by Patricia Fry
Cody cleared his throat. "I have a few hundred followers so far. Mostly I post about some of the interesting outings Luna and I take. I give advice for harness- and leash-training your cat, safe travel with a cat, and things like that. I do product reviews; that brings in a little money. Here's the link and my contact information," he said, writing it down and handing it to Rob. "This is really great," he said. "Gosh, it's so much more than I expected when I decided to travel up this way. I sure want to thank you for your interest in my work."
"No problem," Rob said. "I'm eager to see if we can get your project off the launching pad."
"Where are the kids?" Cheryl asked quietly as the men continued to chat.
"Napping," Savannah said. "They should be up tearing around here anytime now."
Cheryl smiled. "Good. I haven't seen them in a while; I'll bet they've grown." Then she said, "Hi, Miss Kitty. Have you girls been exploring? Where's your little-big sister?"
Savannah laughed and repeated, "Little-big sister? That she is. Gidget's a big girl and probably still growing. Miss Kitty is a petite cat, isn't she?"
"Yes," Cheryl said, glancing around the room. "So do you know where she is?" she asked the cat again.
"She's not with Rags and Glori." Savannah said. "They're staying right here close to me for some reason. Maybe they're making sure I don't pay too much attention to the visiting cats." "He's acting a little odd, there," Rob said. "Yeah, like he's lost something or he's worried about something."
"Yes, he does," Savannah agreed. "What's bothering you, boy?" She watched Rags for a few moments, then said, "I wonder if Gidget got herself locked in a closet or something, and that's why he seems anxious." She laughed. "It happens." She asked Rags, "Did you lose the pretty girl? Where is she, do you know? Show us where she is, Rags." When she stood up, Rags trotted toward the kitchen, and she followed him.
He jumped up onto his windowsill perch and began turning in place.
"Are you saying she's outside, boy? No, she didn't go outside," Savannah said. She petted him and he continued to turn in circles and meow. "Maybe you want to go outside. Is that it? It is a pretty day." She said to Cheryl, who had followed her into the kitchen, "I think he wants to entertain his guests out in the yard."
Cheryl looked around. "But where is Gidget?" She walked closer to Rags and looked out the window. "Where is she, boy?"
"I have a few ideas," Savannah said, grabbing Cheryl's arm. She led her back through the living room into the hallway and whispered, "She's probably snuggled in one of my shoes or something taking a nap."
"Could be," Cheryl said, laughing quietly.
"Come on, Rags," Savannah urged. "Come help us find Gidget."
"Well?" Rob questioned when the women returned to the living room minutes later.
"We can't find her," Cheryl said sounding concerned.
Rob stood up. "Could she have gone outside?"
"I don't know how," Savannah insisted. "As you can imagine, we had to Rags-proof this house—actually several times."
"Really?" Cody asked, amused.
"You don't have a window open anywhere, do you?" Cheryl asked.
"No," Savannah said. "Not with the world's most clever escape artist living here. No open windows, unless…"
Cheryl looked at her. "Unless what?"
Savannah asked, "Cody, you didn't open a window did you?"
He shook his head. "Sure didn't."
"Gidget!" Cheryl called. "Here, kitty-kitty. Gidget!" She listened and heard nothing. "Gidget!" she called again. She let out a deep breath and spun around looking in all directions. "Oh this is awful. Where could she be?" She gasped. "Maybe she slipped past you, Rob, when you went out to the car to get the bags."
"We can go out and look around. Want to?" Savannah asked.
Cheryl nodded.
"Let me get Rags outfitted," Savannah said, picking up his harness and leash. "He's pretty good at finding wayward cats."
Rob trotted down the porch steps after the women, calling, "Gidgie. Gidge-kitty, where are you? Here, kitty, here kitty-kitty!" He put his hands on his hips and gazed quickly around the yard. "She could be hiding anywhere out here in all those plants."
"I know," Savannah said. "We weren't very forward-thinking when we designed this landscaping. It's a good place to lose cats and kids."
Rob pointed at Rags. "Can't he find her?"
"Well, he should be able to. That's kind of one of his super powers, but today he seems oblivious. Gidget must have slipped away without him knowing."
