Purr-suing a killer . . . The only thing that could make the High Cliff Shelter for Cats even cozier is a reading room where kids can snuggle up with a furry feline and a book. But as Lara and Aunt Fran prepare for the reading nook’s official opening, the health inspector in their New Hampshire town, Evonda Fray, decrees that the shelter qualifies as a “cat café,” thanks to the free snacks it serves to visitors—and that it must be shut down. When Evonda’s body is found in her car clutching a copy of the cease-and-desist order, suspicion naturally falls on Lara and Aunt Fran. But there’s a whole litter of potential culprits, including a tenant in one of Evonda’s buildings who’d been ordered to give up his rescue cat, a disgruntled daughter-in-law, and more. Now Lara—with some help from her aunt and her spirit cat, Blue—has to pin the tail on the right suspect . . . Praise for Linda Reilly’s Mysteries “I was kept guessing until the final chapter. . . . A perfect cozy mystery.” —Susan Furlong, author of the Georgia Peach Mysteries, on Escape Claws “Engaging characters, the psychic cat Blue, and the extraordinary healing power of cats are a winning combination for this enjoyable, heart-warming novel.” — Kings River Life Magazine on Claws of Death “I thoroughly enjoyed this puzzler of a mystery. Reilly cooks up a perfect recipe of murder and mayhem in this charming cozy.”—Jenn McKinlay, New York Times bestselling author of the Hat Shop Mysteries, on Fillet of Murder “Smart, sassy, and a little bit scary. Everything a good cozy should be!” —Laura Childs, New York Times bestselling author of the Tea Shop Mysteries, on Fillet of Murder Claws of Action A Cat Lady Mystery By Linda Reilly KENSINGTON PUBLISHING CORP. Copyright © 2019 Linda Reilly All rights reserved. ISBN: 978-1-5161-0987-6 CHAPTER 1 Lara Caphart could hardly believe it. The official reading room of the High Cliff Shelter for Cats was completed. She swung the new storm door back and forth, then pushed it closed. It clicked into place with a soft snap. "Perfect," she proclaimed. "I know it sounds silly, but I am so thrilled with this door!" One chunky hand resting on his hip, Charlie Backstrom — the contractor who'd built the cat shelter's addition — stood back and inspected his work. "Looks good," he agreed. "Now remember, when the cold weather gets here, you gotta lower the screen and —" "You're repeating yourself, honey," Nina Backstrom said, slipping her arm through her husband's. "You've shown Lara three times now, how to lower the screen and pull up the glass pane." "Hey, that's okay," Lara said lightly. "It never hurts to get a refresher, right?" Charlie, handsome in a rugged sort of way, with melt-in-your-mouth brown eyes, smiled at his wife and kissed her cheek. He winked at Lara. "Wives. What would we do without them?" Nina feigned a scowl. "Oh, I'm guessing you'd be living on frozen dinners and cardboard pizza and watching sports on TV every night." "Instead of those scintillating mysteries you're always trying to get me to watch?" He quirked a smile at her. They both looked at Lara. Lara held up both hands. "Don't look at me. I'm not getting in the middle of that one." Charlie and Nina, who were both around thirty, were one of the sweetest couples Lara had ever met. They teased each other a lot, but the banter was always good-natured — at least it seemed to be. Perpetually outfitted in a gray work shirt and blue, knee-length cargo shorts, Charlie was a total contrast to his petite wife. Today Nina wore a stylish, pale-pink jersey top over white cotton shorts, a flowered bathing suit peeking out over the jersey's neckline. Beneath her strawberry-blond bob was a sharp head for numbers. She acted as financial guru — and organizational genius — for the business, while Charlie performed the labor and hired the subs. He walked with a slight limp, which he jokingly referred to as an old football injury. "So, what do you think?" Nina said. "Are we done?" Lara looked all around the new room and felt her smile widening. "Yes, I think we are. It's been a long haul, but now that I see the finished product, it was all worth it." On Saturday, she and her aunt were having a grand opening for a few close friends. The following day would be the first official "read to a cat" day in the new room. The idea for the addition had sprung from a little girl who'd tried to sneak into the shelter one day, book in hand, determined to read to a cat. After a bit of research, Lara had discovered that several other shelters in New Hampshire had "read to a cat" days. With the help of their part-time shelter assistant, Kayla Ramirez, Lara had set up a similar program. It gained popularity more quickly than they'd anticipated, but they had only one problem: space. Aunt Fran's Folk Victorian home was the entire shelter, the small back porch having been transformed into the "meet-and-greet" room. In that room, cats and prospecti