The Secret Claws

by Patricia Fry

  The woman took a deep breath. “I don’t know.” She looked up through tears and said, her voice full of emotion, “But, as I said, he seemed to be looking for something. It could be that key. This place is topsy-turvy since those keys started showing up. That’s the reason my husband and I fight.” She lowered her eyes. “A key showed up in our mailbox and I guess my husband hid it. It’s gone now and he’s furious with me.” She took a ragged breath. “I’ve heard of people getting hurt because of them. I just can’t help but blame what happened tonight on those blasted keys.”

  Chapter 6

  “Craig, thank you for coming,” Savannah said, opening the door for the detective later that evening. She was surprised to see that he wasn’t alone. “Hi, Iris! I didn’t expect you.”

  “Me miss out on some excitement? Are you kidding?”

  Savannah hugged her, then stepped back. “I don’t know what you’d miss. I wouldn’t be in this mess if I could help it; I’d be sleeping comfortably in my bed. But thank you for coming.”

  “Are you ready to go?” Craig asked.

  “What?” Savannah asked. “Go where?”

  “To retrieve your cat, that’s where.”

  “Me? You want me to go with you up to that awful place?”

  “Do you want your cat back?” he huffed.

  “Of course.” She frowned. “And Lexie.”

  “What?”

  “Lexie’s missing too,” she blurted.

  Craig slumped. “Well, how did that happen? Were the dog and the cat together?”

  “No. Lexie ran away when we went out to help Marilyn.”

  “Marilyn?” Iris asked.

  Savannah put a finger to her lips. “Shhh. She’s resting there on the sofa.”

  “What happened to her?” Craig whispered.

  “Someone attacked her and her husband. That’s Marilyn Rankle, one of your neighbors.”

  “Oh,” Craig said, “guess I haven’t met her.” He then explained, “I think we’ll have a better chance of getting your cat back if you’re there. You’re familiar to him and we may have to depend on him coming to us. You know how cats are—independent cusses with little deceitful minds of their own.”

  Savannah swallowed hard. “Well, let me get some clothes on and tell Michael.” She looked at Iris. “Are you going?”

  “She says she is.” Craig snickered playfully. “Says she wants to see how I work.”

  “Did you get in touch with your policeman friend?” Savannah asked.

  “Naw. Thought it over and decided we should go in quiet-like before daylight.”

  “What time is it, anyway?” she asked, squinting to see the clock in the dimly lit kitchen.

  “Almost ten,” he said. “Is everyone in bed? You folks hit the hay early, don’t you?”

  “We’ve been having full days—everyone’s worn out by nine,” Savannah took a quick breath. “Well, I’ll be back in a minute.” She gestured toward the kitchen. “Coffee might still be hot. Help yourself.”

  ****

  Craig had been driving along the bumpy dirt road into the forest for about ten minutes when Iris asked, “Michael was okay with you going on this clandestine operation, was he?”

  When Savannah hesitated, she said, “Oh, not, huh?”

  “Not really. Poor guy probably won’t sleep for the rest of the night.”

  “You should have brought him along,” Craig said. “We can probably use the help.”

  Savannah chuckled nervously. “Yeah, that’s not going to happen. He’s not nearly as curious as I am, nor is he attached to Ragsie.”

  “Yeah, I’d probably opt to stay in a warm bed too, rather than chase down that cat of yours, especially when you’re not exactly sure where he is,” Craig grumped.

  “Well, if he was still at the lodge where he went missing, someone would have seen him,” Savannah remarked. “They have my number. No one has called.”

  Iris faced Savannah. “Are you sure? You know cell service is sketchy up here.”

  Savannah nodded. “Yeah, I’ve walked out to that hot spot several times. Nothing.”

  “Okay, this is the place,” Craig said quietly. “We’ll leave the car here and walk in. He picked up a flashlight and asked over his shoulder, “Got that little light of yours?”

  Savannah whispered, “Yes.”

  “Treats?” he asked.

  “Yes.”

  Once they’d exited the car, Craig looked around and said, “Good, they left a light on; at least we can get our bearings.”

  “Looks like a candle to me,” Iris observed as they drew near. “See it flickering?”

