by Jen Talty
Much like the one the man at the local Public Storage had worn.
Annabel, holding Trouble in her arms, stood outside near the manager’s office with three of her neighbors. The cat seemed restless, but she was afraid to let him down for fear he’d take off and get lost in the shuffle. Right now, the police wanted everyone to stay put while they spoke with Holly, the owner of the condo that had been broken into.
“Did you see anything, dear?” Edna Peirce asked. She lived right below Annabel on the fifth floor in unit #503. Nothing happened in the building without Edna knowing.
Nothing.
She was a sweet older lady, in her mid-seventies, spry as ever, smart as a tack, with a sense of humor that could knock a girl’s socks off.
So, the fact she might not have seen anything sent a cold chill down Annabel’s spine. Edna could rattle off every make and model, along with the license plate numbers of every person’s car in the building. The second a car spent more than an hour in the parking lot, she’d make it her mission to find out who owned the car, and why they were visiting Ocean Way.
At first, Annabel thought that a little over the top, but the more time she spent with Edna, the more she realized the woman simply cared a great deal for the well-being of everyone in the building. Edna went as far as to bring muffins and pies to her neighbors when she knew they had company. Edna was just one of those women who liked taking care of people, and she did it with a lot of heart.
“I didn’t see anything,” Annabel replied to Edna’s question. Trouble wiggled in her arms. She scratched the spot right behind his ears that always made him purr like a fine engine, but it didn’t seem to help much. She glanced around the parking lot in search of Ethan, who had ducked into the apartment in question a few minutes ago. “What about you?”
“When I got home from the Home Owners Association meeting, Vernon’s girlfriend’s car was in the lot.” Edna leaned in and lowered her voice. “She’s been living here but hasn’t gone through the background check. No one has complained, so who am I to ruffle that feather? She’s nice enough and a good person. She brought me a bunch of crossword puzzles the other day.” Edna had a tendency to ramble off a million things before she got to her point. All part of her charm. “I actually passed her as she came out of the elevator. I think they got into a fight again.”
According to Edna, Vernon had been dating the same woman for the last two years and just in the last few weeks, Edna had learned Lori, the girlfriend, had been pushing Vernon to get married. However, Vernon had his doubts, though Annabel had no idea why.
And it was none of her business. But as she glanced up in his direction, her natural curiosity got the better of her to the point she planned on inviting Vernon and his pretty girlfriend up for a drink.
“I saw her, too,” Heather Gold said. Heather and her husband Ron lived in unit #506. They were in their mid-fifties, both still working as accountants, though they worked from home, so they also tended to know everything that went on in the building. Ron knew more about all the other buildings since he was president of the HOA. “She wasn’t very happy, and Vernon looks like he’s in a mood. It’s too bad, too; they’re a really great couple.”
“What time did Lori leave?” Annabel had spoken to Vernon’s girlfriend a few times, but only in passing, and Lori seemed like the kind of woman who didn’t make friends easily. Not because she didn’t want to, but she seemed slightly guarded.
“An hour before the alarm went off,” Edna said. “I remember because I was annoyed that the HOA meeting went over by a full forty-five minutes. This is why we have pre-board discussions, so we can hash out everything before the actual meeting.”
“We only went over,” Ron said, “because we still have forty-five percent of this community pushing for manned gates at the main entrance.”
“It’s been voted down three times,” Edna said with a long sigh. “But maybe now everyone will see why it’s important to our safety and worth the few extra dollars.”
“Do you think it could be a false alarm?” Annabel asked, wanting to get off the subject of gates and back to the situation at hand.
“I bet it was Danny,” Edna said with a wave of her finger. “I saw him here yesterday, and Holly didn’t look happy when he banged on the door. She told him to get the rest of his things and get out.”
“Everyone who was home heard that exchange,” Ron said, circling his arm around his wife. “Both Danny and Holly behaved badly, calling each other names. There were kids getting off the school bus at the entrance, and I’m sure they heard all the f-bombs being tossed around.”
