The Ginseng Conspiracy (A Kay Driscoll Mystery) by Susan Bernhardt

band dressed as Jack Skellington from The Nightmare Before Christmas pointed at me singing “I Put a Spell on You.”
    Just as I reached the bar, Phil walked in through the fog wearing his deerstalker hat and holding the largest magnifying glass I had ever seen. There's my handsome Sherlock Holmes, I thought. Let's see if he can help me solve this mystery. Phil smiled at me from afar and came over.
    “Sorry I'm late. Kay, you look lovely in that outfit.”
    “Why thank you, Mr. Holmes. You look pretty good yourself.”
    He held out his hand to me. I took it and led him over to the edge of the dance floor. I didn’t want my mood to appear obvious. A slow dance played, and as we danced, I whispered to him about what I had just seen in the vacant store, all the while smiling and trying to act as normal as possible.
    “I don't know what I should do about it.”
    “Elementary,” said Phil, adding with a smile, “my dear Driscoll.”
    “Phil, this is serious. I'm scared shitless.”
    Phil’s smile fell off his face when he heard the timbre of my voice. “Have you told anyone else?”
    “Of course not.”
    “Are you sure it was the guy's voice from the post office you heard?”
    “Yes. It was Al for sure.”
    “Maybe the professor just fainted. You don’t know anything sinister is even going on. Maybe he took some kind of a drug and passed out while he was with his friends. We don’t know him. Right?”
    “Perhaps that is why Al said ‘this has got to be the last time,’” I said sarcastically.
    “Sure. You always jump to the most unusual conclusions because of your job history. This is Sudbury Falls. Not exactly the city of vice and intrigue. Let's not talk about this anymore and try to have a good time tonight. Look around. There are a lot of great costumes here.”
    “Why would everyone be wearing the same hooded silk robes? That's pretty weird, don’t you think? What would explain that?”
    Phil was gyrating to the music, not paying attention anymore. “Who's wearing the same robes?”
    “The people I told you about in the vacant store. And why the chase? I'm sure something's going on.” I knew I was boring him. But who else could I trust?
    Phil’s eyes still fixated on the band.
    “What do you think?” I insisted.
    “About... Oh, are we still talking about that? Why not report what you have seen to the police?”
    “They know. Bill Murphy's Deputy Chief of Police. He was there in the vacant store. Remember?”
    “You shouldn't get involved.” It was clear that Phil had said all he wanted to say about this. “You should have seen this awesome harp guitar the teacher brought in today.”
    I just stared at Phil. Hadn't he been listening to what I had been saying? Didn’t he realize how scared I was? And where was he when I needed him? Something was going on, and I was going to find out, with or without Phil.
    “It sounded like a dream.”
    “What? The professor lying on the floor?”
    “The awesome guitar! It had an unbelievable sustain to it.”
    “What?”
    “You know, sustain. The way the notes ring forever. That reminds me, the boys and I have set up a band practice for tomorrow afternoon.”
    “Sure, Phil, whatever. Did you walk over or bring the car?”
    “Walked. I wasn’t sure how much I'd drink tonight.”
    “I think on the way home we should go past the vacant store.”
    “Kay, stay out of it. Stay out of it.”
    “How can you say that? That's not going to happen.”
    Phil was quiet for a few moments. He shook his head and then raised his hands, palms up. “I give up. I'm not going to talk you out of it tonight. Okay, well, let’s not stay out too late tonight so I’m in good shape for practice tomorrow.”
    “Say cheese.” Phil and I turned toward the voice, and a flash went off in our faces. I shook my head. That ought to be a good picture. “Thank you,” the photographer said. “What are your names, please?”
    After the song ended, we got a drink and something to