The Whole Cat and Caboodle: Second Chance Cat Mystery

by Ryan, Sofie

  She shook her head. “You’re a tedious young woman,” she said. “Although you are loyal, I’ll give you that.”

  “Shooting me isn’t going to fix anything,” I said, putting my hands in my pockets so she couldn’t see them shake. “How do you know I haven’t already gone to the police?”

  “And told them what? You think I killed my brother because I told you I saw a naked man when I went to the dentist?” She gave me a condescending smile. “Do you know what happened after I got home this afternoon?” she asked. “I had a call from the dentist’s office. The receptionist had e-mailed a statement that showed exactly when my appointment had been and how long it had lasted, but she wondered if I wanted to stop by the office for a copy signed by the dentist himself.” The smile reminded me of a crocodile. “Such a conscientious girl.”

  That had to have been Rose who had called for the statement. There was no point in bluffing anymore.

  “Why did you kill your brother?” I asked. I glanced at the front door.

  “You can try to run if you’d like,” she said. “Daddy taught me how to shoot when I was a little girl. I won’t miss.”

  I took a shaky, deep breath. “You didn’t answer my question. Why did you kill Arthur?”

  “You’re right, I didn’t answer you,” she said. The hand holding the gun didn’t waver and I knew she had every intention of shooting me. I, on the other hand, had every intention of getting out of this alive, and part of that meant keeping Daisy talking. “He’d gone soft. He’d fallen in love for real with that little Florence Nightingale and her organic garden.” She rolled her eyes.

  “For years I’d kept the money safe. I invested it. I turned it into more money than any of those vapid women he romanced would have.” Her blue eyes flashed with anger. “He wanted to give it all back. With interest. I was his sister but his newfound conscience didn’t have a problem leaving me with nothing.”

  “You set up Maddie.”

  She shrugged. “It seemed appropriate. The whole thing was her fault.”

  I tried to swallow down the lump in my throat. “Where did you get the bottle of pesticide?”

  She gave me a smug smile. “The little stone church down the street from my house.” She shook her head. “The things they have in the groundskeeper’s shed. Heavens. Someone could take out this entire town.”

  “So, you followed Arthur to Maddie’s?”

  “Yes, I did,” she said gesturing with the little gun. “And I did a much better job of it than that young man Arthur dumped into the bushes.” She smiled. “I waited until Madeline went into the house, and then I went to speak to Arthur.” The smile faded. “I was fair. I gave him a chance to change his mind. He wouldn’t. So what else could I do?” She shook her head. “He was never very observant. He was so busy proclaiming his true love for her that he didn’t see me slip a little something into his coffee. I just walked back through the park and went to the dentist.” She gave me that confident smile again. “I told them I had car trouble. I was very upset. They were very accommodating.” She studied my face for a moment. “Your grandmother isn’t moving, is she?”

  “No, she’s not,” I said.

  She nodded. “I thought about that afterward. I’m slipping, almost getting taken down by that repugnant, naked little man and you.”

  “There’s nothing repugnant about Mr. Peterson,” I said. “But there’s a lot repugnant about you.”

  “You’re getting on my nerves, Sarah,” Daisy said, frowning at me.

  She was getting on my nerves, as well. My stomach had tied itself into a knot. I heard a sound behind me and Elvis came into the room. He had something large . . . and furry in his mouth. He headed right for Daisy and dropped the furry present on her foot.

  She screamed. I dove for the cover of the counter. And Michelle and two other police officers came through the front door, guns drawn.

  It was over.

  I got up slowly. I’d banged both knees and scraped my hand. But there were no bullet holes in me. Or Elvis.

  Nick hurried across the floor to me as I unbuttoned my sweater and pulled at the tape holding the microphone hidden just below my collarbone. “Are you all right?” he asked, putting a hand on my shoulder. He was present only as a civilian and I was surprised that Michelle had agreed to let him be involved at all.

  I nodded. “I’m okay,” I said. “Did the police get it all?”

  He smiled. “Every incriminating word.”

  Michelle was reading Daisy her rights while Elvis watched, one black paw on what I could now see was a stuffed toy, not a real mouse.

  The two other officers led Daisy out and Michelle came over to Nick and me, trailed by Elvis.

  “You okay?” she asked.

  “I’m fine,” I said, buttoning up my sweater again. “Is Maddie in the clear?”