"He should be able to get her scent," Rob insisted. "What's wrong with him? Did you put Vicks up his nose or something?"
Savannah frowned. "No."
Cody laughed and repeated, "Vicks up his nose."
Savannah shot Rob a snarky look. "I don't know why he can't find her. I guess he just lost track of her." She leaned over. "Rags, where is she? Can you show us where the baby kitty is?"
Everyone watched as Rags simply sauntered around Savannah's legs at the end of his leash.
"You're not living up to your reputation, Rags," Rob growled. He trotted toward the playhouse and began disturbing the plants and calling Gidget's name.
Savannah pointed. "Cheryl, go look over there near the garden. I'll take Rags out to the corrals."
Several minutes later, Cheryl caught up to Savannah, who was returning with Rags from the orchard. Cheryl said, "I went all the way around the house. No sign of her. Where's Rob?"
Savannah pointed. "Here they come. He and Cody went out into that grove of trees." She looked down at Rags. "He still doesn't seem concerned. I just don't understand it."
"Maybe it's because the kitten's safe and he knows it," Cody said, joining the women.
Rob caught up to the others. "Yeah, I wonder if we missed her in the house."
"I guess we could have," Savannah said. "I'll take Rags inside and see what he does. Come on, Rags," she said, taking long strides toward the house. "Let's go see if the kitty has come out of hiding."
"Well?" Rob asked, stepping into the kitchen with the others after they'd completed another search inside.
"Nothing," Savannah said. "None of the other cats act like they miss her or anything. It's all very strange."
"Yes it is," Cheryl said, "because Miss Kitty is a real mama cat with Gidgie. And look at her—she doesn't seem concerned at all." Cheryl pushed her hair off her face. "I don't get it. Where's our little fur-girl?"
"Like you said, Cheryl, the cats must know or they'd be upset." When the others looked at Savannah, she explained, "They act like they know she's okay."
"Maybe she is," Rob said. "Shall we just relax? She might come out on her own."
"But Rob, she's never done anything like this before," Cheryl insisted.
"She's never spent much time with Rags before," Rob said.
"We've looked everywhere," Cheryl snapped. "Do you think he taught her to levitate, for heaven's sake? Do you think she floated out of here and she's in a treetop somewhere?"
Rob winced. "Around here you never know."
Cody snickered.
Just then Gladys walked into the room, her arms wrapped around a bundle of fur. She smiled. "She's just the sweetest thing."
"Gidget!" Cheryl squealed. "Where did you find her?"
Gladys chuckled. "It's more like she found me. I was reading in my room when she walked in and crawled up onto my bed with me. We had the nicest nap." She held the cat to her cheek and murmured. "You are such a love-bug."
"Oh, Gidgie," Cheryl cried, "you had us so worried."
"Why?" Gladys asked. "You mean you didn't know where she was?"
"No," Cheryl said, taking the cat into her arms. "We looked everywhere for her."
"We even searched for her outside," Savannah added, petting Gidget's head.
Cheryl snuggled with the cat. "Gidgie don't you do that again. You had me so worried."
"Yes," Cody said, chuckling, "next time leave a note or send a text."
&nbs
p; Savannah ran her hand over Gidget's head again and smiled. "Another mystery solved."
"And another story for your books?" Rob said.
"Possibly," Savannah agreed. Just then she saw Lily walking slowly toward her with her baby Alana doll in her arms. "Hi, punkin," she said, picking her up. "Finished with your nappy?"
Lily buried her face in Savannah's neck.
"Awww, such a sweet cuddle girl. Is your brother awake?" Savannah asked.
Lily shook her head. "He's sleeping with Buffy."
"Buffy's in his bed?" Gladys asked.
Savannah laughed. "Or is he in Buffy's bed?"
"No, Mommy," Lily insisted.
Rob chuckled. "Buffy's probably self-isolating to get away from the influx of strange cats around here."
"Do you think they're upsetting her?" Cheryl asked concerned.
"Of course not," Savannah assured her. "She's fine. There's room here for lots of kitty-cats and kids."
"I hear our boy," Gladys said. "I'll go get him." She stopped and ran her hand over Gidget's fur. "Thanks again for the sweet naptime gift."
