“If he was such a bad guy, why did you agree to deal with his estate?” I didn’t want to be nosy, but I was curious.
She led the way to the kitchen, and we washed our hands and put the measuring cups in the sink. “I didn’t really have a choice. The will said either I did it or the entire estate would be held in probate forever. Since Cordelia was really counting on her inheritance, I felt obligated. Plus, I thought he’d leave something to the Butlers, which would help them out in their retirement.”
“So, your godparents—”
“Godfather. Greg married Millie later in life.”
“Godfather. Did he leave them anything? Or Cordelia? Why did you get all this stuff, instead of Cordelia and Aloysius, who seem to really,reallywant it?”
She sighed. “I have no idea. The lawyers haven’t told us all the terms of the will yet. Other than to think that even my horrible grandfather knew it was a bad idea to give anything dangerous and valuable to them. They’re … completely without morals, as far as I can tell. They’d sell the stuff first chance they got, no matter that it might harm people.”
“Good thing it’s here,” I said, determined to find a bright side. “Oh! And I need to bring you the Eeyore crystal ball to put inside the salt circle, just to be safe. I’m glad it’s all here in a locked room. You can keep your aunt and cousin far, far away from it.”
Just then, we heard the front door bang open.
“Yoo hoo! Susan, we’re back, and we brought pizza.”
It was Cordelia.
Susan’s shoulders slumped. “Did I mention I felt I had to invite them to stay here? This was before Greg dumped the boxes in my house, of course.”
The sound of Cordelia’s high heels paused halfway down the hall—exactly where the door to the library was. I winced, looking at Susan’s expression. This was not good.
Not good at all.
“We met that nice Mr. Judd at the pizza shop,” Cordelia tinkled, mincing her way into the room on very high heels. She gave me a sharp look and then ignored me completely, turning to her niece. “You only owe me $27.50 for the pizza, dear. He gave us a coupon.”
Susan sighed. “Okay, Aunt Cordelia. I’ll get it in a minute.”
Aloysius showed up in the doorway, startling me, since I hadn’t heard his footsteps at all.
“Ah, the lovely Tess,” he purred, his smile wide and his eyes twinkling with what felt like entirely fake warmth. He started toward me. I took a step back and then regretted it when I glimpsed triumph cross his face.
“Time for me to get home and feed my cat,” I said. “Susan, it was so nice to meet your godfather. I’ll call you as soon as I hear from Rose.”
I felt a bit cowardly, but I really needed to go feed Lou. Plus, I didn’t want to spend another minute with the Phleabottoms. Maybe it was childish, but they—Ish, especially—gave me the creeps.
“Surely not so soon,” he crooned, shifting almost imperceptibly to block my path to the hall.
Maybe, in the past, he would have intimidated me. He was bigger than me, and I was absolutely sure he was a dangerous man. But I’d been through so much during the past year, I was pretty sure I had a spine of steel now.
I met his gaze and said nothing. For a long minute, we stared at each other, neither willing to be the first to look away.
When Cordelia realized what was happening, she grabbed her son’s arm. He blinked, as if only then realizing what he’d been doing, and then he chuckled and moved aside, making a flamboyant “please go ahead” gesture.
I still said nothing, and I didn’t smile, even though my Southern upbringing was chiding me to be polite. Something about these two poked at ancestral fears—I wanted to put alligators in the moat and pull up the drawbridge against them, no matter how silly that seemed to my rational brain.
I really, really didn’t want to leave Susan alone with them, especially in a house full of dangerous magical objects, but I didn’t know what else to do.
Finally, I nodded at them and then looked at Susan. “Walk me out? I want to ask you about the new regulations for reporting provenance at the shop.”
“Sure.”
As we walked out, I could feel the Phleabottoms staring at my back and had to work hard not to shiver or look back at them.
“I’m sure I’ll see you soon,” Ish purred.
Not if I see you first.
