Chapter 11
Dru went home while I made a detour by Bosko’s shop on the way back. The place was full of people and he’d moved to the front of the shop while his daughter took care of the register. Too many handsy people on nights like these, he explained, glowering at me like I was a shoplifter in the making.
Thenhe asked if I’d caught whoever had sullied his family’s shop, staring me down like I was the worst detective in the world, and I decided against antagonizing him by asking about his alibi. I promised him the culprit was all but caught and moved on.
Ah, if only wishes were culprits found and apprehended.
Oncehome, I showered and got comfy in my bed. After sending Sonia an update email on my investigation and noticing she still hadn’t answered my question about supernaturals working at the Cabinet, I laid back against the pillows and reread my list of suspects.
Ihad to be honest—none of them were likely to have drawn the pentagrams. High chance it had been a newcomer.
Mymouth drooped, and I rubbed my breastbone. I wished Ian was here so I could brainstorm with him.
Myphone rang in my hands.
Ian.
Asif he had read my mind all the way from his house. As if we shared a link stronger than mutual attraction. Something like…soul mates.
No. Not like mates! You couldn’t jump to mates without going through love, I chided my silly brain.
“Ian?” I said into the phone, searching for the reassurance of hearing his voice. Mates might be a scary-serious concept, but talking to Ian wasn’t. And that would have to do for now. “I was just thinking about you.”
“That sounds scary,” he said dryly. “Did you get into another mess?”
“Nope. It’s the power of manifesting.”
Mywords made me feel much better. Yes, that was it. I had put wanting to talk to Ian into the world, and the universe had chosen to grant my wish. Nothing mate-y about it. Not even the Aussie kind.
“Any updates on the pentagrams?” he asked.
“I went to the Cabinet of Curiosities.” I updated him on my talk with Laurence and Sarah and finding nothing magically suspicious inside.
“Sounds like you were busy.”
“I didn’t make any breakthrough, though.”
“Remember what I told you about being a bounty hunter?”
“Sitting and waiting outside a motel?”
“Exactly.”
Ilaughed. “Okay. I’ll sit and wait. Maybe they’ll try tonight and get caught.”
“It’s a strong possibility.”
Itwould suck if whoever had done the pentagrams did it again without me being able to stop them, but catching wrongdoers was a team effort, and as long as they were taken off Olmeda’s streets in the end, I’d be happy.
“How did the Halloween preparations go?” I asked, drawing a circle on my duvet that looked suspiciously like a heart.
“I wouldn’t know.” His tone turned suddenly serious.
“Give it up, Ian. You’re interested in the tour.”
“I’m making sure they don’t mess with the graves too much.”
Icould just imagine his frown as he lied about his interest in the tour to both of us. “Did they mess with them too much?”
“They did okay.”
“High praise!”
Hegrunted. “They’re like kids in a candy store.”
“How did Key do? Did she practice the tour?” Key really wanted to prove herself after the carriage debacle.
“Come see her for yourself tomorrow when they do the last rehearsal.”
Thereminder brought a huge smile to my lips. “Oh, I will.”
“You still have the seance?”
Vevahad invited me to one of the special seances she booked during Halloween. I had no idea of why I was needed there, but she had insisted it’d be a good business opportunity. People who liked ghosts often liked witches.
Shemade a good point.
“Yeah, but I’ll be good after. I should be there in time for the rehearsal. Did they fix the spotlight yet?”
“Define ‘fix.’”
“That bad, huh?”
“Alex’s friend is on it.” He sounded so grumpy it warmed my heart. I wanted to be there and turn that frown upside down.
“Ian?”
“Yes?”
“You’re awesome.”
“Oh?”
Anotherlaugh escaped me. “Fishing for more compliments, I see.”
“You do owe me a couple of big favors.”
“Are you cashing in one?”
“Come around tomorrow and I’ll tell you.”
Warmthfilled my belly in that funny way that happened whenever Ian’s voice got deeper and husky and intimate.
“I’ll be there,” I whispered into the phone.
“Let me know if you need anything.”
Oh, but I needed so many things from him right now—kisses, and endearments, and repeating the night he’d spent here but in a very different way.
“I will,” I said softly, letting him know of my feelings. “Good night.”
“Sweet dreams.”
Withthat, he hung up.
Isighed contentedly and closed my eyes. Ian wasn’t a man of many words, but he knew how to use them. It was one of his best qualities.
Myphone dinged. Ian had sent a picture of Fluffy with the caption “She misses you too.”
Washe trying to kill me with sweetness? Goodness, but he was too much.
