Authors: Rose Pressey
Chapter Twenty-Four
I blew out a deep breath and tucked a stray strand of hair behind my ear. After studying his face for a second, I said,
“I wasn’t sure where you’d gone.”
“I thought I’d give you some time alone with Rory,” Tom said in a low tone.
The
weight in my chest grew heavier.
I nodded. “I’m sorry about what happened.”
“Don’t be,” he said. “He’s just looking out for you. I’m glad you have someone who cares about you that much.”
Before I could respond, Tom met my gaze and said, “There’s a trail of magic around the café. It’s on the outside as well as the inside.” He gestured around the area.
“A trail?” I asked.
“From the murder scene,” he said gestured with a tilt of his head.
“So you know that magic was involved.” The thought had crossed my mind. Someone wanted one of the higher-ups with the Organization dead.
“Yes, I’m sure,” he said with an air of certainty.
“Could it be residual from Mr. Wibble?” I asked.
He frowned. “No. The magic would have disappeared when he died.”
“Well then, can you tell who the magic is from? What spell did they use and where did they go?”
“Aren’t you just full of questions, Nancy Drew.”
“Oh hush. I can’t help it. My mind is working overtime. Your brain would be in overdrive too if you’d found Mr. Wibble like I did.”
“I can’t argue with you on that one.”
“I thought you said that magic puts off a vibe and that you can tell who’s been doing the magic. That’s what you told me on your last visit, remember?”
Tom sat on the step in front of Mystic Café, then ran his hand through his hair. His expression let me know this was serious. Finally, after an awkward pause, he looked up at me. “The magic usually does send out a signal, but not this time. Some people are able to perform a spell to cover their tracks. The spells are virtually untraceable. It’s rare and forbidden for someone to have this talent, but of course that doesn’t stop them.”
“So why doesn’t everyone do this? Why is it so rare?” I sat beside him. Not too close, though. “Do you know how the Organization finds out about the spell casting? I mean, if it’s untraceable, then how do they ever know who’s responsible?”
“They’ve developed spells to counteract the blocking spells in the past, it just takes them a while. It’s kind of like developing a medicine, but as soon as that spell is eradicated, it doesn’t take long to develop a new one. It’s an ongoing battle, obviously. Not everyone can do this magic. Like I said, it’s very rare.”
“You still didn’t tell me why it’s so rare.”
“Only a few people have this hidden talent. We don’t know why they possess this skill.”
“What can we do? I hate to see you blamed for something you had no involvement in.”
“Me? Why are you worried about me? What about you? It’s your café. I shouldn’t have come here.” He ran his hand through his hair. “Maybe Mr. Wibble would still be alive if I hadn’t come to Mystic Hollow.”
“Don’t say that. You had no way of knowing. Besides I’m glad you came back to the café.” Why had I said that aloud? It was one thing to think it, but an entirely different disaster to say it. He looked over at me with a shocked look on his face. There was a spark in his eyes and I didn’t want to know what that spark meant. Okay, I wanted to know, but I didn’t know how I would react to it.
“I wanted to see you,” he said softly.
A lump formed in my throat and my stomach did a dance. What could I say to him? I needed to steer the conversation away from his last statement. Tom’s gaze was focused on mine, then it moved downward locking on my lips. I jumped up and began pacing the sidewalk. If I couldn’t speak, at least I could remove myself from that situation. What if Tom had kissed me and Rory had walked up and saw us? How would I explain that one? I wouldn’t have been able to. I certainly wouldn’t have been able to explain why I hadn’t stopped Tom from kissing me. Because once his lips touched mine I was pretty sure I wouldn’t be able to tell him to stop. Perhaps I wasn’t being fair to Rory. I shouldn’t have these feelings for Tom. I was torn. Rory was fantastic and he made my stomach do that little dance too.
I’d never had this feelings for two men before. Was the universe punishing me? What kind of sick joke was that to bring two gorgeous men right to my front door? Yeah, not exactly a bad problem to have, but I was a one guy kind of girl. I enjoyed being in a relationship, but not with two guys at once. For now, I just needed to keep romance out of the picture. I had many more problems to worry about. Like was there a killer in Mystic Hollow? Stupid question. Obviously there was because Mr. Wibble was now in the county morgue instead of on his way back to New York City. Plus, I had to solve who was responsible for the crazy spell that now had a hold on the residents of Mystic Hollow. If in fact I wasn’t the guilty party. Sure, Tom had said I wasn’t guilty, but maybe he was just being nice before the Organization sent me to jail. Other than putting in too much potion, I’d followed the spell to the letter. Until now, I’d never had any problems with getting the spell right, only getting it to the correct recipient. That had all changed now. Tom was watching me pace, so I forced myself out of my musings.
Finally, I said, “We have to do something. You don’t think I’m going to sit around and let this happen to us, do you?”
“I didn’t think you would for a second.” He winked.
“What is Sydney doing?”
“The same thing we’re planning to do, getting statements from practitioners, talking to anyone affected, and following the trail.”
“First, we need to find out who made the spell go bad. We can’t figure out what happened to Mr. Wibble with the town in chaos like it is.”
