Dark Magic (Harbinger P.I. Book 3) Read Online Free

you after what happened to my mom.”
    “You don’t find it strange?”
    She frowned. “No, what do you mean?”
    “Your dad hates me. And last night, the town was attacked by zombies, which he blames me for. You don’t think it’s weird that the next morning, he’s in my office offering me a job?”
    Amy shrugged. “Maybe it means he’s finally dealing with the death of my mom. It’s a step forward. When the massacre at the church happened and all clues pointed to Sherry Westlake, my dad went a little crazy trying to find her. He pulled in favors from every law enforcement department in the area.
    “When it was obvious that the trail was cold, he fell into a deep depression. I wasn’t sure he was ever going to shake it off. But gradually, he did. And now he’s willing to work with you on the Deirdre Summers case. Maybe he’ll put aside his hatred for preternatural investigators and learn to trust you.”
    “Yeah, everyone keeps saying that,” I said.
    “Oh? Who else said it?”
    “Felicity.”
    “Well, we’re right.”
    I shrugged. “Yeah, I’m not so sure.”
    Amy shook her head at me. “You don’t need to be so suspicious.”
    “Being suspicious has kept me alive this long.”
    “Wait here.” She went over to her desk and picked up a slim manila folder. She came back and handed it to me over the counter. “That’s the Summers file. There isn’t much in there.”
    I held it up “The sheriff said there was something in here that might suggest a preternatural angle.”
    “Yeah, there is. You’ll know it when you see it.” She shrugged again. “It might mean nothing but I’m glad you’re taking a look anyway. Natalie deserves to know what happened to her mother. And if there’s a bad guy involved, he needs to be brought to justice.”
    “Natalie,” I said. “Where can I find her if I need to speak with her?”
    “She works at the library, same as her mom did. They used to work there together before Deirdre disappeared.”
    “Okay, thanks. I’ll let you know if I find anything useful.” I lowered my voice and said, “I’m heading over to Clara to take a look at that church.”
    “Just make sure my dad doesn’t find out about that.”
    “I’ll keep it from him as if my life depended on it.” I went back out to the parking lot and held up the case file to show Felicity. She gave me a thumbs-up from inside her car and rolled down the window.
    “Follow me to Earl’s. I know the way.”
    I nodded and passed her the case file through the open window. “I guess we should put this in your car.” She placed it on her back seat. Her little car was much tidier than the Land Rover, that was for sure.
    I got into the Land Rover and followed Felicity south along Main Street. A few minutes later, we were on the highway and I could see Dearmont Lake through the trees. It looked peaceful enough, its surface shimmering brightly in the late morning sunlight. There were boats out on the water, mainly fishermen trolling for black bass, and a couple of pleasure craft.
    A densely-wooded island sat out near the middle of the lake. I wondered if the police had searched it after Deirdre Summers’ disappearance and immediately knew that they must have. Sheriff Cantrell might be a pain in the ass but he was thorough. The fact that he was still investigating Deirdre Summers’ disappearance, long after many other sheriffs might have forgotten about it, told me he how tenacious he was. He’d gone as far as sending divers into the lake to look for the librarian’s body, so he would definitely have had the island searched too.
    As I drove on, the trees obscured my view of the shimmering water and I turned my attention back to the road.
    Up ahead, I could see a sign that said Earl’s Autos and an assortment of old cars in a dusty-looking parking lot. Felicity turned into the lot and I followed, parking by a long building that served as an office at one end and a workshop at the other. The cars in the