Dana gave a jovial laugh. It almost sounded forced.
Now Isabel was paying attention. Before she had just been busy pretending to drink.
“Of course it was fine. I was young when our father died and I was in no position to take the house. As Esther said, I didn’t have any money. Isabel had already married well. She had plenty of money to keep the place up.”
“But then you became a lawyer and started doing quite well,” said Hansen. “In the past few years you became quite comfortable. And you still come back to the family house.”
“Of course I come back to the family house. My parents’ prized possessions are all here. Though of course, they’re all Isabel’s now,” she said. “Or they were until she died.” A note of bitterness came into Dana’s voice for the first time.
“So, last summer when Isabel told you she was going to leave the house to Charlotte, who lived in Europe, how did you feel about that?” Charlie asked.
“Isabel took me aside to talk to me about it. Naturally, I gave her my blessing. I was too old to inherit a house anyway,” she said.
“Liar,” Isabel yelled. She jumped to her feet and raced toward Dana, but as a ghost she simply flowed imperceptibly through things and around them, so no one took any notice except for the three of us standing there who could see ghosts. Jasper also shifted uncomfortably, and I was forced once again to wonder what exactly he could see.
“She wasn’t happy about it,” Isabel said, almost yelling. “In fact, she was enraged. It’s all coming back to me now. I had no idea she had such bitterness inside her.” She was standing in front of her sister looking hard at her, but Dana, who had no idea that her ghost sister was within arm’s reach, was still standing there trying to look as placid as she could.
I exchanged looks with Greer and Charlie. Isabel was now remembering that she and her sister had had a fight about who inherited the house, but Isabel couldn't be called as a witness. She had confirmed what we’d suspected, but now we had no way whatsoever of telling Isabel’s family about it. As we continued to look at each other in confusion, Dana kept talking.
“I was very happy for Charlotte,” said Dana. “My sister did a lovely job maintaining the house all those years. I was proud of her.”
“No you weren’t,” said Anna. She had shot around Lucky and was now glaring at Dana.
“Oh, what do you know? That’s the most I’ve heard you speak in years,” said Dana waspishly.
“Don’t talk to my daughter like that,” said Anna’s mother.
“Isabel Jr. doesn’t know what she’s talking about,” snapped Dana. “She never liked me.”
The ghost of Isabel shrugged. “Too many daughters. There was only one good name left,” when I looked at her to double-check that she in fact had named one of her daughters after herself.
The living Isabel went over to stand with her daughter. She tried to put her arm around her, then thought better of it. Anna gave her a look that said it would be okay just this once. Relieved, her mother draped a comforting arm around her daughter’s shoulders. Whom it comforted more I wasn’t sure.
More family members turned on Dana.
“I never liked you either,” said Skip.
“Young lady, I want to get this straight,” said Detective Cutter, stepping forward. His demeanor had changed. Suddenly he had heard something that interested him, and what he heard was that the sister of the deceased had been fighting with the murder victim about a valuable asset. “Why are you saying she wasn’t happy for Isabel?”
Anna look suddenly nervous, and her age, but her mother gave her shoulders an encouraging squeeze and Anna seemed to solidify before our eyes. “I heard them arguing. No one ever cared where I was. They thought they were alone outside by the hammock, but I was in the hammock reading. I feigned sleep, but I was really awake and listening. Isabel was going on about how glad she was that she had finally made the decision to leave the house to Charlotte, since Charlotte had always loved it when she was younger. Isabel also knew that Charlotte would make sure the rest of us always got to use it. She was worried that anyone else would just make it their own and not let the family come for summer visits. It was very important to Isabel that the family still get to come. I had no idea she cared so much.”
“What happened between Isabel and Dana?” asked Detective Cutter.
“Dana threatened her. She said that the house should go to her if Isabel died first. Dana said that she had waited all these years for it, and for Isabel to leave it to Charlotte was unfair,” said Anna.
