The Case of Too Many Clues

by Cindy Vincent

  Yet I could never tell for sure what my paws were going to do. In fact, it always seemed like they had a mind of their own.

  But now, like it or not, I was going to have to type on that keyboard. Big paws and all.

  Because there was one thing I knew beyond a doubt — it was up to me to save Bogey and Lil and Trixie and the kittens. Otherwise, like Garnet had said, it would be curtains for them all.

  Holy Catnip!

  CHAPTER 24

  Holy Mackerel!

  There I was, shut up inside the very room where Trixie had once been held captive. But I wasn’t locked in like Trixie had been. Instead, I just barely had the door blocked off. And I sure hoped it would hold long enough for me to get a message out. A message to someone who could save us. But who?

  I knew Officer Phoebe would already be on the way. Though I couldn’t reach her anyway since I didn’t know her cell phone number.

  But there was one cell phone number that I did know.

  Gracie’s.

  So I did my best to type out a message to her. Yet no matter how hard I tried, my big paws were all over the place, and the message I wrote didn’t make any sense. So I deleted all that and started again. Then I remembered what Bogey had done when he punched in the code for the safe keypad. And I remembered how Trixie had managed to hit the button on the camera. They had both used just one claw instead of their entire paw!

  And I decided to try the same thing. I extended my strongest claw and hit the first letter on the keyboard. It made a big difference, but I still had trouble getting my paws to go where I wanted them to go.

  The next word I tried to type came out as, “Hdlp.” But I deleted that in a hurry and kept on trying. I fought with everything I had to hit the right keys. And believe me, it wasn’t easy.

  I finally managed to type out, “Hlp. 911. Garnet’s house. Cats locked in safe. Hury.”

  It wasn’t perfect, but it would have to do. I sent the message without waiting a single second. After all, I knew Gracie was a very smart girl and she’d figure it out.

  Funny, but all of a sudden, I almost went limp with relief. Talk about a big weight being lifted off a guy’s shoulders. I knew Gracie would be here before long. And she’d be smart enough to bring our Mom. Not to mention, I was pretty sure she’d alert Officer Phoebe, too. So all I had to do was wait for her to get that message and we would be rescued.

  That, and I had to survive the nasty dogs who were barking out in the hallway. By now they were making quite a racket as they kept on trying to get inside the room. And every time they jumped up against the door, the chair holding that door budged just a little bit more.

  I only hoped Gracie would get here soon.

  But then I remembered something — after her bad experience, Gracie had said she wasn’t going to use her cell phone anymore.

  Did that mean she wouldn’t have it with her? That she wouldn’t even keep it in case of an emergency? Because, let me tell you, if ever there was an emergency, this was it! My heart started to pound at the thought of Gracie not getting my message. With everything I had, I hoped and prayed she would look at her phone.

  Outside, I heard tires skid to a stop and then the sirens died down. I figured that meant the police were here. Especially when I heard some really loud pounding, followed by a doorbell ringing and ringing.

  And that’s when it dawned on me — if I could get past those two snarling dogs outside the door, maybe I could get to Officer Phoebe. But that meant I’d have to outrun those dogs who wanted nothing more than to sink their teeth into me.

  Just the thought of it made me start to shake all over. And for a moment or two, I couldn’t decide whether to wait or make a run for it. Past the dogs and down the stairs.

  But then I realized I didn’t really have a choice. If Gracie didn’t get the message, the police would never know that the other cats were locked in the safe. Because Garnet would probably convince them that she’d set off the alarm by accident. And the police would leave.

  So the only way I could save everyone was to get to Officer Phoebe! Then I had to convince her somehow to come up the stairs. To the safe. Where she could rescue the other cats.

  But how could I get past those two dogs?

  I glanced around the room and spotted a tall bookcase right next to the door. At the top of the bookcase was a huge, heavy glass vase. Probably an antique one, like our Mom sells in her store.

