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Rascal spun in a slow circle and growled under his breath.
Wynona frowned. The feeling was eerie, but not malevolent. She simply felt as if she were being watched.
Use your sight, Violet snapped.
Wynona’s eyebrows shot up. “Do you think that’s it?”
Violet sighed and began cleaning her face.
Wynona took a deep breath. Violet was right. She should have thought of this before. Was it all just a ghost reporter causing the hubbub? It would explain a lot. She blew out a slow breath, centering herself. Slowly, her vision grew slightly blurry, then cleared into a lovely lilac color.
“Whoa,” Rascal said. “Your eyes...”
Wynona nodded. “I know, but it’s what happens when I look for...” She cut off as her eyes caught on exactly what she had been looking for. “There.” She pointed to the edge of the house. “Ghost reporter.”
Rascal straightened and put his hand on his stun gun. “Corporeal. Now,” he barked.
A man’s voice began to grumble as the floating body disappeared from Wynona’s vision. She blinked, pulling back her magic until she could see the slightly transparent man.
His head was bald and his frame light. A camera hung over his neck and his nose was twitching.
Cat, Violet said in disgust.
“He’s a shifter?” Wynona whispered.
Violet hmphed.
“That’s what he smells like now that he’s mostly solid,” Rascal confirmed. He glanced down at her. “Cats are notoriously curious.”
“As in a house cat?” Wynona pinched her lips together. “I actually didn’t know that was a thing. I thought it was only wild cats.”
The man sniffed. “Not all of us eat raw meat on our days off.” He glared at Rascal.
Wynona realized she had a wolf, a cat and a mouse in close proximity to each other. No wonder Violet and Rascal were so on edge.
Speak for yourself, Violet snapped. Cats are disgusting. And they think they’re better than everyone else.
Wynona chose not to comment on the fact that Violet seemed pretty confident in her own superiority. “Why are you following us?” she asked, though she figured she knew the answer.
The man rolled his eyes. “Really?” Rascal growled and the reporter jumped before hissing back. “Back off, dog. I’m not doing anything illegal.”
“You’re following a deputy chief,” Rascal said tightly. Wynona was positive the “dog” comment had gotten to him. “There are rules against invisibility at a crime scene.”
The man fumbled with his camera, his eyes down. He wasn’t quite as confident now that he knew he was following someone a little higher on the food chain than a regular officer. “I needed the story, alright?” He glanced up from under short lashes. “My editor said if I didn’t turn something in ASAP, I was gone.”
Wynona tilted her head. She was honestly curious about the ghost reporters. They were annoying and relentless, but in order to stay on this plane as a ghost, they had to have tenacity. It made her wonder what had been so important in their lives that they chose to stick around. “What does a ghost do if they aren’t a reporter?”
The man made a face. “I don’t mean I’d be jobless, I mean I’d be cast out. Pushed through the golden light?” He made a face at her. “Ring a bell?”
“They can do that?” Wynona gasped. “Your editor can force you to cross over?”
He hissed again and put his hands on his hips. “Are we done here? I’m not really interested in sharing the whole history of ghost reporters.”
Wynona made a mental note to get a book on the creatures. It sounded like there was so much more to them than what the media and her own experience portrayed. “How long have you been following us?” she asked, folding her arms over her chest. She needed to appear strong if she was going to get answers from this guy. He didn’t seem like a natural do-gooder, who would simply respond to her questions easily.
The cat scoffed. “Do I look like a newbie to you?”
“Your name, cat,” Rascal growled, stepping forward.
The man grew jumpy again. Apparently, only Rascal was going to be able to get answers out of this guy. “Koto,” he wheezed. “Koto Hesa.”
Wynona stepped back slightly, allowing Rascal the lead. Now was the time to listen.
“Answer the lady,” Rascal continued. “How long, Mr. Hesa?”
The shifter’s shoulders slumped. “Any time I can find you.” He shrugged. “I’ve only found you a couple times. You’re always driving away and I can’t keep up.”
Wynona raised her eyebrows. A slow ghost? Huh. Another new fact to add to her growing library.
“And what have you seen?”
Mr. Hesa’s lips pinched into a line whiter than the outline of his body. “Nothing,” he spat. “As far as I can tell, you two have run around finding nothing.”
Wynona relaxed a little. He didn’t know about the break this morning. That was in their favor, she supposed. “Have you followed anyone else?”
When he didn’t answer, Rascal stepped up again, another growl rumbling out of his throat.
The reporter began to tremble slightly and Violet snickered in Wynona’s mind. Wynona didn’t like the fact that they had to scare the man to get answers, but she needed to know what he knew. What if he’d seen something?
“How badly do you want to stay on this plane?” Wynona asked, pulling attention to herself once again.
Mr. Hesa scowled. “Why do you ask?”
“Because at the rate you’re going, you’re going to get kicked out.” She smiled softly. “We’re trying to bring a murderer to justice, Mr. Hesa, and you want a story. If you have information that might help us, that would put you in a pretty decent spot for a headline.”
The cat shifter stilled and studied her. Wynona could just imagine his tail twitching back and forth. “I want exclusive rights.”
“I can’t promise you that,” Rascal said easily. “But if you have something helpful, I can promise to be slow in announcing it to others.”
