A Hint of Magic (18 page)

“I thought I told you to leave.”

When Ted turned around, he didn’t look happy to see Clarissa standing there.  But she stood her ground, not shying away as he glared at her.  She knew he was about to get a whole lot less happy.  She just hoped she knew what she was doing.

“You did it,” she blurted out.  By now Parker and Shane were right behind her.

Ted set down the garbage bag he was holding.  “What are you talking about?”

“You killed Greg,” Clarissa announced.

“That’s crazy!” Shane exclaimed from out in the hallway, having heard the bold accusation.

Ted stared at her long and hard.  “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Oh, but I think I do.  You’re the big brother.  You’re the good son, the model citizen.  You do everything right.  And yet when Greg came back to town,
he
was the one Shane looked up to. 
He
was the one Shane idolized.  Admit it:  you resented Greg.”

“It wasn’t like that,” Ted objected.  “Like I said, you don’t know the half of it.”

“So tell me,” Clarissa shot back.  “What don’t I understand?”

Ted’s face darkened.  “Greg came back here a different person than when he left.  Over the years he got mean.  He got strung out on steroids and whatever other drugs he was taking.  He used people.  He didn’t have any respect for our mother.  He barged in and took over the whole house.  That was how Greg was in the end – entitled and selfish.”

Clarissa made a sympathetic face.  “That must have been hard to watch.”

“It was,” Ted agreed.  “He left here my goofy, chess-obsessed kid brother.  But when he came back, that kid was gone.  He was a bad influence on Shane, encouraging him to smoke and take dangerous diet pills.  And he was draining my mother’s savings account.”

“He was?” Shane piped up from the hallway.  “I didn’t know that.”

“I didn’t tell you.  I was trying to protect you.  I was trying to protect everyone,” Ted said with a sigh, his broad shoulders slumping in defeat.  “It was exhausting.  And the one person I couldn’t protect was Greg.  I couldn’t save him from himself.”

“Why did your mother put up with Greg’s antics?” Parker asked, stepping into the room.

“She’s too much of an optimist for her own good,” Ted sighed.  “She kept hoping he would come around.  And besides, he was her son.  She wanted to help him.  She was all but blind to his faults.  For a while there I felt like I must be crazy – it seemed I was the only one who saw him for what he truly was.”

“What happened the night of the party, Ted?” Clarissa asked.

The eldest Klassen brother’s face was ashen now.  He drew in a ragged, shuddering breath before speaking.  “I heard Greg was taking Shane to a party.  I was concerned.  Shane…well, Shane’s not really the type to go to parties.  No offence, bud,” he added, addressing his kid brother.

“So you decided what, to go check up on them?” Parker guessed.

“Yes,” Ted nodded.  “I bought a costume that would hide my face.  Then I went to the party, just to make sure everything was going okay.  I was hopeful.  I mean, it had been a long time since the three of us had done anything fun together…years.  I thought maybe if all was well, I could hang out for a bit.  But that’s not what happened.”

“What did happen?”

Ted sighed.  “I got there and Shane was nowhere to be seen.  Greg was acting like an idiot.  He kept trying to hit on some girl who clearly didn’t want anything to do with him.  He was being creepy.  So I pulled him aside, intending to have a word with him.”

“I don’t imagine he responded well to being scolded?” Clarissa wagered.

“No.  We exchanged words.  Things got heated.  I ended up confronting him about what he was doing – leading Shane astray, financially abusing Mom…all of it.  I told him he needed to get his life together.  I said all sorts of things,” Ted said, his voice cracking.  “I didn’t know…”

“You didn’t know what?” Clarissa urged gently.

“I didn’t know that would be the last night I’d ever see him alive.  I wish I could take it back.  I wish I could take it all back,” Ted lamented.  He sat down on the pullout bed and dropped his head into his hands.

Clarissa crouched down in front of him.  “Look at me,” she urged.

Reluctantly, Ted raised his head.

She stared into his watery, red eyes.  “You killed Greg, didn’t you?”

Wordlessly, Ted nodded.  Then he looked over at Shane, who was standing in the doorway looking completely stunned.  “I’m sorry,” he said earnestly.  “I’m sorry you had to find out this way and I’m sorry it happened in the first place.”

All the color had drained from Shane’s face.  He stared at his older brother as though he couldn’t quite process what was happening.  He suddenly appeared to lose his balance and stumbled, crashing into the door frame. 

Parker rushed to Shane’s side and helped steady him.  Clarissa was struck by how young and weak Shane appeared next to the good looking newspaper heir.  Or maybe it was that Parker looked so in control and strong…he really was an amazing guy.

