Black Cat Crossing

by Fitz Molly

  Chapter Seven

  I floated down the stairs behind Tilly and Sunny. Mocha had dashed ahead, probably to inspect the garden outside. For a cat, she was very protective of her boundaries and allowed no intruders. At least, not the four-legged type.

  We’d decided I’d hover in the background while they chatted with my guests. Or rather, I’d decided that part. Since I’d become adept at becoming invisible when necessary, I could do what I pleased. I rubbed my hands together, thrilled I’d finally uncover the truth. And, maybe create some mischief for my unsuspecting guests along the way. I told myself that I deserved a little fun after what I’d gone through.

  “Are you glad you came along?” I heard Tilly ask Sunny.

  She clunked down a few more steps before answering. I liked how she was so thoughtful instead of blurting out the first idea that came into her head.

  “Yes. I have to admit that this trip has turned into something I’d never imagined in my wildest dreams. Audrey is so likable in a tragic sort of way. More than anything, I want to help her settle this score. To find some closure, so she can move on to whatever is next in her ghostly life. And, Mocha—what’s not to love about that smart cat? I predict she’s going to surprise us when we least expect it.”

  My heart fluttered with happiness. Or, at least something fluttered, not sure what because, of course, I had no real heart anymore. But I still felt, in a deep and profound way, that Sunny and Tilly would come through for me.

  “Oh, there you are,” Birdie said as Sunny reached the bottom of the stairs. “Set that tray down, and I’ll take care of it in a minute. Come along. Audrey’s daughter and son-in-law have arrived. I already told them about you.”

  “Oh,” Tilly said. “What did you say?”

  “Just that one of Audrey’s oldest and dearest friends and her companion are here for the weekend.” Birdie leaned close to Tilly. “I need to warn you. It didn’t go over well. Come on, let’s get this over with.”

  Birdie led the way to what I called my parlor—a cozy room for talking. I always thought that sounded so much more elegant than living room. And now? I’m not particularly fond of the word living. The parlor had a big fireplace with bookshelves on either side. A group of dark blue Queen Anne chairs bordered a thick wool rug. In the center, Birdie had already set a tray with coffee and muffins on a carved coffee table. Charlotte and Tucker sat side by side, unsmiling and impatient. They looked bored and ready for this weekend chore to get underway.

  I studied my daughter. Ash blonde hair framed her flawless face. Even natural beauty and her silky cream blouse paired with grey slacks didn’t soften her stern look. I was pleased, though, to see she still wore a gold necklace I’d given her when she’d turned forty-five.

  Tucker turned when Birdie entered. She was followed by Tilly and Sunny… and, me, of course, but they didn’t know that detail. My son-in-law wore his signature dark blue business suit. He was nothing more than an aging frat boy with nicer clothes now that he was closing in on fifty. The requisite amount of shirt cuff and fancy cufflinks peeked out from his jacket sleeve. Quick with his smile, like a crocodile waiting for a snack, Tucker rose and held out his hand.

  “So glad to meet Audrey’s old friend. How did you two know each other?” He cocked his head and held Tilly’s gaze with a nasty gleam in his eyes. He was always suspicious of outsiders. He tended to snub them like they weren’t worthy of his time. But, he really worried they might grab a dollar or two of money he already considered his.

  I hovered in the corner, all ears.

  Tilly pumped Tucker’s hand in both of hers. “I am so, so sorry for your loss,” she said, completely ignoring his question. “You and Charlotte must be absolutely devastated.”

  She moved away from him and leaned forward, putting her hand tenderly on Charlotte’s shoulder. “I can’t even tell you how shocked I was when we arrived, and Birdie shared the awful news about Audrey’s accident. How are you coping, dear?”

  Charlotte sniffled and used her embroidered cotton handkerchief to dab the tears away. I had to admit, she looked genuinely upset, which made me glad that I’d placed her way at the bottom of my suspect list. I’d included her only because she’d been here the night I died.

  “It’s not easy,” she said to Tilly. “Won’t you two sit down and share a memory about my mother?”

  Charlotte’s sadness affected me more than I’d expected. I floated around the edge of the room to gain a better view. The curtains fluttered as I passed by.

