The man smiled, a slow, thin expression. "No, madam. For their stories. You see, a cat is a living record of every secret told in a kitchen at midnight. They are the only creatures that witness the things we think no one sees."
The townspeople were baffled. Old Mrs. Gable, who lived in a house overflowing with tabby cats, marched in on Tuesday morning. She didn't want to sell her "babies," but she had to know what kind of monster was trading in feline lives.
Mrs. Gable went home and looked at her oldest cat, Barnaby. She thought of all the nights she’d cried into his fur after her husband passed. She thought of the secrets she’d muttered while pacing the floor. She never went back to the shop. Neither did anyone else.
Within a week, the sign was gone. The shop was empty, save for a single, stray ginger hair on the mahogany counter. The townspeople stayed quiet, but they all started talking to their cats a little more softly—just in case someone was still listening.
No explanation. No phone number. Just three words in bold, black Helvetica.