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During the day Jessica had allowed herself to accept her roommate’s explanation of the note. It helped that biology class had been interesting. Unlike a lot of times when the material was a review for her, this time her teacher went off on a tangent taking about how sometimes when the body tries to protect itself it can do more harm than good. Three people in class sneezing their heads off in reaction to the tree pollen prompted the discussion but then it took on a life of its own.
The teacher pulled out one of her enormous textbooks and began showing examples of swollen body parts. It went from the discussion of reversible reactions like sneezing to reactions that can cause permanent damage. One of her classmates even demonstrated the raised scar on his abdomen to show an example of a keloid. While Jessica was pretty sure that he was really just doing it to show off his stomach muscles, she actually found looking at the keloid interesting. Although she was committed to not committing to any particular course of study at eighteen, she had to admit she did find medicine interesting so unlike all the other students in her class, she asked her teacher if she could borrow her textbook to do some further reading.
On the light rail to Dorrie’s she rode with her head in a large book, which she realized was actually helpful in avoiding unwanted conversations. Despite how much Jessica loved leaning about things, reading had never really been something she liked to do. It had actually been a problem in school and she had been thrilled when Aunt Dorrie gave her a small tape recorder for her lectures. Normally on the MAX she would be just staring out the window but today she was buried in a large textbook with rather grotesque medical pictures.
Dorrie did her own reading that morning. Since discovering that the man tried to break in into her store last night, she was determined to figure out what the diamond was telling her. The vision was about the diamonds birth so she went through her own set of books to learn more about how diamonds are formed. She wasn’t surprised by the first part of the vison. She knew that diamonds were the result of coal transformed deep in the earth. That explained the fiery images. What she was surprised to learn was that diamonds sometimes emerge to the surface on their own in rivers and creeks. Dorrie was just thinking about this last piece when she heard the door open and looked up to see few burgundy spikes poking out of a very large book.
“Hello,” said Dorrie. “How was your day?”
The book stopped and two eyes popped up. “Did you know that the workers who mine for diamonds often get permanent lung fibrosis?”
Dorrie was used to having to change gears quickly when Jessica was interested in something. She was preparing a response to Jessica’s question when Jessica spotted the torn-up wood around the window.
“What happened there?” she asked.
Dorrie wasn’t sure how much to say. She had never told anyone that she could hear Pumpkin speak. It had taken a while even for her to accept that she heard him. When Pumpkin first showed up at her porch it was right after her break-up with Damion. Pumpkin was a kitten and at first all she heard him say were things like, “I like the milk in the pink carton” his lifelong love of cream or “I don’t like the feather toy. I just want to watch them.” For a long time, Dorrie just thought she was lonely. She accepted that she had become a younger version of the traditional cat lady and Pumpkin’s comments were part of her whimsy. He was full grown before he said anything to her about magic.
One day when he was sitting on his perch he announced, “Magic needs movement.” And then he swished his tail as though to prove it.
“What are you talking about?”
“You need to move. You’ve lived here too long.”
She had no idea where this was coming from. Of course, in her cat lady world she sometimes imagined him to be her familiar but this was not what she imagined he would say.
“I like it here.” Dorrie argued.
“You are just comfortable.” Again, he announced this as if it was obvious. “I know the crystals still speak to you.”
His words awakened something that had been asleep for a long time. It had been a few years since she had used her crystals for anything more than jewelry.
“They are a part of you,” he said. “I know you still hear them.”
He was right. It was almost like she had just been waiting for permission. Within two months the car was packed with a suitcase, a box of crystals and an orange cat staring out the window as they crossed the country, driving west on Route 80 to Oregon. Dorrie choose Oregon because she knew Jessica would be starting college there in Portland. Within a few more months she bought a house and opened her shop. Now, as Dorrie remembered how quickly all that had happened she saw that she had become stuck again. Pumpkin had warned her this could happen one day when she was hanging curtains in the shop.
“Why are you blocking the light? This is a place of magic.”
“It is also my home,” she protested.
“Still hiding,” was all he said. Again, he was right. Until last night, she was comfortable, just showing enough of the witch to remember who she was without having to fully show it to others.
Still curious about the window, Jessica went to the sill to get a closer look. “It looks like Pumpkin was pretty serious about something out there.” She picked him up and petted him “You’re a little tiger!” Then she sat down with Pumpkin on her lap and began telling Dorrie more about her class. Dorrie let herself forget about the window and just enjoyed hearing Jessica tell what she had learned. This was the Jessica Dorrie knew, the girl who loved learning. She began thinking that maybe this college would work out for her after all.
“I still have some strawberry shortcake left if you’d like some,” offered Dorrie. Jessica nodded and Dorrie went to the kitchen to get it. As she came back with the cake, she looked at the window again. Pumpkin had never done anything like this before. She ran fingers ran over the long scratch marks and noticed a little round hole at the side of the window. That’s odd, she thought as her fingers felt the difference in the scratch. She turned to Jessica, “I’m not sure that this is the kind of mark Pumpkin can make.”
Jessica came back to the window and looked over Dorrie’s shoulder at the marks. “I see what you mean. Pumpkin makes long scratch marks but this is a small circle.” Jessica ran her finger over it. “I can feel the air come in. I think it goes all the way through.” Before Dorrie could respond, Jessica was out the door and looking at Dorrie from the other side of the window. “Come look, Aunt Dorrie. I’m right. It does go all the way through.”
