The Mushroom Mystery

by Agnes Lester Brown

  Nick bent over him and felt for a pulse. “Nothing,” he said and started CPR straight away. Matt watched him anxiously, and Lori sat down as the light-headedness she felt increased. Nick paused after a while and checked for breathing and again for a pulse. He shook his head. ”Guess we’ll have to get the police over,” he said and called 911.

  “Look at his belly,” Lori said to Matt who stood next to her, his shoulders hunched and a grim expression on his face. “It’s quite swollen. Do you think he ate something poisonous?”

  Matt didn’t answer right away, swallowing hard to contain his emotion. This was like a dream. “Could be anything. We’ll find out with time, I suppose.” His voice broke up as he spoke, and Lori slipped her arm into his in support. Collecting himself, Matt said, “I guess I have to go tell the rest of the convention that he’s passed away. I think it’s best we keep it at that and leave the details out for the time being.”

  “I think it’s best, yes,” Lori said. “That’s what Justus would’ve have wanted, for the show to go on, right?” Matt smiled a tiny smile at her and left to go downstairs and make the announcement.

  As Matt left the room, two uniformed policemen passed him in the corridor. The first was built like a body builder, and sported a crew cut and a grave expression on his face. The second cop was a young, lanky man that followed meekly in his footsteps.

  “Are you Matthew Heath by any chance?” The first cop put his hand on Matt’s arm.

  “Yes. I am… was Professor Sproutley’s assistant. Lori Whitewood and I are the co-organizers of the convention.”

  “I’m the Chief of Police, Stan Lambert, and this is my deputy, Ray Richards,” the burly cop said, ignoring Lori standing in the hall as he walked into Justus’ room. “Please wait for us downstairs, Mr. Heath. And please tell the convention no one is to leave the premises until we’ve conducted interviews.”

  “Morning, Chief,” Lori said, raising her voice a little at the policeman who was bent over Justus.

  “Hello, Lori!” Ray was clearly familiar with Lori and smiled at her broadly, apparently forgetting there was a body in the room. “Fancy meeting you here!”

  Chief Lambert put on a pair of blue plastic gloves and gave a pair to Ray. “Ray, get Ms. Whitewood out of the room and stop anyone from entering,” Chief Lambert said sharply.

  “It looks like he died of some kind of food poisoning. He was fine earlier this morning, and then suddenly collapsed on stage while delivering his speech,” Lori said, hoping to get a response from the chief. But he said nothing, merely shooting Lori a quick glance before surveying the room.

  Lori sighed, turned around and joined Matt in the corridor so they could head to the lounge.

  “What’s with him?” Matt asked and gave a puzzled nod in the direction of Justus’ room. “He seems to think we’re the enemy?“

  ”Oh, don’t mind him,” Lori said. “He comes from a family with a long history in law enforcement so he takes his job very seriously. He gets frustrated that Fennelmoore doesn’t have any crimes worse than a few drunk teenagers on weekends.” She thought for a moment. ”Most dramas in Fennelmoore aren’t the kind solved by the police.“

  They reached the almost deserted lounge where Lori sat down and ordered coffees. ”But, he was pretty hard on you. Is that fair?“ Matt persisted.

  ”He thinks the Wholesome is all mumbo jumbo. And it doesn’t help that his wife is a vegan and a regular customer at the shop.“

  ”And who’s Ray?“ Matt said, smiling playfully. ”He looked at you like a little puppy.“

  Lori laughed again. ”No, he’s after Rosie.“ She put on a mock serious face. I’m her protective cousin. That’s why he’s always nice to me.” Matt went to brief the convention gathering. Half an hour later he returned, looking shaken.

  “How did it go?” Lori asked.

  Matt covered his face with his hands for a moment. “It was the worst thing I’ve ever had to do in my life. Obviously, everyone was quite shocked at the announcement but also very supportive. There’ll be a small memorial service this evening after the day’s proceedings to help everyone deal with his death. There’s no doubt he’ll be sorely missed. He was respected by everyone in the academic community.” He hesitated and then corrected himself. “Almost everyone, that is.”

