Paws to Remember

chapter 1

It wasn't the first dead body I'd ever seen, so I didn't scream. It also helped that I had been expecting at least one-or possibly two. Owen looked up at me, an expression of self-satisfaction on his face that made him look rather smug-which I'm sure he was. He had one foot on the corpse, his way of claiming credit for the fact that it was lying there in the first place. Since the body was that of a fairly large rodent and Owen was a small cat, I had no problem with the way things had worked out.

Harry Taylor looked down at the little gray-and-white tabby. "Nice work," he said. Harry was in his late fifties, his face weathered from working outside in the sun and wind. Very little rattled him.

The cat dipped his head in gracious acknowledgment of his skills.

A couple of days of colder-than-usual weather-even for Minnesota in December-and a middle-of-the-night power failure downtown had caused a water pipe to burst in the old building where the artists' cooperative had their shop. My friend Maggie, who helped run the business, had been the one who'd gotten the call about the power failure, and she'd discovered both the broken pipe and the furry trespasser.

Maggie had called Harry, who was responsible for the maintenance on the building, and me because Maggie had a long-standing phobia of mice and other rodents. I knew it was connected to something that had happened when she was a child, but she had never shared any details and I had never pushed. I'd brought Owen because no rat, mouse, vole or mole was a match for him.

Harry glanced over at me. "Want me to take care of this?" he asked, indicating the dead animal. "Or is there someone you wanted to fling the dearly departed at?"

I'd been about to pick up Owen. I straightened and eyed Harry, my gaze narrowing in surprise. "How did you know about that incident?" I said. He had to be referring to the last time I'd been involved in disposing of a dead rodent, although I took issue with

Sofie Kelly is a New York Times bestselling author and mixed-media artist who writes the Magical Cats Mysteries and, as Sofie Ryan, writes the Second Chance Cat Mysteries.

"The sequel to Whiskers and Lies combines a cold case, magical cats, and a librarian in a charming mystery about family. It s a winner for series fans." - Library Journal

What more could you want? A good mystery, a cat, and a dog. Kings River Life

This fast-paced mystery is very well plotted and executed, with plot twists that kept this reader guessing throughout... I highly recommend this cozy mystery! Open Book Society

In this Magical Cats Mystery, Ms. Kelly demonstrates her reputation as an extraordinary cat whisperer. Owen and Hercules provide their usual combination of fascinating action and exchanges with various characters throughout the story. Fresh Fiction