Furever Friends

by Patricia Fry

  She nodded and rubbed one shoulder. “Yeah, some men showed up and tried to…” She paused. “Well, I don’t know what they had in mind, but I was evidently in the way of it.”

  He looked more closely at her, frowning. “Is that a bruise on your face? Did they hurt you?”

  Savannah touched her cheek and nodded. “Yeah, I’m a little sore today. Didn’t you hear me hollering?”

  “Sure didn’t. That wind…”

  “Yeah, it was wild. Maybe you should step out once in a while and check on things.”

  “Yeah, that’s what Bon-Bon said.”

  Savannah smiled. “Bon-Bon?”

  Roy glanced down at the ground. “Yeah, I mean, Bonnie. Sorry. She was Bon-Bon when we were growing up in Fiji. She gets mad when I call her that now.” He grinned a sideways grin. “You’d think I’d learn. When I slip and call her Bon-Bon, she uses my childhood nickname.”

  “Which was?” Savannah goaded.

  Roy winced and said more quietly, “Roy-Bear. Joe was Joe-Bear. Bonnie loved her bears.” He then asked, “So did you see who it was?”

  She shook her head. “It was dark and they wore some sort of plastic masks. No, I sure didn’t recognize them, nor could I describe them except for their clothing, maybe, and I’m not too clear on that.” She paused before saying, “All I know is that they were dressed in Western garb and they were interested in Moose. I guess Sandy has received threats.” She ran her hand over her shoulder again. “It appears that someone’s serious about those threats.”

  “Yeah, according to Sis, there was a note left in Sandy’s truck. They want her to pull out of that ride.”

  “Who is it? Does anyone know?” she asked.

  He shrugged. “Could be breeders or riders. Could be someone Sandy upset—a scorned lover, even or the people who used to own the horse.” When Savannah looked confused, he explained, “Maybe they’re jealous of what Sandy has accomplished with him.”

  Savannah patted Moose. When she uncovered a hay bale, Roy moved forward. “I’ll do the feeding. Go on about your business. And hey, I’m sorry that we weren’t there to stop those jerks last night.” He looked her in the eyes and vowed, “It won’t happen again.”

  “Thank you. I appreciate that.” She rotated her shoulder and winced. “More than you know.”

  Chapter Six

  The following Wednesday evening Savannah and Michael sat on their porch swing, each sipping a decaf latte. “I like these that you make better than the ones we get at that coffee shop,” he said.

  “Thank you. I add a touch of cinnamon.” She grinned. “I love cinnamon.”

  He smiled and squeezed her hand, then asked, “So, are you ready with your speech?”

  “I hope so. This is really not much different from the presentations I give at bookstores and libraries and classrooms. I’ll talk about Rags and answer audience questions. I just won’t be talking up the books as much.” She grinned. “Of course I’ll mention them, but this will be more about Rags and the things he’s done. I hope to open the minds of people about cats and their abilities.” She snuggled with Michael. “I’m glad you decided to go with me. When I found out that Sandy and Moose were competing in that endurance ride near where the conference is being held, I really wanted to go. I thought you would, too.”

  “Yes. It’ll be interesting. Oh, did I tell you I contacted my veterinarian friend, Andrew? He works at the checkpoints for some of those endurance rides. Would you believe he’ll be there Sunday? I thought he might, since he lives in the Phoenix area.”

  “How cool,” she said. “Hey, maybe he’ll arrange for us to get a closer bird’s-eye view of the activities and some insider information.”

  “Maybe,” Michael said. “Andrew once tried to get me involved in working those endurance rides. He thought I’d enjoy it.”

  “Do you think you’d like doing that?”

  “Oh, I don’t know. I’d be interested in observing the events, especially from a veterinarian’s point of view, but those meets can be time-consuming, and there’s travel involved. It’s more a job for unmarried veterinarians or those who are retired from a general practice and without roots, you know.”

  “So maybe it’s something we can do in our future,” Savannah suggested. “I can ride in the event, and you can be a checkpoint veterinarian.”

  “You’d like to do one of those strenuous rides?” he asked. “When we’re retired?”

