by Adele Abbott
“How can she have made them shrink? That doesn’t make any sense.”
“I don’t know, but how else could it have happened?”
I knew that Betty was right. Grandma was definitely behind this. As always, she had been very smart. She’d promised that she wouldn’t turn them into toads, but she hadn’t said that there wouldn’t be some other kind of reprisal. And this was no doubt it. Even as I was standing there, I could see that the costumes were slowly getting smaller and smaller. I had to do something quickly, or I didn’t like to think what might happen to the poor people trapped inside them. But, I couldn’t do anything while Betty was watching. I had to get her out of there.
“Betty! Go and find some scissors!”
“What good will they do? They’ll never cut through those costumes.”
“Don’t argue! Just go and get them!”
Betty looked doubtful, but did as I asked, and disappeared into the shop. As soon as she’d gone, I concocted a spell which would make the costumes grow larger. It was my only option because I wasn’t sure how to reverse Grandma’s original spell.
As soon as the costumes were back to their normal size, the two women and one man, who had been trapped inside, managed to clamber out. Moments later, Betty came rushing back into the room with a pair of scissors in her hand.
“How did they get out?” She stared in disbelief.
“Beats me.” I shrugged.
The two women and the man hurried out of the shop. I doubted that they’d be back the next day.
“I don’t know what you did, Jill, but thanks,” Betty said. “I owe you one.”
“Forget it.” I started for the door, but then noticed a glass jar on top of the cupboard. Inside it were hundreds of bottle tops.
Betty must have followed my gaze because she took my arm, and tried to lead me out. “Come on, Jill. I’ll see you out.”
“Just a minute. What’s in the jar?”
“What jar?”
I pulled my arm free, and made my way across the room.
“This jar!” I picked it up and shook it. “Are these Norman’s bottle tops?”
“Of course not. They’re mine.”
“You’re lying, Betty. You’ve never collected bottle tops.”
“I’ve just started.”
“In that case, you won’t mind if I show these to Norman, will you?”
“Okay, okay. They are Norman’s.”
“How could you steal from your ex-boyfriend?”
“I needed the money. I’d run out of funds. Opening this shop has cost much more than I’d expected.”
“So you thought you’d help yourself to Norman’s bottle tops?”
“I’m sorry.” Betty took a seat. She was close to tears. “What are you going to do, Jill?”
“What do you think? I’m going to tell Norman.”
“Please don’t, Jill. I’ll do anything!”
***
I wasn’t sure what to do about Betty and the bottle tops, so I decided to sleep on it. Jack wasn’t due back until the next day, so I called at Kathy’s on the way home.
“Jill?” Kathy came to the door wearing a T-shirt and jogging bottoms. “Is there any news?”
“On the Lucinda case? Sorry, no. I just came over to see how you were doing.”
“You’d better come in. Do you want a coffee?”
“I’ll make it. Come through to the kitchen with me, and we can talk.”
“Who have you spoken to so far?” Kathy asked.
“Donna Proudlove, Michael Gray and Callum Hamilton. But to be honest with you, I’m no further forward. Have you heard anything from Wool TV?”
“They’ve suspended all live programmes for this week. They’re showing a series of reruns, and hoping to return to normal programming next week. I’m not sure I’ll be ready to return by then unless this lot is all sorted out.”
“Where are the kids?”
“Mikey stayed behind at school for football practice. Peter will pick him up afterwards. Lizzie is at Jodie’s house—she’s one of her friends from school. I’m hoping Lizzie will be a bit happier when she gets back than she was this morning.”
“Why? What’s the matter?”
“Can you remember that bear of hers? The one that she said was her new best friend?”
“Joe Bear?”
“Wow! I’m impressed you remember his name.”
“What’s wrong with Joe Bear?”
“He’s disappeared.”
“Disappeared how?”
“I’ve no idea. Lizzie says she brought him back from school yesterday, but that he went missing overnight. I don’t see how he could have—I think she must have left him at school. Hopefully, she’ll have found him there today.”
It looked like my ‘enchantment’ spell hadn’t worked as well as I thought it had. Joe Bear must have gone ‘rogue.’
After we’d finished coffee, I made my excuses and left, with the promise that I’d keep Kathy posted on any news related to the Lucinda Gray affair.
Where would an enchanted teddy bear go? I racked my brain, and could think of only one place nearby. Cosmo Toy Emporium was a grand name for a very small shop. It was less than a quarter of a mile from Kathy’s house. The shop sold all manner of toys, but specialised in soft toys.
“Good afternoon, Madam,” the bearded man behind the counter greeted me with a smile. He had a look of Santa Claus about him. “Are you looking for anything in particular?”
“A teddy bear. For my niece.”
“In that case, you want the second aisle on the right.”
As soon as I turned down that aisle, I knew I was in the right place.
“Has anyone ever told you that you have beautiful eyes?” a deep voice said. “What are you doing tonight?”
Joe Bear was standing on the second shelf, trying to chat up a pretty pink bear who had a white ribbon around her head.
