Wicked Beginning: An Ivy Morgan Mystery Books 1-3 (16 page)

“This is pretty thin.”

Judge Walter Cunningham looked over the documents spread out on his desk in front of him dubiously.

“I understand that, sir,” Brian said, exhaling heavily. “It’s what we have, though, and after last night I’m not sure I feel comfortable with him running around.”

Cunningham rolled his eyes. “We went to school together, Brian. You don’t have to call me ‘sir.’”

“You’re a judge.”

“Your mother once made us take a bath together because we got filthy in a mud pit after a thunderstorm,” Cunningham said.

“We were children.”

“We were eight,” Cunningham said. “I’m still scarred. Don’t call me sir. It bugs me.”

“Fine, Walt,” Brian said. “We need to do something about Hamilton. You see that, right?”

“How sure are you that he’s a murderer?”

“Very,” Brian said.

Cunningham shifted his gaze to Jack. “How sure are you?”

Jack shrugged. “I’m pretty sure. He was clearly trying to hide something when we were up there, and for him to come down here and immediately go after Ivy Morgan … well … that has to mean something.”

“No one saw him put the flowers on Ivy’s porch, though,” Cunningham pointed out. “We don’t know that it was him.”

“Who else?” Jack asked, agitated. “He went after Ivy at the nursery and the flowers were waiting for her when she got home. That can’t be a coincidence.”

“I agree,” Cunningham said. “I just … we still have no direct evidence that points to the victim spending time at Hamilton’s compound.”

“Her parents said she kept talking about him,” Brian said.

“That’s not proof,” Cunningham said. “No one saw any contraband up there, right? No pot?”

Jack shook his head. “Ivy said that Chad was too smart to plant pot out in the open,” he said. “She thought it might be in one of the buildings, but we obviously didn’t get a chance to search it.”

“And why did Ivy Morgan go to question Chad with you again?”

Jack blanched. “I … .”

“I suggested that Ivy might have insight into Chad that we didn’t have,” Brian said. “She dated him for a year.”

“And then she publicly dumped him when he tripped and fell into Maisie,” Cunningham said. “Oh, don’t look surprised, Detective Harker. I may be a judge, but I still keep up on the gossip in Shadow Lake. I happen to be good friends with Michael Morgan.”

“He just got back into town the day before yesterday,” Brian said. “We should call him to get our weekly poker game back going.”

“We should,” Cunningham agreed. “Have you seen him?”

“Not yet.”

“I have,” Jack said, immediately wishing he could pull the words back into his mouth.

“You’ve seen Michael?” Cunningham asked, arching an eyebrow. “How?”

“I … um … he was at Ivy’s house the night I went to talk to her about Chad,” Jack said, opting to leave out their interaction from the previous afternoon. “Her mother invited me to dinner … although ‘insisted’ is probably the better term.”

Cunningham smirked. “That sounds like Luna.” He studied Jack with serious eyes. “Are you and Ivy … ?”

“We’ve just had occasion to bump into each other a few times,” Jack replied stiffly. “We’re not involved.”

Cunningham and Brian exchanged an amused look.

“We’re not,” Jack repeated.

“I believe you,” Cunningham said, holding up his hand. “Okay, here’s what I’m going to do: I’m going to give you a search warrant for items in the Mona Wheeler case. We’re looking for her personal belongings. If you happen to stumble over some pot, that would be great. That would allow me to extend the warrant to everyone on the compound.”

“What about the threat to Ivy?” Jack asked.

“We don’t know Chad is responsible for that,” Cunningham said. “For now, this is the best I can do.”

“I guess we’ll take it,” Jack said. “I’ll meet you out by the car, Brian.”

Once he left the room Cunningham let loose with the laugh he was trying to swallow. “That boy is a goner.”

“Ivy is just as bad,” Brian said. “They’re like bickering little high-schoolers. There are hormones flying in every direction.”

“That’s interesting,” Cunningham said. “I’ve never understood why Ivy is single. Every man in this town who isn’t already married has a crush on her.”

“I wouldn’t pick out wedding gifts just yet,” Brian said. “These two are going to fight it for as long as they can. When they finally do give in, it’s going to be like an explosion.”

“That sounds fun,” Cunningham said, signing the search warrant. “Keep me updated.”

“I’ll tell you what we find at the compound,” Brian said.

“I wasn’t talking about the compound,” Cunningham said. “I’m dying to find out what happens between Detective Harker and Ivy. That whole thing has piqued my interest.”