  And that’s when I put two and two together, as Bogey would say, and I quickly came up with a plan. A plan that I sure hoped would work. But was I brave enough to go through with it?

  Then I remembered something Lil had once told me, days ago when we were trying to get out of the house to go rescue Trixie. She’d told me that everyone had things they were afraid of. But sometimes we had to muster up courage we didn’t even know we had. And it helped if we remembered why we were about to do something that was scary.

  So I did just that. I thought of how badly I wanted to save Bogey and Lil and Trixie and the kittens. And how sad I would be if I never saw them again. Then I took a deep breath and gathered up all the courage I could find. Without wasting another minute, I leaped onto the floor and ran straight up that bookcase. Kind of like climbing a ladder. Once I got to the top, I scooted that big vase around until I had it in the perfect position.

  Then I shoved that vase with all my might. And let me tell you, I hit a perfect bull’s-eye! Because the vase landed right on the chair that I had leaned up against the door. And it hit that chair hard. The vase shattered into a million little pieces and made such a loud boom that I’m pretty sure everyone all over the mansion must have heard it.

  But best of all, it knocked the chair to the ground and the door flew wide open. Probably because the dogs had been leaning on it from the other side. They came stumbling in and practically slid across the floor. And that’s when I made a gigantic flying leap from the top of the bookcase and out into the hallway. I sailed right over the heads of those dogs and took off running the second my paws touched the ground. I raced straight for the stairs just as fast as I could go.

  Because I knew I had to beat those dogs down the stairs and to the front door. Right about then, I sure wished I could fly like Bogey. Though just thinking about Bogey and the others locked up in that safe made my stomach turn a million somersaults. And it made me run even faster.

  Thankfully, I had a pretty good head start on those dogs as I skidded around the corner and straight down the steps. Still, it wasn’t long before I heard them barking and making a beeline for me again. I was halfway down that big, long staircase when they caught up to me. I could even smell their hot, stinky breath on my back.

  Yet somehow, I just knew I had to outrun them. If those dogs caught me, I wouldn’t be around to save my friends. So like it or not, I was their only hope. I had to get to the front door without the dogs catching me.

  I heard the closest dog open his strong jaw, and just before he was about to chomp into me, I leaped up onto the staircase railing. Then I just kept on running all the way down that banister. Talk about having good balance!

  My move was enough to really confuse those dogs. Especially since they tried to jump up and join me. Thankfully, it bought me a few more seconds time. And once I got near the first floor, I leaped off the banister, took a right and raced for all I was worth through the front room. Then into the hallway. Those dogs really started to gain on me just as the front door came into sight.

  So that’s when I picked up the pace even faster. Especially when I saw Officer Phoebe at the front door. Talking to Garnet. And the next thing I knew, a girl in a red dress came right into view.

  It was Gracie. She must have gotten my message!

  By now the dogs were barking louder, and all the people turned to stare at us as we came thundering down the hallway. Garnet and Gracie and Officer Phoebe all gasped with wide eyes. And if nothing else, at least I knew they’d seen me. Though from where they stood, I probably looked like noth
ing but a black streak.

  One of the dogs opened his mouth to take a bite out of me. Just as I made one final, big push, and I leaped high into the air.

  And I went flying, flying, flying . . . right into Gracie’s arms.

  My Mom suddenly stepped in front of Gracie. “Stay! Don’t even think about it!” she screamed at those two dogs. And I do mean screamed. She put her hand out, like a crossing guard.

  I could hardly believe it, but both those dogs stopped dead in their tracks. Then again, I could see why. Especially when I saw how our Mom glared at them. Even those fierce, scary dogs knew better than to mess with someone who looked as mad as our Mom did right now.

  “What are you doing here?” Garnet half-shrieked to Gracie and our Mom. “I can understand why the police are here. But you two are another matter. You have no business coming to my home. And I already explained to the police how I accidentally set off the alarm.”

  Gracie moved right in front of Garnet. “Would you like to explain to me why you have my cat at your house?”

