Apparently, the coffee that Bing and the others usually brought was vital for my sanity because I could have sworn I just heard Pandora speak words. Human words.
“Yep, it’s me talking to you. We can communicate!” Pandora seemed overjoyed.
I, on the other hand, was terrified. Maybe it had something to do with those drops they’d put in my eyes at the optometrist. I blinked and shook my head.
“You’re not seeing things, or hearing things.” Pandora twitched her tail. “We can communicate. My meows are actual words to you now. Pepper’s tea helped.”
My gaze switched to the broken mason jar. “You mean, you drank this tea, and now I can hear you in words?”
“Yes! Exactly! Isn’t that what I just said?” Pandora trotted over to the broom closet. “Now, let’s clean it up, I don’t want to get a sliver of glass in my paw. We have a lot to catch up on.”
I’ll say. Pandora watched as I cleaned up the glass. I couldn’t exactly ask her to help. She couldn’t hold a broom, and from what I’d experienced with her before we could communicate, she wasn’t the type that cleaned up.
“So, Pepper’s teas really are magic?” I asked.
“I guess, but they mostly backfire, as you know.”
Did I ever. “And there’s magic here in town. Or at least a magical cat?”
The idea of magic existing in Mystic Notch wasn’t new to me. After all, I did have two ghosts in the bookstore that I had regular conversations with, not to mention the dozens that had appeared wanting me to solve murders. There had also been a few incidents that defied logical explanation, so maybe talking to my cat wasn’t that far-fetched.
“There’s more than one magical cat. All the cats over at Elspeth’s are magical. You see, we’re descended from a long line of cats that are sworn to keep Mystic Notch from falling into evil ways.”
That sounds a bit overdramatic, I thought as I emptied the dustbin full of glass into the trash. “Does Elspeth know about her cats?”
“You betcha. She’s got some skills herself.”
I stared at my cat. Was she saying that the kindly white-haired lady I thought of as a second grandmother was some sort of witch? I really needed that coffee.
“Wait, you talk to Elspeth?” I headed toward the back room where the Keurig machine was. Pandora padded along beside me.
“Tigger is the one that has the telepathic connection to Elspeth, so he does most of the talking. Of course, she does address us and ask us to do things.” Pandora started grooming herself while I made the coffee. “Oh, and you know that paperweight she gave you when you inherited the house?”
“Yeah?”
“It’s not a paperweight.”
So I had seen images in there. “Let me guess. It’s some sort of crystal ball?”
“Yes!” Pandora appeared astounded that I was catching on so fast. I was shocked myself, but like I said, it wasn’t exactly a surprise that there were paranormal happenings in Mystic Notch.
“I thought I saw images in there,” I said.
“Thank the great cat god Bastet for that. You might be helpful after all.”
“Um. Thanks.” Was she being sarcastic? I hadn’t thought of her that way before. Sarcasm didn’t translate well through meows. “Last night, were you trying to show me something in the paperweight?”
“Right again!” Pandora stopped grooming. “There’s something going on in Mystic Notch, and we need your help. I thought you might be able to see a clue in the paperweight.”
“Something bad?” That explained why I’d felt an ominous impending doom lately.
“Very bad, and us cats are trying to make sure that evil foes don’t harm our town.”
“Evil foes? Like who?” I was a tad skeptical because now this was starting to sound like an episode from a superhero movie.
“Felicity Bates, for one.”
I wasn’t so skeptical about that. I knew she was bad news.
Pandora continued. “And Sarah Delaney.”
“Oh no! I thought I saw Sarah running away from the shop earlier.”
“Yeah, that’s why I went the extra mile to try to talk to you. We need your help to—”
“Yoo-hoo, anyone here?”
I shushed Pandora, then spun around and looked out into the hall. Someone had come in, and I did not want them to hear me talking to my cat.
“I’ll be right out!”
“But I need to—”
“Shush! Later!” I interrupted Pandora and hurried out front.
Josie Martin was standing in the shop, looking down the hallway. She had a camera in one hand and a notebook in the other. “How are you, Willa?”
“Fine, you?” I was a bit distracted by Pandora, who kept looking like she would open her mouth and start talking. I supposed that wouldn’t be a problem if Josie couldn’t hear her, but what if I slipped up and answered back? That wouldn’t do at all. Thankfully, Pandora must have sensed my fears and remained silent.
“I’m good. I don’t know if you’ve heard, but I’m doing features on the various shops in town and was hoping to get some photos and do a write-up on Last Chance Books.”
