Mango Glades

by Bill H Myers

  It made sense. If they had pushed their way through the dense underbrush instead of following the cleared trail like we had, there was a good chance they had gotten into poison ivy. Or something worse.

  If they had cuts and scratches, the poison would have a direct path into their bloodstream.

  For most people, a small dose of poison ivy is a painful inconvenience. But if you get a large dose, especially into open wounds, it can be fatal unless treated. No telling what would happen if the poison was from the manchineel tree.

  I looked at Callie. She was starting to sob, a steady flow of mucus coming from her eyes and nose.

  “Callie, I'm going to take the kittens back to Doctor Joy. It'll only take me a few minutes. Then I'm coming back, and I'll take you and Kenny to the hospital. That okay with you?”

  She had leaned over and put her head on the table. I was afraid she had passed out. But she hadn't. She lifted her head and whispered, “Yes.”

  Chapter Forty-Two

  I picked up the box with the kittens and stepped out of the camper. Behind me, I heard Callie say, “Don't leave me.”

  She sounded pitiful, and it was hard to leave her in her condition. But I had to. I'd promised Lori I'd rescue the kittens and bring them to her. And I was going to do that.

  But then I was going to come back to help Callie. I wanted to be sure she knew that. I turned to her and said, “Callie, I'm going to be gone a few minutes. But I promise I'll be right back.”

  Carrying the box of kittens, I walked over to the motorhome where Lori was waiting for me at the door.

  When she saw the box, she said. “You got them!”

  I nodded. “Yeah, I got them.”

  I set the box on the floor and said, “I have to go back.”

  “Why? Why do you have to go back? Why?”

  I pointed over my shoulder toward the camper. “They're both sick. Kenny and Callie. I promised to take them to the hospital.”

  “They're sick? What's wrong them?”

  “I don't know. Callie is covered with blisters and is in pain. She's having a hard time breathing. Kenny is worse. He's passed out in the front of the truck.

  “I need to get them to the hospital. My phone shows the nearest hospital is about seven miles from here. I'll take them over there in the van, drop them off, and come back.”

  Lori had a concerned look on her face. “Walker, be careful.”

  Then she smiled. “If you get back in one piece, we're going to celebrate.”

  A celebration sounded good to me.

  It took me ten minutes to get Callie and Kenny loaded into the back of the van. Callie was able to walk over on her own, but I had to carry Kenny. I loaded him in through the van's side door and laid him out on the floor.

  With both of them inside, I started the van and followed the GPS instructions to the hospital just off Krome Avenue. When I got there, I followed the arrows to the emergency room entrance.

  My plan was to drop Kenny and Callie at the door and drive away. But it didn't quite work out that way.

  As soon as I pulled up, the emergency room concierge (and who knew hospitals had concierges) stopped me at the door. He wanted to know who I was dropping off, what was wrong with them, and, most importantly, did they have insurance.

  I told him I had two people from the casino. A man and a woman. Both covered with blisters and both in pain. I didn't know their names and didn't know what was wrong with them. All I knew was the woman had begged me to take them to a hospital.

  The concierge entered my statement into a tablet he was carrying. He repeated the question he'd asked before. “Do they have insurance?”

  I shook my head. “I don't know. But the man has a wallet in his back pocket. If he has an insurance card, it'll probably be in there.”

  The concierge whispered something into a small microphone attached to his collar. A few seconds later, two orderlies pushing wheelchairs arrived. They put Callie in one chair and Kenny in the other. After strapping them in, they wheeled the chairs through the emergency room doors into the hospital.

  Instead of following or waiting to see if the concierge had any more questions, I got in the rental van and drove off. I'd done my part. Now it was up to the hospital to do theirs.

  With my good deed done for the day, I headed back to the casino to see what kind of celebration Lori had in mind.

