Page 7

T he tavern had grown busy with the noon meal. Crystal was unsure if this was part of the murder mystery theater or something else. However something more pleasant was distracting her eye, as Jamie Grant stood before her.

"Aye, lass, are you ready?" he asked.

"Hm? What?" Crystal responded, her cheeks heating.

"Actually, I meant Miss Courteney," Jamie said.

Crystal felt her face heat more as embarrassment flooded her. "Oh, of course."

"Ready for me to ask a few questions again?" he said to her.

"Aye, I suppose. If it helps find my sister's murderer," she answered.

"Oh, I'll just move out of the way." Crystal stood up and stepped away, but stayed close to the fire. She leaned against the wall trying to not be too obvious. Gavin stood up and entertained himself at the bar with another mug of ale.

Jamie sat down across from Courteney and started the interview.

"Thank you for coming to the tavern. I'm sorry you've had to wait so long to speak with me, but I appreciate it. How is Brian?" Jamie asked.

"Not good at all. He hardly says a word. He is but a shell of himself."

"I can only imagine," Jamie said. "It is very good of you to take care of him since you yourself have lost your own sister. Can you tell me again what occurred the night before last?"

Courteney took a deep breath and Crystal could tell it was very trying for her to have to relive this moment.

It was obvious that she had been previously asked about this, probably right after this so-called murder, but Crystal was watching closely because she didn't know if this was still part of some sort of play or if there really was an actual murder at this reenactment renaissance faire.

Her brain was stimulated trying to figure it out, which made it more appealing than the basic crime thriller mystery.

"I will never forget. My brother-in-law, Brian, showed up at my door and was in such a state of shock.

He had blood on his hands. He could barely say more than a few words, but I managed to understand that there was something very wrong with my sister at the house.

So I mounted his horse behind him and he rode full speed to the house he shares with my sister, as you know it is outside the village quite far from any neighbors.

He had been at work here in the village, at the Blacksmith's where he's the farrier.

He's very good at his work, as you know. "

"Aye, I do know. He's most gentle with the horses and many come to him for shoe work."

Courteney nodded. "Because he is very good, sometimes he will stay later if a person comes in with an animal in need of a trim, or even to be shoed. Brian won't turn them away. It is not his way of doing things."

"Go on," Jamie said.

"That's what happened that evening. He had stayed to do work for a traveler who was passing through the village and then returned home a little after sundown.

It was later than he usually returned home.

That's what he told me in a shaking manner as I slid off his horse in front of the house.

Then he began to cry and dropped to his knees, saying my sister's name over and over. "

"He didn't say what happened to her?"

"Not at that moment. It took him a time just to tell me that much. He could barely get words out. So instead of waiting for him to find his tongue, I walked inside their house calling my sister's name. What I saw was such a fright. It is burned in my memory forever."

Courteney stopped speaking as though she couldn't go on any longer. Jamie handed her a glass of water and she drank from it greedily until she was able to speak again.

"Take your time, lass."

"In the bedroom, my sister's body was on the floor. I could see that she had passed on. There was no saving her. There was blood everywhere, including on the ceiling, such a horrible way to go. So much violence. I could barely look for too long before I ran outside and vomited."

"As is to be expected."

Courteney took a moment to gather her thoughts before she spoke again. "It was a few moments before I could speak, as I was in the same state of shock as Brian. Finally I found my tongue and walked to him where he sat outside on a stump shaking like a leaf. I asked him what happened."

"How did he answer?"

"He told me again that he stayed late at work longer than usual but not more than an hour.

He returned after Sundown and found the same as what I saw with me own eyes.

He started to curse whoever did this to his love of his life.

I along with him for the sake of my sister.

It must have been another half hour before we were able to move and not completely collapse in sorrow. "

"Then what happened?" Jamie asked.

"We went to the nearest neighbor, Mr. Langston and his family. You know them."

"Aye, I do. We told them how we found our poor Maeve and he was in shock as well, and fearful for his family.

We asked if he saw anyone coming in and out of the road that leads to their home and he said he hadn't seen anyone, but he had not been home.

His wife and children said they didn't see anyone in that direction.

Then we came into town here to the tavern to send word to the Watch.

We waited until your arrival, the rest you know. "

"Aye, I do," Jamie said.

Crystal watched as he wrote something down on a piece of parchment and she could make out the word Langston probably a note to interview him later.

Crystal was surprised that she found herself intrigued by all that she had heard.

It definitely was an interesting mystery that had been set up.

If it were one of her crime thrillers, it was nearly always the husband when a wife was murdered especially so brutally.

Most murders of chance were fast and swift, but one that was brutal meant there was passion or vengeance behind it.

Someone took out their frustrations on the woman in a horrible way.

This was usually domestic violence, but she would have no way of knowing if that was the case here.

Perhaps if she could meet the husband Brian she could sense it on him.

"It's the goblins, ain't it, Jamie?" Courteney asked, a look of fright on her face.

"It looks like it, but I aim to find out for sure.

We must find them and track them down before they do more damage.

They rarely come this close to the village, but it has been known to happen before.

We cannot let them get away with something so easily or they will continue to do it again and again. "

Crystal listened to this mention of goblins once more.

More and more she thought it was some sort of motorcycle gang and she could definitely see that because a Renaissance Faire reenactment was full of nerdy geeks and would attract bullies like a motorcycle gang if the murder was real and not part of whatever theme park situation they had going.

"We will need to go back to your sister's house and look for more evidence.

I want to look over everything once more, not just the inside of the house, but the outside area as well," Jamie said.

"I know the Watch already went over the area, but it was dark and they might have missed something.

I want to be sure we've checked every inch of the property. "

Crystal thought that was very smart of him. He was just like a real detective, looking at the crime scene, interviewing possible witnesses… she could almost imagine that he was an actual detective in his real life, not just posing as one for this Renaissance faire.

Crystal realized just how much she was getting into this whole murder mystery shenanigan and suddenly got angry.

This was nothing but a distraction that had gone on all morning and now well past noon.

She had allowed it to distract her to the point that she wasn't worried about her own welfare and getting the authorities to catch Mason so she could get some answers as to how she ended up in a lake in the middle of this weird village where time stood still.

Why wouldn't anyone lend her their phone?

All of these thoughts boiled inside of her to where she snapped.

She abruptly pushed off the wall by the fireplace and marched right over to the table where Melanie and Elena sat.

"Okay, listen up ladies. I've had enough of this crap.

I'm not going to wait for you all to finish your murder mystery play theater whatever it is.

I'm out of here. You're obviously not going to let me use your phone or call the authorities for me.

It seems I'm going to have to do it on my own.

Thank you for your hospitality and goodbye. "

"Wait, don't go!" Melanie stood up and blocked Crystal's path.

"Get out of my way, I'm leaving." Crystal glared at her.

"Please, Crystal, let us explain. Things aren't what you think." Melanie looked around the tavern and then lowered her voice. "Please, you've got to let us talk to you. It's not safe out there for you, especially once the sun goes down. You need to understand what's going on. Please, will you sit?"

Crystal hesitated.

"We really didn't want to do this here, but you aren't giving us a choice," Elena added. "But you really need to know, so come sit down, please."

Crystal really just wanted to walk out and continue on her way, but her curiosity got the best of her.

There would be no harm in listening to whatever these women had to say and surely it wouldn't take more than fifteen minutes or so.

She was curious as to what kind of ridiculous explanation they were going to give her.

If she listened, at least she could have more to put in her next book.

"Fine. You've got fifteen minutes," she said sitting down at their table.

Elena stood up and said, "I'll get you a whisky. You're going to need it for what we have to tell you."