  “Is there a draft?” Tucker checked the window with his hands. “That’s odd, there’s no seepage but something made the curtains move.

  Tilly looked at Sunny and raised an eyebrow before they both made themselves comfortable on the sofa across from Charlotte.

  “Maybe it’s Audrey’s ghost come back to haunt the house,” Tilly said. Then, she laughed at the silliness of that idea.

  Oh, my goodness, I had to be careful to keep my snorts to myself.

  “Ghosts.” Tucker scoffed. “You’re just as whacky as Audrey was.”

  Whacky? I tipped a book off the shelf. The book just happened to be my favorite Agatha Christie murder mystery. That might give my son-in-law something to ponder.

  Everyone jumped when the book crashed on the floor. Sunny looked in my direction with the start of a grin at the edge of her lips. I think she was enjoying this as much as I was.

  Tilly’s hand went to her heart as if she’d just experienced a terrible shock. “How do you explain that?” she asked.

  “Listen, there’s no such thing as ghosts. Everything has a logical explanation. That book was probably leaning and ready to fall.” He flicked his wrist dismissively. “It doesn’t matter. The point is, I want to know why you and your side-kick showed up on this weekend.” He paused dramatically. “When the lawyer will read Audrey’s will.”

  Tucker crossed his ankle over his knee and settled back with a gotcha-grin on his face.

  Tilly crossed her ankles and folded her hands in her lap looking contrite, but I didn’t buy her act for one second.

  “I met Audrey on an ocean liner when we were in our twenties. In many respects, we were soulmates, but our life choices carried us in different directions. A month ago, Audrey wrote to me and invited me here for the weekend. She hinted that she needed my help with an urgent, personal matter.” Tilly made a pointed look at Tucker, who squirmed uncomfortably. “So, here I am with my best friend, Sunny, who Audrey kindly invited, too.” Tilly smiled now like she was an angel doing a good deed for me.

  “Hogwash,” Tucker said and turned to his wife. “Charlotte? Tell these two women to leave. Even if your mother invited them, there’s no need for them to be here now. Audrey’s dead. Tell them we don’t want outsiders interfering in our time of mourning.”

  Charlotte looked at her husband and blinked her big brown eyes several times. “That’s just rude, Tucker. Tilly and Sunny are more than welcome here this weekend. That was Mummy’s wish, and I plan to honor whatever she wanted.”

  I loved how, even at forty-five, Charlotte still called me Mummy. And seeing how she stood up to Tucker pleased me immensely. As far as I was concerned, she just fell off the suspect list. Tucker though? Straight to the top.

  He pushed himself out of the chair with a loud huff and stormed from the parlor just as I heard the front door open. Birdie, as if she were reciting a children’s verse, sing-songed, “Come in. Come in. I’ll bring you into the parlor.”

  Things were getting interesting.

  Chapter Eight

  Charlotte jumped off her chair like it was Christmas morning. “Daddy!” she squealed and before I knew it, she threw herself into Michael’s arms. “I wasn’t sure you’d come.”

  There he was, that snake in the grass, her father. He patted her back and smoothed his hand over her ash blonde hair. It flowed softly past her shoulders. “Of course, I’m here. You need all the support you can get in this difficult time.” He glared at Tucker, standing
in the doorway. One thing that Michael and I always had in common was our dislike for our son-in-law. But we made the best of it.

  Charlotte pulled Michael deeper into the parlor. “Let me introduce you to Mummy’s friends. They arrived yesterday. Tilly, Sunny, this is my daddy, Sir Michael Fernsby.”

  “Pleased, I’m sure.” He stared extra-long at Tilly as if something from a hazy memory was working its way to the surface. Slowly. Then he smiled. “Of course,” he said to Tilly. “You and Audrey met all those years ago when she came to England to meet my family. I remember you walking ashore with my young fiancé when the boat arrived. You were both arm-in-arm, laughing like you hadn’t a care in the world. Such a pity you couldn’t have come to the castle.”

  “I wish I had indulged,” Tilly said politely. I’d invited her way back then. She said she’d rather poke ice picks in her eyes than sit all prim and proper with a bunch of stuffy people. I laughed at the time. But eventually, I learned that she’d described Michael’s family accurately.

