Easy Bake Coven: Book One of the Vivienne Finch Magical Mysteries (28 page)

“Not
drug him.” Vivienne explained. “Just use a little magic powder to make him see
things our way It’s kind of like truth serum, only it makes the other person
believe whatever you say.”

Joshua
shook his head. “Magic powder, magic books, I’m starting to miss the simple
life back in Indian Lake. All we had to deal with was rogue werewolf attacks.”

“So
you’ll help me?” She asked hopefully.

“We’re
even after this?” He asked.

“Absolutely.”
She kissed him on the cheek. “Now let’s get this into his coffee.

*
* *

It
was nearly dark as Joshua led her into the Sheriff’s office. Vivienne had
brought one of her apple blossoms from the bakery and a freshly brewed cup of
coffee.

Joshua
waited in the hall outside the office where Sheriff
Rigsbee
was tipped back in his chair reading a file with this boots propped up on the
desk. He gestured for Vivienne to go in.

She
knocked on the open door and smiled. “Sheriff
Rigsbee
,
I just wanted to apologize to you in person for that whole business about Nana
Mary.”

Zeke
Rigsbee
looked up from the paperwork on his desk. He
resumed his usual rigid stance, setting the file down. “Apology accepted Miss
Finch.”

Vivienne
set the apple blossom and coffee down on the desk. “I’m having my opening
tomorrow for the bakery and I thought you deserved a little treat for being so
nice about everything.”

“You
didn’t have to go to any trouble, Miss Finch.” He eyed the apple blossom with
interest. “But since you came all this way…”

She
reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out a plastic fork and a napkin.
“Please enjoy the sample and by all means stop by when you get a chance. I’ve
got my famous raspberry-lemon cake too.”

He
speared a bite of the apple blossom and smiled. “You sure know how to bake.” He
reached for the coffee and downed some. “Deputy
Arkins
is a lucky man.”

“You’re
too kind.” She took a seat in front of him. “The coffee is a special blend I’ll
be selling at the shop. There’s a hint of vanilla in it.”

Zeke
picked it up and swallowed another gulp. “It really hits the spot.”

She
decided to test the effects of the powder. “You know, I was thinking it might
be a good idea if you let me go visit Suzette Powell.”

He
stared at her blankly. “It might be a good idea? Sure, I think that actually
might be a good idea.”

“I
think you should let me visit her and make sure everything is okay.” Vivienne
continued. “You should have Deputy
Arkins
escort me
to the holding area.”

“Miss
Finch.” He looked at her with glassy eyes. “I’d like you to go visit with
Suzette Powell and check on her. Deputy
Arkins
will
escort you to the holding cells.” He reached for the phone and pressed one of
the interior line buttons. “Jerry, Deputy
Arkins
and
Miss Vivienne Finch are coming down to see Suzette Powell.” He appeared to
listen to a question on the other end. “Yes, it’s fine with me. I’ll send them
right down.”

Upon
hearing the conversation, Joshua stepped into the office. “You wanted to see me
Sir?”

Zeke
smiled warmly. “Yes, Deputy
Arkins
. Will you escort
Miss Finch down to holding so she can visit Suzette Powell? I think it’s a very
good idea.”

“No
problem, sir.” Joshua marveled at the effects of the magic powder. He looked at
Vivienne. “If you’ll follow me, I’ll lead the way.”

Vivienne
rose from her seat and took his arm. “Thank you Sheriff
Rigsbee
.
You relax and enjoy the rest of that apple blossom and the coffee.”

“Oh,
thank you Miss Finch.” He speared another piece of the baked treat and let out
a little hum of pleasure as he chewed.

As
they walked toward the holding area, Joshua whispered in Vivienne’s ear. “You
never used that stuff on me, did you?”

“How
can you even think that?” She whispered back.

“I’m
dating a witch.” He answered softly. “I don’t think these types of questions
are out of line.”

She
gently poked him in the side of the ribs with her elbow and they walked
downstairs to the holding cells. “The effects will wear off in about an hour or
so. So we better hurry.”

They
decided it would be best to have Joshua stay outside with the officer on duty
and keep him from hearing what Vivienne was asking Suzette.

As
Vivienne stepped into the area where the cells were, she had no trouble
locating Suzette as she was the only person in custody.

She
was dressed in an orange jumpsuit and her hair was a bit messy and untamed as
she nervously chewed on her nails. She sat up from the bunk in surprise.
“Vivienne Finch? What are you doing here?”

Vivienne
felt sorry for her. The smell wasn’t as bad as she imagined it would be. It was
a mix of heavy antiseptic cleanser and metal. “Suzette, I came to see how you
were holding up and ask you some questions.”

“Is
my lawyer here?” She looked to the side from behind the bars of her cell.

“This
isn’t official.” Vivienne spoke softly. “I have some questions to ask if you’re
okay with that. I’m sort of doing my own little investigation.”

Suzette
shook her head. “I didn’t kill Mona Clarke.” She gripped the bars on the cell
door with her hands. “No one believes me.”

“I
believe you.” Vivienne folded her arms across her chest as the heater didn’t
seem to doing much of anything except make clanking noises. “Maybe we can put
some of the missing pieces together and figure out what really happened?”

”I
only wish my lawyer seemed as concerned as you.” Suzette answered. “What did
you want to know?”

“Well,
first we need to talk about the affair with Richard Clarke.”

“I
didn’t do that either.” Suzette gripped the bars so tightly in response that
the color from hands blanched. “They said he confessed to it at a press
conference? Is that true?”

“He
did.” Vivienne nodded back. “Why would he lie about that?”

“I
don’t know.” Suzette began to tear up. She pulled her hands back through the
bars and wiped her face. “It’s like they’re all trying to frame me. What did I
ever do to deserve this?”

