Four Rubbings

Chapter Fifteen: Josie and the Miracle

A GENTLE TAP on my bedroom door jolts me from a bad dream. I remember only bits and pieces of it: the cat fighting with a crow, a puddle of blood, a lifeless gray body.

Dad cracks open the door, "Josie, I've got some news."

His voice comes out soft and gentle. Is he getting ready to break really bad news? It wasn't just a bad dream. The fight between the cat and the crow really happened.

I sit up, shoving the comforter off my head. Dad opens the door wider and steps inside tentatively. His expression is happy, but after last night how could it be?

"I can't even believe I fell asleep again after what happened last night," I say. "I woke up and thought it was just a bad dream."

Looking again at Dad, his bright eyes and wide grin, I'm suddenly confused.

"Why do you look so happy? What did you do with the cat?" I rub my eyes and stretch.

"So, it wasn't a dream? You remember the fight too, right?" he asks, scratching his head and grinning.

A quick gray blur runs past his legs and tumbles onto my bed. The curly furred cat purrs and rubs his body against my outstretched hand. Then he circles in my lap, folding himself into a warm, fuzzy heap. I hold my breath; I want to hold onto the cat forever.

"How? I don't understand. He's perfect."

I stroke the cat's body, trying to find any physical trace of the fight.

"Dad, he was ripped apart and bleeding all over last night."

I start to cry and the moisture disappears inside his coat. He's a magnet for my tears. Before I can ask Dad if this is real, Owen rushes into my room bouncing next to the cat and me.

"Josie, you're always hogging him!" Owen grabs the cat under his ribs, sits and plops him onto his criss-cross pajama legs. I lock eyes with Dad, unable to speak. He lays a finger over his pink lips, winks, and then points at Owen. Without a word, I understand that whatever wild theories we've got will stay under wraps until Owen's tiny ears aren't around. I wink back so he knows I understand.

Owen strokes the cat's silky back. "I know his name, guys. It's Shadow. After you tucked me in last night Josie, I had a dream about him. I was with you on Halloween and we found him together. And then we lost him, 'cause he ran into the shadows. Then we found him again. So, that's his name. Shadow."

"I love it. What do you think, Dad?"

"Shadow is the perfect name! Now, time to get ready for school. Shall we hit the pancake house before I drop you off? I'm starving and we've got time."

In answer, Owen and I race to ready ourselves. Smiling, I close my eyes, and feel the weight of the world slip off my shoulders.

"Shadow! You're something else."

He looks up from taking a drink out of my toilet and scurries down the hall.