Ax to Grind (4 page)

Chapter Nine

While Meg was eager to start investigating this case, she managed to hit her first roadblock before even leaving Liz’s driveway.  Not surprisingly, she found Connor standing by her car.  That was usually a welcome sight to her.  The opposite was true right now. 

The problem was, she already knew what he was going to say, and she didn’t like it.  At the same time, she had no interest nor time to argue with him.  She also couldn’t avoid him either.  That meant she was forced to go through the motions, trying to keep this conversation from getting out of control.  In her mind, the key would be to keep this brief while not hurting Connor’s pride or feelings.  That was easier said than done.   

Connor wasted no time cutting straight to his biggest worry.  “You’re not thinking about investigating this case, are you?”

Uh oh.  This was exactly what Meg had anticipated.  It was time to try and do a delicate dance. 

“No,” she answered. 

He breathed a sigh of relief.  “Good.”

“I don’t have to think about it.  I’m doing it.”

That was not the answer he was looking for.  Connor groaned.  “I’m urging you not to.”

This was on the verge of getting ugly.  She made one last ditch effort to end this swiftly and without hurt feelings.  “We’ve been here before.  Do you really want to do this again?”

He shook his head.  “You’re so stubborn.”

“Some people would call what I’m doing being loyal.”

“Yeah?  It’s loyal alright.  It’s also stubborn.”

“I’m glad we understand each other.  Now, it’s time to get down to business.”

For a fleeting moment, Meg thought Connor might actually let her go right there.  Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. 

“Meg, you’re not making this easy for me.”

“Imagine how hard it is for Liz.  She’s in there worried that she could spend the rest of her life in jail.”

“Look, I’d love to be wrong about this, but I wouldn’t be doing my job if I eliminated her as a suspect.”

“I understand you’re stuck between a rock and a hard place.  Rest assured, I’m not going to stop until I push that rock out of the way.”

“That’s what I’m afraid of.”

“Don’t worry about me.”

“Meg, you’re my girlfriend.  I can’t help but worry about you.”

“That’s sweet, but I can take care of myself.  Or, have you forgotten how the last case turned out?” she asked. 

“I admit it, you saved my backside in the last case, but you never know when your luck might run out.  This is serious business.  There is a killer on the loose.  They’ve already murdered one person.  What makes you think they won’t do the same to you if you get in their way?”

This was one of those times she wished she could just tell Connor about her witch powers.  That she had a whole range of spells that could keep her out of danger.  The problem was, her mother had sworn her to secrecy.  Meg had to do her best to convince Connor of her safety in other ways. 

“Trust me, I’m going to be as careful as possible.  Besides, I have a little help if I need it.”

She pulled a can of pepper spray out of her purse. 

That did not ease Connor’s fears.  Worry was still all over his face. 

“All right,” he said. 

She smiled.  “Good.”

He stopped her.  “I wasn’t finished.  If you insist on investigating this case, we’re doing it together.”

“Are you saying you want to be my sidekick?” she joked. 

“If anything, you’d be my sidekick.”

“Does that mean you’re going to deputize me?”

“Don’t push your luck.  If we were in the city, I could get in serious trouble for this.”

“It’s a good thing we’re in Enchanted Bay then, isn’t it?”

“If anyone asks, you’re a special advisor on this case,” Connor explained. 

“I like the sound of that.  I almost want to put in on a business card,” Meg joked.

“Don’t make me regret this.”

“Don’t worry.  I’m the most professional amateur sleuth you’ve ever worked with.”

“That doesn’t make me feel as confident as you seem to think it does.”  He switched gears.  “We should really get down to work.”

“Before we do, I have to make a stop first,” Meg insisted. 

Chapter Ten

Meg knew she’d be in for an earful when she told her mother about her plans.  At the same time, she couldn’t hide the truth from her mom.  That made for an anxiety-filled ride over to the donut shop.  At least for her.  Connor was too busy letting his mouth water as he let his donut cravings get the best of him. 

When they arrived at the shop, Connor was easily distracted with a jelly donut while Meg pulled her mother into the back office. 

Concern was all over Beth Walton’s face the moment Meg revealed what was going on. 

“Oh, dear.  Here we go again,” Beth bemoaned. 

That was a much more muted response than Meg expected.  Beth was far from having a gung-ho attitude about her daughter’s intended sleuthing, but Meg would gladly take this scenario over the full meltdown she expected to see from her mom. 

Beth had been careful over the years to make sure the general public didn’t find out she was a witch.  She was afraid if her secret got out, she’d be persecuted.  Beth urged her daughter to do the same.  By putting herself in harm’s way, Meg might find herself in a position where she’d need to use her witch powers to keep herself safe, in turn revealing she was a witch in the process.   

