“No, Gareth says I’ve been so brutally honest that it’s painful.” The tiny white lie rolled of my tongue with surprising ease. “I told him I didn’t think it was possible to gain weight as a ghost until he proved me wrong.” Okay, it was slightly lame, but all I could produce on short notice. “On that note, you should really dust all the knickknacks in the house. In fact, give the whole house a good clean before you invite guests. No wonder the one guy wanted a bath. I felt dirty the minute I walked in here.”
My heart pounded as I awaited a response. No one spoke.
After a tense moment of silence, Octavia nodded. “We’ll take care of it.”
Phew.
“Good luck with your guests,” I called over my shoulder, and hightailed it out of there before the talons came out.
The upside of my reluctance to say no to the harpies was that I finally had a decent lead. The new brewery made perfect sense. So much sense, in fact, that I didn’t want to go alone. I drew a deep breath and hoped I could convince Sheriff Astrid to join me.
Chapter 13
Thankfully, Sheriff Astrid agreed to accompany me to the What Ales You brewery. It was better if the owner perceived this as an official investigation. Since he was new to town, he may not be as willing to speak openly to paranormals he didn't know. I also needed her access to the crime lab.
"The Minors’ inn sounds like a nightmare waiting to happen," Sheriff Astrid said, as she parked her jalopy in front of the brewery.
"I definitely think they'll need to be inspected," I said. "I'm a little concerned that they’ll end up dismissing my comments. I don't want someone's visit to end in disaster." I could only imagine waking up to find Octavia’s harpy form staring down at me from the foot of my bed. I would drop dead of a heart attack right there and then.
"There are so many businesses popping up, we can hardly keep track," the sheriff said. "If you thought bureaucracy was bad in Spellbound before, it's only going to get worse. Mark my words, the council will end up requiring red tape for every endeavor. It’ll be easier to keep tabs on them that way."
“Good thing Stan is getting an assistant in the registrar's office," I said. "He should also get a raise. I have a feeling the town isn't paying him enough for all the extra work he's been doing."
"So what's our main objective here?" Sheriff Astrid asked, as we approached the entrance.
“Two-pronged,” I replied. “One is to get a feel for the owner. See if we can gauge whether he has an agenda." I didn't want to accuse him of anything outright, especially because I wanted to preserve good relations with newcomers. It would be bad publicity to immediately accuse a new business of causing trouble. I’d be doing CRAPI’s work for them.
“And two?” Sheriff Astrid prompted.
“Test for traces of any ingredients that shouldn’t be here. If we find any, we can connect them to the potion that was used.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
We stepped inside, but the only sign of life was the janitor sweeping the floor. He looked up in surprise at the sight of us.
“Hi there," I said. "I'm Emma and this is Sheriff Astrid. We’re looking for the owner. Is he around?"
The janitor stopped sweeping and leaned on his broom. "I'm Steve. Nice to meet you. Mr. Burdock is in his private office dealing with a personal matter. I'm sure he'll be out in a minute, if you don’t mind waiting.”
“No problem.” The Valkyrie walked around the lobby, taking in the details. I didn’t notice anything amiss.
“Do you like working here, Steve?” I asked.
"It's been good so far, but I haven’t been here long,” he said. “Moved here from Cauldron Corner the same time as Mr. Burdock started his business. He’s a decent boss. Always fair. Even brings me coffee when I work late. He has a lot of management experience, which I think helps.”
I liked the idea of a boss who brought his janitor coffee.
The door to the private office opened, and I could hear voices raised in frustration.
"I don't care if that's how they used to do it in your old school," Mr. Burdock said. "This is a new town and there are new rules. You have to learn to adjust. We all do."
"It isn't fair," a female voice whined. "I didn't ask to come here. It was your decision, and you didn't even consult me. If mom were alive, she never would have made such an important decision without my input. It’s like I don’t matter at all.”
I suddenly wished for camouflage. The Burdocks had no idea we were here eavesdropping on their personal conversation.
"That's his daughter, Tinnie," Steve whispered. "She's been giving him a hard time about the move."
