by Adele Abbott
“You might as well take it back home with you, then. I’ve won the fruit cake category for the last two years. This year will be my hat trick.”
“Don’t you think you might be counting your chickens before they’ve hatched?”
“It’s a foregone conclusion. There is no one in Washbridge who can make fruitcakes like Petunia Smallpiece.”
“That would be you, I take it?”
“None other. The best your friend can hope for is second place. A very distant second place.”
“I guess we’ll just have to see about that.”
What an arrogant woman.
Now, call me a big softy, but I simply couldn’t allow Mrs Rollo to become a laughing stock, so I quickly cast a spell to make sure that didn’t happen.
After I’d handed over the cake and the entry form, I went back to the car. Only then did I notice that I was running low on petrol. I might have made it to the office, but I didn’t want to take the risk, so I called into the next petrol station en route. After filling up with unleaded, I went inside to pay.
“Morning, Jill.”
Behind the counter was Daze. Sitting next to her was Blaze.
“Hello, you two. This is your latest job, I take it?”
“Yes. It’s nice to be working inside for a change,” Daze said.
“And we get free coffee, too.” Blaze grinned.
“We do not get free coffee, Blaze.” Daze turned on him. “I’ve already told you that you should be paying for that.”
“No one is going to know if we use these tokens.”
“I’ll know.”
“How are things with you and Haze, Daze?” I asked.
“Okay, thanks. He’s promised to take me on holiday next month. I’ll be leaving Blaze in charge.”
“I can’t wait.” Blaze grinned again.
Daze gave him a look.
“I didn’t mean I couldn’t wait for you to go away.” Blaze shrank under her gaze. “I meant I was looking forward to having the responsibility of being in charge while you’re away.”
“Are you still seeing Maze, Blaze?”
“I think so.”
“You don’t sound very sure.”
“Raze has been hanging around her, recently.”
“Raze? Who’s that?”
“His name is Bobby Razor, but everyone calls him Raze.”
“To avoid confusion?”
“Sorry?”
“Never mind. You were saying?”
“Raze is another Rogue Retriever. He fancies himself as a bit of a lady’s man. If I catch him with Maze, I’ll stick one on him.”
“How is the Rogue Retriever business doing anyway?”
“We’ve been really busy,” Daze said.
“You can say that again,” Blaze agreed. “The last few days have been murder.”
“It’s the fallout from the closure of Bar Scarlet.” Daze handed back my credit card. “We’ve been rounding up the remaining rogue vampires over the last few days. I think we’ve caught them all now, so hopefully, we can have a bit of a breather.”
“Why are you over here at the moment?”
“It’s a full moon,” Daze said. “Need I say more?”
“Ah, right. Expecting werewolf trouble?”
“It’s the same every month. There’s always a handful who can’t control themselves. As you probably already know, the majority go back to the werewolf Range in Candlefield, and let loose in there. It’s the safest option. A few stay here and play it safe by isolating themselves in the countryside where they can’t do any harm to anyone. But there are a few who can’t resist trying to scare humans. They’re more of an annoyance than anything else. And then there are those who take it too far, and actually attack humans. They’re the ones we’re after. We’re going to mount a patrol around Washbridge Park tonight. That’s one of their favourite haunts.”
While I was there I decided to pick Daze’s brain.
“Daze, could I have a quick word in private?”
“Sure. Blaze, can you watch the till?”
He swapped seats with her, and Daze followed me to the other end of the shop.
“There’s a couple of things I wanted to talk to you about. First off, I wanted to ask you about relationships between sups and humans. Do you find there are many cases where the sup ends up getting taken back to Candlefield?”
“A lot. It happens most weeks. The problem is that most couples think it will be easy to keep the secret, but it never is. It doesn’t matter how close the couple are, there’s always the danger that it will get out, and when it does, we invariably hear about it. Sometimes, the couples have been together for decades, and the human has known their partner was a sup the whole of that time. Sooner or later, it comes out, and then we have to act. We have no choice but to take the sup back. It can be heart-breaking at times.” Daze hesitated. “You’re not thinking of telling Jack that you’re a witch, are you?”
“Me? No, I would never do that. I agree with you. It’s way too dangerous. I was just curious, that’s all.”
“What’s the other thing you wanted to talk to me about?”
“The twins told me that you attended Candlefield Academy of Supernatural Studies.”
“That’s right.”
“I’ve been invited to give a talk there, and I wondered if I might pick your brain about the place?”
“Sure, but there isn’t really time now. Let’s meet up in Cuppy C sometime, and I’ll tell you whatever you want to know then.”
“That would be great. Thanks.”
***
When I walked into the office, Mrs V was behind her desk. Standing next to it was Armi. He had a pot on his leg, and was on crutches.
“Oh, dear,” I said.
“Oh, dear, indeed.” Mrs V sighed. “So much for our dinner and dance at the Cuckoo Clock Appreciation Society.”
“What happened?”
“Well, Jill.” Armi managed a smile. “It’s a bit embarrassing, actually.”
“Stupidity, I’d call it,” Mrs V said. It was obvious that she was none too pleased with him.
