The Case of the Sinister Spirit (Jane Gallows Witch Private Investigator Book 1)

by Leighann Dobbs

  I could see Jinx sneaking around the perimeter of the garage, making his way toward me. I figured I had better keep Chastity talking so he could enact his plan. “And then what did you do?”

  “I hightailed it out of there. I couldn’t get caught with my father-in-law’s body. Brent would make my life miserable if he knew I killed his dad, even if it was an accident. He’d hold it over me somehow.”

  “So that’s why you went along with Brent’s lie about being at home the night Bud died. It also provided you with an alibi.” I had thought Brent seemed a little surprised when Chastity had corroborated his alibi that day. Later on, I figured maybe he’d paid her off and wasn’t sure if she’d crack under the pressure of Sheriff O’Hara being there. But now I knew he actually really had been surprised. He hadn’t expected Chastity to stick up for him.

  Chastity laughed. “Yeah. Funny thing. For once his carousing actually worked in my favor.”

  “And you kept digging even after there was a murder investigation going on.”

  “Of course. I had to. Even more so now than ever. I had no idea if Brent would inherit money from his dad, but even if he did, he wouldn’t give me any. And seeing as I’d killed Bud, I figured it would be smart to get out of town as fast as I could. But with no money, it’s pretty hard to get out of town.”

  “I’m sure if you tell this same story to the police, the judge will be very sympathetic,” I lied. “After all, it was just an accident.”

  Chastity laughed, a high-pitched shriek that didn’t make me feel very confident about talking her out of killing me. “Nice try. Unfortunately, Jane, now that you know the truth, I’m going to have to make sure you never tell anyone. And it’s so very convenient that you’ve taken the tarp off the scooter, since I’m going to wrap your body in it before I dispose of it.” She waved the gun toward the tarp, which was now lying on the ground. “Go ahead, step on it. It’ll make less of a mess if I shoot you right on it.”

  Before I could make a move, a scuffling sound and a guttural growl came from the front of the scooter, distracting Chastity. Her gaze swiveled in that direction.

  Jinx was rummaging in my purse. He skewered the bag of chocolates, flipping it into the air toward me. Chocolates rained down everywhere. Mocha creams. Vanilla creams. Malted milk balls. I caught a peanut butter cup mid-air, shoved it into my mouth, and chewed as if my life depended on it.

  Chapter Twenty

  Chastity swung her gun in Jinx’s direction.

  “Hey, didn’t anyone ever tell you it’s not polite to point?” Jinx hissed at her, arching his back.

  Chastity looked confused, her eyes darting from Jinx to the white bag to the chocolates, now scattered over the floor.

  I knew I only had a few precious seconds to focus on the spell, which was unfortunate, because thinking up spells on the fly was not my forte. I didn’t have time to peruse my mental Rolodex of enchantments for the most appropriate one, so I did the first one that came to mind. An irresistible-craving spell.

  Chastity’s eyes widened as she stared at the candy.

  “Oh, are those maple creams?” Her gun clattered to the floor as she dove on the candy, picking up a handful and stuffing it into her mouth.

  I raced over to the gun and picked it up then pointed it at her. Even though she was busy stuffing her face now, I didn’t know how long the spell would last.

  Then I did something I hated to do, especially twice in one week. I called Sheriff Bobby O’Hara.

  O’Hara showed up five minutes later in a whir of sirens and a blaze of lights, looking more disappointed that I wasn’t the killer than happy that I had caught the person who was.

  “And just what were you doing here, Gallows?” she asked as Officer Parker led Chastity away. Chastity had confessed easily, especially when I bribed her with candy. The only problem came when O’Hara tried to snap on the cuffs. Chastity had resisted because she was still shoving candy into her mouth, and the cuffs impeded her eating. The only downside to the whole thing was that I’d have to resupply; she’d eaten all the chocolate. Well, that and the fact that I was now stuck explaining to O’Hara.

  “Like I told you, I was still investigating Bud’s death because he hired me. I just wanted to see the case through to the end,” I said.

  “Uh huh. And you were in the garage because ...”

