A Witchy Valentine (Harper Grant Mystery Series Book 4) Page 12

  “You shouldn’t be so picky because you don’t have anything else to wear,” Grandma Grant said. “I’ve just had to rummage through my closet for those. They were right at the back, and I’ll have you know they were considered very stylish in the seventies. A little gratitude would be appreciated.”

  I pointed down at my legs, which were encased in black jeans. “Thank you, but I’m sure these will be okay.”

  I tugged the black sweater over my head and then turned to my grandmother. “Do you have a black coat? It’s freezing out there.”

  Grandma Grant frowned. “I’ve got one that has a daisy pattern on it.”

  I knew the coat she was referring to. It was loud and brash and definitely not something that would go unnoticed. “I don’t think that will work.”

  My own coat was black with dark gray piping, so I knew that would be okay.

  Grandma Grant held up a finger and said, “I’ve got just the thing. Be back in a minute.” With that, she disappeared back upstairs.

  Monty said, “She’s really taking this seriously, isn’t she?”

  “My grandmother loves an adventure.”

  It was nearly five minutes later when Grandma Grant finally emerged with a floor-length, velvet evening jacket.

  I shook my head. “I’m not quite sure that’s appropriate for the occasion. We’re sneaking into a house, not going to the opera.”

  “It’s the only black coat I have. It’ll have to do.”

  I decided to let it go. I didn’t want to play dress up all night, and if we didn’t get a move on, we would never make it to Monty’s.

  “Are we going to borrow Jess’s car?” I asked.

  “No, Jess needs it tonight. She’s driving Pete home. We’ll take my truck.”

  “Er… your truck isn’t roadworthy.”

  “It is now. The youngest Smith boy patched it up for me, and he’s done a great job. It’s practically good as new.”

  I highly doubted that.

  As we were walking to Grandma Grant’s truck, her velvet coat flapped open to reveal a scarlet lining. I rolled my eyes.

  After I had told her she’d better keep it buttoned up, I surveyed the truck. It certainly looked better than it had, although describing the vehicle as good as new was stretching it a bit.

  I looked at it doubtfully for a moment or two until Grandma Grant told me to get a move on.

  Reluctantly, I climbed up into the truck, Monty hovered beside me, and we set off, rolling down the hill towards Cherrytown.

  I turned on the hot air blowers full blast to try and thaw my fingers. It was a very cold night, and in the few steps between the house and the truck the cold had nipped at my fingers and stung my cheeks.

  Melted snow had refrozen into patches of ice, and we took it slow as we drove along the narrow, winding road.

  As we got closer to Cherrytown, we could see the town lights glowing in the distance. The road widened and straightened out.

  It was a clear night, and the stars shone brilliantly. Unfortunately, so did the moon, which scuppered our plans a bit. Still, if we stuck to the shadows, I figured we would be okay.

  I turned to Grandma Grant and said, “We’d better park the truck a couple of streets away. The last thing we need is some nosy neighbor reporting it, and we definitely don’t want to draw attention to ourselves by parking right outside Monty’s house.”

  “Good point,” Grandma Grant said, peering intently over the steering wheel.

  I was starting to think I should have planned this trip a little better instead of going along on the spur of the moment with one of Grandma Grant’s ideas. The very fact that it had been Grandma Grant’s idea in the first place was enough to make me nervous.

  Monty gave us directions, and we parked in a quiet part of town, which was only a short walk from his house.

  The house was on a street close to the center of Cherrytown, and as we walked toward it, I saw that many of the old houses were grand, three-story, Victorian-era residences, with steeply pitched roofs.

  Most of them had been well-maintained and looked very smart. As we got closer to the front of Monty’s house, I could see that it needed a bit of TLC, but it didn’t look as bad as I’d expected. The outside paintwork could use a fresh-coat, and a new solid wood door would smarten up the exterior, but other than that, it fit in well with the other elegant houses on the street.

  But as I looked around, I immediately saw a problem. Monty had a lot of neighbors.

  I whispered to Grandma Grant, “I think we should go around the back of the house and access the property that way. The key is by the back door, so it makes sense.”

