"Willow's Sleuthing Tail" 2

Martha and Willow exited the meadow from under the willow tree that led directly into Martha’s lush garden. They walked into the kitchen through the backdoor and Martha knew immediately they were alone in the house.

Jon wasn’t there and if he had waited for Perfidia, he’d long since left. She wasn’t sure how Perfida would view this information, and wasn’t looking forward to imparting it. 

"Come on Willow, let's pack what we need," she told the feline who was sitting by her empty food dish and giving her a cat pout.

"You can have a snack after we've packed," she promised.

Willow gave a thoughtful meow then flicked her tail once. Her cat bed and treats were tucked nicely in the trunk of her human's car. The food bowl however, was still there, waiting for the promised snack.

"Nice work, can you pack me up as well," Martha chuckled.

Willow considered it but in truth, had no idea what a human would need. She gave a confused meow and Martha smiled. 

"Okay I'll give you a snack and you can enjoy that while I pack."

Willow thought that an excellent plan.

After her snack, Willow jumped out the cat door into the garden to take a nap under the delphiniums until her human was ready to leave.

When everything was packed, they got into Martha's VW convertible and drove back to Perfidia’s.

*

Perfidia’s luggage was already in the trunk of her car little red, sports car when Martha pulled into her driveway.

“I thought we’d take my car. It has more room," she said when Martha got out of her car.

Martha scoffed. “I’d argue that but what’s the point. You wouldn’t concede.”

“Smart friend,” Perfidia chuckled.

Martha’s luggage, along with Willows necessities, were placed into the trunk of Perfidia's car. Then Willow and Chaos stretched out in the back seat ready for a long ride, and a cat nap.

It was balmy for an October afternoon, clear skies and no rain in the forecast and, as the weatherman predicted, a rather pleasant day for travel.

 

They’d driven about an hour when Perfidia asked Martha the question she’d been dreading.

“So…how did Jon take it? That I wasn’t with you?”

Martha shrugged. “I don’t know…he wasn’t there.”

Perfidia looked away from the road. “He hadn’t waited for me?” The car swerved slightly.

“Careful,” Martha placed her hand on the wheel and gently guiding the car back into the lane, lucky for them traffic was light and there weren’t any cars in the lane next to them.

Perfidia gripped the wheel and grumbled, “I’ve got it,” and kept her eyes on the road as she continued, “I guess that debunks your theory. Jon wasn’t waiting for a gesture from me; he was making a statement when he closed that portal.”

“You don’t know that. It was five hours after sunrise by the time I got home, enough hours had past for him to have waited and decided you weren’t coming, and then gone home.”

Perfidia scoffed. “We don’t know that happened.”

“No, we don’t. And the only way you can know…is if you call him and ask.”

Perfidia pretended not to hear the suggestion. “I’m hungry, want to stop for lunch?” she asked.

Willow and Chaos had both been asleep in the back seat but at the mention of food, they woke up and offered their impressive, affirmative, hungry meows-in unison.

Perfidia pulled off at the next exit and found a quaint diner that had a large enough offering on the menu to suit both human and feline. Of course, the fish ordered for the felines would be eaten outside the restaurant.

While they ate their lunch in a booth, Martha tried to reopen the subject of Jon but Perfidia refused to discuss him, changing the subject to any mundane topic to avoid talking about him. When they returned to the car, Perfidia blasted the radio making it impossible to converse at all.

Martha gave up and put in her air pods, tuning into her preferred music on her phone’s music app. and eventually drifting off to sleep. When she woke up, they were much closer to their destination and she felt guilty Perfidia had driven the whole way.  “You shouldn’t have let me sleep so long. I was supposed to drive some of the way.”

Perfidia shrugged. “I needed the distracting concentration of driving,” she said with a half-smile, “And you may have been right, about my needing to make a gesture with Jon, and talk to him but…Maybe, it's a good thing I was given a detour. Everything happens for a reason so, I'm going to focus on solving the mystery for my mom. Who took the recipe book, and when I get back home, then I'll talk to Jon.”

“If that’s what you think is best,” Martha replied but wasn't convinced it was.

Perfidia smiled a little too brightly and nodded. “It is…and we’re here. Welcome to Hibiscus Falls.”

Martha looked around and her eyes widened with interest.

The town of Hibiscus Falls was quiet in the early evening hours as Perfidia drove down its accurately named botanical streets. There was a profusion of flowers and shrubbery adorning every lawn. The town appeared to be a gardener’s paradise. Martha was duly impressed.

Perfidia turned onto Tea Flower Lane and into the circular driveway of number 731. She parked her little red, sports car behind her mother’s baby blue, sedan and looked up at the well-lit home. "It's been a while since I've been back here."

"I remember you living in that old Victorian house, not far from me, when we were in High School."

"Yeah, after my dad died it was difficult for my mom, being alone, so we closed up the house here and went to live with my grandparents. That was the house near the high school. That's how I ended up going there, and meeting you and Percival...and Jon."

"I'm sure it's stirring up a lot of memories, being here."

"It is...after I went away to college, mom came back to live here and I…didn’t. I made excuses. And after college I bought the house near my grandparents and opened my store."

"And now you're back."