“You don’t say,” Sheriff Astrid said, with a hint of sarcasm.
Tinnie came flying into the reception area, her long auburn hair streaming behind her. Her ivory skin was flawless, and her eyelashes were long enough to warrant their own zip code. She was strikingly beautiful.
Tinnie stopped abruptly when she noticed us. “Dad, there are important-looking paranormals waiting for you. One has a badge. I sure hope you haven't done anything to get in trouble again. I wouldn't want to have to move again so soon." Her voice was laced with teenaged venom.
Steve's expression softened. "Is there anything I can do to help?”
“Be quiet, Steve," Tinnie snapped. "You're not my friend. Stop trying to act like it. Stick to the floors and we’ll be good. Got it?"
I resisted the urge to turn my wand against her. I’d been a teenager once, although I’d certainly never been as rude as that. She stomped out of the building in a huff. I caught the wistful look on Steve’s face as she disappeared outside.
“She's a pretty girl, isn't she?” I asked him. Too bad about her attitude.
He returned his focus to me. "Yeah, but she has her eye on some young minotaur she met in school. He's new in town, too, so they bonded." Steve sounded dejected.
“Another minotaur?” Sheriff Astrid repeated. "That's awesome. Markos will be so pleased." The talented architect had been the only minotaur in Spellbound…until now. As happy as I was about this development, my immediate concern was to make Steve feel better. I knew how it felt to pine for someone when you thought your feelings weren’t returned. It was awful.
Mr. Burdock appeared around the corner. He was a stocky man in high-waisted trousers and an enormous belt that only served to accentuate his belly.
“Is Tinnie gone?" He blinked at us. "I'm sorry. I didn't realize anyone was here. I was too focused on the sound of my daughter's fury." He shook his head in defeat. "Teenagers are as hard as everyone says, apparently. Tinnie has always been a sweet girl, though. I think it's the stress of the move and adjusting to a new school. It can't be easy to be the new girl."
"Luckily for her, there’s an influx of new students," I said. "If she doesn't like attention, she won't be the lone new student.”
Mr. Burdock regarded us. "I take it you're not here to inquire after my daughter's welfare."
“No, Mr. Burdock," Sheriff Astrid said. "We’re not." She introduced us. “We’ve had reports of strange behavior by paranormals who sampled your ale on Spellbound Day. We'd like to test your equipment for traces of any magic potions, if you don't mind."
He scratched his head. "What kind of magic potions?"
"That's what we’re trying to determine," Sheriff Astrid said. “We haven't been able to narrow it down. If we take some swabs, we can run it through a program and see what we come up with. If you give us the ingredients for your ale, we can compare our results and parse out anything that doesn't belong."
He crossed his arms over his impressive girth. “Is that a fancy way of getting your hands on my secret recipe? Who put you up to this? New Brew?”
I sensed the sheriff’s shift in attitude. "I have no interest in your secret recipe, Mr. Burdock. What I do have is an interest in the health and safety of my residents. If your samples have anything to do with this anomaly in behavior we've witnessed, then we need to get to the bottom of
it. Quickly.”
The owner unfolded his arms and seemed to relax slightly. "What kind of behavior are we talking about? Because it would take a lot more than a sample to get someone drunk.”
“Not drunk,” the sheriff said.
"Two of my friends have been acting completely out of character," I said. "They’re usually sweet and kind, but they’ve been completely unlikeable.”
Mr. Burdock chuckled. “Sounds like you have a teenager on your hands.”
“I’d laugh, too, except one of them happens to be the mayor,” I said. “It's not terrific when the figurehead for Spellbound is bad-mouthing the whole town to new residents. Kinda leaves a bad taste in everyone’s mouth.”
“My, that is unfortunate," Mr. Burdock agreed.
"And my dearest friend, Begonia, is on the verge of a huge breakup with her amazing boyfriend because he’s not convinced her behavior is influenced by magic. He thinks I’m making excuses for her."
Mr. Burdock dabbed at his forehead with a handkerchief. “And you say all you need to do is swab my equipment?"