  Grandma Grant looked at me curiously. “Why are you whispering? We haven’t done anything wrong yet.”

  “I don’t want to draw any unnecessary attention.”

  Grandma Grant nodded to the side gate on the left-hand side of the house. “We don’t need to waste time going around the back. If you gave me a boost, I’m sure I could get over that.”

  With a huff of frustration, I gestured around at all the windows in the houses opposite us. “We only need one person to see us and call the cops, and we’ll be in serious trouble. If we go around the back of the property, we’ll have less chance of being spotted.”

  Grandma Grant rolled her eyes. “If you insist.”

  We walked to the end of the street and made a loop, so we ended up walking quietly along the edges of the rear gardens. There were tall fences separating the gardens, so we were able to walk along without worrying about being seen.

  I counted each house we passed, so I knew which one was Monty’s. When we reached the back fence of what I hoped was Monty’s house, I stopped walking. Grandma Grant was not paying attention and slammed into the back of me.

  “Ouch! Harper, a bit of warning next time, please!”

  I hushed her and pointed to the fence.

  “I’m pretty sure this is his house.” I turned to Monty. “Could you float up and take a look to make sure it’s yours. The fences all look the same.”

  All the fences had gates leading into the back gardens. The rear access was not wide enough for a vehicle to pass through, but the gate was a perfect entry point for us.

  Monty obediently zoomed up in the air, peaking over the fence. He nodded confidently. “Yep, this is it. Do you want me to float over and see if I can unfasten the bolt?”

  I nodded. That was a pretty good idea if Monty could manage it. The trouble was his interactions with solid objects were still pretty hit and miss at the moment. Still, I thought we could give him a few minutes to try. I wasn’t exactly looking forward to scaling a fence with Grandma Grant in tow.

  Grandma Grant and I waited and listened to Monty fumbling with the bolt on the other side of the gate.

  It didn’t take him long.

  “Aha,” Monty said proudly. “I’ve done it.”

  I was impressed. The gate creaked loudly on its hinges as we pushed it open, and I held my breath, expecting lights to switch on in the surrounding houses, but thankfully nobody seemed to hear. So, we moved on. We were almost at the back door when I thought I saw a light flicker in one of the upstairs rooms.

  “Now, Monty told us it was under the flowerpot, beside the back door,” Grandma Grant said, pushing past me to heave up the large flower pot and scrabble underneath for the key. “Got it!”

  I was still staring at the upstairs window but was starting to think I’d imagined the light.

  Grandma Grant put the key in the lock, but just before she opened it, I saw the flickering light again and suddenly realized what it was.

  There was someone in the house using a flashlight.

  Chapter 19

  “Wait!” I hissed urgently.

  Grandma Grant and Monty both turned to look at me with puzzled frowns on their faces.

  I jerked my thumb upward and whispered, “There’s somebody in the house. Upstairs.”

  Monty looked alarmed, but Grandma Grant smiled. “Per
fect. We will catch them red-handed. Let’s go.”

  I looked at Grandma Grant as she opened the door wide and shook my head. Was she crazy?

  I grabbed hold of her black sweater, stopping her from entering the house. “Wait! The person upstairs could be Monty’s killer. If they’ve killed once, what’s to stop them doing it again?”

  That was enough to make Grandma Grant hesitate. “But we can’t just let them get away.”

  “We won’t. We’ll hide,” I said, pointing to myself and Grandma Grant. “Monty will go upstairs to take a look.”

  Monty looked horrified. “Me? On my own?”

  I rolled my eyes. “Monty, you’re a ghost. Whoever is up there won’t be able to see you. You just need to go and identify who it is.”

  Monty nodded slowly, but he didn’t look convinced. “Are you sure that’s the only way? Maybe we should just call the police.”

  “We could do that,” I hissed, trying to reign in my frustration. “But he might leave before they arrive. And if we call the police, we will have a lot of explaining to do. We’ll have to tell them why we were hanging around your house.”

  Monty gulped and nodded. “I see your point. All right, I’ll do it.”