“I know you’d rather that I sit this one out, but you do understand why I’m doing this, don’t you?” Meg asked. 

Beth reluctantly nodded.  “That doesn’t mean I like it.”

“I don’t like it either, but what else am I supposed to do?”

Beth laughed. 

Meg furrowed her brow.  “What’s so funny?”

“The fact that you’re dating a detective, yet you still feel the need to investigate this case yourself,” Beth explained. 

“That’s because I have one thing that Connor doesn’t.”

“A stubborn streak as wide as the San Andreas fault?” Beth joked. 

Meg shook her head.  “I was going to say that I have spells at my disposal.”

Beth gritted her teeth and remained quiet, even though every fiber of her being wanted to beg her daughter to reconsider.  She exhausted her will power and managed to keep her mouth shut.   

Meg was pleasantly surprised.  “It’s good to see you’re not arguing with me like last time.”

“If I thought I had even the slightest chance of changing your mind, I’d argue with you all day to stay out of this.  I’ve seen that stubborn look in your eyes before, and I know I’d have a better chance of selling an Eskimo a Hawaiian shirt in the winter than I do of getting you to leave this case alone.”

“Mom, I promise to be careful.”

“You’re better be, especially with Connor hanging around.  If he finds out you’re a witch, he might become disenchanted with your relationship in a hurry.”

Beth had only ever told one person outside the family that she was a witch—her husband.  She immediately regretted it.  Instead of responding with understanding, Beth’s husband became paranoid that she had cast a love spell. 

In time, his paranoia got the better of him.  He ended up leaving Beth.  Even now, thirty-two years later, she still hadn’t gotten over it.  Not only that, she feared the same fate for her daughter. 

“Mom, I assure you, no one is going to find out our secret.”

“Don’t make promises unless you can keep them.”

Meg gazed deep into her mother’s eyes.  “I promise.”

Beth took a deep breath.  “Good luck.”

“Everything is going to be fine.  Don’t worry.”

Beth couldn’t help but laugh at that statement. 

“That’s not likely.  Worrying is what mothers do best.”

Meg gave her mom a big hug. 

“I love you,” Meg said.

Chapter Eleven

Before Meg could get working on this case, she had to straighten out her thoughts.  There were so many things swirling around in her mind.  Not to mention, suspects were not in short supply.  She decided to run down the list in an attempt to untie the knots in her head. 

First on the list was Owen Goodman.  Owen was the director of the musical.  He’d been with the show from the very beginning.  Over the years, Owen had passed up a handful of other opportunities in bigger cities because this show was his baby and he couldn’t imagine anyone else directing it.  Owen was so devoted to the show that his long hours at the theater caused the crumbling of his marriage.  With the show canceled, Owen was an over-the-hill director with no job prospects who had just lost the thing he cared the most about.  When a person’s livelihood was threatened, they often did crazy things.  In Owen’s case, did things turn deadly? 

Next on the list was Nate McMillan.  Nate was the aging, longtime owner of the Enchanted Theater.  After running the place for over forty years, he was ready to retire and sold the theater with the verbal assurance that Ethan Wakefield would keep the show running.  Ethan not only betrayed him, but the legacy Nate had built up over the last four decades.  As a matter of fact, Ethan barely waited for the ink to dry on the sale before going back on his word and canceling the show.  Betrayal was one of the most common motives for murder.  Was that the case this time as well?

Vanessa McMillan made the list as well.  Vanessa wasn’t just Nate’s daughter; she was also the writer of the musical.  While her father owned the theater, she was on top of the world.  Not only had she authored a hit show, but she never had to worry about job security.  All that changed when Ethan took over.  Suddenly, the rug was pulled out from under her.  She was out of a job and left comforting a bitter father who’d been coldly betrayed.  Had Vanessa set out for revenge? 

Sebastian Brown was also on the list.  Sebastian was the lead actor in the musical.  That wasn’t all.  He was also engaged to Daphne Scott, who just happened to be Ethan Wakefield’s ex-wife.  Ethan made no secret that he hated not only the musical but also the fact that his ex-wife was now dating a much younger man.  Sebastian bared the brunt of that hatred.  Had he retaliated by murdering Ethan?

Daphne Scott was next on the list.  Daphne was both the producer of the show and Ethan’s ex-wife.  Ex’s rarely got along, but in Daphne’s case, Ethan seemed to hold a special grudge.  Part of that was because Daphne was the one to leave him.  The other part was that Daphne had taken up with a younger man.  Ethan found a way to get his revenge by canceling the show, putting both Daphne and her fiancé on the unemployment line.  Did Daphne seek deadly revenge of her own?

