A Mew to a Kill Read online

  “Oh, you won’t be lonely anymore,” Pepper trilled. “Willa and I are going to become frequent visitors.”

  I frowned at her. We were? That was news to me.

  Neil smiled into his teacup. “That’s great. I welcome more visitors.”

  My frown deepened. Since when? I glanced down at his teacup. Could his new found desire for visitors be the work of Pepper’s special tea?

  “Didn’t you say something about another cat, Willa?” Hattie asked. “What happened to that one?”

  “Brenda had a big, white fluffy cat, too.” What had happened to that cat? “The last time I saw it, it was lying on the ground. I was afraid it was dead at first, but it was still breathing. I didn’t go too close, though, because a big wolf spider was laying on it.”

  “Meow!”

  “You mean a white cat like that one?” Cordelia pointed out the window. My eyes followed, widening when they saw a white Persian on a leash. They widened even further when I saw the human at the end of the leash. Felicity Bates. As I watched, the white cat turned and looked straight at me, piercing me with its orange-amber glare.

  In the window, I heard both Pandora and Hope let out a low growl. I didn’t know if they were growling at Felicity or the white cat, but either way it seemed appropriate.

  “I think that’s the same cat.” I leaned toward the window. “But what is it doing with Felicity? She doesn’t even like cats.”

  “Well, somebody had to adopt it with Brenda going to jail. Maybe Felicity has gotten soft in her old age,” Hattie said.

  I didn’t have a good feeling about this. Felicity Bates was not a nice person. She rubbed me the wrong way. And I knew she didn’t like me at all, though that probably had something to do with me playing a direct role in putting her son in jail. I tore my gaze away from the window, pushing down the premonition of doom that rose in my chest.

  Cordelia turned from the window. “Is there any word on George?”

  Pepper nodded. “I heard George’s wife had kicked him out and he’s staying in a motel while he waits to go before the judge.”

  “Who could blame her?” Cordelia said.

  “It’s unclear if he’ll be sentenced or paroled,” Pepper continued, “but either way, he said he isn’t sticking around town.”

  The door opened and Kenny and Gus game in. She’d taken a liking to him, which wasn’t surprising since she liked to take people under her wing. I figured she had something to do with organizing the fixing up of the photography store. She stopped short, her eyes flicking up to the ceiling where the speaker was. I had put on some jazz music just to tease her.

  “Hi Gus,” Hattie tipped her cup toward Gus. “You must be relieved that Paisley’s killer is safely in jail.”

  Gus nodded. “That’s for sure. She’s actually still in the hospital, but once the doctors give their okay we’re taking her straight to jail. At least until someone posts bail for her.”

  Brenda hadn't regained consciousness at her house. They’d taken her to the hospital where she’d been unconscious until the next morning. The doctors were mystified. The bump on her head didn’t seem hard enough to warrant it. I could just picture her in the hospital, scheming as to how she could get out of it.

  “One thing I don’t understand,” Pepper Looked at Kenny, “is how you figured out it was Brenda.”

  “I always thought there was something funny about that lumberyard fire,” Kenny said. “But I could never figure out what it was. I knew someone had tried to frame me. Anyway, I saw my sister's photograph of the Founder’s Day parade, the one in the reflection of the Mystic Café that everyone thought was Amanda. I might not have figured it out, except I was looking in that very same window myself and I realized the reflection would be backward. That’s when I knew the picture was really of Brenda and then I knew she’d started the lumberyard fire. Why else would she lie about being out of town that day?”

  “And you figured she’d probably killed Paisley trying to get the picture or make sure no one else ever saw it,” Pepper suggested.

  Kenny nodded.

  “Why did you think Willa was in on it with her, though?”

  A sheepish look passed over Kenny’s face. “I guess I really wasn’t thinking straight. I was pretty distraught that Paisley was dead. She helped me so much and now I have no one.” His voice cracked and he paused for a second. “Anyway, when I saw Willa sneaking around in the store I thought she was trying to cover her tracks.” Kenny turned to me, a contrite look on his face. “Sorry, Willa.”

  “No worries,” I said. “But it would have been a lot easier on everyone if you’d just taken your suspicions to the police.”

  Kenny leveled me with a look. “Seriously? Do you think the police would believe me with my history? I figured I’d have to look into things myself if I wanted to find out who killed my sister.”

  Cordelia turned in her seat to face Gus. “I can’t believe that you actually suspected it was Maisie Beardsley.”

  “We didn’t. We figured someone was setting her up. But we also thought maybe that person might try to harm Maisie, so we figured it was better to pretend that we were arresting her. That way, she could be in protective custody and the real killer would let her guard down thinking she was in the clear. But we needed to keep it on the down low so that people wouldn’t find out. Even Maisie thought she was really being arrested.” Gus looked at me. “We had to keep it a secret from everyone. We did send Jimmy in here with a warning that we hoped you’d heed, but when you didn’t, we used that to our advantage and followed you. Sorry we waited a little too long to burst onto the scene, but we wanted to catch Brenda in the act.”

