“A couple of years ago he got obsessed with our sister, Daisy, and he would always show up at the house wanting to dabble in magic. We thought he had a crush on her and we felt bad for the dude, so one day we invited him in and for a while he seemed like a cool kid,” Cole said, looking at Cade to see if he should go any further.
“I feel like there’s a but in there somewhere,” I said, folding my arms.
"He wanted to learn black magic. We told him we didn't do that and that he shouldn't either, but he said he would learn it himself and he stormed out. I saw him at the pizza barn about a month after that day and I shook his hand. I saw everything he wanted to hurt us for how we treated him in high school and got back at Daisy for never saying yes when he asked her out on dates. She turned him down a lot," Cade said, biting his lip.
I didn't want to know what they did to him in high school to make him want to hurt them, but just from being around them in the short period I had I could make a few guesses. They seemed like the goons who would hang him from the flagpole wearing a pink dress or fill his locker with paint.
“Where is he? Maybe we could talk to him and feel him out,” Sadie asked, as we walked outside and locked the door behind us.
"What time is it?" Cade asked, checking his watch, "It's lunch time. He usually eats at the deli every day for lunch before his job at the library."
Before I could ask them to take us, they ran to the car and jumped in.
“I think they are starving for company,” I said, watching laughing through the car windows.
“Let’s move here and then they won’t be lonely,” Abigail said, with a dreamy look on her face.
"Please stop talking. When we leave Cold Creek tonight, Cade Blackwater will forget he ever met you and you will be back to following Bobby Lyons around like a lost puppy," I told her, making my way to the car.
"We've already made plans for him to visit me and I'm over boys like Bobby Lyons. Cade is a man. He said that twins belong with twins. Cole said he wants to meet Agnes," she said, smiling from ear to ear and getting in the car scooting next to Cade.
I knew Aggie would be thrilled about that. She didn’t like her men with a side of creepy. Also, I wasn’t sure how Abigail thought they could on twin double date with only one of them being able to use their shared voice.
“Oh brother,” Sadie said, sliding in the back seat after Abby.
I wondered if Cade would still want to visit if he knew she had to share a voice with her twin sister, but the more I thought about I figured out if she couldn’t talk he might like her more.
Knowing Abigail like I did I knew that she was probably planning on locking Agnes up in a closet when Cade came to visit so she could keep the voice. Laughing at that visual, I hopped in the car. Cole gave me the direction to the deli.
“How long have you been with your boyfriend?” Cade asked, taking me by surprise.
“I don’t have a boyfriend.”
“Sure, you do. I think his name is Daniel,” he said, causing me to snort.
“He is not my boyfriend,” I said, shaking my head.
“Could have fooled me. The guy practically has a shrine built in his honor in your head,” he said, causing me to blush.
“Do I turn here?” I asked Cole, pretending like I didn’t hear Cade.
“Yep,” he replied, trying to hold back his laughter.
I was glad someone was amused by it.
Putting the car in park, I got out and they soon followed after. I didn’t see a deli anywhere. “Is there really a deli?” I asked, holding my hand over my eyes trying to keep the sun out thinking that maybe it was keeping me from seeing a sign indicating that there was a deli somewhere in the near vicinity.
I was starting to think they just wanted us to stay a little while longer.
“Yes, it’s right there,” Cole said, pointing at the small food truck parked on the corner.
Was their deli a food truck? No wonder I didn't see it. Walking toward it, I saw Aaron sitting at one of the picnic tables that were placed along the sidewalk.
“Aaron Golden?” I asked, feeling like Oliva Benson from Law and Order.
He looked up at me with his mouth full of turkey and bread. “Who wants to know?” he asked between chews.
“Hi, I’m Malady Norwood,” I said, holding my hand out for him to shake it. He didn’t.
“Is that supposed to mean something to me?” he asked, rudely.
I could really see why Alison liked him he was like the male version of her. They were like two peas in a pod.
“Um, no, I guess not, but maybe it will when I tell you why I’m here,” I said, sitting down on the opposite end of the table.
“What do you want?” he asked, stuffing his face.
“I’m a friend of Alison’s,” I lied through my teeth.
His eyes softened at the mention of her name. Not the usual reaction that Alison's name usually got. Most of the time it was followed by a scream or someone running for cover.
“Still doesn’t explain why you’re here interrupting my lunch.”
“I’m here about her unfortunate death,” I told him, hoping that would soften up his hard exterior.
“What? Her death?” he asked, dropping his sandwich on the plate.
He didn’t know she was dead. He was in complete and utter shock.
“You mean you didn’t know? She was having an affair with you wasn’t she?” I asked.
