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Merlin sighed.“Lesson two, believe everything I say without question. For example, this is a cauldron. In the olden days, witches used giant black pots. But in the modern era, we use other commonplace items that are easy for a witch to access but go largely unnoticed by others. Observe.”

He walked to the center of the small fountain and dipped his paw in. Instantly the thin layer of water began to glow a pale green, not unlike the color of Merlin’s large eyes.

“Whoa,” I said, the air whooshing right out of me in surprise.

Merlin tapped the water again, and it returned to its normal state.“This is why we cats choose to adopt humans. There is no guaranteed safe place on the streets. We need the guise of domesticity to protect our secrets. And also the shade of night. Naturally, we would prefer to keep away during the day, but it’s easier to hide our true ways when most of you humans are tucked away in your beds.”

I nodded along. Everything he was telling me made sense, now that I thought about it. Everything except…

“What do you need money for?” I asked, still stuck on his revelation about that poor robin who owed him money.

“You’re still stuck on your own world. In mine, we…MEOW!”

“Huh?” I spun my head to see where he was looking and caught sight of a neighbor powerwalking by.

She smiled and waved a hello, and I could swear I recognized her from somewhere. I just didn’t know where.

But then just as quickly as she’d approached, she passed out of view.

I turned back to my cat, whose tail flicked wildly as it hung down from the stone bath.“Watch out for that one,” he growled.

“What? Why? She seemed friendly enough.”

He sneered unkindly as he stared in the direction the woman had gone.“Remember lesson number two?”

“Trust everything you say?”

“Yes. That was Virginia. She’s the familiar for a very troublesome witch who lives on the other side of town. Luna,” he bit out.

“Did she come to spy on us?”

Merlin jumped down from the bath.“I wouldn’t put it past her. Luckily, the cauldron is protected from other magical practitioners and their familiars. Come. Let’s return inside where we cannot be watched by those who would do us harm.”

Harm? It seemed I’d only survived the first of many trials when it came to joining my cat in his magical world, which left one question playing on loop in my mind:WHY ME?

8

“We’re going to Luna’s,” Merlin announced as soon as I’d shut the door firmly behind us. Of course, I didn’t like this one bit.

“What? Why?” I moaned.

Unfortunately, Merlin remained steadfast in his demands.“If she’s spying on us, that means she herself probably has something to hide.”

“We’re going to break and enter based on a probably? In case you haven’t noticed, I’m already a suspect in a murder investigation!” I exploded, and I had to admit it felt good to yell after working so hard to keep it together outside.

“Lesson number two,” he reminded me yet again, and I could already tell that this would be my least favorite of all the lessons, no matter what came next.

I huffed and crossed my arms. He couldn’t make me do something I didn’t want to do… Could he?

Merlin softened a bit.“Look, I know this is all new to you, but you have to trust me. I will protect you. And right now, protecting you means making sure Luna doesn’t try something while I’m working to get my new familiar on board. We’re both incredibly vulnerable right now, which means we must be vigilant.”

He paused to suck in a deep breath here, then resumed in an even more somber tone.“You think human prison is scary? It doesn’t hold a candle to the living horror that is a magical prison. If Luna exposes us, then we’ll both go there with no hope of ever getting out. You get taken to human prison, I can break you out in a blink and help you create a new identity. Trust me, this Harold guy’s murder is the least of our problems right now.”

“Okay,” I said, too tired to argue any longer and too afraid to learn any more about the possible repercussions of failing to do this familiar thing the right way.

He studied me with those curious green eyes of his and asked,“Okay what?”

“I trust you,” I said, praying I wouldn’t come to regret this assertion.

“Really? I expected you to put up more of a fight.”

I shrugged.“What good would that do if we’re just going to end up doing what you want, anyway?”

“I’m glad you agree.” Merlin nodded, then blinked slowly two times.

I must have blinked, too, because one second we were standing at the edge of my kitchen, and the next I found myself under the shade of an unfamiliar magnolia tree by a small ranch-style home with a carefully tended garden.

I took a step back, pushing myself against the tree for support.

“What… What just happened?” I gasped.

Merlin stalked toward me and snickered.“Your first teleportation. So sweet.”

“Teleportation?” I whisper-yelled, in case anyone was nearby and paying attention to us. “Next time give me a little notice, please.”

“No,” he said firmly. “It’s much easier if you don’t know it’s coming.”