  Before Lori could ask Matt what he meant by that, Chief Lambert and Ray appeared at their table. The Chief spoke first. “We’re going to need to need a list of all the food the Professor ate this morning and speak to the people who prepared it for him. We also want a list of all attendees and everyone working on the convention.” He looked at Lori. “Did he buy anything from your shop?”

  “Oh, the usual bat’s ears and dried grasshoppers,” Lori said, dripping sarcasm before Matt chipped in.

  “He brought his own food with him, Chief. He was extremely peculiar about what he ate.”

  The chief looked unconvinced. “Who’s providing food for the convention delegates?”

  Lori felt her heart sink into her shoes. The chief is going to love this. “My Aunt Hazel,” she whispered, so softly that Ray asked her to repeat what she said. “But like Matt said…”

  The chief interrupted her and addressed Ray. “The medical examiner’s people will be here soon to come take the body away for autopsy. Stay here and help them with anything they need. I’m going to the Whitewood residence to interview Hazel.”

  “So it was poisoning,” Matt ventured carefully.

  Chief Lambert hesitated. “Maybe, maybe not,” he said. “We’ll only know for sure after the autopsy has been done.” He put on his hat, and he and Ray left.

  Lori got up. “I better go home to be there when super sleuth comes a-knocking,” she said. “We’ll catch up later.”

  When Lori arrived home, she saw Chief Lambert’s car already parked outside the house. As she approached the front porch, Trixi came slinking out the house. “Upset with the visitor, Trixi?” she asked before hurrying inside.

  Aunt Hazel sat at the kitchen table with a dazed look on her face. Granny Fae sat stony-faced beside her, twirling her embroidered handkerchief around her finger. The chief sat on the opposite side of the table making notes in a small, green notebook, glancing up briefly when Lori came in. Then he went back to writing in a neat, square script. Lori stood by the window, surprised that the chief let her stay in the room after he’d chased her out of Justus’ room shortly before.

  “Did he eat his own food this morning at breakfast?” the chief asked.

  “I think so, yes. He seemed like a very fussy eater, the professor. I offered to make special meals for him when he arrived, but he just said no, he had his own food.” Hazel stood up and stirred the contents of a pan simmering on the stove. She lifted a spoonful of braised onions. “Want a taste of these, Stan?”

  For a moment Chief Lambert looked like he was going to lose his stride, and then he regained his composure. “No thanks, Hazel, though it smells delicious I must say. And he never asked you for anything else to eat?”

  Hazel thought for a moment. ”Well, he came to me this morning and said his muesli was finished, and asked whether I could mix some for him. I was busy preparing some other dishes, so I asked Granny here to do it. I gave her Justus’ recipe. It was mostly nuts, raisins, bran, that sort of thing. Stan, you should taste this. It’s really good.“

  The chief stopped writing and looked at Fae, who sat with her eyes downcast. ”Mrs. Whitewood?“ Lori’s stomach twisted into a knot. She knew her granny well enough to know that she wouldn’t just give a simple, straightforward answer or tell a white lie. Whitewood witches had a code of never lying. She chastised herself for letting Chief Lambert reach the house first. She should have briefed the family before he arrived and started firing off tricky questions.

  Fae fidgeted with her dreamcatcher earring. She had a strange light in her eyes when she finally looked at the chief. ”Mrs. Whitewood, did you prepare the Professor’s breakfast exactly has he asked? Fae nodded vag
uely. “Can you remember whether you put anything in his breakfast that he didn’t ask for?“

  ”I may have. My memory’s not that good anymore, you know.“

  Hazel came over and stood next to Fae. ”Mother, I gave you all the ingredients, exactly as he asked. You didn’t have to add anything. Remember now?“

  ”Please let her answer, Hazel.“ Chief Lambert doggedly pursued an answer from Fae. ”This is important, Mrs. Whitewood, because we have to eliminate all possibilities. Your answer will help confirm the autopsy report, because that’ll tell us exactly what he ate.“

  Fae raised her head, chin in the air, and narrowed her eyes. ”Is that a threat, Chief? Because I don’t deal well with threats.“

  Chief Lambert stood up, his six-foot-six frame towering over Fae. ”No, Mrs. Whitewood, it’s not a threat. But I have to follow up thoroughly on all leads and the facts. One of the things we have to establish is whether you gave the professor anything to eat that you shouldn’t have.“

  Hazel jumped up. ”Stan! Do you really think this is…“

  At that moment Granny Fae let out a long, terrible shriek. Tears streamed down her wrinkled cheeks, and she trembled. ”Justus Sproutley was scoundrel, but I don’t care, even though he broke my heart all those years ago! Do you know what it feels like to see the man of your dreams again after all these years, and find out you still feel the same about him?” She started whimpering and sobbing.

