A Spell Of Trouble (Silver Hollow Paranormal Cozy Mystery Series Book 1) (9 page)

T
wo hours later
, Issy and Ember stood outside the front doors of the lovely 1920s-era town hall. Despite the mundane happenings inside this place, the structure reeked of old-world charm with its stout brick façade and ornate brass nameplates. As close to five p.m. as it was, there was no one else here, but that was what Issy wanted. She and Ember had both closed their shops a bit early to afford them some privacy.

“Are you sure that stuff won’t cause her any permanent damage?” Issy asked her cousin while eyeing the pretty foil and ribbon-wrapped box of chocolates in her hand. “I don’t want to violate our golden rule—do no harm.”

“Of course not, silly.” Ember smiled serenely then cooed to the two small kittens peeking out of the top of her large tote. “I only cast a mild loose-tongue charm on them, just like you asked. She'll be more willing to talk to us and share information she might not otherwise share. Should only last twenty minutes, tops.”

“Okay.” Issy exhaled then pushed open the large entry doors. Inside, the air was dry and smelled musty, like damp paper and quiet despair. Bella wriggled around inside her backpack, the shallow sounds of her excited pants echoing off the paneled walls of the long, off-white tiled hallway. Dust motes twirled in the air, highlighted by the sunlight filtering through the textured glass windows on the office doors. “The planning office is at the end of this corridor.”

They arrived outside the office door just as Cindy, the department secretary, was leaving for the night. Issy exchanged a glance with Ember then gave a loud, disappointed sigh. “Oh dear. Are we really too late?”

“Afraid so, Issy,” Cindy said, juggling the bundles in her arms while trying to lock the door behind her. “We’re closed for the day, ladies. Perhaps you could try back in the morning.”

“Darn,” Ember said. “I wanted to get this new permit taken care of today.”

Cindy glanced over at her. “Permit?”

“Yes.” Ember gave Issy a quick wink. “I’m thinking of running a little food cart on the town square during lunch. You know, to increase sales. I’ll need a special permit for that, right?”

“Um, yes. An outdoor-vendor’s license.”

“And with the Summer Solstice Festival in just a few weeks, she really wanted to be all set to go.” Issy took one of the ready-to-topple bundles off Cindy’s hands. “With all the tourist traffic and all.”

“Oh. Right. Sure.” Cindy finished securing the door then adjusted her thick horn-rimmed glasses. She’d always reminded Issy of a prim little bookworm librarian with her outdated bouffant hairdo and drab, somber clothes. If Issy remembered correctly, the woman was only in her late twenties, but the way she dressed and acted, she could easily be mistaken for three times that age. Too bad she never visited Gray’s shop. The guy would have a field day with her. “Well, like I said, we’re closed now,” Cindy continued, her tone clipped as a schoolmarm. “But if you come back tomorrow, I’ll…”

“That’s the thing, though, Cindy,” Ember said, wrapping her arm around the petite woman’s shoulders. “I’ve already closed today a little early just to make it here. So opening late tomorrow isn’t an option.” She made sure to wave the enticing box of Cindy’s favorite chocolates in front of her face. “And this dark-chocolate bark I’ve brought will just go to waste.”

Cindy sighed, her gaze locked on the candy now. “That would be an awful shame. You know, I don’t have to be anywhere special tonight. I suppose if you ladies took all the trouble to get here, I can stay a few extra minutes to take care of your permit for you.”

Issy smiled over at her cousin, and they exchanged a triumphant look as Cindy unlocked the door again and let them inside. Ember’s chocolates did the trick every time. Never mind the enchantments. They were just that good.

“Keep your voices down, if you don’t mind, ladies. There’s still a committee meeting going on back in the conference room, and we wouldn’t want to disturb their important official business.”

“What kind of a meeting?” Ember asked before Issy gave her a “shut up” look.

“Of course, Cindy,” Issy said. “Whatever you say.”

“Great. Have a seat by my desk while I gather the necessary forms for you, Ember.”

Issy strolled over to Cindy’s desk near the corner of the space, careful to peer at each desktop on her side of the large room to see if it had been Louella Drummond’s, while Ember did the same on her side of the room. They met up at Cindy’s desk near the back corner, neither of them having spotted anything useful.

“Here we go,” Cindy said, joining them a few moments later. She handed Ember several forms on a clipboard and a pen. “Just fill those out, please.”