  Chapter Forty-Three

  Back in the motorhome, Lori was sitting on the couch surrounded by the three panther kittens. She had one of the new ones in the crook of her arm, giving it a bottle. The other two were at her side. One was sleeping, and the other was trying to climb her shirt.

  She looked up at me. “I'm glad you made it back. Everything go okay?”

  “Yeah, no problem. Took them to the hospital. Got them checked in and got away.”

  She nodded. “I hope they're okay. Now, tell me exactly what they were up to. Why did they take the kittens in the first place?”

  I put the van keys on the kitchen counter. “I'll tell you about it later, but right now I need to wash my hands and change out of these clothes. I carried Kenny across the parking lot and may have gotten some poison ivy on me. I need to wash up.”

  I went to the back, stripped off my clothes and washed. I pulled on clean clothes and checked on Bob. He was still in the bed, sleeping.

  Back up front, Lori smiled when she saw me. “Feel better?”

  “Yeah, I do. Kind of relieved it's over. Are the kittens okay?”

  She nodded. “They're all in good shape. But as you can see, they're pretty hungry. Think you can help me feed them?”

  “Sure, but let me get a photo of this first.”

  I pulled out my phone and snapped off three photos, each showing Lori sitting on the couch with the three panther kittens around her.

  I put my phone away and asked, “What can I do?”

  She pointed to the roll of paper towels on the kitchen counter. “Wet one of those towels and use it to clean off the kitten on my right. Then grab another towel and dry him.”

  I grabbed two paper towels and sat down beside Lori and reached for the small kitten that was trying to climb her shirt. It didn't like the idea of me picking him up and dug its sharp claws into Lori's chest. She let out a yelp.

  “Walker, don't pull him back like that. He'll just dig in. Lift him straight up, and he'll let go.”

  I lifted as instructed and the kitten released its hold.

  “That's better. Now wipe his mouth, face, and ears. Then wipe his back and belly. And finish off by wiping his behind. But first, give me your phone.”

  I handed her my phone and started cleaning the kitten.

  At the touch of the wet towel, the little guy struggled and tried to get away. But after I finished with his mouth, he settled down and seemed to enjoy the attention.

  Lori called my name. “Walker, look up.”

  When I looked up, she was bottle feeding a kitten with her left hand, while using her right hand to shoot a photo of me wiping the kitten's backside.

  After she got the photo, she said, “You're good at that. I might have a position for you back at the clinic.”

  I shook my head. “Wiping the butts of kittens isn't really a part of my career plan. But thanks for the offer.”

  After I had finished with the kitten, I placed it back in Lori's lap. She had finished bottle feeding hers and had put it on her shoulder.

  After it had burped, she handed it to me and said, “Here's another one you can clean.”

  I took the kitten and cleaned it the same way I'd cleaned the first one. When I was done, I handed it back to her, and she put it in the box with the other two.

  All three kittens had been fed, burped and cleaned. Now they were ready for a nap.

  With the kittens taken care of, Lori leaned back on the couch and said, “Tell me about Kenny and Callie. What were they up to?”

  I took a moment then said, “It's not what we thought. At least according to Calli
e.

  “She said when Kenny came back to the trailer last night, he told her you had asked him to go out and try to find the kittens. He told Callie he didn't want to go alone and asked her to join him. She agreed and, early this morning, they went out to Monument Lake. They hiked through the underbrush until they got to the nest and then they rescued the two kittens.

  “Instead of returning to Oasis, Kenny told her they needed to go to the pet store in Miami to get formula. After leaving the store, she got in the camper and fed the kittens while Kenny was up front making phone calls.

  “He told her he’d called FWC to have them come get the kittens. They were to meet him at the casino.”

  Lori interrupted. “But wasn't it Callie who called the animal buyer?”

  “That's what I thought too, so I asked her about it. She said she didn't call anyone all day. I kind of believe her because when she invited me in, she thought I was from FWC. In fact, when I ask her how much she wanted to sell the kittens for, she told me to leave. She said the kittens weren't for sale.”