"Yeah, I'm back, and facing all those memories," she said, staring at the house, thinking how her memories were both happy and sad. Her eyes teared up remembering the sadest one. Then she scolded herself for the maudlin feelings and shook them off. "I need to get out of this car; my legs are cramping."

“Mine too; I need to stand up,” Martha agreed, opening the car door. She got out and stretched her aching limbs.

Perfidia stifled a yawn. “I’d seriously pay for a large cup of caffeine right now,” she said, getting out of the car.

Martha walked to the back and opened the passenger door calling to Willow and Chaos.

At the sound of his name, Chaos woke up. He looked around then jumped from the car and slunk over to his human. Perfidia was taking the luggage out of the open trunk.

Willow was slower to respond. She opened one eye and looked up at the house, assessing it. She decided it looked interesting enough then she jumped from the car to saunter over to the front door, and she waited there for it to be opened.

Perfidia's mother had left the door unlocked. So after they'd gathered the luggage, they stepped inside.

Willow and Chaos ran off in different directions both intent on exploring their new, temporary home.

“Perfidia? Martha? Is that you?” Marigold called from somewhere in the house. They followed her voice to the kitchen.

Martha noted it was a cozy room, a quarter of the size of Perfidia’s and she liked the warmth of the it, with its soothing butterscotch walls and its large windows draped with scalloped, cream-colored curtains. She noticed the curtains had a whimsical sunburst design on them and there were stained-glass butterflies hanging in the windows, casting colorful rays of light into the room.  

“Come join me,” Marigold waved them over to where she was sitting in the small, breakfast nook nestled under one of the butterfly stained-glass windows. There was a pot of tea on a trivet siting in the middle of the circular table and Marigold picked it up to pour tea into three teacups. “Put your bags down. We’ll get your rooms sorted out in a minute but first, tea.”

“That’s a lovely plan,” Martha said and, with a grateful smile, sat down.

Perfidia put down her bags too but seeing the familiar, cozy room where her dad use to make them Sunday morning pancakes, made her steps falter. She'd need a minute to acclimate before she could join them at the table.

“I’ve put some delicious treats in two porcelain bowls for your familiars. I hope they approve,” Marigold said nodding to the overfilled bowls and noticed the cats were already enjoying the treat. “I guess the cats approve,” she chuckled.

“You'll be Willow’s best friend if you keep giving her treats.” Martha told her.

Perfidia shook of the melancholy and sat down. “Chaos is happy as well. You've made both cats welcome."

"Thank you," her mom smiled, " And you need to feel welcome too. Have some tea."

Perfidia lifting her teacup and took a fortifying sip to sooth her troubled spirit.

Marigold sighed with gratitude. “I am happy you’re both here. I know it was a lot to ask.”

Perfidia shook her head. “It’s not an imposition, mom. I want to know who took grandma’s recipe book too.”

Marigold nodded. “Of course you do. But it was a long drive and I'm sure you’re both tired.”

“Mom, you drove to my house and back. You must be exhausted too.”

“I’m too upset about the book, and I will sleep, tonight. Now, after tea, we’ll get you both settled so you can rest and freshen up. I’ll get dinner star-”

Perfidia cut her off shaking her head, “No, you don’t need to cook for us tonight. We can order something in and this way you can take a nap too.”

Marigold smiled at her daughter, a tired smile and nodded. “Okay, we’ll order in and after dinner, we can look over the evidence I have, if we’re feeling up to it.”

Perfidia lifted her teacup and nodded. “Sounds like a plan.”

 

The bedrooms were down a long hallway in the one level, ranch style home.

Martha’s room had a lovely full-size poster bed that she collapsed on after tossing her luggage into a corner and kicking off her shoes. She fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow; she hadn’t even bothered to change out of her clothes.

Perfidia would have done the same but as tired as she was, and she was bone tired, her thoughts were keeping her wide awake. The room was her old childhood bedroom but thankfully her mom had redecorated it but stored in the closet would be boxes that held her childhood stuff; she wasn't about to look through those, not tonight anyway. 

She looked at the message icon on her phone, no unread messages and she hadn’t any missed calls either so Jon hadn’t tried to reach her. All the hours they were driving she’d waited for a text or a call from him, none came. He hadn't tried to reach her all day. It made her wonder.

Had he waited at Martha’s or just gone home when the portal closed? Had he expected her to show up at Martha’s or follow him to his house, to show how much he mattered to her? Did he expect a grand gesture of love from her?

It had seemed ridiculous when Martha suggested it but now with his silence, it made her question if Martha wasn’t wrong. And she hadn’t tried to call him either, Jon might consider her silence as proof she didn’t care. But that was far from the truth, she cared too much, and it scared her.

She didn’t like risk, and risking her heart was a big one. Life had already shown her how much a heart could hurt when someone you love was lost to you, and loss can happen in many ways. Like this morning when Jon closed the portal. He’d put a distance between them and it hurt. And all the questions that gesture created destroyed her confidence in what they had, what she thought they had, regardless of the charmed bracelet. She had believed he cared for her. So why didn’t he leave the portal open? Why did he close it?

She’d have to call him if she wanted an answer and she wasn’t ready to do that, or risk hearing an answer she didn’t want to hear.