Page 3 of Feathered Web

“Wren’s asleep, finally. She’s in rough shape. She’s trying so hard to be brave, but her heart’s broken. I’m helping her by calling Walter’s friends and relatives. I also closed down a bunch of accounts he had that she won’t need—subscriptions and the like.” She paused, then said, “It’s so silent here. Walter’s going to be cremated and then his ashes scattered back into the garden, where he loved to putter. I’m going to make the arrangements for his funeral. Wren showed me the will, with what they discussed, and I’ll make sure it happens.”

Tad sighed. “That will help her a lot. This has been a rough day. Is there anybody else there with her?”

“Walter’s sister is due to arrive tomorrow from Massachusetts, and his parents are flying in from Florida on Wednesday. Wren’s friend Sheila was here, but she kept breaking down and I suggested she go home. The home health care worker who watched after Walter told me she’ll stay tonight, to make sure Wren’s okay. I’ll be home in a couple hours, but I thought I’d come back tomorrow morning until Sheila gets here.” Caitlin sounded tired. “I’d really like it if you had takeout waiting when I get home,” she added.

“Text me what you want,” Tad said. He turned to the rest of us. “Let’s knock off for the day. We won’t get anything else done this afternoon. See you tomorrow, and January, feel free to bring Kerris in with you, if you feel we could help. I’d like to meet her, anyway.”

As I gathered my things and prepared to leave, it occurred to me that each day was an adventure, for good or for bad, and when we woke in the morning, we never quite knew what was waiting in store for us.

CHAPTER TWO

I remembered that I hadn’t let Killian know about dinner tonight, or about Walter. He had gone over with me several times to visit Wren and Walter, and he had done what he could to fix things around the house. The minute I arrived home, I gave him a call. Luckily, he was between patients. My husband—a wolf shifter—was a veterinarian with a soft spot for cats.

“Hey, what’s up, love?”

I worried my lip. “Two things. I got a call this morning from Kerris Fellwater of Whisper Hollow. She needs my help with something. She and her husband Bryan are meeting us for dinner tonight—they drove over from the peninsula today.”

“Hmm, really? Well, dinner sounds fine. Do you know what she wants?”

“No, not really. We’ll find out tonight. They’re staying at a hotel. I didn’t feel comfortable inviting her to stay here unless we’ve actually met. But something else happened today,” I said.

“You sound like you’ve been crying,” Killian said. “Are you all right?”

“I have been, and no…well, yes, I’m all right. But at work today we got a call from Wren. Walter’s dead. He died this morning.” The words hurt coming out of my mouth. I hadn’t realized just how much I liked Wren and Walter.

Killian was silent for a few seconds, then he said, “Oh no. That sucks. I liked Walt. He was a good man.”

“He was. And the disease progressed so fast. I guess some forms of it do. Obviously, Wren’s devastated. Caitlin stayed with her today and will go back there tomorrow. Tad’s going to hire an assistant to help Wren through the first month or so.” I shook my head. “I feel so helpless.”

“Yeah, there’s not much you can do for her right now. You can help out, but nothing is going to take away the pain,” Killian said. “I’ll go over later and take a look around. Tarvish and I can fix up anything that needs repaired on the house, as long as it’s not plumbing or electrical.”

“Thank you,” I murmured, wishing he was home. I wanted to lean into his arms, to curl up with him against the harshness of the world. “You’re so good. I wish you were home right now.”

He sighed. “I wish I was too, but I’ve got two more appointments this afternoon, and they need me. It’s okay to cry,” he added.

“I know,” I said. “I think I’ll take a shower and chill with the cats until you get home. You’re sure you don’t mind dinner with Kerris and Bryan?”

“I don’t mind,” Killian said. “I’ll see you as soon as I can.”

As I set my phone down, it occurred to me how much other people affected our lives. Walter, in his death, had touched us almost more than he had in life. And that seemed sad. I resolved to spend more time with my friends from now on, and my loved ones. Whenever my time came, I wanted people to remember what I’d brought into their lives.

Killian and I arrived at the restaurant first. We were meeting at the Moonshadow Steakhouse, an upscale eatery with reasonably priced good food. As the waitress showed us to the booth, I scooted in next to Killian and he slid his arm around my shoulder.

“We’re waiting for friends,” I told the waitress. “Can you bring me a mug of spiced apple cider, hot?”

“That sounds good. I’ll have the same,” Killian said.

We settled back, and for the first time that day I relaxed. “It’s been a long, rough day.”

“It has,” Killian said. “I lost a patient today. There was nothing anybody could do, and he was in pain, so I had to put him down.” He grimaced. It always hurt him when he had to let go of a patient.

“Who?” I asked. I knew the animals of this town better than most of the people, thanks to Killian.

“Friskabout,” he said.

I bit my lip. Friskabout had been the Gull Catcher’s dog. The two had come together only in the past year—a stray who had three legs, and a man who lived in a world all his own. The dog had given the Gull Catcher an anchor, and the Gull Catcher had given the dog a second chance at a happy life.

“So much sorrow,” I said. “The day feels so heavy.”

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