  Lori shook her head. “I don't understand. If Callie didn't call the animal buyer, who did? We know someone called because I talked to them myself.”

  I hesitated then said, “Lori, think about it. When Kenny called you this morning, you asked him if he had seen Callie. He said no.

  “When you asked him where he was, he said Naples.

  “When you asked him if he knew anything about the panther kittens, he said no.

  “So everything he told you on the phone today was a lie. Maybe he was the one who called the animal buyer. And maybe Callie didn't know anything about it.”

  Lori shook her head. “I can't believe Kenny would get involved in something like this. If the staff at Oasis finds out, they'll fire him on the spot.”

  We sat there in silence for a few moments, watching the kittens sleeping in the box.

  Pointing in their direction, Lori said, “They'll sleep for a few hours before I need to feed them again. Maybe we should get something to eat.”

  I nodded. “Good idea.”

  She stood and said, “You don't mind if I borrow one of your shirts, do you? The one I'm wearing is covered with kitten drool.”

  Before I could answer she headed to my bedroom closet. A few minutes later, she came back up front wearing a dark blue polo shirt.

  It was a little big but looked good on her. She was smiling as I checked her out. “You look happy,” I said.

  “I am happy. You got the kittens back. They're healthy, you’re healthy, and we didn't have to get the law involved.

  “All in all it's been a good day.”

  Chapter Forty-Four

  “Think we should eat here in the motorhome or head over to the casino?”

  “Walker, don't take this wrong, but I've had my fill of your frozen dinners. Tonight we're eating real food. In one of the casino restaurants.”

  I wasn't going to argue. It’d been a long day, and a hot meal from the casino sounded pretty good to me.

  After locking the motorhome, we headed across the parking lot and into the casino through the main entrance. Inside, the place was even more crowded and noisier than it had been earlier.

  The sounds of coins dropping into hundreds of slot machines mixed in with the beeps, bells, and whistles they gave off filled our ears. Crowds of people were milling around, looking for their lucky machine.

  I steered Lori away from the slots and toward the guest services desk. I knew from my earlier visit there was a stack of “Welcome to the Miccosukee” fliers there. I picked one up and quickly found a list of restaurants within the casino.

  Over the din of the slots, I pointed to the list and asked, “Which one do you want to try?”

  She looked at the list then at the crowds on the casino floor. “Which one can we get in and out of the quickest?”

  I pointed over her shoulder. “Up there. The buffet. It doesn't look like they have a line.”

  She nodded. “Good, let's go there.”

  We followed the signs leading to the buffet. They led us up a flight of carpeted stairs to a large hall above the casino floor. Wide double doors led into the dining room, blocking out most of the noise and smoke from below.

  Like most casino buffets, we had to pay a per plate fee before we could enter. After paying, our hostess led us to a table, took our drink order and said we could eat all we wanted, refilling our plates as often as we liked. She reminded us that the buffet was a no smoking area and then went off to get our drinks. Iced tea for me and diet cola for Lori.

  While we waited for our drinks, I checked out the other diners who were serving themselves at the food stations.

  It looked like some of them saw the “all you can eat” offer as a challenge. One large woman was building a tower of food on her plate, seemingly worried the buffet might run out before she had her fill. The man with her had two plates, both overflowing with meat.

  If there were to be winners in the “all you can eat” contest that night, those two people would be in the running.

  Lori and I weren't up to the challenge. We made one pass through the longest serving station. She chose mostly steamed vegetables and a baked white fish, while I went for the prime rib.

  As buffets go, the one at the Miccosukee wasn't bad. Lots of choices, with one of the best dessert selections I'd seen anywhere. But the best part of eating at the buffet was we didn't have to wait for our food. It was ready as soon as we were.

  The speedy buffet meal is part of the casino business strategy. For them, it's more profitable if guests spend less time eating and more time gambling. That's why every casino has a buffet that gets you in and out quickly.