  “I think you’re right,” Savannah said. She groaned, “Oh, that’s not good. It’s a forest fire destined to happen. But they probably don’t have electricity out here. I hear the place is abandoned.”

  Craig gazed around the area. “So, let’s see if we can figure out where he might be. He could have been turned loose and he’s roaming the grounds, for all we know. Watch for him.”

  “That’s his bike,” Savannah whispered, aiming her light to show a bicycle leaning against the porch railing.

  “Which proves that the cyclist is here,” Craig said, “but what about the cat? We still don’t know for sure that guy has him.”

  Iris grabbed Craig’s arm and hissed, “Someone’s out there.”

  When they heard a cough, Craig said, “Most likely he came out for a smoke.” He whispered, “You two stay here. I think I’ll go detain that dude or dudette.”

  The women watched as Craig moved toward the sound of rustling leaves. Suddenly they heard someone shout, “Hey, what the hell!”

  “Quiet,” Craig snarled.

  “Who are you?” the man insisted.

  “Your worst nightmare unless you cooperate. I want the cat.”

  “Cat?” the man asked.

  “Yes, someone brought a cat here today. It’s a stolen cat and I want it back.”

  “All this strong-arm stuff for a cat, man? What’s your gig, anyway?”

  “I’m Detective Craig Sledge,” he said, showing the man his badge. “And you are?”

  “Cecil…Cecil Brighton.”

  “What are you doing out here? Isn’t this private property?” Craig asked.

  “Yeah, it belongs to my family. My cousin and I rent it out to friends who need a place to crash. Is there a law against that?”

  “Who’s your cousin?”

  “We call him Wheels—why?”

  Ignoring the question, Craig asked, “People pay to stay here with no electricity?” When he saw an outhouse, he added, “…or bathroom facilities?”

  “I have a rather specific clientele, you might say.”

  “Yeah, Cecil, I’d say so. Does your family know you’re doing this?”

  “Um…well…”

  “Yeah, that’s what I thought. Now, Cecil, did one of your clients, as you call them, arrive this afternoon with a cat?”

  “Not that I know of.” He frowned. “Why would anyone care about a cat, anyway? There are cats around here all the time. I guess even if someone brought another one, I wouldn’t notice it.”

  “This cat’s large, mostly grey with white paws.”

  Cecil shrugged. “I don’t pay attention to the cats, man.”

  Craig motioned for the women to join him. “Savannah, what’s the dude’s name who has your cat?”

  Cecil studied the women for a moment. “Are you policewomen?”

  “Never mind,” Craig said. “Savannah, do you know his name?”

  “His last name’s Lancaster, Paul, I think.”

  “Do you know the name?” Craig asked.

  “That’s my cousin, Wheels,” he admitted. When Craig frowned at him, Cecil felt obliged to explain, “Names aren’t very important out here. Most everyone uses some sort of assumed name—know what I mean?”

  “Yeah, I know what you mean,” Craig said sarcastically. �
�Where’s Wheels now?”

  Cecil scoffed. “Beats me.” When Craig took hold of Cecil’s shirt front and pushed him against a tree, he protested. “Hey, man, take it easy. I’ve been cooperating. I don’t want no trouble.”

  “Then tell me where he is,” Craig insisted.

  “I don’t know. He could be up in the loft or in one of the rooms. I don’t know exactly.” When Craig let go of him, Cecil asked, “So you want him just because he took a cat?” He motioned toward Savannah. “Her cat?”

  Savannah nodded.

  “A police cat,” Craig added.

  “What?”

  “Yeah, he works for the police department in Hammond. Just so you know, he isn’t just any cat.”

  “Oh, right. Well, let me go see if I can find Wheels.” He started to walk away, then said, “Why don’t you wait out here. I don’t want my…clients disturbed.”

  Craig grinned. “Hey, if you don’t come back with the cat, I’m going to disturb more than your clients this evening.” Before Cecil could walk away, he asked, “By the way, what do you charge to stay out here?”

  “Um…it depends,” Cecil balked. Suddenly he jumped. “Hey, there’s a cat. Did you see it? It ran into that stand of trees.”