At that point the whole family collectively moved away from Dana. The smile was still plastered on her face, but it was slipping.
“I remember all this now,” said Isabel desperately. “I remember being shocked. I remember the fight.”
“She should have left it to me!” Dana cried suddenly. “I didn’t mean to kill her. I followed her to the library to talk it over with her. She had to see reason. There was no other option. She refused.” Dana’s eyes had gone cold.
Charlie and the rest of us stood there breathlessly.
Mrs. Snicks hiccuped.
“She had the will with her that night. I didn’t know that it was only a copy. I tried to get it away from her, but she wouldn’t let it go. Foolish woman. She fell and hit her head. I knew she was dead, so there wasn’t anything more I could do.”
For a few moments no one moved. No one knew what to do. Then Dana collapsed in sobs and Detective Cutter stepped forward.
After that, everything happened fast. Detective Cutter arrested Dana for the murder of Isabel Gray, telling her, “I suspected you all along. I let this gathering go forward because I thought it might root out the question of why you did it. And lo and behold.”
As he escorted her out, Isabel walked with her sister. They were family, after all.
Charlie and Hansen fought to get out the door first. They both had stories to write.
Hansen let Charlie win, but she didn’t realize that.
Lucky and Esther were probably the most shocked. Horace seemed to be a little lost.
“We grew up with Dana. She was always jealous of Isabel, but I would never have expected her to do anything like that,” Esther whispered. “Poor Isabel. And to think I never liked her.”
“She what?” Isabel demanded, listening. She hadn’t been able to leave the bar, so she had watched her sister go until she heard this revelation.
Anna and her mother were about to leave when Isabel grabbed Greer by the arm. At this point we were all at the bar. I mean, come on, I deserved a bit of rest. Jasper was sitting next to me, his hand warm on my knee or draped over my shoulder depending on who was talking.
“Tell Anna I’ve always loved her art,” Isabel said suddenly to me.
“Her art?” I asked, only vaguely remembering that she was an artist.
“Yes, dummy. Quickly, before she gets away,” said Isabel.
I scooted out of my seat. Jasper looked at me in confusion as I made my way over to Anna and her mother.
I had no idea how to handle this.
Luckily, Greer came to my rescue.
“I hear you’re an artist,” Greer said to Anna.
“So?” she said.
“Well, looking through your grandmother’s notes and things while we were trying to find out who killed her, I came across a note she had written. ‘Be sure to tell Anna how good an artist she is.’”
Anna’s mouth fell open. So did her mother’s.
“Where was this note?” Anna asked, her voice shaking a little.
“Sorry, I can’t remember,” said Greer, suddenly looking guilty.
“That’s okay,” said Anna’s mom. “It’s enough to know she thought that. We all always wanted her approval. Even if she was an old battle-axe.”
The mother and daughter left together, smiling.
Greer let out a long sigh of relief.
“Nicely done,” I told her. “I wouldn’t have thought of that.”
/> Greer pretended to wipe her brow. “All in a day’s work,” she said.
“Need a ride home?” Jasper asked as I was preparing to leave. Greer was working that night and Isabel was regaling her with tales of a “misspent youth.”
“No, I have the Beetle,” I said, frowning at him for being silly.
“Do you?” he challenged. We walked out into the cool evening together and I gasped.
My Beetle was missing!
“Where did it go?” I cried.
“I think a certain blond friend of yours used her spare car key,” he chuckled.
I groaned.
“Stories to write. Yeah, I don’t know what I was thinking. Couldn’t she have gotten a ride home with Hansen?” I demanded.
“He probably would have liked that,” Jasper agreed.
“I guess I’ll take that ride after all. And thanks,” I said, and climbed into his truck.
“Think they’d make a good couple?” I asked him as we drove.
He glanced over at me. “I guess it’s really none of my business. Hansen’s a great guy, though. He would treat Charlie well if it would make her happy.”