Cheryl hugged the cat, then turned her loose onto the floor. "I should put a bell on you, girlfriend."
"Or a GPS system," Rob suggested.
****
That evening during dinner, Michael winked at Cody and asked, "So, Rob, what do you think of the budding author? Does he have promise?"
"He sure does," Rob said. "Most definitely. I think promoting his book will be a lot of fun." He pointed at Savannah. "The two of you can probably do some really effective book signings together."
"If Cody has time," Savannah said. "He's busy with his veterinary studies, you know. You may have to wait until he graduates before he does much promotion."
Michael chuckled. "Then he'll most likely be busy with clients."
"How much time does this promotion take?" Cody asked. "Actually, I didn't count on promoting the book myself. I thought the publisher did that."
Rob took a swig of coffee before explaining, "That's where many authors go wrong. All they want to do is write. The thing is, readers want to meet the author of a book they cherish or are thinking about buying. If the book features a fascinating cat, people want to meet the cat. It's that reader-author connection that sells books, whether it's through blogging, podcasts, or personal appearances. As Savannah probably told you, the publisher does some initial promotion to his sources. I set up promotional opportunities for you, but I strongly urge the author to represent his or her own books as much as possible and with the cat present. That's the best way to sell books. This might be on radio, TV, or at book fairs and signings." Rob glanced at Savannah. "We had a pretty good payoff at a cat show last year. Savannah will tell you, we had to bring in additional books in the middle of things because they were selling so fast." Rob studied Cody for a moment. "You might pick up an audience—you know, readers—among sports addicts as well as within the cat-loving community. We can look into setting you up to sell books at sporting events—the Olympics, perhaps."
"Wow!" Cody yelped. "That's huge."
"Go big or go home," Rob recited.
"Can I go play?" Lily asked, sliding down from her booster seat.
Savannah glanced at Michael. "Sure, I guess so. What do you want to do?"
"Take my baby Alana to the beach," she replied.
Michael looked confused. "To the beach?"
Savannah chuckled. "Mom brought her doll a new beach outfit and beach chair and all."
"From Arizona?" he questioned.
"Yes," Gladys said. "I thought Lily could relate more easily to the beach destination kit than the one with cactus and iguanas."
Michael nodded. "Probably so. She hasn't spent much time in the desert." He smiled watching his daughter trot off toward the living room.
Moments later Lily returned. "Can I go outside to get baby Alana's blanket?"
"Where is it," Savannah asked, "in your playhouse? I don't want you going out there by yourself in the dark. I can go with you in a minute."
"It's not dark," Lily argued.
"Too dark for you to be outside by yourself," Savannah insisted. "Where is the blanket? I'll get it for you."
"On the porch. I can get it," Lily insisted.
Savannah stood up. "Okay, I'll help." She walked with the child to the front door and found it standing open. "Lily, who opened the door?"
"I did," Lily said, "so I could find baby Alana's blanket. It's on that red chair."
"Oh, honey, we don't leave the door open; you know that," Savannah said, quickly closing it. As a second thought, she opened it more widely and looked out. "No cats got out did they?"
"No," Lily said. She pointed. "There's my blanket. I can get it."
"Okay, you get it and I'll watch you." Savannah stopped the child and added, "That was a good girl to come and get Mommy, but don't open the door by yourself like that, okay?"
Lily nodded, then ran out to get the blanket under Savannah's watchful eye.
When Savannah returned to the dining room she found Gladys cleaning Teddy's face and hands with a washcloth. Cheryl had started clearing the table. Michael, Rob, and Cody were deep in conversation about some aspect of cat behavior.
"Shall we feed the cats?" Savannah suggested after they'd cleaned the kitchen and she'd fed Lexie. Before she and Cheryl could retrieve the cat food, Rags tore into the kitchen and leaped up onto his windowsill perch, turning around and around anxiously.
"Now what?" Savannah asked impatiently. She approached the cat, petted him, and peered out the window in the direction he was looking. "What do you see? Is Dottie out there?"
"Who's Dottie?" Cheryl asked.
"A bunny that comes around almost every evening to munch on carrot tops or whatever she can find. It's a little dark for her to be out, though. She usually hunkers down somewhere before dusk."
