Buck peered out the window. “Am I really that far away from the tree that we need to drive? I thought this town was walkable. That was part of the reason for hosting the tournament here.”
Deputy Bolan locked the doors. “I thought the drive would give us the chance to talk in private. You don’t want any of your buddies to hear that you're being interrogated about a murder.”
Buck laughed under his breath. “Is this part of the game? Because I didn’t pay extra for bonus content.”
“It’s not part of the game,” Deputy Bolan said. His gaze flicked to the rearview mirror. “Tell us what happened between you and Clark last night.”
“Who’s Clark?” Buck asked.
I craned my neck to look at him. “Little green guy that you argued with at Palmetto House last night.”
“Hey,” Deputy Bolan objected. “Easy on the little and green.”
I flashed him an innocent look. “What? It’s an accurate description.”
“What the hell?” Buck said. “Is that little thief going around telling people I killed someone? What’s his problem?”
I twisted further to look at him. “No, that little thief is the one who’s been murdered.”
The color drained from Buck’s round face. “He’s dead?”
“His body was found this morning in the kitchen of Palmetto House,” I said. “You knew he was staying there because that’s where you argued with him last night.”
Buck began typing quickly on his phone.
“What are you doing?” I asked.
Buck didn’t bother to glance up at me. “Letting my friends know that the chalice is still up for grabs.” He typed so quickly that it was hard to imagine he could form words. “Do you happen to have his phone?”
Deputy Bolan eyed him closely. “No, why do you ask?”
“If he’s dead, I can use his phone to take back my stuff that he stole. And I’ll take a few of his things for good measure. Payback.”
“We don’t have his phone.” I shifted my gaze to Deputy Bolan, unwilling to let Buck see how horrified I was by his insensitivity.
Deputy Bolan turned down a dirt path. “Can you tell us where you were this morning?”
“All over town,” he replied. “Playing in a tournament, remember?” He waved his phone at the rearview mirror.
“How about you be more specific?” Deputy Bolan asked. His tight expression told me that he’d had enough of Buck the werebear.
Buck scowled. “Are you seriously questioning me about this little dude’s death? No way would I risk losing a tournament by killing someone. That’s just nuts.”
“It’s also nuts to be focused on taking the belongings of a dead player rather than acknowledging what happened to him,” I said.
Buck set the phone on his thigh and looked at me. “I’m sorry he’s dead, okay? But I didn’t have anything to do with it, so I don’t see why it should interrupt the tournament. I still have a chance to win and I’m not going to let anything get in my way.” He glanced out the window. “Hey, is that the tree?”
I followed his gaze to see an enormous tree towering over the others in the woods.
“This tree has historic significance in Starry Hollow,” Deputy Bolan said. “That’s probably why it’s part of the game.”
“No wonder people are having a hard time completing this challenge,” Buck said. “This tree is hard to find.”
“That’s probably by design,” the deputy said. “Makes it a little more challenging.”
Buck tried to open the door but found it was locked. “Deputy Dude, can you let me out so I can complete this challenge?”
“When we’re finished talking, I’d be happy to,” the leprechaun said.
A sheen of sweat appeared on Buck’s forehead when he noticed a couple of players coming up the path behind us. “Can we hurry it up? I need to finish the challenge before these guys do. If they take the magic beans, then I have to wait for them to regrow before I can do it. It’ll slow me down.”
“That’s a shame,” the deputy said, in a way that suggested it was most definitely not. “Want to run through your morning with us?”
Buck slumped against the back of the seat, visibly defeated. “I got up around six and ate a bagel at the coffee shop.”
“Which one?” I asked.
“Poppy seed,” he said.
I closed my eyes and mentally counted to ten. “Which coffee shop, not which bagel?”
“Oh, right. Caffeinated Cauldron,” he said. “And I had a cup of peppermint tea.”
“No coffee for your long day?” I asked.
He cringed. “No way. Coffee does a number on my stomach and I can’t afford to spend half the day in the bathroom.”
“Were you by yourself?” the deputy asked.
“Yeah, but you can ask the barista. She was asking me lots of questions about the game, so I think she’ll remember me.”
“What time did you leave there?” I asked.
He began scrolling through his phone. “About six forty-five. Then I went to battle some werewolves.”
“How can you be so sure of the time?” I asked.
He waved the phone. “The game tells me what time I completed challenges and battles. I killed the first werewolf at six forty-eight, but the other one took longer. I didn’t finish until twelve past seven.”
The deputy turned and held out his hand. “I think I’m going to need to take a look at your phone.”
Buck clutched the device against his chest. “No way. Not today. You can have it after the competition finishes tomorrow but not before.”
“Buck, a very serious crime has been committed during this tournament,” I said. “Would you rather be arrested for murder and spend the rest of the tournament in a jail cell or would you rather cooperate now for a few minutes and be able to keep playing?”
Buck muttered a string of obscenities as he handed over the phone. “Can you scroll quickly? I’ve seen these guys play and they’re slow. I’m pretty sure if there’s not too much of a gap, I can overtake them.”
I watched Deputy Bolan’s expression as he flicked through the information on Buck’s phone. He paused on one of the pages.
