He was the rattlesnake, and Nora had poked him with a stick.
Everything now hung on Beck’s reaction.
But it was taking way too long.
Nora tried to hide her terror. If she showed any weakness, Beck would regain control of his emotions and would deflect any further taunting. If he succeeded in this moment, he would most likely get away with murder.
“You were clever. Your workmanship was almost perfect. But your ink was off.” Nora spread her hands. “Why didn’t you spend more time researching the ingredients? You could have fooled everyone. Were you in a rush? Or did you get lazy?”
“Bren looked up the formula!” Beck shouted. “That little bitch said that our ink was perfect. She was such a good girl in the beginning. So sweet and malleable. But after she was diagnosed with that ridiculous allergy, she changed.” He barked out a dry laugh. “She demanded a higher share of the profits. Stupid girl. No one tells me what to do with community funds.”
Nora wanted to let out a whoop of triumph. She’d done it. She’d triggered Beck into admitting a connection to one of his victims. But those few lines weren’t enough. He could still escape the trap. It hadn’t been completely sprung.
In a voice dripping with disdain, Nora said, “You’re such a cliché. You couldn’t get Cecily to do what you wanted. She wouldn’t hand over Juliana’s book, so you turned to her daughter. Was Bren even legal when the Maestro began favoring her with his attentions?”
“You wouldn’t understand how a community like ours works. You’re a person weighed down by possessions.” He waved around the bookshop. “At Still Waters, we share everything. Money, food, and work. There’s no such thing as a starving artist in our world. We keep art alive in a society that’s forgotten its value. Art is in danger. You might not know it, but you’re waging the same war. Consider how many people read free eBooks and nothing else. They place little value on the quality of the writing or feel no loyalty to any author. They read books only because they’re free. Books are just another artform being devalued. But in Still Waters, we protect Art.”
Nora couldn’t argue. She knew far too many authors who’d had to take on second jobs because being a full-time writer didn’t pay the bills. And the number of independent bookstores being driven out of business by cyber retailers was tragic.
Despite these challenges, Nora still believed in the staying power of books. She also believed in reader loyalty. As long as the bookstore was the beating heart of every town—the place where people went for hot drinks, soft music, and the delicious anticipation of discovering a fabulous new book—they’d never become obsolete.
And Miracle Books was definitely the heart of this town.
“Creating art, teaching people about art, and preserving art is noble,” Nora said. “But using artistic talent to manufacture counterfeit grimoire pages isn’t. And tricking a collector out of his or her money? That’s despicable. Or are you going to tell me that all the profits went toward feeding the hungry and healing the sick?”
Beck glowered at her. “Every community has unforeseen expenses.”
“Such as hiring attorneys to fight Lazarus Harper’s civil suit?”
Beck flinched. The target had hit its mark.
Nora pressed her advantage. “Every CBD product sold at Soothe came with a Certificate of Analysis. Either Celeste learned her lesson, or what happened with Mr. Harper wasn’t her fault.”
“Celeste. Reminds me of those ridiculous moon goddess statues she sculpted when she first came to Still Waters,” Beck scoffed. “She could have made anything—she was truly gifted—but she only sculpted so-called powerful women. What horseshit.”
Nora thought about her controversial window display. She pictured the women brewing stories in their cauldron and the array of powerful female characters on the book covers. More than once, Nora had doubted the wisdom of keeping the display intact. However, Beck’s remark made her wish that it was still in place.
“Cecily had no power,” Beck continued, warming to his subject. “She only survived because my older brother let her join Still Waters. The two of them had a casual thing for over a decade. If my brother hadn’t had a brain aneurism and died, I wouldn’t have been in the position to tell Cecily to hand over her book. Stupid cow refused. I was going to kick her out when Bren came to me. She was more ambitious than her mother, but in the end, just as powerless.”