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Wynona wasn’t sure how much time had passed before she finally let herself separate from Rascal’s comforting back. She stood on shaky knees, breathing deeply. “Okay. You can change back now.”
He whimpered, huffed, then flashed back into a man. “What in all of purgatory happened?” Rascal demanded, wrapping his arms around her.
Wynona melted into his chest. Considering how shaken up she still was, she wasn’t about to complain about his need to touch her. “My mom showed up,” Wynona mumbled into his shirt.
“Figured that one, since I snarled at her while coming in the door.”
Wynona let out a humorous chuckle. “It might have been worth it to see that.”
Rascal growled. “What did she do? Why was she here?”
Wynona picked her head up. “Why do you think she was here?”
Rascal cursed again and dropped his forehead to hers. “She can’t have you,” he said in a low tone.
“No. She can’t.” Wynona reached up and threaded her fingers through his hair. “I won’t be going back willingly, that I can promise.”
“The problem is, unwilling is still a way they’ll take you.”
Wynona nodded, breaking their touch. “I know, but I’m doing my best to not let that happen.”
“I think maybe I just need to stay by you at all times. I’ll chain you to my hip.”
Wynona pulled back enough to straighten her shirt and skirt. “As wonderful as that would be, it’s not very efficient for either of our jobs.”
He pushed his hand through his hair. “Then how am I going to keep you safe? The confrontation was over by the time I got here and my wolf isn’t exactly a slowpoke.”
Wynona rolled her eyes. “I can protect myself,” she argued.
Rascal just raised a single eyebrow.
“Okay. Fine. I’m working on protecting myself.” She pasted a wide smile on. “But seriously. One of my magical accidents might go a long way in keeping them off my back.”
Rascal didn’t find it funny. “Where’s Violet?”
Wynona reached for her shoulder, then jerked around. “I don’t know!” She spun in a circle. “And where did Granny go?”
The kitchen door opened and Wynona turned to the sound, relaxing slightly when she saw Violet on Lusgu’s shoulder. Their relationship was such a surprise, but right now Wynona was grateful for it. “Violet,” Wynona rbeathed, reaching out her hand. “What happened?”
You nearly exploded, Violet said wryly.
Wynona hung her head. “I’m sorry.” She brought the purple mouse to her chest. “I didn’t mean to.”
“You need control.” Lusgu grunted, glaring up at Wynona. “Your familiar can only do so much.”
Wynona nodded. “I know. I’m trying.” She hesitated, but decided to press her luck. “Did you see what happened with Granny?”
“She disappeared,” Lsugu said easily. “Will probably be back later.” He put his hands on his hips. “You need a teacher.”
“Do you have any suggestions?” Wynona asked, fearing his answer. She had a feeling who would be the perfect person to teach her about having such strong powers and Wynona wasn’t sure she was ready to accept it.
Lusgu’s eyes narrowed. “You don’t need an answer.” Spinning, he left.
“He meant your grandmother, didn’t he?” Rascal grumbled.
Wynona nodded. “I think he did.”
Another growl filled the room. He took her hand and tugged toward the door, causing Violet to squeak. “Come on.”
“Where are we going?” Wynona asked.
“To the station. Somehow I doubt there’ll be any more customers today anyway. Close down and come interrogate suspects with me.”
Wynona huffed a small laugh. “That does sound enticing, but I need to finish up here first.”
Rascal snorted. “Then I’ll wait.”
Wynona squeezed his arm. “Rascal. I’m fine. I’m grateful you came, but I’ll be okay. Let me take care of work and then I’ll come to the precinct.”
He leaned his shoulder against the wall, letting her know he wasn’t going anywhere. Secretly, Wynona was grateful. She didn’t want to admit it, but a part of her was still struggling with the leftover adrenaline from her confrontation.
“Give me a few,” she said softly, then headed back to the kitchen to talk to Lusgu again.
Half an hour later, they were on their way to the police station. Violet was tucked in Rascal’s front pocket, the door of the shop was locked and Lusgu had been given the rest of the day off.
It only took a few minutes to get to the police parking lot and soon, Rascal was helping Wynona down.
“Thank you,” she said softly.
Rascal gave her waist a squeeze. “Always.” Letting go, he stepped back and took her hand. “Marsh is inside, waiting for us.”
“You haven’t talked to him yet?” Wynona was surprised. She had assumed Rascal would process the merman immediately.
Rascal shook his head while he pulled open the front door. “No. I wanted to wait for you. Plus, we had other things to do anyway. I’m trying to get a hold of the ex, as well. Skymaw should be bringing him in soon.”
Wynona nodded. “Sounds good.”
“Heya, Detective Le Doux.”