Dorrie went to look at the mark on the outside of the casing. Sure enough, the small hole poked through to the outside. An uneasiness started to grew inside her. “This hole was made by something outside,” observed Jessica. “The outside circle is bigger. It looks like the kind of mark that could be made with a small knife.” Dorrrie’s stomach was sinking. She believed Pumpkin, mostly, but he could be dramatic and that is what she was hoping this time.
“Do you think someone was trying to break in? We should look for footprints.” Jessica was excited by the idea and bent down to look for clues.
Dorrie wasn’t as excited. Even after Pumpkin told her the man had been at the window trying to get in, she had let herself think he had just tried to lift it and while protective crystals would be a nice touch and help with the negative energy, for physical safety, a lock and a cat would be enough.
“It’s too muddy,” said Jessica looking disappointed, as they walked back inside. She scooped Pumpkin up again and hugged him. “You’re amazing!” she said. “Someone tried to break in and you scared him off. Way to go Pumpkin.”
“See, she saw it right away,” he said with a swish of his tail.
“I’m giving Pumpkin some of my whipped cream,” Jessica declared and scooped a spoonful off her cake.
“You’re sharing whipped cream with the cat?” said a now familiar voice from the door. Jessica and Dorrie turned to see Ray walk in carrying three cups and a bag. He was shaking his head, “Jack prefers ice cream, butter pecan.”
“He deserved whipped cream,” said Jessica. “He stopped someone from breaking into the store last night.”
Ray looked at Dorrie to see if it was true. “I think she’s right,” Dorrie nodded. She wasn’t sure how to tell them what she knew. “About both things. I think someone tried to break into the store last night and I think Pumpkin scared him away.”
Ray’s face grew worried. “Are you alright?”
“I’m fine but my window is a little shredded,”
Ray put down the food and walked over to the window. “Pumpkin doesn’t mess around.”
Jessica then showed him the hole and described how she imagined Pumpkin bravely fighting off the would-be intruder as Dorrie took the drinks and bag and led them all into the kitchen. “I bet the person never thought they would have to mess with a guard cat.”
“This might be really serious,” said Ray. “First your store, then mine.”
“Your store was broken into?” asked Dorrie.
“At least I think so.” Ray explained about the papers scattered around. “I don’t think anything was taken which is actually what makes it weirder. I had about a hundred dollars in the cash drawer but it was untouched.” He sat down and took a sip of his coffee. “Jack did bark a few times in the middle of the night. I should have listened but I told him to go back to sleep.” Ray shook his head and then continued, “I guess I have trained him too well because that’s what he did.”
“Were any of your papers taken?” asked Dorrie.
“I’m not completely sure I would know,” admitted Ray, “but even if they were, I can’t think why anyone would have wanted them. Even I don’t really care about those papers.”
“This is too much to be coincidence,” said Dorrie. “Both of our stores in the same night.”
Jessica took a scone out of the bag. “And my dorm room.”
Ray and Dorrie both stared at her. “Your dorm room was broken into?”
Dorrie was alarmed “Are you all right?”
“Well, it wasn’t actually broken into, I mean, nothing was actually broken.” She smiled but it didn’t work. She could tell they were still worried. “My roommates think it was just a mistake, but now I’m not sure.”
“This is serious,” Dorrie said. “You are not safe Jessica.” They all grew quiet. “You will need to stay here tonight.”
“But you were almost broken into also, maybe none of us are safe.”.
Dorrie was beginning to think that might be true. “At least two are safer than one,” she said and then added with a smile, “and besides, we have Pumpkin, the guard cat. You are welcome to stay here also,” she said to Ray. “This is turning out to be darker than we thought.”
Jessica nodded but Dorrie could see by the way she hugged Pumpkin she was scared. Dorrie began to feel terrible about what could have happened to her.
“I should have known last night that something was wrong,” Dorrie described how she had stayed in the store to check in with the ring and Pumpkin started to act strangely. “I thought it was a neighbor cat and left him to go to bed.” She looked up apologetically. “But it wasn’t.”
Now Pumpkin looked up at at Dorrie. “Aren’t you going to tell them who the person was?” asked Pumpkin. Dorrie hesitated. Pumpkin shook his head. “Come on. Ray named his bookstore after his dog and Jessica braided my hair. I think they will understand you talk to your cat.”
Pumpkin was right. Besides, they were solving the mystery together and needed to know. Dorrie took a deep breath and blurted it out. “Pumpkin said the person who tried to break in was Mr. Gilbert.” She waited for their reaction.
“You mean the guy who came with Officer Conway. I’m not surprised,” Jessica shook her head.” That guy is a creep.”
“Good thing Pumpkin was here,” said Ray and he reached over to pet Pumpkin’s head.
Dorrie breathed a sigh of relief.
“Told you,” Pumpkin said between purrs.
“So, you think these break-ins are related to the ring?” asked Ray. “Not just some local thief?”
“They have to be,” said Jessica. “My dorm is five miles away. Follow the trail. The only thing all of our places lead to is the ring.”
“But how would he know about where your room is?” asked Ray. “How would he know where my store is?”
“He must be watching us,” Dorrie could imagine Mr. Gilbert peering into her shop window.
“From the time Officer Conway brought him here?” asked Ray.
“Maybe.” A chill ran down her back. She was now sure it was him. Did he know what they were trying to do and what the ring was trying to tell her? Last night the diamond told her about its beginning. Why did that matter?