“Oh. That’s nice. I am kind of busy now, though.” If you considered trying to talk to your cat about saving the town from evil busy.
“It will only take a few seconds. I need to get it in before the deadline. It will be printed on Friday. Very good for business.”
“Okay, fine.” Josie was persistent, and I knew she’d probably bug me until I agreed, so I figured I might as well let her do her thing. Besides, I needed some time to process this new development with Pandora. What exactly did the cat think I could do to help, and did I even want to do it?
* * *
Pandora curled up in her cat bed on the windowsill while Willa answered a barrage of questions from Josie. Josie used an old-fashioned camera that she proceeded to make a show of taking photos with, including one of Pandora in her bed. Pandora preened and plumped out her tail for the photo.
Willa kept shooting warning glances at Pandora, so she eventually tuned them out. She got it. It was disturbing to realize you could talk to your cat, and Willa was worried Josie might find out and think it was strange.
Pandora shut her eyes, feeling quite pleased with herself. Wait until the barn cats found out she’d finally communicated with her human! If only Willa hadn’t shushed her right before she told her the most important part. But the key was safe in the box on the shelf, and Pandora deserved a little cat nap. She could fill Willa in and have her take the key to Elspeth later.
Josie’s incessant questions kept her from falling asleep.
“Did you inherit all the books in the shop from your grandmother?”
“How do you get new inventory?”
“What types of books are most popular?”
On and on. Even Willa must have gotten tired of it, as she eventually stopped following Josie and plopped down on the purple sofa.
Mercifully, Pandora was blessed with sleep, finally, and she didn’t awaken until Josie was opening the door to leave.
“Well, thanks for letting me do this piece. It will be in Friday’s paper. Toodles!”
“You’re welcome!” Willa yawned from the sofa then peeked around the store. “We need to continue our talk, and I need a coffee.”
She got up and went to the little kitchenette in the back, and Pandora followed.
“Listen, there’s something very important you have to do.” Pandora knew it was a lot for Willa to process. It would be nice to ease her into this whole business with the book and the key, but Pandora didn’t have time.
Willa’s left brow ticked up as she sipped the coffee. “Seriously? Is this how it’s going to be? You bossing me around? I think I liked it better when all that came out of your mouth were annoying meows.”
Annoying meows? Pandora always thought her meows were sweet and endearing. “Just this once, but after that, we’ll take turns bossing each other around if you want. Remember how I mentioned that the cats are here to protect Mystic Notch from evil-doers?”
“Yeah.” Willa still looked a little skeptical.
“You can do something to help us right now. That recipe book you got wasn’t a recipe book.”
Willa’s eyes narrowed. “You don’t say? I thought it was kind of unusual, and there was so much interest.”
“Yeah, and there’s a reason for it. Come on, I’ll show you.” Pandora trotted out of the back room to the front, skidding to a stop and almost being trampled by Willa when she saw what was sniffing around near the sofa. Fluff on his pink leash, and on the other end of that leash, Felicity Bates.
“Hello, Willa. Did I hear you talking to someone?” Felicity was seated on the sofa as if she’d been lounging there all day. She raised her left brow and leaned over as if to see if someone would follow Willa out of the back room. Felicity had dark circles under her eyes, and her hair was a mess. Pandora hoped it wasn’t because she was up all night trying to locate the key.
Willa stood there for a few seconds just staring at Felicity, who stared back with a smug smile on her face.
Fluff arched his back, puffed out his long white fur, and hissed.
Pandora did the same.
“Uhhh… I was just talking to myself.” Willa glanced at Pandora uneasily. “Have you been here long?”
“Just a few minutes. This sofa is always so inviting. When I didn’t see you in the shop, I figured I’d take a seat.” Felicity stood, smoothed out the folds of her long white skirt, and tossed a lock of witchy red hair behind her shoulder.
Pandora glanced at the bells over the door. Had they been so engrossed in their conversation that they hadn’t heard them ring? Had Felicity heard what she and Willa were talking about? She wouldn’t put it past her to eavesdrop.
Pandora glared at Fluff while Willa went behind the counter. He looked as smug as his owner, as if they knew something Pandora and Willa didn’t. Ha! The joke was on them if they were looking for the key. Pandora gave Fluff a sly smile and then turned abruptly, showing him her back end as she trotted behind the counter with her tail held high.
“So, what brings you here? I’m sure this isn’t a social call.” Willa crossed her arms over her chest as Felicity approached the counter with a book.
