Nine

  The small farm crawled with police while Amy, Daphne, and Jess watched from the veranda. Naturally they had more coffee, and Jess took a tray to the police personnel. They were grateful, and she took the opportunity to study each one.

  Who was in charge of the scene? Who didn’t check out the barn? She dismissed Officer Leary from her efforts, who she liked, but Maestro hissed disapproval over that thought.

  “I never said I was a detective,” she muttered and continued around the group.

  Officer Purdon seemed to be the next senior after Brodie, so surely he would have been given the case.

  “That would be my guess.”

  They nodded at each other and made their way to where he stood near Brodie in deep conversation.

  Officer Purdon’s head was down, and when he glanced her way he looked miserable. Brodie narrowed his eyes and motioned her away.

  “Looks like Officer Fine is giving him a dressing down. If it was him in charge, then he deserved it for messing up big time, but that doesn’t necessarily make him guilty of aiding the killer, right Maestro?”

  “No, it doesn’t, and Brodie didn’t look set to arrest him.”

  “I daresay he’ll still have to file a report on it. That will be rough on both of them. I wonder what made him so lax.”

  “You’ll have to sweet talk Brodie to find out.”

  “That is easier said than done.”

  “Don’t you have a date coming up?”

  “Like that conversation won’t spoil the mood.”

  Maestro retched, which pleased Jess far more than it should have.

  Conscious of the time she had been away from the store, Jess phoned Jenny, who assured her she had everything under control. She didn’t doubt it but was grateful when Brodie returned to the cottage and said he was heading back to town. He agreed to take her as well as Amy who had grown tired of Daphne’s unwillingness to forgive her.

  On the drive, they were silent and clearly lost in their own thoughts. Even Maestro, who perched on Jess’s lap, stared out the window. Jess had a bunch of questions but decided asking them in front of Amy wouldn’t be a good idea. Before they knew it, whatever they discussed would be passed around town and hailed as gospel.

  “How did it go? Jenny asked as soon as Jess was in the door with Maestro at her heels.

  “Someone killed Mr. Abernathy at Daphne’s farm…”

  “I know that,” Jenny interrupted. “Even if you hadn’t called, it’s all over town.”

  Jess sighed. “I really don’t know where to begin, and Brodie asked us not to share any information.”

  “So you can’t tell me anything?” Jenny was obviously disappointed and had probably been waiting all day for some news.

  Jess racked her brain for something she could share.

  “I was about to say that they don’t know who did it, but it looked like there were two people.”

  “Well of course there would be two people if one of them was killed. Tell me something I don’t know.”

  Jess didn’t care for Jenny’s snippiness, but she knew how it felt when she was left out in the cold of a mystery. Her mom had plenty of those back in the day. It was odd that she only just recalled that fact. Was there a reason for that? She sighed. More question and Jenny was looking at her strangely.

  “Okay, I do know a couple of things, but you can’t tell anyone.”

  Eagerly Jenny leaned on the counter. “Of course I won’t.”

  “The body was dragged across the farm and left in a paddock close to the road. That’s all I can say.”

  “Really? Gosh. That’s a long way from the barn. The killer would have to be strong.”

  “That’s true. Anyway, what’s been happening here?”

  “Not so much. It’s been one of our quiet days. I was thinking maybe we should advertise further afield to attract new customers.”

  “I went through the accounts, and we seem to be doing okay.”

  Jenny’s eyebrows lifted. “Is okay enough?”

  Jess pondered this for a moment. While more money was always nice, it wasn’t a necessity.

  The smaller the clientele base is, the easier it is to keep your talents a secret.

  Jess nodded at Maestro. “Let me think about it, Jenny. There is something to be said for keeping the business small and therefore manageable.”

  “I guess so, but we could hire more staff if it went viral.”

  “Viral?” Jess laughed. “I don’t think I could handle that, and it doesn’t sound ideal for what is essentially a health store. As for more staff I’m not so sure that’s a good idea.”