  Hazel put her hand protectively around Fae’s shoulders. “Mother, what did you add to his breakfast food?”

  “I mixed in a love potion,” Fae said, dabbing her eyes with her handkerchief. “But it was just a small one.” Hazel and Lori both audibly gasped, and Chief Lambert put down his pencil.

  “You mixed in a what, Mrs. Whitewater?”

  Hazel jumped into the conversation once again. She looked apologetically at the Chief. “My mother’s a bit old-fashioned. She thinks coriander is a love potion, but of course nothing has been proven scientifically. And coriander is harmless, as we all know.” She looked pleadingly at the chief and leaned closer to him. “Stan, look at her. You’ve known her since we were young. She’s not a killer.”

  Chief Lambert seemed unperturbed by Fae’s outburst and Hazel’s rather haphazard explanations. He put his pen and notepad away. He’d gotten what he’d come for— to find a suspect. “Mrs. Whitewood, initial investigation points to someone having poisoned Professor Sproutley. By what you’ve just said, it sounds like you had a clear motive. I don’t know quite what you put in his breakfast, but it clearly affected him. Please be aware that we may need to question you further in due course.”

  “He’s saying that like she’s his number one suspect,” Lori thought. “And knowing him, he’s not going to change his mind.”

  After the chief left, Lori and Hazel cross-examined Fae.

  “Ma, what else did you put in Justus’ muesli? And we need to know the whole truth!” Hazel said firmly. “This is serious. Stan thinks you poisoned the professor for dumping you!” she scolded her mother.

  “Well, maybe a little something to add extra power,” Fae conceded. “Or maybe it was the spell that did it. I’m a bit rusty with spells, you know.“ And with that she started sobbing again. ”He’s gone, and it’s all my fault!“ she wailed.

  Someone knocked on the door, much to Lori’s relief. She was glad to be able to extract herself from the kitchen scene. It was Matt. When he saw Lori, he became concerned. ”Everything okay?“

  Lori rolled her eyes. ”You won’t believe what I’m going to tell you. Let’s go for a walk. I need to decompress.“ The two of them walked in silence for a while, first along the streets of Fennelmoore and then out of town towards the field where they first met. Lori wondered once more how she was going to explain her granny’s actions without spilling the beans about her—and the rest of the family—being witches.

  Perhaps she should just tell him. It was obvious Matt wasn’t the judgmental type that would want to burn them at the stake. After walking for a while, they sat down on a grassy patch overlooking Fennelmoore. Lori covered her face with her hands. Her shoulders began to shake, and Matt gently put his arm around her.

  Lori looked up and laughed through her tears. ”You must think we’re the weirdest bunch of people. I mean, can you imagine my granny in prison? It’ll be chaos.“ Matt joined her in laughing.

  ”There’s something else that’ll put a totally different spin on this and maybe prove your gran’s innocence,“ he said in a serious tone.

  ”Don’t get my hopes up, because it’s not looking good,” Lori said. She already had ridiculous images of her granny in leg chains, peering at her from inside a jail cell. At the same time, she felt relieved that Matt was coming up with an alternative theory to explain Justus’ death.

  Matt carried on. “No, this totally is plausible, so let me explain. It was supposed to be a huge secret, but lots of rumors have been circulating for a while now. Professor Sproutley had recently returned from a secret field trip where he’d discovered a new subspecies of mushroom with revolutionary anti-aging properties of tremendous value for humankind. He’d spent countless hours doing complex research confirming this. He’d been keeping the research results under wraps but had planned to announce it during his opening address.”