"And we need a copy of the recipe you used for the samples on Spellbound Day," Sheriff Astrid said. "I give you my word that the recipe will remain in confidence. It will be on a need-to-know basis only.”
Mr. Burdock looked from the sheriff to me. “It doesn’t seem to be much of a choice. I can’t risk getting on the mayor’s bad side. Steve, while I get the recipe, would you mind showing our friends into the back?”
“One more question, Mr. Burdock,” I said. “Your daughter mentioned previous trouble you had. Anything we should know?”
Mr. Burdock exhaled. “It was after my wife died. I wasn’t running the business with the attention I should’ve been. My accountant stole from the company and made it look like I was mishandling funds. We got it straightened out in the end, but it was a huge headache, and Tinnie was embarrassed when kids at school heard about it from their parents. Once rumors get started, it’s hard to stop them.”
My heart ached for them. It sounded like Tinnie and her dad had endured some tough times together. “Is that why you left?” I asked.
“Not really,” he said. “That was a few years ago. It was time for a change. Business was stale. I was stale. Tinnie wasn’t thriving. We were in a rut, and I felt like I had to do something or we’d regret it.”
“And then you heard about Spellbound?” Sheriff Astrid asked.
He nodded. “It was like divine intervention. I was researching possible locations when I saw an article about the curse breaking here. That the town had been hidden away for many years. I knew it was the right place to start fresh. Any place without all the usual teenaged distractions is a win in my book.”
“We still have boys,” Sheriff Astrid said. “You’re not getting off the hook that easily.”
Mr. Burdock chuckled. “You’re not kidding. And Tinnie has no trouble attracting admirers. I try to make it clear that she has a very involved father.”
“Smart,” Sheriff Astrid said. “It’s a shame she’s taking the move hard. Maybe there’s an activity she can join and get to meet more kids her age.”
“I’ve been encouraging her,” he said. “I don’t want her to spend all her time here with me. A brewery is no place for a high school student, although I’d love for her to learn the business and take it over someday. Her education comes first, though.”
He seemed like a good dad with a good head on his shoulders. Part of me hoped we found no evidence of foul play. On the other hand, I desperately wanted my friends to return to normal. It seemed like a no-win situation.
“Steve, if you’d be so kind,” Mr. Burdock said, and gestured to the back of the building.
Steve leaned his broom against the desk and motioned for us to follow him. We walked to the back of the building until we reached a large metal door. Steve pressed his palm flat on the door and it slid open.
"Mr. Burdock is really concerned about security," I surmised.
"He doesn't trust the owners of New Brew," Steve admitted. "He feels like they’re out to get him."
“They’re both new to town," Sheriff Astrid said. "Why is he so convinced?"
“Spellbound is pretty small in terms of paranormal towns," Steve said. "He thinks New Brew is worried that the town can't sustain two new breweries in such a short span of time."
It sounded like a visit to New Brew was also in order. Even if the results of the swab were positive, it didn't mean the owners of New Brew were off the hook. Clearly, Mr. Burdock was concerned about sabotage if he went to the trouble of installing a high security door.
“Who else has the capacity to enter this room?" Sheriff Astrid asked, seeming to read my thoughts.
“Mr. Burdock, me, and Tinnie," Steve said.
"Does his daughter work here?" I asked.
“No, but she's here a lot," Steve said. "She comes here after school to do her homework and hangs around until her dad finishes work. That's how I've gotten to know her. She's pretty smart, but she doesn't seem to know it. I think she suffers from low self-esteem on account of her mother dying so young and all."
Sheriff Astrid passed me a look but said nothing. I knew what she was thinking—that my mother died young, too. Whether that hurt my self-esteem or not, I wasn't sure. It certainly left a gaping hole in my heart. I had to imagine Tinnie was still suffering from the loss no matter how long ago it happened.
Sheriff Astrid took out the lab kit, and we went to the back of the room where the vats were located.
"That's the vat we used to make the ale we served on Spellbound Day," Steve said, pointing to one on the end.
The sheriff placed the dipstick in the liquid and then swabbed the outside separately, while I inspected the other equipment in the room.