“You’re like a little old woman,” Brian said.

“I like gossip,” Cunningham agreed. “Now, go and get our murderer. I would really like Ivy Morgan’s dating status to be the biggest thing going on in town by the weekend, if at all possible.”

“You and me both.”

“PLEASE
tell me you have something,” Ivy said, pushing her way into Felicity’s store and plopping down on one of the stools with a dramatic sigh.

“Good morning to you, too, niece,” Felicity said, barely raising her eyes. “Why are you so … fluttery … this morning?”

“I’m not fluttery.”

“You are,” Felicity said. “Your aura is darker than normal.”

“Maybe I’m just in a bad mood. By the way, that aura thing is a cool gift to have. Telling people about it is annoying, though.”

Felicity chuckled. “You really are in a bad mood. What’s wrong? Are you and Jack still fighting?”

“Define fighting.”

“Yelling and scratching at each other.”

“I did some yelling last night.”

Felicity waited.

“I forgave him this morning,” Ivy said. “He can’t help himself. He’s just bossy by nature.”

This time Felicity guffawed. “He spent the night?”

“On the couch,” Ivy said. “I had kind of a situation last night.” Ivy told her aunt about the previous few days, and when she was done, her aunt was all business.

“That is not good,” Felicity said. “I always knew there was something wrong with that Hamilton boy. Didn’t I tell you there was something wrong with him?”

“You’re wise and beautiful,” Ivy deadpanned.

“How did he look?”

“Like he was trying to pretend he was Jesus Christ,” Ivy said. “He’s got this long beard, and his hair is all … snarled and stuff. He also wears robes around. Although, when he came to the nursery yesterday, he was dressed in street clothes.”

“Probably because he didn’t want to stand out,” Felicity said. “He knew robes would draw attention to him. Even though your cottage is set back from the road, someone might have noticed a freak in a robe wandering around.”

“I never thought of that,” Ivy said, rubbing the back of her neck. “I’m more concerned with the symbols on the flowers. Have you found anything?”

“As a matter of fact, I have,” Felicity said.

“Why didn’t you call?”

“Because I just found it this morning,” Felicity said. “Take a chill pill.”

“I hate that saying.”

“I hate your attitude right now,” Felicity said. “You’re a bundle of nerves.”

“That’s because someone left a threatening note with poisonous flowers for me on my front porch last night.”

“That’s only part of it,” Felicity said. “You’re more upset because Jack slept at your house and you had dirty thoughts about him all night.”

“That is not true!”

“I’m your aunt,” Felicity said. “I know you. Don’t bother lying to me.”

“I don’t know what it is with everyone in my life, but I don’t have feelings for Jack Harker,” Ivy said. “He’s just a police detective I’m being forced to spend time with.”

“Your nose is growing.”

“I … shut up.”

Felicity sighed and finally focused all of her attention on her niece. “It’s okay to like him. He’s an attractive man. He’s also very pleasant and smart.”

“He’s not looking for a relationship. Neither am I.”

“You don’t have to be looking. One just might find you both.”

“Whatever,” Ivy said. “I’m not having this conversation again. What did you find on the symbols?”

“I’m going to let this go, but only for now,” Felicity said. “A murder investigation is more important than your love life. Once it’s solved, though, you and I are going to have a very long chat about your attitude.”

“I can’t wait.”

“About the symbols, though, there’s a reason we thought they looked familiar but we didn’t recognize them,” Felicity said. “I ran them through my computer program, and since I’ve scanned most of my text and reference books I expected to find a hit there. When I didn’t, I got frustrated.

“Just like you, I knew darned well I’d seen those symbols before,” she continued. “On a whim, I opened the search up to all the books I’ve scanned. That’s when I got a hit.”

“I’m waiting for the big reveal,” Ivy said. “It’s like I’m on a soap opera. The only thing we’re missing is the dramatic music and people talking to themselves out in the open.”

Felicity made a face. “Sleeping with Jack might do wonders for your attitude, missy.”

“I’m sorry,” Ivy said, holding up her hands in mock surrender. “I didn’t sleep well last night. I’m tired and grumpy. That’s not your fault.”

“I still think you should sleep with Jack.”

“Auntie … .” Ivy was exasperated.

Felicity graced her with a soft smile. “The symbols are from
The Covenant
.”

Ivy frowned, racking her brain. “I … what is that?”

“It’s that book you brought to me when you were in high school,” Felicity said. “Don’t you remember?”