Once Shane had recovered, Parker led him over to the desk.  He pulled out the chair and motioned for Shane to sit down, presumably so the youngest Klassen brother wouldn’t fall and injure himself.  Once he was seated, the color slowly returned to Shane’s cheeks.

“What am I going to do?” Ted moaned.

“You need to turn yourself in,” Clarissa urged.  “Take responsibility for what you did.  Own up to it.  If you cooperate with the police, maybe a judge will take it into consideration when you’re sentenced.”

“We’ll go to the police station with you, if you like,” Parker offered. 

Ted nodded.  “Yes please.”

“You returned my earring to me, didn’t you?” Clarissa asked quietly as the four of them made their way out to the car.  “Was the note supposed to scare me off?”

Ted looked apologetic.  “I saw you run out of our house.  I was on the roof inspecting the gutters.  I saw you sprint out into the backyard and go down the back alley.  I figured you had been lurking around snooping, trying to get material for your newspaper.  When I found your earring inside, I decided to send you a warning to back off.”

Clarissa nodded.  “I figured as much.  Believe it or not, that’s the first time in my life I’ve ever received a death threat,” she joked, because she had a somewhat morbid sense of humor.

“It wasn’t a death threat,” he assured her.  “It was only a warning to mind your own business.”

“Good to know.  The note didn’t exactly spell that out for me.”

“Sorry,” Ted told her.  “I didn’t mean to make you think your life was in danger.”

“Did you mean to kill Greg?”

“Not at first,” Ted replied.  “We started fighting.  I’m an athletic guy, but Greg was holding his own.  It caught me off guard.  He was fighting dirty, too.  I was scared one or both of us would wind up getting hurt.  I tied him up with something I found lying in the grass.”

“A lasso?” she asked.

“Yeah, that.  I figured he’d cool off, I’d release him and that would be the end of the matter.”

“Then what happened?” she pressed gently.

“Greg knew it was me under the costume.  He recognized my voice.”

“What happened?” she asked.

“He started taunting me.  He started saying all these vile, hateful things and I just lost it.  I already knew he was being a bad influence on Shane.  And he started bragging that he was draining our mother’s savings account dry.  She’s always been too trusting…too generous.”

“Greg was taking advantage of that,” Clarissa observed.

“Yes,” Ted agreed.  “I felt like I had to protect my family from him.”

“And then?”

“And then I…I pushed him into the water to shut him up.”  Ted’s lower lip was quivering now.  “I held him there until he stopped struggling.  It was like I was operating on autopilot.  I held his head down until he drowned.  When I realized what I had done, I panicked and ran away.”

Ted had to stop talking then.  His voice was cracking too much for him to continue.

Clarissa wordlessly reached over and gave him a comforting pat on the back.  She truly didn’t believe he was an evil person.  At his core he was a protective son and brother who had made a terrible mistake.  It was tragic, but it didn’t make him a monster.

“Good morning!  I hope I didn’t wake you?”

Clarissa had to smile at her aunt’s comment.  It was before 8 a.m. on a Saturday.  Trust quirky Matilda to phone at strange hours.  Under different circumstances, a call that early in the morning would have definitely woken Clarissa up…but not today.

“Nope, you didn’t wake me up,” Clarissa reassured her aunt.

“Busy working on your newspaper, hmm?”

It was a good guess, but not an accurate one.  “Not today,” Clarissa replied.

“You’re finally all caught up, are you?”

“Far from it, but I need some balance in my life.  I’ve decided to hire an assistant,” Clarissa informed her aunt cheerfully.  “I crunched the numbers and I think I can afford to delegate some work.  I actually have an interview lined up next week with someone who seems promising.”

“That’s great!” Matilda exclaimed.  “It means you’ll have more time to hang out with me.”

“Hopefully,” Clarissa replied.

“What are you doing this afternoon?” Matilda asked eagerly.  “I know a great Mexican restaurant if you feel like driving into the city.  The taco salad there comes in one of those gigantic edible bowls.  Mmm, it’s so good! 
All
bowls should be edible if you ask me.”

“They should,” Clarissa agreed, though she wasn’t sure how practical that would be.  “But I can’t make it for lunch today,” she added apologetically.  “I have plans this afternoon.  Maybe we can get together next weekend?”

“Sure thing,” Matilda agreed.  “You let me know what works for you.”

“I will.” 

“So I’m dying to know, what did you need that spell for the other day?” Matilda asked.

“What spell?”

“You sent me a text asking how to cast a flatulence spell,” Matilda reminded her.  “Who did you cast the spell on?  There has to be a story there!  Tell me!  I love a good old fashioned revenge tale,” she cackled.

“Oh, that!” Clarissa giggled.  “I almost forgot.  There’s this girl I went to high school with, Kimmy.  She’s insufferable…stuck up and mean and catty.  You know the type.  I cast the spell on her.  She had it coming.”