“All right.” Ember set her tote bag on the floor beside her and placed the box of chocolates on Cindy’s desk. “And you, please dig in to the chocolate. I made it especially for you. I know the dark-chocolate bark is your favorite, and I put in extra cashews.”

“Oh my. How thoughtful!” Cindy tore into the candy like a starving refugee. Issy raised a brow and stroked Bella’s head through the open top of her backpack, which now leaned against the side of her chair on the floor. Ember had said the spell wouldn’t cause Cindy any permanent damage, but the way she was shoveling in the sweets, she might go into sugar shock before the incantation could take effect. “I swear, Ember. You make the most delicious chocolate I’ve ever tasted. What’s your secret?”

Both cousins coughed at the unexpected question and looked at each other before Ember answered, “Old family recipe. And love. Lots of love.”

“Mmm,” Cindy moaned around a mouthful of chocolate. “So, so good.”

Streaks of chocolate covered the woman’s lips, and her neat bouffant had now gone slightly askew in her haste to gobble the treats, with a few loose tendrils hanging down on either side of her face. With her eyes closed and her glasses off and her hair a bit wild, she looked younger and happier and… well, more attractive. Issy couldn’t help but grin. If Ember and Gray ever decided to join forces, there’d be a definite spike in population around little Silver Hollow, no doubt about it.

Cindy popped another candy into her mouth then leaned back in her chair and gave a long, satisfied sigh. At that moment, the conference-room door opened, and out stepped one of the newer town council members, a handsome young attorney named Greg Dawson who’d moved to Silver Hollow from New York City just a year prior, seeking peace and quiet and nature. If Issy wasn’t mistaken, the guy was single too.

He walked out into the main office area and gave a slight nod to Issy and Ember then stopped short at the sight of Cindy. The way she was sprawled back in her desk chair, the picture of utter female decadence, was a total one-eighty from her usual buttoned-up and shut-down self.

“Ms. Taylor, are you all right?” he asked, his voice as stunned as his expression.

“I’m wonderful, Mr. Dawson. And you?” Cindy’s tone practically purred with pleasure. “Have I ever told you that you are very, very handsome, Mr. Dawson?”

“Um, just running out to my car to grab a document,” he said, backing toward the door, his expression wary. “Be right back.”

Issy leaned closer to her cousin and hissed, “I thought you said it was just a simple loose-tongue spell.”

“It is,” Ember said under her breath. “Perhaps I made it a little more potent than usual. And I may have added an extra dash of rosemary for fun.”

“More potent? Why? And rosemary from Raine’s garden?”

Ember nodded, her smile widening.

“Seriously?” Issy shook her head. “You know what that stuff does to the non-paranormals around here. Remember the town barbecue last year?”

“Do I?” Ember snorted, and Issy glared. “Okay, fine. Don’t worry, I didn’t put that much in, and you said you needed answers, right?”

“Yes, but I also don’t want to start an orgy here at the town hall.”

Ember rolled her eyes. “No orgies, promise. Besides, Cindy’s the only one who’s had any, and she’ll be back to her usual self in”—she glanced at her watch—“fifteen minutes. Better get to asking about that appointment book.”

Crossing her arms, Issy sat back and blinked at Cindy, who’d now taken her hair down completely and removed her glasses and now surprisingly resembled a young Bridget Bardot, despite her drab gray dress.

Cindy grinned and leaned over the desktop toward Issy. “Is Gray dating anyone? I’ve always had the biggest crush on him.”

“Um, I don’t know, Cindy,” Issy said, standing and coming around the desk to prevent Cindy from taking off any more of her attire. Greg the councilman returned from the parking lot and gawked anew at the strangely behaving secretary before disappearing quickly back into the conference room. Once Issy had gotten Cindy somewhat controlled, she crouched beside the woman’s desk chair. “Cindy, do you happen to know where Louella Drummond’s appointment book might be?”

“Oh, poor Louella! So awful what happened to her, wasn’t it? She was a good friend of mine here at the office.” Cindy promptly burst into tears. “I miss her terribly.”

“Us too,” Issy said, patting the other woman on the back and handing her a tissue. “It would really help us to see her appointment book, though.”

“Why?”

Issy glanced over at Ember again. “You’re sure she won’t remember any of this afterward?”

“Not a word.”

“Great.” Issy lowered her voice anyway, still cognizant of the un-hexed board meeting happening in the conference room. “We want to see what her plans were for reporting the salamanders.”

“Yes! The salamanders!” Cindy perked right up again at the mention of the lizards. “Louella loved them, you know.”

“Salamanders?” Issy asked, frowning.

