An Incantation of Cats

by Clea Simon

  “But Elizabeth…”

  “Is her sister, and she’s got sensitivities.” Before Maddy could object, Becca explained further. “She’s going to know something’s up anyway. It’s better if it’s just me. I mean, this is a delicate matter.”

  “Murder?”

  “Infidelity,” Becca corrected her. “But, yeah, maybe this is a case of two sisters looking out for each other. Besides, don’t you have to get to work?”

  Maddy was silent for a moment as she struggled to come up with a response to that. When she finally spoke, it was with resignation. “Promise me that if you do find out anything, you’ll bring it to the police and call me, too. And promise me that you won’t drink anything she gives you. Okay?”

  “I promise.” Becca knew she had won.

  Maddy, visibly restraining herself, took her friend’s hands in her own and clasped them hard for a moment before turning to walk away.

  “Remember, Becca,” she called as the bus pulled up, “nothing to drink!”

  Becca smiled and waved as her friend’s bus pulled away with a sound like a disgruntled pug.

  “Nothing to drink?” She whirled around to see Tiger, on his bike. “Are you having a procedure?”

  “What? No.” Becca, flustered, laughed in a kind of confused, embarrassed way. “I’m—no. Tiger, you startled me.”

  “Sorry.” He tilted his head as he grinned, making him seem more boyish. “It’s none of my business anyway. I couldn’t help overhearing.”

  “No, she was talking about…about something else.” Becca took in the tall, dark-haired man as he dismounted, and Clara waited to see if she would mention their last interaction. “Oh, you must be here to visit Gaia.”

  “Yeah.” He uncoiled the heavy chain that had been draped over his shoulder. “Are you going in?”

  “We just came from there.” She watched as he paused, open lock in hand. “Have you had a chance to talk with her yet?”

  He bent over, focusing on the lock. “Not yet,” he said, his voice strangely muted. “It’s been weird.”

  “Because of Frank?” She spoke quietly, and Clara knew her person only meant well. Still, the cyclist seemed to shudder slightly.

  “Yeah,” he said after a moment’s pause that might have been attributed to problems with the lock. “Maybe.”

  Becca turned away, giving him privacy. She was embarrassed, Clara knew. Her person had a tender heart and disliked causing pain.

  “She wasn’t serious about him, you know.” When she started speaking again, she might as well have been addressing the no parking sign. “She said it was ending. In fact, I’m wondering if it was a bit of a rebound. You know, after you two…”

  The exhalation could have been a laugh or it could have been a sigh. “Right. She wasn’t serious.”

  “No?” She was giving him permission, Clara knew. Room to vent about his ex.

  “I think she loved the idea of a sugar daddy. An older man with money to burn. You know they were planning on running off together, right?”

  Becca bit her lip as Tiger turned and stood, the lock still in his hand. “Whatever she says now, don’t believe it.” He frowned at the lock, like it was to blame. “I’m not saying she loved him, but the idea of him? Or maybe it was just rubbing their affair in her boss’s face.”

  “You think she intentionally let Margaret know?”

  His dark eyes burned. “Is she playing all innocent now? She hates that woman. I mean, not that she deserved what happened.”

  “But Margaret didn’t…” Becca caught herself. “I mean, we don’t know what happened.”

  Tiger’s eyes went wide and for a few seconds, he was silent. “You know she had access to wolf’s bane.”

  “I heard that she recognized it. Or, well, her sister did.” Becca looked around, as if she would see where to begin. “Gaia brought a plant in, but Elizabeth—that’s Margaret’s sister—got rid of it. Or made her get rid of it. That’s a little unclear.”

  “Elizabeth.” He said the name like it tasted sour. “Yeah, I know her, and she would say that.”

  “What?” Becca had to be thinking of her friend. Maddy’s face had puckered up the same way at the mention of the widow’s older sister.

  “You just said it—Gaia brought in a poisonous plant and it disappeared. Right?” Tiger brushed his hair back as his tone changed to something softer. “Gaia never could resist picking up whatever she wanted, whether it was bad for her or not.”