Wynona smiled at Amaris. “I guess we’ll be seeing a bit more of each other now, huh?”
“Us women have to stick together.” The vampire clasped her hands and leaned forward. “The men just can’t do it by themselves, you know.”
“Nightshade!”
The whole room jumped and Wynona turned. “Hello, Chief Ligurio.”
His red eyes flashed. “Enough gossip. I’ve got a merman threatening to get a lawyer if we don’t let him go.” His black eyebrows rose high. “Are you coming?”
Wynona nodded. “Of course. Thank you for waiting for me.” She ignored his huff and walked with Rascal down the hall, waving discreetly to Amaris, who rolled her eyes in rebellion.
Wynona held back a laugh, sobering quickly as they walked into the room where Marsh Monroe was waiting. “Hello, Mr. Monroe,” she said politely. “Thank you for being patient. I’m afraid I have a day job that keeps me from being available at all hours.”
Bright blue eyes glared. “There was nothing stopping the officers from taking care of this,” he grumbled.
Wynona nodded. “Stations can be busy places. Plus, I wanted to be here when we chatted.”
Marsh leaned back in his seat, folding his arms over his chest. “I’m drying out. If I don’t get to my pool soon, I’ll start to get sick.”
“I understand,” Wynona assured. “Again, thank you for your patience.”
Chief Ligurio was sitting on her right and Rascal stood on her left. Since there was no concern about the merman using magic against them, Wynona wasn’t as concerned about Daemon still being gone. They could catch him up later.
“Let’s talk about this chemical on the ground, shall we?” Chief Ligurio began.
Marsh held up his hands. “I haven’t spilled anything. I have no idea how that got there. And even if I did spill something, I would clean it up.”
Ignoring the explanation, Chief Ligurio examined a piece of paper. “Our tests came back showing it was a chlorine alternative. Meant to keep pool water clear and chemical free.”
Marsh shook his head. “Ms. Roseburg wanted me to try that, since she hates the smell of the chlorine. She tried a spell once to get rid of the smell, but it backfired and smelled even worse.”
Chief Ligurio turned to look at Wynona. “I’ve never heard of that, but it’s plausible,” she said softly.
He nodded before turning back to the merman. “The room smelled of chlorine when we were there to pick up the body.”
“That’s because that junk didn’t work. I stuffed it in the closet and never pulled it out again. I’ve been using bromine, which has a bleach-like smell, and Ms. Roseburg wasn’t happy with that either.”
“Why didn’t she just spell the water herself?” Wynona asked. Keeping a pool clean should be relatively easy for a witch like Ms. Roseburg.
Marsh shrugged. “She just always said she wasn’t a water witch.”
“Huh.” Wynona frowned and made a mental note to look into that. It seemed odd to her. “And you didn’t touch that chemical again?”
Marsh shook his head.
“You mentioned having information about Mr. Killoran,” Wynona said, changing subjects for the moment. She ignored the look Chief Ligurio gave her. “Why do you feel like he killed Ms. Roseburg?”
Marsh continued to glare for a moment before leaning forward. “He’s in debt.”
Wynona waited. “Okay?”
Marsh rolled his eyes. “Like...a lot of debt. He’s got a gambling problem.”
“We don’t have any gambling houses in Hex Haven,” Wynona said.
Marsh laughed darkly. “The underworld does.”
She snapped her mouth shut. Her only interaction with the underworld had been with Roderick Caligari, her first landlord. He’d been part of the underground mafia and attempted to woo Wynona in order to gain her magic. When she discovered his subterfuge, not to mention the fact that he killed two men, she helped bring him down, rather than falling for his lines.
Rascal’s chest rumbled.
Wynona could feel that he’d had the same thought as her. “How bad is it?” she asked.
Marsh smirked. “Enough that if he doesn’t pay it soon, he won’t exist.”
“And how do you know this?” Chief Ligurio demanded.
Marsh shrugged. “No one’s afraid to talk in front of the pool boy. Plus, he came to the house the other day.” His smirk grew. “No one seems to realize that mermen have exceptional hearing, even when we’re under water.”
Wynona’s cheeks flushed. She had a habit of forgetting that many paranormals could hear well. It had gotten her in trouble a few times. “So you heard Ms. Roseburg and Mr. Killoran arguing?”
He nodded. “Wayde wanted a loan. Harmony said no. He wasn’t happy.”
“Unhappy enough to kill her?”
Marsh leaned back again and folded his arms. “Creatures will do anything if they’re desperate enough.”
“How does killing her get him money though?” Wynona asked. “Surely he’s not still in her will. They were divorced years ago.”
Marsh shook his head. “He could be planning to appeal to whichever of the kids ends up inheriting. Silvaria would probably give him something, but Zander...”
