Pandora gave him a side-look for his bad pun then shook her head. An old feline legend said that Hester Warren had hidden a bunch of sacred ingredients around Mystic Notch prior to her trial and subsequent hanging for witchcraft. According to the story, these ingredients could be collected then used to reverse the pleasantry charm that had been cast over the town long ago.
If removed, it would allow the evildoers who’d once populated Mystic Notch to rise again, causing all sorts of nasty chaos. Arguments would erupt, neighbors would stop getting along, and fortunes would change for all when the darkness came to power. The legend also said that, before her execution, Hester wrote down the locations of all the secret ingredients and gave the document to her great-grandniece, Helen, for safekeeping.
“It’s possible the letter Albert was trying to mail has the locations,” Pandora said. All the cats gave a solemn nod. “Right. Then we must stop whoever took the letter from digging up these ingredients at all costs.”
“Easier said than done when these humans have no clue of the doom lurking around them,” Inkspot said, his deep voice resounding through the barn. He was their ringleader and an imposing presence, with his large jet-black body and knowing yellow eyes. “What about your human, Pandora? She sees ghosts. Surely she has spoken to Albert.”
“Uhh… well… not exactly.” Pandora cringed. Here in the notch, some judged a cat’s worth in part by her ability to control her human. “Unfortunately, Willa hasn’t gotten a visit from Albert’s spirit yet.”
Otis snorted, giving Pandora a dismissive wave of his paw. “Even if your human had talked to the dead guy, it isn’t like you could ask her anyway right, Pandora? You never could get that woman to do what you want.”
The needling by her nemesis did the trick and caused Pandora to lift her head high, giving even regal Sasha a run for her money. “I can do it. Willa is coming along nicely, and it has nothing to do with her, anyway. Albert’s just shy. I won’t fail this time. I’ve got an idea.”
“Glad to hear it,” Otis said, sounding completely unconvinced. “Try it, then. As long as the silly humans put the person responsible for Albert’s murder behind bars, then we won’t have to worry about them collecting the ingredients or revealing our secret legend to them.”
“In the meantime, we need to be diligent. Everyone, keep a lookout for anything suspicious, and report back here if needed,” Inkspot said. Even though his words didn’t say as much, Pandora knew that his willingness for her to try her idea was a vote of confidence in her skills. Her heart warmed.
Pandora trotted out of the barn, paws crossed in her mind that her idea would work.
5
Sure enough, I’d just reached the back door of my house when Pandora caught up with me. I let us into the kitchen, put the cookies on the counter, then secured the door behind us before setting out plates and silverware and napkins. Striker would be here any minute, and my leg was killing me after the walk over to Elspeth’s.
As I rummaged in the drawer for the bottle of aspirin, Pandora hopped up on the counter.
“Hey, get off there.”
She knew better than to get on the counters and was usually pretty good about it, but if there was one thing I’d learned about Pandora, it was that she disliked being yelled at. She stubbornly ignored me, stuck her paw out, and batted at a little bag. The dandelion tea that Pepper had given me.
Smack, smack.
The tea bag fell on the floor. Pandora looked right at me and meowed as if to say, “I’ll hop up on anything I please,” then she jumped down to the floor, twitching her tail as she sauntered off to the living room.
I’d forgotten Pepper had given me the tea. She’d said it might help with my leg. Turned out Pandora had actually done me a favor.
I made myself a cup of the tea and took an aspirin. The tea wasn’t too bad. I’d expected it to be bitter—like the time I’d licked the dandelion milk off my fingers after plucking the yellow flowers off the stems as a kid—but it wasn’t. It was kind of earthy and not too unpleasant.
I snagged a snickerdoodle from the cookie box, took my stoneware mug of tea into the living room, and settled on the sofa to munch the cookie and check the emails on my phone while I waited for my dinner. I’d requested burgers from the diner in town if Striker didn’t have a preference. They were the best I’d ever had—thick and juicy and doused in cheese and ketchup and mustard—along with the amazing fries that came with them. My stomach rumbled in anticipation.
