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That morning I woke up on my own sofa with a vague recollection of how I got there. Slowly, it came back to me. I was fairly sure three women had carried me up the stairs. My hair was a complete mess and someone had drawn on my left leg with a sharpie. I couldn’t make out what it was, although it had the possibility of being something dirty. I showered for about twenty minutes, had breakfast and then went downstairs to work in the bookshop since I felt like doing something productive.
The shop was busy. People were browsing or buying books while gossiping about the murder. Though the topic of the gossip wasn’t fun at all, I still enjoyed the overall cosy vibe that a busy Saturday brought with it.
A few hours later I was working on a new display as Eddie tapped me on the shoulder with repeated vigour.
“What? What? What?” I said without turning around.
“Guess what?”
“You’re pregnant?”
“Very funny.” He grabbed me by the shoulders and turned me around. His cheeks were flushed.
“Oh, oh, this must be serious.”
“It is. You know how everyone thinks it’s the curse that killed Victor Woodsbury?”
“How could I forget?” I said.
“Well, it’s spread and now there are Welsh ghost hunters coming to the Pembroke Hotel to determine the validity.”
“Wow,” I said.
“I know.”
“No, I mean, I don’t think I’ve ever heard you use the word ‘validity’ before.”
Eddie glared at me. “I’m being serious.”
“I know, that’s what scares me. The words ‘Welsh’ and ‘ghost hunters’ all in one sentence.”
He grunted. “I knew I couldn’t talk to you about this.”
“I’m just messing with you. Sort of.” I mumbled that last part. “Are there really people coming here with a bunch of equipment to make sure no ghost has killed Victor Woodsbury?” His death was not some story or show. Certainly not to me.
“Or to make sure a ghost has,” Eddie said. “Look, what happened to poor Victor is big news in the ghost community.”
“There’s a ghost community? Isn’t that just the afterlife?”
“And by coming here it will bring lots of publicity to this village, not to mention that we could have a real-life haunted hotel.”
“Or not.”
He blinked. “I’m choosing to ignore your negativity.”
“Or realism.”
“I’m going back to work,” he said with a frown.
“I don’t like this. Victor was a good man. His death should be investigated properly, and it shouldn’t become some circus.”
Eddie pressed his lips together. “It’s not, Maggie. I really think that this will be good. Look, I know you liked him, and I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said this all excited, that was insensitive. However, I do think that it might be possible that ghosts did this, just like a lot of people do. If these ghost hunters prove there are ghosts, it may help us figure out what happened, and if they don’t, it will shut people up about the rumour. Either way, win-win.”
“Not really. Victor will still be dead.”
“Unfortunately dying is part of the being alive deal. He shouldn’t have died that way, no. But it happened. There’s nothing we can do about it. We don’t decide how we go.”
“Right. So all we can do is figure out who did it. That’s the only way we can make some sort of difference,” I said.
“That is not at all what I said.”
“Someone’s life is the worst thing you could possibly take from them. We can’t prevent it from happening, though. The only thing we can do is solve the murder.” All I’d be doing was just asking some well-timed questions and paying attention. I already did that anyway. If I was going to do this, I would need a plan.
“I can see that you’ve zoned out, so I’m going back to work now.” He left shaking his head.
“Okay,” I murmured, wondering where Detective Black would have started his investigation. I headed over to the counter where there was a man who looked familiar. He turned around and smiled as soon as we made eye contact. It was Danny. He looked exactly like his profile picture. His neatly trimmed hair, his glasses, the wicked smile on his tanned face.
I couldn’t believe I was stupid enough to check the news for accidents.
“Maggie.” He touched my hand. “Terribly sorry for the delay. I had an important meeting coming up that I couldn’t cancel.”
“Delay? Our date was yesterday.”
He chuckled. “And now I’m here. Why don’t you pop on your coat and I’ll take you somewhere nice. My treat, of course. It’s the least I can do.”
Oh, it is. I smiled at him. “Can you give me one moment?” I disappeared behind the curtain and came back out holding a broom.
“What are you—Ouch,” he said as I hit him with it. “Are you mad?”