  “I suspected Brent and Chastity had lied about their alibi.”

  “Yeah, any amateur could have seen that,” O’Hara said as if justifying why she hadn’t been in the garage looking for clues.

  “Right. So Minnie Wheeler and Sophie Liberty thought they heard a car squealing the night Bud was killed.”

  “Uh huh…” O’Hara looked confused, as if she didn’t know where I was going with this.

  “So I just came over to see if Brent and Chastity’s car squealed.”

  O’Hara walked over to the door, checking the lock, apparently to see if it had been jimmied. “Yeah, so how did you end up in the garage with the homeowner holding a gun on you?”

  “Oh. Well, I was gonna just do some surveillance, but then I heard a noise coming from the garage, and I came to investigate.”

  “How did you get in?”

  “The door was unlocked.” No way was I going to admit to picking the lock and give her ammunition to pull me into the station.

  “So what happened once you came in?”

  I gestured toward the few chocolates that were left on the floor. “I guess maybe some mice had gotten in here and knocked over some boxes and were rummaging around for food. Anyway, Chastity must have heard the same commotion and come out to investigate with her gun.”

  “And she found you here, uncovering her scooter?” O’Hara’s tone was skeptical.

  “Well, yeah. See, when I came in to investigate, I noticed a mouse over by the tarp. I was trying to get rid of it when the tarp slid off the scooter, and I realized this could be the vehicle that had been wailing the night Bud was killed.”

  “Uh huh. And then you conveniently got her to confess?”

  I shrugged. “Yeah. I mean, it just all came bubbling out. You heard her yourself.”

  “Was she drunk or on drugs or something?” O’Hara looked back toward the police car, where Parker was trying to stuff Chastity into the back. “She seems a little loopy, and she keeps begging for chocolate.”

  I nodded. “I think that’s it. She must be on something. That’s why she confessed so easily.”

  O’Hara stared at me for a long moment then put her notebook away. “Okay. I guess that sums it up then, Gallows. I had her at the top of my suspect list, and we were just closing in on her anyway, so don’t go putting on airs about how your amateur detecting caught the killer before the police.”

  “Oh, I wouldn’t dream of it. Can I go now?”

  “Yep. And if you want, you can feel free to leave town.”

  I wanted to go straight home after O’Hara let me go, but I figured I owed it to Moe to fill him in on what had happened. I was feeling pretty good about myself, having discovered the killer and gotten her to confess.

  I figured the mill building would be empty, but there was a light on in the office on the first floor. As we approached, the door opened. I was finally going to meet the mysterious new occupant.

  I was a little excited. The mill building was kind of boring. Maybe the new person was someone interesting that would liven up my day.

  A familiar figure stepped out the door. No. It couldn’t be. That was when I noticed the black-and-gold sign on top of the door. Mitch Pierce.

  “Oh, no. Don’t tell me he’s the new neighbor.” Jinx disliked Mitch even more than I did.

  I stared at Mitch, my mouth agape. His lips quirked in a knowing smile. He’d moved here on purpose.

  “Don’t tell me this is your office,” I sputtered, gesturing wildly toward his door.

  “Yep.” His eyes dropped to Jinx. “Don’t tell me you’re still dragging that flea-bitten, smelly old thing around.”r />
  “Hey, I’m not flea-bitten and I don’t smell,” Jinx hissed.

  “No. This is some kind of a joke. Why would you move into my building when you had a prestigious office downtown?”

  “Turns out that a lot of clients prefer it when a private investigator is in a much sleazier location. I heard a few of them saying they were going to check out your business because the mill seemed like a place a detective that didn’t mind getting his hands dirty would work out of. So I figured if you can’t beat them, join them. Besides, I kind of miss seeing your smiling face every day.”

  What a jerk. “Well, I don’t have a lot of clients, so you made a bad move. You should move back to your nice office before they rent it to someone else.”

  Mitch’s charming smile tugged at my traitorous heartstrings. I would not fall under his spell again. If I had some chocolate, I’d cast a steer-clear spell on myself.

  “Oh, come on, Sunshine, it will be fun being in the same building. Maybe we can even work some cases together.”

