Miss Frost Saves The Sandman: A Nocturne Falls Mystery (Jayne Frost Book 3)

by Kristen Painter

I pointed to the spider and the dried flowers on the entry table. “A dead spider, then Greyson found that sprig of black baby’s breath, which she had in her hair at the shop yesterday, and a piece of black silk, possibly from her dress.”

  Greyson pointed behind him. “Right here on the floor. I poked at it, but that’s it.”

  The sheriff frowned. “At least you didn’t touch it.”

  The sheriff might not be happy with us, but really, had he expected us just to stand there and wait? I figured I’d better share the rest of what I knew. “Also, I talked to Kip already. He’s one of the employees who lives across the hall. He said he didn’t hear any sounds of fighting. He’s in 3B.”

  Sheriff Merrow’s frown deepened. “I’ll still need to talk to him. And whoever else lives on this floor.”

  “That would be Rowley Gladstone and his wife, Dorthea. They’re in 3A. Only been here a week.”

  The sheriff made a note of that. “What about the rest of the employees?”

  “Kip and Juniper work the opening shift, so they’ll be on duty shortly. I haven’t talked to Juniper. She lives on the floor below, same as I do. And so does Buttercup, who was probably gaming all night. Holly’s probably still in her apartment downstairs. She and Buttercup work the evening shift and Rowley’s mostly on the gap shift.” I wasn’t sure what other info the sheriff might need, but I knew he’d talk to all of them no matter what I said. “Are you done with Greyson and me?”

  His eyes narrowed and I wasn’t sure he’d heard my question. “If Sanders was kidnapped, would that explain why no one in my house slept last night? No sleep magic.”

  “None of us slept either, although I think it was confined to town limits.” I told him about Reena.

  “Interesting.”

  “I thought so too. And I don’t know if the lack of sleep is related to Sanders and Olive being missing or not, but the two things would be awfully coincidental not to be.”

  “I’m not a big fan of coincidence, Miss Frost. Not in a town like this.”

  “I hear you.” I waited a beat. “So, um, can Greyson and I…” I pointed my thumb toward the door.

  “Yes, you can go. But don’t go far and keep your phone on.”

  “Will do.” I slanted my eyes at Greyson and tipped my head for him to come on.

  Neither of us said a word until we were back in my apartment, and then I was the first to speak. “We have to go to the Black Rose now.”

  “You really think that’s a good idea?”

  “Yes.” Spider wandered out from the bedroom, yawning. The show off. “We need to see if Luna’s still there.”

  “And if she’s not?”

  “Then you can talk Edna Turnbuckle into letting us into her room. We might find something.”

  “We might. But now that the police are involved, maybe we should leave that to them. And what if she is there? What then?”

  “Then…” I wasn’t sure. I reached down to pick Spider up. He really was the only spider I was interested in touching ever again. “Ask her how her date went last night? See if we can get her to tell us what happened? Figure out if she has any idea where Sanders and Olive are? Maybe she’ll act guilty.”

  “I don’t know. We could be tipping her off. Again, I think we should leave this to the police.”

  Spider head-butted me as I gave Greyson a stern look. “That really doesn’t sound like you. All law-abiding and whatnot.” It was downright Cooper-esque.

  “I realize leaving it to the police isn’t how I normally play things, but this is the Sandman we’re talking about. I might be able to do without his brand of sleep, but very few can. This is bigger than both of us, Jayne. If Luna is involved in this and we spook her and she runs, we could really screw things up.”

  I sighed. “I suppose you’re right.”

  His eyes sparkled. “But we could at least find out if she’s still there.”

  I grinned. “What do you have in mind?”

  He snorted. “Nothing dramatic. Just a phone call.”

  “Oh.” I scratched Spider’s chin. He tried to chew on my fingers. I could take a hint. “I guess that works.”

  While Greyson got his phone out, I went to work feeding Spider.

  “Hello, I was trying to reach one of your guests, Luna Nyx. I’m a friend, yes.” Greyson paused, listening. “I see. Thanks for letting me know. Have a good day.”

  I stood at the sink, rinsing out Spider’s bowl. I looked over my shoulder. “Well?”