“Hey, you!” I said in a whisper. “What are you doing in here?”
Joe Bear looked surprised to see me. “I was getting bored. All that little girl wants me to do is read fairy stories to her. She has no conversation whatsoever, so I thought I’d try my luck down here.”
“Tough luck, buddy. You’re needed elsewhere.” I grabbed hold of him, and made my way to the door.
“Hold on, young lady,” Santa Claus called after me. “Where do you think you’re going with that bear?”
“This is my—err—that’s to say—err. How much is it?”
“Fifteen pounds.”
Great!
I knocked on Kathy’s door.
“Jill?” She looked surprised to see me again so soon, but even more surprised to see what I had in my hand.
“I found this just down the road. Lizzie must have dropped it on her way home from school yesterday.” I passed the bear to Kathy, and made a quick exit before she could ask any awkward questions.
***
When I arrived home, I was surprised and delighted to see that Jack’s car was already on the driveway. I hadn’t been expecting him until the following day.
“Jack?”
“Up here.” His voice came from our bedroom. “I’ll be down in a minute.”
I went through to the kitchen, and switched on the kettle. This warranted a custard cream celebration.
“I got away early.” He grabbed me around the waist, and gave me a peck on the lips. “What’s happening with Kathy? Any news?”
“They haven’t charged her, but she still appears to be the prime suspect.”
“I see The Bugle has linked Lucinda Gray’s death with the earlier poisoning.”
“Do you think there’s anything in that?”
“I don’t know. I guess it’s possible.”
“Leo Riley should be able to tell us. Why don’t you try him again?”
“I’d be wasting my time, Jill. I’m persona non grata in his books. And, before you suggest it, you should steer clear of him too. Nothing good can come from gett
ing his back up. Promise you won’t go near him.”
“I promise.”
Liar, liar, pants on fire. I’d already decided it was time to pay Mr Leo Riley a visit, but I wasn’t about to tell Jack that—I couldn’t handle the aggro.
“Is there anything I can do?” he offered.
“Yes. You can give me a proper kiss.”
“I can do better than that.”
***
Later—much later—we were in the kitchen, washing the dishes.
“Oh, I forgot to mention,” Jack said. “We’ve had an invitation.”
“To what?”
“A wedding. It was addressed to both of us. I left it in the bedroom.”
He wiped his hands, and hurried upstairs. Moments later, he came back down with a pink envelope in his hand. “Who are Deli and Nails?”
My heart sank. I’d tried to put Deli’s wedding out of my mind, in the hope that she and Nails might call it off.
“Deli is my friend’s mother. Nails is her boyfriend.”
“What kind of name is Nails? Is he some kind of hard man? As in ‘hard as nails’?”
“Something like that.” I didn’t want to gross Jack out by telling him the truth. “I’ll make some excuse so we don’t have to go.”
“No! Don’t do that! I love a good wedding, and I’d like to meet more of your friends. I barely know any of them.”
Oh bum!
Chapter 15
It was nice to have Jack home. I couldn’t imagine going back to living by myself. He was having a lie in, and he’d had the cheek to ask me to bring him breakfast in bed. I must be going soft in my old age because I did it: Tea, toast and marmalade on a tray. The next time I had a lie in, he’d better do the same for me, or there’d be trouble.
I glanced across the road at Blake’s house. I hadn’t heard any more from them since he’d proven to Jen that he was a wizard. Hopefully, everything was okay over there.
I was just about to get into my car when I heard a ‘toot, toot.’ Mr Hosey was coming down the road on his stupid little train.
“Good morning, Jill.” He tooted his horn again. “And how are you this morning?”
“Fine, thanks. You’re up bright and early this morning, Mr Hosey.”
“I’ve been working on Bessie for the last few days, so I’m just taking her for a quick spin, to make sure everything is okay.”
“Right. Well, I’d better get going. Lots to do.”
“Before you go, Jill, I wanted to let you know that I’ll be holding an open house on Tuesday, for people to come and look at my model railway. No children allowed, obviously. I’m sure you and Jack will want to come.”
I would rather have chewed glass while walking on hot coals.
“We’ve arranged to go to see Jack’s brother on Tuesday,” I lied. “What a pity—maybe another time. Anyway, must go. Bye, Mr Hosey.”
Another bullet dodged.
***
“Jill, thank goodness you’re here.” Mrs V collared me as soon as I walked through the door.
“What is it, Mrs V? Whatever’s the matter?”
“It’s your grandmother.”
“Is she okay? Has something happened to her?”
“She’s been taken in for questioning by the police.”
“When?”
“Only a few minutes ago. She rang the office, and was quite annoyed that you weren’t here. She said she only had the one phone call, and that I’d better get in touch with you quickly. I was just about to call you on your mobile.”
“Is that all she said? That the police had taken her in for questioning?”
“Yes, she was only on the line for a couple of minutes.”
“I suppose I’d better get down there. Do I have any appointments this morning?”
Mrs V gave me that look. Of course I didn’t have any appointments.