“You’re going to have to be more specific. I brought you hundreds of books.”

“It was the one I was upset about,” Felicity said.

Ivy furrowed her brow. “The one with all the sex?”

“I wasn’t upset about that book.”

“You confiscated it.”

“That’s because I wanted to read it,” Felicity said. “I just didn’t want you to think I was a pervert. You were at an impressionable age. This is the one that you thought was a real pagan text, but it turned out to be fiction.”

“Oh,” Ivy said, her expression thoughtful. “I forgot all about that book. I remember I was upset because I thought it was real. It had all those symbols in it, and it was talking about Wicca like it was a way to excuse doing evil things to one another. You were the one that pointed out it was just fiction masquerading as non-fiction.”

“There were some dangerous ideas in that book,” Felicity said. “That’s why … well … I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised that someone tried to take the ideas from that book and pervert them for their own means … but this is something else.”

“Did you find out what the symbols mean in the book?”

“Well, that’s also interesting,” Felicity said, moving behind her laptop and pressing a few buttons. “See here? From what I can tell these symbols are basically nonsense – other than the fact that all of them have to do with sex in the book. Do you remember what symbols you got on your card?”

“The same ones.”

“That means someone is looking at you in a sexual manner.”

“I … are you sure?”

“I’m not sure,” Felicity said. “I just know that a girl was found dead in your yard and she had these symbols carved into her body. Now you’ve gotten a card with the same symbols. Someone is clearly interested in you.”

“Chad?”

“I have no idea,” Felicity said. “You know very well I’m not clairvoyant. Your gifts are stronger in that arena, even though you refuse to use them. We still need to have a conversation about that, by the way. You need to be very careful until this is sorted out, though.”

“Maybe I should ask Max to stay with me,” Ivy mused, tension building in her shoulders.

“You could ask Jack.”

“You’re no longer my favorite aunt.”

Felicity shrugged, unruffled. “Ask him. I think it might be fun. It will probably help with that grumpy thing you’ve got going on.”

“And, on that note, I’m leaving.”

“Take the book to Jack when you go,” Felicity said. “It will give you an excuse to see him without looking desperate.”

“I really hate you sometimes.”

“I love you, too.”

“Have a seat, Mr. Hamilton.”

Chad’s expression was murderous as he regarded Brian and Jack with utter hatred. After delivering the search warrant to the compound, the investigators searched the barracks. And while they didn’t find a bounty of pot like they were hoping, they did find Mona Wheeler’s wallet hidden under a pile of clothes. It wasn’t much, but it was enough to get the extended search warrant and take Chad in for questioning.

Jack was taking it as a win. Now he just had to break Chad. He was up for the challenge.

“I don’t recognize your authority,” Chad said. “You have no power over me.”

“Great,” Jack said, nonplussed. “Take a seat. You’re going to be here for a little while. You might want to get comfortable.”

“I’m fine standing.”

“Suit yourself,” Jack said, flipping through his file. “Mr. Hamilton, can you explain why Mona Wheeler’s wallet was found on your property?”

“I’m not answering your questions.”

“That’s your prerogative,” Jack said. “Why don’t we tell you what we suspect and go from there. How does that sound?”

“It sounds like you’re trying to infringe on my religious rights.”

“Let’s start with the fact that Mona Wheeler’s parents told us she was spouting some of your … platitudes … on visits home over the past few months. Can you explain that?”

“They’re not platitudes,” Chad snapped. “They’re tenets of our faith.”

“Can you explain this whole … passengers … thing to me?”

“Who told you about that?” Chad asked, his eyes narrowed.

“Mona told her parents.”

“I … that’s why she was banned from our group,” Chad said. “She didn’t follow the rules. She was incapable of it.”

If Jack didn’t know better, he would think the compound guru was talking to himself. “When was Mona banned?”

Chad scowled. “A few weeks ago. She kept telling absolute strangers about our faith. It was like she was bragging. We don’t brag at Covenant.”

Jack frowned. “What is Covenant?”

“That’s the name of our home,” Chad said.

“Who named it that?”

“God.”

Brian and Jack exchanged a look.

“I see,” Jack said. “Does God talk to you?”

“God talks to all of us if we open our hearts,” Chad said, sinking into a chair and embracing what could only be described as a masterful performance. “Have you considered opening yourself to God, Detective Harker?”

“Sure,” Jack said, not missing a beat. “I would love to open myself to God. Do I have to be a passenger to do it?”

