Shaking my head, I stood up. I was getting creeped out for nothing. A good, hot bath would fix that and make my leg almost as good as new. I tossed the Iced Fire into the basket and walked through the living room to the front stairs.

A sound made me pause at the foot of the stairs. Was that the flap of the cat door? Peeking back over my shoulder into the living room, I strained my ears, listening for the sound of Pandora’s paws or her subtle meow. My heart hitched as I realized it had only been my imagination—Pandora was still outside.

I turned back to the stairs with a sigh. Pandora had been taking care of herself long before I came along and she certainly could take care of herself without me worrying about her, I thought, as I ascended the stairs.

Below me in the living room, the paperweight lit with an eerie glow. If I’d noticed, and cared to investigate further, I would have seen Pandora running through the streets of downtown Mystic Notch deep inside the globe.

But I didn’t notice, so I went ahead with my bath and climbed into bed with a good book, never knowing that my furry feline friend was running around in the night, miles from home.

Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight

Pandora must have returned sometime during the night because I woke up with her tail flicking me in the face as she sat on my chest, kneading my bladder. She really knew how to wake a girl up.

I pushed her off, but not too hard. Truth be told, I was relieved she was safe. I sat up and pulled her onto my lap, scratching her behind the ears. She rewarded me with a few seconds of purring before wriggling out of my arms and running downstairs.

I used the bathroom, took a quick shower and threw on jeans and a sweatshirt before trotting downstairs where I fed Pandora and myself a quick breakfast. Fancy Feast for her—Corn Flakes for me.

We got to the bookstore late again and I was just turning the sign to ‘Open’ when Hattie, Cordelia, Bing and Josiah filed in through the door.

Bing handed me a Styrofoam cup filled with coffee just as my cell phone made a noise.

“Damn, I thought I shut this thing off.” I pulled it out of my pocket. The display showed a text from another antique dealer friend, Maggie.

Picked up a box of old books for you.

“More books?” I said to myself as I shut off the phone.

“What’s that about books?” Bing looked at me curiously.

“Oh, nothing. Maggie picked up a box of old books for me.”

“Where?” he asked. Maggie had grown up in Mystic Notch and Bing had known her since she was a kid, just like he’d known me since I was a kid.