Familiar Blessings — Candace Colt

Welcome to Cat's Paw Cove, Florida—an enchanting seaside town and favorite tourist destination. But there's something unusual about the locals, both human and feline. The popular Shipwreck Museum might just take you back in time, and the historic Sherwood House holds secrets, old and new.Adopt a furever friend at the Cove Cat Café, treat yourself to a psychic reading at Eye of Newt metaphysical shop, pick up a special trinket from Black Cat Antiquities. And don't be surprised if you find your heart in the magic of Cat's Paw Cove.Tired of being hounded by the greedy dead, gifted medium Dr. Theodosia Blessing, the wonder-child of historians around the world, yearned for anonymity. After renouncing her magic, she reinvented herself as Theo, the potter. She returned to her hometown of Cat's Paw Cove, Florida, where she lives with her familiar, a mind-reading tortoiseshell cat named Aloysius.Former Army Ranger Ethan Cooper was content to live a reclusive life in his cabin in North Carolina. But as Christmas draws near, he agrees to repay a debt to an old man whose wise counsel brought him out of war's dark shadow. Ethan accepts one last mission: to track down Theo.Ethan appears unannounced on Theo's doorstep with an envelope containing the old man's letter. If what it says is true, the reluctant medium, skeptical Ranger, and wiseacre cat must travel back to 1720 to save a young boy from the gallows. ***Previously published in the Meows and Mistletoe Holiday Anthology***