  I grimaced. It was true—they had tried to keep me out of trouble, and now Gus was apologizing. “That’s okay.”

  Hattie gestured to the photography shop across the street. “Seems like everything worked out for the best, though.”

  I sunk into the couch and smiled to myself while I listened to the smooth notes of the saxophone. Hattie was right. Things had worked out pretty well. It was unfortunate that Paisley was gone, but Kenny was getting a new start, Neil was opening up to people and even the cat, Hope, was getting a better home.

  I bit into a chocolate chip muffin from my favorite bakery—Gus had brought me a dozen of them earlier that morning which I suspected was partly to make up for using me as a decoy and partly to bribe me to not spill the beans about her piano hobby.

  I’d even had one last visit from Paisley. The identity of the killer had surprised her, but in the end, she was glad it wasn’t someone she’d known. She hadn’t been killed because of something she’d done, but only because of some pictures she’d taken. She’d been grateful for my help and had happily faded away, not being able to resist one last piece of advice—to use a mink brown colored eyeliner that she said would really make my amber eyes pop. Franklin and Robert seemed sad to see her go, but admitted they needed a rest from her energy. A feeling of satisfaction came over me, like the kind you get after a job well done.

  “There’s one thing that still confuses me, though,” Cordelia said.

  “What’s that?”

  “Who put the fire out?”

  I shrugged. I’d wondered that same thing myself over and over. When I pushed open that shed door only Brenda and the cats had been out there. Brenda was unconscious, and surely cats couldn’t put out a fire, could they?

  I glanced over at Pandora who blinked one of her golden-green eyes at me, then turned back to Cordelia and shrugged. “I guess we’ll never know.”

  ***

  Pandora glared at Fluff as he strutted past, twitching his tail at her and giving her a full view of his backside.

  “Disgusting,” Pandora hissed.

  “Ditto,” Hope said from her new cushioned cat bed that had been placed right next to Pandora’s.

  Pandora turned to Hope. “I will always be grateful to you for saving my human.”

  She was glad that Hope was free of the porch an
d getting a new home. Apparently what Hope had said to them earlier about her time coming was true. Pandora had also learned that Hope really was special. She’d seen the little chimera’s power firsthand when she’d doused the fire at Brenda’s. She had a unique gift with fire—not surprising, considering the way Hope had been saved by Amanda in the lumberyard fire.

  Hope twitched her whiskers. “It was nothing. And it was the right thing to do.”

  “I’m glad that you'll have a good home now and can join our clan whenever you wish.”

  “It will be my honor to serve Kenny and join the clan.”

  Pandora nodded. The little chimera would be a good addition, even if she was kind of stiff and formal in her speaking. Maybe she would lighten up over time.

  Pandora wasn’t quite as happy about Fluff having a home, though. She looked out the window, watching the white cat prance down the street on its harness. She couldn’t believe that any normal cat would submit to a harness, but neither Fluff nor the woman at the other end of the leash could be considered normal.

  “At least Fluff won’t be bothering you every day,” Pandora said.

  “Not in the near future, but something tells me this isn’t the last we’ve seen of Fluff,” Hope sighed.

  Pandora nodded and then settled down in her soft cat bed. Things hadn’t turned out so bad. Her human was safe and Mystic Notch now had a powerful feline ally on the side of good.

  She snuggled further into the bed, one slitted eye watching the white cat and his red-headed owner warily. She knew that Fluff and his human would cause trouble for them eventually, but she was glad it wouldn't be today. Tomorrow, on the other hand … well, that was another story.

  The end.

  ***

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  ***

  Want more Mystic Notch adventures? Buy the rest of the books in the series For Your Kindle:

  Ghostly Paws

  A Spirited Tail

  A Note From The Author

  Thanks so much for reading my cozy mystery, “A Mew To A Kill”. I hope you liked reading it as much as I loved writing it. If you did, and feel inclined to leave a review, I really would appreciate it.

  This is book two of the Mystic Notch series. I plan to write many more books with Willa, Pandora and the rest of Mystic Notch. I have several other series that I write, too - you can find out more about them on my website http://www.leighanndobbs.com.

  Also, if you like cozy mysteries with ghosts, magic and cats, then you’ll like my book “Dead Wrong” which is book one in the Blackmoore Sisters series. Set in the fictional seaside town of Noquitt Maine, the Blackmoore sisters will take you on a journey of secrets, romance and maybe even a little magic. I have an excerpt from it at the end of this book.

  This book has been through many edits with several people and even some software programs, but since nothing is infallible (even the software programs), you might catch a spelling error or mistake and, if you do, I sure would appreciate it if you let me know - you can contact me at [email protected].

  Oh, and I love to connect with my readers so please do visit me on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/leighanndobbsbooks

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  About The Author

  USA Today best-selling Author, Leighann Dobbs, has had a passion for reading since she was old enough to hold a book, but she didn’t put pen to paper until much later in life. After a twenty-year career as a software engineer, with a few side trips into selling antiques and making jewelry, she realized you can’t make a living reading books, so she tried her hand at writing them and discovered she had a passion for that, too! She lives in New Hampshire with her husband, Bruce, their trusty Chihuahua mix, Mojo, and beautiful rescue cat, Kitty.