“Does it look I knew she died?” he asked, beads of tears forming in the corner of his brown eyes, “It wasn’t an affair, so don’t call our relationship that. We were in love.”
My heart was shattered by his reaction. I mentally kicked myself for breaking into that guy's home and invading his property. I was a lawyer I wasn't supposed to break the law. I blamed it on The Shining twins; they were a bad influence.
“Who did it?” he asked, the menacing tone of his voice startling me.
“Pardon me?”
“Who murdered her?” he asked, his fists clenched into balls.
“They arrested her fiancé, Mason, but I know he didn’t do it,” I said, trying to convince that Mason was innocent because you know it was my job.
“How do you know that?” he demanded.
“Because I know Mason,” I yelled, looking around to see if anyone noticed and they had. Every eye on Main Street was on us.
“Why are with the Blackwaters? You know them too?” he asked, nodding his head in their direction.
“Sort of,” I said, my mouth turning into a confused crooked line.
“I’d stay away from them if I were you. Their nothing but trouble,” he said, gathering his stuff and getting up to leave.
"That's funny; I heard the same thing about you!" I called after him.
“Believe what you want it doesn’t make a difference to me,” he said, tossing his half eaten food in the trash can before pushing up the arms of his shirt. That shouldn’t have caught my attention, but the tattoo he revealed did. It was the same as the symbol on Mrs. Abernathy’s wall minus the weird fire like light.
By the time I pulled myself from the daze he was gone. He knew something that he wasn’t telling, but I felt like I was closer to proving that Mason was innocent. Pulling out my cell phone, I pulled up my notepad and I typed in Aaron Golden- New Suspect
“Thank you, Alison,” I whispered, saying something I never thought I would say.
For the first time in a while I was happy, but then I remembered that my happiness could only mean tragedy would soon follow. I thought about Mason in that cell all alone and wore the blame for a crime he didn't commit. Suddenly, I felt all my previous happiness dissipate.
But it was too late because when I turned around, I saw that the deli's chicken mascot was stuck in a pothole. If that chicken only knew he would have chased me out of town.
Chapter 18
“You really think this Aaron character did it? You even said he didn’t know she had been murdered,” Daniel said, par
king his sleek car in front of the graveyard where Alison was being laid to rest.
“I know, but I just don’t believe him. It’s the perfect motive. He murdered her because he wanted her all to himself, but he knew he couldn’t have her. Come on, Daniel, it’s the stuff Lifetime movies are made out of. It’s like an episode of snapped. I even have a letter that places the motive on a silver platter,” I said, doing my best to convince him, but he wasn’t buying it.
He got out of the car and waited for me to do the same. He wasn't into being a gentleman and opening the door for a lady. No, he was the type that wanted everyone to fend for themselves. I called it being a jerk.
Sighing, I got out and straightened my solid black dress. Wearing black in the spring in Georgia should have been illegal. I knew it was a funeral, but still. I was sweating like a sinner in church.
“You don’t think it’s a little generic, Suzie Q?” he asked, fanning himself with his hand.
“I think generic is good, Atlanta, especially for this case. Did you bring hairspray with you?” I asked.
“I did. It’s in the car. Why? Do you want some?” he asked, dead serious.
Gotta loves them city boys.
“No, I don’t need any of that poison in a can, but you might your hair is starting to deflate,” I told him, pointing at his hair.
"I don't believe you my hair always looks awesome as do I," he said, cocking up his eyebrow and fiddling with his tie.
He wasn't lying; his hair was always perfectly styled. I would never admit it, though.
“Keep telling yourself that if it makes you feel good,” I said, rolling my eyes.
Spotting the large black tent that read ‘Landry’s Funeral Home’ in big white letters, I walked toward it. Pushing my way through the large crowds, I saw Alison’s mother, Jamie Talbot, talking to all of the attendees. Alison’s mother never liked me much because she didn’t like my family and I knew she wouldn’t be thrilled to see me, but I had to pay my respects.
“Hi, Mrs. Talbot. How are you holding up?” I asked.
She gave me a look that could have killed me on the spot.
“My only daughter is dead. How do you think I’m holding up?” she asked, pursing her surgically enhanced lips.
I wanted to tell her that it looked like she was holding up fine. She was wearing ten thousand pounds of makeup complete with fire engine red lipstick and her hair was almost touching the top of the tent. She looked like an 80’s prom queen, but I bit my tongue because she was burying her daughter.
I should have known she was going to wear red lipstick and red nail polish because they were her signature colors, but I just thought for a funeral she would have toned it down. I was wrong.
“You have another daughter, remember?” I asked, bringing up Sutton.