  “Yes.” She handed me the china gravy boat. I set it on the counter behind me and bent down to pick up Elvis.

  “What did you do?” Michelle asked. “Why did Daisy scream? I thought we agreed no heroics.”

  “It wasn’t me,” I said. I gave Elvis a scratch under his chin and he sighed. “It was him.” I pointed to the stuffed toy on the floor. “He came in with that in his mouth and dropped it on Daisy’s foot.”

  Nick leaned sideways and squinted at the furry gray lump.

  “It’s just a toy,” I said.

  “No,” Nick said slowly. “It has feet and they’re moving.”

  I took a couple of steps backward. Elvis gave me a self-satisfied smile. It was the only way to describe it. Then he licked my chin and wriggled to get down. I put him on the floor and he walked over to whatever was lying there, picked it up and headed for the front door. No one stopped him.

  “Smart cat,” Michelle said to me.

  “Don’t tell me you think it brought that mouse in on purpose to distract Daisy Fenety?” Nick said. “C’mon. It’s a cat.”

  “I know,” I said. If Elvis could tell when someone was lying—and I was convinced he could—then it wasn’t that much of a stretch to believe his little stunt with the mouse was more than a coincidence.

  Nick must have seen something on my face.

  He shook his head. “Seriously, Sarah. You don’t really think that cat knew you were in trouble, do you? What? You think Elvis is Lassie and you’re Timmy stuck down a well?”

  I frowned at him. “Of course not,” I said. “Elvis is much smarter than Lassie.”

  Chapter 27

  Sam had saved a big table for us at the back of the pub and we crowded around it to celebrate: Rose and Mr. P.; Liz and Avery, even though it was a school night; Charlotte; Maddie, of course; Mac; Jess, who had called Sam and organized the spontaneous celebration; Nick and even Elvis, riding in style in Rose’s canvas tote bag. We’d invited Michelle but she had paperwork to do. “Thank you for believing me,” I’d said to her as we stood in the shop parking lot.

  “Thank you for trusting me,” she’d replied.

  Sam brought a bottle of sparkling cider to the table and handed it to Jess. “I don’t think this bunch needs any alcohol,” he said.

  He laid a hand on my shoulder. “I’m glad you’re safe,” he said. “Don’t ever do something this stupid again.”

  I rested my cheek against his hand for a moment. “Don’t worry, Sam,” I said. “My detective days are over.”

  “I can’t believe Elvis came in and dropped a dead mouse on that woman’s foot,” Jess said as she poured the cider.

  “Oh, I can,” Rose said. “Elvis is a very intelligent cat. And technically it wasn’t dead.”

  He poked his head out of the bag and looked at us all, clearly happy about the praise.

  “I can’t believe I let you talk me into bringing him,” I said. “What if the health inspector finds out about this?”

  “I don’t see a
cat,” Liz said. “Does anyone else?”

  “Not me,” Avery said with a grin.

  “All I see is family,” Charlotte said.

  I looked around the table. That was what I saw, too. Family. A bit of an odd one, but family nonetheless.

  “Are you glad you came back?” Nick said quietly. He was sitting to my right.

  I nodded. “Yes, I am. What about you?”

  He looked at me and smiled. “Very glad,” he said.

  Jess stood up and raised her glass. “A toast, everyone,” she said. “To Sarah and Elvis for catching Arthur Fenety’s killer.”

  We clinked glasses and took a drink.

  “So, are you going to make another career change and become a full-time investigator?” Nick teased, his brown eyes sparkling.

  I shook my head. “No. This was my first and last time playing detective.”

  Rose came around the side of the table, bent down and put her arms around my neck. “I’m so glad you’re all right, sweetie,” she said. “We won’t let this happen next time.”

  Nick looked at me. I looked at Rose. “Next time?” I said.

  Rose nodded. “Don’t worry.” She reached into the pocket of her sweater. “Our business cards came,” she said. “With all the excitement I forgot to show them to you.”

  She handed me a cream-colored rectangle with black printing. It said CHARLOTTE’S ANGELS in cursive, with DISCREET INVESTIGATIONS underneath.

  Rose beamed at me. “We’ve decided to open up a business. Isn’t this going to be fun?”

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Sofie Ryan is a writer and mixed-media artist who loves to repurpose things in her life and her art. She also writes the national bestselling Magical Cats mysteries under the name Sofie Kelly.

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