“I’d just left the office, and was walking down the street, when I came across a window cleaner. I’m quite superstitious, so I didn’t want to walk under his ladder. I stepped to one side, but I hadn’t seen the black cat. I fell over it, and broke my ankle.”
How I managed to keep a straight face, I do not know.
Winky was sitting at my desk. Seated opposite him was another cat. At first glance, I thought I’d walked in on another elocution lesson, but then I realised it wasn’t Horatio Finemark.
“What’s going on?”
“Social etiquette.” Winky sounded beyond bored.
That’s when I noticed the cutlery that had been set out on my desk. The cat sitting opposite Winky totally ignored me. “Winky, which one is the soup spoon?”
“I never eat soup.” Winky yawned. “Is there a salmon spoon?”
“I don’t think your heart is in this.” The other cat was obviously not amused. “Perhaps we should call it a day. Give me a call if and when you do decide to take the matter seriously, would you?”
The cat jumped off the chair, ran across the room, and disappeared out of the window.
“Stuff this.” Winky swiped his paw across the desk, knocking the cutlery onto the floor. “I’ve had enough of elocution lessons, deportment lessons, and all this etiquette nonsense. If Bella wants to go out with me, she’s just going to have to take me as she finds me.”
“Good for you.” It was nice to see Winky back to his old self. I hated to see him kowtowing to anyone. Except me, of course—some chance of that!
He jumped down from the desk. “I think it’s time for salmon.”
“Red, not pink?”
“Obviously.”
I’d just finished feeding Winky when my phone rang.
“Jill?” It was Sarah Travers who’d been to see me a few days earlier.
“Yes, Sarah
?”
“I promised I’d call you the next time Jerry said he was going to play squash.”
“You did. I take it he has?”
“Yes, out of the blue, as always. He told me this morning, just before he set off for work. I didn’t get a chance to ask him any questions because he was already out of the door. Will you be able to tail him as you promised?”
“Yes. I think the easiest thing will be for me to follow him after he comes out of work. If you give me the name and address of his place of work, and a rough idea of what time he finishes, then I’ll be waiting for him. I’ve got the photo which you sent me, so I should be able to spot him.”
“That sounds great, Jill. Thanks.”
It turned out that the offices where Sarah’s husband worked were only a fifteen-minute walk from mine. I’d be waiting for him when he came out.
Chapter 12
“Hello?” The man sounded half asleep when he answered the phone.
“Is that Callum Hamilton?”
“Yes. Who’s this?”
“My name’s Jill Gooder. I’m a private investigator, working on the Lucinda Gray case.”
“Oh, right. How can I help?”
“I wonder if we could meet up? I’d like to ask you a few questions.”
“I can’t today. I’m out of town, working on a modelling assignment.”
“When will you be back?”
“Tomorrow.”
“Okay. How about I call you then to arrange a time and place?”
“Yeah. That’s fine.”
Maybe I was being unfairly judgemental, after all it had been only a brief exchange, but the man hadn’t exactly sounded distraught considering his girlfriend had been murdered only a few days earlier.
“Jill?” Mrs V popped her head around the door. “Your accountant’s here.”
“Mr Roberts? Again?”
“No, the other one. Mr Stone.”
“Oh, right. Show him in.”
Luther Stone usually had a huge smile on his face, but not today. In fact, he looked rather glum.
“Do come in, Luther. Have a seat. Is everything okay?”
“It was until I received this.” He had an envelope in his hand.
“What is it?”
“It’s the letter you sent me. I just wanted to ask why you’ve decided to terminate our arrangement.”
“I’ve done no such thing.”
“Then I’m confused.” He took the letter out of the envelope, and put it on my desk. It purported to come from me, and was short and to the point:
Dear Mr Stone,
Thank you for the accountancy services you have provided to me, but please accept this as my notice to terminate the arrangement forthwith.
Yours sincerely,
Jill Gooder.
The signature definitely wasn’t mine.
“I don’t know anything about this, Luther.”
“So, you don’t want to cancel our arrangement?”
“Certainly not.”
“I’ve received three similar letters today from other clients. I was beginning to think I’d done something to upset everyone. You’re the first person I’ve been to see.”
“I wonder who can have done this.” I didn’t say so, but I was almost certain I knew who had sent the letter. How dare Robert Roberts write to Luther to tell him I wanted to terminate my contract? Surely, he couldn’t have expected to get away with it? Hadn’t he realised that Luther would double-check?
“By the way, Luther, did you know that Betty has opened a shop on the high street?”
“I did. I drove past there the other day. I was quite surprised.”
“She has always had an interest in seashells.”
“I don’t mean I was surprised by the theme of the shop; that was an obvious choice for her. No, I’m surprised that she could afford to embark upon such a venture. When she and I were together, she was living from month to month; she didn’t have any savings. I can’t work out where she found the money to finance the business. I can only assume she managed to persuade the bank to give her a big loan. I just hope she knows what she’s doing because to the best of my knowledge, she has no retail experience. Still, I wish her the best of luck. No hard feelings, and all that. Anyway, I suppose I should get going. Hopefully, the other letters will prove to be hoaxes too. Bye, Jill, and thanks again.”
