Chapter 18 #2
“She had concerns. About the Celestine Coven. Wil joined it after divorcing that man.” Martha practically spat the last word.
“I was happy for her, getting out from under his thumb. I told her he was bad news from the start, but Wil was always the sort to make up her own mind. The coven was how she finally did it. Say what you will about witches, but they support their own. When she decided it was time to leave that scoundrel behind, they showed up to help her. Of course, that’s how she ended up losing custody of her son.
I don’t think she realized how truly reprehensible her ex was until he used her coven status against her.
He got full custody, and she…well, she wasn’t really the same after that. ”
This was news to Arthur. He’d admittedly had an unkind thought or two about Wilhelmina abandoning her son with Trip Young, but, as with so many things, the whole truth was a lot more complicated.
“Strange that she turned on the coven after they helped her,” Arthur said. “You’d think she’d have more loyalty.” There was likely more to this story, too.
“Loyalty’s a bit of a one-way street with Ambrosia.” Martha grimaced.
“What do you mean?” Sal asked, words dripping with intrigue.
“Nothing, really. It doesn’t matter.” Martha shook her head and plowed on.
“Wil was pretty cagey when she came to see me. She asked if I knew anything, and of course I had no idea what she was talking about. I figured if she came to me, she must’ve meant something to do with the financials, but those were all in order and I told her as much. ”
“She wasn’t the only one to suspect such a thing,” Arthur said. “The coven is currently under investigation for fraud.”
“That’s news to me.” Martha’s eyebrows rose. “If they’ve been defrauding people, I wasn’t aware, though I am technically an outsider to the coven itself. I only handle the financial side of things.”
“So, Wilhelmina didn’t come to you about that?
” Arthur asked, confused. It would have made sense if Wilhelmina had uncovered some unsavory business practices.
She might have confronted Ambrosia only to be brutally murdered for it.
What Lola had to do with that, he didn’t yet know, but the theory held more water than anything else they’d considered thus far.
“No. It took a while, but I eventually got her to tell me her real concerns. She kept asking about Ambrosia’s travel and what business deductions she was making where. It was clear she suspected Ambrosia of more than fudging numbers.”
Even Sal was engaged now, despite the several mentions of accounting bureaucracy. “What did Ambrosia do?” he asked eagerly.
“She…Well, Wil suspected her of practicing forbidden magic.”
“No!” Sal gasped.
“Yes, I’m afraid so,” Martha said softly.
“What kind of forbidden magic?” Arthur didn’t know much about witches and the legality of spells, but that certainly sounded, well, not allowed.
“Was it love spells?” Sal asked, nearly giddy. “Mind control? Copyright infringement?”
“She…” Martha bit her lower lip, then continued to speak fitfully, as if forcing out the words. “Wil claimed—and I don’t know if she was right or wrong about this—she claimed Ambrosia used a spell to steal another witch’s magic.”
Now Arthur joined Sal in a dramatic inhalation. That was a very serious allegation.
“Did Wilhelmina have proof?” Arthur asked.
“I don’t think so. But she said Ambrosia’s magic was waning, and…” Martha trailed off.
“And?” Arthur held on to his notebook and pen to keep from reaching across the coffee table and shaking the rest out of Martha. It was clearly difficult for her, but it took all his self-control to be patient as Martha told her tale.
“And Ambrosia would need to perform the spell again, to steal more magic.”
Arthur and Sal both stared at Martha with open mouths.
Martha continued with more confidence, bolstered perhaps by their rapt attention. “Wil told me she suspected Ambrosia would return to Trident Falls to do it.”
“Why?” Arthur asked reflexively.
“Something about her connection being strongest where she was born, maybe?” Martha gave a self-conscious laugh. “Sorry, I don’t really understand witchcraft myself.”
Arthur gaped, his mind racing. He’d thought it odd that Ambrosia strongly denied having grown up here.
It went beyond a celebrity’s desire to hide her humble origin.
Maybe this was why—she was bound to this place because it would allow her to effectively steal magic.
Hiding her history would help her hide the truth.
But there was still the matter of Ambrosia’s magic itself.
Arthur had suspected her of having no power at all, but her performance at the festival had debunked that particular theory.
She was clearly a witch, but she might be a weak one.
Her fraud was all about using others—either to make potions or to steal their magic.
Wilhelmina, it seemed—wherever she was—agreed with his line of thinking.
If she’d suspected Ambrosia of faking her magical prowess, too, maybe Arthur was wrong to dismiss the idea so quickly.
That was, assuming Wilhelmina was right about Ambrosia’s use of forbidden magic.
Her disappearance shortly after confiding in Martha supported the veracity of the claim, unfortunately.
Arthur had wondered why Ambrosia would hurt members of her own coven. This was more than reason enough.
“Did Wilhelmina tell you she planned to confront Ambrosia?” Arthur asked.
Martha shook her head. “No. She was still trying to get proof together. That’s why she asked me about Ambrosia’s travel history. I didn’t have many details—she was looking for information from almost a decade ago, which I don’t keep. I shred everything after six years.”
“Was that the last time you spoke to Wilhelmina?” Arthur asked, braced for the answer.
“Yes.” Martha’s eyes grew wide. “Do you think—?”
“We can’t be sure.” Arthur’s instinct was to reassure her, though he had a sinking feeling Ambrosia caught on to Wilhelmina’s investigation and silenced her. Lola might have found out about the magic theft or Wilhelmina’s disappearance, or both, and met the same fate.
“I thought Wil left the coven of her own choice…” Martha whispered, as if to herself. “But she would have come back. If she knew about what happened with Trip Young, there’s nothing that would stop her returning to Brody. But if she…and I could’ve stopped it somehow…”
“Don’t be silly,” Sal chimed in. “If someone wants to murder someone else, it’s basically impossible to prevent it happening. Why, an old friend of mine had enemies who wanted him dead, and I foiled a few attempts, but ol’ Franz refused to play it safe—”
“Now’s not the time for a story,” Arthur told Sal, though he almost asked what Franz’s last name had been, and whether or not Sal might’ve prevented a world war.
“Right, right. There’s a murderer to catch!” Sal focused on Martha.
“Is there anything else you can tell us about Ambrosia? Or the spell she used?” Arthur asked.
Martha shook herself out of her shock. “No, I’m sorry. You’ll have to ask a witch about that.”
Arthur supposed she was right. Fortunately, he knew just the witch to ask.