Cupid's Treasure - Mystery of the Golden Arrow by Barbara Ivie Green

stopped in her tracks. The street light coming in through the front door cast the shadow of the trees outside. It had been nothing. She took another step as the grandfather clock struck two. The chimes made her want to jump out of her shoes for the second time that day. She slipped past the foyer and down the hall to the kitchen she’d seen earlier when she’d brought her dirty clothes down.
    She wished she could have just gone out the front, but with only the clothes on her back, she could really use an extra change until she could purchase some more. She found them folded neatly on the table. She picked them up. They smelled of laundry softener. She’d felt what it was like to have a family again for almost five minutes.
    The scent only caused her heart to become heavier. It had been so long since anyone had cared for her. She placed her skirt in the bag, tucking it around her kitty, and donned her sweater.
    Tip-toeing across the kitchen to the back door, she opened it. The screen squeaked slightly, but other than that she made it outside to the back porch without too much fuss. The air was crisp and cool after the storm. She looked across the dark yard with its old trees dripping with Spanish moss.
    Meow.
    “We will be okay. You’ll see,” she said more to herself.
    “Of course you will,” Jonathan said from where he sat in a chair with a wide wicker back.
    Amber squealed and jumped.
    “I’m sorry.” Jonathan rocked forward in the chair and stood up. “I didn’t mean to startle you. What are you doing up?”
    She glanced down at her cat and used the only thing that came to mind. “Kisses needed to go outside.”
    “Ah—I’ll make sure to bring up fresh litter for Elvis’s box,” Jonathan said as he watched her unpack her kitty and set it on the lawn.
    “Elvis?” Amber whispered, glancing over her shoulder at him.
    “That’s Katie’s cat,” Jonathan said. “He’s around here somewhere.”
    “Oh,” Amber said as her cat promptly ran back up onto the porch, shaking her paws from the wet grass.
    “I guess she’s done,” Jonathan said.
    Amber could hear the amusement in his voice. It is almost like he knows! She picked up her kitty. “I guess so. I’ll just go back inside now.”
    “That’s a good idea,” Jonathan said. “You need your sleep. We have a big morning.”
    “We do?”
    “Of course, Charlene’s is coming for coffee, Tom will be by to get a statement, Bob is bringing your car, and the library is in need of a safety check.”
    “You’re going to work with me?” She gulped.
    “I’ll probably be there all day long.”
    Oh, no! Amber thought. That’s all I need—to spend the whole day with him . As it was, she was daydreaming about him. She glanced back at the path leading away from the house and didn’t know if she was angry to have been thwarted or not. He may well be the worse of two evils .
    ~*~
    Jonathan was still sitting in his chair in the dark when Jacques appeared. He wasn’t even shocked to see him materialize.
    “You know she was making a run for it?” Jacques asked as he leaned against the bannister. The ruffled lawn shirt he wore made him look like he belonged in the eighteenth century.
    “Yes, I know.” Jonathan sighed.
    “How did you know?”
    Jonathan pointed to his radio phone. “It started broadcasting loud and clear a while ago.”
    “You mean you bugged her?”
    “I didn’t,” Jonathan said. “She had control over whether to turn it off or not.”
    Jacques watched him for a moment, sensing there was something else. “What is wrong?”
    Jonathan clicked a button on his laptop. “Harold sent me this before he went to bed.” The screen lit up, displaying a photo of Amber, only it looked like it was taken from an old newspaper.
    “What is this?” Jacques asked.
    “A photo of Miss Amelia Jones.”
    “She looks just like Amber,” Jacques said.
    “That’s probably because it is her. They have the same prints,” Jonathan said. “Now look