“Well, if I were in Holly’s situation, I’d be dropping more than the f-word,” Edna said, folding her arms across her chest, shaking her head. “I just hope Danny didn’t mean to cause her harm and just took something or vandalized something, not that that would be okay, but I worry about her, and you, living all alone.”
“Thank God, Holly was at the pool when the alarm went off,” Heather said. “We could have had a tragedy on our hands.” She shook her head. “I’ve never liked Danny. Bad news if you ask me.”
“Anyone who cheats on a pregnant woman is not a real man,” Ron said, shaking his head. “I just hope he steps up and does the right thing by his unborn baby.”
Trouble pushed his paws against Annabel’s shoulder, digging his nails in. He didn’t break the skin, but between that and his strange-sounding meow, she knew something wasn’t sitting right with the cat. “If I let you down, you can’t go anywhere, got it?”
“It’s a cat, dear. It doesn’t understand,” Edna said with tinge of humor laced to each syllable.
“Oh, he understands.” Annabel knelt, setting Trouble on his feet. “Make me look good and don’t go messing with the police, except maybe Ethan. Yeah, go say hello to Ethan,” she whispered. One thing she knew for sure was that Trouble wouldn’t go far. Tammy Lynn had assured her that Trouble was not only self-sufficient, but he could be let free to wander, and he’d always find his way back.
She’d also told Annabel of his great detective skills. Not that she really believed that a cat could solve crimes, but Trouble was definitely something special and observant at the very least. She glanced at her phone, re-reading the texts from Rosie, keeping the cat in her peripheral vision. He breezed across the pavement toward the center condo. He peeked into the front bushes, before peering into the porch, going totally undetected.
The cat constantly surprised her. Perhaps he did have some detective skills.
Annabel’s phone buzzed.
Rosie: What’s happening now?
Annabel: Same as two minutes ago.
Rosie: Where’s my brother?
Annabel: Talking with another officer.
Rosie: Where are you going to dinner tonight?
Annabel: I don’t know yet and it’s drinks.
Rosie: Which will lead to dinner which will lead to…
Annabel: You’re worse than my mother.
Rosie: Say hello to my brother for me and oh, before I forget, we’re having dinner tomorrow and you’re joining us. I won’t take no for answer. Gotta run. Client…
Annabel tucked her phone in her back pocket and bit back a smile when her eyes locked on Ethan. His broad shoulders filled the doorway of Holly’s apartment as he talked with one of the other policemen, Trouble at his feet.
“Oh, look.” Edna grabbed Annabel’s arm. “It’s that handsome cop. Poor guy. I know his mother, and she told me all about his ex-fiancé cheating on him. What is it with young people these days? Oh, wait. I know. I should introduce you. You’re single, right?”
“Officer Ethan Ferris, the most eligible bachelor in town,” Heather said with a wide smile. “I heard that you knew him in high school.” She looked directly at Annabel with an all-knowing smile.
“Oh, really,” Edna said with an arched brow and a twinkle in her eye.
Jupiter couldn’t be considered small town USA, but everyone certainly knew everyone else
’s business, that was for damn sure.
“I did,” Annabel said. In the few weeks she’d lived in this community, her neighbors had all tried to set her up with any unattached man they could find. “He’s my best friend’s older brother.”
“He’s heading this way—what’s your cat doing?” Edna asked, her face scrunched in disapproval.
Trouble pawed at Ethan’s pant leg, then ran toward the side of the condo. He did this three times before Ethan paid any attention and knelt to greet the cat with a scratch on the head, but Trouble didn’t want the petting and continued running back and forth between Ethan and the side yard.
“What is it, Trouble?” Ethan asked.
“I think he wants to show you something.” Annabel crossed the parking lot, happy to put some space between her and her neighbors. Not that she didn’t enjoy their company, she did, but she knew where the conversation was headed, and she didn’t want to have to confess she’d be meeting the sexy officer later. If she did, they’d all wait up on the catwalk, waiting to see if she kissed her date goodnight.