Andwhat would happen if one day he wasn’t there to make my heart burst with joy and happiness with moments like these? What if... My gaze drifted to Grandma’s spellbook lying on top of the dresser.
Justtouching the edge of that idea squeezed my heart so hard it hurt.
No. Immediately wiping the thought from my brain, I refocused on the photo on my phone, told FluffyI missed her too like she wasn’t a series of pixels on my phone, then concentrated on the pentagram problem with renewed determination.
Seeinghalf the crowd with their phones out on the way back home had given me an idea. In this day and age, security cameras might not be that important.
Grabbingthe laptop, I searched for Olmeda live street cams. A few of the bars in Guiles and Romary were broadcasting live views of the crowds outside, but that wouldn’t help me. After a few more minutes of searching, I hit paydirt. A restaurant by Bosko’s had a webcam pointed down the street at his shop and, more importantly, the corner of the block.
“Success is found down unexplored roads,” I declared for the benefit of any ghost who might be listening.
Allthe buildings in Bosko’s street were old and lovely, the lamps made of iron in an old style to match the mood, and the variety of shop types contributed to the quaint atmosphere. Being so close to BaltonSquare also made it a great spot to crowd-watch.
Iclicked on the stored video for last night and skipped until about half an hour after Bosko closed his shop. The street was still busy, so I skipped a bit more.
Lookingup the controls, I figured out how to make the video play faster, then settled in to watch the night unfold.
Atabout one thirty in the morning, when the streets had become empty even by non-Halloween standards, a figure darted from around the corner, something in their hands.
Ipaused the video, then replayed it at normal speed. The corner was a bit away from the camera, so the image wasn’t the best when zoomed in, but I was certain the figure was carrying some sort of black bag.
Inoted the time on my phone and kept watching. A few other suspicious people also turned the corner, but none of them carried anything in their hands. The rest were drunks or couples clearly on a night out.
Goingback to the first suspect, I studied them more carefully. The bag could definitely contain some sort of container for the blood and a paintbrush.
Orlast night’s dinner.
Still, there was something about the figure that gave me pause. Something about their face, even this grainy, didn’t make complete sense. I fast-forwarded until another person appeared in the video in the same spot, and I had no trouble telling the overall appearance of their features.
Whichwas proof my suspect had used a glamour potion.
Heartbeating fast, I went back to the figure and took about a dozen screenshots, zoomed in and out. They were wearing a bulky dark blue or gray hoodie and a baseball cap. It was impossible to guess their gender, but they were on the shorter side, so maybe a woman or a teen. Not all full-grown men were tall, though, so that wasn’t much to go on.
Ifollowed the suspect’s trip from around the corner, across the street, and out of view. It was unfortunate they hadn’t parked right on the street and left some more clues about who they were via vehicular identification.
Thatalso spoke of it being a teen and the pentagrams being silly pranks.
Butthe human blood didn’t fit.
Frommy experiences with teens, they were all too ready to play around, but not too eager to intentionally harm themselves for it.
Glamourpotions were also on the expensive side. No teen would waste their money on that.
Istared at the suspect, my excitement overflowing. This was a great start. I now had a photo, and perhaps someone would remember the clothes. It was late now, and my eyelids were beginning to droop, but tomorrow I’d check for other cameras near the other spots, and I’d bring the photo around, see if any of the people at the shops had seen this person nosing around.
Isent the photos to Ian. In typical Ian fashion, he responded with a thumbs-up emoji and a good job.
Itsure was. Now that I had a starting point, this pentagram matter was all but solved.
Myfirst official witch case and my first Halloween in Olmeda. Oh, but I’d be remembering this holiday for a long time to come!
Tomy surprise, my excitement didn’t stop me from getting a great night’s sleep. Or perhaps that was the universe’s way of preparing me for a busy and exciting day of investigating and apprehending pentagram-drawing criminals.
Ihummed to myself while I went through my morning routine, my mind working on how to identify the suspect. My sister’s romantic suspense books had told me the more evil stuff an UNSUB—unidentified subject—did, the higher the chances of them making a mistake. For all I knew, my UNSUB had already made a mistake overnight while trying to draw a fifth pentagram.
Thethought put me in an even better mood.
Notthat I approved of criminals doing criminal things, you understand, but one had to look for the silver linings.
Breakfastdiet soda in hand and soul singing with joy, I bounded down the steps to the shop and turned on the lights, then stopped short.
DesmondCrane was lying on the hardwood floor. Still, immobile, and awfully pale.