  “The offer still stands if you’re ever in England.”

  “Thank you,” Tilly said graciously. “I’ve heard those castles cost a fortune to maintain. I can't imagine how you deal with the list of expenses.”

  Michael laughed nervously. “You’re right about that, Tilly. At the moment, I have to be very creative with the finances, but somehow, I always stay afloat. Have to keep the castle for my Charlotte.” He pulled his daughter close to his side.

  I hope you’re not counting on my money to carry you through your dry spell, dear Michael. If you didn’t love gambling so much, you’d be rolling in the dough.

  Tucker watched from the background with a whipped dog expression now that he’d been downgraded to second-class citizen. When Charlotte had her daddy at her side, his influence over her dissolved into thin air.

  Everyone finally settled down with a cup of coffee. Charlotte clung to her daddy while Tucker banished himself to a corner chair to lick his damaged ego. I shouldn’t have gotten so much pleasure from his agony, but I did.

  A black flash streaked across the room and jumped onto Sunny’s lap.

  Charlotte flinched. “Was that Mummy’s cat, Mocha? I thought she disappeared the night Mummy fell off the balcony.” She looked around the room. “Does anyone else think it’s creepy that she came back this weekend?” She lowered her voice and looked at Michael. “Do you think Mummy left all her money to the cat?”

  I had to choke back a chortle.

  “That’s ridiculous,” Michael said, but I could hear the hesitation in his answer. He knew I very well might do something like that. Charlotte was more astute than the rest of them when it came to my fondness for Mocha. Of course, my furry friend would be well taken care of, but I had other plans, too, for my money. Those plans would go over like a sinking Titanic.

  I floated closer to Tucker, hoping to unnerve him with my presence. He crossed his arms defensively. Was he unconsciously trying to protect himself from an invisible threat? I hoped so.

  Mocha, comfortable on Sunny’s lap, flicked her tail and stared at everyone in the room, lingering the longest on Tucker. Mocha knew something. I was sure of it.

  Before anyone else kicked around their ideas about my fortune, the front door opened once again.

  “Douglas,” Birdie said politely but without any warmth in her voice. I couldn’t blame her. Most of the time, my lawyer acted as if Birdie was invisible and no use to him while he fawned over me. He thought I never noticed.

  “I’ll show you to the parlor,” she said. I could feel everyone in the room start to cringe.

  Douglas, looking more rumpled than usual, at least had worn a clean suit for the occasion. He liked to pretend he was just a regular guy who worked hard, but I knew the truth. He’d amassed a fortune and relished the idea of turning that fortune into some kind of destination amusement park in Frog Hollow. I hated the idea. Of course, he wasn’t aware I even knew about it. The whole reason I’d decided to run for mayor was to stop his silly plan before he ruined our quaint setting. And, I kept him around so he didn’t get too suspicious.

  He took the long way around the room to the last unoccupied chair, eyeing Mocha the whole time. They’d never gotten along. Mocha was such a good judge of character.

  Since no one had offered introductions, Douglas said the obvious. “I see some new faces here.”

  Tilly placed her cup on the tray and turned to look at Douglas. “I’m Tilly Morris, and this is my friend, Sunny Shaw. We’re from Pineville, Maine. Audrey invited us.” She dabbed the corner of her eye. “Before the accident.”

  “And I’m Audrey’s lawyer, Douglas Cassidy. “It’s more than a tad interesting that you came anyway,” he said, not hiding his displeasure.

  “We didn’t know of her passing until we got here. Such a shock. And,” she added, “Sunny and I are staying in her apartment upstairs.” Tilly leaned forward to engage with everyone on a more personal level. “I just can’t figure out how in the world Audrey fell off that balcony. The railing is quite secure. After all, it’s a good three-plus feet high. I remember Audrey as a top athlete. Had she declined physically recently?”

  I moved around the room to be sure I still had all my keen maneuvers. As I slipped between Tilly’s chair and the coffee table, my gauzy gown caught a spoon, which then slid off and disappeared in the thick rug. Oops.