“I love it!” Matilda cheered.  “See?  Being a witch is fun
and
useful!”

Clarissa glanced out the window as she heard Parker’s car pull up.  Immediately, her heart skipped a beat.  “I hate to cut our conversation short, but my uh…someone is here.  I have to go,” she told her aunt regretfully. 

“No problem.  You have a great day and I’ll talk to you –
wait
!”

Clarissa’s eyes widened as Matilda practically screamed out that last word.  “What is it?!” she gasped, momentarily alarmed by the urgency in her aunt’s voice.  “What’s wrong?!”

“I nearly forgot about why I was calling you in the first place,” her scatterbrained aunt laughed.  “I was talking with some friends late last night.  You know, during a séance.  I’m friends with some of the ghosts I chat with,” she explained, as if that was perfectly normal.

“Uh huh,” Clarissa murmured, secretly wondering for the millionth time if her aunt was, perhaps, just a tiny bit insane.  Then, as the cat summersaulted into the living room and began chasing its own tail, she began to wonder if it, too, wasn’t quite right in the head.

“I’ll have to introduce you to my friends sometime,” Matilda said, chattering away.

Clarissa was only half-listening now. 

She stared out the window as Parker got out of his shiny red sports car.  Today he was wearing work clothes instead of his usual semi-casual business attire.  He looked every bit as good in a hooded sweatshirt and jeans as he did in his wool button up trench coat. 

She couldn’t imagine him ever
not
looking good.

“Anyway, there was a message for you,” Matilda’s voice cut into Clarissa’s thoughts.

“Um…pardon?”

“A spirit named Greg asked me to thank you,” Matilda said matter-of-factly.  “He’s on the other side and is more at peace now than he ever was in our world.  He didn’t elaborate but I presume you know what that means?”

Clarissa’s mouth was dry now and her hands were trembling.  “I uh…I have to go,” she said as Parker knocked on her door.  “I’ll call you soon and we’ll go to that Mexican restaurant,” she promised before hanging up and walking stiffly to the door.

“Hey there,” Parker grinned when he came face-to-face with Clarissa.  Then his smile abruptly faded.  It was promptly replaced with an expression of concern. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” he observed. 

“
Heard
from a ghost, you mean,” Clarissa murmured under her breath.

“Did you say something?” Parker asked, looking perplexed.

She shook her head.  “No,” she fibbed.  “I didn’t say anything.”

“Is everything alright?”

“Yeah,” Clarissa nodded. 

Part of her wanted to tell him about what her aunt had said, but she didn’t want him to think she was a raving lunatic.  And there was really no way to broach the subject without sounding like she was completely off her rocker – especially if she tried to tell him about being a witch. 

So instead she busied herself with getting her jacket out of the entryway closet.

“Got everything you need?” Parker asked as she grabbed her keys.

“Yep, I think so.  Shane said his mom has garden tools I can use,” Clarissa replied.

Parker was giving her an adoring look.  “It’s really nice of you to offer to do this,” he told her.  “I know how busy you are with your newspaper and everything.  And yet you’re taking time out of your hectic schedule to landscape the Klassen family’s yard free of charge.  You’re amazing.”

“It’s nothing,” Clarissa mumbled, embarrassed by the compliment.  “Besides, I went to school with Greg.  I sort of know his mother.  You’re the one who offered to help out a family of complete strangers,” she pointed out.

“They’re not really strangers anymore,” Parker shrugged.  “I know Shane now.  He’s a good kid.  I don’t mind helping him and his mom out after what they’ve been through.  Cleaning out the rain gutters and doing some odd jobs around the house is the least I can do for them.”

“Still though, not everyone would step up like you did,” Clarissa insisted.

“It’s important to you,” Parker observed.  “So it’s important to me too.”

Clarissa smiled and said nothing. 

“So I heard through the grapevine that Ted has the best lawyer in the state representing him.”  Parker thought for a moment and then added, “I know he gave a full confession and wants to take responsibility for what he did.  But in a way, I hope he doesn’t get the book thrown at him.”

“Same here,” Clarissa agreed.  “I want him to pay for what he did…it’s only right.  But at the same time, I don’t think he’s a cold-blooded killer.  He’s just an everyday guy who made a very, very bad decision.  I guess his fate is in the criminal justice system’s hands now, huh?”

“It is,” Parker nodded. 

They walked out into the sunlight.  It was a beautiful, unseasonably warm day – but it was still November in Minnesota.  She wasn’t sure, but she thought she spotted a couple of snowflakes in the air, sparkling as they drifted down to earth and melted on the pavement. 

She shivered as a cool breeze tousled her hair.