Pandora settled on the coffee table in front of me and began batting her paw against the glass globe paperweight Elspeth had given me as a gift shortly after I’d moved back to Mystic Notch. I set my phone aside and glanced at the cat over the rim of my cup. “Don’t break that. Elspeth gave it to me.”
The cat meowed loudly and stared at me with her bright-emerald gaze that made me think she could see right into my soul. I sat forward to pet her head then noticed a strange glow emanating from the center of the globe. Weird. Sure, I’d seen the orb catch the sunlight sometimes and work like a prism, sending a rainbow of colors over the walls of the room, but it was night now. I frowned, leaning closer to peer through the glass, noticing more detail now—leaves, dirt, a sort of swirly, misty smoke billowing, and—oh no!
“Albert?” I whispered, my eyes wide.
Pandora meowed loudly.
The ghostly form inside the globe shimmered, quivered slightly, seemed to beckon me closer again…
Knock. Knock. Knock.
Pounding on the kitchen door jarred me from my trance. Feeling slightly disoriented, I shook my head to clear it and peered out the window into the driveway. Striker. I glanced back over at the coffee table, but the globe was back to normal. Had I imagined seeing Albert Schumer’s ghost in there?
“Hey, Chance,” Striker said as I let him inside. He’d taken to calling me by my last name when we first met. He said it was appropriate since I took a lot of chances. He kissed my cheek then held up the two grease-stained paper bags with a grin. “I come bearing burgers.”
“Fantastic! I’m starving.”
He peered into the box of cookies on the counter. “Elspeth?”
“Fresh baked today.”
I led him over to where I had plates and napkins set up at the vintage kitchen table, and we dug into our food. “How was your day? Anything exciting happening in Dixford Pass?”
“Nah,” Striker said around a bite of burger. He wiped a glob of mustard from his chin before continuing. “Same old, same old. Hear your sister Gus has her hands full, though, with what happened to Albert.”
“Yeah.” I gave another look back at the globe to be sure the ghost wasn’t lingering around. Pandora took the opportunity to hop up on Striker’s lap and try to get at his fries, but I shooed her away before she could nab one. She glared before she jumped down and trotted off toward the stairs like she owned the place.
Striker chuckled. “Best check your pillow tonight for hair balls.”
“No kidding.” I took another bite of food, savoring the charbroiled goodness of the meat while trying to shake my unease about Albert.
What if he decided to get over his shyness and show up here in my house while Striker was about? I wanted to talk to the ghost but not at the expense of my budding relationship with Striker. It’s hard enough to find suitable single men to date when you’re pushing fifty, let alone in such a tiny town like Mystic Notch. Plus, I was kind of stuck on Striker. I didn’t want to send him running.
Striker knew nothing about my special “gift,” and I intended to keep it that way forever, if possible. Still, being in law enforcement gave him access to certain information I wasn’t privy to, nor could I ask Gus. I decided to pry just a bit to see what I could find out. “So, have you talked to Gus about her new case?”
“About Albert, you mean?” He devoured his last bite of burger. “No. What I’ve heard is probably what everyone knows from the local scuttlebutt or whatever. Your sister only calls me for help if
it’s a murder, anyway. And from what I’ve heard, Albert just slipped and fell.”
“Right.” I nibbled on another fry, trying to play off my curiosity as boredom. “Well, it was interesting while it lasted.”
“Yeah.”
I finished my burger, and Striker started cleaning up the debris while I worked on the last of my fries. That was another thing I liked about him—not only did he bring the food, but he cleaned it up too.
“Want to watch that new movie on cable?” he asked.
“Uh, sure. Be right there.” I finished the last of my fries, my mind still whirling with what I’d seen in that glass globe. Albert wouldn’t have tried to contact me if there wasn’t something wrong with his death, something unfinished or something that needed to be set right.
Then again, I wasn’t exactly sure that swirling apparition was Albert. So far, no ghosts had tried to contact me through the paperweight. It was probably just an optical illusion. I didn’t know what kind of glass that thing was made out of, but this wasn’t the first time it had reflected something strange.
