"Well, I was thinking if you get your husband to see that the police look into Pamela's whereabouts, then I'll simply go home and get ready for library hours. Readers don't stop reading just because of murder and mayhem. I hope."
"I'll do my best," Ange said. "Anyway, I'd better get going too, or I won't have many customers left for my wonderful bespoke creations, plus the dogs are overdue for their walk."
She brushed a few crumbs off my lap. "That's better," she said. "Can't let you run around like a slob."
I had a new spring in my step as I took Cosmo's leash and led him out of the apartment a little before noon.
We took the back exit again so we wouldn't run into staff or early customers.
Although I was relieved to have my theory about the cousin confirmed, despite the disturbing news, I didn’t particularly feel like seeing anyone apart from my closest friends.
Also, I couldn't wait to get home because there were a few things I needed to discuss with Cosmo
I kept silent until we were safely ensconced in my living room.
"Did you know?" I asked the cat.
He blinked at me. "Pardon?"
"You heard me. Did you know that my aunt was murdered?"
He had the grace to avert his gaze. "I might have had an inkling."
"An inkling?" I forced myself to keep calm. "And you didn’t think that was worth mentioning?"
"How would you have reacted if I had said,'Hello, Bex, congratulations, you have just inherited the duties of the local witch. Oh, and by the way, you also have to solve the murder of your aunt and her next-door neighbor and friend.'That would have gone down well. "
"True," I admitted. "I’d probably have jumped into the car and driven until I was over the border to Canada if you’d sprung witchcraft and homicide at me like that. Or I would have checked myself into the nearest loony bin." I frowned. "Didn’t you sense that there was trouble ahead for her? Didn’t she know? What’s the point of this whole power thing if you can’t protect yourself?"
"That’s a good question," Cosmo said. "And yes, we can sense trouble to a certain extent. That goes for both witches and familiars,although I still prefer the term mentor. It’s just not easy to pinpoint whether it’s only something happening in the general vicinity or what form it’s going to take. Imagine if we were to prevent anything from happening to us or to our human? There wouldn’t be anything to stop our kind from running the world. And we aren’t all nice.” He cocked his head to the side. “You have to believe me I couldn’t be sure, not until your nightmares and the energy block."
"Huh." I thought about that. I still had no idea what Cosmo really was or what he could do.
What I did know was that what he said made sense. It was bad enough dealing with good and bad humans—I’d rather not be secretly ruled by beings with paranormal abilities. Unless we were? The questions piled up. Once we’d sorted this mess, Cosmo and I needed a long chat, where I wouldn’t let him get away with vague hints.
"Are you at least able to tell if the trouble comes from another supernatural source or an ordinary human being?" I asked.
"Yes and no."
Why had I known he was going to say that? "Explain," I said.
"If it's a straightforward attack from another witch, or an elf, or a fae, or—"
"Wait wait. How many different species, for lack of a better word, are we talking about?"
“Not many, and with limited numbers. If it's a full attack from one of them, believe me, you'll feel it. Remember that hot flash that came over you, when you almost fell down because you sensed something?"
"Okay," I said.
"Now think of that, only times ten or more. Only, of course, you're a beginner, so you're not able to withstand anything of that magnitude and you would probably get hurt. Or killed."
"Great," I mumbled and reached for myamulet.
His whiskers twitched. "With great power comes great responsibility—and great toughness. Your aunt was a good witch, and she was subtle. Oh, so subtle. That’s rare and wonderful in a human." His voice shook a little.
I stroked his head.
"If someone similar to her had evil intentions, she’d feel something was off, but she wouldn’t be able to tell exactly what, unless there was a clear focus. Pure evil reverberates. But sometimes, people are … not really evil. Only misguided, or money-grubbing, or—"