“You don’t even understand what you’re saying,” Chad seethed. “Human beings cannot be passengers. Passengers come from another world. They were never born of this one.”

“Well, that sounds fun,” Jack said. “Are you a passenger?”

“I am the Promise.”

“The promise of what?”

“The future.”

“I don’t know what that means,” Jack said.

“That’s because you’re not enlightened,” Chad said. “You’re of this world. You cannot understand the fathomless energy of all the others.”

“You just spout nonsense out of your rear end these days, don’t you?” Brian interrupted the conversation. “I know your parents, Chad. You were born of this world, too.”

“That’s just the lie they told to cover up the miracle of my birth.”

“You’ve flipped your lid,” Brian said. “It’s sad. I know what happened to you as a teenager threw you off course, but this is just … .”

“He doesn’t believe it,” Jack said.

“Of course I believe it,” Chad snapped. “I am the Promise.”

“You’re running a scam,” Jack countered. “You’ve managed to convince a whole bunch of people – most of them female, mind you – that you’re something special. You’ve created a religion that allows you to live off the grid. That’s how you like it.

“You have other people doing all the work,” he continued. “They plant the fields. They irrigate them. They harvest them. Meanwhile, you sit around on your paper throne and pretend you have some insight into the grand scheme of things.

“You target women who you think are going to be easily manipulated,” Jack said. “You convince them you have the answers about an afterlife, which is something they’re desperate for. I’m guessing you use your power to get them into bed. Are you trying to father a bunch of kids? Or is the sex enough on its own?”

Chad slammed his hand down on the desk. “Don’t you dare blaspheme my faith.”

“Shut up,” Jack snapped. “You’re not fooling me. Personally, I don’t care what you’re doing up there as long as you’re not doing it to kids and you’re not ripping people off. It’s not my problem.

“What I am interested in is Mona Wheeler,” he continued. “Why did you kill her?”

“I didn’t kill her,” Chad said, his voice plaintive. “I would never do something like that.”

“You banned her.”

“Only because she kept telling people our secrets,” Chad said. “Honestly, I liked Mona. She had a lot of … energy.”

“Meaning you had sex with her,” Jack said. “Nice.”

“No one is forced into anything,” Chad said. “Everything is voluntary. We only give people who are interested in our faith, and who have passed the first five rungs of ascension, tours. I’m not stupid. Mona was well on her way … and then she fell off the wagon.”

“What happened?”

“We found out she was down at the local high school trying to recruit people,” Chad said. “That’s not how we work.”

“What did Mona do when you told her she was banned?”

“She pitched a fit,” Chad said. “She said she was going to tell everyone that we were doing freaky sexual rites up at the compound.”

“Were you?”

“Absolutely not,” Chad said. “Given the rules of our faith, only the Promise is allowed to engage in sexual acts.”

“That’s why there are so few men up there,” Brian said. “Men are less likely to forego  sexual gratification than women.”

“I gratify the women,” Chad said. “Don’t you doubt it.”

He was boastful. He was used to women falling at his feet. It started when he was a teenager, Jack realized. Once he lost his athletic scholarship his popularity started to fade. This was the idea he’d come up with to put himself back on a pedestal. “Why did you go after Ivy? She’s never going to be malleable enough to be a member of your harem.”

“I didn’t go after Ivy,” Chad said. “I talked to her. There’s a difference.”

“You grabbed her and threatened her,” Jack countered. “That’s going after her.”

“She said some nasty things to me that were completely untrue,” Chad said. “I never threatened her.”

“You seemed interested in giving her a tour of your compound.”

“She’s hot,” Chad said, shrugging. “She’s always been hot. She’s also open to alternative ways of living, and she doesn’t cast stones. I thought she might want to expand her horizons.”

“You thought she might give the Promise another shot in the sack,” Jack said. “At least be honest.”

“Fine. She’s hot. She’s a complete and total bitch, though. She told me she was never in love with me. Can you believe that?”

“Quite easily,” Jack said, causing Brian to snicker.

“She was in love with me,” Chad said. “I crushed her when I broke up with her. She’s still pining for me.”

“She broke up with you,” Brian said. “She caught you using your little … promise … with Maisie. Every teenager in town saw her dump you.”

“Whatever,” Chad said. “The gossip mill in this town is absolutely ridiculous.”

“You’re ridiculous,” Jack said. “Why did you leave those flowers on Ivy’s porch last night? Was it a threat? Were you planning on going back to her house after you scared her a little bit?”

“What flowers?”

