Two police officers walked into the kitchen behind him.
“I called him,” Sarah whispered to Bree. “He gave me a card when he took you.”
“Don’t arrest my mother, please don’t,” Finnegan begged, tears bursting from his eyes. “She’s too old to go to prison.”
Detective June hushed him. “Can we speak with you, Mrs Prince?” he asked.
She looked to him and smiled. “Of course.” Her smile, partly through relief she’d told the secret she’d been keeping for so long hauled up inside, and partly through knowing she’d lived an already successful and adventurous life.
He nodded, flipping his notepad open. “Can we do this alone?” His not so subtle way of telling everyone to leave.
“Let me phone the solicitor,” Finnegan came once again.
“Oh, Finn, let me do this,” she said.
“I’ll speak to you next,” Detective June said, his straight face and fixed eyes pinned to Finn. “Don’t leave.”
In the living room, where Bree and Sarah moved to, there were two more police officers, this time, they’d opened the suitcase Finnegan was about to leave with, and inside, hidden amongst a hodgepodge of unfolded clothes, were small fabric jewel bags.
With gloved hands, the officers opened the bags to find the other missing jewels.
“That’s mine,” Finn said as he noticed the officers. “Get off. Don’t you dare touch my stuff. You need a warrant.”
The tall woman, Bree recalled who’d entered the bakery, PC Denning, she approached Finn with a paper in hand. “Given the circumstances,” she began. “We have one, it’s a very serious case. This is your mother’s home, and anything inside the property, which we believe has the potential to conceal stolen jewellery, it’s in our power to search.”
“But—no—that’s mine—” he continued.
As soon as he admitted to owning the suitcase, he was in cuffs.
Bree and Sarah gasped as they listened to Finnegan being read his rights.
An Hour Later
Detective Mark June approached Bree and Sarah in the living room as they sat on one of the large sofas, they’d been talking about whether Bree would take any of the blame or fault in the matter, as they had told her she could be prosecuted for the intention of selling stolen goods.
“Miss Dalton,” he said. “A brief word.” He gestured with a hand for her to follow him.
“Yes?”
“I’m sorry you got caught up in all this,” he said. “You did what anyone would do in your situation, and we can’t place any of the blame on you for that.”
“That’s a relief.”
“We were, of course, curious about finding the rest of the jewels, and with the help of your friend’s call, we were able to connect some of the dots,” he continued.
“What will happen to her?” I asked, having not seen Mrs Prince coming out of the kitchen. I wasn’t sure if she was in their cuffed like her son.
He nodded. “She had committed a crime,” he said. “A judge will decide with all the evidence, and the insurance company will most likely claim the jewels and possibly sue for the amount plus inflation.”
Bree tssked her teeth. “And her son?”
“He committed a crime, recently,” he said. “Mrs Prince committed one fifty years ago, and given her age, I’d think there’d be some leniency from a judge. But her son, he was the one who intended to sell the stolen jewels, twice stolen, in fact.”
The second time, they’d been in Bree’s possession, and he’d stole them from her after finding out about their history.
“I’ll be honest,” Bree began. “I was worried you’d blame my father, and it would’ve ruined my family.”
He smiled. “It was a cold case,” he said. “We had nothing but the person who found them. You should feel good about what you’ve done.”
“I will,” she replied. “Until I go home and tell my mother she definitely won’t be going on a cruise.”
“Luckily, they were flagged, and you didn’t sell them, or this might’ve been an entirely different conversation.” His brows raised.
Thirty Minutes Later
Bree and Sarah sat in the car outside Bree’s mother’s house. In complete silence, they turned to each other and smiled.
“Remind me never to snoop around loose flooring again,” Bree said.
“Still need the refrigerator mending,” Sarah reminded instead.
“First thing,” she said. “Are you coming in for a brew?”
“I should get home to make dinner,” she replied. “But after everything today, I’ll probably order pizza, so yes, I will.”
As they entered Bree’s mother’s house, a squeal broke from the living room.
Cleo and Helen were both shouting.
“What is it?”
On the television, Detective June stood in front of a reporter as he was being interviewed for the local news.
“They’re talking about it,” Cleo said. “They found them.”
Bree chuckled. “We were there, we helped.”
Her mother gasped. “Okay, okay, be quiet,” she said, turning the volume of the television up. “I want to listen.”
“—we have two people in custody,” he said. “And we couldn’t have done it without the help of two local ladies from Cranwell.”