  Find out about her latest books and how to get discounts on them by signing up at:

  http://www.leighanndobbs.com/newsletter

  If you want to receive a text message alert on your cell phone for new releases , text COZYMYSTERY to 88202 (sorry, this only works for US cell phones!)

  Connect with Leighann on Facebook

  http://facebook.com/leighanndobbsbooks

  More Books By Leighann Dobbs:

  Mystic Notch

  Cats & Magic Cozy Mystery Series

  * * *

  Ghostly Paws

  A Spirited Tail

  -------

  Blackmoore Sisters

  Cozy Mystery Series

  * * *

  Dead Wrong

  Dead & Buried

  Dead Tide

  Buried Secrets

  Deadly Intentions

  A Grave Mistake

  -------

  Mooseamuck Island

  Cozy Mystery Series

  * * *

  A Zen For Murder

  -------

  Lexy Baker

  Cozy Mystery Series

  * * *

  Lexy Baker Cozy Mystery Series Boxed Set Vol 1 (Books 1-4)

  Or buy the books separately:

  Killer Cupcakes (Book 1)

  Dying For Danish (Book 2)

  Murder, Money and Marzipan (Book 3)

  3 Bodies and a Biscotti (Book 4)

  Brownies, Bodies & Bad Guys (Book 5)

  Bake, Battle & Roll (Book 6)

  Wedded Blintz (Book 7)

  Scones, Skulls & Scams (Book 8)

  Ice Cream Murder (Book 9)

  Mummified Meringues (Book 10)

  -------

  Kate Diamond

  Adventure/Suspense Series

  * * *

  Hidden Agemda

  -------

  Contemporary

  Romance

  * * *

  Sweet Escapes

  Reluctant Romance

  -------

  Dobbs “Fancytales”

  Regency Romance Fairytales Series

  * * *

  Something In Red

  Snow White and the Seven Rogues

  Dancing On Glass

  The Beast of Edenmaine

  The Reluctant Princess

  ***

  Excerpt From Dead Wrong:

  Morgan Blackmoore tapped her finger lightly on the counter, her mind barely registering the low buzz of voices behind her in the crowded coffee shop as she mentally prioritized the tasks that awaited her back at her own store.

  “Here you go, one yerba mate tea and a vanilla latte.” Felicity rang up the purchase, as Morgan dug in the front pocket of her faded denim jeans for some cash which she traded for the two paper cups.

  Inhaling the spicy aroma of the tea, she turned to leave, her long, silky black hair swinging behind her. Elbowing her way through the crowd, she headed toward the door. At this time of morning, the coffee shop was filled with locals and Morgan knew almost all of them well enough to exchange a quick greeting or nod.

  Suddenly a short, stout figure appeared, blocking her path. Morgan let out a sharp breath, recognizing the figure as Prudence Littlefield.

  Prudence had a long running feud with the Blackmoore’s which dated back to some sort of run-in she’d had with Morgan’s grandmother when they were young girls. As a result, Prudence loved to harass and berate the Blackmoore girls in public. Morgan’s eyes darted around the room, looking for an escape route.

  “Just who do you think you are?” Prudence demanded, her hands fisted on her hips, legs spaced shoulder width apart. Morgan noticed she was wearing her usual knee high rubber boots and an orange sunflower scarf.

  Morgan’s brow furrowed over her ice blue eyes as she stared at the older woman’s prune like face.

  “Excuse me?”

  “Don’t you play dumb with
me Morgan Blackmoore. What kind of concoction did you give my Ed? He’s been acting plumb crazy.”

  Morgan thought back over the previous week’s customers. Ed Littlefield had come into her herbal remedies shop, but she’d be damned if she’d announce to the whole town what he was after.

  She narrowed her eyes at Prudence. “That’s between me and Ed.”

  Prudence’s cheeks turned crimson. Her nostrils flared. “You know what I think,” she said narrowing her eyes and leaning in toward Morgan, “I think you’re a witch, just like your great-great-great-grandmother!”

  Morgan felt an angry heat course through her veins. There was nothing she hated more than being called a witch. She was a Doctor of Pharmacology with a Master Herbalist’s license, not some sort of spell-casting conjurer.

  The coffee shop had grown silent. Morgan could feel the crowd staring at her. She leaned forward, looking wrinkled old Prudence Littlefield straight in the eye.

  “Well now, I think we know that’s not true,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper, “Because if I was a witch, I’d have turned you into a newt long ago.”

  Then she pushed her way past the old crone and fled out the coffee shop door.

  ###

  Fiona Blackmoore stared at the amethyst crystal in front of her wondering how to work it into a pendant. On most days, she could easily figure out exactly how to cut and position the stone, but right now her brain was in a pre-caffeine fog.