Chapter Nineteen

The trip back seemed slower than the one there, and even though the ship rocked and turned in the frothy waves, I couldn't help but watch the shoreline where Cal's bridge would be built—a thick mess of pine trees and swampland.

For the first time, I thought about what Maria might've done with a few million dollars. Mermaids paid for drinks and food on land, but did they have a thriving economy below the water? Would Maria have taken the money and gone somewhere else with it? Did mermaids retire on beaches?

Somehow, I got the impression the money wasn't the important thing. From what Cal had said, she seemed more interested in improving the lives of the sea creatures in the sound. If that were the case, she'd have better luck not selling.

Could Cal have killed her in an attempt to circumvent her? Would Duke Pinfish be more amenable to selling since he didn't live in the sound? What could Cal offer the Duke that would make him jump?

All the witches gone. That wasn't exactly what the vamp was proposing, but it was pretty close. I doubted all those vacation homes and rentals would be taken by witches and warlocks. There was a whole world of supernatural out there, if the past week was any indication, and the witches who'd made Eldred's Hollow what it was would certainly be pushed out.

I didn't have a good answer, but the whole conversation left a decidedly icky feeling in my chest.

An hour later, the ferry docked. There were still a few hours until the Cove opened, so I got in my car and drove through town, no destination in mind. I wanted to compare the old storefronts of Eldred's Hollow to the shiny, new buildings across the sound. Everything in the Hollow looked like it could've used a fresh coat of paint, but that was part of the charm, wasn't it?

I stopped at the light, my gaze turning to the Enchanted Cat Cafe. If Cal got his way, would Kit and her parents sell their place? Would Daniel give up his office? Where would they go? Where would Lois and her mother at the wand shop go? Where would they get their fresh ingredients for making wand potions if all the farmland turned into a golf course?

For that matter, where would all the animals go? Surely, there were more farmlands that specialized in unicorns and dragons, but…

I sighed as the light turned green and kept driving until I'd circled back to the Cove. There, I sat for a moment, gazing at the empty parking lot and trying to envision this place under vampire ownership. But the idea made me so itchy that I had to put it out of my mind. The Cove was a witch bar, and as long as I made decisions about it, it would remain that way.

Inside, Aimee was already behind the bar, restocking liquor bottles. She barely acknowledged me as I walked up to her.

"How'd I do?" I asked with a hopeful smile.

She didn't look up. "With what?"

"Cleaning up?"

She stopped and looked around. "Oh, that's right. You did lock up last night." She took a step back, as if the thought hadn't even occurred to her, then continued what she was doing.

"That good, huh?" I said, sitting down on a stool across from her.

She ducked beneath the bar. "I have a lot on my mind."

"That's true," I said. "Receipts were down again last night."

"They're going to be down until we make peace with the mermaids," she said, nodding to the sound. "Haven't a clue how we're going to do that, but we need to."

"Well, maybe we make peace by turning their ire on someone else," I said. "I found out who else is using the potion. The vamps. Apparently, every boat in their employ has it plastered on their hull."

"That seems…" She shook her head. "Are you sure?"

"I went to vamp beach today to find out for myself," I said. "Ran into Cal Reaves, who confirmed it." I paused. "Did you know there was a whole town under Eldred Beach?"

"Haven't been there myself, but yes." She cracked a smile. "How'd you end up down there?"

"Long story." I'd rather not tell her about becoming invisible, though I was sure she'd get a kick out of my misfortune. "But I ran into Cal, he invited me over for a drink and to keep pressing me to sell. Told me about his vision for the Hollow."

She frowned. "Which was?"

"A fancy, hoity-toity resort and golf course," I replied. "Lots of expensive vacation homes, condos, and hotels. He wants to make it a real supernatural vacation spot, one where he can host conferences and events and all manner of things. Which is fine, if he wants to keep all that on the other side of the sound. But he's got a whole new map of Eldred's Hollow and it's practically unrecognizable."