  She shrugged. “How should I know? Clearly he was trespassing.”

  I wrapped my arms around Gracie.

  “Do you have a safe?” Gracie demanded of Garnet. “And do you have the rest of my cats locked up in your safe?”

  “What a ridiculous idea,” Garnet cackled. “You’ve been a thorn in my side since the day I met you. Now you’re even more of a bother than ever before.”

  Gracie took a step closer to Garnet. “I got a strange emergency message on my phone. And it said my cats are locked up in your safe. I would like to take a look, please.”

  “Stay out of my house,” Garnet told her.

  “I’m going in there,” Gracie yelled in a way that I’ve never heard her yell before. “Whether you like it or not.” And she stepped right past Garnet and into her mansion.

  Our Mom and Officer Phoebe followed.

  “You can’t come in here,” Garnet screamed. “Not without a search warrant.”

  “I believe this falls under the rule of ‘Probable Cause,’” Officer Phoebe informed her. “Cats being locked in a safe is a very dangerous situation. They might be running out of air.”

  “You’ll never find my safe,” Garnet sneered.

  And that’s when I let out a very loud yowl! I jumped out of Gracie’s arms and trotted down the hallway. I glanced back for a moment and looked straight into Gracie’s eyes. To get her to follow me.

  “C’mon!” she hollered. “Buckley is leading the way!”

  Which is exactly what I did. I stepped right beside those nasty dogs and gave them a good, solid glare as I went. Then I picked up my speed when Gracie started to run behind me. Our Mom followed, and Officer Phoebe came, too, making Garnet walk in front of her.

  I took the whole bunch up one staircase and then the other. And finally, I turned the corner into the room with the safe. Everyone else followed. Except for the dogs, of course.

  “Big deal,” Garnet said. “I’ve got a safe. Who cares?”

  “Open it! Right now!” Gracie commanded.

  “I don’t remember the combination,” Garnet seethed.

  But I did.

  Though I had a pretty good idea that Garnet was lying. Either way, I jumped into Gracie’s arms and then put my big paw next to the keypad.

  More than ever before, it was up to me to save the other cats. And it all depended on me being able to make my big paw go where I wanted it to go. Because this time, I had no choice.

  So I extended one claw and took a deep breath. Then I concentrated really, really hard and pushed the first button. Number one. I took another breath and fought to hit the number two button. And on I went, working and fighting so hard to make my claw hit the right buttons. Number three. And finally, number four.

  With that, Gracie turned the handle the door whooshed open. Lil, Bogey, and Trixie were standing up against the door on the other side, and they quickly pushed it open all the way.

  Gracie cried out in shock when she saw the other cats. While I jumped to the floor, she reached down to take them all into her arms.

  Just as Garnet tried to back out of the room.

  But Officer Phoebe was a step ahead, and she caught her right away.

  “You stole my cats . . .” Gracie’s voice came out in an angry whisper. “We found the back door of our house open . . . How could you take them? How could you try to hurt them like this?” To tell you the truth, I don’t think I’ve ever seen Gracie so mad before in my life.

  Our Mom clenched her jaw and her eyes blazed with anger. “And it looks like that’s not all Garnet took.” She pointed to the jewelry box that came from her store.

  “I’ll say,” Officer Phoebe added. “And if I’m not mistaken, that’s the jewelry you claimed was stolen, Garnet. So it appears that you robbed your own store. And got the insurance money on top of it all.”

  “I would have succeeded, too,” Garnet sneered. “If it weren’t for those meddling cats. Don’t you know who they are? They are cat detectives. They run their own agency.”

  “Uh-huh,” Officer Phoebe said as she put handcuffs on Garnet. “Tell it to the judge. I’m sure he’ll find it interesting.”

  Right about then, Bogey decided to play back the video that Lil and Trixie had taken with our Dad’s camera. Officer Phoebe and our Mom listened closely. Then they looked from us cats to Garnet and back at us again.

