Happier Days in Time

by Jenna St James

  “What is she doing out here?” I mused for like the third time. “It’s literally in the middle of nowhere.”

  “There’s plenty of trees and dirt and dusty roads.”

  “Look! She’s turning right up ahead.” I waited until I couldn’t see her car anymore before I turned right to follow her. “It’s like she just drove through the trees. I don’t even really see a dirt path.”

  I’d probably only driven a couple feet when an icy chill ran down my spine.

  “You feel that? Huh? Huh?”

  “I do,” I whispered. “There’s magic here.”

  “And it doesn’t feel welcoming. Not at all!”

  “I think I’m going to park the car behind that huge thicket over there. I can’t risk damaging Maggie’s convertible.” Up ahead about ten feet there was a space just wide enough to drive through and park without being seen.

  “Grab the binoculars! Just in case!”

  “Got ‘em. Let’s go see what’s going on.”

  I did my best to walk as lightly as I could on the forest floor—not because I feared making noise, but because my heels kept sinking into the ground. “Note to self: A stakeout in a fancy dress and heels is a huge fail.”

  Rex laughed. “I’ll say!”

  The trees started to thin out, and up ahead about fifty yards sat an actual hut made of stone, covered in peat moss and ivy, with a thatched roof. I motioned for Rex to stop as I crouched behind a huge bush. Waving my hand in the air, I split the shrub in half, giving me a clear view of the cottage. To my left, a woman leaned into the back of her car and pulled out a basket.

  “What is it?”

  “I don’t know.” I dug through the purse for my binoculars and lifted the lenses to my eyes. I could just make out what was in the loosely-woven basket. “Looks like a couple cans of evaporated milk and a couple bottles of Karo syrup.”

  “I don’t think a baker lives here, Lexi.”

  The woman carrying the basket didn’t knock on the door, instead she entered the home as though she’d done it a thousand times before.

  “Want me to go spy? See what I can see?”

  “Yes. We need to find out why Peggy Sue is visiting a witch.”

  ***

  Not two minutes later, Rex came scampering back over to where I was hiding, panting and wheezing.

  “Dude, you need to lay off the food.”

  “Can’t!” Rex panted. “Low blood sugar. I have to eat all the time! You know that!”

  “What did you see? You weren’t gone very long.”

  “Nothing! I couldn’t see a darn thing. The witch has a ward over the house.”

  “This assignment is getting weirder and weirder,” I said. “Did you ever get a vibe from Peggy Sue that she was magical?”

  “Nope. Of course, I didn’t expect the curtain climber to be able to hear me, either.”

  I snorted. “That spitfire has a name, and it’s Rosie Ann Belmont, the smartest most beautifulest girl in the whole wide world.”

  Rex laughed at my imitation of Rosie.

  “The witch’s backyard is filled with tons of herbs and flowers. There’s even a bog!”

  “A bog?”

  “Yeah! A little swampy area. I’m surprised an Ogre didn’t try and eat me.”

  Rolling my eyes, I sat down on the ground behind the bush and sighed. “We’ll just wait here for a while until Peggy Sue comes out.”

  To pass the time, Rex told me stories about his kids and grandkids. One of his sons, Raul, was a chef in New Orleans, while another son, Rob, followed in his dad’s footsteps and worked as a familiar detective for the Agency just like Rex. One of his daughter’s, Rebecca, just had twin boys, Randy and Russ.

  “Um, does everyone’s name start with the letter ‘r’ in your family?” I asked

  “Of course! Been that way for ages. My dad was Richard, and I have a brother Ralph who’s the leader of a motorcycle gang, and a sister Rita, and another sister named Ra—”

  He broke off when the front door opened and Peggy Sue stepped out…along with the witch. I held the binoculars up. “She’s not at all what I expected.”

  “Me either!”

  The woman who came outside with Peggy Sue looked like a typical woman in her seventies—short gray hair, glasses perched on the end of her nose, chubby cheeks that looked like they smiled often as she leaned heavily on a cane. She patted Peggy Sue on the arm and waved and laughed as Peggy Sue walked toward her car.

  “What’s she carrying?”