  “Well, if we retire early enough, I guess. Yeah, I find navigating difficult terrain kinda fun and Peaches seems to be game. Well, like Bonnie said once, she has heart. It takes a horse with heart to excel as an endurance horse.”

  He took a sip of his latte, “So do you think Peaches will be up to that kind of ride by the time we retire?”

  “Oh, probably not. I’d have to invest in an endurance horse—one that’s younger.” She called out toward Peaches’s corral. “Sorry, girl!”

  When they heard a horse whinny, they both laughed.

  “So what time do you want to leave tomorrow morning?” he asked.

  “Around four thirty? That ought to put us in LA about dinner time. I’m glad you suggested staying there overnight. I’d like to be relatively fresh when we arrive in Phoenix. There’s a social hour Friday night. Did I tell you there’s a cat show going on in the same hotel that weekend?”

  He nodded. “Yes. It might be interesting to see what people are doing to cats these days.”

  “What they’ve done to cats?”

  “You know, through some of the crazy breeding they do.” He let out a sigh. “I don’t know why the human race can’t leave well enough alone. Cats are beautiful creatures. I don’t get all of this breeding to create cats with flatter faces, longer faces, shorter legs, larger bodies, smaller bodies, curly fur, no fur…”

  Savannah chuckled. “Yeah, there are some interesting combinations of features in cats.”

  “And some of those extreme features cause health issues in the cats, such as breathing problems. And what happens to the kittens that don’t live up to the breeder’s expectations during the experimental phase?” He shook his head as if the subject were too heavy to ponder. “I just wish they’d leave well enough alone. Cats are amazing animals in their natural state.” He took a breath and changed the subject. “I hope to spend some time hanging out with Andrew while you’re busy. He has some things he’d like to show me, like his office, and he wants to drive me around the ride route and all.”

  She snuggled. “Neato. I’m glad you’ll have something to do that you’ll enjoy.”

  ****

  “Wow, this is quite a place out here all by itself,” Savannah remarked when they arrived at the hotel in Arizona Friday afternoon.

  “Yeah, I wonder if they plan to build a town around it, or if it’ll remain out here like a mirage.”

  She chuckled. “It is kind of like a mirage, isn’t it? Maybe it is a mirage?”

  “Not unless mirages have valet parking,” he said when he saw a young man approaching their car.

  “Will you be staying with us?” the valet asked. When Michael nodded, the man gave him a ticket and offered to carry in their bags. “Oh,” he remarked when he saw Rags sitting on top of the suitcases, “you’re part of the cat group.”

  “So some of the other cats have arrived?” Savannah asked brightly.

  He nodded. “Sure hope I’m not expected to clean litter boxes. When I took this job, they didn’t say anything about cleaning litter boxes. I do that enough when my sister goes on one of her business trips and leaves Fluffy or Puffy and Phoebe or Fiona, or whatever the heck their names are. I don’t mind the cats, but I sure hate scooping out those poop boxes.” He shuddered.

  Savannah and Michael chuckled. She said, “I don’t think you’ll have to clean litter boxes. Most cat people do that themselves when they travel with their fur-kids.”

  “I hope so.” He shuddered again when he saw the small litter box in Ra
gs’s pen. “Hey, there’s something in there right now. You don’t expect me to carry it in with that in there, do you?”

  Michael laughed. “How about bringing out one of those luggage carts and we’ll set the pen on that with the luggage. That’ll work, won’t it?”

  “Oh yeah, good idea. Thanks,” the young man said, sprinting back inside the hotel entrance.

  “Nice room,” Savannah said minutes later. She watched Rags as he explored the space. “What do you think, boy? Will you be comfortable here?” She approached him. “Let me remove your harness, although you do look mighty handsome in that new slate-blue one.” She turned to Michael. “I brought his plum-colored one too.”

  Did you bring him any clothes?” he asked.

  “Clothes?” she questioned.

  “Yeah, you said the cats are supposed to dress up.”