I sighed and looked out the window.
“Maybe he could,” I whispered.
“Are you happy?” Jasper asked me. He kept looking at me and quickly returning his attention to the road.
I smiled.
“You have no idea.”
Epilogue
I was deliriously happy as I headed out to the next witch coven meeting. I had done what I’d said I would: I had found Scarlett. Hopefully now the witches would be willing to hold up their end of the bargain and help me with the protection of the farmhouse.
My home needed to be protected from Ellie. Okay, she hadn’t attacked recently, but I had seen what Scarlett had seen. A battle was coming. Apparently it was centered on Mintwood, and maybe even my farmhouse. I needed all the help I could get.
Feeling far more comfortable driving up to the Cauldron Shop than I had last time, I parked in the same space and got out of the car. Once again, many other witches were milling around, but this time they gave me friendly smiles. Still, despite the warmer welcome, something felt off. I just didn’t have a clue what it was.
Josephine was waiting for me outside the shop with a friendly greeting and a drink.
“I’m terribly impressed that you managed to find Scarlett,” she said, handing me the dark liquid. “Witch’s Brew?”
“I’m just glad Scarlett is all right,” I said.
“I can’t believe she disappeared for days in order to spy on Puddlewood,” Josephine murmured.
“She was surprised by all the dark ghosts,” I said.
“I would be too. I’m not sure I’d believe it myself unless I saw it with my own eyes,” said Josephine.
“I’ve seen them. It’s not something I’d like to repeat,” I said.
The two of us made our way back to the circle of stones, cauldrons, and twinkling lights, with the lake sparkling in the background. Just as before, I was struck by the beautiful view and the warmth that surrounded us.
I took a seat in the back of the group just as Madame Rosalie brought the meeting to order. She had exchanged her shiny black cape for a white one made of delicate silk. Even from my seat in the back I could see the design of silver leaves threaded into it it. She radiated witchiness.
“Let’s get going,” the White Witch said, banging her hand on the large book in front of her. I flinched a little, but her hand appeared to be unscathed.
There were more witches than last time, and I took a moment to look around at all the unfamiliar faces. I wasn’t sure where they had all come from, and I was starting to feel intimidated again. The strange feeling in the air had intensified since I’d gotten out of the car, and though I couldn’t put my finger on it, something was definitely wrong.
I had hoped that tonight I could just sit back and take things for granted. I had been the focus of the last meeting, and that had been scary and uncomfortable. But now I had found Scarlett, as I’d promised to do, and besides the fact that the witches should have been grateful for my success, we had made a deal.
So when I’d set out for this meeting, I had planned to mostly just sit there and daydream about Jasper. We would be going to a wedding together in two weeks. That felt awfully like a debut; it certainly would be interpreted as such by his grandfather, and it was on my mind. For instance, what was I going to wear?
I had already started to fall into a Jasper-inspired reverie when Madame Rosalie brought the meeting to order. Dame Geraldine was still there, but sitting quietly off to the side.
“It has been brought to our attention that there is a gathering of dark ghosts at the border of Mintwood and Hazelwood,” she said.
Several witches exchanged annoyed and frustrated glances. Some even looked concerned. But there wasn’t the outcry I’d been expecting.
Meredith Munn scribbled frantically in a notebook, keeping the minutes of the meeting. She only looked up when she needed to know who was speaking next. Usually, she recognized the voice and immediately dipped her head back down to scribble furiously again.
“So we leave those witches to deal with it,” said the unpleasant blonde witch to whom it never seemed to occur to be quiet.
“I’m afraid it’s bigger than that,” and Madame Rosalie.
“It isn’t bigger than that until they attack other towns,” said another witch.
“We’re not supposed to be helping each other,” piped in a third witch. “Even having to come in for meetings is a lot to expect.”
Madame Rosalie banged her hand on the old book again, hard. Everybody sat up and took notice, and the arguing voices went silent. Even with her small stature, Rosalie was formidable when she wanted to be. Like now.