  I’d rather eat worms. I hitched my bag up on my shoulder and jerked my door open. “I highly doubt that.”

  I stormed up the steps, Jinx at my side.

  “I hate it when he calls me Sunshine,” I mumbled.

  “I hate it when he calls me old, flea-bitten, and smelly,” Jinx said.

  My blood was boiling by the time I reached my office. The nerve of him getting an office right below mine! And all because he thought he’d get more clients. So now this meant he was going to start taking clients from me. I’d have to work doubly hard, and I sure as heck wasn’t going to be as picky as I had been. From here on in, I was going to accept every client that came my way, just like Moe had suggested.

  I jerked the door open, disturbing Moe, who had been lying on the couch.

  “Red! What’s going on? I was trying to get some shuteye. That bird downstairs has been making a lot of noise today. How does he expect a guy to sleep? I don’t think I’m going to like having him here if he’s that noisy.”

  “You and me both.” I wondered how I could get rid of Mitch. Could I cast some kind of spell on him? Maybe a gone-fishing spell or a retirement spell? My spells never lasted, but I was sure my cousins would help me out.

  “You must have some news. You don’t come here at night unless something’s going on,” Moe said.

  “As a matter of fact, I do. The case is solved.”

  Moe clapped his hands, a smile cracking his face. “That’s great news!”

  He turned to the corner he often materialized from. I pictured he must have some sort of a ghost apartment back there, because he often came out with different clothes, cards, hats.

  When he turned back around, he was holding up a bottle of whiskey. “I say we celebrate.” He pulled a shot glass out of his pocket and poured some of the amber liquid into it then held it out toward me.

  I lifted my hand to accept before realizing I couldn’t imbibe his ghostly spirits. Which was a shame, because I could have really used a drink.

  “Oh yeah. I forgot you can’t drink. More for me.” He downed the shot and poured another before plopping onto the couch. “Oh. Before I forget. Someone was here pounding on the door. Sounded real urgent.”

  “Probably the noisy neighbor downstairs. Or maybe Hightower. Or it could have been that lady from the paper. Either way, I’m sure they can wait.”

  “I don’t know. Didn’t sound like they could wait,” Moe said. “Judging by the way they were pounding on the door, I got the impression it might have been someone seeking our investigative services.”

  “Oh, really?” That might be a good sign. If someone was coming up here to hire us, they would have had to walk right past Mitch’s sign. Maybe things wouldn’t be so bad after all.

  “Well, hopefully they’ll come back tomorrow.” Moe patted the couch beside him. “Now sit down and tell me all about how we solved the case.”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  I took the next morning off. I’d spent a few hours filling Moe in on the exciting capture of Chastity the night before and left him clutching his whiskey bottle and snoozing on the couch. We’d worked hard, and I figured we both deserved the morning off. Hopefully the persistent client wouldn’t come back until I returned.

  It was a gloriously warm day, the kind of late-summer day on which the air is tinged with a bittersweet end-of-summer nostalgia mingled with the smell of freshly mown grass. We were lounging out by the pool after just having had our nails done. Pink for Liz, purple sparkles for Tess and Gladys, scarlet for Wanda. Being even more practical than Liz, I had gone for clear. I’d just finished giving them a dramatic rendition of capturing Chastity.

  “See, your magic is powerful, dear.” Aunt Gladys put her hand on my arm. “You managed to disarm a cold-blooded killer with it.”

  Even though I knew my magic wasn’t really that powerful, my family had always gone out of their way to make it seem like it was so that I didn’t feel “less than.” The truth was, I was pretty proud that I’d captured Chastity. Even better, I’d figured out who the killer was and gotten her to confess without even using an ounce of magic until the very end when I needed to keep her from shooting me.

  “Ahem!”

  We all turned to see Jinx staring up at us with a perturbed look on his face.

  “I helped.”

  “Yes, you were a big help.” It was true. Without Jinx, I wouldn’t have been able to get to the chocolates. I shuddered to think what might have happened if he hadn’t been there.

