Chapter 16 #2
I’d considered my fae powers more acceptable than my other side. I thought my witch heritage tainted my fae powers. Ancient texts and pastors at the pulpit conveyed that message. But I no longer believed that.
“I’m a witch, Mom, as are you. And we shouldn’t need to change who we are to be accepted. It’s those who regard us as lesser who must change. That’s what I believe.” I turned to go and find Frank.
Mom came nearer to me, looking frantic. “Come back and undo this right this instant.”
“Sorry. I won’t.”
She took one more urgent step before faltering. “Oh, what is to become of us? My poor nerves. My poor, poor nerves.”
Across the crowd, my heartbeat steadied when I met Frank’s gaze. I headed straight to him and took his hand.
“Did it work?” he asked.
“It worked.”
His fingers gave mine a gentle squeeze. “Mary…”
But his voice trailed off at the sound of sirens. We looked up and saw three police cars pull up with lights flashing.
What now?
I did a double take when Marge stepped out of the police car.
She spoke to one of the officers and he nodded.
They walked up to Lydia and said something, then started handcuffing her.
The surrounding crowd had paused in their festivities and were staring, whispers and murmurs breaking out among them.
I heard one lady say, “Marge works with law enforcement? Since when?”
I guess I wasn’t the only one surprised.
I pulled Frank with me, hurrying over to the police and my sister. “What’s going on?” I asked, utterly confused.
“Hello again, Mary Bennet.” The old woman’s hair shone silver in the daylight and she wore a sweater with a werewolf on it that read You’re Paws-itively Spooky.
“I’m a witch detective who consults with the magical authorities on crime cases.
It turns out that there was more to this case than met the eye. Evidence of witch involvement.”
I stared at her. “You… you knew I was a witch all along. You came to the cemetery to talk to me.”
“And to see Johnny. Always to see Johnny.”
I backed up a step, realizing why she’d initially approached me. “You found evidence of the possession potion, even before identifying the werewolf’s DNA.”
Marge’s eyes widened. “And how do you know about that?”
I glanced at Lydia, the handcuffs on her wrists, and understood what I had to do.
I dropped Frank’s hand and motioned Marge away from the crowd.
She nodded and followed. Kitty came in close as well.
Despite being out of earshot, I felt everyone’s gaze on me, causing my cheeks to warm.
“Lydia didn’t kill Isabella. Mom did,” I said quietly.
Lydia, still within hearing distance, gave me a death glare.
Kitty let out a sharp gasp. “Mom?” she exclaimed, much too loudly. Her hands flew over her mouth, her eyes wide.
The crowd’s murmurs grew louder.
“And what is your basis for that assertion?” Marge asked softly.
I looked at her. “Because possession potion has a short shelf life, which means it can only be used on the day it’s brewed. I wasn’t there that morning of the murder. I was at my internship. And Lydia had exited the house before I even left.”
Marge glanced at Lydia, but pulled out an old notebook and flipped it open. “Another person I spoke with indicated she stayed home? A Marianne Dashwood?”
“Marianne Dashwood… we were sneaking out to go hot tubbing with some guys at some estates around town.” Lydia said. “We don’t… always have permission, so we usually don’t tell people. If someone asks, we say we spent the morning at home.”
Marge clicked a pen and wrote down the information.
“The only ones at the store were Kitty and my mom, who brewed potions in the morning. My sister Kitty has been having difficulty brewing of late. A love potion gone wrong—”
“Turns into a potion of possession.” The woman’s eyes narrowed. “But Lydia wasn’t away the entire day.”
“No, she returned to the shop briefly, meeting with Isabella, who asked her to deliver a drought of wolfsbane to a local werewolf.”
Marge regarded Lydia carefully. “Who’s the local werewolf?”
My heart pounded. And I directed my gaze to Lydia. Her gaze shifted into the crowd where Frank stood nearby, watching. Duchess was with him, curling around his leg. “I never met him. I dropped it off and left. There was no name and I never witnessed who retrieved it.”
Relief flowed through my veins. I owed Lydia big time.
“And when Isabella gave you the potion?” Marge asked.
“She gave it to me and I put it in my bag,” Lydia said.
“Did you ever leave your bag unattended?” I pressed.
Lydia pursed her lips. “Don’t I need a lawyer or something?”
“She told me that she left it behind the counter when she went to the bathroom,” I said quickly.
Anger sparked in Lydia’s eyes. After everything, she was still trying to protect Mom. And I sought to protect Lydia.
Marge turned to Kitty. “Where were you when Lydia was at the shop?”
“I-I was at the library doing schoolwork. I didn’t see Lydia until later that night,” she said, her face pale and eyes wide in horror.
The older woman scribbled on her notepad, then faced me. “Why was Isabella making wolfsbane in the first place?”
I shrugged. “Maybe she was being a helpful person.”
“Isabella’s parents stated that she’d long been in love with a Charles Bingley.
They also cited Lydia Bennet as a good friend of hers.
” She looked at me. “And when you mentioned the financial straits of your family, it gave me the last piece of motivation that I needed. After all, a marriage of your oldest sister to a high-born fae could really improve your family’s fortunes, couldn’t they? ”
“Financial straits?” Lydia said, surprised. “What is she talking about, Mary?”
I was the one who’d given everything away. I gave Marge the missing piece she needed to link it all to our family. Both guilt and relief battled inside me at once.
“Okay, we will need to take you all to the station and get your statements.” Marge turned to one officer standing nearby. “Arrest the mom.”
“No!” Lydia stated. “I refuse to give my statement.”
Marge tapped her pen on her pad in annoyance. “We may have to deliver a subpoena.”
“After I get a lawyer,” Lydia said. I could already see the wheels working in her head. I wasn’t a lawyer, but I wondered if she had enough grounds to plead the fifth since anything she shared could possibly incriminate herself as well. Brewing wolfsbane was technically illegal.
“Fine, but Kitty and Mary, if you want to get your sister off, then you better come with me,” Marge said.
I grabbed Kitty’s arm and tugged her forward. “Come on.”
“I don’t understand,” Kitty whispered, pale-faced and shocked. “How can it have been Mom?”
“She used your potion. The one you’ve been struggling with for weeks now. I’m sorry.”
“We’ll have to transport you in separate cars,” a police officer said.
I shoved my sister ahead of me. Her confusion would be helpful in making sure no fingers got pointed at her. “Go Kitty, I’ll see you there.”
Just as we were about to get in the police car, I glanced over my shoulder and noticed Lizzy and Jane pushing their way through the crowd and staring at us in shock. I slid onto the pleather seats of the patrol car. That conversation would have to wait until later.