  Lori and I didn't talk much during dinner. We were both hungry and concentrated on our food. I did ask her about her fish, and she said it was tender. She also said the vegetables were tasty.

  Mostly, the food was filling. And really, that's all we cared about. We were both too tired to be picky.

  We finished our meal and immediately headed back outside into the parking lot. After spending two days in the quiet of the Everglades, the noise and stale air inside the casino were more than we could take. Getting back out into the clean air and relative quiet of the lot was a relief.

  As we headed back toward the motorhome, Lori took my hand and said, “Walker, let's walk around a bit. Get some fresh air.”

  I nodded. “That sounds good. As long as you don't pull another alligator stunt.”

  “What do you mean alligator stunt?”

  I smiled. “Remember last night at Oasis? You walked me up on the deck overlooking the gators. In the dark.”

  She laughed. “Oh, that. It's hard to believe it was just yesterday. So much has happened since then.”

  I nodded. “You're right. Last night we were camping in the Everglades. Tonight we're in a casino parking lot. Wonder where we'll be tomorrow?”

  She squeezed my hand. “If all goes well, we'll be home. You'll be back at Mango Bay, and I'll be in Venice. But right now, we're here. So let's just walk and enjoy each other’s company.”

  That's what we did.

  Chapter Forty-Five

  After twenty minutes of walking, we headed back to the motorhome. I unlocked the door and Lori went in first. I followed, making sure to lock the door behind us.

  Lori went straight to the box where she had left the three sleeping kittens. Looking inside, she said, “Walker, one of the kittens got out. Be careful where you step.”

  Rather than risk stepping on the escaped kitten, I stood still as Lori started searching for the little renegade.

  She checked around the box, looked under and behind the couch, then up front in the driver's area. Not finding anything, she checked under the dash and under the passenger seat.

  No kitten.

  She looked at me. “He's got to be here somewhere. He couldn't have gone far. Any ideas?”

  I thought for a moment then said, “Bob. Maybe Bob took him.”

/>   Lori smiled. “I'll check.”

  She walked to the back bedroom then called to me, “Walker, come back here. Bring your phone.”

  I grabbed my phone and headed to the back bedroom where Lori was standing in the doorway smiling. She pointed at Bob.

  He was lying on the bed, the panther kitten curled up against his belly. Bob was purring. He stared up at me and gave me a slow blink.

  I snapped a few quick photos. They would be part of my Bob collection.

  In a whisper, I asked Lori, “Do we need to take the kitten back up front?”

  She shook her head. “No. Bob is gentle and the kitten seems to like being near him. We'll leave them together until the next feeding.”

  Lori went back up front while I stayed and watched Bob. Since I had my phone in my hand, I checked to see if I had missed any calls. There were two. Both from Polly. She'd also left a message. I clicked “Play.”

  “Walker, just checking in to see how you and Lori are doing. Haven't heard from either of you and just wondering how things are going. Call me back when you get a chance.”

  Polly was checking up on us, trying to see how her matchmaking was playing out. So far, I figured she'd be disappointed. Lori and I had been too busy chasing down panther kittens to light the fires of romance.

  I wasn't going to call and tell her that. In fact, I wasn't going to call her back at all. I'd wait until I got back to Englewood before I talked to her.

  When I got back up front, Lori was stretched out on the couch. “Someone left a message?”

  “Yeah, Polly. She was wondering how you and I were getting along. If she calls again, what should I tell her?”

  Lori smiled. “Tell her I'm sleeping on the couch. That's all she needs to know. Speaking of the couch, it's getting pretty close to my bedtime. I have to get up every four hours to feed the kittens, so any sleep I can get in between is a bonus.

  “I'm too tired to fold the couch out. Will you do it for me?”

  I nodded. She headed back to the bathroom while I folded out the couch. I pulled the sheets and pillow from the overhead bin and had her bed waiting for her when she returned.