  Becca had no response, and the cat at her feet felt for her. The cyclist’s outburst was both too personal and too specific to ignore. The tension broke, though, as Tiger suddenly burst into a laugh, his teeth flashing in a wide grin.

  “Listen to me!” He smiled at Becca. “I’m sounding like the wronged spouse, and I’m the one who thought we should split up. Maybe I’m dreaming up this whole conspiracy, and it’ll turn out that she ate a bad chicken wing or something.”

  He sighed as he shook his head and then looked again at the lock in his hand. “But maybe this isn’t the best time for me to visit Gaia,” he said. “Anyway, I’m here, and it’s a gorgeous day. Would you want to take a walk by the river?”

  Clara waited for her person to say no. Becca had an investigation to pursue, after all.

  “I was going to head into Central Square, if you’d like to join me.” Clara whirled to look up at her person. “I don’t know if that’s what you were thinking of.”

  “I think a walk would do me good.” He slung the chain over his shoulder. “Let me guess, you’re going to interrogate Margaret?”

  “Actually, I want to talk to Elizabeth,” Becca confided. “Not about the wolf’s bane, or not only, but she said some things the other day that I want to follow up on.”

  “Ah, now I understand why your friend was so worried.” Tiger reached for his bike, holding its handlebars in one hand. “But never fear,” he said, the smile audible in his voice. “You’ve got a tiger by your side.”

  “Don’t you have to work?” Becca couldn’t resist grinning back. Tiger’s smile was contagious now that his dark mood had lifted. “I mean, I’m happy for the company and all.”

  “You mean these?” He motioned to his bike’s panniers. “Nothing in there but my tools. I don’t have any deliveries or pickups scheduled for today. Besides, I was planning on taking a break.”

  As if on cue, the device clipped to his belt flashed. With barely a glance, he thumbed a switch and it went black. “See?”

  “If you’re sure.” Becca was smiling in a way that Clara didn’t fully understand. “But what if you get other calls?”

  “Not to worry. I only work for one client, and they know whatever it is, I’ll get to it.” He leaned in. “I’m kind of on call twenty-four seven.”

  “Maybe Gaia wouldn’t be a great choice, then.” The words slipped out, and Becca bit her lip, embarrassed. “I’m sorry. That was rude,” she said.

  His face was blank. “Gaia?”

  “She told me that she might be coming to work with you, but with her habits…” Becca shook her head, flustered. “Anyway, I guess that’s no longer an option.”

  “Yeah, I don’t think so.” Tiger looked down at his hands, like they could give him an out. “Not that she wouldn’t be welcome, of course.”

  “Of course?” Becca was examining his face. For what, Clara couldn’t tell.

  Tiger’s smile was back, as broad as ever. “Hey, the more the merrier, right?”

  With that, they started out, Tiger walking his bike and Becca strolling beside him. Once the uncomfortable topic of Gaia was behind them, the two humans chatted casually. Becca, who seemed determined to avoid any mention of Tiger’s earlier declaration, focused on her work and had explained about her coven by the time they passed through Harvard Square.

  Becca showed no interest in catching a bus, not with Tiger asking for reading suggestions. And so the two kept walking, while Clara, unseen besid
e them, dodged the busy foot traffic as she did her best to tune into their voices. Laurel, she knew, would be better at reading the signals between these two. Yes, they were interested in each other. Yes, the young man was being respectful. Any male human who asked Becca about herself was an improvement over Becca’s cheating ex, she figured. It was only her own memory of Becca’s previous heartbreak that made her nervous, Clara told herself. That made her wonder that his interest was so sudden and seemed so intense.

  Whatever its impetus, the mood was broken when the two humans arrived at the colorful storefront to find the lights out and the closed sign posted in the window.

  “I guess they couldn’t get anyone to cover for Gaia.” Becca peeked in, between a ram and a lopsided bull. Although she couldn’t see any movement, the back storeroom appeared to be lit. “I could go to Margaret’s apartment, but I was hoping to catch Elizabeth.”

  “You want to try around the back?” Tiger followed her gaze. “I’ll stay here in case anyone shows up.”