  I focused the glasses on Peggy Sue. “Looks like bottles of liquid, maybe a couple tea packets or something. I can’t really tell.”

  “So Peggy Sue visits a witch to get tea?”

  I frowned. “Yeah, something doesn’t seem right.”

  As Peggy Sue drove past us, I waved my hand to close the shrub and held my breath. When I was sure she was long gone, I waved my hand to part the bush again and lifted the binoculars to look at the cottage.

  And yelped!

  The witch stood in her doorway…and stared right at me! Dropping the binoculars, I swiped my hand in front of the bush and closed it up tight.

  “She. Was. Looking. At. Us.” I could see the fear in Rex’s eyes. And it scared me. Usually he was fearless…but I could tell he was well and truly rattled.

  “Let’s go,” I said. “We’ve seen enough.”

  Chapter 18

  “You don’t suppose Peggy Sue gave Sissy something then killed her, do you?”

  I was driving back to Maggie’s house at a snail’s pace, making sure I gave Peggy Sue plenty of time to get home and not cross her path in any way until I figured out my next move.

  “No. I mean, first off, what’s the motive? Peggy Sue, Jack, Maggie, and the Doc are all people who had no motive to kill Sissy.”

  I nodded, but wasn’t totally convinced. “I suppose. But do you think she could have slipped Sissy something that Friday afternoon during cocktails and then…”

  “What? Followed her back to Maggie’s house, killed her, and then got ready for dinner with her husband and sister-in-law?”

  “Yeah!” I said excitedly. “Maybe Peggy Sue is lying about the timeline. Maybe she didn’t go home after the cocktail hour at Nancy’s. Instead, she followed Sissy back to Maggie’s house, they got into an argument, Peggy Sue hits her upside the head, panics, and decides to make it look like a suicide.”

  “One problem…doesn’t fit the timeline.”

  “It could if we assume—oh, wait. You’re right. Nancy told me she saw Sissy close the curtains around six. If Jack and Sissy were eating dinner with Maggie from five to seven that night, it couldn’t have been Peggy Sue.”

  “Maybe today’s discovery has nothing to do with Sissy’s murder. Maybe it’s like with Walter. Maybe there’s something here for you to close before you leave.”

  “Like what?”

  “Maybe those teas will cause Peggy Sue to get sick or something, and it’s your job to stop that from happening.”

  I shrugged. “Maybe. All I know is I’m getting a little tired of all the extra side work I’m supposed to be doing on top of solving a crime.”

  “Want some cheese to go with that whine?”

  I ignored his barb as I pulled into Oakdale Estates. Driving the short distance to Maggie’s house, I pulled into the driveway and shut off the car. I was so going to miss driving the convertible when I traveled back to my own time. Rex jumped in my purse, and I went in through the side door.

  “There you are!” Maggie exclaimed, jumping up from the table. “I’ve been worried.”

  I frowned. “Worried? About your car?”

  “No, child. I’ve been worried about you. It’s almost one. You’ve been gone for nearly four hours.”

  “Oh. I honestly had no idea.”

  “We must have been at the witch’s cottage for a couple hours.”

  Maggie reached over and hugged me. “It’s okay. Like I said, I was just worried. Then I thought I’d ring P
eggy Sue to see if maybe you stopped by her house to see her on your way back from town, but I couldn’t reach anyone at her house either.”

  I bit my lip and winced. “I’m sorry, and I think I can tell you with certainty that Peggy Sue is home now.”

  Maggie waved her hands in the air. “Sit. Sit. We have so much to talk about. First off, what happened at the police station?”

  I quickly filled her in on my conversation with Officer Stanley, how he didn’t believe me at first, then proceeded to tell me that Cliff was not a suspect, finally ending with showing him the journal and telling him that Maggie herself had read the journal.

  “I think he’ll do the right thing,” I said, “and follow all the leads as far as Sissy’s death and this Janie’s death.”

  Maggie nodded. “Good. Now, what’s this about Peggy Sue and knowing she’s home now?”

  I shifted uncomfortably in my chair. I didn’t know what all to tell Maggie. I didn’t want to seem like a tattletale, but I also didn’t want Peggy Sue unknowingly associating with someone who may be trying to harm her to get to her husband, the district attorney. At least, that was the only thing I could come up with as to why Peggy Sue would be taking tea from a witch…if it even was tea.

