"Freaking Gypsy curses..." I twisted, trying to scratch under my collar. The tag reading E. TOMSON, P.I. jangled as I got my hind leg up and gave my neck a good skritch. I sighed in contentment and may have even purred a little.
Sasha rolled her eyes and leaned back in the chair behind the beaten-up oak desk in our single room office. "I think you'd be used to this by now. How long has it been?"
"Thirteen months." I gave my neck one more scratch and perked up. I had to sit on the desk to look her in the eye, but it was worth it. "Lucky thirteen, eh? Maybe today will be the day we break the curse."
"You break the curse, you mean," Sasha said. "I like you this way. You're cheaper to feed, for one." She smirked. "And the mouse problem around the office seems to have resolved itself."
"Hey, now. If you're implying-"
A tentative knock at the door kept me from finishing my thought. Sasha and I shared a look.
"Told you this would be a good day," I murmured before turning to the door and raising my voice. "Come in!"
The door creaked open. I cocked my head, wondering when they would enter. The sound of someone clearing their throat dragged my gaze downward. A bald, wizened head poked into the room from behind the door, two feet up from the floor.
Sasha followed my gaze and leaned over the desk to look down at the gnome. Her face lit up with one of her ten-thousand-watt smiles, blue eyes locked on her prey while she toyed with her long black hair.
It was my turn to roll my eyes. She has a... thing for the Little People.
"Well, hello there, handsome. Come on in." You could have used the heat in her voice to cuddle up on a cold winter night.
The gnome's eyes widened. The poor guy was a deer in the headlights. I sighed, got up, and strolled between Sasha and the gnome, breaking their line of sight. Making sure to lift my tail at just the right moment. I smirked as I heard Sasha huff in frustration and sit back again.
"Apologies, sir. You have us at a disadvantage." I sat and gestured with a paw. "I am Eddie Tomson. The lady with the predatory smile is my partner, sister, and court-appointed witch, Sasha."
"Hey. You're the black cat. Doesn't that mean you're my familiar?"
"If that's what it takes to get you through the day," I said out of the side of my mouth. "In any case, sir. Care to come in and tell us your troubles?"
The gnome blinked rapidly before sidling around the door. He held a rather battered felt hat in one hand, clutched to his overalls. The other hand held a human-sized paper lunch sack so wrinkled it was on the cusp of becoming brown paper cloth.
"Um. Mortimer Ratchett, sir. Mister Tomson, I mean." His brow furrowed. "That is you, isn't it? The man down at the courthouse said you might could be able to help me, but he didn't mention nothing about your being a cat." He smiled weakly.
"A temporary condition." I ignored Sasha's chuckle with a flick of my tail. "Caused by a brief lack of courtesy with an elderly Gypsy woman. One that will no doubt be cleared up soon."
"Oh!" Ratchett relaxed. "Yeah, I had a cousin who went through that. Got turned into a toad."
"Really?" I perked up. Gypsy curses were not only famously undetectable, they were supposedly unbreakable. "How did he get it removed?"
The gnome shrugged. "Didn't. Last I heard, he was head flycatcher down at the dump."
Sasha frowned. "I thought it was frogs that caught flies?"
Ratchett nodded. "Yep. They gave him a little net, though."
Sasha poked me, earning herself another tail twitch. "See? There are still opportunities for you."
The indignities I suffer... I wrapped my tail around myself. "Mr. Ratchett. Your business?"
You can find the rest of Eddie and Sasha’s story in Recall Notice along with gangster orcs, sinister mobsters, magic gone wrong… and a lovable zombie named Bruce.
