Cozy Mystery: Cake Spell Disaster (A Haven Witch Woman Sleuths Book) COMPLETED

EIGHT

Lincoln was already at the hospital when I arrived. Dr. Wallace had called him the second Mayor Singer woke up.

"Felicity," he called when he saw me running down the hallway. "I'm glad you made it. I wasn't sure, after this morning..."

He squeezed my hand lightly, an offer of apology for our earlier tiff, his eyes as blue as the ocean that surrounded us. I wished we could have a moment alone together, but there were doctors and hospital staff milling around everywhere.

"Is my mother awake?" I asked, hopeful. If the mayor was awake, I figured my mom might be, too.

"No," he said. "I'm sorry."

My face fell. "If she's not awake, then why did you tell me to get down here?"

"I thought you'd like to be here when I talked to the mayor, if he has no objection. I know that you have a lot of questions, and I just wanted you to know that... I want to help."

I was so happy that I kissed Lincoln right there in the corridor. I didn't care who saw us.

Dr. Wallace came hustling out of the back. "Hello, Felicity," he said. He turned to Lincoln. "He's asking for you again, Sheriff."

Lincoln turned, dragging me along behind him.

Inside Mayor Singer's room, Tazzie was crying and cheering all at once. Their daughter, Kayla, was sitting in the corner, begging her mother to give her dad some air. A nurse was trying to take the mayor's blood pressure, but Tazzie refused to let go.

"Ma'am, I need your husband's arm," the nurse said, trying to tear him away from Tazzie.

"Ohhh," she cried, holding her husband's arm even tighter. "It's just sooo woonderfuulll!"

"Felicity," Mayor Singer said when he saw me. He tried to pull his hand away from Tazzie to shake mine, but she only clutched it more tightly. His fingers were starting to turn purple.

"Mayor Singer," I said, going up to his bed. "It's so nice to see you awake." I patted his free arm and said a silent incantation that Tazzie wouldn't cut off his circulation so badly that his fingers fell off.

"I was sorry to hear about your mother," he said. "I'd hoped to find out that I was the only one affected by the poisoning."

The nurse gave up and left the room.

I nodded, trying to keep the tears at bay. My mom was just across the hall from the mayor. When I was done here, I intended to go say hi. I wasn't sure whether or not she could hear me, but I wanted to let know that she didn't have to worry. Whenever she woke up, everything would be fine. I was going to make sure of it.

"Mayor Singer," Lincoln said now. "Doctor Wallace said you were asking for me."

His sheriff's uniform was a dark blue with Mistmoor's double M insignia over the right lapel. I'd always liked seeing him dressed for work. It made my heart flutter in strange and exciting ways.

"Yes. My wife and daughter have been filling me in on the details."

Tazzie interrupted the mayor with a loud honk as she blew her nose and tossed it into a wastebasket overflowing with tissue. Kayla took her mom's hand and forced her into a seat.

"You'll feel better if you rest a little," Kayla said. Mayor Singer smiled reassuringly at his wife.

"I just want to know," the mayor continued, "what you've been doing to find the person responsible for this. Do you have any leads?"

Lincoln tensed beside me, but planted his feet firmly on the ground.

"Just one." He glanced sideways at me, and I could see his lips tighten. "Amelia Redfern."

I gasped along with the Mayor and Tazzie.

"I thought you said you wanted to help me!" I cried.

"I do," Lincoln replied, his cheeks coloring. "I want to help you come to grips with the fact your mother... may have caused an unfortunate accident."

I turned to the mayor, furious with Lincoln.

"Mayor Singer, Lincoln—I mean Sheriff Maxwell—has no idea what he's talking about. He hasn't even looked at any other suspects!"

"Yes, Felicity. I have. No one else had the means or opportunity. I'm afraid everything points to your mother."

"What about Edith Woodruff?" I demanded.

I looked at the mayor, pleading with him to make Lincoln understand. "Everyone knows Edith is jealous of my mom. She wanted to be the one to cater your anniversary party. She knows the layout of Cakes and Creations since she used to be part owner. She could easily have—"

Mayor Singer held up a hand. "Edith Woodruff wasn't jealous of your mother."

I stopped talking, wondering if the mayor had lost his mind.

"Or at least, not for the reasons you seem to think," Mayor Singer continued. "I told Amelia that she could cater my anniversary party... and I told Edith that she could cater my birthday party. Edith was fine with that. It's only a couple months away, and I intend to make it every bit as momentous as our anniversary."

"You told Edith..." I began but couldn't finish the sentence.

If what he was saying was true, then he was right. Edith had no reason to be jealous of my mother's handling the anniversary party. Still, Edith had acted plenty jealous that night. Maybe there was something I was missing. It just didn't make sense.

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