“Zander didn’t get along with dear old Daddy?” Rascal sneered.
“Dear old Daddy felt like Harmony spoiled him,” Marsh snorted. “Which was true. The guy’s a class A...” He eyed Wynona and cleared his throat. “Let’s just say I won’t be sad when my contract runs out.”
Chief Ligurio stood. “We’ll be sending in our investigative unit to do a test on your hands,” he said.
Wynona jumped to her feet, following the chief’s lead.
“When they’re done, you’ll be free to go. However, I wouldn’t advise leaving town, Mr. Monroe.”
Marsh’s lip curled, but he nodded. “I didn’t kill her, I had no motive to kill her. And if you’ll look into her records, you’ll see that I had ordered several more products for the pool. There was no reason for me to get that particular one out when I wasn’t using it anymore.”
“We’ll do that. Thank you for your time. We’ll be in touch.” Chief stormed from the room, Wynona and Rascal on his heels. They headed down the hall until entering the chief’s office, where he threw himself in his chair and rubbed his forehead. “Thoughts?” he demanded.
Wynona carefully sat down in a chair, grateful that Rascal sat next to her. “I don’t know. I have to agree that he doesn’t have much of a motive.”
Chief Ligurio stared at her, obviously waiting for more.
“He said he was having fun with Ms. Roseburg. If they weren’t fighting, what would he gain by killing her?”
“Maybe he didn’t do it on purpose,” Rascal offered. “If he spilled that chemical, she could have accidentally been killed and he’s simply covering up his mistake.”
Wynona nodded. “I can’t argue that one. It’s very plausible.” She tapped her knee. “I’m stuck on the chemical thing though. Ms. Roseburg was a talented witch, even if water wasn’t her strongest element, and it seems odd she wouldn’t be able to keep her pool water clear.”
“I’ll let you look into that,” Chief Ligurio said. “It’ll be more your area of expertise.”
Wynona nodded. “Sure.” She pinched her lips together, her mind trying to work through the puzzle. “If it was an accident,” Wynona murmured, “who healed her? And why did she still die?”
Chief Ligurio huffed and leaned back in his seat. He looked at Rascal. “Ideas?”
Rascal shook his head. “Not yet. I agree with Wynona, the healing doesn’t make sense.”
“I did notice that Zander and Silvaria both have blue magic,” Wynona offered. “I don’t know what color Ms. Roseburg’s was.”
“Do you have a way of finding out?” Chief Ligurio asked.
Wynona looked up at Rascal. His lips pinched into a thin, white line, knowing exactly what she was thinking. “Yeah.”
The chief’s eyebrows pulled together. “But?”
Wynona shook her head. “But nothing. I haven’t exactly been ready to speak to Granny Saffron yet, but she’ll have the answers we’re looking for.”
The chief snorted, apparently not worried about her desire to stay away from the woman who cursed her. “You take care of that and let us know what you find.” He reached for a folder and threw it across the desk at her. “You’ll need to sign this, by the way.”
Wynona took it and opened it. “Another contract?”
“You’re an independent consultant. If you’re helping in an official capacity, you need this in order to follow us around or go somewhere without us.”
She clucked her tongue. “It looks like I didn’t get a raise from last time.”
His red eyes narrowed. “I believe you once told me you didn’t do this for money.”
“Ah, but you pulled me in this time,” Wynona teased. When Chief Ligurio’s eyes tightened even more, Wynona relented. “I’m joking, Chief Ligurio. As long as I don’t have to shut down my shop, I’ll be fine helping you.”
“Speaking of...” The chief tilted his head. “How did you get here so early today?”
Wynona shook her head. “You don’t want to know.”
“Oh, I think I do. When my deputy chief bursts into his wolf and races through the building fast enough to start a paper hurricane, I think I have a right to know what’s going on.”
Wynona leaned back. “My mother paid me a visit today, then Granny...and it didn’t go well.”
He scrubbed his face. “They’re bold. I’ll give them that.” He raised his eyebrows expectantly. “Is it taken care of for now?”
“For now.” Wynona made a mental note to ask Granny about more than just Ms. Roseburg’s magic. There were a couple other things she needed to know.
A knock on the door had all their heads turning. “Enter!” Chief Ligurio shouted.
Daemon poked his head in. “I’ve got Mr. Killoran.”
Chief Ligurio nodded. “Interrogation room two. Ten minutes.”
Daemon nodded and disappeared.
“Looks like we’re still on duty.” The chief stood and gathered his computer. “Ms. Le Doux?”
Wynona stood and, taking Rascal’s hand, headed back out. Her detective hat would have to stay in place for a bit longer.