“Are you cold?” Parker asked, immediately noticing.  “Want my sweatshirt?”

“No thanks, I’m fine,” Clarissa assured him as she zipped up her jacket. 

“We’re lucky it’s so nice out,” Parker observed.  “Normally we’d have snow by now.”

“It probably won’t be much longer,” she predicted.  “I’m not a big fan of winter, but there’s something so pretty about the first snowfall of the season.  It makes everything look clean and fresh and sparkly.”

“Plus it means we can build a snowman.”

“Oh we can, huh?”

He nodded.  “My sister and I used to build snowmen as kids.  And snow forts, too!   I happen to make the best snow forts ever, if I do say so myself.  Mark my words:  you will be impressed.”

She grinned.  “If you say so,” she replied.

“It looks like the clouds are breaking up,” Parker observed as he glanced skyward.  “That’s good.  When I was driving in from the city this morning it looked like it could rain – or snow.  But I guess it was a false alarm.”

“I think it’s warming up, too.  Once I get busy working in the yard I’ll probably be too hot!” she predicted as they got into his car. 

“Same here,” Parker agreed.

She looked over at him with concern.  “You’re okay going up on the roof, right?  You know what you’re doing up there?  I don’t want you falling and getting hurt.”

“Relax,” he chuckled.  “I’ll be fine.”

“You’d better be.”

“Or else what?” he teased.

“Or else I’ll hurt you,” she threatened, glaring at him menacingly.

“That makes perfect sense!” he chortled.

“Shh,” she hushed him.  “Your logic has no place in this discussion.”

“Yes ma’am,” he grinned, giving her a mock salute.

As they drove down Main Street, Clarissa spotted Liana’s car.  Then she spotted Liana on the sidewalk a few feet away.  She was walking purposefully toward the coffee shop with her pink laptop tucked under her arm. 

Clarissa pointed Liana out to Parker. He promptly slowed down and honked the horn. 

Liana waved and then did a double take.  She gave Clarissa a sly, knowing grin when she saw that she was with Parker.  Liana had been convinced that the two reporters were perfect for each other right from the beginning. 

Even when Clarissa had despised Parker, Liana had been pushing for them to be together.

As annoying as it was to admit, perhaps Liana had been right.

Lately it seemed like all Clarissa could think about – in between solving murders and writing newspaper articles – was Parker Tweed.  She would frequently catch herself wondering what he was doing and jealously wondering if he was going out on dates in his spare time.

“You look serious,” Parker observed, sneaking a peek at Clarissa. 

“Do I?”

“Yeah…what were you thinking about just now?” he asked curiously.

Clarissa froze, wide-eyed. 

There was no way she could tell him what she had actually been thinking without sounding like an obsessive psychopath with a massive crush.  She had to come up with a harmless little white lie – and fast!

She racked her brain, and blurted out the first thing that popped into her head. 

“My broom,” she told him.  “I was thinking about, er…sweeping.”

“Ah.  Serious business,” he observed with a straight face.

“You’ve got that right.”

They were quiet for a few minutes as they drove toward the Klassen residence. 

Then Parker cleared his throat. 

He looked over and caught Clarissa’s eye.

“Do you like movies?” he asked.

She raised an eyebrow.  What kind of a question was that?  Didn’t everybody like movies? 

“Sure,” she told him.  “I like movies.”

“What do you say we treat ourselves to one tonight?” he suggested.  “I figure by the time we get done with the chores at Mrs. Klassen’s house, we’ll be exhausted and sore.  Zoning out and staring blankly at a screen seems like a good way to spend the evening, no?”

She giggled.  “Are you asking me out?” she teased.

He reddened a bit but recovered quickly.  “Maybe I am,” he shot back.

“What movie are we going to?” she asked, feeling her cheeks flush a bit.

“Your pick,” he told her.  “We’ll go see anything you want.”

“I’m going to pick a sappy chick flick,” she cautioned with a devilish gleam in her eye.

“What if I like sappy chick flicks?” he retorted.

“Do you?”

“Well…no,” he admitted.  “But if you’ve got your heart set on one, I can pretend.”

Clarissa was oddly touched by that.  “I don’t have my heart set on a chick flick,” she told him, no longer interested in petty banter and idle threats.  “I’m sure we can find something we both want to see.  Maybe a comedy would be nice?”

He nodded.  “I love comedies.”

“Me too,” she smiled.  “Me too.”

____

Your opinion matters!  Please consider reviewing this book.

____

Don’t miss out on what’s happening in Sugarcomb Lake!  Click
here
to receive updates.

____

Be the first to read Alaine’s books!  Click
here
for opportunities to receive free review copies.

____

Alaine is now on Facebook!  Connect with her
here
.