“Are
you aware of the physical evidence the police found? Your finger nail was
embedded in Mona Clarke’s wrist?”

“Yes,
my lawyer told me about that.” Suzette produced the finger where her nail was
indeed broken off although it looked entirely possible it had been nervously
bitten. “I don’t know how it was broken.”

“So
how did it end up embedded in Mona’s wrist?”

Suzette
sobbed and shook her head in frustration. “I can’t answer that because I
honestly don’t know. Before you showed up I started to wonder if maybe I was
crazy and had a split personality or something. Maybe my lawyer could get me
off the hook on a temporary insanity charge or something?”

Vivienne
shared in her frustration. Suzette didn’t have as many answers as she had hoped
for. “Where were you the morning when Mona was murdered?”

“I
was out walking the hiking trails by the lake.” She answered. “I’d put on a few
pounds over the summer and I wanted to get in shape before the holidays came
around. You know, sort of give myself a little wiggle room for all those sugary
treats.”

“Did
anyone see you?”

“I
don’t think so.” Suzette shook her head. “After the summer tourists leave, the
park is pretty deserted. It was just me and the geese.”

“It
is pretty deserted this time of year.” Vivienne agreed. “So you don’t have
anyone to verify your location that morning.”

Suzette
looked up at the ceiling of the holding cell where the heating unit continued
to make annoying noises. “I wish I did because then I wouldn’t be here.”

“Did
you know about the magazine interview with Mona before the meeting the night of
the Historic Commission meeting?”

“Yes.”
Suzette answered. “I overheard Victoria telling Mary Ellen about it right
before we walked into the meeting.” Suzette squinted as she thought back. “Mary
Ellen said something about how she was glad someone else was going to look like
the bad guy on the committee for once.”

“So
they knew about it?” Vivienne wondered aloud. “Most likely because Fiona and
Victoria are so close.”

“Who’s
Fiona?” Suzette asked.

“A
friend of Mona’s from New York City.” Vivienne answered. “She runs the publisher
that produces the online magazine.”

“Mona
said she was having a lawyer look into things.” Suzette offered. “Why would she
show up at the memorial service if she was getting sued for libel? Doesn’t that
seem rather tacky?”

“Maybe
Fiona was snooping around to find out if Richard was still pursuing legal
action?” Vivienne thought aloud.

“Or
maybe Richard wasn’t involved with the legal process at all?” Suzette offered.
“Maybe this was something Mona was pursuing and he didn’t even know about it?”

Vivienne
snapped her fingers. “I never thought of that.”

“Maybe
Fiona was the one who murdered Mona?” Suzette pressed on. “Vivienne, you have
to find out who did this. Don’t let me get sent away to prison for something I
didn’t do.”

“I’m
trying to help out the best way I can.” Vivienne reassured her. “I wish I had
more questions but I can’t think of anymore right now.”

Suzette
reached through the bars and took hold of Vivienne’s hands. “You’ve given me
hope that I’m not going to rot in here. That’s a start.”

Vivienne
suddenly felt light-headed and slumped against the bars of the cell. Everything
faded to black and then she heard voices. People were arguing. Her vision
cleared and she found herself seated in Suzette’s position during the Historic
Commission meeting. She was compelled to chew on her nails as the audience
started to grow restless. The microphone squealed with feedback and she reached
out to cover it with her hands. Another pair of hands reached over hers and she
felt one of her nails break off.

“Vivienne,
can you hear me?” Joshua’s voice called out to her from the crowd.

Vivienne
awoke on the floor of the holding area. She blinked a few times as she came
around to her senses. “What happened?”

“You
fainted.” Suzette replied from the other side of the bars.

Joshua
helped her up from the floor. “Are you okay?”

“I
think so.” Her head was still foggy from the strange vision that had filled her
mind.

Jerry,
the officer on duty, scratched his chin with concern. “Should I call an
ambulance?”

Joshua
put his arm around her shoulders and she leaned against his chest for support.
“No, I’ll take care of her. I think we’ve had enough for tonight.”

“Don’t
forget about me in here.” Suzette pleaded.

Vivienne
gave her a weak nod and walked alongside Joshua and Jerry as they left the
holding cells.

Jerry
returned to his post at the door. “Hope it’s not the flu starting early. I’m
saving my sick time up for when Cynthia has the baby.”

Joshua
helped Vivienne to the elevator. “No, she’s just been running on fumes all week.”

Vivienne
looked up at Jerry as the elevator arrived and the door slid open. “When is the
baby due?”

“Probably
around Christmas time which will work out great come tax season.” Jerry’s eyes
lit up with excitement. “But Cynthia’s hoping it’s after New Years.”

They
stepped into the elevator. “As long as it’s healthy, that’s all that matters.”
Joshua pressed the button to return them to the ground floor.

By
the time they had reached the main lobby, Vivienne was back to feeling like
herself again. “I have to tell you something when we get outside.” She
whispered in Joshua’s ear.

“Okay.”
He whispered back and said goodnight to the officers on duty.

As
they stepped out into the chilly night air outside the Sheriff’s office,
Vivienne felt more alert. “I had a vision of the historic commission meeting.”

“What
did you see?”

“It
was as if I were Suzette sitting in her chair. I saw the microphone and it
started to get that awful feedback.”

“I
remember that happening.” Joshua interrupted. “Werewolf hearing is more sensitive
than human.”

Vivienne
struggled to recall the details. “I put my hands out to cover it up and then
someone put their hands over mine and broke one of my nails.”

“Who
did that?” Joshua asked.

“I
couldn’t see.” Vivienne replied.

“Which
side did the hands come from?”

Vivienne
thought for a moment. “It was Victoria Clemens. She reached out to pull my
hands away.