“All kinds of reptiles. Big, small. Didn’t matter. Louella adored them all.”

“Huh.” Issy gave Ember a confused look, and her cousin shrugged. She supposed it made sense, since Louella had always come across as a bit cold blooded herself. “That’s awesome. About the appointment book, though.”

“Right.” Cindy sprang to her feet and kicked off her sensible shoes then padded barefoot across the room to a cluttered desk in the opposite corner. “I locked it in the drawer after everything happened. Didn’t want anyone stealing it.”

“Good thinking,” Issy said, trailing along behind her with her cousin in tow. “Can we see it?”

“Sure. But it has to stay here in this office. Sheriff Owen said he’s going to send someone by tomorrow to pick it up.”

“Got here just in time, then,” Ember murmured.

“Yep,” Issy said.

“Here we are, ladies.” Cindy set a rather dog-eared tome on the desk then stepped back to allow the cousins in. “This goes back to the beginning of the year.”

“Thank you,” Issy said, but Cindy was already back at her own desk, munching on yet another chocolate.

Ember flipped through the pages, tracing a finger down column after column, but Issy didn’t see anything particularly exciting. “Just looks like a bunch of planning-board meetings.”

“Wait, though,” Ember said as she neared the day of Louella’s death. “Look.” She pointed to an entry the day before the murder. “Meet with K. Who’s K?”

Issy’s heart flipped in her chest. With Silver Hollow being as small as it was, there weren’t many paranormals with names beginning with K living there. Even fewer who’d been there at the time of Louella’s death. Issy took a seat and exhaled slowly. “Karen.”

“Karen? You mean Karen Dixon, the dark witch?”

“I’m afraid so. I can’t think of anyone else in our paranormal community whose name starts with K, can you?”

Ember leaned back against the windowsill and wrinkled her nose. “Not off the top of my head, no. That’s bad news for you, though, cousin. After what happened.”

“Tell me about it.” Issy rubbed her eyes. The last thing she wanted to do was battle another dark witch and lose. Her weakness had cost her the life of her beloved familiar, a bulldog named Luna, who’d been the most loyal, the truest, and most trustworthy animal Issy had ever known. As if sensing her despair, Bella yipped from her backpack across the way.

If anything ever happened to precious little Bella, Issy didn’t think she could survive.

Dread oozed through her veins like sludge. Even though Karen had sworn she didn’t do dark magic anymore, Issy knew better than to believe someone who practiced the dark arts. Nothing had ever been proven about Karen, but what if those rumors of her dabbling on the dark side were true? If Issy hadn’t been powerful enough to defeat one dark witch, what was to say she’d be any better prepared this time?

Questioning Karen Dixon wasn’t at the top of her want-to-do list, but if it would solve this case and get the FBPI off her and her family’s backs, then that was what she’d have to do. Just not alone. For that she was going to need the support of her cousins.

T
en minutes later
, just before Cindy’s loose-tongue spell was due to wear off, Issy and Ember left the planning office and headed back down the town-hall steps outside. The sun was setting over the tree line now, lending a golden glow to everything.

“Well, at least we got something out of that visit, right?” Ember said, reaching into her tote to pull out one of her new kitten familiars. “When are you going to talk to Karen Dixon? Want me to go?”

“Not tonight. That’s for sure. And yes, I want you to come. I’m going to call Raine too. I think strength in numbers is the way to stay safe.”

“Stay safe from what?” a masculine voice drawled. Sheriff Owen stood near his squad car. He tipped his hat to them then strolled over, more as if he were at the beach waiting to catch his next big wave than investigating a murder. “I’ve been looking all over for you, Issy.”

“You have?” she asked, setting her backpack with Bella in it inside her truck. “What for?”

Owen pushed the brim of his hat higher with his index finger and narrowed his gaze, his expression hovering somewhere between apologetic and accusing. “Following up on those jack-in-the-pulpit plants your cousin’s been raising. Coroner confirmed they could’ve been used in Louella Drummond’s poisoning. Same type of toxins found in her body.”

“And what’s that got to do with me?” Issy raised a brow at him, doing her best to appear relaxed, though her heart was slamming against her ribcage so hard she feared it might fall out.

“Well, Issy, here’s the thing.” Owen stepped closer and crossed his arms. “Seeing as how you were the last person to talk to Louella before she died, and seeing as how Louella threatened to have the board of health shut down your pet store, and seeing as how your cousin just happens to run a landscaping company that just happens to sell unique jack-in-the-pulpit plants…”

“That’s an awful lot of ‘seeing,’ Owen,” Issy said, hating the slight quiver in her tone.