  “Yeah, and what about how I discovered that the tire was rubbing?” Jinx asked. “That was pivotal to cracking the case.”

  “Right. You did do that.”

  “And the digging over at Bud’s. I found that too.”

  “Yeah. I guess you are a pretty big help. Maybe you should start your own private investigator business.”

  “You know, that’s not such a bad idea, because I also discovered that—”

  “Jinxy,” Aunt Wanda cut in. Good thing, too, because I could tell Jinx was about to go on one of his self-indulgent rants about how important he was. “You want some catnip? It’s fresh from my garden.”

  Jinx whipped his head around. “Say what? You have fresh catnip? Is it that special blend? You know, the stuff from the seeds you got in Colombia.”

  “One and the same.” Wanda pulled a purple velvet bag out of her pocket, pinched out some dried herbs, and scattered them on the patio.

  Jinx pounced on the herbs, flipped onto his back, then wiggled around, his feet kicking up in the air.

  “That ought to occupy him for a while,” Tess said.

  A rustle in the bushes near the wrought iron fence caught my eye. “Someone’s out there.”

  Aunt Wanda glanced in that direction. “Oh, that’s just Harvey, the gardener.”

  We all watched as Harvey appeared in view on the lawnmower. He was shirtless, showing off tanned, rippling muscles.

  “Wanda, the poison ivy spell,” Aunt Gladys reminded. “We don’t want Harvey to get a rash and ruin all that nice … skin.”

  Wanda sighed. “Unfortunately, I had to do a disenchantment on that. Harvey needs to get out there and mow a clear path to the jack-o-lantern patch. I need to make sure there are enough mature ones for Old Coven Days.”

  My eyes drifted out to the large green patch dotted with orange orbs. Some of the jack-o-lanterns were already glowing. Aunt Wanda was in charge of decorating for Old Coven Days, and she planned to line the perimeters of the hexagon with jack-o-lanterns from the garden. As I watched, one turned toward us, an alarmed expression on its face. My chest constricted for the jack-o-lanterns. Despite their gap-toothed smiles and brightly lit eyes, they hated being picked. Jack-o-lanterns had a great life in the patch, but once they had been plucked, their days were numbered.

  “So I guess Mrs. Newman will be coming back to spy on us,” Liz said, her gaze drifting off into the distance toward Newman’s house.

  “I don’t
know if she’ll be coming back anytime soon,” I said. “I saw her coming out of the pharmacy yesterday, and she was itching like crazy. Had a bag loaded up with something. Calamine lotion, I assume.”

  “Serves her right,” Tess said, admiring the way her nails sparkled in the sunlight.

  “At least Hightower stopped threatening us,” Wanda said.

  Aunt Gladys made a clucking sound. “I wish. She’s still stalking me. I went down to Bruno’s Market yesterday, and she followed me all around the store. Oh, she pretended like she wasn’t, but I could tell, because she ended up in every aisle I was in, and her cart was empty. And when I got to the housewares aisle, she strategically placed herself in front of the brooms as if she were guarding them.”

  “She can be very annoying,” Liz said.

  “As if I was going to take her precious brooms.” Aunt Gladys spread her hands to indicate all the brooms on the patio. “I think I have enough.”

  “She’ll never stop bothering us as long as she thinks our unconventional behavior might scare tourists away,” Wanda said. “Funny thing is, I think our unconventional behavior plays right into the spirit of the town.”

  “She’s just got a grudge against us,” Gladys said. “Might have to do with the fact that Rocky Dickson chose to go to the town fair with me instead of her.”

  Wanda frowned. “That was fifteen years ago.”

  Gladys shrugged. “Some people hold a grudge.”

  “So how is the brooming going?” Wanda asked Glad.

  Glad’s face fell. “Not so good. I guess it was silly of me to think it was all because of defective brooms. It really is something wrong with me. I’m the one that is defective.”

  Wanda’s face softened, and she put her hand on Gladys’s. “You’re not defective, honey. Maybe you’re just having a bad spell. You know, like when you have a cold or the flu or something. I think your magic will come back.”

  “I don’t know….” Glad looked so sad it made my heart twist.