Chapter Three Part One
Ichabod Crane awoke to the smells of breakfast cooking from down stairs. It was a smell that he had never thought would come to pass in his home as he has always thought he would be living the life of a bachelor.
Katrina was his true love with her gentle smile and kind heart Ichabod found he was truly lucky to have won her heart as completely as she had captured his.
However as he tuned over in bed he was met with big glowing gold eyes.
Ichabod screamed and fell out of the king size bed (which Katrina had chosen for reasons that he could live with).
Katrina came running up the stairs to the bedroom to find Ichabod fighting with the counterpane and her newly acquired cat watching Icabod with great aloofness. The cat merely yawned and stretched before settling down again.
"Ichabod!" Katrina chastised as she helped him untangle himself.
"What is that doing in here?" Ichabod asking running his fingers in his hair and gave his wife a slightly horrified look. Yes Constable Ichabod Crane had been scared by a ten pound cat.
"That is Isis," Katrina said picking up the cat and holding it against her chest, the cat Isis purred and Ichabod could have sworn the cat's amber eyes were laughing at him.
Ichabod did not like Isis.
"I found her this morning outside our door." Katrina explained as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Isis was rubbing her head against Katrina's chin it rumbling purr never ceasing.
"Get rid of it!" Ichabod said moving away from Katrina and gathering his clothes and dressing behind a screen. When he emerged Katrina was still standing with the cat in her arms a look of irate crossing her lovely features.
"What is it?" Ichabod asked he had thought that the matter concerning was closed.
"No Isis is staying this is her home now." Katrina said putting the cat down who jumped back on the bed and began to bathe and no less on Ichabod's side of the bed.
Ichabod could tell this was not going to be a pleasant morning at all but he refused to have a cat in the house.
"Katrina my love cats are awful creatures, they have fleas that bite and spread disease; they carry ticks that can get under the skin and cause infection." Ichabod pleaded taking Katrina's delicate hands in his, and then turned to Isis who was now licking her stomach. "They also bathe themselves with their saliva."
Isis turned to him as if to say "what about it?" before going back to her grooming of black fur.
Katrina pulled her hands from Ichabod ignoring his small look of hurt. "Ichabod I assure she is quite clean as she happens to like taking baths." She then turned her back on him moving towards the bedroom door. "She stays Ichabod end of discussion." Ichabod knew he could not refuse his wife, not only because she put her foot down on the matter so to speak but because he could hardly refuse her anything even if it made him unhappy.
"Perhaps I went about this the wrong way." Ichabod thought out loud and Isis meowed in agreement. It was not until he heard the front door slam that he was broken out of his reprieve.
Going to the window that over looked their front walk way he saw Katrina getting into a carriage. Ichabod felt a deep rise of panic in him that he had made his wife get so angry she would storm out of the house.
However when Isis jumped in front of him Icahbod jumped back having forgotten the cat was still in the room. Although he loved his wife more then his own life he was still resolved not to have a cat in the house.
Being ever careful to avoid touching the cat he opened the window and Isis getting the hint to leave did, walking lightly over the railing she hopped to the roof and out of Icahbod's line of sight.
He went down stairs to find his paper waiting as his breakfast. Ichabod did his best to eat the food but at the first bite of what should have been deliciously prepared eggs with a bowl of oatmeal with cinnamon and raisons the food tasted bland and Icahbod knew it was because the maker of the fine meal was not there to join him.
Lady Katrina Van Tassel- Crane had left the house not because of the issue of the cat but because Ichabod had become afraid of said cat. The smallest spider to the loudest bang of the door could send Icahbod into a terror that Katrina could not fathom such a need for. She loved Ichabod dearly with all her heart and soul but at times she just wished he would be different…
The second reason she had left the house was because it was the third Saturday of the month and at that time there was an open air market. Normally Katrina waited till Ichabod left for work at the watch house and she and Young Masbeth would take to browsing the intriguing treasures and kick-knacks that venders had to offer.
Today she was by herself as she had left Masbeth still asleep after his fit with a cold the night before. The honey herb tea she provided him with would leave him resting comfortably until lunch.
Having the carriage pull over near the first vender she got off careful to avoid stepping in the puddles. Not because she was afraid of getting her shoes dirty but because In New York you could never be to sure if the puddles were really just from water.
Usually she only bought herbs for the meals and tea she prepared for the family or anything that Masbeth found intriguing which usually consisted on many books found in the monthly market.
It stuck her suddenly that she should find a collar for Isis as she too was to be apart of the Crane family.
Katrina browsed each section of the market picking up knickknacks that caught her eye and buying a few books for Masbeth and her husband. It was not until she found a jeweler sitting at his table hunched over working on many trinkets did she stop.
There on the table resting against the backdrop of royal blue velvet was a cat collar with a gold trim, little blue roses made of azure stone.
Katrina immediately picked it up and put down the amount that had been pinned to the clasp near the man. The man did not look up but continued to carve something out of white jade. Katrina was about to walk away when something else caught her eye.
Next to the man's right elbow was a case about the size of a bread box with a glass front. The case was lined with black velvet and several bracelets of sliver rested inside.
One in particular caught Katrina's eyes. It was a silver cuff bracelet a pentacle in the center with a frost blue stone and a small diamond on each point surrounded by an engraved design of restless ocean waves.
Before Katrina could gain the man's attention to examine the bracelet further he chuckled slightly and lifted his head. Katrina was startled slightly; the man's eyes were clouded, he was blind.
"A beauty is it not?" he said placing his tools and stone down before pulling the top of the case off and pulling out the bracelet that Katrina had been eyeing and handed it to her.
"Yes it is." Katrina said trying it on, it fit perfectly.
"Well not as beautiful as the one wearing it I suppose but it will do." The man said chuckling slightly and causing Katrina to blush.
"How much is it?" Katrina inquired looking at the man who just smiled at her.
"Nothing." He said and Katrina blinked in slight confusion before he continued speaking. "Not many people in New York would give the right amount for a cat collar, lots of cheaters around here."
"I would not feel right about that." Katrina said taking the bracelet off but the man had closed the case off.
"Yes you can I insist." He grasped onto her hands and closed her fingers around the bracelet. "I give it to you because it has been a long time since I have found a person with a kind heart and besides it makes wishes come true." He gave her a wink.
"I thank you then and if what you say is true then I wish my husband had more nerve and was more adventurous and worried less about things." Katrina relented and the man let her hands go with a smile going back to his work.
"He's a lucky man the." The jeweler said as Katrina walked off.
Katrina left the market and hailed a carriage home she did not notice the center jewel of her new bracelet glow a deep red.
Besides taking care of everything as she always did she was angry when she found out that Isis was gone. So mad in fact that she only made Masbeth and herself dinner retiring early so as not to see Icahbod.