“He saw something in the backyard,” Annabel said.
“How do you know?” Ethan looped his thumbs in his belt. His emerald eyes glistened like the sun’s reflection on the ocean waves. He had a few wrinkles around his eyes and she noticed a dash of gray at his temples, but otherwise, he looked exactly like he had his senior year in high school. She’d always thought him mature for his age back then. He had been levelheaded, barely ever getting in trouble. He’d been the clean-cut All-American boy next door who would give a stranger the shirt off his back.
“He was doing something like that before the alarm went off.”
Ethan rested his hand on the small of Annabel’s back. “Lead the way, Trouble.”
“I’m surprised you’re following a cat around a crime scene.”
“He obviously wants to show me something,” Ethan said, his hand still pressed against her spine. “We have a K-9 patrol, and I think they’re incredibly smart. Can’t say I’ve ever heard of a cat crime solver, but hey, cats are pretty smart creatures, too.”
She glanced over her shoulder only to see Edna nose to nose with a couple of ladies from Building F, including Nedra Hilfax, her mother’s best friend, who waved frantically with an even bigger grin than normal.
Wonderful.
Annabel figured Nedra had already texted her mother and suspected she’d have a text…
Her phone vibrated in her back pocket.
Right on cue.
The Florida grass crunched under her flip-flops. The tall branches from an American Sycamore tree waved its lush green leaves in the humid breeze. A crowd of people from Building B gathered around the pond at the main entrance to Ocean Way.
“I was thinking about tonight,” Ethan said.
“If you need to cancel, I understand.”
He shook his head. “No. I don’t need to, nor do I want to, but I thought we could go out on a boat ride and stop at the Waterford for dinner.”
“Please tell me you’re not referring to Stink Pot.” Growing up, Ethan had always had a love for fishing and spent many weekends on the ocean, casting over a couple of lines. He hadn’t named his boat Stink Pot, but that’s what his sister had always called it because it always smelled like fish.
He laughed. “I have a new fishing boat that doesn’t stink, though I did name it Top Knits which is Stink Pot spelled backward.”
“You’re a crafty fella.”
“I have my moments. So, what do you say?” He fanned his thumb across her back in an intimate gesture. In the beginning of her relationship with Devin, he’d done similar simple acts that showed more affection than the words themselves, but that had been short-lived. She missed the idea of someone to share her life with, but she sure as hell didn’t miss Devin.
Not anymore.
Time to really start her life over.
“Sounds like fun. I take it you still dock it at Wind Harbor?” She didn’t think anything would ever come of a date with Ethan, other than friendship. And that was fine with her. But she was well and truly over Devin, and she was ready to be open for whatever or whoever came her way.
“I do. I’ll pick you up at six?”
“I’ll meet you there, okay?” Wind Harbor was a ten-minute walk from her condo building, not to mention, the realtor who currently employed her had his office in the complex, so she’d already be there.
“Perfect,” he said. “Now stay put while I go see whatever Trouble has found.”
Trouble sat in front of a grouping of windmill palm trees, raising his paw in the air as if to point at something.
Ethan had seen the K-9 patrol do some pretty amazing things, but something about the way Trouble communicated made Ethan wonder which animal was smarter. Pet owners never talked about training their cats, only dogs. Did that mean dogs were submissive, doing only what their owners told them, leaving cats to have a higher cognitive thought process? Ethan smiled at his musings.
Maybe he just wanted to use the cat to get closer to Annabel. For that, he mentally scolded himself.
Ethan bent down and lifted a floppy branch hovering over a smaller bush. “Show me,” he whispered to the cat who tapped his paw twice on the soil.