When Robert Roberts had come to see me, he’d sounded determined to win back his customers, but I’d no idea that he intended to go to these lengths. If the man could do something so sly, I wasn’t sure I’d ever trust him with my books.
It struck me that I hadn’t seen anything of Winky for an hour or so. That wasn’t like him; he liked to annoy me on a regular basis. I got up from my desk, walked over to the sofa, and knelt down, so I could see underneath it. He was reading a book.
“What’s that you’re reading, Winky? Another etiquette guide?”
“Nah. I’m done with all that nonsense.” He held up the book.
“’Fly Fishing for Felines’?”
“Yep.”
“A strange choice, isn’t it?”
“Since when is it unusual for a cat to be interested in fish?” His impatience was showing.
“I know you’re interested in eating fish, but catching them?”
“Why not? It cuts out the middle man.”
“Where exactly would you go fishing?”
“There are plenty of places around here, if you know where to look.”
“What about all the equipment you’re going to need?”
“Don’t worry. It’s all in hand.”
Knowing Winky, it probably was.
What I needed was a blueberry muffin, and not just any blueberry muffin. I needed one from Cuppy C. No one had blueberry muffins to match those sold by the twins.
I magicked myself over to Candlefield. Standing outside Cuppy C, I could see that the place was deserted yet again. If things carried on like this, the twins would be in real trouble. Flora and Laura were behind the counter, but there was no sign of the twins. They’d probably gone shopping. That’s what they did when they were feeling a bit down, or whenever there was a ‘Y’ in the name of the day.
The twins had denied ever raising their prices, and yet when I’d spoken to a couple of their ex-regulars, they’d insisted that the reason they’d deserted Cuppy C was because of the price increase. Something weird was going on.
Flora and Laura hadn’t seen me, so I cast a spell to disguise myself as an old woman, and then made my way inside the shop.
“Yes, dear?” Laura said.
“A cup of tea and one of your delicious blueberry muffins, please.” What a character actor I was—Hollywood was calling.
“Certainly. Coming up.”
The prices of the cakes and buns were all double what they should have been. I glanced at the drinks price list. They too had doubled. Laura handed me the tea and a muffin, and then took my money.
This explained a lot.
I took a seat next to the window. The muffin was delicious, but it wasn’t worth twice the normal price. No wonder the customers had been deserting Cuppy C in droves. The two ice maidens, Flora and Laura, must have waited until the twins were out, and then used magic to increase the price of everything. That would also explain why, before the customers started going elsewhere, the takings had been up on the days when the ice maidens had been left in charge. This was sabotage. There was no other word for it.
Some time back, I’d seen Flora and Laura talking to Miles Best, and I couldn’t help but wonder if he was behind all of this. I considered confronting them there and then, but thought better of it. It wasn’t my shop, so I shouldn’t be the one to do it. That was for the twins to do. I had to let them know what the two evil ice maidens had been up to.
***
Back in Washbridge, I arrived at Diamond Ceramics ten minutes before Sarah Travers’ husband, Jerry, was due to leave. I knew what he looked like from the photograph she’d e
mailed to me. I’d never liked working on infidelity cases. There was no sense of achievement when I caught someone cheating. There were no happy endings for anyone involved. But, they paid the bills, and someone had to do it.
I was beginning to think that he wasn’t going to show. The staff had been coming out for fifteen minutes, but there was still no sign of Jerry Travers. Then he appeared. I was on the opposite side of the road, and deliberately kept my distance. He had a sports bag with him, so maybe he was going to play squash, after all. Was it possible that he now played at a different club? Sarah didn’t think so, and besides, he’d told her that he was still going to the same club. The one which Sarah now knew had closed its squash courts.
He went into a restaurant called The Ponds. If he had arranged to meet another woman, I’d have the thankless task of having to tell his wife. Fortunately, he chose a table that was by the window, so I was able to keep an eye on him without having to follow him inside. The waitress gave him a menu, and then brought him a drink. A few minutes later, she returned to take his order. The service was painfully slow, but Jerry Travers seemed to be in no hurry. Watching him eat made me hungry. I’d only had a muffin, and I was absolutely starving.
Throughout the meal, he spoke to no one except for the waitress. By the time he’d finished and paid his bill, it was starting to get dark outside. I was still standing across the road. I was tired, thirsty, and hungry, but I had to stick with him to find out what he was up to. According to Sarah, on the nights when he supposedly went to play squash, her husband didn’t get back home until the early hours of the morning, so there was still plenty of time for him to meet up with someone.
I followed him again, still keeping my distance. After a while, it became obvious that he was headed towards Washbridge Park. I would need to get closer to him because the lighting in the park was almost non-existent. Why would he go there after dark? It made no sense.
And then, the penny dropped.
It was a full moon!
I had to catch up with him; there wasn’t a moment to lose. As I ran down the hill, he disappeared into a clump of bushes. Moments later, I charged through those same bushes, and eventually came upon a small clearing. Jerry Travers was standing there; he was just about to take his shirt off.