In the next moment, lightening lit up the window, followed by a loud clap of thunder, effectively ending Max’s momentary reluctance. Without another thought, he raced toward the bed and leapt onto the mattress.
The moment Max jumped onto Danielle’s bed, Walt turned on the overhead lamp, instantly flooding the room with light.
Danielle, startled awake by both the sudden light and the intruder landing on her bed, bolted up in a sitting position and opened her eyes. Before she had time to scream, the intruder jumped onto her lap, stared into her eyes, and started to purr.
“Holy crap!” Danielle shouted, her heart beating wildly. Staring into a pair of golden eyes, Danielle tentatively reached out and touched the black cat, now sitting on her lap. “Where did you come from?”
Chapter Twelve
Walt walked into the room from the hallway. “He must have slipped in when your guests left.”
The cat’s head jerked up, looking to the doorway, startled by Walt’s sudden appearance. He hissed and moved closer to Danielle, trying to climb under the covers with her.
“I don’t think he likes you.” Danielle looked down at the furry intruder and gently stroked his neck, trying to calm him. She noticed he was not all black. White fur covered the tips of his ears.
“He seems to be making himself at home.” Walt took a seat on the vanity’s chair, turning it to face Danielle’s bed.
The cat attempted to burrow under the blanket. He looked from Walt to Danielle.
“He’s confused,” Walt told her.
Danielle frowned. “Confused?”
“By the fact that you can see me. He doesn’t understand that.”
“I think you’re scaring him.” Danielle looked down and stroked the cat’s back. “Don’t be afraid. Walt’s not bad for a dead guy.”
“Dead guy? Really Danielle?”
Danielle shrugged. “You don’t like me saying ghost.” She looked back at the cat, who seemed intent on crawling up her body, trying to get closer to her face. “We need to find out where he lives. Poor little fellow, I bet the storm’s scared him.”
Walt stared at the cat. After a moment, the cat stared back. They continued to look at each other for several moments.
“His name is Max,” Walt finally said. “And according to him, he lives here.”
“Here?” Danielle frowned.
“You know cats. They choose you, you don’t choose them. And apparently this one has chosen you.”
“Well, he came from somewhere. I’m sure someone is looking for him.”
“No. According to him, there is no one. Just you.” Walt leaned back in the chair. “I wonder what Sadie is going to think about all this?”
Settling on Danielle’s lap, Max’s golden eyes stared intently at Walt.
After a moment Walt said, “No Max, we are not getting rid of the dog. Or of Ian.”
Danielle glanced from Walt to the cat.
“And no, Max,” Walt said. “I’m not going anywhere either.”
“What am I going to do with him?”
“You might start with feeding him. He’s pretty hungry.”
“Really?” Danielle ran a hand over the cat’s body. He was rather thin, a bit underweight.
Gently pushing the cat off her lap, Danielle climbed out of bed. She looked down at him. “Well, if you’re hungry, let’s go down to the kitchen and get you something to eat.”
Max made no attempt to jump down off the bed. He watched as Danielle headed for the door.
Danielle paused at the doorway and looked back at Max, who continued to stare at her. “Well? Are you coming?”
“He doesn’t speak your language.” Walt looked from Danielle to Max. “Go with her, she’s going to get you something to eat.”
Max jumped off the bed and followed Danielle to the kitchen.
“I don’t understand,” Danielle said as she sat in the kitchen with Walt watching Max devour a chicken breast she had cut up for him. “How is it he can understand what you say and not me? I don’t get it.”
“I told you before; I could never communicate with animals like I do with Sadie. Not until I died. But now, I understand what she’s trying to say and she understands me.”
“But Sadie understands us. She must be able to, because when you first met she told you Ian wasn’t a teacher. How else would she know that if she didn’t understand what he was saying?”
“First, Sadie has been around Ian since she was a puppy. She’s been around people and picked up things, yet that doesn’t mean she understands everything you say. And, she’s not stupid.”
