Pies and Potions (22 page)

It all made sense. Nancy Richards was Sydney’s mother. She’d given us a fake name.

“Maybe I can do something to get the magic back for your mother,” Tom said in a sweet voice.

Even I sensed the appeasement in his voice.

“Who is your mother?” Tom asked. I knew he wanted her to acknowledge what we already knew.

“There’s nothing you can do. You have no influence at the Organization. It’s too bad, though, that would have kept you alive. My mother is Nancy Richards. I believe you met her, although she used the name Alice Harlan. She’s been working at the Plaid Peacock. She came to help me eliminate you.”

“Nancy is your mother?” Tom asked as if in shock.

“You bastard. You ruined our lives and now you don’t even remember her.”

“When did they take the magic away, Sydney?” I asked.

“Five years ago. Tom was a trainee back then just like me. She performed one little negative spell and they punished her for life.”

“Why did you wait until all this time?” I asked.

I’d seen many movies where the victim was able to talk themselves out of being murdered. Obviously, it only in worked in the movies, because Sydney wasn’t about to loosen her grip on the weapon. She didn’t answer and silence surrounded us. Even the birds had stopped chirping and the leaves didn’t budge.

“Never mind that. Move it.” She pointed.

“Did you plant those bottles of potion in my café?” She’d left the tainted potion on the kitchen counter to set Tom up. The Organization would easily blame him and she knew it.

“You catch on quick.” She smirked.

“Sydney, your mother had her magic taken away for a reason. She wasn’t being punished without cause.”

“That’s what you claim. There was no cause. You decided she shouldn’t have her magical rights, and that’s the way it happened. You deserve every bad thing possible to happen to you, Tom Owenton. And I intend on seeing to it that that happens. I will put an end to you,” Sydney said.

Okay, this was scarier than any situation I’d ever been in—and I’d been in some dire situations every time I got in the car with Mary Jane. Sydney was erratic and she could go off at any moment. I had to stop her.

“We can talk about this Sydney, if you’ll put the gun down.” Tom held his hands up in surrender.

“Shut up,” Sydney snapped.

As we neared the car, something red caught my attention. My eyes widened when I spotted Rory peeking out from behind a tree. I couldn’t believe he’d found us. He held my gaze for a second, then hid behind the tree. Sydney had no idea that Rory was hiding behind a tree trunk. Tom hadn’t noticed either.

Sydney was so engrossed in her conversation that Rory was able to slip around behind her. He needed to hurry. Tom still hadn’t noticed Rory as we marched ahead toward the car.

I held my breath as I watched Rory move even closer. For a moment, I couldn’t see him until I finally spotted his face peeking out from behind a tree. When I glanced to Tom, he was watching Rory out of the corner of his eye. He motioned at Tom. Thankfully, Tom didn’t react. He was no amateur. I wondered how many life or death situations he’d been in over the years. If we got out of this situation alive would he go back to the Organization? Surely, they’d want him back. I held my breath as I watched Rory move from one tree to the next. I prayed Sydney wouldn’t hear his movements.

Rory glanced around and spotted a discarded plastic
Diet Coke
bottle. It wasn’t much of a weapon, but at least it was full. He grabbed it and stretched his arm back with one giant thrust, then he tossed the bottle in the opposite direction of Sydney catching her attention. Would a Diet Coke bottle really save us? No way.

Sydney jumped when the bottle made a loud thud. When she spun back around, Rory and Tom simultaneously tackled her. As Tom held her down, Rory made a dash and grabbed the gun. Once it was securely in his hands, he pointed it at Sydney.

I hurried over beside Rory as he hovered over Sydney. “What do we do now?”

“You will pay for this,” Sydney said. “I’ll finish you off just like I did Mr. Wibble.” Her jaw and fists were clenched tight.

“Oh, shut up, you cow,” I snapped. Mary Jane would be so proud.

Her black eyes glittered like a snake’s as she scowled.

“You really did kill Mr. Wibble, didn’t you? You took the knife from my café to make it look like Tom did it. I can’t believe you’re so evil. Were you planning on killing me, too?” I asked.

She smiled, but didn’t answer. “You shouldn’t leave your doors unlocked. You never know if your neighbor might be a killer.” She cackled. “Sure, I slipped into the café looking for a weapon. I’d told Mr. Wibble to meet me there. He thought you wanted to talk.” Her callous words made my stomach turn.

How could she be so cold and evil?

My stomach turned. I cringed as the image of Mr. Wibble’s lifeless body flashed through my mind for the millionth time. A chill ran up my spine when I realized how easily Sydney had killed him. She
wouldn’t have hesitated to kill me. I had no doubt that she would hold a grudge, since she’d waited all these years to seek revenge against Tom. Rory stood perfectly straight with his shoulders back and met Sydney’s glare. In spite of Sydney’s threat, he didn’t falter.
Tom stood beside Rory. This was one time when they didn’t seem to detest each other.

Sydney continued, “When you least expect it. That’s when I’ll get you.” She laughed. “You’re not very bright, are you?”

Tom dialed nine-one-one. The next couple of minutes went by in a blur. We were guided over to the police cars by a couple of officers while police escorted Sydney away in handcuffs.

She still ranted about her mother not performing magic. “She deserved that magic!”

Clearly, the police wouldn’t know what the heck she meant; they’d think she’d lost her mind. Killing Mr. Wibble was a good example of that. Only Sheriff Jasper knew of the magic. The magical court would need to step in to handle this one.

I looked to Rory. “
What are you doing here?”

“I came to help.” Rory never ceased to amaze me. When someone needed help, he was always one of the first people there offering to lend a hand, even if it meant risking his life. Even if it meant helping Tom.

“How did you know where we were?” I asked while wrapping my arms around his waist.

He paused, then finally said, “I followed you. I was worried that something wasn’t right. My feeling was spot on, but I’m sorry I had to follow you to confirm that” Rory draped his arms around me in return.

“Don’t be sorry. I’m glad you’re here. I know all about gut instincts.”

The lights twinkled around the park. The flowers were brighter than ever and a balmy breeze covered the area with their sweet scent. Just then, I realized how magical Mystic Hollow was… and looked. Why I’d never seen it before, I wasn’t sure. Sometimes things can be right under your nose and you never take notice. I suppose I always took Mystic Hollow for granted. You never know what you’ve got until you almost lose it. I was much happier now that I knew of my magical roots.

Tom left with the police, but they let me leave with Rory. Would I ever see Tom again? Would he take off without saying anything? Or was he in Mystic Hollow to stay?

On my way back to my house, I dialed Grandma Imelda’s number. I didn’t really expect her to answer, but to my surprise, she answered on the first ring.

“Grandma, are you on your way back?”

“I am, dear. Any news?” Her voice cracked.

“As a matter of fact, yes. We discovered who murdered Mr. Wibble. It was Sydney Whitman, the new Organization trainee.”

“It sounds as if they need to watch who they allow to be in the Organization.”

“Yeah, maybe they will from now on,” I said.

“So tell me how you found out what happened.”

I let out a deep breath. “Where do I even start? Tom trailed the magic. And I talked to a ton of people. In the end, we found the killer before the police even got started with the investigation. But I guess we had a little help from the magic world.”

“I’ll be home soon. Stay safe, please.”

Normally, it would make more sense for me to tell her to stay safe, but recently, being in Mystic Hollow didn’t necessarily mean anyone was safe.