“I’d like to buy this book on smoothies. I also heard you have a very interesting cookbook here, and I’m in the mood to improve on my culinary skills.”
Pandora snorted. Ha! She was a day late and a dollar short.
Willa shot Pandora a warning glance. Oops. Had she meowed that out loud? Luckily, the lines of communication between Felicity and Pandora were nonexistent. Unfortunately, the lines of communication between Fluff and Pandora were functioning just fine.
“Don’t talk to my mistress that way,” Fluff hissed in his presumptuous, snotty voice.
“I’ll talk any way I see fit,” Pandora replied.
Willa gave her a confused look. Willa probably couldn’t hear Fluff and wondered why Pandora had randomly blurted that out. Pandora envied Willa. She wished that she couldn’t hear Fluff either.
“Is it an old leather book that looks like it belongs in a moldy castle with type-font that gets a little blurry?” Willa asked.
Felicity looked excited. “Yes!”
“Sorry, someone already bought that.”
Felicity scowled. “What do you mean someone bought it? Who?”
“Mary Ashford picked it up about an hour ago.” Willa gave Felicity a sorry-not-sorry look.
Felicity looked steamed. “You sold it to someone else? But I put my name on the list!”
Interesting choice of words. Pandora wondered why Willa would even add Felicity’s name to the list. What if Felicity was speaking literally? She did claim to be a witch. Could she have used a writing charm or something to add her name?
If Felicity was looking for the cookbook, that meant she was looking for the key. Pandora glanced up at the shelf. Thankfully the box was still there.
But if Felicity was looking, then Pandora needed to get Willa on this right away. She couldn’t wait for Felicity to leave.
“I’m sorry, Mary’s name was first on the list, so I called her first, and she was interested, so I sold it to her.”
Felicity narrowed her eyes at Willa. “Fine, then I’ll just take this one.” She slapped the book on the counter, and Willa rang her up. When Willa was done, she grabbed the bag and stormed out of the store, tugging Fluff behind her. Fluff turned to give Pandora one last hiss as the door closed in his face.
“The joke’s on you. The key wasn’t even in that book!” Pandora meowed, but not loud enough for them to hear. No sense in tipping them off to the fact that Willa had the key.
Pandora didn’t waste any time. She turned to Willa. “This is of the utmost importance. I think Felicity was looking for a key. I was trying to tell you about it when we were interrupted. The key is very important. It was in the binding of that cookbook. It’s magical, and you're gonna have to trust me on this, but if it falls into the wrong hands, you’re not going to like what happens to Mystic Notch.”
Willa looked skeptical, but then she seemed to give it careful consideration. Truth be told, Willa was a little slow on the uptake. The evidence that there was magic in Mystic Notch was all over the place, and Pepper had been trying to get her on board with it for a long time. Willa herself had seen evidence but didn’t believe her own eyes. Hopefully, that was about to change. When you can see ghosts and talk to cats, how can you deny the existence of magic?
“Well, Felicity would certainly be the wrong hands, but where is the key, and what can I do about it?”
“Remember the key you found when you caught me with the recipe book on the floor?”
“Yes! Of course. You knew the key was in there? That’s why you knocked the book over?”
“Well, not exactly. Actually, Franklin and Robert were fighting over it, and the key fell out. I was just trying to rescue it. But I did know it was magical.”
“Wait, what do Franklin and Robert have to do with this?”
“Nothing, as far as I know. They were fighting over who might have recipes named after them or some such thing. You know how they are.”
“That explains why you’ve been staring at that shelf.” Willa walked over to the shelf where the box was. “What were you going to do with it?”
“I was going to take it to the cats to see that it got to Elspeth, and now that you know how important it is, I could use your help with that.”
“Of course.”
Relief washed over Pandora as Willa stretched to retrieve the box from the top shelf. She turned around, placing it on the counter, and Pandora jumped up to get a look inside. Pandora held her breath, her tail swishing back and forth eagerly as Willa undid the latch and—
The door to the shop burst open, the bells ringing wildly as if a tornado had burst into the room. It wasn’t an actual tornado, but it was pretty close. Willa’s sister, Gus, the county sheriff, stormed toward the counter, fury in her amber eyes. She wasn’t a big person, but with her blond hair in a tight bun, her hat atop her head, and the look on her face, she seemed pretty big.
She slapped something on the counter and glared at Willa.
“Okay, Willa.” Gus tapped the card she put on the counter. “Explain why Mystic Notch’s latest murder victim had a meeting with you shortly before her death.”