Max stopped eating and looked up at Walt. He let out a low growl.
“I’m not saying you’re stupid,” Walt told Max. “But you obviously haven’t been around living people much. If you had, I imagine you’d understand more of what Danielle’s saying.”
Max looked at Walt.
“Her name is Danielle. Dani is a nickname,” Walt explained.
“I don’t get it!” Danielle said in exasperation.
“You don’t get what?” Walt frowned.
“You’re talking to the cat and he obviously understands what you’re saying. But you’re speaking the same language I am, yet you say he doesn’t understand me.”
“Because it’s not what I’m actually saying he understands—it’s my thoughts. The thoughts I choose to convey. I could just as easily communicate with him without uttering a single word. But that would be rather rude, wouldn’t it? You would start feeling like Lily—how she feels when she can only hear your side of our conversation.”
Danielle looked down at Max, who went back to eating. “So why me? Why did he choose me?”
Walt looked at the cat. “I really don’t know the answer to that question. But he seems determined to make this his home—and he’s staked his claim on you. You did say you wanted a cat.”
“I said I was thinking about it. And just because he has staked his claim on me, doesn’t mean he doesn’t belong somewhere. I don’t want someone coming along claiming I stole their cat.”
Walt watched Max who was no longer eating but now meticulously grooming himself. After a few moments, Max paused and looked into Walt’s eyes.
“He claims he’s been hanging out in a vacant house. Grabbed meals from trashcans. Basically, he’s been living on the street.”
“He is kind of thin.” Danielle knelt by Max who immediately started weaving back and forth around her legs, pressing himself into her. She could hear his loud purr. “And he does seem to like me.”
“The little monster broke into the house and jump into your bed.” Walt chuckled. “Since he doesn’t seem to understand much of what you’re saying, I have to believe him when he says he’s been living on the street. After all, Bella was able to pick up on some of what you were saying, because she’s been living with someone—someone like you.”
“If I keep him, I should take him to the vet and get him vaccinated.”
“This means you’re keeping him?”
“Yes. And I should probably see about having him neutered.”
Walt frowned. “What do you mean?”
Danielle glanced from Walt to Max. By Walt’s question, she suspected neutering house cats wasn’t done when he was alive. If she discussed neutering in front of the cat…and the cat understood Walt’s side of the conversation…
“Nothing. I’m just thinking aloud.” Danielle smiled sweetly.
“He jumped into your bed?” Lily asked incredulously the next morning. Danielle had just told her about the cat’s unusual appearance.
“Walt said he chose me.” Danielle glanced down at Max who greedily devoured his breakfast.
“That would have freaked me out, having something jump into my bed in the middle of the night.”
“Even if it was Ian?” Danielle giggled.
“Ha ha.” Lily rolled her eyes. “Wouldn’t matter who it was. It would still freak me out. So you think we let him in last night, when everyone we
nt home?”
“The door was open for a while. It was pretty dark outside. Not surprising no one noticed a black cat in the bushes outside.” Danielle poured herself a cup of coffee and joined Lily at the kitchen table.
“Well, you did mention you wanted a cat.” Lily sipped her coffee.
Walt appeared a few minutes later. Max was no longer eating his breakfast but curled up contently on Danielle’s lap. Lily noticed a chair seemingly move, as if someone was sitting down at the table.
“Good morning Walt,” Lily chirped.
Walt looked at Max. “I see he’s making himself at home. And Max, I came to warn you; Sadie and Ian are on their way over. I was looking out the attic window and saw them cross the street. They’re cutting through the side yard and should be here in a minute. If you intend to stay, you have to accept them.”
Max began to growl. Yet, it wasn’t a growl exactly, more an unholy gurgling sound.
Lily looked at the cat. “Is he growling?”
“I think Walt said something he didn’t like.” Danielle glanced over to Walt.
Lily scooted her chair away from Danielle and Max. “He’s not going to attack or anything, is he?”