Aimee clicked her tongue. "I wonder if the farmers who sold him their land knew what he has in store for it?"

"Who knows," I replied. "He made it seem like everyone went into these deals with eyes open, but even in our short conversation, he seemed like he was twisting the truth. Said he wasn't going to touch the Cove if I sold it to him, but we all know that's a lie."

She eyed me. "You aren't considering it—"

"Not at the moment, no," I said. "Even less now that I know what he plans to do with it. But…I wonder how far Cal would go to get what he wants."

"What do you mean?"

"He said he was in negotiations with Maria to sell him a piece of property near here. He's planning on putting in a bridge, if you can believe it."

"A bridge?" She turned away, confusion on her face. "Where's he gonna put a bridge around here?"

"The swamp near the werewolves," I said.

"Big Dog won't be happy about that," Aimee muttered with a shudder. "Nobody would be. Can you imagine the noise? The traffic? All so the tourists can get from the interstate to Cal's hotels faster."

"The night she was killed, Big Dog sent Carver to counter Cal's offer," I said with a look. "So either one of them could've killed Maria."

"Goodness, you have been busy," Aimee said. "Are you a detective now or something?"

"Honestly, I'm trying to clear your name," I said. "But now… Well, I can't say I'm not a little worried for my own safety. If the wolves or Cal are willing to kill a mermaid to get what they want, what's to say they won't do the same thing to me?"

"First off, we don't know it was them," Aimee said, placing a reassuring hand on my arm. "After all, if you ask Vinnie, I did it."

I snorted, and she flashed me a wry smile. "There's another angle to all this, too," I said, ticking off my fingers. "First Big Jo dies, then the mermaid shows up dead, with the Cove's manager as the prime suspect. The mermaids, who make up a large part of our income, stop showing up. We have this big mortgage to pay." I gestured to the Cove. "It's not a stretch to think someone's trying to make selling more attractive."

"That's a big leap," Aimee said. "Cal's capable of a lot, as is Big Dog, but I don't think they'd go that far. No matter how much they want the other side to lose. Despite how they swagger around, they're both civilized men. They'll get what they want by throwing money around."

I probably knew the answer, but it was worth asking, "Did you know about any of this? Do you think Big Jo did?"

"If she did, she kept it close to the vest," Aimee said. "She seemed preoccupied before her death, but I hadn't imagined all this. A bridge? Buying up the entire town to turn it into a golf course and resort?" She filled the ice bucket with her wand. "But I can't imagine anyone wanting to hurt Maria over it."

"She was preoccupied?" I asked. Aimee hadn't mentioned that before.

"I mean, looking back on it, in the context of all we know now, yeah." She turned to me, resting her hand on the rag. "I hadn't thought too much about it at the time. Then I was too busy getting arrested for a crime I didn't commit. But… She seemed off. More than usual. She even mentioned how heartbroken she was that you hadn't called her back in several weeks."

"Ouch." I hadn't really wanted to go there.

Aimee gave me a look. "Did you two have a tiff or something? Why'd you stop taking her calls?"

"It wasn't so much stop, as…never start," I said.

"Why?"

I'd told myself that she reminded me of all my failures growing up, and every conversation would bring those memories to the surface. But sitting here, in her bar, I understood the real reason for my distance. I hadn't thought I was strong enough to endure another goodbye. So, I'd kept her at arm's length, so much so that her death barely registered on my emotions.

Mission accomplished, I supposed.

"No use thinking about it now," I said, my voice a little thick with emotion. "I'm here now, despite my boss yelling at me via emails. And I'm not leaving until we clear your name."

Aimee gave me an affirming smile. "I have to say, I'm glad you're on my side, Jo."

I couldn't help but notice the lack of "little." "Me, too."