  “What was that?” Douglas asked. He had a front row seat for my act.

  “What?” Tilly asked innocently.

  “That spoon,” he said, a question pasted on his face. “It just slid across the table all on its own. Didn’t anyone else see it?”

  Everyone shook their head, although I knew Tilly had seen my trick.

  “Oh dear, some odd things have been happening today,” she said, going along with it. “Don’t worry, Douglas. Tucker assured me it can’t possibly be Audrey’s ghost come back to haunt the mansion.” She added a girlish giggle as only Tilly could.

  “If anyone came back as a ghost, it would be Audrey,” Michael said. “That woman would figure out a way. Believe me.”

  “Daddy. You can’t mean that. Mummy’s not a ghost. But, that cat of hers. I wouldn’t put anything past Mocha. She’s just staring at all of us with that tail flicking. What’s wrong with her?”

  Mocha focused one green eye and one yellow eye on me. The green eye closed like she was winking at me. Then, she flicked the tip of her black tail as if to say she had it all under control.

  I sure hoped so.

  Chapter Nine

  Birdie timed her appearance in the parlor perfectly. I needed a break from this emotional roller coaster. Plus, I desperately wanted to hear from Tilly and Sunny. Surely, they had formed impressions by now.

  “Lunch will be served at one o’clock sharp,” Birdie announced with authority. “If anyone needs to freshen up, you each have the same room you stayed in a month ago. Tilly and Sunny are staying in Audrey’s apartment.”

  “Thank you, Birdie,” Tilly said as she stood and stretched. “My legs need some exercise. I think I’ll take a walk outside. Audrey’s gardens are calling to me. Even late in the year like this, you still have plants blooming. In Maine, we have to use plastic if we want color in our gardens.”

  I gasped at the thought of plastic flowers, but only Tilly noticed, glancing in my direction when she said, “We’ve already had a frost by now. Are you coming with me, Sunny?”

  “Well, if Mocha lets me get up, I will. She’s taken a liking to my lap, and I hate to disturb her.”

  “That cat never liked anyone but Mummy,” Charlotte said, brushing a few wrinkles out of her pants after she stood up. “How’d you get on her good side?”

  Tilly flicked her hand. “Sunny and cats? They’re just like bees and honey. Cats always make friends with her. It’s one of her special talents,” she said with pride.

  Without any encouragement, Mocha jumped down. She walked across the room with her tail up, looking neither left nor right, lik
e the queen of the manor. I’m sure there was more than one person here who was still wondering if I’d left everything to her. Good. Keep them guessing.

  “Sunny,” Tilly said, interrupting the mass exit. “Would you be a dear and run upstairs and grab my jacket, please? Just in case I’m chilly outside. I’ll wait here with Charlotte.” Sunny gave her a look. “I just remembered a little story I want to share with her.”

  “No problem,” Sunny said and walked out of the parlor.

  Tucker gave Charlotte a peck on her cheek. “In that case, I’m going upstairs to read. I don’t need to listen to old stories. Especially when the storyteller is just that… old and most likely making it all up.”

  Michael gave his daughter a quick hug. “I need to talk to Birdie and remind her about my peanut allergy. I brought my usual prepared meals, but she always forgets and puts something out that could kill me. As usual, I brought my own silverware and plates to make sure nothing is contaminated. I lost my favorite fork during my last trip and want to ask her if it ever showed up.”

  “Okay, Daddy,” she said, seemingly unaware that he had insulted Birdie.

  As if on cue, Douglas walked out, perhaps because everyone else had ignored him. I heard him clomping up the stairs, a strange maneuver for him. Usually, he had me to commiserate with when the others shunned him like the piranha he was.

  Would he try to connect with Tilly or Sunny to unload his latest tales of woe on a new audience? He always had something to complain about, whether it was how no one treated him with respect to how everyone made fun of him behind his back. You’d think the guy would get a clue and change his behavior, but no, not Douglas. He plodded through life thinking everything was someone else’s fault.

  I settled in near Charlotte to hear Tilly’s tale, hoping it was a good one.

  “So,” Tilly began when they finally had the parlor to themselves. Except for me, of course.