Before Danielle could answer, Ian knocked on the back door. It was still locked. Lily stood up and walked to the kitchen door, keeping a safe distance between her and the snarling cat as she made her way around him.
Lily opened the door and Sadie raced in, charging toward Walt. She came to a screeching halt when she noticed the hissing cat in Danielle’s lap. Standing her ground, Sadie began to bark. Max stood up on Danielle’s lap, his fur bristling. He snarled at Sadie, batting a front paw in her direction. Danielle looked down nervously, not wanting to get in the middle of a nasty dog and catfight.
“Knock it off, both of you,” Walt snapped, seeing Danielle’s discomfort. Sadie and Max immediately looked to Walt. Sadie stopped barking and Max stopped hissing.
“Another cat?” Ian walked over to the table and looked down at the black cat perched in Danielle’s lap. He pointed to the far side of the kitchen, “Sadie, go sit down.”
Reluctantly, Sadie made her way to the other side of the kitchen and sat down, her eyes never leaving Max.
“Max, put those claws away. If you scratch Danielle, you will be one sorry cat.”
Supremely insulted, Max glared at Walt.
“I understand you would never intentionally scratch her,” Walt said. “But it could happen if you start batting at Sadie.”
“He just showed up last night,” Lily explained.
“Where did he come from?” Ian poured himself a cup of coffee.
“He’s a stray. I think I’m going to keep him,” Danielle announced.
“You sure he doesn’t have a home?”
“I don’t think so.” Danielle stroked Max’s head and looked over at Walt. “He’s kind of scrawny. Gobbled up the food I gave him last night and this morning.”
“You want me to keep Sadie at my place?” Ian offered. “Maybe I shouldn’t bring her over here.”
“Absolutely not. Max and Sadie will just have to get used to each other,” Danielle insisted.
Ian cocked his brows. “Max? How did you come up with that name?”
“Umm…he looks like a Max to me.”
Max looked up at Danielle and started to purr. He butted his head against her hand.
“He recognizes his name when you say it,” Walt told her. “Now that I think about it, he knew your nickname, Dani, so he obviously understands some of what you say. He may understand more of what you say than I initially assumed.”
Danielle glanced down at Max and thought about her announcement last night that she would have him neutered. She smiled. “No, I don’t think he does.”
Ian frowned. “You don’t think he does what?”
Chapter Thirteen
“Max! Max! Get out here and stop playing games!” Harvey flew through the rooms on the second floor, checking out all the usual hiding places. “I won’t make you go back up on the rafters today. We can do that tomorrow. Today I want to check out the vents, and I need you!”
After looking through all the rooms on the second floor, Harvey stood on the landing by the staircase, hands on hips. He looked around and then mumbled, “Damn cat.” He considered checking the attic again, but he had been up there twice already. Instead, he trudged down the stairs in search of the illusive black and white cat.
He was passing the doorway to the kitchen when he heard an unusual sound—laughter. Frowning, Harvey paused by the door, cocked his head to one side, and listened. He heard it again. But this time, the sound of feet stampeding in his direction accompanied the laugher.
Harvey moved into the kitchen and directed his attention to the boarded up window. He leaned toward the plywood and peeked through a knothole, looking into the backyard. To his surprise, he found four teenage boys standing on the other side of the window frame.
He surmised they had entered through the vacant lot behind Presley House and had climbed over the wooden fence separating the two properties. The lot behind him had not always been vacant. At one time, there was a house, but it had burned down years earlier and since that time, no one had rebuilt.
“Max, you really need to come out and see this,” Harvey mumbled. “Or maybe you shouldn’t. Is that why you’re in hiding? You saw them coming? Smart cat. Yes, you better stay put. We don’t want one of these nasty boys carrying you off. Or doing what mean boys do, stuffing you in a sack and tossing you in the ocean.”
