

  “I will. I promise.” I turned to Kathy. “Sorry.”

  “You and me are going to have words later,” she said in a whisper.

  “Is that Josie Trent?” I had to shout to make myself heard.

  “Speaking.”

  Josie Trent was still on board The Grand Oceans, a luxury liner, which was somewhere off the coast of Barbados.

  “My name is Jill Gooder. I’m a private investigator. I’m investigating the murder of Caroline Fox.”

  “Poor Caroline. I still can’t believe it. I thought they’d arrested someone. Isn’t he some kind of nutter? A serial killer, I heard.”

  “There has been an arrest, but I’d still like to ask you a couple of questions if I may.”

  “Sure, but I don’t know what help I’ll be. I was here when it happened.”

  “Did you know that Caroline was going to get engaged?”

  “What did you say?”

  “She was going to get engaged.”

  “Who to?”

  “Danny Peterson.”

  I thought for a moment that the line had broken up, but then I realised it was the sound of laughter.

  “Who told you that? Caroline wasn’t going to get engaged to that loser. She only went out with him a few times then she gave him his marching orders.”

  “Do you know why?”

  “She said he was a creep.”

  “Was she seeing anyone else?”

  No reply.

  “Josie? Do you know if she was seeing someone else?”

  “Yes, she was.”

  “Who?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “It’s really important, Josie. It may help to catch Caroline’s murderer.”

  “I honestly don’t know his name. The last time we spoke, she told me she was seeing someone. I’d never known her so happy or excited.”

  “Are you absolutely sure she didn’t tell you his name?”

  “He was married. That’s why she wouldn’t tell me.”

  I believed her, but I was pretty sure I did know who he was.

  Graham Tyler’s expression, when he saw me walk into the shop, confirmed everything I’d suspected.

  Beth was busy with a customer, so I went straight through to the office, and closed the door behind me.

  “How long had you and Caroline been having an affair?”

  “Don’t call it that.” Tyler put his head in his hands. “You make it sound sordid. We were in love.”

  “Then why didn’t you come forward after she was murdered?”

  He looked up—there were tears in his eyes. “How could I? I’m married with a child. It would have destroyed my marriage.”

  From where I was sitting, he’d already done that all by himself, but this wasn’t the time.

  “How long had you been seeing Caroline?”

  “For about three months.”

  “What about Danny Peterson? How did Caroline hide it from him?”

  “Danny?” Tyler manag
ed a half-laugh. “There was no Danny. She’d dumped him before we got together. She thought he was a bit of a joke.”

  “Are you sure about that? Could she have been lying to you?”

  “No! I’d have known. I loved her. “

  Of course you did—just like you love your wife.

  Chapter 23

  “Hello, Danny.” I stepped out of the shadows just as he opened the door.

  “You scared me to death.”

  “Sorry about that.” I'd been waiting outside his flat for the best part of an hour when his car pulled up.

  “What do you want?”

  “I have a question for you.”

  He unlocked the door. “I just want to forget all about it. I need to move on. I'm sorry.”

  “Just the one question, and then I'll leave you alone, I promise.” I crossed my heart.

  “What?”

  “Why did you kill Caroline?”

  The silence seemed to hang over us for an eternity, but I guess it was no more than a few seconds.

  “You're crazy.” He tried to slam the door in my face, but I pushed it open with ease. He went flying backwards and landed in the hallway in a heap. I'd cast the 'power' spell as soon as I’d seen his car arrive

  “I'll call the police,” he said, as he got to his feet.

  “Be my guest. You can tell them how Caroline ended the relationship ages ago. How she thought you were a joke.”

  Danny looked as though I’d punched him in the stomach.

  “That's a lie!”

  “Not according to Josie Trent. You know Josie, right? Caroline’s flat mate.”

  “How would she know? She’s been out of the country for months.”

  “She and Caroline spoke on the phone.”

  “Josie’s a liar. She always has been.”

  “Did Caroline tell you where to shove your engagement ring?”

  “You don't know what you're talking about.”

  “She did, didn’t she? But you wouldn't take 'no' for an answer, would you?”

  “Get out of here!”

  He raised his hands to push me, but I blocked him, and then threw him up against the wall.

  “You asked her to marry you, and she said 'no'. Did she laugh in your face when you showed her the ring?”

  “I loved her!”

  “You strangled her!”