“Whatever this spell is," Steve said, "do you think it's permanent? Will your friends ever go back to normal?"
I was touched that he sounded genuinely concerned. "If we can figure out which potion was used, then we can develop an antidote. Some potions eventually pass out of the system, so no counter-potion is required, but this doesn't seem to be one of them.”
“Mayor Langtree seems great,” Steve said. “It’d be a shame if new residents got the wrong idea about her.”
Once we collected our evidence, we met Mr. Burdock at his office. He handed us an envelope with the recipe. "Please let me know as soon as you have information," he said. "If my brew is tainted, I'll have to get rid of the whole vat, won't I?"
“It depends on whether it's a trace amount or not," I said. "I'm not aware of more recent cases, though, only the ones that can be traced back to Spellbound Day. The Horned Owl served your ale to at least one hundred customers the other night. To my knowledge, no one developed symptoms."
"That's a relief," Mr. Burdock said. “They’re one of our biggest customers in town. I’d hate to lose them already.”
“Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that. Thank you for your willingness to help," Sheriff Astrid said. "We hated to ask because we didn't want you to think we were targeting you as a new business. We’re happy to have you here. Believe me, we’ve had the same offerings for a very long time. It’s time to mix it up.”
“Good luck in your investigation," Mr. Burdock said. “Keep me posted.”
"Yeah, good luck," Steve added. "I hope you can fix your friends.”
Me, too, because if I couldn’t, things were never going to be the same again.
Chapter 14
Mrs. Goldman stood outside the church. "Are you sure I'll be welcome here?"
"They welcome vampires, Mrs. Goldman," I said. "I have no doubt you'll be an improvement in Myra's eyes." Myra was the church administrator and a terrible gossip. If I wanted information to spread, I only needed to spend five minutes in the confessional with Myra.
Mrs. Goldman twitched. "I don't know. Maybe this was a bad idea. I've never been in a church before."
"You're not attending a sermon," I said. "We’re going straight down t
o the basement. That's where they hold the harp therapy classes.”
Mrs. Goldman pursed her lips and nodded. "You're right. I know you're right." The giant gripped my arm, and I swallowed a yelp. "But what if they don't accept me? What if they think I'm clumsy and awkward?"
"It's not ballet class," I said. "Trust me, nobody in there is a prima donna. And the harps are the most soothing instrument you'll ever play. I was skeptical at first, but I've been coming back regularly ever since. They were welcoming to me, and they’ll be welcoming to you. I promise.”
"Okay then, Emma," Mrs. Goldman said, trying to relax. “Let’s go.”
She squeezed through the front door after me, and we immediately came upon Myra, who was busy polishing the pews. I had no doubt she chose this hour for the chore just so she could keep tabs on the comings and goings of my harp therapy classmates. Her nosiness knew no bounds.
"Good evening, Emma," the gnome greeted me. Her eyes rounded as she took notice of Mrs. Goldman. "I see you brought a new friend."
“Myra, meet Mrs. Goldman. She and her family are new to Spellbound," I said.
"Lovely to meet you, Myra," Mrs. Goldman said. "Emma says you're very nosy, so I'll be sure to watch what I say in front of you." The giant clapped her hand over her mouth. "Oh, my. I did not mean to say that out loud.”
Myra glared at me. "Being nosy is not the same thing as being curious. As the administrator of this church, I have a vested interest in the community.”
“Of course you do,” I said, in an effort to placate her. “Come on, Mrs. Goldman. We don’t want to be late and miss the snacks.” I urged the giant forward, and Myra scowled as we brushed past her.
I led Mrs. Goldman down the steps to the basement. I'd forgotten how narrow the passage was— it certainly wasn't designed to accommodate a giant. I heard Mrs. Goldman suck in a breath behind me.
“Are you okay?" I asked over my shoulder.
"I'll make it," she said in a cheerful tone. I could tell she was someone who tried to make the best of any awkward situation.
Crazy For Brew (Spellbound Ever After Paranormal Cozy Mystery Book 1) Page 12