“You will do as you’re told. This coven follows a code. Maybe we don’t need it very often, maybe we don’t need it all, but we help each other when necessary. Because if one falls we all fall. We must remember that.”
“I’m in,” said Josephine. “I’ve been wanting to practice my spells against ghosts anyway.”
“This isn’t about practice,” said Sicily. “This is serious.”
“Does that mean you’ll help me with the séance?” I chimed in.
I knew immediately that I should have kept quiet. Every eye in the place turned to look at me, but no one made a sound. Even the crackling fire seemed to realize that this was a time for silence. I shrank, feeling about two feet tall. Why hadn’t I just kept my mouth shut and let Madame Rosalie handle it?
Her eyes were sharp. “I don’t think we plan on helping you with a séance, no.”
I sat up, alert and angry.
“We had a deal,” I said, shooting out of my seat. I glared at Sicily. Standing next to her was Scarlett, whose head was hanging low. Neither of them said anything as I glared back at Rosalie.
“We thought Scarlett was in some sort of danger. It turns out she wasn’t. Your help wasn’t needed,” says Rosalie.
“Of course she was in danger,” I said. “We found a voodoo doll of her likeness in the woods by the lake.”
“Ellie was probably practicing dark magic. But she’d have a hard time doing anything with it given the protections I’ve placed around Scarlett,” said Sicily.
“There was a voodoo doll of me?” Scarlett looked concerned.
Before Sicily could stop me I told her about it.
Scarlett looked at her grandmother. “You’ve taken care of it?”
“Of course I have,” said Sicily, giving me another glare. “Scarlett is not in danger.”
“That’s irrelevant,” I said. “There were no stipulations when we made the agreement. It was just that if I found Scarlett, which I did, you would help me with a séance to protect my farmhouse. That makes the most sense anyway, because Ellie wants to attack the farmhouse before anything else. If you stop her there you have a chance of stopping her everywhere else. Isn’t that what we were ju
st saying we wanted?”
“Do not tell me how to run this coven,” said Rosalie. “You and your grandmother have caused enough trouble for me over the years. Now you’re looking to cause more, and I won’t have it.”
My stomach was rolling and I felt that something was desperately wrong. Had I done something? Had I broken witch rules? Paws had informed me that my grandmother had never really followed them. Still, as he also kept saying, I was not my grandmother.
“Now, to get down to the real business. In order for you to retain witch status within this coven, you must promise never to see Jasper Wolf again,” said Madame Rosalie. No one else said a word.
In the distance, leaves rustled, a frog plopped into the water, and critters made their way through the forest. I heard none of that.
Suddenly, it was crystal clear why I had been feeling that Jasper was under threat. And who was threatening him.
I stood up and walked out of the fairy-like clearing.
All of the witches just stared.
No one was going to make me choose between Jasper and anything else. It was time to call in reinforcements.
Until then, I was on my own.
The End
Muddled Mintwood Murderer
(Witch of Mintwood, Book 9)
Chapter One
There was something important I had been avoiding lately. It had been weeks since I’d been to my grandmother’s grave. One night, when Greer was off at Deacon’s and Charlie was at the men’s softball league game, hoping to scare up a story, I headed out to the back field.
I owned enough land so that getting to my grandmother’s grave sat the top of its little hill was a decent walk. Paws the ghost cat offered to come with me, but the last time he’d come with me I had ended up spying on Witch Hunters. I suggested that it might be better if he stayed behind this time. Shockingly, he did as I said for once.
The field was wild and filled with bugs buzzing and birds chirping. Now and then a rabbit hopped past, looking at me curiously or resentfully and then going about her business.
The slight breeze rustled my brown hair pleasantly, and the sky was clear except for occasional white clouds using the wind to visit each other.
Witch of Mintwood Mysteries 7-9 Page 39