  Savannah pointed her flashlight in the direction Cecil indicated. “Tiger-striped.”

  “So you were about to tell me how much you charge,” Craig egged.

  “We’re kind of on the barter system,” Cecil admitted. “We believe in going back to our roots and using what we have instead of getting involved in the whole broken world economy that drives everyone crazy and creates so much greed and, by the way, poverty.” He raised his eyebrows. “One guy who comes out here occasionally pays in meals. He loves to cook and he’ll bring greens and veggies and prepare great vegan meals for us. Yeah, everyone likes to see Thad come out for a stay.”

  “Thad?” Savannah asked. “Is he here?”

  Cecil looked uncomfortable. “Uh…I don’t think so. He didn’t cook for us tonight.”

  “Is he a friend of yours?” Craig asked.

  Savannah nodded. “He cooked dinner for us tonight.”

  “Is he here?” Craig asked.

  “He could be.”

  “Get him,” Craig demanded. “Tell him Savannah needs to see him.”

  “Um…okay, I guess.”

  “Who is this Thad?” Craig asked when Cecil walked away.

  “Like I said, he cooked for us tonight. He’s a chef,” Savannah explained. “We met him at the dock yesterday.”

  “Smelled like you had fish for dinner.”

  “We did.”

  “So he’s not total vegan, is he?”

  “Doesn’t seem to be.”

  “Can he be trusted?” Craig asked.

  “I believe so. We like him and he seems to like animals.”

  “Does he know Rags?”

  Savannah thought, then said, “No. He’s seen Lexie, but not Rags.”

  Minutes later Cecil showed up with Thad, who was rubbing his eyes and stumbling a little in the dark. “Savannah,” he said, stunned. He looked at Craig and Iris before asking, “What are you doing out here?”

  “We think that Lancaster kid took Rags,” Savannah said. “I see his bicycle parked over there. Have you seen him tonight? Do you know if he has a large grey-and-white cat with him?”

  “No. As you know, I got here after dark and I went straight to bed. You say he’s here?”

  “Yes. That’s his bike, isn’t it?” Savannah asked. She shined her light in that direction.

  He squinted into the distance. “Yes. I believe so.” He looked at Savannah. “And you think he has your cat—the one that got away from you today?”

  Savannah nodded.

  “Well, that jerk,” Thad said.

  “So you don’t know where he is tonight?” Craig asked.

  Thad shook his head. “But I can find out.” He motioned to Craig. “Come on, I’ll show you.”

  “Beautiful,” Craig said, following after Thad. “You ladies stay here.”

  “What do you want me to do?” Cecil asked.

  “Go on back to bed, if you want to. Just stay out of our way,” Craig cranked. He looked over the series of structures as they approached, noting how well-hidden the place was in the dense forest, because all the buildings were painted black. Light still flickered from a window on the second floor of the main structure. There were three old vehicles and a late model BMW parked here and there on the property and Craig saw several bicycles scattered over a large attached deck. “What was that?” Craig asked, quickly stepping back.

  “One of the cats,” Thad said, matter-of-factly. “They come for the rodents, but I feed them when no one’s looking.” When Craig didn’t respond, he explained, “They’ll abandon you if you don’t. A band of eight or nine cats will clear the area of rodents after a while, and if you don’t feed them they’ll move on and the rats and mice will return.” He smirked. “Cecil and his bunch don’t get that. They’re too addle-brained half the time on that stuff they smoke.”

  Craig shook his head in disgust.

  Thad motioned toward a set of steep, narrow stairs. “Wheels usually stays up there. First door on the right.”

  “Okay, stand back,” Craig said, taking the stairs slowly. When he reached the door, he knocked lightly. “Wheels,” he said, “need to talk to you.”

  After a few seconds, a croaky voice responded. “What is it, man? I’m sleepin’ here.”

  Craig pushed the door open and shined his light in the eyes of a man lying on an inflatable mattress on the floor. A young woman leaped to her feet, pulling a blanket with her, and darted across the room.

  “Who are you?” Paul demanded.

  Craig flashed his badge and shined his light around the room. “Where’s the cat?”

