Grave Delight (A Maddie Graves Mystery Book 3) (14 page)

“Did you get any customers today?” Maude poked her head into Magicks and found Maddie sitting on the window seat.

“Yeah, I did pretty well,” Maddie said. “I sold quite a few candles and gave two readings. It was good. I’m thinking that it might make sense to only be open a couple of days a week. People still come, and then it opens up my time.”

“For Nick?” Maude teased, shuffling into the room.

“What would you think if I told you I was considering offering my help on some of Nick’s cases?”

Maude smiled. “I think that would make you a very wonderful girl. You don’t need my permission, though.”

“I know,” Maddie said. “It’s just … I wasn’t sure I wanted to get involved in this stuff again. It’s great when you have a missing person and you find them alive. When people die, though, it gets rough.”

“I’m sure it does,” Maude said. “You can’t control that. You need to take the wins and let go of the losses. You can’t save everyone, Maddie girl. That’s the one thing that worries me about you. You desperately want to save everyone.”

“It’s taken me some time, but I think I can accept the losses now,” Maddie said. “I like working with Nick, and I like knowing I’m helping people.”

“Have you talked to Nick about this yet?”

“No,” Maddie said. “He’s the one who asked me to work with him on this case, though. I don’t think he’ll be opposed to it.”

“I don’t think so either,” Maude said. “I do think he’s going to put up a fight if you’re constantly upset by people dying, though. He can’t stand it when you’re sad.”

“I can’t stand it when I’m sad either,” Maddie said. “I just … I think there’s a way for me to keep Mom’s legacy alive here and do good elsewhere. It’s what I want to do.”

“Then you can do it,” Maude said. “You should know, though, that if you’re going to be running around solving crimes with Nick people are going to be talking about your abilities even more than they do now.”

“I used to think that was the worst thing in the world,” Maddie admitted. “Then, last night, John just blurted out that he knew I was psychic.”

“How did that go?”

“At first I jumped to the worst conclusion ever,” Maddie said. “I thought Nick told him.”

“He would never do that.”

“I know,” Maddie said. “I just … I’m not used to someone always having my back.”

“He’s always had your back,” Maude said. “He always will.”

“Anyway, John was fine with it,” Maddie said. “He figured it out on his own. In fact, he was kind of excited. It was just like when Christy found out.”

“Well, I wouldn’t go around bragging about it, but I’m certainly glad you’re getting more comfortable in your own skin,” Maude said. “You’re practically glowing.”

“I feel … good.”

“That makes me very happy,” Maude said. “Now, I need to go and plot Harriet’s bloody downfall. I won’t be back tonight, so you and Nick can do … whatever it is you want to do.”

Maddie frowned. “I’m happier when you don’t talk about it.”

“You’ll live,” Maude said, patting her shoulder. “You’ll get used to it. You’re growing.”

Maddie couldn’t help but wonder if she really wanted to grow enough to feel comfortable talking about sex with her grandmother. Something told her she would draw the line there.

TWO HOURS
later Maddie moved to the front door of Magicks to flip the sign and lock the door. Nick had texted that he was on his way, and instead of bringing dinner they were going to order pizza and snuggle together in the window seat to pick colors. To her, that sounded like a perfect evening.

To Maddie’s surprise, the door opened at the exact second she was reaching for the doorknob. The teenage boy standing in the doorframe was exceedingly tall and excessively nervous. His hands were clenched in front of him, and he looked like he was about to pass out.

“Can I help you?” Maddie asked.

“I … are you Maddie Graves?”

Maddie nodded.

“Good,” the boy said, stepping inside and shutting the door behind him. “I need some help.”

“Do you need a gift for someone?”

“I don’t need that kind of help,” the boy said. “I need your … magical powers.”

Maddie froze. “What?”

“You’re psychic, right? That’s what everyone in town says.”

“Who are you?”

“Shouldn’t you already know?” The boy ran a hand through his short-cropped brown hair. “I think a psychic should know something like that.”

“That’s not how it usually works,” Maddie said. “Tell me your name.”

“I’m Trevor Gardner. I’m going to be a senior at  Blackstone Bay High School this year.”

