Midlife in Glimmerspell Read online

  “Let’s see”—Harper glances to her counterpart in backpack wearing arms—“I got a D on my biology pop quiz. I found a freaking worm in my apple—teaches me to eat clean. And Molly Archer threatened to run me over with her car if I so much as looked at Ro—” She stops cold from saying his name. “Some dude who she’s not even seeing anymore.”

  “Sorry,” I say. “But some exes are like hexes. Once they infiltrate your life, they’re impossible to get rid of. And for some girls, the place their exes get stuck is in their heart. It sounds as if she’s not over him.”

  Is it bad that I’m rooting for Molly in this equation?

  A thought comes to me. “Hey, did you say Molly Archer? I think that’s the sheriff’s daughter.”

  “That’s right,” Sadie says as Teddy lands a grilled cheese sandwich in front of them both, a couple of bottles of Italian sparkling water, a couple of mocha lattes, and she rounds it all out with a plate full of fresh from the oven hot fudge brownies.

  Sadie looks over at Harper. “Molly could run you over, string your body up in the nearest tree, and not get into a stitch of trouble. She’s untouchable.”

  “Good to know,” Harper says as she pulls up a picture of the girl on her phone.

  “What are you doing?” I ask as I look down at the picture of a girl who looks like Cash in female skin.

  “I’m copying her face,” she says. “And popping it into a search engine that has a special facial recognition feature. This should populate all of the pictures with Molly’s mug that are out there, and I’m going to scan them all in the event there’s something I can use against her. Just a routine social media takedown.”

  “Harper,” I say and she’s quick to scoff at me.

  “Come on, Sadie,” she says, grabbing her backpack. “Let’s head to the reading tables in the back.”

  They scoop up their feast and migrate to the furthest table from the counter.

  I look to Teddy. “You don’t really think Molly is a threat to Harper, do you?”

  “With Royce Greenly in the balance? That boy could make any girl lose her mind. He’s got muscles for days. When he flexes, the bears run for the hills and the girls fall to his feet. But don’t worry. If Harper lands him, there won’t be any bad blood between her and Sadie. He’s not in the running as the father of her child.”

  “In the running?” I give a long blink.

  She nods. “On the bright side, Aiden Archer is a strong contender. And if that’s true, Sadie and Molly will essentially be family. Sadie could call off the dogs if she had to. But that wouldn’t be until summer. I’d have Harper cool it in the Royce department until then.”

  “And longer,” a female voice chirps and we look over to see a dark presence standing before us, aka Iona Slater. “Iced latte, very little milk, no sugar.”

  “Cold and bitter just like her heart,” Teddy whispers as she takes off to make the drink.

  “I heard that.” Iona scowls past me before shooting me the stink eye. “According to my son’s Insta Pictures account, he spent some time alone with your daughter last night.”

  “Is stalking your kid’s social media pages all the rage among the moms of Glimmerspell? I’m still trying to get caught up on Paranormal Activity 101. I haven’t graduated to Helicopter Parenting just yet.”

  She pulls a tight smile, and there’s not a stitch of kindness behind it. Iona has her chestnut hair pulled into a ponytail and it’s been wagging back and forth all day as if it too wanted a glimpse of the person she was trying to eviscerate.

  “I’m not stalking my son. It’s called being involved in his life. But if you’d much rather take advice from Sunny, be my guest. Just know that my son won’t be in the running to be your daughter’s baby daddy either. He not only comes from good stock, he’s a perfect gentleman, and I won’t have him being corrupted by anyone.”

  My chest pulsates as I give a huff her way.

  “I’m willing to overlook that barb directed at my family because we haven’t had the proper opportunity to get to know one another.” I cinch a short-lived smile. “High school was a long time ago for the both of us. I’d like to think that we’re two women who can rise above the noise, rise above our own preconceived notions and form a friendship of some sort. Now that we’ll be working together from here on out, I don’t see why we’d want to make things weird between us.”