  Jenny’s mouth turned down, and Jess suddenly appreciated that she hadn’t handled this well. After all, with all her running around looking for clues, she wasn’t exactly a reliable staff member these days, and Jenny worked more hours on her own than not.

  “Look, I understand that you have the business at heart, and I daresay you’ve been thinking of this for a while. I don’t want to rain on your parade, or make you feel that your opinions don’t matter. The truth is I have my own dreams for the place.”

  “Really?” Jenny gushed. “I’d love to hear about them.”

  Jess wanted to kick herself. These dreams of hers were just that, and she wasn’t ready to share them, mainly because they seemed stupid to contemplate with everything she had going on already.

  “As soon as I decide whether it’s a viable option or not, I promise you’ll be the first to know.”

  “Sure.” Jenny walked out the back, head down.

  The last thing she wanted was to make the woman miserable and feel like she wasn’t trusted, but what was she supposed to do? If she told her that she would like to open a small café, she knew Jenny would make a big deal over it.

  Maestro was suddenly at her feet. “You’ve kept that quiet.”

  “There’s a first time for everything,” she said caustically.

  “Well, it is a sweet idea,” he teased, “but probably not viable in the foreseeable future.”

  Her stomach dipped. Dismissing her dream wasn’t funny at all. “Why?”

  He licked a paw. “It’s not something I could comment on right now.”

  “Ahh, back to secrets are we?”

  With a flick of his tail, he wandered away. “It’s on a need-to-know basis, and you don’t need to know right now.”

  “Just remember that for when I can control my thoughts permanently,” she said snippily and rather loudly.

  Jenny hurried back into the store. “Sorry, are you talking to me?”

  “When was she going to learn to not blurt stuff out when riled up?”

  “Probably never,” Maestro snorted.

  “I heard there’s a special at the vets—on neutering.”

  A hiss followed him to the corner of the store, and Jess moved closer to Jenny.

  “I’m sorry if I sounded dismissive of your ideas and want you to know that I value you as more than an employee. I’m a work in progress, and I’m still coming to terms with how my life has changed. Can you give me a little more time to find my way?”

  Jenny threw her arms around her and squeezed. “Of course I can. I’m sorry for being so insensitive. It’s only been a few months since you lost your mom, but you’ve fit in so well and learned so much that it feels much longer.” She gasped. “Oh, I don’t mean it to sound as if I’ve forgotten Lissa. That could never happen. Anyway, you take as long as you need, and I’ll put a chokehold on my impatience. Lissa always said I could worry a person into saying yes, and I really don’t mean to.” She paused for breath. “Only, when I think on it, maybe I do. I should work on that.”

  Jess laughed. “You are perfect just the way you are. No need to change for me or anyone else.”

  “Do you really think so?” Jenny asked hopefully.

  “I do.” Jess realized this was the truth. She simply wasn’t used to effusiveness on any scale, and Jenny was right at the top. She winked. “So if Theo is playing hard to get, then don’t you chase him. He’ll figure it out even if I have to give him a few hints.”

  Jenny blushed and didn’t deny that Theo figured high in how she wanted to be known. Then she winked back. “I wish he would. I sometimes think he doesn’t know I’m alive.”

  “Trust me, there isn’t a person in Good Fortune who doesn’t know about you.”

  “Gosh, do you think so? That’s a lot of people, so if it is true I hope they only know the good things.”

  “Jenny, I don’t know why you would doubt that.” Jess tutted. “You are kindness personified and over-the-top friendly. Oops. I didn’t mean that.”

  Her assistant sighed. “Yes, you did, and I get it. My enthusiasm has been likened to a kid in a candy store, and that’s why I try not to eat sugar.”

  Jess blinked, a little lost by the analogy. “Because you won’t be able to stop eating it?”

  “Not so much that. If I add anything else to my hyper-ness, I’d be bouncing off the walls and could hurt someone.”