  “You were half correct in thinking I might be with Peggy Sue,” I said. “As I was coming back from town, I saw her pulling out and heading right.”

  “Right?” Maggie frowned. “Are you sure she didn’t turn left and go into town?”

  I shook my head. “She didn’t. I thought it was odd, so I followed her. We ended up about ten miles from town on a back country road, then even deeper into a forested area. I know I shouldn’t have spied, but I didn’t want Peggy Sue to be in trouble of some kind either.”

  “Yes, rightly so. I have no idea why she would be out that far.”

  “I saw a couple things that concerned me, but before I tell you, maybe we should get Peggy Sue down here so she can clear it up for herself?”

  Maggie stood up from the table. “Of course. Good thinking. I’ll ring her real quick. Why don’t you go into the living room and make us three martinis?”

  ***

  Fifteen minutes later, the three of us were sitting in the family room, martinis in hand, making small talk. Rex was listening in from his position on the mantel behind a picture.

  “Are you feeling okay, Peggy Sue?” Maggie suddenly asked. “You look a little peaked.”

  Peggy Sue nodded and took a sip of her drink. “I’m feeling fine, Maggie. Thanks for asking.”

  Maggie narrowed her eyes. “You’re sure?”

  Peggy Sue squirmed in her chair. “Of course.”

  “Where did you go today?” Maggie asked. “I tried to call you around eleven, and I couldn’t reach you.”

  “I don’t—I mean, I—” Peggy Sue set her drink down on the coffee table and started ringing her hands. “I didn’t go anywhere.”

  That last sentence was said in such a low whisper, I had to lean forward to hear it. Exasperated, I set my own drink down and gave Maggie a pointed look. Time to lay out the cards. “I just came home from the police station, and I saw you pulling into Oakdale Estates from the opposite direction. When I mentioned to Maggie I saw you coming from that direction, she couldn’t imagine why you’d be out that way.”

  Maggie didn’t correct my half-truth.

  “Fine!” Peggy Sue threw up her hands, her body shaking uncontrollably. “I went to see Miss Ferndale!”

  “Miss Ferndale?” Maggie mused. “As in your old governess?”

  “Yes!” Peggy Sue crossed her arms over her chest and her foot went to town dancing to a beat no one else heard. “My old governess.”

  “I didn’t know she lived around here,” Maggie said.

  “She doesn’t. Not really.” Peggy Sue’s foot continued to bounce. “She lives over across the line in Putnam County.”

  “Well,” Maggie said, breaking into a smile, “that’s wonderful! You didn’t have to keep that a secret. No one is upset you’re going there. She’s practically your mother. She’s been with you from infancy.” She paused and arched an eyebrow at Peggy Sue. “How long has she been living out there, and how long have you been going to see her without saying anything?”

  Peggy Sue’s lips pinched. “When I married Jack, she moved out there. And I didn’t tell anyone, because it really isn’t anyone’s business.”

  “How can you say that?” Maggie asked. “We’re practically sisters. I thought we shared everything?”

  “What’s she giving you?” I asked.

  “What?” Maggie asked. “Giving her? You mean like advice?”

  I looked at Peggy Sue and shook my head. “No. I mean what’s she physically giving you?”

  Peggy Sue’s lower lip trembled…then she burst into tears. Huge racking sobs. Folding into herself, she began rocking back and forth.

  “Goodness, child!” Maggie jumped up from the couch and ran over to Peggy Sue, gathering her in her arms. “What’s all this? Why’re you crying?”

  “Please don’t tell Jack!” Peggy Sue begged. “Please! I don’t want him to forbid me to see her again!”

  Maggie reeled back as though she’d been slapped. “Again? Peggy Sue, get ahold of yourself and tell me what’s going on!”

  Peggy Sue wiped her cheeks and sucked in huge gulping breaths. “Jack found out back in February that—that Miss Ferndale has been giving me something. He found my stash of herbs and medicines. He made me tell him what they were, and when I did, he said I couldn’t see her anymore!” She ended that last part on a wail.

