The police arrived and a DCI Rachel Smith came over to me, a brunette woman with long hair and steel-grey eyes.
“Ms Winters, you’re the one who made the 999 call?” She held up a notepad and pen as she scribbled something down.
I nodded. “That’s right. I own the shop over there.” I motioned to the building behind me.
Sarah hovered a few feet away.
“Did you see anyone new lurking nearby or running from the alley when you found the body?”
“No. I just came in early to get some work done.” True enough. I couldn’t tell her how I found the body, or the fact I had seen the victim’s ghost.
“What kind of things do you sell in your shop, Ms Winters? Any ritualistic items?”
Goddess, does she think I had something to do with this?
No, I forced myself to relax. I had to keep calm, or I would look even more suspicious. Didn’t the police suspect people who found bodies?
Damn, I should have ignored the ghost or checked myself into a psych ward. But then again, Sarah’s body was very real. Or else I thought I was mad, and I didn’t think I’d lost my mind. How else could I have found the body?
“Mainly herbal remedies. Alternative medicine.” I didn’t want to outright say potions given the weird occult symbols on Sarah’s body. That would make me look just as suspicious.
Colchester was a diverse place and most supernaturals were in the open, but that didn’t mean some humans weren’t suspicious of us. I didn’t want to draw attention to the fact I was a witch.
We walked inside the shop and the DCI glanced around at the rows if shelves. “Alternative medicine?” The detective’s eyebrows rose. “Can you elaborate on that further? Are you a licensed practitioner?”
“Yeah, like I said I’m a fully qualified herbalist.” I motioned to the certificates on the wall. “I always recommend people seek medical advice first, though.”
“Tell her who I am and how I was murdered,” Sarah appeared beside me and demanded.
Goddess, would she ever leave?
“Alright, if I have any more questions, I’ll let you know.” The DCI left a few minutes later, but some of the uniformed and forensic officers remained outside in the alleyway.
I breathed a sigh of relief. Good, I hoped she wasn’t suspicious of me.
“Why didn’t you tell her anything?” Sarah demanded. “You didn’t tell her my name or anything.”
“How do you explain that to the police? Can’t just tell her I can see your ghost, can I?”
“Tell them what happened to me.” She shot towards me again then vanished.
Great, I just had to get stuck with a stroppy ghost.
The front door jingled as Mara came in. She had ebony skin and long, curly dark hair. “Hey, what’s with all the police outside? Has something happened?”
“There’s a body in the back alley — I found it. Looks like someone’s been murdered.”
“Goddess, are you okay?”
“It’s…been a strange morning to say the least.” I brewed some more coffee but wished I had something stronger. I made a mental note to buy some alcohol after work. Something told me I would need it. “The victim led me to it.”
Mara frowned at me. “What do you mean?”
“I got woken up by a ghost.” I told her about Sarah and everything that had happened so far that morning. Including how she had appeared in my room and kept pestering me until I agreed to help her.
Mara listened patiently until I concluded my tale. “Whoa, that’s messed up,” she remarked.
“Tell me about it. I don’t understand why anyone would come to me for help. I’m not the police.”
Sure, I could help people’s ailments with herbs and potions, but this? This I wasn’t so sure about.
“She says Stacey had something to do with her death?” Mara frowned. “I know your sister is a bit on the wild side, but I don’t think she’d kill anyone. Have you tried calling her?”
I nodded. “Yeah, but it goes straight to voicemail. I don’t see how I can help this woman. Or, how I can even see her. If I hadn’t seen the body, I’d think I’ve gone mad.” I sighed. “What should I do? Should I banish her? Ignore it?”
“Is she here now?” Mara glanced around as if expecting to see someone.
I shook my head. “No. She randomly vanishes. It’s like she runs out of energy.”
“I think you’re gonna have to help her.”
I gaped at her. “How? I don’t want to get myself arrested for murder. I’m not a copper.”
“No, but she must have come to you for a reason. That means you’re supposed to help.” Mara sipped her coffee. “Figure out what happened to her.”
“Okay, how do I do that? She doesn’t even remember how she died.”
“Just talk to her. Maybe retrace her steps.”
We opened the shop as usual, but business was slow thanks to the police presence outside. A few regulars came in and asked a lot of questions. I politely answered as best I could. In between customers, I went online and read up on everything I could find about ghosts.
There was a lot of mixed information, and it was hard to tell what was real and what was made up. With the Internet it could all be fake.
I wanted to be prepared for if and when she came back. I finally found a blog that talked about spirits in detail. It was written by a local witch named Jolie.
She talked about spirits in depth and how to deal with them. She said spirits only had limited energy and could only become visible for short periods of time. The more energy they used, the more time they’d need to recharge. That explained a few things. I suspected that, but it was nice to have things confirmed and to learn about spirits in more detail.
I had a feeling Sarah would be back. She wouldn’t leave until she got what she wanted.
Sure enough, she reappeared as soon as I closed the shop and Mara had gone home. I didn’t know whether to be relieved or worried by that.
“I’m not leaving.” Sarah crossed arms.
“Okay, if you want my help you have to work with me.”
She frowned. “What do you mean?”
“I mean, we need to figure out what happened to you last night. Why don’t you show me where you live?”