“Okay,” Maddie said, gesturing toward one of the chairs in front of the big bay window. “Why don’t you have a seat and tell me what’s going on.”

Once settled, Trevor fixed Maddie with a wan look. “I’m not sure where to start.”

“I find the beginning is always best,” Maddie prodded. “What’s wrong?”

“They just found my girlfriend dead on the beach a few days ago,” Trevor said. “If the town gossip is to be believed, you’re the one who found her.”

Maddie’s heart skipped a beat. “I see. How long were you and Hayley dating?”

“Just a few weeks,” Trevor said. “At first I wasn’t even sure I wanted to date her. After talking to her, though, I realized she was pretty cool.”

“That’s good,” Maddie said. “You must have been upset when she died. When was the last time you saw her?”

“Two days before her body was found,” Trevor said. “I … I’d been helping her hide.”

Maddie leaned forward, surprised. “Hide from what?”

Trevor jumped up and started pacing, alternating between running his hands through his hair and wringing them together with enough force Maddie was worried he was going to cut off his own circulation.

“You need to calm down, Trevor,” Maddie said.

“I can’t. The cops came to my house today. They know I was dating Hayley.”

“Where were you?”

“Up at the park shooting hoops,” Trevor said. “My mom called the second they left. She wants to know what kind of trouble I’m in. The thing is, I’m not sure if I am in trouble. I was just trying to help Hayley. I still don’t understand how she got from the cabin to the beach. It doesn’t make any sense. She said she was staying in all night and I couldn’t see her the next day because I had a basketball camp. No one but me knew she was even staying there.”

“You need to go back in the story,” Maddie said. “Tell me how you were helping Hayley. Why did she need help?”

“It’s her dad,” Trevor said, throwing himself back into the chair dramatically. “He was … hurting her.”

Maddie’s heart clenched. “How?”

“He beat her sometimes,” Trevor said. “She had a lot of bruises on her arms. That’s why she was always wearing hoodies when it was hot. She didn’t want people to know.”

“Did he … do anything else to her?” Maddie hated asking the question.

“I didn’t ask,” Trevor said, knowing what she was getting at. “She didn’t want to talk about that … stuff. I think so, though. She was really jumpy. Sometimes, when I tried to hug her, she was really stiff and uncomfortable.”

“How did you help her?”

“My family has a hunting cabin on the far side of the lake,” Trevor said. “We only use it a couple of weekends a year in the summer. It’s really run down. We use it more in the fall when we go deer hunting, and the winter when we go ice fishing. We have a shanty right there. It works out.”

“When did Hayley come to you and tell you all of this?”

“She told me after we’d been dating for about a week,” Trevor said. “She had a horrible bruise on her ribs and I asked her what happened. She said her dad got drunk and threw her against a wall.”

Maddie felt like throwing up. “Is that when you thought of the hunting cabin?”

Trevor nodded. “We made a plan,” he said. “She went home one more night and packed some stuff up. She left a note for her mom and said that she was going to be staying with some friends. I took her out to the cabin that day, and she was happy to be there.”

“How long was she there?”

“Two weeks.”

“How often did you go out there?”

“As often as I could,” Trevor said. “I told my parents I was playing basketball at the park, but I was really out at the cabin with Hayley.”

“What was she doing?”

“Mostly reading. She loved books. She was also making a plan to go to the police. We knew she couldn’t stay out there forever. She was hoping that, as soon as she got her courage up, she would be able to get her father arrested and return home. That was the plan anyway.”

“Do you think she told anyone else her plans?”

“She was only close with me,” Trevor said. “She and Michael were in a fight, so I know she wasn’t talking to him.”

“You’re talking about Michael Jarvis, right?”

“Yeah. They were best friends until they started fighting about me. I felt bad for getting between them. I thought when things calmed down they would make up. I guess they never got the chance. It’s hard when your best friend is a boy when you’re a girl … and vice versa, I guess.”

Maddie knew the realities of that life. “It is,” she said. “How was Hayley acting the last time you saw her?”

“She was nervous,” Trevor said. “She was also … ready. We were planning on going to the police department together the next day. I woke up to news of her death, though, and … well … I’ve just been trying to figure things out since. I don’t know what to do. I thought you would be able to help.”

