As soon as Michael caught sight of our cottage he said, “Utterly charming. Could do with the house across the street being empty, I suppose.”
I made a mental note to warn the neighbors that there might be trouble. I figured there might be trouble because it was a day of the week that ended in -day. But more specifically, we were getting closer to solving Sammy’s murder, and I had a feeling the Vixens wouldn’t like that. Quinn also wouldn’t like it when we proved that Lester had done nothing wrong.
Kelly had come along to our house without our even needing to discuss it. She clearly wanted to spend more time with Michael, and who I was to deny her? Besides, I didn’t want to go back to the cottage with just Lowe. I had been thinking about inviting Quinn over for dinner again, then thought better of it. I didn’t want to cut into the time he might spend investigating.
Michael still hadn’t clarified what he was doing here. It was very odd, since he didn’t usually leave the Bleak Area unless he could help it, let alone leave it to spend the afternoon and evening with a bunch of women. And even now that he’d come home with us, he was worried enough about his own safety to have brought eight owls along. They were still soaring overhead, not getting too close to us because of the cats, but staying close enough to keep an eye on Michael
My plan upon returning had been to stop in at Lisa and Lucky’s, but the house was dark. That wasn’t surprising; Lisa worked a lot and Lucky was often out. Later, when they got home, maybe they could join us for dinner, although I had to remind myself that Michael might not like that.
The pixies and fairies in the garden were doing something so unusual that Lowe and I stopped and stared when we arrived at our little gate.
“Are you seeing what I’m seeing?” Lowe asked as we stood outside the fence. On one side of the yard the fairies were busy working on a project in silence and harmony, as far as we could tell. The same was happening on the other side with the pixies. There were two unoccupied rows of garden between the two groups, the very rows that they normally fought over the most. At the moment, one representative from each species was waiting on each side. They appeared to be speaking cordially to each other when it was necessary. To say that my mind was blown was an understatement.
“What are they doing?” Kelly whispered.
I was about to say they were performing a miracle when Michael said something much more ominous.
“They appear to be preparing for war,” he murmured.
“They’ve been at war for years. Why would they change their preparations now?” I asked.
“I don’t believe they’re preparing for war with each other,” Michael said, his eyes dark and serious. I was suddenly very glad indeed that Lowe and I had not come home alone.
“Let’s get inside the house,” I said. “The unicorns need to be tended to, and I’m starving.”
“They’re fascinating creatures. To have a pixie population this large is a true accomplishment,” Michael said as we reached the porch. Just as I was opening the door a very small white snowball came soaring through the air and hit Michael right on the cheek. He turned to look at the pixies, but they had all gone quickly back to work.
“You kind of deserved that,” Kelly told him.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said.
The cats streamed inside around our feet. The cottage was warm but not hot. We had left the fire stoked before we went out in the morning, and Lowe ran to check it. I made my way through to the kitchen. There was no point in taking off my coat if I was going right back out to see to the unicorns.
“Would you mind terribly if I joined you?” Michael asked, looking excited. “ I was rather hoping to make introductions between the owls and the unicorns, besides seeing them for myself.”
“I don’t know if Bethel would approve of that,” I said, uncertain of my ground.
“Well, she can’t very well control whether they see birds or not,” Lowe pointed out. “At least, I suppose she could perform a spell, but I don’t think she’s done so.”
She had a point. I still wasn’t a hundred percent convinced, but I looked back and forth between Lowe and Michael and then nodded. “Let’s do it,” I said.
“I’m coming too,” said Kelly.
“I’ll stay here and get the fire going and some food out,” said Lowe. She was even worse at taking care of the unicorns than I was, and perfectly happy to leave that job to me.
I stepped out the back door. There had been no need for us to discuss animal introductions; the owls had taken care of that on their own. All eight of them had come down from the sky to mingle carefully with the cats and unicorns, all three animal kinds seeming curious about each other and proceeding carefully with the getting-acquainted process.
“How exciting,” said Kelly with a big grin. “This is much more fun than listening to the sheep and goats yell at each other,” she added.
“You have a farm? Of course you have a farm. Explains the journal,” said Michael, answering his own question.
“It’s my father’s journal. We all take turns writing for it. Like continuing our education or something,” Kelly explained.
“It’s your father’s? He’s a brilliant man,” said Michael, perking up again. His eyes were still on the owls, but I had never heard him sound so animated.
“Thanks. I won’t tell him you said so, lest it go to his head,” said Kelly with a smile.
“Of course,” said Michael, missing the joke. Kelly and I made eye contact and she shook her head.
When I set to work taking care of the animals, my friends joined in. The unicorns didn’t have a problem with either of them, but they didn’t get too close, either. The owls apparently liked the fence that the cats also liked to sit on. We had an array of creatures guarding us on all sides.
I wasn’t going to say I was sorry about that.
A storm was coming.
The only question was when it would arrive.
“Let’s head inside,” I said when the work was finished. Michael and Kelly followed me in.