He sighed. “Raine got any of those jack-in-the-pulpit plants sitting around?”

“I have no idea,” Issy said. “I haven’t been to her shop in days.”

Ember moved in beside Issy in a much-appreciated show of solidarity. “Surely you don’t think Issy or any of us Quinns had anything to do with Louella Drummond’s death, do you?”

Scowling, Owen shook his head. “I’m just doing my job, ladies. Please don’t get all defensive on me, okay? I’ve got the FBI breathing down my neck, and I need to be as thorough as possible with this investigation, all right? I’m not accusing anybody of anything at this point, and if you’re innocent of any wrongdoing, then you’ve got nothing to worry about.”

Bella growled from inside the truck, and Issy reached in to soothe her. “Don’t worry, baby. Everything’s okay.”

“How well did you know Louella Drummond?” Owen asked Issy.

“Not very well, really.”

“Well enough to visit her at her home?”

Cold fear clawed up inside Issy. Had she left behind some clue to her break-in the other day? She’d been so careful, worked so hard to erase all evidence of her presence at Louella’s home. But then she’d run into Dex Nolan in the woods, and he’d distracted her, and then the kiss and… Oh no. A new horrifying thought occurred. Had Dex told him about seeing her there?

She didn’t trust her voice to speak, so she slowly shook her head instead.

Owen narrowed his gaze on her and gave a slight nod. “Right. Think you can call your cousin and have her meet us at her shop?”

Ember thankfully stepped in and offered to do it, since Issy seemed incapable of talking at the moment. She wasn’t sure why the idea of Dex ratting her out to the police bothered her so much—it just did.

“Raine said she’s on her way to her shop now,” Ember said a few moments later.

“Great. Thanks, ladies.” Owen turned and headed back to his squad car. “I’ll meet you there in five minutes.”

Issy and Ember piled into Brown Betty and followed behind the sheriff to Raine’s landscaping business, just down a side street from her cousins’ places of business on Main. They parked behind the squad car and followed Owen inside.

Green Goddess Landscape and Florist was as eclectic as its owner, with cute green-and-white-striped awnings outside and healthy, thriving plants everywhere. With all the misters and humidity from the attached greenhouse out back, it felt more like a rainforest inside than the middle of Silver Hollow, New Hampshire. They’d barely been there two minutes when Raine came bustling in, her overalls splotched with dirt and her straight copper-colored hair twisted back into a messy bun.

“Sheriff Owen, what can I do for you?” Raine said, wiping her hand off on a towel before shaking his. “Looking for some flowers?”

“No. Actually, I’d like to look around, if you don’t mind.”

Raine glanced at Issy and Ember with a what-is-going-on look before nodding. “Okay. Sure. Um, if you tell me what you’re looking for, I might be able to help you find it a bit easier. Things are a tad overgrown in here lately.”

“I see that.” Owen gazed around at all the abundant foliage. “How long does it take you to get them to this size?”

“Not long,” Raine said, tossing her towel aside. “I haven’t been spending a lot of time in the shop lately, though. Summer’s my busy season, so I’m out landscaping or working maintenance on previous jobs most of the time. I only come in here at night or on the weekends to handle my paperwork. In the winter, though, I’m here more. Sell a lot of houseplants, flowers, knickknacks.”

“Huh.” Owen peered through the branches of a flowering magnolia filling the air with their sweet fragrance. “Got any jack-in-the-pulpits?”

“Not sure,” Raine said. “I can check my invoices in the office and see, if you have a few minutes.”

“Yep.” Owen stepped back and crossed his arms. “Take all the time you need.”

Raine cocked her head for her cousins to follow her into her office. Once they were alone, she whispered, “What’s happening here?”

“The coroner discovered that the poison found in Louella’s system matches that found in jack-in-the-pulpits,” Issy said. “Owen thinks whoever made the poison might’ve gotten the plants from your shop.”

“Seriously?” Raine frowned as she flipped through the stacks of paperwork covering her desk. “I psychically screen all my patrons. I’d never sell a plant to someone with such dastardly intentions. And the paranormals around here know better than to try and fool me.”

“What if someone stole one?” Ember asked. “Has anything turned up missing lately?”

“Like I said, I haven’t been here that much, but I keep things locked up when I’m gone, and I’ve not found any signs of a break-in, so I doubt it.” Raine pulled out a piece of paper and held it up. “Here it is.”