  As Monty drifted inside the house, Grandma Grant and I retreated to hide behind a bare-branched lilac tree and waited for him to return.

  It seemed to take forever, and the light was still flashing in the upstairs room.

  After a few minutes, Grandma Grant straightened up, clutching her back. “I can’t crouch down like this. I’m too old. Where is Monty? Are you sure he didn’t come back?”

  “I would have seen him. We just have to be patient.”

  Grandma Grant sighed. “It’s ridiculous. We are waiting out here in the cold when the light might not be from a flashlight. It might be something else.”

  “Like what?”

  She shrugged. “I don’t know. I don’t have all the answers. But I’m getting bored. I bet there’s no one up there.”

  I had to admit I was getting impatient as well. I didn’t understand why Monty hadn’t identified the person upstairs and come back down to tell us.

  I straightened up and stepped forward, staring up at the window. Moving a little closer to the house, we hid behind a stack of wooden boards and an old sink that had been removed from the house.

  Grandma Grant said, “Go on, have a quick look and see what’s holding up Monty.”

  I gritted my teeth. “You’re not very patient, are you?”

  “Not when I’m freezing my bits off.”

  I was starting to think that maybe Grandma Grant was right. Maybe the flashing light was something else. It obviously wasn’t a light from an alarm because otherwise it would have gone off when we opened the back door. Besides, Monty would have told us if he had an alarm.

  “Fine. Wait here.”

  I walked over the lawn to the back door and slipped into the house as quietly as possible.

  I stepped inside, entering a small hallway, which led to the kitchen. The air was so much warmer in the house. Monty probably still had his heating on a timer. I unwrapped and took off my scarf as I was starting to feel uncomfortably hot. Feeling a little dizzy, I loosened my coat. It probably had something to do with the fact I was so nervous. My heart was beating hard in my chest as I tiptoed across the kitchen and out into a second hallway. I paused and listened carefully. I couldn’t hear anything. If someone was walking about upstairs, they weren’t making much noise. I took a deep breath and headed for the staircase. I put a foot on the first step and cringed as it creaked beneath my weight then I heard the most tremendous bang.

  I looked upstairs but quickly realized the noise wasn’t coming from there. It was coming from the garden.

  Grandma Grant! I forgot all about Monty and rushed back outside to see what on earth was happening to my grandmother. There was a tremendous amount of banging, crashing and wailing going on. Had somebody captured her, were they hurting her?”

  I heard Grandma Grant howl.

  Why had I let her come to Monty’s house? It was all my fault. I should have known better.

  I skidded to a halt and tried to take in the spectacle in front of me.

  She hadn’t been captured or attacked. She’d stepped into a bucket.

  It couldn’t have been a plastic bucket, could it? Oh no, it had to be an old tin bucket, which made an absolute racket as Grandma Grant ran in circles, trying to get the bucket off her foot.

  Of course, if she just stayed still for a moment, I’d have been able to yank it off.

  “Something’s clutching my foot,” she cried out. “Run, Harper. Save yourself. The evil mastermind must have left a trap.”

  Oh, for goodness sakes. What was the matter with her? Couldn’t she see it was only a bucket? That’s when I noticed she had left her glasses at home.

  “It’s a bucket,” I hissed. “Stay still, and I’ll take it off.”

  But she either didn’t hear me or was in such a state of panic she was unable to process my words.

  I dashed forward, trying to grab her, but before I could reach her and get the bucket, there was a noise behind us.

  It was no great surprise that the commotion must’ve drawn out whoever had been rooting around in Monty’s belongings upstairs.

  A figure, dressed all in black, wearing a ski-mask, rushed out of the back door, barreling into us and sending poor Grandma Grant flying to the ground.

  “Hooligan!” she yelled out after him.

  Taking advantage of the fact Grandma Grant was sprawled out on the floor, I quickly yanked the bucket off her foot.

  Helping her to her feet, I asked, “Are you okay?”

  “A little bit winded, but I’m a lot better than that hooligan will be when I get my hands on him. Did you see who it was?”