Brad Miller used the claw end of his hammer to pry the plywood off the window opening while his buddies kept watch for nosey neighbors. Normally, no one would notice them entering from the rear of the property, but considering the time of year, people in this neighborhood tended to be on alert for any suspicious activity. The last thing Brad needed was to get busted and end up grounded for Halloween, which would mean today’s escapade was for nothing.
Brad cursed when the hammer slipped and smashed his right thumb. He shoved the injured digit in his mouth and looked back at his friends. Kevin clutched a sack to his chest, while Curt and Jeff looked around nervously. Brad wasn’t sure if they were afraid of being caught by one of the neighbors or afraid of encountering the legendary ghost of Presley House. Since everyone knew ghosts only came out at night, Brad wasn’t too concerned about running into one on Saturday morning. That was of course, if he actually believed in ghosts—which he didn’t. However, he wasn’t so sure what his friends believed, considering their troubled expressions.
“Stop sucking your thumb and get that board off!” Kevin hissed. His eyes darted around nervously.
“You could help me!” Brad snapped. “They used a million nails on this stupid thing.”
Kevin reached out, snatched the hammer from Brad, and then shoved the sack at him.
Brad accepted the sack and continued sucking his sore thumb. He watched Kevin, who now wrestled with the plywood.
“Crap, you weren’t kidding about this,” Kevin huffed as he persistently tugged on a stubborn nail with the hammer.
“Not sure why we had to do this today. Halloween isn’t until next Friday,” Jeff said.
“It’s either today or tomorrow,” Kevin grunted as he wedged the hammer’s claw end between the window frame and the plywood.
“Unless we come over here at night, which you guys didn’t want to do,” Brad reminded.
“I can’t believe none of you have ever been in here before.” Kevin loosened one end of the board from the window frame.
“Well, neither have you!” Curt spat.
“Well, duh, I moved here nine months ago. You guys have lived here all your lives.” Kevin moved the claw end of the hammer to the other side of the plywood.
“We were going to last year. In fact Jeff broke this window,” Curt boasted.
“Yeah, but don’t say that too loudly.” Jeff looked around, half expecting some nosey neighbor to jump out of the bushes. “Anyway, you g
uys were there too.”
“So what happened? Why didn’t you get inside?” Kevin asked.
“One of the neighbors appeared out of nowhere,” Brad explained.
“Out of nowhere?” Kevin chuckled.
“Not really out of nowhere. It just seemed that way. She was out walking her dog; I guess she heard the glass break. Brad saw her running back to her house. We figured she was going to call the cops. So we took off.”
“Was this at night?” Kevin asked.
“Yeah. The day before Halloween. But we never got inside.” Brad explained, looking down to the sack.
“This is going to be so awesome on YouTube.” Curt grinned. “Best prank ever. That lame Hell Raiser gang thinks they are so tough!”
“They’re gunna run like crying little girls when we’re done with them.” Jeff laughed. “And everyone in school will get to see it!”
“Yeah, well they won’t if we can’t get inside.” Kevin tossed the hammer to the ground. “Come on guys; help me loosen this some more. All we need is enough room to squeeze in the window.”
Inside Presley House, Harvey silently watched as a sneaker clad foot wiggled its way through the slim opening between the loosened board and the window frame. The four teenage boys each took turns wedging through the tight opening, each landing with a thud in the darkened kitchen. The room’s only light came from slivers of sunlight peeking through the edges around the ill-fitted board covering the window.
In each boy’s hand was a flashlight, which they immediately turned on when entering the house. The boys waved the flashlights around, sending streaks of white light along the walls and ceiling of the dusty room.
“Sort of stinks in here,” Curt said.
“What did you expect?” Brad asked as he set his flashlight on the counter and proceeded to empty the sack.
“Are we going to set it up in here?” Jeff asked, no longer exploring the room with his flashlight. His friends all stopped waving their lights and gathered around Brad.
“I just want to make sure we have everything,” Brad explained.
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