I hit him again and again, chasing him out of my bookshop. “And don’t come back, you bastard,” I yelled. Across the street Pandora watched him run, and it didn’t take long before she started chasing him.
Just then Alistair walked over with his hands in his pockets and in a similar suit he had on yesterday. If he didn’t think I was unusual before, he sure did so now.
“I see you’re dangerous with a broom as well,” he said, and followed me inside where I placed the broom back behind the curtain. I could see why Nancy used it as a weapon. It was strangely therapeutic. I was now completely over the whole Danny-fiasco and even felt smug.
“Is this what you always dress like on weekends?” I said, hoping to change the topic.
He grinned, then his gaze travelled down to take in my outfit. It would surely not impress him, since I wore my standard jeans and shirt. “My boss wants this case solved as soon as possible, and I don’t mind working overtime.”
“So a bit of a workaholic, huh?” I smiled to soften my words.
He smiled back. “So are you. Don’t you have people working for you?”
“I’m experiencing a bit of a writer’s block, and I could use the distraction considering what happened. Did you come to ask me more questions?”
“Actually, I’m here to talk to your aunt. I thought this was her shop.”
“It used to be, but she split it in half when I wanted to open a bookshop.”
“That’s very generous of her,” he said. His eyes scanned my face, lingering on my lips. Did I have food there? Probably. I ran a finger across my lips just in case.
“She is very generous. Don’t let her occasional outbursts fool you. Anyway, you can go through the curtain if you want.”
“No, I’ll use the normal entrance, thanks. Bye.”
He must remember she runs the occult store, why bother coming in here?
“Perhaps he wanted to see you, the cheeky bastard,” Detective Black said.
“Wait.”
Alistair turned back to me. “Yes?”
“I wondered if you perhaps remember me?” He had to, right? We spent that entire afternoon at the fair instead of going to classes.
“Yes. Maggie Matthews, from secondary school.”
Right. Just a random person from secondary school. “Great,” I said flatly.
“I’m sorry our little reunion couldn’t be under better circumstances, and I’m sorry about what you had to go through yesterday. It couldn’t have been easy. I hope you understand I was just trying to do my job in questioning you and your aunt.” He smiled, turning my limbs into jelly.
“Of course. You can always question me. I mean—” my voice trailed off, and I gave him an innocent smile.
He grinned. “I’ll see you around.”
“Okidoki.” I was sure I’d never said that before, why start? “Take care,” I added as I watched him walk away.
Why did I have to be such an awkward idiot?
“You said okidoki, huh?” Eddie asked from behind me.
“You heard all that?” I turned around.
“Yeah. It was riveting.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “He went to talk to Nancy. I wonder why?” I hurried to the back room and stood as close as I could next to the curtain to her store. They must have been standing by the counter, because I could hear them clearly.
“Mr Field said that you cleansed the building before they officially opened,” Alistair said. His voice was pleasant, and I wanted to bathe in it.
“That’s right. And I did cleanse it. It is spotless,” Nancy said.
“I am also to understand that you are known for your...special abilities.”
“Yes, of course. Even your mother visited me for something against hair loss.”
A pause. “I see,” Alistair said. He sighed as if he didn’t want to ask the next question. “And in your opinion, could spirits really cause someone to die?”
“In my opinion, no. I think someone is just using the curse to commit murder.”
It was great how we thought alike.
“I’m sorry for having to ask such a question, it’s just that the rumour spread and now everybody believes it’s something paranormal. Since you’re a respected member of the community, I figured I could refer to your opinion to keep people from blowing this thing up.”
“I understand.”
“Thank you for your time,” Alistair said.
“Are you single?” she asked.
Another pause. “I don’t see how that’s relevant.”
“I do. Maggie’s single.”
I gasped and pressed my hand to my mouth to keep from making a noise.
“Goodbye, Miss Knightley.”
Damn her and her good intentions. Didn’t she know she had to keep those on the inside of her mouth? I turned around, bumped into someone, and shrieked. It was Eddie. “You scared me.” I pushed him into my shop. “Did you hear all that?”
He made a face. “It reminds me of the time Nancy tried to set me up with this girl in the pub. She’d given her my printed CV.”
“If I remember correctly, the girl did go out with you.”
“Nancy is eerily good at what she does.”