  “Thanks.” She flashed him a grin and took off toward the alley, her unseen cat at her heels.

  “Elizabeth?” A minute later, she was knocking on the back door. “Are you in there? It’s Becca.” She waited, then pressed her ear against the gray metal. Being a cat, Clara didn’t need such proximity to know that nothing stirred inside. “I’d like to talk to you, if you have a moment.”

  She stepped back and brushed her hair off her face. But nobody came to the door, and after another round of knocking, Becca retreated back to the street.

  “I guess I’m going to have to try the apartment,” she said, as much to herself as to Tiger. “I wonder if Elizabeth is avoiding me?”

  “If she has something to hide, she might be afraid of you.” The thought didn’t seem to please her companion, and he frowned as he fussed over his bike. “I don’t know if you should confront her, Becca.”

  “I’m not going to confront her.” Becca stressed the word. “I want to talk to her. I want to find out what was going on with Frank. Elizabeth seemed to have some insight into her brother-in-law, so maybe she knows why he was planning on running away.”

  “Isn’t it obvious?” Tiger looked up in disbelief.

  “You mean, to be with Gaia? I don’t think so.” Becca’s stare fixed on a point somewhere beyond her companion. “I think something else was going on.”

  “Like maybe his wife was sick of him fooling around?” That earned him a scowl, and he put his hands up in surrender. “Sorry,” he said. “Just pointing out the facts. But aren’t the cops looking into all the angles?”

  “I don’t know,” Becca confessed. “I mean, they warned me away from trying to help Gaia, but she’s told me things. And I really don’t want to get Elizabeth in trouble if she was just trying to protect Gaia from herself.”

  Tiger’s brows went up at that. “Protect her from herself?”

  “Yeah, didn’t I tell you? It was Elizabeth who told Gaia that her plant was poisonous. Gaia didn’t even realize what she had.”

  “That’s what she told you?” Becca couldn’t read Tiger’s expression, and neither could Clara. Once again, she wished she had Laurel’s power. “Well, I wouldn’t be surprised if she’s gotten rid of it now.”

  “What do you mean?” Becca put her hand on Tiger’s handlebars to stop him as he turned away. “Gotten rid of it now?”

  “Elizabeth’s not telling you the truth—or not the whole truth,” he said, his voice disconcertingly matter-of-fact. “She took the plant, whatever she says. I saw it in the back room of the shop the last time I went to visit Gaia. I guess Gaia didn’t recognize it, or maybe it was after she was fired.” He paused, his eyes going wide. “Maybe that’s why Gaia was fired.”

  “You’ve got to tell the cops that, Tiger. This is serious.”

  He shook off the idea. “My ex gets fired and suddenly I’m accusing the owner of attempted murder? Besides, I was never supposed to be back there. Gaia used to sneak me in sometimes late at night—she had a way in through the window and showed me how. Anyway, it doesn’t matter. That old crow probably got rid of it. But, hey, you could ask the cops to check it out.”

  To her credit, Becca took a moment, chewing on her lip as she considered the option. “No,” she said at last. “They’ve already warned me off. Besides, I don’t have any proof.”

  “But you’re really resourceful.” Clara could feel Becca flush slightly at the compliment. But Tiger wasn’t done. “Maybe you could find a way to look for it. I don’t think you’d be able to miss it. It’s pretty distinctive, with those poisonous blue flowers and all.”

  “Maybe.” Becca didn’t look thrilled at the idea. “But now, I’d better go beard the lion—or the lioness—in her den. And I should do this alone.”

  Clara expected him to protest, but he only nodded. “Good luck. Let me know how it goes. On top of everything else, now I’m curious. If Elizabeth did dump that plant, when did she get rid of it? And if not, why do you think she’s been keeping it? And where? You should be careful, Becca.”

  “I will be,” said Becca, her mouth set in a determined line. “And thanks.”

