"Maybe I should take you to the vet," I pondered.
He swiped his paw at me. "Can't a cat be off his food after a really exhausting night?"
"You feel after effects too?"
"What do you expect? I may be a slightly higher being than most of the ones you are dealing with, but I still have limitations. Very, very different limitations than most humans, naturally."
"Naturally," I agreed. I blew him a kiss.
"What was that for?" he asked.
"Thanking you for showing me a few things and making me believe in myself."
"Don't get ahead of yourself," he said.
"I'm not."
My hand itched to take my phone and send a jubilant message to my daughter, but I did not, because I had restraint. Also, I really wanted to make sure that Detective Stone had tied up all the loose ends in a nicebow before I casually mentioned to Alex that I'd been instrumental in avenging Aunt Violet and old Jake.
"I'm going out," I declared after I’d cleared the dishes and carried them to the dishwasher.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
"I just told you."
"Have you sorted the important things from the non-important?" He nodded towards the sink.
"Yes, I have." I gave him another mock salute. It was fast becoming a habit. "Hands have to be clean. Anything to do with the spells or magic is washed in the sink. Everything else can go in the dishwasher, like your food bowls."
He grumbled.
Did he feel lonely without company? "If you want to keep me here, just say so."
"No, no, we’re good to go. We only need to make sure to keep up your energy."
“I’m feeling great, now that I’ve had my breakfast.” I picked up the book of spells and repeated the words on the first page again. A spatula rose a few inches into the air and floated gently back into its old spot.
I flipped over the page. What had been blank before was now starting to be covered in... drawings? And—were those letters or symbols?
I squinted. They did not become clearer.
"They haven’t been here before, right?" I asked Cosmo, although I already knew the answer.
"Things will appear once you're ready for them. And not before."
He peered at the spell. "Oh, that’s a good one."
"You’re not going to tell me more, I assume?"
"You guess correctly. And now we’re going out." He pointed toward his harness.
"You’re coming along?"
"Oh yes," he said. "Because I want to hear if anybody else is mentioning me hunting birds—which I never have and never will." His fur bristled.
Because nothing says calm and carefree like window shopping, I took Cosmo to Main Street.
Sweet Surprisewas the preferred gossiping stop, but for those inclined to have their cake and eat it at home, nothing beatBibi's Bakery. Her cakes and pies and cannoli and profiteroles might not have been magical, but they sure were addictive.