“Good enough.” The man stuck out his hand and Rascal shook it.
Wynona wondered if it was cold or felt odd. He didn’t look quite solid, but there must have been something to touch, or they wouldn’t have been able to shake.
A scraping sound caught their attention and everyone looked to see Vrebs cutting his already immaculate shrub, his beady eyes watching them steadily from over the row of bushes.
“Oh, good heavens,” Wynona whispered.
“Mr. Hesa,” Rascal said, stepping back. “Come inside with us, please.” He unlocked the door again and they all marched inside.
It occurred to Wynona that she didn’t have that same feeling on the back of her neck when the reporter was in this form. It was only in his ghostly form. Another tidbit to tuck away for later examination.
Wynona and Rascal sat on the couch while Mr. Hesa took a spot in a chair across from them.
“Okay,” Mr. Hesa said, leaning in. “I’ve watched that officer guy. The one who dated the tea shop owner.” He looked at Wynona. “Your business partner. The dead one.”
Has no one taught this man any manners? Wynona thought in shock. His bluntness and lack of finesse were to the point of offensive. “We weren’t business partners,” she said automatically. She sighed. She needed to just let it go. It really didn’t matter at this point.
Mr. Hesa’s jaw dropped. “What do you mean, you weren’t partners? Didn’t she open a satellite shop for you?” His eyes glowed green. Apparently, even in death shifters animals came to the surface.
Wynona slumped back. “She was a copycat, Mr. Hesa. I was just about to bring in a lawsuit when she was killed.”
“Ah...” He nodded slowly. “So you’re a suspect then?” He waved his arms. “I thought you were helping the police, but you must be trying to clear your name.”
Rascal growled again.
Mr. Hesa cringed.
“I’m sorry, but no,” Wynona said, putting a hand on Rascal’s arm. He immediately relaxed a bit, for which she was grateful. All this testosterone was starting to choke her. “I’m not a suspect,” she clarified. “I was with Deputy Chief Strongclaw when the murder occurred. And I am working with the police as an independent consultant.” She folded her hands in her lap. “I’ve helped them on a few cases now and Chief Ligurio thought I might be of service.”
She knew that description was stretching her relationship with the chief a bit, but it was the politically correct one and she was under no delusion that what she was saying wouldn’t eventually end up printed somewhere.
“Is that because you’re the president’s daughter?” he pressed.
“Mr. Hesa.” It was time to put her foot down. “We brought you in so you could tell us what you’ve seen as you’ve been following the case. Not so you could examine my motives or lack thereof.”
Mr. Hesa grumbled and Wynona chose to ignore some of his more colorful words. “The cop guy has a chick on the side,” Mr. Hesa said. He smirked. “Been spending a lot of time at her house.” When Wynona and Rascal didn’t react, he huffed. “Already knew?”
Wynona waved him on.
“That’s it,” he said, throwing his hands in the air. “There was a murder and a cheating couple. What more do you want?”
“What we want is the killer,” Wynona said easily. “But if you already had all that, why haven't I seen it in the news?”
The cat shifter grumbled again. “Editor says it’s not enough. Plus I don’t have proof.”
Wynona frowned. “Why not? Didn’t you take pictures?”
Mr. Hesa looked down at his camera. “It’s broken,” he said in a soft voice.
“Then how were you...?” Wynona shook her head and rubbed her forehead. This was ridiculous. How had this man ever made it as a reporter?
Violet tapped her neck. He could be an ally.
Wynona looked at her shoulder. “What do you mean?” she whispered.
He’s invisible. Get him a new camera and place him at the witch’s. We need evidence. He needs a story. Win, win.
Wynona gave her familiar a scratch. That was brilliant...actually.
Violet made a smug face. I know.
Wynona laughed softly before turning back to the reporter. He was eyeing her curiously and she straightened. She didn’t mind helping him get a story, but she didn’t want it to be about her hidden magic. “I have a proposal,” she said clearly. “A...bargain.”
His thin eyebrows pulled down. “I’m listening.”
“We have a suspect that we would like someone to keep eyes on,” Wynona said carefully. “We’re curious about her habits and behaviors, but have yet to be able to find anything helpful.”
He nodded. “Okay...”
“You promise to follow her, and I’ll get you a new camera.” She leaned in. “But your first pictures need to be to finish this case.”
The cat shifter stayed still for a moment before his hand burst forward. “You’ve got yourself a deal, Ms. Le Doux.”
Wynona’s curiosity was satisfied when her hand gripped a cold, but very solid appendage.
Once done, the reporter stood and faced Rascal. “I’m holding you to that head start.”
Rascal stood and the reporter stepped back a few paces. Deal or no, the two weren’t going to be besties.
Wynona hid a smile behind her hand. “Follow us to the store and we’ll get that camera.”
The reporter tugged on his collar and nodded.
Rascal took Wynona’s hand and led her outside, waiting long enough for Mr. Hesa to leave before locking it tight. “Smart move,” he whispered in her ear as they got in the truck.
“It was Violet’s idea,” Wynona admitted. “The genius was all hers.”
Rascal grinned and reached over to pet the mouse. “That’s my girl.”
Violet preened the whole way to the store.