Zach spent another night with Deegie, and he woke her with a kiss before dawn. “Gotta go,” he whispered in her ear. “You behave yourself today.”
Muzzy from sleep, she lifted her head from the pillow. “What? It’s too early. Come back to bed.”
Zach laughed gently. “I told you yesterday I had an early service call, silly.”
“Yeah, but you didn’t say it was at the butt-crack of dawn.” She sat up, heavy-eyed and sluggish. Her hair was a wild black cloud, and the pillow case had left a red crease across one cheek.
“It’s in Coupeville. I want to beat the traffic, and I still have to gas up the truck.” He chuckled again and ran his hand across the top of her head. “And you look absolutely adorable when you first wake up, by the way.”
“Yeah, I’m a real beauty.” She grabbed his hand and rubbed her cheek against it, pouting. “Call me later?”
“Absolutely. Go back to sleep, Deeg. Love you.”
After Zach left, Deegie rolled over to his side of the bed. She curled herself into the pocket of warmth he’d left behind and willed herself to go back to sleep, just for a little while.
But Bast and Lisbet had other plans.
Deegie felt something leap onto the bed, and small, deliberate footfalls crept slowly towards her pillow. A soft paw batted her face, and a cold nose nudged at her hand. “Bas t…” Deegie muttered. “Lemme sleep …”
Meow! Nudge-nudge. Bat-bat-bat.
Kitties hungry … need you to help. Wake up, Miss! Lisbet joined Bast in his quest to get Deegie out of bed.
“Okay, okay. I’m up … I think.” Deegie opened her eyes to see Bast and Lisbet staring back at her expectantly. She gave them a weary smile, tugged on her ratty bathrobe, and went downstairs.
The mother cat had accepted Tamara’s kittens, and they were nursing heartily, but Deegie mixed a bowl of kitten formula for them anyway. The mother was malnourished and skinny, and nursing three extra kittens certainly wasn’t helping matters. Deegie refilled her food and water bowls, tended to the litter box, and left the room smiling. She couldn’t wait to take in more furry guests.
As she headed for the kitchen she heard the sound of a vehicle coming up the driveway, and she parted the curtains to see who was paying her a visit this early in the morning. One of Altman Heating and Air’s two light blue pick-ups came to a stop with its front bumper dangerously close to the porch.
What the hell, Zach? Forget your cell phone again? Loud knocks rattled the front door as she went to open it. “Hang on, damn it! These are feet, not wheels!” She yanked the door open, shielding her eyes from the early morning sun that came pouring in.
Gilbert stood at the door, his hand poised for another volley of knocks. “Can I come in?” His voice cracked and he sounded breathless.
Her heart leaped into her throat. “What’s wrong? Is Zach okay?”
He pushed past her and into the hallway without answering. It was the first time she had seen him in his work uniform, and the blue coveralls didn’t match his personality. His pale eyes were wide and intense. “I need to talk to you,” he told her.
“Okay, but can it wait?” She wrapped her robe more tightly around her body, remembering that she was completely nude underneath.
“No, it can’t. I can’t stand this anymore. This bullshit has to stop!” His jaw clenched as he spat out the words in angry chunks.
“Can’t stand what? What bullshit? What’s going on?” Deegie backed up a few paces, eyeing Gilbert warily. She’d seen him agitated before, but never like this.
“You know damn well what’s going on! I’m tired of this little coquette game you’re playing with me!”
“Gilbert, I have no idea what you’re talking about. I’m not playing any games! What’s wrong with you?”
“You!” He flung both hands towards her, and uttered an odd, humorless laugh. “You’re what’s wrong with me! I catch you looking at me all the time while you’re clinging onto Zach! Those flirty little laughs, those teasing little looks—why, Deegie? You know how I feel about you, so why do you do this to me?”
“I don’t do any of that! You’re imagining things! I love Zach, and if you think I would do anything like what you just said, then you don’t know me at all!”
He stepped forward and grasped her upper arms. “I know you feel something for me, Deegie. You can’t tell me you don’t. That day I went up the hill for you, to check out the cave—I saw something in your eyes, I felt it! You can’t deny it!” He shook her then, hard enough to make her teeth rattle. “I’m better for you than he is! Zach has no class, no style. I can show you class and style. I can make you into a … a princess, Deegie. Just give me a chance!”
“I don’t want to be a princess! Let go of me! You’re hurting me!”
