Next time I’d have to see more magic, though. The way I figured it, the world needed more magic.
Sounds funny coming from a cynic like me, right? Well, sometimes I needed a little cheer in my daily routine. Just maybe not as much as most people.
“All packed up,” Axel said. He wrapped an arm around Pepper’s shoulders and gave her a big smile.
She snuggled into him and sighed. “Well, we solved the case.”
“Thanks for all your help,” I said.
Roan sidled up to me and slid an arm around my waist. “Yes, thank you.”
I tapped my mouth. “There’s one thing I don’t understand. How did Fannie know that Jinkins was in the tube?”
“Their connection,” Roan said slowly. I nearly did a double take. Was he answering questions about ghosts?
“They had a deep connection, so she just felt it. Same as if someone had touched theSpiritusand felt it hum. They were connected that way.”
“But why hadn’t she gone into the house before and confronted the spirit if she knew he was a ghost?” Pepper asked.
“Jinkins was too powerful for her,” Axel said. “That’s why she became so excited when he was trapped.”
“She finally had power over him,” Pepper said sadly.
“I think she may have periodically gone into the house to talk to him,” I added. “Artie told me that one day a woman visited Jinkins and made him angry. It was probably Fannie.”
Pepper clicked her tongue. “It’s too bad that they could never reconcile. Even in death.”
“I think Jinkins always had to exert his power over her,” I pointed out. “He abused her while he was alive, and he haunted her in his death.”
“And now he’s finally gotten what he deserves.” Roan kissed the top of my head. “And the people they killed are at peace.”
I gave Roan a squeeze. “Not to mention that Kency retrieved the box of treasure.”
I’d found that out later that night. I’d mentioned it to the sheriff and she’d shown me the box. The cigar box overflowed with jewelry and cash. No wonder Fannie had been on a mission to retrieve it. Now she’d never have it. She’d spend the rest of her life behind bars.
Kency had said it was funny that she hadn’t found the box before then considering the police had dredged the entire cellar.
I smirked but said nothing. In the back of my head, I figured Jinkins must’ve moved it while the police searched. Spirits were funny that way.
I tipped my head back to Roan. “Another thing I don’t understand was the whole master business.”
He gazed down at me. “What is it you don’t understand?”
“Who was the master?”
Axel and Roan gazes snapped together.
I rubbed Roan’s waist. “What?”
“It’s the spirit locked in the basement,” Roan said.
Axel released Pepper and slipped on his coat. “We’re pretty sure.”
“But how can it communicate with other spirits if it’s trapped?” Fear sliced into my heart. This could be horrible. Cataclysmic. That the spirit held command over other ghosts wasn’t good. At all.
“There must be cracks in the spell binding it,” Axel explained. “It can talk to other spirits, but that’s the limit of its power.”
I dug my fingers into Roan’s sleeve. “But what if it gets ahold of another evil spirit? What then?”