“Why didn’t you go to the police after you heard?”

“Honestly? I was worried my mom would flip out because I was hiding her,” Trevor said. “My mom is really high strung. She’s a good mom, don’t get me wrong, but she overreacts to everything.”

“I think that’s a mom’s job,” Maddie said, sympathetic. “Have you been back out to the cabin?”

Trevor shook his head. “I couldn’t bring myself to go out there. I don’t know why. I just get this sense of … dread … when I think about it. I keep hoping this is all a dream and I’ll wake up and she’ll still be alive.”

“I know that feeling, Trevor,” Maddie said. “Life isn’t a dream, though, and you need to tell the police what you know.”

“What if they think I killed her?”

“I’m sure they’re going to ask you some tough questions,” Maddie said. “I’m also sure they’re not going to jump to conclusions. They want to find out what really happened to Hayley. I think you owe her. Someone needs to pay for what they’ve done to her.”

“Do you think it was her dad?”

“I don’t know,” Maddie said. “I do know you have answers to some really important questions, though. The good news for you is that Nick is on his way here now. I promise he’ll listen to you.”

“I guess I don’t have a choice,” Trevor said. “I … do you think we can wait for him outside? I could use some air.”

“I think that’s fine,” Maddie said, getting to her feet. “Come on. We can wait on the front porch. You can collect yourself. It’s going to be okay.”

“Hayley is gone,” Trevor said. “That’s never going to be okay.”

Maddie followed Trevor out onto the porch, frowning when she saw Nick’s truck already in the driveway. The driver’s seat was empty, and Nick was nowhere in sight. “I … where is Nick?”

“Maybe he … oomph.” Trevor tilted sideways as Nick barreled into him from the side, appearing out of nowhere. The teenager was caught so off guard he couldn’t maintain his balance and tumbled to the hard wood below.

Nick was on top of him, and he was using his impressive muscle mass to hold the boy down as he struggled. “You’re safe, Maddie. I’ve got him. I saved you. Everything is going to be okay.”

Maddie wasn’t so sure.

“Get off me.”

“Stay down there.”

“My shoulder hurts, man. Get off me.”

“You’ll live … and you’re lucky I didn’t kill you for going after my girlfriend.” Nick was beside himself as he shifted his body weight to keep Trevor pinned to the ground. “Are you okay?”

Maddie was unsure how to proceed. Nick appeared to be a man on the edge and Trevor … well … he wasn’t in any immediate danger. “Hi, Nicky,” she said, purposely keeping her voice even. “How was your day?”

“Great,” Nick said. “I found out this kid was dating Hayley Walker. When I went to his house he wasn’t there. Instead, I found him here going after you. I’m just … peachy.”

“Um … .”

“I wasn’t going after your girlfriend,” Trevor sputtered. “I was trying to get her to help me.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“Nicky, he’s telling the truth,” Maddie said, extending her hand and tentatively placing it on his shoulder. “He didn’t threaten me. We were just talking.”

Nick relaxed his stance, if only marginally. “What?”

“He just wanted some help,” Maddie said. “He’s upset. We were going onto the front porch to wait for you. He never raised a finger toward me.”

“Oh,” Nick said, pulling back slightly. “I thought he came here to hurt you.”

“Why would I want to hurt her?” Trevor asked, tilting his head in an attempt to get a better look at Nick. “What possible reason would I have to hurt her?”

“You’d be surprised,” Nick said, pushing himself up from the ground and helping Trevor to his feet. “People have tried to kill her twice in the last six weeks. She’s important to me. I don’t want her hurt.”

“Well … I guess we have that in common,” Trevor said, dusting his jeans off while shooting a dark look in Nick’s direction. “You’re kind of a spazz.”

Nick scowled. “I am not a spazz.” He looked to Maddie for help. “Tell him I’m not a spazz.”

“You’re very handsome,” Maddie said, rubbing her thumb against his cheek to wipe a smudge of dirt. “I also love you very much.”

“I am not a spazz,” Nick grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest as he regarded Trevor. “What are you doing here?”

“I … .” Trevor’s bravado faded.

“He has a few things to tell you,” Maddie said. “I told him you would be fair and hear him out. Of course, that was before you tackled him.”