“Okay, Buck. You’re free to go for now. But I’m going to tell you not to leave town until this investigation is finished.” He fixed the werebear with a hard stare. “You got that?”
“Got it.” He fumbled with the door handle. “Can you let me out now?”
The deputy unlocked the door and Buck bolted from the backseat, slamming the door behind him. I looked at the deputy. “He's not our guy, is he?”
“I wouldn’t have let him out if he was. All of his movements this morning are right there on the phone. The closest he came to Palmetto House was the coffee shop.”
“Look on the bright side,” I said. “All the gamers should have the same type of alibi. Something like this should make the investigation easier.”
“Let’s hope. The last thing I want is for the town to be overrun with gamers for another week.”
“We should talk to some of these players,” I said, nodding toward the guys near the tree. “See if anyone’s heard anything.”
Deputy Bolan glowered. “The only thing these guys have likely heard is the sound of their phone batteries dying.”
The moment I left the car, a wave of emotions overwhelmed me and I staggered back a few steps until I regained my composure.
“You okay, Rose?” Deputy Bolan asked.
I blinked and looked around. “You don’t feel that?”
He held his palm open as though testing for raindrops. “No.”
There was a weight to the air that I couldn’t quite describe. Not humidity but something else. Darkness. I pushed past the sensation as we approached a trio of werewolves. Their heads were bent together and they were swearing at their phones with equal enthusiasm.
“Excuse me,” I said.
The middle head jerked up to look at me. “Not now, lady. I’m
battling a fanger.”
“Only because you couldn’t kill one of us in real life,” someone said.
I turned to see a vampire with a phone in his hand, lingering close to the ash tree and even closer to his pixie companion. She seemed unable to take her eyes off him. Getting a little nerd action during the tournament. Good for them.
“Personally, I like killing the centaurs,” the vampire said. “I loathe those guys.”
“We’re looking for a gnome named Lewis,” I said. “Has anyone seen him?”
No one answered. They were too busy defeating their foes.
“Does anyone here know Clark?” I asked. “He’s a leprechaun about…” I grabbed Deputy Bolan and placed him in front of me. “This tall. Similar grumpy attitude.”
The deputy wrenched himself free and shot me a menacing look.
“I remember that guy,” the middle werewolf said. “Didn’t he win the last tournament?”
“That’s him,” I said. “Clark.”
I noticed the middle werewolf nudge the one to his left and they began arguing in heated whispers.
“Gentlemen, don’t be afraid to share with the class,” I said.
“Bigsby has something to tell you,” the middle werewolf said.
The werewolf on the left wore a guilty expression. His hand slid into his jacket pocket and produced a phone. “I think this might belong to Clark. I was going to find him and give it back, I swear.”
“I’ll take that.” The deputy took out a glove and put it on before snatching the phone.
“Dude, I don’t have cooties,” the werewolf said.
The deputy studied the screen. “What makes you think it belongs to Clark?”
“I remember his user name from the last tournament,” Bigsby said. “Cleverclover.”
My heart jolted. “That’s his.” I leaned over Deputy Bolan’s shoulder for a better view of the phone.
“Why didn’t you try to find him straight away and give it back?” the deputy asked.
“Because he won last time,” Bigsby said. “I figured the longer I kept hold of it, the less likely he’d be able to catch up.”
“Well, there’s no chance of him winning this time,” the deputy said. “Clark is dead.”
“All his gold is missing,” I said.
“It was like that when I found it,” Bigsby said. He lowered his head. “I checked because I was going to take his supplies, but they were already gone.”
I squinted at the screen. “Is there a way to see who took it?”
Bigsby moved closer. “Can I touch it?”
“Go ahead,” the deputy said. “Your fingerprints are already all over it.”
Bigsby clicked an icon in the corner. “User name is obiwandkenobi.”
The vampire by the tree snorted. “Ridiculous.”
“What’s your name then?” I asked.
“Vladtheinhaler,” he said. “If you must know, I suffer from asthma.” He pulled out his inhaler and shook it.
“Loser,” one of the werewolves said with an exaggerated cough.
“I think it’s sexy,” the pixie proclaimed.
Okay, I wouldn’t go that far. Someone was clearly smitten.
“How can a vampire have asthma?” I asked. “They don’t even breathe.”
“My mother was human,” vladtheinhaler said. “Which is why I’m a watered-down version of my father.”
“You have fangs and an attitude,” I said. “Seems vampiric enough to me.”
“I don’t have preternatural speed or strength. I can’t read minds. The woman robbed me of all the best vampire parts.”
The pixie batted her lashes. “Not all the best parts.”
I wondered if Marley would say that about her father one day—that Karl robbed her of her full magical strength. Somehow, I doubted it.
“Anybody know obiwandkenobi?” the deputy asked.
They shook their heads.
“Where did you find the phone?” Deputy Bolan asked.
“In the bushes over there,” Bigsby said. He pointed to wild burstberry bushes near the ash tree. “I went to take a leak and I saw it when the sunlight hit the screen. It was still on.”
“How long ago was that?” I asked.
“Maybe an hour?” Bigsby looked at his friends for confirmation.