Lowe had done a lot of work while we’d been outside. She had gathered everything we had in the fridge, from bread to milk, and put it on the table. Then she added some of the stuff she’d picked up at the market, including fresh fruits and cheese and a few carrots, the latter because she knew she had to eat a vegetable. While she put the finishing touches on the meal, I went to shower.
Once I was all clean again – taking care of the unicorns was grubby work – I was about to leave my room when I noticed my crystal ball. I had been so busy snooping and holding down the fort with Bethel away that I hadn’t had the time to do any crystal ball practice. On the way back downstairs I grabbed it, just in case. It had turned a strange dark blue, and I thought I should maybe do some reading that evening.
The fire was roaring when I got back to the kitchen. All the cats that weren’t on cat guard duty were lounging in front of the fire, Tiger the closest as usual. His sleek coat glimmered in the firelight.
“Michael, was there something specific you wanted to discuss with us?” I asked once we had settled in around the table.
Michael nodded. “A couple of things, really. But by the way, this food is delicious.” He had piled his plate high with bread and cheese, but no fruits or vegetables.
Kelly was making faces at him, but he wasn’t noticing.
“Like what?” Lowe asked as I filled my own plate. As usual, I added a bit of extra cheese to give to the cats. On this freezing day they deserved a treat.
“My shipments that were stolen,” said Michael. “They were traced here, as I said.”
“You told us that. They were traced to the borough, right?” said Lowe.
Michael shook his head. “No, I did a powerful spell and tracked them further. They were traced to this house,” he said flatly.
Lowe and I stared at each other. I couldn’t actually take in what Michael was saying.
“Are you accusing us of stealing?�
� Lowe asked.
Michael sighed. “I’m not. I know it wasn’t you two, but that means someone else had them brought here and then took them. I don’t know who would dare to do such a thing right under Bethel’s nose,” he said.
“Someone who wasn’t afraid of her, or of getting caught, I’d imagine,” said Kelly.
“Someone who didn’t think they’d get caught,” said Lowe.
“What if it was Sammy?” I asked. ‘Maybe she was here that night to pick up the stolen shipments, and instead of doing what she was supposed to, she . . . hid them. Or something,” I finished lamely.
“She might have picked them up, and then she was supposed to give them to the Vixens. Maybe she tried to bargain for more leverage and they killed her. More money,” I added.
“She would have been crazy to try and extort a Vixen,” muttered Kelly.
“Maybe she figured out who they were. She knew where the shipments were going. She knew who was really picking them up, and they killed her for it. What did they care? She was just transporting stolen pearls and feathers for them. As I was told today, they could get any number of conductors to do that. A few conductors want to make a little extra on the side, and that’s what happens,” I said.
The picture was starting to form, but I didn’t exactly feel like it was a good one.
“So again, Lester had nothing to do with any of it,” said Lowe angrily.
“Maybe Quinn knew that all along,” suggested Michael. “As the lone male in the room, I feel the need to speak up for my gender.”
“What do you mean he knew all along that Lester didn’t have anything to do with it?” I demanded. Such an idea hadn’t occurred to me. Surely when one is arrested, one is considered likely to be guilty…? Whenever I’d heard of someone in town getting arrested, odds were they had done whatever they were accused of. From shoplifting to burglary, the suspect was usually guilty.
The notion that the sheriff might knowingly arrest an innocent person was a new one on me.
“Maybe the sheriff arrested Lester because he knew he didn’t do it, and he wanted to throw the real culprits for a loop. They would conclude that the sheriff was an idiot and they themselves were in the clear. That would make them bolder and more likely to strike again, but also more careless. Then Quinn would be ready for them,” said Michael. His eyes were intense, as if he was starting to like this whole snooping thing. I knew the look, because I saw it in the mirror every day.
“That doesn’t make any sense. Stop telling silly tales,” Lowe said, rolling her eyes.
Michael didn’t argue the point with her, but I couldn’t help but think he might be onto something. Above all, what it meant to me was that Quinn might be keeping more secrets from me than I realized.
Then again, the man had been married and hadn’t told me.
Okay, half man.
“Your crystal ball is doing something funny,” said Kelly. She nodded toward the crystal ball, which I had left on the counter.
She was right. The crystal ball was sending out strong blue lights that strobed between us as dark clouds formed inside it. All the cats were watching it, mesmerized.
“Should a crystal ball be performing on its own?” whispered Lowe.
“It isn’t impossible,” said Kelly carefully.
“How many times have you seen it happen before?” I asked.
“Never,” said Kelly.
“Comforting,” I said.
“Crystal balls have enough of their own magic. Your own crystal ball would be able to perform such a show as the one it’s putting on now, given the right motivation,” said Michael quietly. “My mother told me so.”
There was no time to ruminate on the fact that Michael had mentioned his mother for the first time. The crystal ball was showing us something that we had to pay attention to.
“Those are Vixens,” whispered Kelly.
“They sure are,” said Lowe.
At least six women, all dressed in black, were marching away from us in a group, Vixen vapor spewing all around them. I had trouble keeping track of exactly how many Vixens there were because of the vapor, but eventually they got to the top of a hill and stopped. They were overlooking something, but the crystal ball wasn’t close enough to them to let us see what it was.
