the guardian (6)

That evening, while the house lay quiet and sleeping, something moved in the upstairs hallway. In the dark it was unseen because it was black, but its eyes glowed in the dark. It was pushing at something, pawing something that slid on the floor with a light scratching sound, pushing it towards the stairs. It nosed the thing over and it made a pattering sound as it fell and rested on the fourth step from the top.

It was there when Laura got up at two a.m., because Laura was an insomniac and had the habit of getting a glass of water when she woke up and could not sleep again.

It was there when she started down the stairs.

Laura screamed as she fell, but her scream was cut short as she hit the landing. There was a dull crack, like a brittle branch breaking.

The lights came on, Christine asking “Dad? Daddy, what is it?” Patrick rushing around, calling Laura’s name, was she alright, was it a thief, and Laura-Oh-my-God-Laura-CHRISTINE-CALL-THE-POLICE-OHMYGODMYGOD!

The police came, and then the ambulance, and the cat watched serenely from under the coffee table as he pawed at some toy, a broken wind-up toy car that looked like somebody stepped on it. The men in blue clothes carried something wrapped in a white sheet on something that looked like a bed with handles on both ends.

Voices eddied and ebbed around him.
“…wonder what scared her so bad…”
“—such a fall from so high up—“
“…broke her neck cleanly, though she didn’t have any other scratch—“
“—poor guy. And the kid so silent, man, it’s creepy.”

Marshmallow batted the toy car lightly. It skittered across the floor and went under the couch, where it will lay undiscovered, to be batted out again by a playing cat when morning comes, pushed and nosed towards the door, towards the sidewalk, towards the storm drain.

Yes, Mistress, I took care of that. I take care of the Little Mistress all the time. As I promised you before you went to the other world, I will let no harm come to her. Nobody will hurt her again.

Yes, Mistress, I understand. I will watch over her until she is old enough to fend for herself. And you will give me more strength, isn’t that right? I will live beyond my time. I will be with her when she cries, we will laugh together, like we did when you were just a little girl yourself.

The cat sat there, staring dreamily at the piano stool with his strange green eyes. He purred and purred. Miss Rose watched the cat from the doorway. Her hair was standing up on end, and goosebumps were running down her arms.