For the last fourteen years, Ethan had dedicated his life to protecting the citizens of Jupiter, a job he more than loved. He didn’t care that, for the most part, his day consisted of helping half the community to their cars, or carrying their groceries, or letting them out of a speeding ticket by writing them a lesser violation, one that would still bring in the necessary dollars to the town. He wouldn’t trade in the quiet for the hustle and bustle of big city crime. He’d become a police officer solely to help the citizens, in whatever capacity necessary at the moment.
“I don’t see anything,” Ethan said.
Trouble moved his paw over to the right, tapping the ground again.
Carefully, Ethan pushed the branches of the bush to the side, examining the area. “Well now, look at that.” Ethan spied a crumpled piece of white paper with numbers and letters. It was a receipt, but he couldn’t see a store name without touching it.
“What is it?” Annabel asked, clutching a necklace that fell dangerously close to her cleavage.
It had taken a lot of effort for Ethan not to stare at the pretty silver sunshine pendant and the low cut of Annabel’s T-shirt.
“I’m not sure. Can you please go get the Palm Beach County Sheriff? The guy I was talking to earlier. His name is Harvey Palmetto.” Even though Ethan was with the Jupiter Police Department, he’d worked with Palmetto a few times on cases in their shared jurisdiction.
“Sure thing,” Annabel said as she turned and headed toward the parking lot.
Ethan tilted his head, watching her walk away. He’d always thought Annabel to be attractive. At his sister’s wedding, when he’d been ignoring the little voice in the back of his head telling him his fiancée, Quinn, wasn’t the woman for him, Annabel had mesmerized him. Then when the shit hit the fan, for weeks, all he could think about was Annabel. How pretty she’d looked walking down the aisle. How sweet she’d been to his sister and all the things she’d done to make sure Rosie had the best wedding possible.
And if he was being honest with himself, he’d let his thoughts wander to that night in the bar after the wedding a lot since his breakup with Quinn. He’d had too much to drink, and he’d acted like a juvenile, which he regretted, but that didn’t keep him from remembering the warm feel of Annabel’s taut belly.
The cat twined between his legs and sat, breaking the spell of memory and returning Ethan to the moment. “So, Trouble, anything else you want to show me?”
The cat meowed but didn’t move.
“How about some advice on my date tonight?”
The cat tilted his head.
“I’m so desperate, I’m asking a cat for advice on women.” Ethan stood, staring at the plush palm trees that blocked the view of the traffic on North A1A.
Getting over Quinn cheating on him had been harder than completing the rigors of the Police Academy, but only because of the shame and humiliation that came with being blind to her affair.
Worse, he’d chosen to ignore the signs and proposed to her anyway.
“What did you find?” Palmetto asked as he approached, leaving Annabel about twenty paces away near the tall sycamore tree.
“A receipt of some kind in the bushes.”
Palmetto snapped a latex glove over his right hand. With a pair of tweezers, he plucked the paper up and held it to the sun. “This is from Lowe’s.” He dropped it into a plastic bag. “How did you find this? What makes you think it’s important?”
Ethan glanced up at the top floor. “My friend lives in that condo.” He pointed to Annabel’s balcony on the top floor. “She didn’t see anything, but her cat was acting funny and led me back here.” Saying it out loud, he realized how absurd it sounded.
“You’ve got to be kidding me?” Based on Palmetto’s arched brow, Ethan thought the same thing. “I can’t believe I’m going to send this to the lab based on a cat’s interest in it.”
“And if it had been a dog that brought us back here?”
“Unless it was a K-9, looking for something specific, then I’d have the same reservation. If it weren’t for the fact whoever broke in did so from the back entrance, I wouldn’t even bother.” Palmetto sealed the bag. “Have you questioned your friend?”
“I haven’t questioned anyone other than the owner yet. Was anything else stolen besides the engagement ring?” Ethan scratched the back of his head. When he’d asked for the engagement ring back from Quinn, he accused her of lying about it being stolen. He figured she either kept it just to piss him off. Or sold it, to piss him off.