  She looked sheepish. “Well, I did sneak in his bow tie—you know, the one he wore for the grand opening at Iris’s Kaiser Bed-and-Breakfast Inn. And I found another one at the pet store, so he has two.” When Michael smirked playfully at her, she said, “You don’t want him to be seen wearing the same bow tie more than once, do you?”

  “Heavens no,” Michael blurted.

  Ignoring his attempt at sarcasm, she pulled the cat ears from her tote bag and put them on. “What do you think?” she asked in a flirty manner.

  “Very cute.” He laughed. “So the cats dress like people and the people dress like cats.”

  “Hmmm. I never thought of it that way. That is kind of odd.” She giggled. “But fun. I think it’s a fun concept.” She looked at herself in the mirror and repositioned the cat ears.

  Meanwhile, Michael picked up a pen from the desk. “All you need is a little black kitty nose.” He walked closer to her. “Here, let me draw some whiskers on your cheeks.”

  “No, you don’t,” she said giggling and struggling, until they both toppled over onto the king-size bed. When he tossed the pen on the bedside table, she removed the cat ears, rolled over, and kissed him. “Isn’t this nice?” she murmured. “We’re all by ourselves. There will be no little ones bursting into the room unexpectedly or crying for our attention. Ahhh, this is heaven,” she said, snuggling against him.

  “Yes it is,” he agreed, holding her close.

  Suddenly, the mood was interrupted by a rap at the door.

  “Now who could that be?” Michael carped.

  “Someone with very bad timing,” she complained. She kissed him and said, “I’ll be right back.” When she opened the door, she took a step back. All she could see was a pair of legs behind a large vase of flowers.

  “Welcome,” came a voice from behind the bouquet.

  Michael quickly threw his legs over the edge of the bed and stood up. “Andrew?”

  “Who else, Dr. Ivey?” the man said, walking into the room and placing the flowers on the nearest table. He reached for Michael’s hand and pulled him into a man-hug. “How the heck are you?” he asked boisterously.

  “Great. Hey, Andrew, I’d like you to meet my wife, Savannah. You know, she’s a veterinarian, too.”

  Andrew swept her up in a bear hug, then pulled back and said, “So nice to meet the woman who could corral this guy.” He winked at Michael. “She’s gorgeous.”

  “Yes she is,” Michael agreed. When he saw that the door remained open, he quickly closed it, asking, “So, Andrew, how are you? I guess you’re still working those endurance ride checkpoints. Can’t wait to see you in action—that is, if we’re allowed at the checkpoint stations.”

  “Heck yeah. I might even put you to work.” He faced Savannah. “Both of you, since you’re a veterinarian, too.” He asked her, “So you have an interest in one of the contenders? Michael told me you have a friend who’s riding.”

  “Yes, we’re boarding one of the horses. I’ve only just recently met Sandy—the rider. We’ve gone riding together a few times.”

  He screwed up his face. “Sandy, she rides Moose, right?” When Savannah nodded, he let out a low whistle, “What a great contender, although I haven’t seen him in a while.” He leaned in and added confidentially, “I’ve actually had people try to bribe me to pull him from a ride, but there’s never any reason to, and I don’t accept bribes.”

  “Do some of the veterinarians do that?” Savannah shrieked.

  “I doubt it,” Andrew said. “And we don’t get asked often. Hell, we could lose our license and our business and our clientele. It’s just not worth it. And it’s usually two-bit riders or owners or breeders who are only half serious about the sport. What they need isn’t to knock out the competition, but to invest in a better animal and put in the work conditioning him.”

  “Interesting,” Savannah said. “Well, someone does seem serious about knocking Moose out of the running.”

  “Really?” he asked.

  She rubbed the side of her face. “Yeah, seriously.

  Michael put his arm around Savannah and said through clenched teeth, “They manhandled my wife one night last week, evidently trying to get to that horse.”

  Andrew stared into Savannah’s eyes and frowned. “That’s just wrong, man. I’m so sorry.” He slapped his hands together and said more enthusiastically, “Hey, want to go get something to eat? Are you two hungry?”

  Michael looked at Savannah. “Yeah, I could eat something. How about you, hon?”