~~

Five o'clock rolled around, and the bar filled with commuters. I was chattier than I had been, talking up regulars and dancing around the subject of Cal's plan, the mermaid-stunning potion, and anything else that might bring me closer to finding Maria's killer. But most everyone was only interested in shooting the breeze, talking about the latest college football recruit, and comparing notes on the latest potions or wand combinations.

As the sun cast an orange glow on the water, the charter boats and fishing vessels came in. I considered asking them if they had the stunning potion on board. How would I know if they were lying? Could I check their hulls? Was there a spell I could cast? Assuming Big Jo's wand would cooperate.

Billy Carver glared at me as he walked off the dock, perhaps sensing that I was looking at him. If anyone could've killed a mermaid, it was probably that ornery old bat.

"Are you gonna do something about the water out there?" he snapped at me. "I about tipped over five times today."

"What do you want me to do?" I asked, shrugging.

"You and the mermaids keep going back and forth," he said, gesturing to the sound. "That merking is taking his fury out on the rest of us."

"I'm pretty sure he's a duke, not a king," I said. "And he's the one being unreasonable, not me. If he'd quit threatening my bartender, I'd be happy to talk with him."

"Good." Billy sneered. "Because there he is."

My stomach dropped as the already-disturbed water rippled. The telltale sign of shadows creeping up toward the Cove were barely visible in the dwindling light.

Aimee and I shared a look of concern, and I put up my hand."You stay here." I hurried around the bar. "I'll handle this."

As I approached the beach, Pinfish emerged from the water with his merry band, all holding their spears and coral armor and looking quite fearsome.

Pinfish looked past me toward the Cove, pointing his spear and bellowing, "Bring me that witch!"

"Glad to see you found a way around my banishment spell," I said, though I was pretty sure those things wore off after a while. At least, the people Big Jo had banished always ended up coming back the next day.

"My patience has run out," he said. "We're here for the murderer."

"Then please tell me you've gotten some actual evidence," I said, crossing my arms.

He flashed a mirthless smile. "The council in New Orleans has granted me permission to mete out justice myself. We will take her to the Aquatic Council and deal with her there. Whatever 'evidence' you want to present, you'll have to bring to her trial."

And figure out a way to get to the bottom of the Gulf, too.

"I don't think so." I met his gaze with a confidence I didn't feel. "Aimee isn't responsible for Maria's death. You've got the wrong person."

"Then who is the right person?" Duke asked, the water moving him closer to land but not quite on it.

I stood my ground, not wanting to show any weakness by stepping back. My gaze landed somewhere near his navel, and I had to crane my neck to meet his eyes. "Our local police force is on the job," I said with a smile. "I'm sure they'll have an answer for you quite soon."

"We've conducted our own investigation," he said, pointing his spear toward the Cove. "And we've determined it's that witch who took one of our own."

"Really?" I cocked my head. "What witnesses have you spoken to? Because I've been conducting a little search of my own, and I found out that the vampires across the way are the ones coating their boats in mermaid-stunning potion. Maybe you should go bother Cal Reaves."

He stared me down, and to my surprise, backed up. "You will hand her over or we will start sinking boats," he said, jabbing a finger in my direction. "Do you understand?"

Almost instantly, the boats began rocking, banging loudly into the posts in the dock. Billy Cutter, who'd slunk back to his boat to finish up for the day, cried out in surprise as he fell over.

"Give me a few days," I said. Then, because the boats were still crashing into the dock, I added an emphatic, "Please. I want to find the real culprit as much as you do."

He surveyed me, his eyes softening a hair. "You have until week's end. Three days."

With that, he dove into the water, his shadow disappearing into the depths of the sound. I didn't exhale until it was completely gone.

"Three days, that's great," I muttered, putting my hand to my head as I walked back to the Cove. "Three days."

"He's really going to take me down there, isn't he?" Aimee said as I passed her.

"Not if I have anything to say about it," I said.

"Jo, what in the world can you do that hasn't already been done?" she whispered.

I hadn't a clue. But I wasn't going to give up until I figured out what had really happened.