EPISODE 28

I poured the steamed milk into the teacup and smiled at the little book dragon, who kept wanting to sniff it. The Cat glared enough that Indigo stayed away from the cup.

"I don't think caffeine would be good for you, Indigo," I said. I prayed the cat agreed. Last night had been long enough. We couldn't go to bed until we finished the story about the dragon and the half dragon. Indigo had chirped each time I tried to say it was bedtime.

Indigo leaned back on her back paws and sat up, chirping.

"That might work with reading, but it won't work with coffee," I mumbled. The rest of the steamed milk I poured into my dark blue coffee mug with speckles of golden stars. This was my second cup of caffeine for the day, and I would enjoy every drop. Hints of vanilla and almond filled the air from the brew. "So, what's on the docket for today?" I asked the cat.

The cat lapped at his coffee but paused long enough to look at me. "Nothing as exciting as the last couple of days. A routine day, then hopefully a guest who can give us more information on the book dragon."

"Indigo, you mean," I said, glaring at the cat.

The cat glared back, then went back to drinking his coffee.

Indigo chirped again and jumped off the counter. They glided across the opening to the large wooden table in the center of the room. On top of it were various books, stacked nicely. A second table in the center had various books upright. Most had something to do with dragons. Indigo nudged one of them, then vanished in between two of the stacks heading for the stoop under the second level.

I leaned closer to the cat, keeping my voice low. "Can 'you know who' be out during this routine day?" I didn't want anything to happen to the cute little dragon while they were in my care.

The cat glanced up, his teacup empty. "It should be fine." He looked pointedly at his cup and I grabbed it.

"I'll make you another."

"Good, we don't have long before our customer comes in."

I got to work pulling another shot of espresso. The extra shot I tossed in my cup. It'd throw the balance off a little, but I wasn't going to waste a perfectly good shot. The current espresso beans the shop was providing were top of the line. The logo didn't make sense to me, and I guessed they weren't from Earth, but some other world that also had coffee.

"What if she heads out the door?" I asked. My nerves tickled at me from the center of my chest, which also annoyed me. I’d finally felt like I had a decent handle on this job and all the weird situations I found myself in. The little book dragon had knocked that sideways.

"If she leaves, she leaves."

My eyes grew wide.

"But she won't. You are feeding her, reading to her and taking good care of her overall. This place is safe and she knows that."

I let out a sigh and nodded my head. "Alright, I trust you. I'll stop worrying." I slid over the teacup, so that he could get another dose of espresso, and cleaned up the area around Betty. The bookshop this morning was in a slightly different arrangement. The big center table was pretty normal, but the bookshelves were in a different order. Instead of going back and forth perpendicular with me, the aisles were aligned such that I could see down each of them. The far wall was still lined with a row of shelves, but that almost never changed.

"I think I'm ready to open the shop." The cat didn't respond, and I turned to look at him, but he was gone from the counter.

The bells on the door jingled as a middle-aged man walked inside. He had a bright smile but slightly disheveled appearance. The blue tweed jacket he wore had elbow patches, and the glasses on his face had smudges. Between both of his hands he held a crumpled piece of paper, which he hadn't looked up from.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

"Good morning!" My call caused him to jerk upright and glance my way.

"Oh, good morning," he replied. He held up the list. "I'm Harold. Don't mind me, I'm just going to start my search." Then his head went back to the list before going up to the first bookshelf near the door. He meticulously scanned the shelves, searching for titles on his list.

I shook my head and sipped my coffee, trying to not stare at him too much. No one liked to be watched in a bookstore. To me, it always felt like the watcher was judging me. I pulled out my most recent online order, an adult coloring book. I tossed it and some markers under the counter for moments like this. Yet, my gaze returned to the center of the table in the room. Bright green eyes peered at me from the shadows.

Given that the cat wasn't here at the counter, I assumed this must be a guy from a normal world. I pointed to the guy who was still reading down the bookshelves and motioned for the dragon to come my way. The bright eyes disappeared, and I leaned forward trying to spot Indigo.

"Where did you go?" I mumbled to myself.

A flash of purple caught my eye as she glided across the room toward the side of a wooden bookshelf. The one that the guy had just turned away from. Indigo landed on the side of the wood and climbed up the front to the very top. Oh, no.

I must have made a sound since Harold glanced my way, but I quickly started flipping through the pages of the coloring book. Totally inconspicuous. I grabbed out a purple marker from the tub and popped the cap off before daring to glance back up. The dragon was nowhere to be seen. Harold was holding two books in his arms, but kept going, searching the titles.

My focus went back to the bookshelf that Indigo had climbed with her tiny claws, but I couldn't see the top of it. I shouldn't have pointed to the man. Her snout poked out over the edge and she glanced at the top of Harold's head.

Please don't land on him.

Her focus was on the pile of books he had in his arms, but he turned as he got to the end of the row and looped around to the other side. Indigo launched herself off the bookshelf and glided to the top of the next one. My heart pounded until she landed safely on the next one. I let out a sigh and wondered where the cat was.

Harold grabbed another book off a shelf and added it to his stack. He paused and glanced up at the top of the shelf, and then shook his head. He turned in my direction and headed my way. I flipped the coloring book closed and slid it back under the counter.

"I just want to drop these off while I keep looking," said Harold with a smile. "Usually, I don't find so many on my list." He set the books on the counter.

"No worries, take your time," I said. "I'll keep these safe and sound until you’re ready to check out."

Indigo took that moment to jump off the bookshelf and glide back to the center table. I fought the urge to react and instead gave Harold a nod. He turned back to the shelves, the crumpled list still in his hands. Thankfully, he continued past the table and back to the shelves he had turned from. His eyes automatically went back to searching titles.

I pulled the books that he had left with me closer, but I couldn't puzzle out a theme. There was a history book, one on art, and the last was a cookbook. Something hit the front of the counter, and I swallowed hard, resisting the urge to look up. The almost silent sound of claws walking across the floor came to me. It moved around the front of the counter to the side, then behind it. Indigo walked on the floor, glaring at the counter.

"Did you not make your jump?" I asked, quietly.

The book dragon nodded with frustrated eyes. She waved her wings at me and I bent over to pick her up.

Harold stood at the counter, and I thrust Indigo onto the shelf under the counter. "Oh, is that everything for you?" I asked, wondering if he’d seen the dragon.

"Ah, yes, I found two more." He nodded enthusiastically. "Your selection is fantastic, I think this is my largest haul yet."

I grabbed the stack of books, which now totaled five, and moved to the register. Something clicked into a teacup, but I didn't react. Harold's eyebrows went up. "We have a cat," I said.

"I figured, with a name like Meow," he said.

I quickly rang up the books, using the prices listed on the title pages, written in the upper corner in faint pencil. "How would you like to pay?"

Harold slid his hand in his pocket and pulled out a handful of gems. He spilled them on top of the counter and my jaw dropped. Brightly colored, each gem was about the size of a marble. Everything from a deep purple, to a bright yellow.

"Ah, I'm not sure..."

Laughter broke out from him, as he pulled a credit card out of his other pocket. "I had you for a moment. You can put it on my card."

I shook my head, lightly chuckling as I used his card. "You got me. Do you need a bag for these?"

"Oh, no not at all," He said as he picked up the stones. Then he grabbed the books off the counter. "I hope you have a good day."

The cat leaped on the counter, making me take a step back.

"You too!" I gave him a little wave as he headed toward the front door.

The bright eyes of the cat gazed at Indigo as they climbed up onto the top of the counter. "You should have taken the gems, they were worth more."

Then, Harold was out the front door, bells jingling as it closed behind him.