  Maggie gasped. “Herbs and medicines? Whatever for?”

  Peggy Sue looked up, tears and mascara both running down her face. “To help me conceive. I go out there and she does a fertility spell over me, and then she gives me a fertility syrup to take, along with a tea I must drink every night.”

  “Spells? Like witchcraft?” Maggie whispered. “Goodness, Peggy Sue, what were you thinking?”

  “Hmm…I’m feeling a little bad we ratted her out. Pun intended!”

  “She’s not a witch,” Peggy Sue insisted.

  “Uh…yes she is! Yes, she is!” Rex said. “Broomstick and all!”

  I bit my lip to keep from laughing. Sometimes it was ridiculously hard to keep a straight face when Rex was in my ear being…well, Rex.

  “Oh honey!” Maggie brushed the tears off Peggy Sue’s wet face. “When are you going to learn that Jack loves you. It doesn’t matter if you two have children or not.”

  “It does matter! It matters to everyone who asks me when we’re going to start a family…it matters to the magazines I read that tell me about the joy of staying home and raising children…and most importantly…it matters to me!” Her closed fist hit her chest. “Me! I want to be a better wife. I want Jack to have someone he can be proud of. Someone who will be able to give him a namesake! Someone to carry on your family name. Doesn’t that matter to you? Because it matters to me!”

  Maggie shook her head slowly back and forth. “Oh, Peggy Sue, what am I gonna do with you? If you don’t know how special you are to Jack and to me, then we’ve been doing something wrong.”

  “Please don’t tell Jack,” Peggy Sue begged. “I promise, after this last round of syrup and tea, I won’t go back for fertility help. I promise!”

  “Peggy Sue, I don’t feel right keeping this from Jack,” Maggie said. “It’s too important.”

  I decided it was time for us to go. We didn’t need to be a witness to their tragedy. Motioning for Rex to follow me, I tiptoed out of the room and up the stairs, martini in hand. I was beginning to enjoy these little clear devils.

  “Well, that was a bust.”

  I carefully waved my hand in front of the door—I didn’t want to spill my drink. Kicking the door closed, I sat down on the bed. “No. That was heartbreaking. I can’t imagine what Peggy Sue is going through.” I took a sip of my martini. “But I think it’s time we pressed a little harder.”

&n
bsp; “Whaddya mean?”

  “I’m assuming the police haven’t stopped by the Belmonts yet to question them about what’s inside the journal. It’s too soon. So I say after dinner tonight, we go across the street and let it slip I found the journal.”

  “Ohhh, very devious. I like it! I like it a lot!”

  “I’ll say something casual like I found it this afternoon and figured I’d read it tonight. That hopefully it will help me discover who might have wanted to hurt Sissy.”

  “And then we’ll wait for them to make their move and WHAM!” Rex leaped in the air and did a sidekick. “We take them down like the scum they are!”

  Chapter 19

  After a lovely meal of Swanson TV dinners, Maggie and I headed outside to sit on the porch and talk. She was still in turmoil over what to do about Peggy Sue.

  “Do I go against Jack’s wishes and let Peggy Sue still see her governess? Or do I say something to him and hurt Peggy Sue?”

  I sighed. “I don’t know. You’re definitely in a no-win situation.”

  “And all this talk of spells and witchcraft,” Maggie whispered. “It’s unnatural. I didn’t know Miss Ferndale dealt in such things, and I certainly didn’t know Peggy Sue believed in something so ridiculous.”

  I didn’t say anything—because I knew for a fact such things weren’t ridiculous.

  After a few minutes, I noticed a lot of kids running in the road and parents coming out of their houses. “What’s going on?”

  “It’s tradition on Monday nights for families to walk the neighborhood and talk to other neighbors.”

  This was the perfect excuse to go across the street. I figured I’d have to make up a reason to run over to see Cliff and Nancy, but finally luck had fallen on my side.

  When the Belmonts all clamored down their front porch, I figured that was my sign. Giving my pocket a little pat so Rex knew I was on the move, I set my drink down and stood. “I think I’m going to try my luck with the Belmonts one more time. Maybe see if I can’t press them a little more to admit to something.”