  “Checked out late last night. And she wasn’t happy.”

  I dumped a can of Chicken Party into the dish. “Isn’t ‘not happy’ sort of her general look?”

  “According to Edna Turnbuckle, Luna checked out in a huff and seemed weepy and angry. Edna’s words.”

  I put the bowl on the floor and got out of the way as Spider dove in. I didn’t want to lose a finger. “Really? You think she and Sanders had an argument? That could be what triggered all this. Maybe she proposed something that was more than he was willing to go along with, he rejected her, she got mad and, after checking out, decided if she couldn’t have him, no one could.”

  Greyson leaned on the counter. “I’d buy that. But how does kidnapping Olive fit into the picture?”

  I thought it over. “Luna checks out of the D&B, getting angrier and angrier. She goes to the apartment to confront Sanders, maybe to tell him off one more time. She gets there and Olive won’t let her in. Won’t let her see Sanders.”

  Greyson nodded. “She wasn’t going to let us see him. I can only imagine what she would have said to Luna.”

  “Right. Luna’s already mad, but Olive makes her furious. Plus she already knows Olive doesn’t like her, and that’s when everything freezes over. They fight, which is how the apartment gets wrecked, then Luna uses her magic to subdue them both and drag them off to who knows where.”

  What little color there was in Greyson’s face vanished.

  It was enough to give me pause. “What? Did I miss something?”

  “If Luna really did use her magic to subdue them…her reaper magic…” He swallowed. “They might both be…dead.”

  A chill washed through me. More than a chill, it was a harsh, burning cold that sucked the breath out of my lungs. “That—that can’t be right.”

  Greyson wiped a hand over his mouth. “It would explain why the town had insomnia last night. No Sandman, no sleep.”

  “Oh no. That can’t be.” I breathed open-mouthed, trying to catch my breath and wanting very much to find a hole in Greyson’s logic. “It makes sense. Awful, horrible sense.”

  He just nodded, looking a little numb.

  I sucked in another breath. “Wait, maybe it doesn’t. If he really were dead, wouldn’t the whole world be sleepless? It was only Nocturne Falls. As far as we know.”

  Greyson shrugged half-heartedly. “Maybe. Or maybe it’s just the kind of thing that’s going to spread across the world like a virus. Maybe tonight it’ll be the whole state of Georgia that’s sleepless. Tomorrow, the rest of the South.”

  I stared at him, my stomach in knots and my sleep-deprived brain struggling to process the possibilities. “Son of a nutcracker.”

  I couldn’t just stand around doing nothing. “We have to go to the Black Rose and look through Luna’s room. We might find something. I don’t care if we have to break in to do it, either.” I crossed my arms. “And if you don’t want to come with me, I’ll call Cooper.” I wanted to text Cooper anyway to see how he and everyone at the firehouse was doing with the sleeplessness.

  The mention of Cooper snapped Greyson out of it. He stopped staring into space to look at me. “No, I’ll go. I’m sure we can talk Edna into it.”

  “Great. I’ll get my—” My phone rang and we both jumped, proof of how unnerving this whole mess was. Not that unusual for me, but I’d never seen Greyson like this. I tapped the screen to answer. “Hello?”

  “Miss Frost, this is Sheriff Merrow. I’m convening a meeting at the station
in half an hour. I’d like you to be there.”

  “Did you find something?”

  “Nothing beyond what you and Greyson uncovered, but meeting will give you a chance to explain what’s happened so far to the rest of my team. Then we can make an informed decision together about our next steps.”

  Color me impressed. “I appreciate you keeping me in the loop like this. I wasn’t expecting that.”

  “You were Sanders’ main point of contact and your store is the reason he was in town in the first place. And this way you can keep your father and uncle informed as well. I know they’ll want to be kept apprised of the situation.”

  I closed my eyes for a second as his words sank in. I still needed to call my dad. Yeti biscuits. That was not going to be fun. “Right. Okay, half an hour. I’m bringing Greyson with me and I’m inviting Cooper Sullivan, too.”

