Our three groggy guests scrambled to their feet. They were tired, dazed, and confused. They also looked a lot worse for wear than they had earlier.
Brayden shuffled over to the sofa and collapsed. He rubbed his temples. “I’ve got a pounding headache. I wish I had just stayed home.”
I put the spell back on Brayden to spare him more misery, both headache-wise and Gail-wise. Within seconds he was fast asleep.
“Yeah, well, I’m going home. Back to Vanuatu.” Dominic turned to Gail. “Want a ride back to Shady Creek? The weather’s improved, so the roads should be passable now. We’ll wait for the airport to re-open and catch the next flight out.”
I glanced outside and noticed that Dominic’s Escalade was once again parked in the driveway.
“Over my dead body, sonny,” Aunt Pearl said.
Gail snorted. “That can be arranged, old lady.”
Tyler stepped between Gail and Aunt Pearl and dangled Dominic’s car keys. “Nobody’s going anywhere until I say so. And that won’t be happening until we know what happened to Merlinda. So start talking.”
“Yeah, that’s right.” Earl stood behind Tyler. “You’re all staying put right here.”
Gail fumbled in her purse for her cell phone. “What is wrong with you people? You can’t keep us here. I’m calling the cops.”
“No need. Sheriff Gates is right here,” Aunt Amber said sweetly.
“I meant the real cops. This is a joke. The sheriff hasn’t done anything to keep us safe,” Gail said. “I don’t know what you crazy people are up to, but I’m not going to stay here and suffer the same fate as Merlinda.”
Dominic rubbed his head. “Me neither.”
Gail gasped and clutched her stomach. “Wait a minute—I think somebody poisoned me too. It’s that Christmas cake. Or, maybe it’s the tea…Whatever it is, I feel terrible.”
“Who are you accusing—” Aunt Pearl stopped mid-sentence. “Oh no, you don’t. You’re trying to frame Ruby and me!”
Aunt Amber grabbed Aunt Pearl from behind and placed a hand over her mouth.
Dominic leaned against the wall for support. “I’m feeling kind of sick myself.”
Gail turned to Dominic. “We’re both going to die, and it’s all your fault. If you had just done what you were supposed to do, I wouldn’t be here right now.”
“Whatever. I’m done arguing with you.” Dominic slumped down into a sitting position against the wall.
“Quit stalling,” Tyler said. “It only makes things worse for you both in the end. You two are still hiding something, and I want to know what it is.”
“Yeah--spill the beans,” Aunt Pearl demanded. “Tell us what you did to Merlinda.”
Dominic held his hands up, palms out in protest. “I didn’t do anything to Merlinda, I swear. I am not taking the fall for this. I told Gail that I couldn’t go through with it, but she wouldn’t listen. This isn’t what it looks like. I can explain everything.”
“The hell you will.” Gail grabbed Merlinda’s tropical snow globe from the tree and hurled it at Dominic. “You told me that it was only work. That getting close to Merlinda was all part of the master plan. Liar!”
“Gail, I’m sorry I didn’t mean to—” Dominic ducked as the glass snow globe flew through the air.
Fortunately, Gail’s aim was off. I lunged into the line of fire and outstretched my arm to catch the glass globe. The globe barely glowed now that its creator was forever gone. It still felt wrong for whatever remained to end as shattered glass.
My fingers connected but only just barely. I balanced precariously on one foot and balanced the globe with one hand. It was too big to grasp with my palm. It rolled down my forearm like a bowling ball instead. The glass orb hit my chest, throwing me off balance.
I suspected Merlinda’s globe held even more powers than what I had already witnessed, but I had no desire to test my theory. Every witch created spells a little differently. Some even booby-trapped spells to prevent tampering by other witches. Whether Merlinda had protected the globe in some way other than the magnetic repellent I had no idea. Dropping the glass globe was out of the question, though.
I sighed in relief once I had the globe firmly within my grasp. I pressed it safely against my stomach and held it close as I regained my balance.
Gail picked up an empty wineglass and threw it at Dominic. This time she hit her target. “You jerk! You said Merlinda would make us rich. Instead, you got greedy and betrayed me. You were supposed to kill her, not marry her!”
Dominic held out his arms, palms out in surrender. “She’s dead, isn’t she? You got what you wanted.” His voice broke as he struggled to contain his emotions.
“You fell in love with Merlinda.” Aunt Pearl looked knowingly at Dominic. Her voice broke. “Yet, you killed her anyway. How could you?”
“I-I didn’t kill her, I swear. I was supposed to kidnap her, not kill her. But I couldn’t even manage that. I backed out because I loved her. I just couldn’t do it.”
“Liar,” Gail hissed. “You’re incapable of love. You got greedy and decided to cut me out of the deal. That’s why you never returned my messages. You left me stuck working at the dive shop handling everything, waiting for you. You never even called once to ask how I was doing. Now I know why. Instead of kidnapping Merlinda, you’ve been romancing her all this time. You thought you could marry rich and inherit everything. Well, you killed the golden goose. I hope you rot in jail, you two-timing loser!”