I pressed my hand to my forehead. “I knew his user name. I could have looked to see his progress.”
“It’s nice like you expected him to have any. He’s dead.” Deputy Bolan placed the phone in a clear bag and sealed it before tucking it in his pocket. Then he removed the glove. “I’m going to need to know where you’re staying this weekend.”
Bigsby’s eyes popped with fear. “You’re not going to arrest me, are you?”
“No, but I want to know where I can find you if I change my mind,” the deputy said.
“We rented a house on Meadowlark Lane,” he said.
“Number twenty,” the middle werewolf chimed in. “Listen, I don’t know what happened to Clark, but the three of us have been together nonstop. If Bigsby had done anything, we’d know about it.”
The werewolf on the right swiveled in the vampire’s direction. “You might want to talk to the heavy breather. The pixie came after us, but he was already here when we arrived. Maybe he put the phone there.”
“My name isn’t obiwandkenobi, is it?” the vampire asked. “Besides, don’t you think I would’ve stolen all the supplies and gold for myself? Besides, if I were going to dispose of evidence, I wouldn’t be foolish enough to stand next to it. No one was here when I arrived. I would’ve simply moved on to another location and no one would be the wiser.”
Deputy Bolan ambled over to the vampire. “Is your name actually Vlad?”
“No, it’s Stuart Mackenzie,” the vampire said. “And if you must know, I’m staying at Casper’s Revenge.”
“Are you here alone?” the deputy asked.
“Look around, Deputy. I’m never alone at these tournaments.”
“I’m Shelley,” the pixie said. “I’m staying with my sister in the White Oak neighborhood.”
“Did you know Clark?” I asked.
“Of course,” Stuart said. “Anyone who’s been attending these tournaments with regularity knows the leprechaun. He posts every screenshot of his achievements like he’s curing cancer.”
“Have you seen him since you’ve been in Starry Hollow?” I asked.
“No. Then again, he’s rather small. I could easily have missed him.” He flashed his fangs at the deputy. “No offense.”
“You can’t make something not offensive just by tacking ‘no offense’ to the end of the sentence,” the deputy grumbled.
The vampire returned his attention to the screen and cheered. “Yes! Finally!”
The werewolves growled in protest.
“You don’t know how long I’ve been trying to kill this one.” He practically skipped away from the tree. “Best of luck, furballs. See you at the victory celebration…or not.”
“Nobody leaves town until you get the all-clear from the sheriff or me,” Deputy Bolan said. “Come on, Rose. I want to get this phone back to the office.”
We retreated to the car and I watched as the werewolves slowly returned their attention to the game. At least they had the decency to look too stunned by the news to play for five minutes. They seemed to be in the minority.
As the leprechaun began to reverse down the dirt path, my focus shifted to the large ash tree. The sight of it filled me with a sense of dread. “What’s the historical significance of the Tree of Bounty? I’ve never heard of it.”
The leprechaun’s face darkened. “That’s a question better left to your coven.”
“Why? Do they own it or something?”
He shifted uneasily. “Not exactly.” He glanced at me sideways. “Should I drop you back at your car?”
“That would be good,” I said. “I need to get Marley and feed her. She’s probably putting a hex on me for abandoning
her during the tournament. I want to know what you find on the phone though.”
“You focus on your article and let the law enforcement professionals focus on the investigation,” he said.
“Right. Like that ever happens,” I said. “I’m in this until the bitter end, Deputy Bolan. There are way too many suspects running around town and only you and the sheriff to track them down. Face it, you need me.” And if we didn’t get to the bottom of this soon, somebody was going to win more than a tournament—they were going to get away with murder.
Chapter Six
Marley and I arrived back at the cottage to find the front door ajar. “Wait here,” I said. I pulled out my wand and nudged the door far enough for me to slip through the gap. Nothing seemed amiss. PP3 was sound asleep on the sofa, which was a good sign. If there was someone unwanted in the cottage, he would be expressing his displeasure. Loudly.
A noise in the kitchen diverted my attention there and I tiptoed toward the door. Slowly, I pushed it open and was greeted by the site of Raoul standing on the kitchen island with what appeared to be part of a tree trunk. He glanced up when he heard the door open.
“Raoul, why did you leave the front door open? You scared me half to death.”
Marley appeared behind me with her wand brandished. “Is it safe? Are you dead yet?”
“False alarm,” I said. I turned back to the raccoon. “Don’t you know that someone was murdered in Linnea’s kitchen this morning? It’s really not a good idea to be breaking and entering right now. Or ever.”
I wasn’t breaking and entering. I’m you are familiar. You should have sensed it was me.
“Sorry. I’m a little on preoccupied thanks to Clark’s murder.” I moved closer to examine the tree trunk. “What is this and why is it in my kitchen?”
Somebody gave it to me at the dump, he said. I mentioned that I was looking for a tree stump in good shape and voilà.
“And what exactly is your plan for this tree stump?” I asked.
It was meant to be a surprise for you, but I guess that ship has sailed.
“Maybe next time try not hiding the surprise in my house.”
Marley joined me at the island and examined the other objects next to the tree stump. “Are you learning woodworking, Raoul?” she asked.
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