  Chapter 30

  Becca watched him pedal off before she headed down to Margaret’s apartment. Clara might not have Laurel’s skill, but she thought that her person looked a little wistful as well as curious. Wistful, the calico understood. This Tiger might be a tad odd, but he was trying to help, in his way, and he’d spent a good chunk of his afternoon with Becca. The curiosity was more than the cat could figure out. Her person was both sweet and warm, and to Clara it was no wonder why a man would want to get close to her. Surely, despite her searching gaze, staring back at the way Tiger had ridden, Becca must understand that much.

  For now, Becca’s thoughts were her own, and so Clara trotted along, tail up, when she rang the apartment bell and, soon after, made her way up those stairs.

  “Becca!” Margaret’s dark eyes widened with surprise. Clad in a velour track suit, she appeared even smaller than she had the last time Becca had seen her.

  “I’m sorry to disturb you.” She truly was, Clara could tell from her posture as well as her voice. “I know these last few days must have been difficult.”

  “Thank you.” The widow collapsed against the doorframe, suddenly appearing both older and smaller than usual. “It’s bad enough that Frank is gone, but all the fuss.” She bent her head, exposing the white roots of her part, and Clara could feel her person’s resolve crumble.

  “I am so, so sorry.”

  The widow accepted the condolences, the white line bobbing briefly.

  “Are you—I’m sorry, you must be caught up in funeral plans?”

  “No.” One syllable shared with the doorframe. “Not yet.” Margaret cleared her throat, her voice growing stronger. “We’ll have a service, some kind of memorial, at some point. They—the police still have him. They’re doing tests…” Her voice trailed off again as one hand waved her sentence to completion.

  “That’s part of what I was hoping to talk to you about,” Becca ventured, the effort audible in her voice. “Or Elizabeth, really.”

  “Elizabeth?” Margaret’s head popped up and those big eyes blinked. “Why?”

  “I gather she might have some insight into what happened.” When Margaret didn’t respond, Becca kept talking. “With Gaia.”

  “You can’t still think that I… That Frank…” A second wave of fatigue seemed to wash over her, deflating her once again as she stepped back, opening the door to her visitor. “Whatever,” she said, her voice flat. “You might as well come in.”

  “Thanks.” Clara slipped in alongside Becca and followed her through to the sunlit living room. The space appeared much as it had the other day, although Becca made a more careful examination of the plants on the sill. “Let me get my tea,” Margaret said, her voice flat, as she walked through to the kitchen. “You want some?”

  “Ah, no, thanks,”
Becca called back. “I really just had a few questions.”

  “What do you want to know?” Margaret returned holding a mug that smelled strongly of peppermint. She sipped, watching Becca over the mug, her eyes dry.

  “Well,” Becca took a moment to recalibrate. “I was wondering if you would tell me a bit about Frank’s business.”

  “His business?” The tea seemed to have revived the widow. At any rate, Clara thought, if she was nonplussed by the question, she didn’t show it. “He had that car lot down by the river. That was the extent of it.”

  Becca took this in. “Used cars? Did he buy them or bring them in from other locations?”

  A frown rippled the little lipstick left on her lips. “I don’t really know. Took them on consignment, I think. It was just a little thing, more a hobby than any kind of big going concern. I know he saw himself as some wheeler and dealer, but I doubt he had more than three cars for sale at any given time.”

  Becca paused, apparently storing the words away, as Margaret drank her tea. Before she could phrase another question, the widow continued, her voice taking on a tone of resignation. “That’s not where he got his money from. You probably know that already, right?”

  Clara could feel Becca holding her breath as she waited.

  “I spoiled him.” A sigh as she placed her mug on the table. “I know I did. The watches, the rings. The car lot itself.” She peered up at her guest. “You’ve probably never been in love, have you?”

  “Well…” A half smile from Becca.

  “I thought we had a good relationship. No,” she raised her hand, not that Becca had made any move to interrupt, “I know what you’re thinking. But we had our ways. It had…he had never done anything like this before. I thought, well, it’s just another phase.”

  “Maybe it was.” Becca spoke softly. “Maybe he didn’t mean to end it this way.”

  “You don’t think… Is that why you were asking for my sister?” Her brow bunched together as she reached once more for her tea. “Elizabeth didn’t like him, but she wouldn’t do anything to…to harm him.”