My mind wandered to the missing letter. I couldn’t shake the feeling that the letter had something to do with Albert’s death. And where was the letter now? Did Ruthie mail it? Did it blow away in the wind? Was Grace wrong about it? Or did someone take it?
My thoughts continued to whirl as I settled in beside Striker on the sofa, his arm warm around my shoulders. He passed me a cookie as I cuddled into his side. Tomorrow, I’d look into it further. Tonight, I’d enjoy my movie and my company.
6
The next morning, Pandora and I arrived at Last Chance Books to find the regulars already waiting outside, coffees in hand. I unlocked the door then gestured them all inside before setting my purse on the counter.
I’d brought some of the dandelion tea Pepper had given me from home, but right now the coffee Bing had brought for me was looking far more appealing. At least my leg was aching less this morning. Maybe the tea really did work.
I headed over to where the group was gathering in the sitting area. Behind me, Pandora patted the pocket of my purse where the tea bags were located and meowed. She was obsessed with that tea. Maybe dried dandelion was like catnip or something. Either way, I didn’t want her scratching up my leather purse, so I picked her up and carried her over to the purple sofa in the sitting area with me. She looked none too happy about it and squirmed around as if it were undignified to be carried, but that was too bad. I needed caffeine this morning. I also needed to find out if the regulars had discovered anything more about Albert’s death.
“Has anyone heard anything new?” I asked as nonchalantly as possible as I took a sip of my steaming-hot coffee.
“About Albert?” Hattie asked. “No. Just awful what happened.”
“Yes,” Cordelia agreed. They were dressed in shades of blue today—Cordelia in a navy pantsuit with a turquoise top and Hattie the opposite. “Such a terrible way to die, alone on those cold stone steps like that.”
“You know, I’ve been thinking,” Bing said, frowning. “I wonder if Albert had a stroke. That could certainly explain why he slipped and fell.”
“Hmm.” Cordelia shrugged. “Well, if we’re putting out theories, maybe Barney Delaney did him in. He was always coming in second to Albert in that checkers tournament, and now that Albert’s gone, Barney’s a shoo-in to win the contest.”
“No, I doubt it was Barney. He’s not the type to murder someone. Heck, he’s usually jumping at his own shadow. I see him a lot at the local auctions. I go to check out the used books for the shop. You’d be surprised how many times first editions show up in box lots from local estates who don’t realize what they’ve got. Barney’s usually there to find new stock for his antique store down the street. He even comes in here sometimes, looking for obscure, out-of-print reference books to help him evaluate his antiques.” I glanced over at the stack of tomes that had been delivered the day before. I’d bought them on eBay, and there were some great hard-to-find books in the pile. “I just got a bunch in too. I should let him know. I think the police should be looking into that missing letter.”
“I’m still not certain there was a letter,” Josiah said. “When I talked to Ruthie about it yesterday, she never mentioned it once. Seems it would come up, being so important and all.”
“Who told you about this letter again, Willa?” Bing asked.
“Elspeth. She said Albert found it while he was going through some of his old postmaster stuff and felt it should be returned to its rightful owner after all this time.”
Bing’s expression turned thoughtful, and he pushed to his feet. “Sorry, everyone, but I need to run this morning. Lots of stuff to do.”
“Yes, us too,” Hattie said, rising and pulling Cordelia up beside her. “We’ll see you tomorrow, dear.”
Josiah stood and tossed their half-finished drinks before heading for the exit himself. “Have a good day, Willa.”
“You too,” I called, though he was already gone, leaving me staring around the empty bookstore and wondering if it was something I said. Pandora stretched on the cushion beside me, and I reached over to pat her head while I drank my coffee and ruminated. “Seems the Mystic Notch grapevine isn’t helping shed any light on Albert’s death, is it, girl?” I scratched Pandora behind her ears and laughed when she all but melted against my hand. “Too bad I don’t have my globe here with me to conjure Albert’s ghost. I bet he could answer my questions once and for all.”