“Don’t push it, Mad,” Nick said. “I just about had a heart attack when I saw him with you. After what happened with Todd … and the mayor … you can’t blame me for worrying about you.”

“It’s because you’re smoking hot,” Trevor said. “If you were my girlfriend I’d tackle anyone that looked at you, too.”

“Thanks,” Nick said, running his hand through his hair. “I think.”

“He was complimenting me,” Maddie said.

“I snagged you,” Nick countered. “He was complimenting me.”

Maddie rolled her eyes. “Do you want to sit down?”

“Do I need to sit down?”

Maddie exchanged a look with Trevor. “Actually, no. I think we all need to take a drive. Trevor can tell you what he told me on the way. It will be dark soon, and I think it’s better that we leave now.”

“You want to take him out there tonight?” Trevor asked, dubious.

“Yes,” Maddie said. “He’s going to want to see it tonight, and this way we’ll be cutting out all that middle stuff and we won’t be wasting time.”

“Where are we going?” Nick asked.

“It’s a long story,” Maddie said. “Trust me, though, you’re going to want to hear it.”

Nick studied her for a moment, taking in the serious tilt of her head and somber eyes, and then he turned to Trevor. “You’re riding in the passenger seat. It’s not that I don’t trust you but … .”

“She’s smoking hot,” Trevor said. “I get it.”

Maddie grinned at Nick as Trevor started moving toward his Explorer. “Did you hear that? I’m smoking hot.”

“I already knew that,” Nick said, leaning down to give her a kiss. “You scared me, Mad. I’m sorry if I embarrassed you.”

“I’ll forgive you this time,” Maddie said. “Knowing you did it out of a place of love helps.”

“Move your cute little butt,” Nick said. “I want to know what he’s doing here, and I want to hear it all and still have time to spend with you tonight. I’ve been fantasizing about you all day.”

“I’m sure we can figure something out.”

“WHY
didn’t you come straight to us?” Nick asked, frustrated as he glanced around the hunting cabin.

The structure – more of a shack really – consisted of one main room with a tiny kitchenette in the corner and a bathroom off to the left side. There was a set of bunk beds pushed against one wall, and a handful of clothes were strewn about on the floor near the bed. In addition to the clothes, a multitude of other items were tossed around haphazardly – almost as if someone had been going through Hayley’s things looking for something specific.

“Hayley was afraid,” Trevor said. “She wouldn’t stop crying. She needed time to … come to grips with stuff. I honestly thought I was helping.”

“You were,” Maddie said, fixing Nick with a quelling look. “You did the best you could. You were trying to save her. You were trying to … protect her. I’m sure Nick understands that feeling.”

Nick rolled his eyes. “We’re not talking about you and me right now. We could have helped them. We would have made sure that she was safe.”

“Would you have done any differently if it was me?”

Nick frowned. “Probably not. You be quiet for a few minutes, though. You can yell at me later.” He turned back to Trevor. “Did the cabin look like this the last time you were up here?”

“No. Hayley liked things clean. In fact, when I was up here, she spent half of her time cleaning up after me.”

“Do you think anyone could’ve followed you up here?”

“No.”

“Think hard, Trevor,” Nick said. “Did anyone know she was up here?”

“I don’t see how,” Trevor said. “I was really careful. I kept expecting her father to bust through the door of my house looking for her … but it never happened.”

“I just don’t know what to think,” Nick said. “I talked to her parents the day after we found her body. They were … upset.”

“Maybe they were upset because they killed her,” Maddie suggested.

“Maybe,” Nick said, searching his memory. “The father seemed really … quiet. Stoic. He didn’t cry, but that’s not unusual. Sometimes it takes a few hours … days even … for something like that to sink in.”

“What about her mother?”

“She cried,” Nick said. “She worked really hard to contain herself and not fall apart, but there were tears.”

Maddie glanced at Trevor. “What do you know about her mother?”

“Not much,” Trevor said. “She hated her father … I mean really hated him. She never talked much about her mother. I thought that was weird. I just assumed her father was beating her mother, too.”

“I would guess he probably is,” Nick said. “That might explain why she was so muted when we told her about Hayley’s death. She’s probably used to swallowing her feelings.”