  “You made things weird once you showed up at my ex’s house yesterday. I have access to the security cameras that surround the house. And before you accuse me of helicopter parenting again, I’ll have you know it makes me sleep better at night knowing that I’ll be alerted in the event there’s a house fire or a break-in. If your daughter chose to live with her father, you’d want that, too.”

  “Darn right, I’d want that.” A small, silly part of me burns with anger at the thought of Harper ever being forced to live with Harold and his tramp. “And if that scenario was in the works, I might just be the one burning down the house. Not with anyone in it, of course.” Not with Harper in it at least—or the new baby. Right now, all of my quasi-homicidal intentions are aimed at the original perpetrators.

  A laugh lives and dies in her throat as she bears those hard amber eyes over mine. “I see you’re not interested in following the rules I threw out the other day.”

  “Oh, sweetie, I’ve had a rebel heart since I was three. My mother could attest to that. But since you’ve got your panties in a wad over what may have transpired between your ex and me last night, let me put your mind at ease. It was perfectly chaste.” A visual of Elliot Greenly, naked and dripping wet, in the shower bounces through my mind. “And”—I clear my throat—“if you must know, I was there discussing the case with him.” Did we discuss the case at all? Honestly, all I remember is his finely chiseled chest, those pale green eyes, and that I’m going-to-eat-you-for-dinner look in his eyes. “Iona, do you think Elliot is an upstanding detective?”

  “Are you questioning his integrity?” A dry laugh pulses through her. “Maybe you do know him after all.”

  Teddy lands the iced latte down and Iona is quick to snatch it up without so much as a thank you. She takes off and Teddy bumps her hip to mine.

  “What did she say?”

  “Nothing I didn’t already suspect for myself.”

  Elliot Greenly and I are due to have one interesting talk, and I’ll move heaven and Glimmerspell to make sure it happens tonight.

  Is Elliot’s integrity really all that questionable?

  I might care more about the answer to that question than I do who killed Griffin Barker. And who knows? Elliot Greenly’s questionable integrity might just be the answer to both.

  He might not have wiped me off his suspect list just yet.

  But I haven’t taken him off it either.

  In exactly three hours, I’m going toe-to-toe with a man who just might be the killer.

  Chapter 13

  “Where are you going, Mom?” Harper gives my choice of accoutrements for the evening a scrutinizing, might I add, dirty look.

  “Just out.” I shrug as I watch both Harper and Sadie scurry around Teddy’s living room tossing on their winter coats and snapping up their purses. “Where are you headed?”

  Grizabella lets out a harrowing yowl from the rim of the sofa as if she wanted an explanation herself.

  “That’s okay, Grizzy.” Harper gives the fluffy kitty a quick kiss to the ear. “I know my mother is nosy, but she believes it’s her parental right to interfere in my life on the regular.” She smears a smile my way. “Study group. I have to ace my next biology quiz if I ever plan on having a life after high school.” She runs up and lands a kiss to my cheek before frowning down at my sweater once again. “Black sequins, Mom, really? And skinny jeans?”

  “What?” I say, giving my sweater a pat. “It’s just a little sequins thrown in for some sparkle. Since when is your mom not allowed to sparkle?”

  She leans in and squints while scouring my features. “You h
ave makeup on, like a serious amount.” She gasps hard. “The rumors are true, aren’t they? You’re, like, dating Sheriff Archer!”

  Sadie yanks Harper toward the door. “Who cares who your mother is dating?” She winks my way. “Have fun with him, though. I had fun with Aiden.” She pats her belly. “Like father, like son, right? Maybe use protection.”

  “Ew.” Harper swats Sadie on the arm as they sail through the door and an icy breeze blows through the living room in their wake.

  Teddy crops up next to me. “That’s the best part of having those power surges. You don’t need protection, Toots. You’re free to have a wild and carefree time.”

  I make a face at her.

  Morgan and Mabel are still at the Haunted Book Barn, and Sunny is at work.

  “I’m not going to have a wild and carefree time.” I’ve already filled Teddy in on the fact I’m heading to Elliot’s place for our little Glimmerspell-based tell-all. “I’m going out with a man who’s basically a stranger to me. And have I mentioned he could be the killer? For all I know he could be a serial killer. If I don’t come home by morning, call the FBI. It’s obvious the Winchester County Sheriff’s Department is corrupted.”

