“Do you need me to close up the Apothecary?” she offered, gesturing to the hidden room.

“Yeah, thanks. I certainly don’t know how to do it. Do you want your chameleon stuff before I close it up?”

Her face brightened.

“If you really don’t mind. I’ll pay you extra for it, like I said.”

Theresa took a quick rummage around the shelves before she declared, “Aha!”

The bottle she pulled from the shelf was made of clear glass containing a powder made up of several different colors all mixed together. It was capped with a plain cork.

“You’re sure that’s it?”

“Yep. Is seventy fair?”

My eyes nearly popped from my head.

“Seventy dollars for that?”

She nodded.

“Looks like it was Celeste’s last bottle. I realize that you don’t know the worth of these ingredients, so I’m trying not to fleece you. I’d wager it’s around thirty-five dollars a bottle normally, so I’ll pay you twice what it’s worth.”

My estimation of Theresa rose a few notches. I really could use the money. Grandma had left me some in the will, but most of it would have to go into the running of the business or needed repairs on the house.

“Look, I’ll knock ten bucks off for helping me find this place and for opening it for me.”

She smiled. “Deal.”

Theresa gave me a wad of cash, consisting mostly of fives, counting it into my hand to make sure she got the right amount.

“Thanks,” I said, pocketing the bills. “I’ll see you tomorrow, then.”

Theresa grabbed the wall and closed it like a normal door but reached into the empty spot to turn some invisible lock I couldn’t see.

“Remind me to show you how to do that at some point.”

“Um…sure.”

“Have a good night, Sage. It was nice to meet you.”

As soon as she left, I bolted the main door while I gathered my things. It had been such a long day, and I was very tired from my lack of sleep the night before.

The house was dark and quiet when I returned. A large basket filled with cookies, brownies, and an entire loaf of fresh baked bread waited for me next to the door. Whoever left it had tucked a card in with the treats.

Sage,

Just thought I’d send you some treats and say welcome to Woods Crossing! I’m so excited to get to know you better. Feel free to call or stop by anytime you want to hang out.

-Maria

She’d left her cell number and address at the bottom of the card. My heart filled with warmth at the gesture. I picked up a cookie and took a bite. I wasn’t sure how she’d done it, but the cookie was crunchy on the outside and gooey on the inside, with just the right amount of chocolate chips.

I was about to cram the rest of it into my mouth when a loud hiss suddenly sounded at my feet. I jumped back and yelped, the cookie going flying, my heart thudding in my throat. A dark shape shot past me, snatching up the cookie and swallowing it whole.

“You again!”

It was the same black and gray striped cat from the shop. It leveled its orange eyes at me, its unnatural stillness freaking me out.

As the cat sat there, unmoving, licking her crumb covered lips, I started to feel bad for yelling at her earlier. She had swiped at me, but it was probably what most cats would do if a stranger tried to touch them.

“Okay, cat, I got the message. You don’t like being touched. Would you like some milk? Or I might have some tuna. You must be hungry with the way you scarfed that entire cookie.”

The cat licked its lips, which I took to be a yes.

“Come on inside, then.”

I unlocked the door and the cat trotted in, looking a bit pleased with herself. As I followed her into the kitchen, I noticed that her coat looked a bit thin. She had silvery hairs around her whiskers that didn’t match the color of her coat.

“You must be getting on in years, little lady.”

The cat let out a sharp yowl, making me jump. I pressed a hand to my heart, trying to calm its rapid beating.

“Alright, I guess cats are sensitive about their age, just like people.”

To my surprise, the cat walked straight to one of the lower cupboards and put her paw on the door. She looked up at me, sitting on her haunches while she waited. I opened the cupboard and found a several cans of tuna inside.

“Well, look at that! Did you belong to Grandma, then? Or did she just feed you sometimes?”

Grabbing a can, I opened it and emptied it into a bowl. Since I’d promised milk too, I filled another small bowl and set both of them before the cat. She practically pounced on the tuna.

Too tired to make real food, I boiled some ramen and made a salad to go with it. The cat slurped the milk while I slurped my soup. It felt nice having another living creature in the house.

While I ate, I looked up places to buy apothecary items on my phone. If Grandma really had run some sort of weird apothecary, and ingredients were as expensive as Theresa implied, then I could make pretty good money selling the stuff.

Nothing came of it, though. Everything that popped up looked like it came from a joke shop. Where had Grandma gotten all her ingredients, then? Was there some kind of Frog Guts black market operating nearby that sold mysterious powders at wholesale prices?

With a sigh, I put the phone aside. I’d have to worry about the apothecary later.

As I climbed the stairs, I realized I hadn’t peeked into Grandma’s old room yet. I’d thought about taking her room since it was the master bedroom, but it felt weird somehow, so I’d chosen the blue room.

I pushed the door open and wandered inside. The walls were painted a pretty shade of sea green, with a Chevron quilt on the bed that matched the color of the walls. Lots of decorative pillows covered the bed, a few of them with handmade lacy covers.

The bathroom was nice, with a jetted tub, a glass standing shower and a large double sink made of white marble.

A small basket under one of the windows in the bedroom caught my eye, so I crept closer to investigate. It looked like some kind of pet bed, with tiny black and gray hairs all over it. On the padded surface lay a collar with a tag and a single word etched onto it.

Jade.