“That’s us!” Sarah said.
Bree hummed. “He could’ve at least mentioned the ba—”
“—you can thank them at Dalton’s Baked Goods. That’s all.”
Bree butted her lips. “I guess we’re opening tomorrow.”
Next in BREE’S BAKERY
You’ve been introduced to Bree and the ensemble village in Cranwell, and you’re about to get to know them a little better. As letters come into the bakery for Bree, making demands of her and the bakery—or else.
Find out if Bree can figure out who’s sending the mail before the threats are taken too far. Dead rats? Health inspectors? Extortion… oh my!
NEXT BOOK
BLURB
When Bree Dalton finds a strongly worded letter through the door of the bakery, she doesn’t think twice about it. But when a letter comes in the following day, attached with a small dead rodent, Bree realises something is going on.
A letter accusing Bree of theft, an oddly timed health inspector visit, and a demand of extortion. Someone is after Bree’s business, and they’re willing to close her down for good to get it.
Will Bree find the culprit in her small village of Cranwell? Or will they find her out of business first?
MORE FROM JESSICA
COWAN BAY WITCHES SERIES
If you’re ready to explore the witchy world, the WITCHWOOD series and the COWAN BAY WITCHES are both set inside the same world. In Cowan Bay, you’ll find your coven, but they’re going through something rough right now, so help them out.
Start book one today.
MUFFINS, MAGIC, AND MURDER
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When a witch is found dead, the Cowan Bay coven is under suspicion.
Local witch, Gwen owns a café in the village centre, not only to sell pastries and baked goods but also to conduct witchy business—and she’s attracting the wrong crowd.
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Can the coven save themselves while one witch down?
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WITCHWOOD SERIES
Start book one today.
CRYPTIC CURSES IN WITCHWOOD
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A retired witch detective, settling in a sleepy human town, what could go wrong?
Well – dead bodies appearing in compost heaps, an old woman screaming about zombies, and blood on the ground like slug trails – but only one person has seen it, and she’s signing her one-way ticket out of town.
Out of retirement to solve one last mystery, witch-in-residence, Evanora Lavender might find herse
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SILVER LAKE SERIES
If you’re hungry for a non-paranormal book. We’ve got you covered there too! Meet Evelyn Green, a journalist at the prestigious travel magazine in the Cotswolds. There’s one small hitch, Evelyn’s rescue dog, a beagle named Charlie, keeps finding dead bodies…
Start book one today.
MURDER ON SILVER LAKE
BLURB
Dead on the riverbank. An ex-con artist.
Hated throughout the village and neighbouring town of Briarbury.
Suicide? Ruled out.
Murder? Most likely.
Revenge? Money? Power?
In a village filled with motives, someone isn’t telling the truth.
And someone is close to finding out how far a killer would go.
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ABOUT JESSICA LANCASTER
Jessica Lancaster grew up in England with a love for reading whodunnit murder mysteries.
She’s loves nothing more than a good cup of tea with some chocolate biscuits.
Named after Angela Lansbury in “Murder, She Wrote”, Jessica Fletcher; she dreamed of a day to be her own sleuth in a series. This sparked Gwen in the Cowan Bay Witches Cozy Mystery series and Evanora in the Witchwood Cozy Mystery series.
Join Jessica’s e-mail list for new releases by signing up!
NON-PARANORMAL MYSTERIES
Bree’s Bakery Cozy Mysteries
A Slice of Disaster (Story 1)
A Dash of Terror (Story 2)
A Touch of Madness (Story 3)
PARANORMAL MYSTERIES
Witchwood Cozy Mysteries
Cryptic Curses in Witchwood (Book 1)
Secret Spells in Witchwood (Book 2)
Monster Magic in Witchwood (Book 3)
Reaper Rituals in Witchwood (Book 4)
Bad Blood in Witchwood (Book 5)
Wicked Witches in Witchwood (Book 6)
Cowan Bay Witches Cozy Mysteries
Muffins, Magic, and Murder (Book 1)
Cupcakes, Crystals, and Chaos (Book 2)
Pies, Palmistry, and Poison (Book 3)
Treats, Tarot, and Trouble (Book 4)
CO-AUTHORED BOOKS
With Hugo James King
Murder on Silver Lake (Book 1)
Murder on Red Rose Drive (Book 2)
Murder at Maple House (Book 3)
A Dash of Terror Page 6