“There will be a lineup a mile long for a prize like this.”
“A prize like what?” The voice startled me so much I tipped backward and landed on my butt. It came from the depths of the cookbook aisle and footsteps thumped on the carpet. “Oh hey, Janelle. You talking to your dog?”
Marli Seagrave offered me her hand and I ignored it, preferring to clamber awkwardly to my feet. If she was here alone, she was likely up to no good. But why hadn’t we sensed her? Or, in Bixby’s case, smelled her. She was in standard-issue stealth-wear: black pants, shoes, jacket and hat. I looked about the same, only without a fringe of blonde hair.
“Cloaking,” the dog said. “She’s not as useless as she seemed, and that could make her dangerous.”
I studied Skye’s tail and found it swishing briskly. Based on past experience, my canine specter friends cared about my wellbeing. Another swish confirmed it. Marli was probably not an imminent threat.
“Yes, I was talking to my dog, Marli. Why are you here?”
“Same reason you are, I expect. To solve the crime and score big with Norris Strump and the mayor.”
I shook my head. “Scoring big doesn’t interest me. I saw a stray dog in here the other day and it’s been worrying me since.”
“No dog,” she said. “I combed the place from top to bottom. Been here for two hours. If there’s a clue the police missed, I can’t find it.”
“Then why don’t you go home? The dog might come out for Bixby and me after you leave.”
“There’s no dog, Janelle. I even went into the basement. Everything is as boring as you’d expect from a library.” She puckered for a moment, perhaps trying to decide what to share. “Not like last week.”
“You mean, before the murder?”
She nodded. “I’ve been in and out of here often since I got home from college. I don’t have a job yet and Dad’s always on me.”
Suddenly, I remembered why she’d looked vaguely familiar in class. “You were here the day Angus died. We saw you leave.”
“Caught a chill and left just in time. Otherwise, it might have been me who discovered Mr. MacDuff. Never liked him. Total blowhard, just like my dad.”
“Do the police know? That you were here just before Angus died?”
She tipped her head. “Janelle, do you really think I’m capable of taking out someone like Angus? I mean, I’d like to get there one day, but I’ll need more than crossword puzzles to do it.”
Staring, I repeated my question. “Do the police know?”
Rolling her eyes, she gave up the game. “Yes, Mom, I came forward of my own accord and told them what I saw.” She scuffed the carpet and muttered, “At least, most of it.”
The canine voice in my head piped up. “You’ve already taken a trip into Miss Seagrave’s thoughts. You’d have seen a murder, no?”
I would very likely have seen a murder, but she was good at cloaking. Norris said there was more to Marli than met the eye. That could go either way. Surely, he’d know if she’d offed someone the day of our class, though.
In the end, I decided to give her more rope. Mostly because the chill breeze that drove her out that day very likely came from Skye. “What didn’t you share with the police, Marli?”
Her boot scuffed again. “I was going to share everything, but the cop seemed so normal. It was the handsome one, you know? With the red hair. I’ve always liked older men.”
An ember ignited in my gut and Bixby chuckled. “Jealousy is such a primitive emotion.”
“So, you saw something magical here?” I prompted her.
“Yeah. I was just sitting in one of the leather chairs and I noticed a book floating.”
“Floating?”
“Floating with the pages flipping. Like someone invisible was looking for something.”
“Huh. In the occult section? Where Angus died?”
She directed a thumb behind her. “No, here, in Home and Throwback Management, or whatever it’s called. I can’t imagine why someone would need to hide an interest in domestic issues. It’s only a crime against feminism.”
I let Bixby get a chuckle out of his system before continuing. “Can you show me which book?”
“Sure, yeah.” I checked the border collie again and saw Skye at the far end of the aisle. She was facing the other way and her tail was down. “It happened a few times, actually, and usually this shelf,” Marli said, pointing. “French cookery. Occasionally Italian. Not a quick flip, either.” She jerked her thumb the other way now. “One day I sat as close as I could and cloaked myself, but it took so long I nearly fell asleep. That would have spelled the end of invisibility. Get it?”
“Not in the mood for puns, Marli. It’s been a long day.”
“Sucking up to Old Mister Crossword?” Her voice had an edge of bitterness. “I can tell you’re his favorite.”
I rested a hand on her arm, more to reassure her than read her mind. There was envy and fierce competition inside, which came from wanting to win parental approval. That I understood because I’d lived it, too. “You have unique gifts I don’t, Marli. For example, I could never hold an invisibility spell that long. And your cloaking is nearly impeccable. My dog could barely smell you.”
Her shoulders hunched. “Comes naturally. Grew up feeling invisible in my own house. My twin brothers are very gifted. I’m a disappointment.”
“I felt like a disappointment, too. That’s probably why we’re in Norris’s class, more than anything else. It’s impossible to grow into our potential unless we truly believe we have it, right?”
“I guess. You’ve got the wisdom that comes with age.”
Mr. Bixby snorted audibly.
“Just how old do you think I am?” I asked.