Heck, everyone was acting so crazy that it would be hard to question successfully. Maybe Tom was acting crazy in a way. He had to be for wanting to be near me.
“You’ve got spunk, I’ll give you that,” he said as he stood. “I’m not supposed to investigate anything. I’m no longer a part of the magic, but at this point what have I got to lose? I can try to trail the magic. We can at least see if the person who did this to Mr. Wibble went anywhere else. It’s a stretch but maybe we’ll get lucky and it’ll lead us straight to the killer.”
That didn’t sound like such a great idea now that he said it out loud. Finding the killer would be great, but I didn’t want to end up as the next victim.
“So you’re going to sniff this magic trail kind of like a bloodhound?” I asked.
“That’s the gist of it, yes. You make it sound so glamorous.” He laughed.
“It is what it is.” I laughed.
“We’d better get started. The longer we wait the more the magic imprint fades. We won’t be able to do anything once that’s gone.”
Suddenly I was a crime-fighting team with Tom. My magic world grew crazier by the minute.
“We should start at the back of the café where the body was found. I don’t want to get a false start by picking up on the magic here.”
Somehow, what he said made sense to me, so I followed him to the back of Mystic Café. A small parking lot was behind the building with a small wrought iron fence surrounding the area. It kind of gave off this creepy, gothic vibe, which didn’t help my uneasiness. As much as I didn’t want to go back there, I knew I had to eventually. The area behind Mystic Café had changed forever. It would never be the same now that Mr. Wibble had been murdered back there. The tree branches rustled as they had when I’d discovered Mr. Wibble. Were they still trying to send me a message? A warning?
“Mystic Hollow hadn’t been on the Organization’s radar, but the town sure is now,” Tom said as he walked.
“Great. The minute I take over, all chaos breaks loose in town. Why am I not surprised?” I shook my head.
“You do have a way of finding the mishaps, don’t you?”
“Aw, you’re so sweet. Way to put it delicately,” I said sarcastically.
He grinned. We both knew it was the truth though. I kept my distance from the Dumpster. Eventually I’d have to take out trash instead of asking everyone else to do it for me. As Tom stood in front of it, he closed his eyes, as if he was trying to tune into the magic.
“Did you notice anything odd when you found Mr. Wibble? I know you don’t like to talk about it, but I have to ask.”
“As a matter of fact, there was one thing,” I said.
I wasn’t a fashionista or anything, but I had recognized the scarf that had been beside his body. The label had been visible and I’d seen that designer scarf for sale when I’d lived in New York City.
“There was a pink and silver scarf near the body. I was sure it couldn’t have been Mr. Wibble’s, but maybe it was his. Anyway, I guess the police took it. It probably didn’t mean anything.”
Tom nodded, then opened his eyes. “I’m picking up something. Let’s go.”
As we moved along the cobblestone sidewalk, I didn’t speak. Tom seemed as if he was almost in a trance-like state. My chatting would only break his concentration.
Signs dangled above each store and large planters brimming with colorful flowers were placed systematically along the sidewalks.
When we reached the little boutique down the street, Tom came to a screeching halt. The Plaid Peacock was a boutique that sold home décor, candles, and other gifts. I always got my wallet into trouble when I stepped into the shop.
A sign for the store dangled high above the sidewalk with a plaid background and a colorful peacock in shades of lime green, red, and blue.
“I’m guessing we’re not stopping here because you want to buy a candle,” I said with a chuckle.
He smiled. “You’re right. I don’t need a candle right now. The magic trail is leading me right into the shop.”
“Well, let’s go in. What are we waiting for?” I pushed on the door and entered.
Homemade folk art signs with lively sayings such as
All Because Two People Fell In Love
and
Always Kiss Me Goodnight
dotted the walls. Knickknacks lined the many shelves.
Kiki Adams owned the shop. She was chatty and a slightly eccentric woman, but a real sweetheart. I had expected her sweet southern greeting when we entered, but another woman with a perfectly coiffed blonde bob stood behind the counter as we approached.
“Is Kiki here?” I asked.
“No, I’m afraid not. She took the week off for a vacation in the Smokey Mountains. Is there something I can help you with?” Her white blouse and poplin pants hung on her slender frame. There was something familiar about her wide brown eyes.
This wasn’t good. We couldn’t ask this woman about the magic. Kiki knew about the magic, but more than likely this woman had no clue.
“My name is Alice Harlan. I’d be happy to help you with anything.” She folded her slender arms across her chest.
Tom looked at me. “She knows about the magic,” he said not so discreetly.
I wouldn’t even bother to ask him right now how he knew she was aware of the magic. This was all his puppy.
“Alice, is it?” he asked.
She nodded as if she was in trouble.
“Nice to meet you, Alice.” Tom flashed a smile at her. “We followed a magic trail here to the shop and we’re wondering if you can help us.”
Her eyes widened. “A magic trail?”
Tom pulled out his wallet, and took out his card. Would she know that he was no longer with the Organization? She took the card from him and stared at it for a second, barely blinking as she studied it.
Her eyes were full of trepidation when she finally looked up at him. “I wish I could help you, but I don’t know what a magic trail is.”