For once, Cosmo listened without interruption. I’d decided to play it safe and copied our list.
He scratched his ear when I finished. “It’s a start, but you left out the important bits.”
I stared at my notes. “I didn’t. They’re all here. Kyle Hansen, his dad, Doc Hansen, Hank, Billy-Bob …”
“When did you slow down the notepad?”
“At the end?”
“Which means, somewhere during your meeting with your girlfriends, you made progress. Or you wouldn’t have been able to pull that off. We’ll need to practice your new talent.”
“Not tonight!” I protested.
“Of course not. I need my rest. But why didn’t you finish the list before you came home?”
“I did. That’s all we came up with so far.”
“And what about the heirs? Or the human who skulked around in Jake’s house a few days before his death?”
“I forgot about the heirs,” I admitted. “As for a human, I didn’t hear a peep about them, until now. Shouldn’t you have told me, instead of chewing me out for not completely mastering the art of finding a killer 101 at my first go?” I crossed my arms. So far, Cosmo had made it very clear who was the master and who was the underling. It was unlike him to omit a crucial fact.
Unless something affected his memory. Could it be that the same source that blocked my energy also took its toll on him?
He seemed to think along similar lines. “I should have,” he admitted. “Only I’d simply caught a glimpse from my window one night.”
“Was it a man or a woman?” I asked.
“I can’t say.”
“Fair enough. But can you describe the person?”
He shook his head.
“I thought cats have superior vision in the dark?”
“We do. Except this human was masked, like a mummy for Halloween. Do you know that my ancestress, the Egyptian goddess Bastet, was honored in ancient Egypt with mummies too? And sculptures, of course.”
“That’s creepy.”
“Different times. Although I do prefer the statues. And paintings. I sat for Manet once, back in Paris.”
“Fascinating.”
“Do I detect a hint of sarcasm?”
“Only of exhaustion, and nerves. I’d love to hear all about your exploits during your charmed lives but not while you expect me to juggle all this mess.” I waved my hand around.
“We’ll talk in the morning.” He graciously allowed me to slide under the duvet. “Good night and sweet dreams.”
“Good night, Cosmo.”
When I opened my eyes, a watery sun graced the sky. Birds fluttered around the feeder.
I angled for my slippers. “You didn’t wake me.”
“I figured you deserved a break. Also, you’ll have more energy now you’ve started on the path to real breakthroughs.”
He rubbed himself against my legs as I sat down on my bed and grabbed a few small sheets of paper from a stationery box.