  Jess had a mental image of that very thing and roared with laughter. Jenny must have visualized the same thing as she joined in. For the rest of the afternoon, while Jess made potions and Jenny packaged them and stocked shelves, whenever they caught each other’s eye they both snickered.

  It was nice to think they had a similar sense of humor, and Jess felt as though she had turned a corner with Jenny, which was important. If she was to keep her witchy awakening hidden, they would need not only a good rapport but a good deal of trust. You didn’t get that by not talking to each other or only sharing a moment or two. That was a fact.

  Sadly, Jess had a lot of things she was keeping from Jenny and would continue to do so. Much of it could hurt her feelings if she did find out and was also likely to scare the daylights out of her.

  There was so much to think about what with training and the murder, and her fingers itched to bake something. Potions were all well and good, but they required concentration if they were to succeed. Baking freed her mind in a way that making potions couldn’t.

  She missed it more every day and decided she would bake when she got home.

  Chapter

  Ten

  Weary but determined, Jess kicked off her shoes as soon as she got back to the cottage. After washing her hands she pulled out the ingredients she needed. It gave her time to sift through her thoughts, pun intended, while Maestro prowled the kitchen. He had been oddly quiet since their argument that afternoon, and she’d prefer not to start it up again.

  Her mom was absent again. Where did she go if she couldn’t leave the cottage and the land around it?

  “No two ways about it, that was an arson attempt at the farm,” Maestro said finally.

  Jess pulled a sultana loaf from the oven. “Of course it was arson, but why move the body? Why not just burn the place down with Abernathy inside?”

  A shimmer beside her turned into Lissa Lavender. The pan slipped from Jess’s hands and landed with a thunk on the counter. Thankfully, the loaf didn’t look worse for it.

  “Mom! Do you have to show up that way?”

  “Sorry, dear.” The shades around Lissa turned a soothing lilac. “I’m still getting used to this ghost business. My, that looks wonderful.”

  With her heart returning to normal and wondering if her mom did the whole color thing deliberately, Jess smiled. “I wish you could taste it.”

  “Me too. Did you make loaves as well as pies at your bakery?”

  “It wasn’t my bakery, and I didn’t.” Her teeth gritted in a familiar way. “Mr. Carrington had set recipes we could use, and that was it. I wasn’t allowed to tweak any of them or he would throw a fit.”

  Lissa chuckled. “More fool him.”

  “That’s what I said—behind his back. If I’m honest, I did make a few refinements now and again, which I kept to myself and no one else commented on. But I knew because the sales always spiked for that one item every time. He wasn’t a nice man, and I don’t miss the patriarchal atmosphere. You have no idea how they treat women in a place like that.” The words were out before she’d considered how her mother would react.

  “Lucky you moved home and can make whatever you like now.”

  No matter how she felt about Jess’s interference in a recipe, Lissa obviously couldn’t let the benefits of coming home pass without a dig.

  “It’s not quite like that, is it? I have to make your potions before I can bake my pies and cakes.”

  She must have sounded like she was itching for a fight, as Maestro slunk under the table and put his chin on his paws. Perhaps she should get him some popcorn.

  The brat of a cat grinned!

  Her mom flickered. “So you’re still resentful about me making you come home?”

  Jess frowned. Was she? “Not anymore. It was underhanded, but now that I understand why I’ve mostly come to terms with it. Plus having a real house to live in beats the small apartment I had in Portland, and at least Jenny deals with most customers.”

  The colors around Lissa shone brightly. “You have no idea how good it is to hear that. The bribe in my will was a risky gamble, but I always knew in my heart that you would thrive here. I’m sorry that I resorted to that, but you’re doing so well, and Jenny loves having you to lean on. The poor girl made a life around me and the store and was so scared that everything she loved would be lost to her when I died. Thank you for letting her run the store.”