“What are you going to do?” Maddie asked.

“I’m going to talk to John, and then I guess we’re going to question the parents again tomorrow,” Nick replied. “I’m also going to get a tech team up here to run prints and process the scene.”

“Scene?” Trevor’s face drained of color. “Do you think she was killed up here?”

“I don’t know,” Nick said honestly. “I think it looks like there might have been a struggle. That lamp was knocked off the table, and someone clearly went through all of Hayley’s things.”

“Do you think they were looking for something?” Maddie asked.

“That would be my guess,” Nick said. “Did Hayley have anything of value? Jewelry? Money?”

“No.”

“Well, I guess we just have to take this one step at a time,” Nick said. “The first step is talking to your parents.”

Trevor shifted uncomfortably. “Is that absolutely necessary?”

“This is their property,” Nick said. “You’re a minor. You can’t give consent for a search. Call them.”

“But … .”

“Call them or I will,” Nick said. “It’s going to be better coming from you. Trust me.”

“What if they yell?”

“They’re your parents,” Nick said. “They’re probably going to be upset at first … but they’re going to understand. Call them.”

“I’m going to walk around outside,” Maddie said, keeping her voice low.

Nick glanced at her. “Mad … .”

“I just want to see if she’s here,” Maddie said. “If this is where she died … .”

“Love, I don’t want you wandering around outside alone,” Nick said. “If Hayley did die here, that means a murderer could be hanging around and watching this place.”

“I won’t go far,” Maddie said. “I promise. I have to know, though.”

Nick growled. “You keep your phone in your pocket and you stay within shouting distance of this cabin. I’m not joking, Mad. I have to stay in here with Trevor. If you see anything … if you sense anything … if  your hair even stands on end … I want you to yell for me. I will come running.”

“It’s going to be okay, Nicky.”

“I just got you, Maddie. I don’t want to lose you. Not ever.”

“I promise to be careful,” Maddie said. “I just need to see.”

Nick leaned over and gave her a sweet kiss. “Stay close.”

“Always.”

TRUE TO
her word, Maddie remained close enough to the cabin to touch it as she circled. She kept one ear to her surroundings, and the other to her inner senses. If Hayley’s ghost was here, she would feel it.

After walking around the cabin twice – it was a short trip – Maddie found frustration to be her new walking mate. In her head she knew the odds of Hayley’s ghost making an appearance were small. In her heart, though, she couldn’t help but yearn for it. She wanted to help. She wanted to make sure a tortured teenager found solace and relief in death. That didn’t look to be happening this evening.

Impulsively Maddie reached out and pressed her fingertips against the roughened wood walls of the cabin. The second she made contact her world tilted, and she flashed into someone else’s nightmare.

Maddie pressed her eyes shut, giving in to the vision. While she usually got visions when she was at her most relaxed – in sleep – on occasion she had been privy to a waking vision. They were almost always powerful … and disturbing.

Maddie’s mind was foggy, and she leaned her forehead against the cabin to steady herself. She could hear raised voices, and even though the vision didn’t clear, Maddie opened her mind’s ear and listened.

“I don’t care what you say. I’m going to do what I have to do. You might not want it, but it’s what’s going to happen. I know what’s right and wrong, and I’m not going to pretend that what’s going on isn’t wrong. I want a life.”

The unmistakable sound of skin smacking against skin assailed Maddie’s ears. Someone had struck someone, but no matter how hard she concentrated Maddie couldn’t clear up the vision. It was just voices … and an overwhelming sense of terror.

“Don’t you touch me! Not again! I won’t stand for it.”

This time no one struck anyone. Instead, Maddie could feel the cold hands of death closing around her throat. She opened her mouth to yell for Nick, even though she knew there was nothing he could do to stop the vision. This wasn’t happening – not to her, at least – and yet she couldn’t separate herself from Hayley’s memory.

It was too much.

Maddie’s knees started to buckle, and just as she was about to hit the ground she felt a pair of strong arms catch her.

“Maddie.”

Nicky.
Maddie opened her mouth, but no sound came out.

“Talk to me, Maddie.” Nick propped her body against his, panicked. “What’s happening?”

When Maddie didn’t answer, he shook her. Hard.

“Maddie!”