MURDER and the BOOKSELLER: BOOK THREE by McCarthy Marian

Author:McCarthy, Marian
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Carpe Diem Productions
Published: 2023-10-20T00:00:00+00:00

13

Perrie gave Reg a sheepish smile. “Looks like Django needs to go out. It’s not raining now. Be right back.”

“Wait up. I’ll go with you.”

Downstairs, Perrie stepped into the damp night air and let Django run off leash. Reg stood at her side, perusing the yard. He pointed to the trunk of the hawthorn tree. “Is there some reason you kept that rotten old tree trunk? Tree service should have hauled it off with the dead branches.”

“They tried to,” Perrie said with a laugh. “But Hamish and Aunt Azalea advised me that it’s a fairy tree. Bad luck to remove the whole thing.”

“Fairy tree? What the heck does that mean?”

“Another folklore thing; you know my aunt. The Romani believe the fae—fairies— live in a hawthorn tree. They’re woodland creatures; they guard the earth and bring luck to the land.”

Reg shrugged. “I guess, as long as you don’t get termites.”

Perrie laughed and took a deep breath, turning her attention to the sky. “I think the fairies will keep the termites away. At least that’s what my aunt would have me believe.”

Reg edged closer to her side and put a gentle hand on her shoulder. “What do you believe, Perrie?”

She shrugged. “You know me. My dad was a scientist and my mom was an undertaker. Believing in magic wasn’t an option for me growing up.”

“I get that. But what about the messages you get from the dead? What do you believe about that?”

“I don’t know, to tell you the truth. With my aunt’s help, I’ve come to believe that the messages have meaning. They’re real. As for the fae, the folklore, ghosts, magic—let’s just say I don’t discount their existence. I’ve seen that tree trunk glow at night. I left food for the fairies and it was gone the next day. Our perception is so limited. Who’s to say what’s real and what isn’t?”

“I think I know what’s real. Genuine.” He pushed a lock of hair away from her face. “You. You are for real.”

A great big ball of hope grew in her heart and she tilted her chin to look into his eyes. “Thanks.”

Reg pulled her closer and leaned down, smelling of fresh rain. His warm lips met hers, tasting of Malbec, sparking electricity as the kiss went from tentative to tender.

Django’s sharp bark interrupted them. Behind Reg, Perrie saw the hawthorn trunk glow with a faint yellow light. Django crouched, his hackles raised, and growled. In the dim light, Perrie saw a figure emerge from behind the tree trunk. “We’re not alone,” she whispered.

Reg turned around and spotted the figure. “Hey! Who’s there?”

The figure ducked behind the hawthorn trunk. As Reg ran toward him, an arrow whizzed through the air and landed next to Perrie’s left foot.

Reg heard the arrow fly by his head, followed by Perrie’s shout. In the weird yellow light coming from the tree trunk, he turned and saw the arrow sticking out of the ground next to her. “You all right?”

“A little shaken up, but yeah, I’m all right.

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