No, it proved nothing. DS Wilson would still argue that Heathcliff could have come back down and got rid of the tree after Roland and Tabitha left. Besides, I already knew Heathcliff didn’t do it, but that hadn’t gotten us any closer to restoring the tree and gifts.
If she hadn’t taken the tree, Tabitha had been the last person to see it intact. Or at least, semi-intact. I swiped my hand through the pile of needles on the table.Now we know why there are so many needles here.“Apart from knocking over the tree, you didn’t touch any of the presents? Roland couldn’t have taken them—”
“Oh, no, we left with everything we came with, and nothing else.” Tabitha gave me a sheepish smile. “Except for my earring. I knew if your forensics friend found it, I’d get pulled in for questioning and I’d have to admit what Roland and I were doing. Oh, and as I was gathering up my clothes, I stood on a present and broke it – I ended up covered in this foul-smelling liquid.”
The catnip.
“Roland was outside waiting for me, so luckily he didn’t get any on him. It took me hours in the shower to get the smell out!” Tabitha continued. “No wonder Roland ran away.”
Wait, what?I leaned forward. “Where did Roland go?”
“I don’t know! We had a room together at the Argleton Arms, but he never came back. He sent me a text in the morning and I met him for breakfast. His clothes were all rumpled and filthy. He said he’d gone for a walk in King’s Copse, and was video-chatting with his cat and lost track of time. But what does that even mean?”
“No idea.” If Roland was MIA during the night, did that mean he could have come back to the shop to steal the tree and presents? “Did you know if you still had my key when you got back to the hotel?”
“I didn’t look. I was so anxious to get the smell off me. But it was in my coat pocket after breakfast.” Tabitha wrapped my hand in hers, her eyes pleading with me. “Mina – please keep my secret? Roland and I didn’t take the presents, and I can’t have a criminal record. I wouldn’t be able to do my charity work. And then my husband would find out and the gossip would ruin us.”
Then maybe you shouldn’t have slept with a sleazy photographer in someone else’s shop, I felt like saying, but that wasn’t fair. I didn’t know Tabitha’s situation and I wasn’t going to slut-shame her for her bad decisions. “I’m only interested in returning the tree and presents. Everyone thinks Heathcliff did it.”
“Well, hewasvery negative,” Tabitha sniffed. “I don’t understand how it’s possible to hate Christmas so much. Yes, carols are annoying, but there was no call for such rudeness toward those of us trying to do good in the community.”
I couldn’t argue with that. “Is it possible someone snuck inside while you were… um… occupied?”
“I guess so? We left the door unlocked while we got down and dirty. Roland had a whole bag full of toys.” Tabitha tugged the collar around her throat. “He does things with a feather that would make your bird friend blush.”
“Croak?” Quoth looked horrified. I might’ve burst out laughing if I wasn’t so busy trying to rub away any Roland residue from my hands. “You didn’t see anyone else near the shop when you entered or left?”
“I don’t think so… oh, yes, actually. That vagrant fellow. Earl? He was sitting under the window ledge when we left. We even had a little chat.”
“With Earl?” The homeless man was not known to be especially chatty. One of the few people he got along with was Heathcliff, and that was because neither of them uttered more than two syllables to the other if they could help it.
“Yes,” Tabitha giggled. “It was so funny. Earl asked me why the tree was gone from the window, and I said Mr. Heathcliff had thrown it down in a fit of rage and declared he didn’t want it! Earl had no idea what we were up to. Let me tell you, woman to woman, the thrill of getting caught makes it even more exciting—”
“Yes, well, I’m sure.” I held out my hand. “Just to be safe, I’ll have my key back.”
Tabitha fished it from her pocket and dropped it into my hand. “I guess I’ll be off now. Thank you for your discretion. If I hear anything on the village grapevine about the tree, I’ll make sure to pass it on.”
“I appreciate it, Tabitha.” She ducked outside.
As soon as the door blew shut, Quoth fluttered down and shifted to his human form. “We have our answer. Tabitha wasn’t the thief. Will you come up to bed now? It’s freezing down here.”
My teeth chattered as the draft blasted through the room. “Not quite yet.” I pinched the corner off my favorite notebook, lifting it gingerly off the desk and dropping it into the bin. “I need to disinfect this desk first.”
As I scrubbed at the wood with the industrial cleaner, my mind whirled with what we’d learned. So Earl had been outside that night,andhe was asking about the tree. I’d better have a talk with him tomorrow.
Chapter Eleven
Iwoke up with a start – driven from dreams not by the light streaming in the attic window but by a cold blast attacking my face. That damn draft again – it was everywhere in the shop. I climbed out of bed, pulled on my fleece leggings, wool jumper, Quoth’s Blood Lust hoodie, my winter trench coat, and a pair of red gloves. I wrapped my favorite red scarf several times around my neck. Still, I felt cold.
“We’ve really got to fix that draft,” I muttered as I slunk into the kitchen, hunting on the counter for hair clips I’d left there last night. They were nowhere to be seen. Morrie was standing over the stove, layered up with a similar array of jumpers and jackets, as he hopped from foot to foot with impatience waiting for the kettle to boil.
“I would fix it if I could locate the source.” The kettle whistled. Morrie poured water into two waiting cups and handed me my first tea of the day. For a few moments, we sipped in companionable silence, letting the warmth of the mugs permeate our freezing hands.
When my mouth had warmed up enough to speak, I told Morrie what I’d learned. His lips twitched into a smirk as I told him what Tabitha and Roland had been up to.
“So everyone was getting some that night except Heathcliff. No wonder he was pissed at that tree.”
Quoth fluttered downstairs and perched on my shoulder. I held out my cup to him and he dipped his head in to finish off my tea. “Quoth and I are going out to speak with Earl. Do you want to come?”
