Deadly Secrets: A Paranormal Cozy Mystery (A Witch in the Woods Book 19) by Jenna St. James

Author:Jenna St. James [St. James, Jenna]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-07-24T23:00:00+00:00

12

My first stop was to Cheryl Spellsen’s apartment. I wanted to check out where she lived, how she lived, and see if I could stumble across a clue that might help figure out who murdered her.

Spellsen lived just two blocks from the high school. The apartment manager, a bleary-eyed weasel shifter, opened the door for me. He told me to take my time and return the key when I was done.

“Did you know Ms. Spellsen well?” I asked before he could turn to leave.

The manager shrugged. “Well enough, I guess. She was a complainer. Always wanting something fixed—even if it wasn’t broken. She called it preventative care, but I just called it a pain in my butt.”

“What about friends? Boyfriends? Did she have many people over?”

“Nope.” He shook his head and scratched his stubbled cheek. “Kept to herself most days. Didn’t ever really see a group of girls parade through here. Not like the girl upstairs in Apartment 14. Now, that leopard shifter likes to party. In fact, of all my tenants, I figured she’d be the one to get herself in trouble one day. Not Ms. Spellsen.”

“Thank you for your time. I’ll return the keys when we’re done.”

He turned and closed the door behind him.

“That was easy,” Needles said. “I didn’t even have to sneak inside. Huge disappointment.”

“Maybe we’ll find a clue that will perk you right up.”

“Here’s hoping, Princess!”

The miniscule kitchen was immediately to the left of the front door, so I popped my head inside. And from the looks of it, my head was about all that would fit. After squeezing in the two-burner stove, refrigerator, sink, and microwave…there was hardly any room to move around. Spellsen obviously hadn’t rented the apartment for the amazing kitchen space.

There was a coffee cup in the sink, but no other dirty dishes. On impulse, I opened the refrigerator. Four bottles of white wine, cheese, grapes, lunch meat, and a handful of condiments. Basically, she had a charcuterie board in her refrigerator.

“Find anything?” I called out.

“She liked her books to have pictures.”

I frowned and walked into the living room. “What?”

Needles looked up from his perch on the expensive leather sofa. “She was looking at this magazine and had notes on who would buy what.”

Using my magic, I levitated the magazine and brought it closer. Sure enough, Cheryl had color-coded sticky notes on certain pages. The pink notes were gifts she wanted from Walter Firesmith, and the yellow notes were gifts she wanted from Simon Wolfski.

“I’m not sure if I’m impressed or repulsed.”

Needles sighed. “I need to find something for Spike. I only have a week until Yule.”

“Cutting it a little close, aren’t you?”

“I can overnight something if I find just the right gift.”

“Look at this room,” I said. “Leather furniture, massive flat screen, a couple antique tables.” I turned in a circle. “Nice décor on the walls. She definitely liked the finer things. I’m gonna check her bedroom real quick.”

I strode down the narrow hallway, bypassed the bathroom, and entered the only other door available.

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