Fortunately, the reception area at Washbridge police station was deserted. The officer behind the desk actually looked pleased to see me; he was obviously bored out of his brain.
“How can I help you, madam?”
“My grandmother has been brought in for questioning. I’d like to see her, please.”
“What’s her name?”
“Mirabel Millbright. I believe she’s here in connection with the Lucinda Gray murder case.”
“Just a moment, please. Let me go and check.” He disappeared through the door behind him. A few minutes later, he reappeared. “Are you by any chance Jill Gooder?”
“Yes, I am.”
“Detective Riley would like a word with you.”
“Good. I’d like a word with him too. Where is he?”
“He said you should take a seat. He’ll be with you, shortly.”
“How long is ‘shortly’?”
“Just take a seat, please, madam.”
This wasn’t the first time that Leo Riley had kept me waiting. I was convinced he did it on purpose. Fifty minutes later, he finally appeared.
“Where’s my grandmother?”
“Come with me.”
I followed him down the corridor, and into a small interview room.
“Where is she?”
“Patience, woman!”
“I asked where my grandmother is.”
“All in good time.”
“Have you charged her with anything?”
“No. Not yet.”
“What do you mean: ‘not yet’? Why did you even bring her in?”
“I think you already know the answer to that. From what I hear, you’ve viewed the CCTV footage from the Wool TV studio, haven’t you?”
“Yes. And any idiot could see that she didn’t get inside the building.”
“Not on that occasion, maybe. But who’s to say that she didn’t come back?”
“Don’t be ridiculous. This is just harassment. First my sister, and now my grandmother. This is looking awfully like a vendetta against me.”
“Don’t flatter yourself. I’ve got better things to do than worry about you and your family. Your grandmother will be released in a few minutes.”
“Are you linking Lucinda’s murder with the earlier poisoning?”
“I’ll tell you the same thing as I told the reporter from The Bugle. No comment.”
“The Bugle seems to think they’re connected.”
“If The Bugle says so, then I guess they must be.” He scoffed. “Now listen to me. I want you off this case. And I want you off it now!”
“Are you saying that my sister and grandmother are no longer suspects?”
“I’m saying no such thing.”
“In that case, I’m still on the case.”
“If you get in my way, I will lock you up. Just because your boyfriend is a cop, that doesn’t give you the right—”
“Don’t bring Jack into this. I can fight my own battles.”
“I meant what I said. Don’t get in my way!”
Riley led me back to reception where Grandma was waiting for me. I had thought she looked angry the previous day because of Betty’s man-sized sea creatures, but that was nothing compared to how she looked right now. I had no idea that it was possible for anyone’s face to turn that shade of red.
“Where have you been?” She screamed at me.
“I’ve been here for the last hour, but they wouldn’t let me see you.”
“It’s a good job they let me out of there when they did because another five minutes, and I would have turned them all into cockroaches. And then, taken great pleasure in stamping on each of them in turn.”
“Come on, let’s get out of here.” I led the way outside.
“How dare they bring me in for questioning?” she said, as soon as we were outside.
“You can’t really blame them, Grandma. You did go into the Wool TV studios, ranting and raving about Lucinda.”
“I’ve explained why I did that. That woman had had the audacity to criticise Everlasting Wool. I was going to give her a piece of my mind.”
&n
bsp; “What did they say to you?”
“They just asked a lot of stupid questions. Like the police always do. You should know—you’re living with one of them.”
“Jack’s not that bad.”
“You’ve changed your tune. You used to call him every name under the sun.”
“That was before I got to know him. Anyway, it’s over now. Let’s go home.”
“It may be over for you, but it certainly isn’t over for me. You don’t really think I’m going to let them get away with treating me like that, do you?”
“What do you mean?”
“Precisely what I said. No one treats Mirabel Millbright like that and gets away with it.”
“You have to promise me that you won’t retaliate, Grandma.”
“Why should I?”
“Because if you do, I won’t take part in the Levels Competition this year.”
“That’s blackmail!”
“Correct. Do we have an agreement?”
“I suppose so.”
I wasn’t entirely sure that I could trust her. Particularly not after what had happened with Betty.
Grandma was still grumbling when I dropped her off at Ever.
***
I parked my car, and began to walk to the office. I hadn’t gone more than a few yards when I found my way blocked by a crowd of people, who were gathered around something on the pavement. As I got closer, I realised there was an elderly man lying on the ground.
“What happened?”
“He’s dead,” someone said. “A heart attack, I think.”
I spotted a familiar face in the crowd. It was Lester, and standing next to him was the young woman I’d seen at Aunt Lucy’s house. It took me a moment to remember her name—Monica.
“Lester!” I called.
“Oh? Hi, Jill. I didn’t see you there.”
“What are you up to?”
“Sorry, I can’t talk right now.”
Then, the penny dropped.
“Of course. Sorry to have interrupted.”
I was such an idiot. Lester was now a trainee Grim Reaper, and this poor man was no doubt one of his—err—I struggled to come up with the right term: clients?