Cheryl stood at the window next to Savannah. "Yeah, it is dark, but cats can see in that kind of darkness, can't they?"
"Yes they can," Savannah said. She squinted. "I guess I'm not a cat. I sure can't see what he thinks he sees."
Cheryl laughed, then called out, "Lily, want to help me find Gidget and Miss Kitty? It's time for them to eat supper."
"Okay," Lily said, joining Cheryl. She pointed into the hallway. "The grey one's there."
"Hi, Miss Kitty," Cheryl crooned, picking her up. "Hungry?" She looked around. "Where's your sister?"
Savannah prepared the resident cats' food dishes and called, "Supper! Rags, Glori, Buffy!"
Rob laughed. "You don't have to call them twice, do you? Look at them come running. Even that fancy-pants cat—what's her name, Buffy?"
"Yes," Savannah said. She chuckled. "Fancy-pants. I like that." She pinched Buffy's rear end. "Love those fluffy pantaloons she wears."
"Is Gidgie in here?" Cheryl asked, entering the kitchen moments later with Miss Kitty in her arms.
"No," Savannah said. "Is she missing again?" Just then she remembered something and gasped.
"What?" Cheryl asked, fear in her eyes.
"Well, Lily left the door open a while ago. Oh, my gosh, I hope she didn't…" She looked at Rags, who jumped down from the windowsill perch and ran into the living room. "Do you suppose it's Gidget he sees out there?"
"Oh no," Cheryl said, pulling the kitchen door open. "Gidget!" she called. "Here kitty-kitty."
Savannah switched on the porch light.
Rob laughed. "The neighbors are going to think the Iveys are entertaining a bunch of hog callers."
"Rob," Cheryl staid firmly, "it's not funny. Gidget might be outside."
"Or she's napping with Gladys," Rob said.
Savannah trotted into the living room where her mother sat reading to Teddy. "Mom," she called, "is Cheryl and Rob's kitten in here with you?"
"No," Gladys said. "I haven't seen her."
"Not there," Savannah reported, returning to the kitchen.
"She could be anywhere in this house," Michael said
. "You haven't even looked for her inside, have you?"
Rob thought for a minute and said, "Gidget isn't one to miss a meal. If she can hear the call or the opening of the can she's in the kitchen like a bullet." He walked to where Rags was again dancing around on his perch. "Yeah, if Rags thinks she's out there, maybe we should go look for her."
"Let's do," Savannah said. "Oh, gosh, I hope she didn't slip out."
"Take Rags, hon," Michael suggested. "He's acting like he sees her out there."
Savannah grabbed his harness. "Good idea." After putting it on him and attaching the leash, she picked up a flashlight and urged, "Let's go find sweet Gidget, Ragsie."
"Yes, please," Cheryl pleaded as she followed behind them. She turned to Rob. "Aren't you going with us?"
He shook his head. "I trust you. Like I said, it's suppertime. If she's out there, just call and she'll come running."
****
"You didn't find her?" Rob asked, an uneasy edge in his tone.
"No," Cheryl wailed. She fell into his arms. "Where is she? Rob, I'm so worried. It's dark. She doesn't know where she is. Why doesn't she come when we call her?"
"She's our little adventurer," Rob soothed.
"Has she done this before?" Cody asked.
"She has tried," Rob admitted. "She sometimes darts for the door when it opens. Miss Kitty has never done that." He winced. "Gidget got away from us once. We didn't see her sneak past us when we were bringing in groceries. Fortunately, a neighbor recognized her when he saw her eating his cat's lunch, and he brought her home."
"She got out twice," Cheryl said. "There was that other time when Tiffany stopped by to drop something off for you, and Gidget escaped. I didn't think we'd ever catch her that time. She's cunning."
"The Maine coon has a big curiosity," Cody explained. He asked, "Do you know what other breed is in her ancestry?"
Rob shook his head.
"Well, if it's a Bengal or Abyssinian, for example, that could be where the adventuring spirit comes from," he said.
Cheryl and Rob stared at him. She asked, "What should we do, Cody?"
"Let me call my aunt," Savannah suggested. "I'll have her watch for Gidget. Sometimes wandering cats are attracted to other cats, and Auntie has a full cat shelter this time of year."