  “That’s fine. My brother, Titus, will be here. I figure we may need some search parties so best we include him from the get-go.”

  “Works for me. See you soon.” I hung up and started texting my favorite fireman. Hope you’re surviving without sleep. Can you meet me at the sheriff’s department in 30?

  Greyson’s eyes narrowed. “What are you inviting Cooper to?”

  “A meeting at the sheriff’s department.” I hit send. “The sheriff is holding a meeting in thirty minutes to get everyone on the same page. You can be there, right?”

  He made a curious face. “Of course. What else would I be doing?”

  “Great, but…” I tried for a sympathetic smile. “I need to shower and wake myself up.”

  “And you want some alone time to do that.”

  “You win.” I gave him a thumbs-up, super happy that he was so perceptive. “Sorry, but this lack of sleep is making my fuse a little short and my head a little fuzzy. I need to be alone for a few minutes to think and get ready and chill.”

  “I understand.” He kissed me on the cheek, then headed for the window. “See you there.”

  He slipped out and jumped over the fire escape. I closed and locked the window, watching him walk away on the street below for a moment. I was about to hit the shower when Cooper responded.

  We’re all dragging. The chief filled me in. I’ll be at the meeting.

  Good, I typed back. See you there.

  Dr Pepper in hand, I headed for the shower. I cranked it on and stepped into the steam. The hot water helped tremendously, the caffeine slightly less, but I was more awake when I got out than when I’d stepped in.

  I put on a new outfit. Black work pants, a silk tee, and a pinstriped blazer. Then I did some light makeup and twisted my hair into a cute, albeit slightly messy, up-do. A little jewelry and my sensible black heels, and I was ready. Hey, I’d have to go into the office at some point. Might as well prep for that now.

  And, if I’m being perfectly honest, knowing that I was going to have to stand in front of a room full of deputies and first responders and give them the Sanders report was a little unnerving, especially when he’d gone missing on my watch. I wanted to look like I knew what I was doing. Work clothes made me feel that way.

  I filled Spider’s dry food bowl, grabbed my purse, and was out the door. As I walked to the station, I made some mental notes about what I was going to say and what I would suggest happen next.

  Examining Luna’s room at the Black Rose was at the top of that list. I was convinced there had to be a clue there somewhere. Even if it wasn’t a flashing neon sign that pointed us in the direction she’d gone, it could be enough to start us on the right path.

  Birdie was behind the reception desk when I arrived at the station. Her back was to me as she bustled around, making coffee and piling paper napkins on top of a box of doughnuts, presumably for the meeting. “Be with you in a just a sec.”

  “Morning, Birdie.”

  She turned, her hands going skyward when she saw me. “Oh, Princess Jayne! I’d say good morning, but it isn’t good, is it? I’m so sorry about Tempus and Olive going missing. Hank will find them. You’ll see.”

  “I hope so.” I rested my hands on the counter and restrained the urge to remind her not to call me Princess. I was kind of getting used to it, and I’d figured out a while back that Birdie was going to do whatever she wanted. “I just don’t know how that’s going to happen without any clues.”

  “Honey, we’re werewolves.” She tapped the side of her nose as the sheriff stepped out of his office. “Best trackers around.”

  He frowned as he stood in the doorway. “Except there doesn’t seem to be a scent trail.”

  “What’s that now?” Birdie looked at him, clearly perplexed. “What kind of creature doesn’t leave a scent trail?”

  He let out a dark, unhappy sound that was somewhere between a grunt and a sigh. “The three we’re after, that’s what kind.” He studied me, nostrils twitching. “You don’t have much of one either, unless you’re wearing perfume. I’d ask if that was a trait of all winter elves, but I could scent your employees just fine this morning.”

  “About that…can I speak to you in your office? I might be able to shed some light on why that is.” I hoped the privately part was implied. I didn’t want Birdie to feel bad, but I also didn’t want to tell the whole world what Sanders and Luna really were. Their status as elementals wasn’t my information to share, but this was an extenuating circumstance to be sure. And Birdie wasn’t known for keeping secrets.

  I expected him to move, but he stayed right where he was. “You mean because they’re elementals?”