I staggered out of my chair, my legs feeling as if they had forgotten how to work.
When I braced both hands against the crystal ball, light played through my fingertips and turned them a deep blue. Now I could see everything more clearly.
The Vixens were growing in number. Slowly, more black-cloaked figures walked through the mist, facing away from me.
When they reached the top of the rise, they removed their hoods. Although night surrounded them, somehow they were lit by an inner light.
I strained to see just one face, then I saw what they were looking down at.
From an aerial view I could see Twinkleford laid out before them, the five boroughs shimmering in the night. Ours was the darkest, the furthest away from town and the least populated. A fire burned through the trees and a white light blazed. I was staggered to realize that the light was the unicorns lighting up the night sky. We couldn’t see it from the windows of the cottage, but it was there. The hospital was a stripe of rainbow in Merigold, and Crown borough had by far the most lights on. The downtown was filled with life: laughter, amusement, and Fairy Flame flowing. As I had observed previously, the characters who came out in Twinkleford at night were far different from those who walked the streets in the daytime.
I held onto the crystal ball, but wish as I might, it couldn’t show me the faces of the Vixens.
For a sizzling moment nothing happened.
Then the small army of Vixens started down the hill.
Chapter Thirty
I broke away from the crystal ball with a gasp. The deep blue light that had emanated from it dimmed into nothing. I nearly fell, but Lowe sprang out of her chair and caught me just in time.
“Are you all right?” she asked.
I shook my head as she helped me sit down. Kelly and Michael were looking at me with concern.
“What did you see?” Kelly asked.
“The Vixens,” I said. “They’re coming.”
Michael rubbed his hands together. “Oh, yes,” was all he said.
We spent the next hour in preparation.
“How do you know they’re coming here?” Kelly asked again.
“It’s just a feeling,” I said. “I think Sammy had something of theirs, something they wanted. She came here because she thought the only place it might be safe was with the unicorns.”
“Maybe she thought the only place she was safe was with the unicorns,” said Lowe sadly.
I grimaced. I had thought of that too. Sammy hadn’t asked for our help. I hadn’t known her, but I still felt as if I had failed her.
To invite a Vixen into my home was the height of disgust, in my opinion.
“Where do you think she left whatever they were after?” said Kelly.
“She must have left it here, but I have no idea where. It would help if I knew what it was, but I don’t know that either,” I said.
“Let’s assume it’s someone’s missing shipments,” said Michael. “Mine went missing. Let’s assume we were foolish not to connect the two crimes to begin with, the murder and the theft.”
“What was in your missing shipments?” I asked.
“Blasting red pepper feather and wisp edge protection molting feather,” he said promptly.
All three of us just looked at him. “Do those mean what they sound like they mean?”
“I would never say that. To confirm such a thing relies on your ability to understand and your lack of making foolish assumptions. I cannot rely on either,” said Michael.
“Thanks,” I said dryly.
“I don’t know what you’re thanking me for,” said Michael.
“We know,” said Lowe quickly.
She was becoming adept at endin
g these little misunderstandings quickly.
“How many?” I asked.
“Five of each,” said Michael. “They were tied together. If my shipments went missing, someone else also lost theirs. Maybe they were of a similar size or proportion. I would imagine Sammy would remove anything she stole from the packaging so the items were less recognizable and bulky. If mine had survived, what would remain would be two velvet pouches. Black,” he said.
“But you said they didn’t fall into anyone’s hands?” I clarified.
“No, they self-destructed. I placed every imaginable safety measure on them. But I would say that other shippers are not so careful with their shipments. It’s possible that Sammy fell upon someone else’s’ stolen goods and decided to make use of them,” he mused.
“Maybe she hid them here,” said Lowe, her eyes lighting up. “She came here and hid them. It wasn’t Michael’s stuff but someone else’s, and the Vixens didn’t like it.”
A clearer picture was emerging, but I wasn’t going to say I liked it.
“If we find the stuff, whatever it is, maybe we can destroy it before the Vixens get their hands on it,” said Kelly.
“They’re not going to make it into this house. I’ll go talk to the pixies and fairies,” I said.
“I’ve got the cats,” said Lowe.
We left Kelly and Michael to argue about the best proportions of illumination powder to baking soda. Combined, the two ingredients would create light explosions. Michael insisted that the more illumination powder the better. Kelly wanted to use numbers and logic. He wasn’t pleased.
The pixies and fairies were already preparing. They knew something was wrong, though how they knew it I had no idea. I glanced across the road, but Lisa and Lucky’s house was still dark, as was everything else outside the circle of light from the cottage. Shadows moved and danced in the wind.
I thought about going further and warning the trailer park folk, but I heard nothing from their direction and that in itself was telling. Usually we heard the clink of plates and the bubble of laughter, but the silence told me that tonight the trailer folk were already hunkered down.
The Rhinestone Witches Omnibus: Books 1-3 Page 64