  “Well, they’re having the kickoff ceremony later. I think they’re serving food.” She looked at the program she’d picked up when they checked in. “Oh, just drinks and hors-d’oeuvres at seven. Yeah, I’d like to have a regular dinner, especially if we’re going to have a drink before bedtime. Just let me get Rags settled in his pen.”

  When Andrew saw the pen, he asked, “You brought an animal with you?”

  “Yeah, her cat,” Michael said. “She’s a speaker tomorrow and the cat’s part of her program.”

  Andrew chuckled. “I saw a lot of cats in the lobby when I came in. I’ve never seen so many cats at a major hotel. Oh yes, that’s right, there’s a cat show tomorrow. I sometimes work at cat shows, too, you know, on call for any health issues or injuries that might arise.”

  “Do you also see patients in an office setting? Michael asked.

  “Sort of, kind of part time-ish. I have a clinic, but I hire people to run it—you know, to keep the locals happy. I’d rather be out with the animals in their element than see them being dragged into my office.”

  “So you make house calls?” Michael asked.

  “You might say that. Yeah, I do some of that, but mainly I go where the animals are performing. That’s where my interest lies—you know, at a show or a ride. I like working horse shows and rodeos.” Andrew leaned toward Michael. “I love watching those spunky cowgirls.”

  “Sounds like an interesting specialty and something that’s needed.” When Michael saw Savannah on her hands and knees, he asked, “What’s wrong, hon? Did you lose something? An earring?”

  “No, Rags.” She sat back on her heels and stared at the door. “Do you think he sneaked out when Andrew came in?”

  Michael let out a sigh. “Let’s hope not. Did you look in the shower? The closet? You know how he likes to explore.” He said to Andrew, “We found him on the top shelf behind a blanket in the closet at our hotel last night.”

  “A tricky cat, huh?”

  Michael sighed. “You have no idea.”

  Andrew studied Michael for a moment, then said, “Well, that’s a good way to start your visit here—an escaped cat. He’s not in your suitcase, is he? Did you close him in there?”

  Savannah stared at Andrew. “Actually I did look. Nope, not in there.” After spending another several minutes searching for Rags, Savannah winced. “Well, I guess he got out when we weren’t looking.”

  “Okay,” Andrew said with renewed energy, “let’s go see if we can find him. I’d start at the restaurant. It’s Friday and they always serve fish and chips on Friday
.”

  “Sounds like you come here often.”

  Andrew grinned. “I date the manager of the place—Eileen. She’s a workaholic, so yeah, I come out here fairly often to get some sugar.” When he saw Savannah raise her eyebrows, he said, “You know, a hug or a kiss behind the desk. We have lunch or dinner together a couple of times a week. Come on, I’ll introduce you.”

  “Got his harness and leash?” Michael asked.

  Savannah nodded, then said, “He’s probably mingling with the cats in the lobby. He does like to socialize.”

  “With his kind?” Andrew asked, catching up with Savannah as she walked toward the elevator.

  “With any kind,” Michael said—cats, dogs, horses, people—it doesn’t matter.”

  “He sounds unique,” Andrew said. When they exited the elevator into the lobby, Andrew called out to a shapely, well-coiffed woman wearing a lightweight lavender business suit and pumps, “Eileen! Hey, where are you going so fast?”

  The woman smiled, “Oh, hi. I heard there’s a loose cat. I’m going see if I can help corral it.”

  “Loose cat?” Savannah asked. “Our cat’s missing. Is it a large grey-and-white cat—mostly grey?”

  Eileen stared at Savannah for a moment, then glanced at Michael. “I don’t know. I just heard that a cat got loose. Come on, let’s go see.”

  When another woman overheard Eileen’s comment and noticed that Savannah carried a harness and leash, she pointed, “He went that direction. Toward the kitchen.” She frowned. “But I don’t think that harness is going to fit the little guy.”

  Savannah thought about what the woman had said, then quickly followed Eileen as she led the way.

  “I told you he’d be in the kitchen,” Andrew gloated.

  Before Savannah could respond, she saw a man wearing a chef’s hat run toward them waving a towel.

  “Scat!” he shouted. “Get out of my kitchen!”