  My mouth came open, but for a few seconds, I had nothing to say. “I, uh, didn’t know that was public knowledge.”

  “It’s not. But when a visitor comes to town, especially someone as important as Tempus Sanders, we do our research. It’s in the best interests of the town that the right people know who’s headed our way.”

  “I see. So you already knew Sanders was an elemental?”

  He nodded. “We did. Luna too. Also knew Luna showing up might be a possibility. Our research department is very thorough.”

  Birdie smiled and waved at me.

  “You’re the research department?”

  “Some of it. I’m pretty good with the computer.”

  “She’s excellent with that internet business,” Sheriff Merrow added. “Downright scary with it, if you ask me.”

  I kind of knew about Birdie’s skills already. I had used them on more than one occasion. “That still doesn’t explain why Olive doesn’t have a scent.”

  “I just figured she was an elemental, too.”

  “She’s not. She’s a winter elf.” I almost said ‘just like me,’ but realized that would have been a half-truth.

  Greyson walked through the door behind me, and nodded a greeting to us as the sheriff answered.

  “Then maybe Luna had a way to cover Olive’s tracks. She knew there were shifters in town, knew we could track them. Seems reasonable she would have taken precautions. She didn’t get to be the Mistress of Nightmares by being sloppy.”

  “No, she got there by divorcing Sanders.”

  “But she’s held onto the position for quite a few years now. That wouldn’t happen if she was the kind to let details slide.” He glanced toward the rear of the building. “Anyway, if you’re ready, my team’s assembled, and with Greyson here, that’s all of us. We should get this meeting underway.”

  Birdie picked up the coffee carafe in one hand and the box of doughnuts in the other. “Right this way, Princess. Hank, bring that little stack of paper plates and my laptop.”

  “Aunt Birdie, we do not need refreshments for—”

  “Don’t be a sassmouth. Of course we need refreshments. We’re working through a serious sleep deprivation issue here. And doughnuts and coffee make everything better.”

  He grunted something, picked up the plates and the laptop and walked toward the back of the station, muttering more things I couldn’t quite make out.

  It would have been amusing if not for the
situation. There was so much going on in my head, I was a little lost in thought as I followed Birdie to the conference room. How were we going to find Sanders? Was he okay? Was Olive? Greyson stayed at my side, letting me ponder, but I snapped out of it when we walked into the room. Besides the three deputies, the room also held Titus, the fire chief, and Cooper. It was nice to see his friendly face.

  Next to Deputy Blythe, a laptop sat open and someone else was video-conferenced in.

  The sheriff pointed at the screen. “Deputy Lafitte is online with us as he’s unable to be out during daylight hours.”

  Deputy Lafitte smiled and waved, showing off a set of pearly fangs. “Sorry I couldn’t be there in person.”

  His voice had a rolling lilt that made for easy listening, but I didn’t know enough to know where that accent came from. “No problem,” I said, even though I wasn’t sure he was talking to me.

  The sheriff introduced me to everyone, but the only two I hadn’t met yet were Deputy Cruz and Deputy Everly, both good-looking guys, which I was starting to think was a requirement for employment at the station. The good-looking part, not the guy part. That done, we all took seats as Birdie poured coffee and distributed doughnuts.

  The sheriff nodded at me. “Miss Frost, go ahead and tell everyone what you told me at the apartment.”

  I ran through the story, same as I had before, starting from the beginning when Sanders and Olive had arrived, then running through the scene at Elenora’s house, when Luna had shown up at the signing, how they’d made a date for that evening, how Sanders and Olive had gone missing, and finishing with the part about Luna’s stay at the Black Rose. “She’s checked out now, but I think someone should get over there and go through the room. See if anything’s been left behind that might give us a clue where she’s taken Sanders and Olive.”

  “If she’s taken them,” Deputy Blythe said.

  “You think she didn’t?” My tone probably could have been nicer, but my butt was on the line here. And I didn’t have any idea who else might have done it if not Luna.

  “I just think we need to keep our minds open.” Deputy Blythe looked at the sheriff. “Everly and I can run that room down if you like.”