  “I’ll give you until noon in the event you decide to have a sleepover. Elliot has been known to charm more than his fair share of women until the wee hours of the morning.”

  “Figures. And did any of these women live to tell about it? Because if Elliot isn’t slaughtering them, Iona just might be.”

  “Pfft. Iona’s bark is worse than her bite.” She touches a finger to her nose. “Try not to get bogged down by any of the details he might throw your way. You shouldn’t worry about something you can’t do anything about.”

  “Sound advice. I wish I had it years ago. I spent years worrying about sales numbers for the hardware store, our anemic marketing efforts, Harper’s health, her state of mind… The funny thing is, I never worried about my marriage.”

  She spikes her fists into her hips and comes shy of winking. “But aren’t you glad you didn’t?”

  “You’re right. He wouldn’t have been worth it. Everything I’ve ever worried about was a wasted endeavor.” I pull on my coat and grab my purse. “What are you up to tonight, Teddy?”

  “Grizabella and I are reading a book by the fireplace while sipping hot cocoa.”

  “I aspire to be you,” I say as I head for the door.

  “Are you kidding? I wish I could be a fly on the wall once you and the hot homicide detective finally go at it. I’ve seen the way you’ve been ogling one another—the way you’ve been pretending you can’t stand the sight of one another. There’s enough tension between the two of you to blow up the entire state. Things are about to get out of hand in the very best way.” She swats me on the arm. “Which reminds me. At your age, you’ll need lube.”

  “What?” I balk as she takes off for the kitchen. “I’m not going to need lube.” I think on it a moment. “Okay, fine. If push got to bend over, then I’d definitely need lube, but believe me, we’re not going anywhere near that precarious position tonight—or any position.”

  “I’ve got the perfect thing!” she shouts. “The rule is, if you can eat it, you can use it. You’ve got a very delicate ecosystem down there, you know, and it needs to be treated as such. I was just about to whip up some homemade salad dressing.” She trots back into the room, wagging a small Mason jar my way.

  “Oh my stars, what the heck are you giving me?”

  “Grapeseed oil with a touch of soy sauce.” She shrugs. “Just be thankful I haven’t added the vinegar yet.” She shoves it into my purse without warning. “If you need any tips on how to drive a man wild, I can—”

  “I’m fine,” I say, moving toward the door.

  “Okay, go on. We’ll talk when you get home. That will give me a chance to jot down a few things for you. I’ve got a cheat sheet somewhere around here myself.”

  “Looking forward to it.”

  “Oh hon, it’s not light reading, but it’s a game changer. You’ll be kicking yourself you didn’t have that info sooner. Night one really sets a precedence. Don’t do any moves you don’t plan on replicating in the future. But you sure as heck fire make sure he performs like a circus poodle for you.”

  “Poodle? Really?”

  “Have it your way, he can be a dancing bear.” She waves it off. “But if that bear doesn’t head downtown to get himself some honey, don’t waste anytime booting him back to the woods.”

  “I’m leaving now,” I say a touch too loudly. “Don’t have too much fun without me. I’ll see you in a bit.”

  “Remember, don’t get too wrapped up in things you can’t do anything about! And take a bite out of that beefcake for me, would you?” she shouts as I hop into my van.

  I give a hearty wave as I head down the street.

  “I hereby declare an official end to my romantic life.” That should take any pressure off me for the next fifty years or so.

  I’m not taking a bite out of Elliot Greenly, tonight or ever. I’m taking a hiatus from dating and from men in general. Tonight is all about Glimmerspell and the truths it’s hiding.

  Elliot texted this afternoon and asked if I wouldn’t mind heading to his place and I said yes. He offered to pick me up, but I declined the offer so he gave me his address and I punched it into my GPS before I even left from the bookstore this afternoon. As nice as it would have been to have him pick me up from Teddy’s place, it would have felt too much like a date. Besides, this way I’ve got my getaway vehicle at the ready.