  Her mother’s wide smile warmed Jess inside and out, and when Maestro gave her a pointed look Jess didn’t remind her mom for the hundredth time that she had no real choice in that matter either.

  “Speaking of Jenny, why didn’t you teach her to make potions?”

  Her mother looked away for a moment. “Without being a witch, the potions Jenny can make would be of no more benefit to our customers than what they can pick up at the drugstore. Fortunately, I realized early on that she does have a talent for the soaps and other products we sell, and like you say she’s great with the customers. She truly cares about them, and nothing is too much trouble.”

  Her mother clearly wanted her to understand how beneficial their connection was, and Jess smiled again. “I’m glad you had Jenny to help you. It must have made things easier.”

  “You have no idea. When I started to get sick, we tried everything I could think of to find what it was I’d been poisoned with. Jenny worked tirelessly researching possible poisons and cures.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me, Mom? I might have been able to help.”

  Lissa clasped her hands together. “Since your powers hadn’t shown themselves at that time, there was no chance you could have helped. Truthfully, I considered that the magic had skipped a generation. It’s rare but not unheard of. However, Maestro felt something in you, and I have always trusted his instincts.”

  “If he had been with you, could he have detected the poison?”

  Her mother shook her head firmly. “Only another witch would have. I was distracted, and Gerald took advantage of that.”

  “Did Mr. Urwin know you were a witch?”

  “I believe he suspected something.”

  “Probably because he was spying on you.”

  “You mean the telescope at his window looking into my bedroom?”

  “You knew?”

  “I did.” Lissa smirked. “But what he didn’t know was that I had a spell on my bedroom, and he only saw what I allowed him to see.”

  Jess snorted. “He must have been frustrated.”

  “Yes, he certainly was. He would ask other people questions about what I did in the evenings. Naturally, knowing our bad-blood relationship, most of them told me.”

  “Wow. He really was a creep.”

  She laughed. “He was, but thankfully we don’t have to worry about him ever again.”

  “There was one thing that we never resolved. You told me once that you regretted it, but why did you bury him in your garden and then have Maestro tell me to dig him up?”

  “Yes, I did instantly regret it. It was a foolish thing to do, but I was sick and not thinking clearly. Though he was a horrible man, it didn’t seem right not to give him a proper burial. Of course, when it was done and reason returned, I realized that if he was found at some later date, which invariably happens, then the police would be looking at you as the likely culprit.”

  Lissa did not meet her eyes. “Especially if you decided not to stay, sold the house, and the new owners came across him. As I was dying, it occurred to me that you discovering him seemed the best possible solution, and I left a message for Maestro to assist you.”

  Jess slowly nodded. The message business was just something else to circle back to. “Nobody could ever accuse me of putting him there since I was living in Portland at the time. I have been wondering how you managed to bury him. I mean, he would have been too heavy for you to move when you were so ill.”

  The silence was thick with something unspeakable. Something hovered within Jess’s grasp, and when she snatched at it in her mind the truth made her gasp.

  Chapter

  Eleven

  Plopping onto a kitchen chair in case she fell, she stared in horror at her mother. “Jenny,” she whispered. Then louder. “Jenny buried him in the garden.”

  “She’s hardly strong enough for that,” Lissa laughed.

  It was a laugh Jess recognized from her childhood. A laugh she didn’t like and certainly didn’t respect. “She’s the same size as me and I imagine quite strong from lifting stock, but I agree she couldn’t have done it by herself. Therefore, she must have had help—your help.”

  “I was sick,” Lissa protested.

  “Not too sick apparently. While I admit to knowing little about conjuring spells that aren’t for potions yet, I accept that there will be other spells that make witches capable of so much more. The question is why you are lying to me about this.”

  Maestro growled. “Leave it, Jess.”

  “No, I won’t leave it! You both ask everything of me and yet don’t trust me with your secrets.”

  “Do you know how petulant you sound?” he growled again.

 

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