He made a growling sound deep in his throat, and yanked her towards him. His short red beard rasped across her cheek as he tried to kiss her mouth. She wrenched an arm free and delivered a hard slap to his face.
“Stop it!” She shoved him away from her, feeling real fear now. “I’ll summon Tiger,” she warned. “All I have to do is scream. You saw what he did to that thing upstairs. Is that what you want?” She wouldn’t do it, of course. Tiger had no compunctions when it came to defending his mistress; he would destroy anyone who tried to harm her. Gilbert was out of control, and his behavior was frightening, but she certainly didn’t want to see him torn to shreds.
He appeared not to hear her words. “Deegie, please, just let me—”
He advanced on her again. She raised a hand, cat-quick, and snapped her fingers. A long blue spark issued forth and struck his upper arm. He yelped and stepped back, still holding her in his beseeching, lovesick gaze.
“Get out!” she yelled and pointed to the door for emphasis. “Get out of here, Gilbert!”
“I suppose you’ll be telling Zach about this,” he said, rubbing his arm.
“You’re damn right I will! Now get out, unless you want another zap!”
Gilbert went to the door and hesitated with his hand on the knob. “Fine. I’ll go. But when you talk to Zach, make sure you tell him everything! How you’ve teased me, how you’ve tormented me! Women can’t just do that to a man and expect nothing to happen! You’re just as much to blame as I am!” He turned and left the house, slamming the door behind him.
Deegie stood in the sun-dappled foyer, breathing hard with her hand pressed to her chest. Under her palm, her pulse hammered madly. She closed her eyes and focused on peace, tranquility, and calm. Breathe in lavender, breathe in light. Breathe out fear, breathe out fright.
What the hell just happened? she thought wildly. What made him behave like that? I never did those things he said! Never! She went into the kitchen and picked up the phone, then set it down again. Don’t bother Zach at work. It can wait. He didn’t hurt you.
Deegie was hardly a child anymore, but there were still times when she wished her mother was still alive, and this was one of them. She got dressed, grabbed her phone and house keys, and drove to The Silent Cat to see Flower. She would listen; she would know what to do.
***
“I’ve never seen him act like this before, Flower. He was just … he was acting crazy! His eyes were just insane!” Deegie finished relating her strange tale to Flower. She looked up hopefully at the older woman and shrugged. “I’ve never had anything like this happen to me before,” she said. “What do you think I should do?”
Flower smiled and patted Deegie’s cheek. “Well, the first thing you should do is relax and remember that men do some really stupid shit when they’re in love. I’m willing to bet that young man is feeling knee-high to a garter snake right now.”
“He has a girlfriend,” Deegie said glumly. “At least I thought he did. Poor Nix. She doesn’t deserve this.”
Flower laughed, and her kindly face crinkled. “I’ve never known that to stop a lovesick man from going after what he really wants.” She took one of Deegie’s hands between both of hers and gave it a gentle squeeze. “And you don’t need to feel bad about this; none of it was your fault. Remember that.”
“I’ll try.” Deegie gulped, trying to swallow down the lump that was forming in her throat. Gratitude felt warm in her chest. “I never dreamed he’d do anything like this.”
“Well, that just goes to show you how irresistible you are,” Flower said with a chuckle in her voice. “Have you told Zach yet?”
“No. Should I?”
“I think not. Give Gilbert a chance to redeem himself and apologize. But if he does it again, you go to your man and spill the beans, okay?” She squeezed Deegie’s hand again and added, “Personally, I would have zapped him right in the balls.”
Deegie laughed, and the threat of tears receded. But her mirth was short-lived and her laughter froze as a sudden thought entered her mind. “Flower, do you think that could have been the lust entity working through Gilbert? I mean, the look in his eyes was just … freaky.”
“Hmm. I hadn’t considered that. Has he been around Tamara? These things seem to originate from her, don’t they?”
“No, I don’t think they’ve met. You’re right, though. They always turn up where she’s been.”
“Well, I don’t think that’s the case this time. You’ll be all right. Just remember what I said about ball zapping.” A car pulled into the parking lot, and Flower looked up. “Looks like we have a customer. Now you go on home, and try to enjoy the rest of your day off, okay?”
“I will. Thank you, Flower. I feel much better now.”
Funny how quickly things can change.
Tamara burst through the door of The Silent Cat, out of breath, eyes huge, and her face stark white. “Deegie!” she cried. “It’s happening again!”