  I follow the voice commands through the twisting, turning evergreen laden back roads until I come upon Rim of the World Drive and pull in front of the large two-story home with a gray stone façade and a couple of stone lions set out in front of the entry. The street looks to be a spacious cul-de-sac with each of the homes spaced out much further than your traditional tract houses. The double door entry looks homey with a potted Italian cypress on either side of it. Elliot’s house is lit up like a peach as I make my way up the porch and give a brisk knock.

  Less than a few seconds later, the door swings open with Elliot in a dark suit with a shiny silver tie that brings out those clear green eyes of his. His hair is slicked back and the stubble on his face looks neatly trimmed. His cologne engulfs my senses like an old spicy friend, and the scent of fresh bread and red sauce is layered just beneath that. Believe me, my appetite is going strong, but food is far from what I’m craving.

  Holy smokes, this man is intolerably good-looking. What was I thinking agreeing to come over to his place? Teddy says he’s been known to have a good time with all the girls he can get his hands on. No wonder he’s called me over. He’s probably anxious to land me in the shower once again—this time with my clothes off. And let’s call a sexual spade a spade—it might just be an offer I can’t refuse.

  “Welcome to my home.” Elliot offers up a smile, but it doesn’t last for long.

  “Thank you,” I say as I head inside and he helps me land my coat and purse onto a bench in the entry. The fire is raging in the family room. The dining room table just to the left of that has a red hurricane lamp with a candle burning in it and it gives off a homey yet romantic flair. “Something smells delicious.”

  “Pizza,” he says without missing a beat. “I just got home a few minutes before you got here. I thought I’d pick something up in case you were hungry.”

  “I’ve never been one to turn down carbs laden with cheese. But only if it comes with a side of Glimmerspell. I don’t think I can wait another minute to hear any and everything you have to say about this haunted town.” And I mean haunted in the literal sense thanks to Mabel.

  Elliot pauses a moment. His eyes ride down my body for the briefest of moments until his gaze meets with mine and freezes as if he were caught.

  It proves impossible for me to look away from him, and that familiar electrical impulse he seems to initiate in me sparks through my body like a firestorm. Here’s
hoping it doesn’t cause a power surge and send me to some medieval dungeon I can never escape. Of all the supernatural abilities my body could have come up with, it chose the one that might get me eaten by dinosaurs.

  “We can start with Glimmerspell if you like.” His chest depresses as if it were the last thing he wanted to do.

  “I’m in.”

  “Let’s head to my office then.” He leads us through the family room, to the right of the kitchen where a dimly lit corridor leads to a room in the back. Elliot’s office is exactly how I would have pictured it—dark leather chairs and an expansive black desk with a leather armchair on the other side of it. Massive shelves laden with books with gilded spines. The office holds a woodsy scent, and the air is ice-cold—cold enough to snow in fact.

  He pulls up a chair for me before heading to the other side of the desk and producing a file.

  “Do you have a strong stomach?” He waves the file in the air before landing it on the desk with a thump.

  “I slept in the same bed with my ex for nineteen years. I’m pretty sure I could scrape roadkill off city streets for a living and still enjoy a hearty meal for dinner. Give it to me straight, Elliot. Tell me what you know about Glimmerspell. You don’t need to go around the block with me.”

  His lips curl a touch as he opens the file and slides an eight by ten picture my way.

  “Ten women, eight men. Mostly vagabonds,” he says as I pull the picture my way and gasp at the body lying in a pile of leaves. It’s a woman, blonde hair, her skin white as paper, eyes opened and bulging, and she has a scream locked on her face. “Note the puncture marks at the neck. The sign of an amateur.”

  He slides the rest of the file my way and I go through the pictures, one by one, each of a body lying in the woods, about half of them in the snow. Two completely undressed, and the rest with their clothes left in tatters, their necks gashed open, their chests raked and bloodied. One of them looks to have a hole right through its torso.

  “They took his heart,” Elliot says a little above a whisper. “It’s a delicacy for them.”