  I shook my head. “No, he was wearing a ski-mask. I’m pretty sure it was a man, though.”

  “I knew I should have worn a ski-mask,” Grandma Grant said. “He’s made us look like amateurs.”

  “I don’t think that’s important right now. Can you walk?”

  Grandma Grant hobbled a little, testing her weight on her foot. Then she nodded. “It’s not too bad. Maybe a bit of a sprain.”

  I nodded. “We’d better get out of here in case he comes back.”

  I slipped the key back under the flowerpot and wrapped Grandma Grant’s arm around my shoulders and helped her hobble to the back gate. As soon as I opened it, we heard the distant sound of a siren. Uh-oh.

  Grandma Grant hobbled a little faster. It wasn’t long before Monty joined us.

  I turned to him. “Any luck?”

  Monty shook his head. “No, he had a ski-mask on the whole time. I tried to guess who it was from his frame, but it was no good. I’ve no idea who it was. I suppose it could have just been a random burglar who capitalized on the fact everyone knew my house would be empty.”

  “Was anything taken?”

  Monty shook his head. “Not as far as I could tell. I had a quick look around that’s why I was gone for a while, but what on earth happened outside? I heard your grandmother screaming and thought she’d been attacked. I thought maybe the man in the ski-mask had an accomplice.”

  “Only if you consider a bucket to be an accomplice.”

  “What?”

  “Grandma Grant wasn’t attacked. She stepped in a bucket, and it got stuck on her foot. She panicked.”

  “I was attacked!” Grandma Grant said indignantly. “It was a trap. He clearly left it there for one of us to step in.”

  I rolled my eyes. “If you say so.”

  We saw a couple of lights come on in the house next door and quickly ducked down behind the fence. The siren was getting louder.

  We tried to walk as quickly as we could back to the truck, but we were more like the tortoise than the hare with a hobbling Grandma Grant.

  We were only a few feet away from the truck when Monty said, “Uh-oh, looks like we’ve got company.”r />
  A police cruiser rolled into view.

  “Oh, brilliant that’s all we need,” Grandma Grant groaned. “Say nothing, Harper. Leave the talking to me.”

  That was the worst idea I’d heard all evening, and with the disaster tonight had been, it had some steep competition.

  The police cruiser came to a stop beside us. Officer Tardy lowered the window. “Evening, ladies.”

  Grandma Grant hobbled closer to the police vehicle. “Good Evening, Officer Tardy. I hope you’re well.”

  “Ah, yes, Ma’am. Do you mind if I ask what you are doing this evening?”

  “We are out for a walk.”

  “A walk,” Officer Tardy repeated incredulously as his gaze traveled to Grandma Grant’s injured foot. “I don’t think that’s a good idea when you have an obvious injury, Ma’am. You should get home and elevate it. It’s a cold night, too. What was your granddaughter thinking?”

  Officer Tardy looked sharply at me, and I opened my mouth to explain.

  Grandma Grant cut me off. “You’re quite right, Officer. What were you thinking Harper? You’d better take me home straightaway.”

  Monty laughed, and I glared at him.

  I gritted my teeth and attempted to smile. “Sure. Right away, Officer Tardy. I don’t know what came over me. It was stupid to venture out on a night like this.”

  “One last thing before you go…”

  My stomach plummeted. I thought we’d gotten away with it.

  “Have you seen anyone suspicious hereabouts? We had reports of a break-in.”

  We all shook our heads emphatically, even Monty, despite the fact Officer Tardy couldn’t see him.

  “Okay, well, thank you for your time. Do you need a ride?”

  “No, thank you, Officer Tardy,” Grandma Grant said. “My truck is parked just around the corner.”

  “Stay safe.”

  And with that, Officer Tardy drove away, and we all sighed in relief.

  By the time we got back to Grandma Grant’s truck, I was drained. All the nervous energy had left me, and I was shivering. “We’d better get back to Abbott Cove before Officer Tardy puts two and two together.” I turned to Grandma Grant after opening the door, “Are you sure you’re all right to drive.”