Drop Dead Sexy

“But if Ezra was taking the antivenin, why did he react the way he did tonight?” I questioned.

Zeke grimaced. “I ran out of antivenin two days ago. I’ve been trying to get ahold of Randy for two days, but he’s not answering his phone.”

“That’s because he’s dead,” Catcher dead-panned.

After staggering back, Zeke clutched his chest. “Randy’s dead?”

I nodded. “Murdered.”

Zeke ran both his hands through his hair as he shook his head. “Holy shit. I can’t believe it.”

It was pretty clear at that moment that Zeke wasn’t our killer. Neither was his brother considering Ezra had no idea who Randy was. Unless Zeke had any information for us, we were back to square one.

Zeke gave a mirthless laugh. “Without Randy, our ministry is screwed.”

“Your ministry was screwed the moment Ezra’s snake bite was called into law enforcement. They’ll be patrolling the fairgrounds now to ensure you guys are closed down. In case you missed it, snake handling is illegal in the state of Georgia.”

“Yes, I was aware of that. Ezra was always safe.”

“Yeah, what about the kids I saw there? Were they drinking the antivenin too?” Catcher demanded.

Zeke averted his gaze to the ground. “No. They weren’t.”

“You seem like a nice guy, so I’m sure you wouldn’t have wanted a dead kid on your conscious if one of the snakes had gotten away from Ezra.”

“No. You’re right. I get it. I guess I’ll have to tell Ezra the truth,” Zeke lamented.

With a shrug of one of his shoulders, Catcher said, “You could, or you could simply lead him to believe that the law will no longer allow him to handle snakes.” At both Zeke’s and my curious expression, Catcher added, “The man almost died tonight. Don’t kill his faith as well.”

While Zeke did a slow bob of his head in agreement, my amorous feelings for Catcher amped up a notch. How was it a good-looking, sex machine could have such a deep side? It was almost as much of a mystery as who killed Randy.

“Before we go, I need to ask if you know any of Randy’s other clients?”

“Nope. Randy was really good about maintaining your privacy, which was a plus for me. In fact, all the bottles of antivenin just came with a number. My name was never on the bottle, nor was it labeled antivenin.”

“And what number was that?”

“Seven.”

Catcher scribbled that down on his notepad. “So you don’t know anything about anyone else affiliated with Randy?”

After thoughtfully scratching his chin, Zeke replied, “There was this one time when I asked him how the hell he came up with all this stuff. He said he collaborated some with the Granny Witch Thornhill.”

“A witch?” Catcher questioned, stilling his pen.

“Not a witch, but the Granny Witch Thornhill.”

“All-righty then,” Catcher replied. His tone alluded to how ridiculous he found the turn of the conversation. I couldn’t blame him since it was all too bizarre. I guess now we could add witches to the craziness of nudists and snake handlers.

“She’s not a black hat and spells kinda witch. Granny Witch is the name given to mountain women who practice folk healing.” At what must’ve been Catcher’s and my blank expression, Zeke said, “You know, women who did midwifing or dowsing for water to make wells. They also delved in potions for healing.”

“Since I grew up in Atlanta, I wasn’t aware of any of that,” Catcher said.

When he looked at me, I shook my head. “While I’ve heard of mountain folk healing, I haven’t heard of the term ‘Granny Witch’.”

Zeke snorted. “Yeah, I should’ve pegged you two for city-folk.”

I fought the urge to argue with him that Taylorsville was hardly a major metropolis.

“Just ask around for the Granny Witch Thornhill, and I’m sure you’ll find her.”

“With just that much to go on, I hope you’re right,” Catcher mused.

“If that’s all for me, I better get back and see how Ezra’s doing.”

Catcher nodded. “That’s it.” He pulled one of his cards from his suit pocket and handed it to Zeke. “If you think of anything else, don’t hesitate to call me.”

“Sure thing.” After putting the card in his wallet, Zeke smiled at me. “Once again, thank you for saving Ezra’s life.”

I returned his smile. “You’re welcome.”

After stuffing his hands in his pants pockets, Zeke ambled back toward the ER entrance. Catcher and I watched his retreating form until he got back inside. “I can’t wait to tell the guys I’m working on a lead for a granny witch.”

I tsked at him. “That would be the Granny Witch Thornhill.”

“Isn’t that what I said?”

“No. You left it way too common. Apparently this old biddy has a proper title like she’s royalty or something.”

Catcher snorted. “Mountain royalty I suppose.”

My phone dinged in my purse. After I pulled it out and read it was from Allen, I grimaced. “Dammit.”