Pandora squinted up at Willa and managed not to roll her eyes, barely. If her human would just drink the dandelion tea like she’d wanted her to, then she could see old Albert’s ghost just fine, globe or not.
She stretched out on the sofa and stared up at the ceiling of the bookstore, Albert’s ghost floating as plain as day above them. He looked nearly as anxious as Pandora felt. Her idea had fizzled out last night. Sure, her antics on the counter had gotten Willa to think about drinking the tea, but with the arrival of Striker, Willa had forgotten all about the mug and left it half-full on the coffee table. She’d only caught a glimpse of Albert, and then “poof,” he’d vanished when Striker had arrived.
It was all so frustrating, trying to get these inferior humans to communicate properly with their feline companions as any civilized being should. In one last effort, Pandora jumped down and padded over to the counter, where she jumped up and managed to snag one of the tea bags out of Willa’s purse. She carried it back to the sofa and plopped it down onto Willa’s lap in the most blatant way she could think of. Did it work? No. Willa just sat there, sipping that icky coffee and staring at nothing.
Why couldn’t she have belonged to a human like Bing? Now that man knew how to communicate. He’d even sent Pandora several encouraging messages telepathically before he’d left the shop. If it hadn’t been for that brief spot of enlightenment, Pandora might’ve given up on the whole venture.
Even Pepper knew how to communicate with a cat, though her communication was mostly one-way. She didn’t receive Pandora’s responses but still somehow knew that Pandora could understand her. Pepper was more enlightened about magic. She even infused it into her teas. Okay, well, Pandora had to admit sometimes that didn’t always work out as Pepper planned. Hopefully, that wouldn’t be the case with the dandelion tea. Pandora really needed it to work to help Willa see Albert. Her status with the cats of Mystic Notch depended on it, not to mention the entire future of the town.
She reached over and batted the tea bag in Willa’s lap with her paw once more, and this time her human finally noticed it.
“Did you bring me this, sweetie?” Willa held up the tea bag by its string. “You know, I think I will have some tea. It might help my leg feel better.”
She got up and limped away. Pandora said a silent prayer of thanks to the cat god Bastet that her human had finally gotten the message. Now, if she’d just get on board with other things, they’d be all set. Like the glass globe in her living room. And Striker.
In truth, Pandora wanted nothing more than to get those two together. Striker was a good human. He’d saved Pandora once, and he was a good match for Willa. Plus, she’d sensed he was far more open to cross-species communication than he’d let on. Pandora knew Striker could see ghosts too. Just like Willa. She’d discovered that little tidbit several months ago when she’d helped him solve a murder. She’d also discovered that he was as desperate to hide it from Willa as Willa was to hide it from him.
Pandora would never understand why Willa and Striker felt the need to hide the fact that they saw the dead. In the feline world, being able to see ghosts like Pandora could was a rare and coveted skill. But then many things humans did didn’t make sense to her.
It was kind of comical, though, watching them try to hide their spiritual skills from each other. Pandora had witnessed it herself a few months ago, and it cracked her up the way both Willa and Striker would get all nervous whenever a ghost appeared to them while they were in each other’s presence. They would stammer and shift and turn about, trying to “hide” the ghost from the other. It was all for nothing because, while both Willa and Striker could see ghosts, they could not see the same ghosts.
Was there something she could do about this? If only Willa and Striker could confide their ghostly sightings to each other, she knew it would make their relationship stronger. And the only way they could prove it to each other was to have them see the same ghost at the same time.
She glanced over at Willa making her tea at the counter. Maybe she could get both humans to drink the tea at the same time and see the same ghost. Albert’s ghost. That would certainly bring them together, right?
Willa carried her mug back over to the sofa and settled into her seat once more, sipping the tea slowly. Soon, she was staring wide-eyed up at the ceiling, where Albert floated overhead, and Pandora smiled inwardly. About time. She curled up in a corner of the sofa for a much-needed catnap, dreaming of ways to set her new plan to bring Willa and Striker together into action.
Whisker of a Doubt (Mystic Notch Cozy Mystery Series Book 6) Page 3