“Why are you here anyway? Aren’t you trying to let my daughter’s murder go free?” she asked, sticking her nose up so high that a bug could have taken up vacancy and oh how I wished it would have.
I wanted to conjure one up but decided against making a scene at a funeral. It would have been in poor taste and everyone in the town already thought I was strange.
Instead of calling her out for not shedding a tear I walked back to Daniel’s car and stood by it.
“Keep your eyes open,” Alison’s voice whispered, but she was nowhere to be seen.
Looking around the graveyard, I didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary until I saw Mrs. Talbot talking to a young man and it looked heated.
Creeping closer, I hid behind a tree and saw that she was talking to Aaron Golden. She didn’t want him there I could tell that by her body language.
Waving my hands over my ears, I enhanced my hearing.
“You shouldn’t be here. Have you lost your mind?” she asked him, gritting her teeth.
“I had to come here to pay my respects. I loved her,” he said, defensively.
“Are saying that I don’t love her?” she asked, scoffing and placing her hand over her heart.
I wasn’t sure how she pulled that from what Aaron said.
“No, you said that not me. I just said that I loved her,” he said, scratching his head in confusion.
It was official not only was Mrs. Talbot mean she was crazy too.
“She wasn’t yours to love, Golden. You should have stayed away from her,” she said, poking her long red finger nail into his chest.
“I didn’t know she was your daughter,” he said, not elaborating and I needed him to elaborate.
How did Julie know Aaron? They we from two very different walks of life. Their paths should have never crossed.
"Suzie Q, why are you behind a tree? Wait a minute let me guess; you're one of those tree huggers aren't you?" Daniel asked, leaning against the tree and getting a leaf stuck in his hair.
I should have told him, but I didn’t. He didn’t deserve for me to. Waving my hands over my ears again, I felt my hearing return to normal.
"I need to see Mason. Will you drive me?" I asked, pulling my heels out of the dirt they had sank into and started toward Daniel's car.
“Only if say please,” he said, following me.
I wasn’t going to beg him to drive me. I would have rather walked in heels all the way across town to the county jail if I had to.
“Fine, I’ll just walk,” I said, bypassing his car and making my way to the road.
After walking for a few minute, I saw a black car driving slowly beside me. Looking over, I saw Daniel smirking at me. “Why are you smiling at me? Stop it. I like you even less when you smile,” I said, balling my fists at my side and trying to walk a little faster. I don’t know why I could go faster than a Mercedes Benz, but I did.
“That’s just mean. Get in the car, Suzie Q. If you try to walk you’re either going to break your ankle or die of a heatstroke. I have the air condition on full blast," he said in a sing-song voice.
The cool air was tempting me, so I did what anyone would have done. I nodded my head in agreement. “I’ll only get under on condition.”
If I was getting in it was going to be on my terms.
“What? I’m all ears,” he said, turning off the radio giving me his undivided attention.
He didn't do that a lot, but I had to admit I was pleasantly surprised. He usually pretended to listen while he looked at himself in the mirror and nodded when the conversation called for it.
“You quit calling me Suzie Q,” I said, sticking my head in the open window. The air felt like heaven against my sweating face.
“I can’t do that,” he said, waving his finger at me.
The air felt too good to give up, so I reevaluated my terms. "How about you tell me why you insist on calling me Suzie Q?" I asked, crossing my fingers that he agreed to that so that I could get in the car with a little bit of my pride still intact.
He tapped his finger against his chin as he thought about my new offer.
“Okay, get in and I’ll tell you,” he said, unlocking the car door.
Opening the door, I jumped in and laid my head back to let the air cool me down.
"I call you Suzie Q because the definition of your name is ‘bad.' Like that's it. When you google it, that's all it says, so I refuse to call you anything that means something bad. No one deserves that," he said, proving to me that he did have a soul.
“And the Grinch’s heart grew to three times its regular size,” I said, looking at Daniel in amazement.
I thought to myself that he was a decent person and he was just hiding it behind the super jerk exterior. But then something else he said hit me.
“Wait, why did you google my name?” I asked, leaning as far away from him as the door and my seatbelt would allow.
“I google everyone’s name, Suzie Q. You’re not special,” he said, focusing on the road.
“Doesn’t make it any less creepy,” I told him, mentally telling the smile tugging at my lips to go away.
It didn’t want to listen, but it did.
C
hapter 19
“Dale, I need to see Mason. It’s an emergency,” I told him, running into the jail like a crazy woman.
He looked up from his computer at me and I saw powdered sugar all over his face and uniform. Even his badge was dusted with it. I didn't even have to ask where he got the powdered sugar covered doughnuts. Agnes made them for him.
Cursed at First Sight (Cursed Coven Cozies Book 1) Page 10