Also on the list was Wyatt Wakefield.  Wyatt was Ethan’s underachieving son.  He had a disaffected streak in him and openly hated his stepmother.  That rancor was only made worse by the fact that he was an aspiring playwright and his father had chosen to stage his stepmom’s play instead of his.  Had the bitter family rivalry turned deadly?

Finally, there was Paige Wakefield.  Paige was Ethan’s third wife.  When Ethan bought the theater, he declared that “Enchanted Nights” would be replaced by a serious play that Paige had written.  On a professional note, Paige seemed to get exactly what she wanted.  On a personal note, Paige was constantly at odds with her stepson Wyatt.  Were there cracks in Ethan and Paige’s marriage driven by the wedge between Paige and her stepson, or was there another motive entirely? 

One thing was clear.  There were plenty of questions to be answered.  It was time to get down to business. 

Chapter Twelve

Connor was still fixated on how good his donut tasted when Meg turned her focus to the task at hand. 

“All right.  Time to take a look at that crime scene,” Meg said.  

That comment was enough to get Connor to shake off his donut haze in a hurry.

“Have you forgotten who is calling the shots here?” Connor asked. 

“Fine.  Call the shots, as long as that first shot is heading over to the crime scene.”

“That’s a waste of time.  My men have already gone over the entire area.”

“True, but I haven’t.”

Connor folded his arms.  “What do you think you’re going to find that my men didn’t?”

Now was time for some creative lying.  With one spell, Meg could scan the entire scene in microscopic detail, maybe picking up on things the police had overlooked.  The problem was, she couldn’t tell Connor that without revealing she was a witch. 

Hence, some verbal gymnastics.  “I just want to try and visualize everything.” 

He exhaled.  “There’s a killer on the loose and half a dozen suspects to question.  There’s no reason to head over to the scene.  All my men found there were the body and the pick ax.” 

“Hey, you don’t have to come.  I’m happy to investigate on my own.”

He shook his head.  “You’re lucky I’m falling for you.  If anyone else said something like that to me, I’d detain them for interfering with an official police investigation.”

“Does that mean you’ll take me to the scene?”

He chuckled with disbelief.  “You’re just relentless, aren’t you?”

“How do you think I solved the last case?” Meg asked. 

“No wonder the suspects all hated you.”

“It’s a good thing I don’t care about making friends with murder suspects.  Now, are we going to head to the crime scene, or not?”

He stopped her.  “Just one thing first.”

“What’s that?”

“What do you think you’re going to find there?”

“I don’t know.  I just have a hunch.”

He stared deep into her eyes. 

“You really are a one-of-a-kind woman, aren’t you?” Connor commented. 

“I sure hope so.  I’d hate to find out there’s another feisty, whimsical, donut shop owner turned sleuth out there somewhere,” she joked. 

***

Connor drove Meg to the crime scene but decided to stay in the car.  He just didn’t see any point in getting out.  That was fine with Meg.  Casting spells in earshot of her boyfriend would be a tricky task, but with Connor sitting in the car, paying attention to the police scanner, Meg was free to cast a spell in peace. 

She closed her eyes, then whispered in Latin under her breath.  When she opened her eyes, the spell had given her eagle-eyed vision.  It was incredible what details she could see all of a sudden. 

Ethan Wakefield had been stabbed in the back on the walkway between his driveway and his Victorian-era house.  Meg focused her gaze not only on the cobblestone walkway but also the surrounding grass. 

It wasn’t long before her hunch had been proven right.  Meg spotted something.  On closer inspection, she saw it was a ruby earring. What a find.  At the same time, she was glad she’d cast the spell.  The green earring blended in quite well with the grass, so it was no surprise that the police hadn’t spotted it.  On top of that, the earring was also halfway across the lawn from where the body was found.  The question became, whose earring was this?

That one would have to wait to be answered.  In the meantime, Meg alerted her boyfriend. 

“Connor, I found something,” she said. 

Connor looked up from the police scanner with disbelief in his eyes.  He got out of the car and approved.  

“What is it?” he asked. 

Meg grabbed a tissue from her purse and picked up the earring. 

“See for yourself.”

The detective shook his head.  “How did my men miss this?”

Meg had other thoughts on her mind.  “I don’t know.  The more important thing is, who does this belong to?”

Their conversation then shifted its focus entirely when they heard a noise coming from the back of the house.

“What was that?” Meg asked. 

“Let’s find out,” Connor said.   

Connor and Meg then both rushed to the back of the house to investigate.