  “Was he going to, like, show it to everyone?” Lori made the shape of a mushroom with her hands.

  Matt nodded. “Shortly after he completed his research he destroyed all specimens except one, which he had preserved using a special method he’d devised that ensured its qualities were kept intact. Initially, he had planned to only show photos of the new specimen here. He was very wary of bringing the only specimen he had left along, knowing that it might get stolen and reverse engineered. But then he changed his mind at the last moment and had me package the specimen in a custom-made box for him.” He shrugged. “I don’t know if it was a case of vanity, that he wanted to show it off to everyone? New discoveries in this field are extremely rare, and competition and rivalry among botanists is tough. For years, many of his colleagues had scorned his mushroom research, and this was a chance to for him to redeem himself.”

  “Did he ever reveal where he’d found the new mushroom?” Lori asked.

  “No,” Matt said. But who knows, it’s out there somewhere, and maybe someone rediscovers it one day.

  Lori thought back to the square black case she’d seen in Justus’ room. “And where is the specimen now?”

  “It’s still in his room,” Matt said.

  “But what if someone steals it? I saw that black case…”

  Matt shook his head and smiled. No, that case is empty. I locked the real thing away in his safe, just in case a snooping person decided to steal it. Academics are not above dirty tricks.”

  Lori studied Matt. She wished she had Jasmine’s talent for sensing a person’s true intentions. Jasmine called it her “witch instinct.” She could tell when someone was insincere or lying. Because what if Matt was involved in the "dirty tricks” himself? He had first-hand knowledge of the mushroom and could sell it off to the highest bidder. ”You’re an academic yourself,“ she said, half accusingly.

  Matt cocked his head to one side and frowned. ”What are you implying?“

  Feeling herself getting agitated, Lori stood up. ”Nothing. But right now there’s no hard evidence that anyone murdered Justus to get their hands on his mushroom. What you’re telling me will all be mere gossip and hearsay to Chief Lambert. He’s set his sights on Granny.“ She put her wrists together in mock handcuffs. ”And he won’t rest until he’s locked her up.“

  ”Your Granny’s innocent," Matt called after her, but Lori had already started walking home.

  Chapter Eight

  Lori lay awake in the darkness, listening to her granny tossing and turning in the next bedroom. Every two or three minutes she’d moan loudly in her sleep. After listening to her for an hour, Lori got up and went to the kitchen, put the kettle on and prepared
an herbal infusion that would help her granny relax and sleep. She opened Fae’s bedroom door softly, expecting it to be dark, but Fae was sitting upright in her bed. “Can I come in, Gran?” Lori asked.

  Fae sniffed the air. “If you’re carrying what I think you are, you’re more than welcome.” She shifted to one side so Lori could sit next to her. Although Fae had the largest bedroom in the house, it was crammed with furniture and shelves with witch paraphernalia. A tall, elaborately decorated silver candle holder with dripping strings of wax stood on a fancy dressing table beside a large crystal ball that reflected the light of Fae’s bedside lamp. Fae’s petite figure was dwarfed by the huge double-poster bed she lay in, covered by a colorful patchwork bedspread. The pile of pillows behind her had yellow and gold hand painted moons and stars on them. Her bed filled most of the room, with much of the remaining space taken up by an ancient-looking trunk and a moth-eaten couch occupied by Trixi, who eyed Lori through sleepy eyes. Lori sat down next to Fae and handed her the drink she’d prepared.

  “You really did stay in love with Justus all these years, didn’t you?” Lori asked.

  Fae thought about it for a moment. “I suppose so. I married your grandfather soon after Justus left. He was a mentor and a kindred soul, but hardly someone you’d call a passionate lover.” Fae’s eyes misted over. “So I suppose, yes, Justus was the last person I was truly in love with. Not too many men around want to fall in love with a witch, anyway,” she said, sounding resigned.

  “And you never reached out to each other again?” Lori asked.

  Fae shook her head. “I knew he’d married and settled down. And then I read in the newspaper that his wife had died, so I knew he was living on his own. That’s why, I thought, now that he was alone, well, if I gave him a little something, he’d love me again.” She sniffled, and Lori handed her a tissue.