After a full minute, Desiree looked up again. She leaned back in her chair and let out a heavy sigh. “This is going to be hard. I miss Richard so much already.”
Tyler sat down opposite her. “I’m sorry for your loss, Desiree. Any idea who would want to kill Richard?”
“Of course, I know who did it, Sheriff. Antonio was caught red-handed at the murder scene. He killed my sweetheart!” Desiree sobbed uncontrollably.
Tyler pushed the box of tissues on the table toward her. “We haven’t reached any conclusions one way or another yet, Desiree. The investigation is ongoing. What we do know for sure is that Antonio returned to his winery and found Richard in the cellar. At least that’s his version of events.”
Desiree’s mouth dropped open. “You’re not going to charge him?”
“Like I said, the investigation is underway and we will explore every single lead.”
“Is this being recorded?” Desiree’s eyes narrowed as she scanned the room, stopping at the one-way glass.
Tyler nodded. “We record all our interviews.”
“Oh.” Desiree’s massive diamond dinner ring glinted as she tucked a stray hair behind her ear.
Not only was she being recorded, but she was also being watched.
By me.
She looked down at the table and placed her hands in her lap. A moment later she raised her head and e one-way glass with a penetrating stare. She fondled her amethyst pendant with manicured fingers that had never endured even a minute of manual labor.
I flushed, unnerved. I knew she couldn’t see me. Even if she suspected someone behind the one-way glass, she had no way of knowing it was me. Regardless, I disliked deceiving anyone, even a person I didn’t like very much. Part of me wanted to run into the interview room and give myself up.
Tyler had only asked me to observe, I reminded myself. Anyone in a police interview room would assume they were being watched behind either one-way glass, a camera, or both. It was standard operating procedure on almost every police show.
Clearly Desiree wasn’t thinking that or she wouldn’t have started flirting with Tyler. She reached across the table and placed her hand on his. “Sheriff, you’re a man. You know how men are when their masculinity is threatened.”
Tyler didn’t say anything.
Desiree raised her eyebrows, her hand still resting on Tyler’s. “Men can lose their cool sometimes. Richard had a temper. I guess Antonio does too. In the heat of the moment, things can get a little…heated.”
Tyler remained expressionless.
Desiree’s hand remained on top of his.
I remained behind the one-way glass but just barely. I was out of my seat, seething with anger. I paced back and forth, fuming. It was all I could do not to burst into that room and yank her hand off of his.
Tyler slowly slid his hand out from under Desiree’s and picked up a pen. He scribbled something on the notepad in front of him.
Desiree sighed. She leaned forward. “I’m going to let you in on a little secret, Sheriff.”
Tyler mirrored her posture and leaned forward. He rested his elbows on the table. “What’s that?”
Desiree put her hand on top of Tyler’s again, moving slowly upward to encircle her manicured fingers around his wrist. “Antonio came to talk to me a couple of weeks ago. He pleaded with me to help him to get Richard to postpone the foreclosure. I told him that nothing I said would change Richard’s mind and that Richard had no choice; he had to enforce bank policy if someone didn’t pay their mortgage. He took his job seriously, you know. I told Antonio it was futile and his time would be better spent finding a way to catch up on the late payments. But he refused to listen to reason. Instead, he pleaded with me to talk to Richard.
“I did end up talking to Richard., I asked him if there were any mortgage loopholes to give Antonio a little more time. He said he would check it out, do it for me. What if Richard ended up meeting with Antonio just because I asked? Could I somehow be responsible for Antonio’s actions?” She lowered her head and cried.
Tyler slid the box of tissues closer to Desiree with his free hand. He didn’t pull his other hand away, but his jaw muscles tightened ever so slightly.
Why didn’t Tyler pull his hand away from Desiree’s? Was it an interview tactic to make Desiree feel at ease, or something else? Aunt Pearl didn’t like me dating the town sheriff and felt more strongly about it as our relationship grew more serious. Had she put some sort of attraction spell on Tyler and Desiree to break us up?
No. Although she probably wanted to break us up, she cared about me and wouldn’t do anything to break my heart. I had to believe that. But I wouldn’t put it past her to place a lesser spell on him. There was one way to find out.
I focused on Tyler and whispered under my breath:
Spell me a river
Spell me a song
Show me the spells
That bewitched this one
The magical thoughts
Inside his head
Now fade to naught
He thinks of me instead
I will take them on,
I will right this wrong,
And restore all fates
Before too long—
I stopped myself just in time. I was about to place a spell on my boyfriend! True, it was a clearing spell meant to undo an existing spell, if in fact one existed. Still, it was interfering in somebody’s life. Tyler’s no less! What the heck was wrong with me?
Tyler was well aware of my supernatural capabilities. He also trusted me completely. But would he be okay with me casting a spell on him, even if it was to protect him?
Probably not. Tyler was a grown man perfectly capable of taking care of himself. And most of the time he took care of Aunt Pearl’s antics in a good-natured way, despite her constant harassment.
I was acting more out of my own self-interest than Tyler’s.
Whether Aunt Pearl had