  “Cat, man? What cat?”

  “The one you took from the lodge this afternoon.”

  “I didn’t take no cat,” Paul claimed. “I don’t even like cats.”

  “Of course you don’t, but you rode off with a cat today. What did you do with him? Where is he?” When Paul shrugged, Craig shined the flashlight around again, stopping when he spotted something on a small nightstand. He walked forward and picked up a plastic bag containing a white powder. “Been using tonight, have you?” He studied the girl. “And sharing it with a minor? Oh, Paul, this doesn’t look good for you. That could mean what—ten or fifteen years?” He nodded toward the girl. “How old are you, anyway, honey? Fifteen?”

  “Don’t answer that,” Paul screamed at her.

  “Hey, dude, it won’t take me long to find out.” He searched the room using his flashlight. “Let’s see, you must have a purse around here. Oh, there it is—is that leather fringed bag your purse, young lady? Want to get me your ID?”

  Before the girl could move, Paul shouted, “Okay, okay, I took the cat.” He held his wrist up. “It scratched the hell out of me and ran off. I don’t know where it is. I swear.”

  “Where?” Craig insisted. “Where did you let him go?”

  “Oh, I don’t know.”

  “Think!” Craig demanded.

  Paul let out a sigh. “Okay. Over near the old rock house. He was yowling up a storm and I had a job to do, so I took him out of my pack to try and shut him up. That’s when he scratched me and ran off.” He frowned. “For your information, that cat’s probably wolf meat. I saw a wooly wolf chasing after it.” He shook his head. “Yeah, there ain’t nothin’ left of that cat by now.”

  Craig clenched his teeth. “You’d better be telling the truth or I will be back with handcuffs.” He looked at the girl. “…and a juvie agent to take her home to her parents, where she belongs.”

  “Did you find him?” Savannah asked eagerly when Craig and Thad walked swiftly toward her a few minutes later.”

  “Maybe. Get in the car,” he instructed.

  “Where is he?” Savannah asked
as she and Iris tried to keep up with Craig. Thad followed along.

  “He gets intense, doesn’t he?” Iris whispered to Savannah. “I don’t see this side of my husband very often.”

  Savannah chuckled. “Oh yes, he does. The pussycat Craig becomes the growly, snarly bear at times.”

  “So you’ve seen this before?” Iris asked.

  “Oh yes,” Savannah admitted.

  “Get in,” Craig growled.

  “See?” Savannah whispered to Iris.

  Both women giggled, as they climbed into the backseat of Craig’s car. Thad sat in the front passenger seat.

  “Thad, you’re coming back down with us?” Savannah asked. “Do you know where Rags is?”

  “I thought I might be able to help since I know many of the forest’s secrets.”

  “Well, thank you,” Savannah said. After a moment, she asked, “So Craig, do you know where he is?”

  “I hope so,” he said, easing the car back onto the dirt road. “Thad took me to Paul Lancaster and he fessed up to taking the cat, but said he let him go when he wouldn’t quit yowling. The jerk was afraid the cat would mess up a job he had to do, so he turned him loose. Guess where?” Craig teased.

  “Where? How would I know that?” Savannah grumbled.

  “Now who’s all growly and snarly?” Craig asked, grinning at her in the rearview mirror.

  Savannah flashed a look at Iris, who snickered a little.

  “Right in our own back yard.”

  “Huh?” Savannah said.

  “If he’s giving it to me straight, Rags is roaming around very close to the cabin.”

  “Oh my gosh,” Savannah remarked, “with wild animals in the dark where he doesn’t know his way around?”

  “We’ll find him,” Craig promised. “Or he’ll find us. He’s a smart guy.” He faced her briefly as he drove. “You say Lexie’s gone too?” When Savannah nodded, he said, “She just might be with him.”

  Savannah sat silently as Craig made his way down the steep road toward his cabin. He pulled into the driveway and parked. “Let’s see if he’s shown up here yet, shall we?”

  “Okay,” Savannah said, stepping out of the car. “Rags! Come here, boy. Rags, Kitty-kitty?” She watched as Craig shined the light around and listened. Nothing.