“Don’t do that,” Jack said, extending his finger. “The symbols carved into Mona Wheeler’s body were the exact same symbols on the card. We know it was you.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” Chad said. “I would never go after anyone. I would never murder anyone.”

“You still haven’t told us what happened when you told Mona she was banned,” Brian pointed out.

“She freaked out,” Chad said. “She yelled at me and called me a fraud and then she said she was going to leave that night. That’s the last time I saw her. I swear.”

Jack didn’t believe him. He was spinning an elaborate story – but it was still a story. There was very little truth to his words. “I … .”

The sound of someone knocking on the office door – Shadow Lake was too small for an interrogation room – caused Jack to shift his attention. Ivy was on the other side, and he could see her peering in through the small window. “What the … ?”

“I’ve got her,” Brian said, getting to his feet.

“Are you going to let her come in here and be mean to me again?” Chad asked. “Is that why she’s here?”

“Shut up,” Jack said, rolling his eyes.

Brian let Ivy into the room. She was excited, and she was clutching a book close to her chest. “I know what the symbols are.”

Jack lifted his eyebrows, surprised. “You figured it out?”

“Aunt Felicity did,” Ivy conceded.

“Ivy, do you want to call your guard dog off?” Chad asked, fixing her with a look. “He’s jealous of our relationship. That’s why he brought me in.”

“I told you to shut up,” Jack said before turning back to Ivy. “What do the symbols mean?”

“May I?”

Jack took a step back and let her move over to the table. He kept an eye on Chad. The man would never get his hands on her if he lunged, Jack would make sure of that, but he still wasn’t taking any chances.

“The symbols weren’t from reference books,” Ivy said. “They were from a fiction book called
The Covenant.”

“Well, that’s interesting,” Jack said, shooting a look at Chad. “Your ex-boyfriend here just told us the name of his compound was Covenant.”

“Don’t call him that,” Ivy said. “You know I don’t like it.”

“I’m sorry, honey.”

“Stop that, too.”

Jack rolled his eyes until they landed on Brian, who was smirking in his direction. Jack immediately stiffened his shoulders. “What about the symbols?”

“Well, as far as we can tell, they’re mostly nonsense,” Ivy said, opening the book to the page Felicity marked. “All the symbols carved into Mona’s body – and the ones left at my house – are of a sexual nature.”

“Go figure,” Jack said. “Chad is the only one at the compound allowed to have sex.”

“Is that why there are no other men?”

“Yup.”

“You’re a pig,” Ivy said, glaring at Chad.

“You’re just jealous that they get my attention and you don’t,” Chad said. “Admit it.”

“Chad, you were bad in bed when we were teenagers,” Ivy said. “Now that you think you’re king of the hill, I’m betting you’re worse. Now … shut up and let the adults talk.” She patted his head condescendingly, forcing Jack to snag her hand and move her away from Chad.

“Don’t touch him,” Jack scolded.

“Why? Do you think he’ll hurt me?”

“It’s just tacky.”

Ivy smirked. “Has he admitted to killing Mona?”

“He says it wasn’t him.”

“What about leaving the flowers and note for me?”

Jack shook his head. “He says no.”

“Do you believe him?”

“What do you think?”

“I think you should lock him up and throw away the key,” Ivy said.

“Do you know what your problem is, Ivy?” Chad asked. “You’re a bitter woman. Losing the great love of your life has closed you off to the possibilities of life. Do you have a close relationship with God?”

“If you don’t stop doing that I’m going to thump you,” Jack warned.

“And I’m going to turn around and pretend I don’t hear,” Brian said. “Just … shut up, Chad. You’re not doing yourself any favors.”

Chad crossed his arms over his chest. “Are we done here? I need to get back to the compound. I have a schedule to keep, and if I screw it up all of my women fight over me.”

“There’s not much to fight about,” Ivy said, holding her index finger and thumb about an inch apart for emphasis.

“That’s a lie,” Chad hissed.

Jack shook his head to still Chad when he reached for his belt. It almost looked as if he was about to put on a show for Ivy’s benefit. “Don’t even think about it.”

“I’m leaving,” Chad said, getting to his feet.

“No, you’re not,” Brian said. “You’re here for questioning, and we’re not done asking questions yet.”

“Fine,” Chad said, wrinkling his nose. “Then I want a lawyer.”

Jack and Brian glanced at each other, deflating. If Chad was going to lawyer up, this was going to be a much longer night than either one of them was initially anticipating.