  “You don’t think it’s possible . . .?” Officer Phoebe sort of murmured.

  Our Mom picked up Bogey and held him tight. “Who knows?” she half-laughed. “I’m just glad they’re all safe. Plus you’ve got all the proof you need that Gracie and I didn’t rob Garnet’s store. In fact, you’ve got proof that it was the other way around.”

  After that, more police officers arrived and Garnet was taken away.

  It seemed like hours passed before Gracie and our Mom got us all back home. Safe and sound. Though they did seem a little confused about Magnolia.

  Of course, she just climbed up into our Mom’s arms, started to purr, and then went to sleep.

  “I don’t remember this little one,” our Mom said softly. “When did we take her in?”

  Gracie crinkled her brow. “Maybe she came with the other little calico kitten.” She pointed to Mitzi, who was busy trying to climb up and join her friend. “She must be another one of the foster kitties.”

  Our Mom picked up Mitzi, too, and then beamed at Gracie. “By the way, honey, I am so proud of you for what you did back there. You knew enough to follow Buckley. Otherwise, we might not have rescued all the cats in time. You’re really growing into a remarkable young woman.”

  Bogey and I rubbed up against Gracie’s legs.

  “Thanks, Mom,” Gracie said as she kneeled down and put her arms around us. “I’m just trying really hard to do my best.”

  “That’s all any of us can do,” our Mom told her with a smile. “Now, let’s get these kitties some dinner. If ever there was a night for tuna fish, I think this is it.”

  Holy Catnip!

  CHAPTER 25

  Holy Tuna Fish!

  That night, our Mom fed us tuna fish, all right. She and our Dad and Gracie brought plates up to the sunroom so all the cats in our house could enjoy it. Then our human family went downstairs to eat their own dinner.

  “This tuna is absolutely divine,” Miss Mokie proclaimed. “Quite fresh. Excellent vintage.”

  And after that, well, it turned into quite a party. Bogey passed around some turkey-flavored cat treats that went really well with our dinner. And the Princess made sure everyone got a turn at the water dish. Then we all started talking about how we had fooled Garnet and made sure she went to jail. I heard about how the cats had gotten out from under the net while they were locked in the safe. And they heard about how I had escaped from those dogs and managed to bring Gracie and Officer Phoebe to the rescue.

  “Outstanding,” Miss Mokie said with a smile. “Absolutely outstanding work done by all of you
. It’s a shame that humans have no idea how supreme cats are in their intelligence. Though I suspect Garnet may have figured that out. Still, she was no match for this group.”

  “She sure wasn’t,” I agreed. “And, umm . . . I’ve got something I’d like to say . . .” I paused and glanced from one cat to the next. “After today, I think Mitzi and Magnolia can officially be called ‘cat detectives.’” Then I turned to face the kittens directly. “You two did such a great job today. You saved us all from two scary dogs, you did some amazing cat karate, and you followed orders just like you were supposed to. I would be happy to have both of you on any case.”

  Right away, those two kittens came up and gave me a hug. I was so proud of them that I felt like I was going to burst.

  Now Bogey sat up nice and tall. “Mind if I say a few words, too? Because the real hero of the day was my fellow cat detective here, Buckley. You’ve got guts, kid, and you sure know how to think on your paws. You saved us all, and I’m proud to run the BBCDA with you.”

  And with that, the other cats cheered and gave me a “paws up.” Even Miss Mokie gave me a glowing smile.

  Funny, but right at that moment, I really didn’t know what to say. Who would’ve dreamed that a former shelter cat like me would one day be called a hero?

  The Princess sidled up to me. “You deserve this, Buckley. You went through a lot with this case, and you got everyone safely back home.”

  And when I thought about it, I knew that’s what mattered the most.

  Later, Gracie came up and joined us. She gave each one of us a hug and a kiss, and she told us how much she loved us. Then she played with the kittens and watched them do their cat karate moves. I had to say, she looked pretty surprised when they did their kicks and jumps and things.