They went back out to where Owen still stood near the magnolia bush, and she handed him the invoice. “According to that, I ordered in twelve about a month ago. They’re fairly exotic in these parts, though, so I have to be careful where I place them. Looks like nine have been installed at my landscaping jobs and three are still here on the premises.”

“Can I see one?”

“Sure.” Raine led them all over to one of the plants. It wasn’t anything spectacular, at least in Issy’s opinion. The flowers were pretty, if understated, with their brown and green stripes surrounded by thick green leaves. But considering all the trouble this plant had caused of late, Issy half expected some garish magenta blooms the size of her head or something. “These are it.”

Owen leaned in and sniffed. “Just a faint smell. Not flowery, though.”

“Not really. No.”

“Pretty plain, aren’t they?” He wrinkled his nose.

“They have their own beauty. The female flowers produce lovely red berries in late summer, and the flower petals always remind me of tiger stripes.”

“Hmm.” He sounded unconvinced as he turned each of the three pots right, then left, inspecting each plant. “Well, it doesn’t look like any of these have been cut at all. What about the ones you’ve planted around town, Raine? Got an address for me so I can check those out too?”

“Yep.” She handed him the invoice again. “Down at the bottom I noted each location where I planted them, for future reference.”

“Great.” Owen pulled out a small notepad and jotted the addresses down then handed the paper back to Raine. “I guess I’ll bid you ladies good evening, then.”

“Good night, Sheriff,” the three cousins said in unison.

Issy waited until Owen had driven away before she allowed herself to breathe again. “I’ve got a bad, bad feeling about all this.”

“Me too,” Ember said. “Especially after what just happened at the planning office.”

Knees shaky, Issy took a seat on a nearby empty ledge, and Raine sat beside her.

“What happened at the planning office?” Raine asked.

Issy closed her eyes, hoping her tilted world might right itself. “We got to see Louella Drummond’s address book.”

“And?” Raine prompted when Issy didn’t say anything.

“We think she had a meeting with Karen Dixon the night before she died,” Ember said.

“Oh no.” Raine placed a comforting hand on Issy’s back. “It’s possible those rumors aren’t true, you know.”

“What if they are, though?” Issy shook her head. “What if she used dark magic to kill Louella? I’ve seen her do mean things before, like that time she caused that snobby tourist to trip on the town square and break her ankle, remember?”

“Yeah,” Raine said, rubbing Issy’s back. “I remember. So what are you going to do?”

“What can I do?” Issy shrugged. “I have to go see her, for Louella’s sake, much as it scares the heck out of me to do it.”

“Well,” Ember said, taking a seat on Issy’s other side. “You’re not going alone.”

“No,” Raine said, squeezing her arm around Issy’s shoulder. “You’re not.”

“Thanks, guys.” Having the support of her family meant more to Issy than she could say. “Sorry to be a such a wimp.”

“There’s not a wimpy bone in your body, cousin,” Ember said. “Though I would suggest we not go at night. Dark magic is more powerful then.”

“So, tomorrow morning?” Raine suggested. “I don’t start on my next landscaping job until the afternoon, so I’m free.”

“Works for me too,” Ember said. “I’ll get my assistant to fill in while I’m gone.”

“Me too,” Issy said. “Looks like we’ve got a date.”

“Cool.” Raine pushed to her feet. “Now, if you gals don’t mind, I need to get home and take a shower.”

“Of course.” Issy stood, with Ember at her side, and they all said their good-byes. “C’mon, Ember. I’ll drop you off at the shop so you can pick up your car.”

“Great. Thanks.”

They climbed back into Brown Betty, and Issy pulled a sleeping Bella from her backpack and settled the tiny dog on her lap before starting the engine and pulling out of her parking spot. As they headed across the intersection, Issy noticed a small white cottage on the corner and the plants neatly dotting the side beds. “Hey, aren’t those the same plants we just saw in Raine’s shop?”

“Yep. Those look like jack-in-the-pulpits to me.”

Issy swerved up to the curb and leaned out the driver’s-side window for a closer look. There seemed to be six spots for plants in all, except the last hole was empty. It appeared all haphazard and gouged out, as if someone used their bare hands instead of a shovel.

“Uh-oh,” Issy said.

“What?”

“Look at that.” Issy pointed out the empty hole to Ember. “One of them’s gone.”

“That’s not good.”

“Nope.” Issy signaled then pulled back out into the lane of traffic. “Not good at all.”