Анна Керн - Deadly Diamond

“Well, I was going to ask you what you thought.”

“What do you think its worth, Mary?”

She lifted her shoulders and squared her chin a smidgen. “I think it’s worth three hundred dollars.”

Alyx raised her eyebrows and said, “That might be too confident a price.”

“Okay, two hundred, and not a penny less.”

“You’re the artist. Two hundred dollars it is.”

“Yes, I am, aren’t I? Shall I hang it up or will you?” she asked without hesitation.

“You do it, that way you can rearrange the pieces however you want.”

The canvas was soon up and Alyx stood back. “Mary, I think this is a winner––it’s absolutely beautiful,” she said in awe. “I love the luminescent colors.”

“What’s on the canvas is not a real picture; the rectangles with the softened edges in shades of blue and white are whatever the beholder wants it to be,” Mary added.

Alyx couldn’t hide her emotions when Mary hugged her and thanked her for her support. She said her family didn’t understand her kind of art, and had never encouraged her or shown any interest in her work, and at times, they had even acted as if her art was an embarrassment to them.

“I predict wonderful things will start happening to you soon, and I’m glad for the small part I played.”

Later in the day, Alyx and Maggie were gone. Misty decided to risk another rebuff, and slid through the partially open door, stopping halfway through. I invited her in, and she entered without looking at me, skirting the outer edge of the room before she took a seat on the worktable. I joined her there, scattering a few fabric swatches in the process as I paced on the long worktable.

I owed Misty an apology for ignoring her and for hurting her feelings. I explained that I needed to set everything aside for a while.

My apology wasn’t enough for Misty, however. She questioned why Simon didn’t tell me who had killed Althea. I told her that I had asked Simon that question; and that his answer was that he wasn’t around when it happened. Misty angrily spit out that he must have been out prowling with his friends to see how many more cats he could get to join him on his mission of good. I was stunned and I turned, facing her. Her head jerked up to look at me. She had figured out that I was considering joining Simon and she hesitantly asked when I planned to go.

Misty, and I had a special relationship; our bond had formed on that first day that Alyx had brought her home from a garage sale that included a box of free kittens. Misty depends on me to teach her and to explain things she doesn’t understand; she’d be lost without me. I knew at that moment what I’d known all along––I wasn’t leaving.

I didn’t understand why Simon, with all his knowledge, seemed to be a little envious of me. I wondered, but only for a second, how he would react when I told him I wouldn’t be joining him. The truth was that I’d known all along that my place was with Alyx.

Ready for a snack now, Misty, and I made our way to the basket of goodies on the checkout counter, disappointed at the meager supply, and there we sat patiently waiting for someone to come along and dispense the tasty treats before they all disappeared.

“The pull of the outside world is strong; there is also a pull towards the human. The cat may disappear on its own errands, but sooner or later, it returns once again for a little while, to greet us with its own type of love. Independent as they are, cats find more than pleasure in our company.”

––Lloyd Alexander

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE: Three Is One Too Many

“Alyx, this is David. Please call me when you get this message.” Alyx put her phone down without returning the call.

Maggie plopped down on the Victorian-style couch in the workroom and asked why she was pouting.

“It’s David. He left a message for me to call.”

“So what’s the problem?”

“I don’t know if I should.”

She told Maggie she didn’t know what to say to him. She hadn’t changed her mind about their relationship and he could be so persuasive She didn’t trust herself.

“Maggie, am I crazy? He’s handsome, successful, charming, kind...”

“And the cats like him,” added Maggie, her best argument yet. “What else could you ask for in a man?”

Alyx leaned back in her chair and studied her nails. “Right. I’ll call him.”

She called his office and his assistant answered. “Dorinda, this is Alyx. David left a message to call him back. Is he available?”

“Hi, Alyx. No, he’s not here. He said if you called, I was to let him know immediately, so he could call you right back.”

“That’s not necessary. Please just tell him that I called the next time you speak to him.” I could tell that Alyx was thinking hard about something. Then she seemed to make up her mind and spoke up.

“Maggie, I’m going back to Althea’s place. I won’t be gone long.”

Maggie didn’t look up. “What are you going to do?”

“I want to take another look around, see if I missed anything.”

“Be careful, Alyx. Someone may be after something in that house.”

“I’ve thought about that; that’s why I have to get there first. Besides, I don’t think anyone would be stupid enough to come back in bright daylight.”

“Well, they could be watching and know you’re involving yourself and possibly think that you might have found something to incriminate them,” Maggie argued.

“Maggie, I know you can’t help being concerned, but please stop playing my mother, and stop worrying about me. I’ll be careful. Nothing is going to happen to me.”

“Stop playing your mother? I’m four months younger than you, and don’t you forget it.”

“You won’t let me forget that, will you?.”

“Seriously, Alyx, do you want company? I have a couple of free hours.”

“No, thank you. I’ll see you later.” Alyx grabbed her purse and was out the back door in a flash.

I had also wanted to return to the condominium, and this was my opportunity. I surreptitiously followed her out. I saw the tailgate down and so I leaped into the truck bed. She focused on her mission, and only took a cursory look around for me. I hunched down in the corner of the truck bed, behind a rolled up rug and hoped the ride wouldn’t be too rough.

A bit shaken on arrival, I decided to let Alyx see me so I could ride back up in the cab. She opened the front door to the condominium, and I slipped in ahead of her, something I’d mastered as a kitten, startling her as expected. She first opened all the shutters and drapes, then started her search upstairs while I started mine downstairs. I went over every inch and then started over. When I looked up, I saw Alyx coming down the stairs and, at the same time, I saw a flash of silver wedged at the base of the first stair step where the carpet met the tile. I had it out by the time Alyx reached the bottom step. The silver object was less than two inches long with a diameter about the size of a pencil. I lifted it up to her and she grabbed it from my teeth. The object safe in her purse, we jumped back in the truck, and she backed out of the driveway. On the way, her phone rang, and when she saw who was calling, she stopped to answer it.

“Alyx, I’d like to see you as soon as possible; I have something I have to tell you in person,” I could hear Hunter say through her cell phone.

“All right. I’m on my way back to the store right now.”

“I’m leaving the Courthouse now, so I’ll meet you there.”

Hunter wasn’t the type to beg, so I wondered what he had to tell Alyx that he had to tell her face to face? Alyx must have been wondering the same thing and she picked up speed and we were back to the shop in a jiffy. When Hunter walked into the workroom five minutes after we did, Alyx made room for him on the couch.