“Hm. Don’t let her hear that.”
He pretended to zip his lips. Then unzipped it. “Want to have a snack in an hour? I didn’t have lunch.”
“Sure.” I glanced around. “Where’s Susan?”
“I think she’s over at the children’s books.”
She had been quite upset yesterday. “I’ll go check on her.”
Susan was at the back of the store putting new children’s books on the shelves. Normally she did this with the speed of a Tasmanian Devil on drugs, but today she moved slowly and occasionally stopped to stare ahead.
I observed her for a minute or so before I couldn’t take it anymore. “Okay,” I said, startling her. “What’s going on with you? You may not like talking about it, but it’s affecting your job performance. Not that I’m complaining. I’m just worried.”
She stared at me and for a brief moment I thought she wouldn’t answer me. Then she burst into tears.
Oh, oh. I put my arm around her. “Come on,” I said and decided to take her upstairs to my flat so that nobody could eavesdrop, and we could have tea in peace. Tea always made everything better.
Susan sat down on my sofa, still sobbing as she wiped her wet cheeks on her sleeves, and I hurried to grab her a box of tissues and made us some tea. I also brought a plate of biscuits in and sat down next to her, awaiting an explanation. It was strange to see her so vulnerable, especially when she was always so composed and cold.
She cleared her throat and took a few shaky breaths. “I had an affair with Victor,” she said.
My eyes widened. Damn. The thought had crossed my mind, but she was only twenty-six and he was twice her age.
“Teaches you to keep an open mind,” Detective Black muttered. “Now, put her at ease and get as many details as you can.”
I glared at him. He was right, I had to get as much information out of her now that she was crying and in a talkative mood. I had serious doubts that she had killed him, unless these were tears of guilt, but still, she could know something.
“He visited the bookshop a few times, looking for a gift for his wife,” she said and glanced up at me to gauge my reaction. “I know what I did was awful, but he was just so charming. We talked for a while and then he stopped by a few more times after that. At first we just became friends, you know? I didn’t want to be someone’s mistress. But after I had this horrible date, Victor comforted me, and it just happened. He was so sweet to me.”
I remembered the way he had taken care of me when my heart was broken. He had been kind and funny. And yes, he was charming, but I’d never seen him in a romantic light. Not that I was judging her. At least, I tried not to. “And was there anything on his mind? Did he have a problem? He asked me and Nancy to meet him at the hotel and was very secretive and worried.”
“I heard that. I don’t know why, though. He said he wanted to get a divorce from Patricia, but he’d been saying that for months.”
“Months? How long were you together?”
“Four months. But we only met once a week. I would miss him terribly, but when we got together, everything was right again.”
“She’s got it bad,” Detective Black said.
“Is there anything else that might be important? Something you can tell me that might help catch the killer?”
She started crying again. “I can’t believe he’s been murdered. Who would do such a thing? Please, Maggie. Please find out who did this.” She clasped my hand and continued crying.
I left Susan in my flat to calm down and went downstairs to pick up the slack. Eddie was busy himself and barely noticed she wasn’t even here. After about twenty minutes she came down, and she looked more like herself. She had redone her ponytail, and something about her demeanour had changed. If I had to venture a guess, it was because she’d gotten something heavy off her chest. That could do wonders. Perhaps now the ice between us would be melted. Or perhaps that depended entirely on me finding Victor’s killer.
I still couldn’t believe it was Susan he’d had an affair with. Nancy had called him a cheater, but even then I had still dismissed it, respected him. Now, not so much. Not just because he had cheated on his wife, awful as she was, but also because I couldn’t help but feel he’d taken advantage of Susan. There was something lonely about her, and I didn’t like that Victor had used that to climb into bed with her. If he had really loved Susan, he would have left Patricia instead of whispering sweet nothings in her ear while going home to have dinner with his wife every night.
I decided I’d tell Alistair about it, but nobody else. I didn’t want it coming out, and I just had to hope that Alistair could be discreet when he spoke with her. After all, she knew nothing vital to the investigation, and there was no need for it to come out.
Despite all the gossip that spread like wildfire in Castlefield, I couldn’t help but wonder what other things went on that we knew nothing about.