GALLERY CAT CAPER, THE

by Patricia Fry

  Savannah reached up and patted Michael on the shoulder. "You must be exhausted. I think Adam took you on every ride at the park."

  "Yeah, I did things I never thought I'd do as an adult," he said. He tuned into his own thoughts for a moment before saying, "It's interesting how, when you have children, you revert back to your own childhood. In fact, today I did things I never had the opportunity to do as a kid." Michael looked back at Savannah in the rearview mirror. "Is that your phone, hon?" he asked.

  "Yes," she said, looking at the screen. "It's my sister. Hi Bri, what's up? You guys coming down?"

  "Hi, Sis. Yeah, we're heading that way now."

  "Tonight?" Savannah asked.

  "Uh-huh. We're stopping in Santa Barbara or Ventura overnight and we'll show up in the morning around nine or ten."

  "Great! We're looking forward to seeing you. We're on our way home from Disneyland."

  "Cool. So you're having a good time?"

  "Wonderful. Weather's super. House is perfect. Can't wait to share it all with you. Oh, Bri, what day are you heading back?"

  "Want to get rid of us already?" Brianna asked, laughing.

  "No. We're just trying to figure a way to get Adam home. His folks have some family plans later in the week."

  "We have to leave Wednesday. Will that work?" Brianna asked. "We'd be happy to give Adam a lift."

  Savannah smiled. "Great. Sure appreciate it—I know Marci and Eric do, too."

  "Can't wait. I love spending time with that kid."

  "See you tomorrow. Hey, did you pack a nice dress? We're going to a fancy show for Peter tomorrow night."

  Savannah heard silence on the other end of the phone. Finally Brianna said, "Uh, no, did you tell me that? If so, I forgot."

  "I guess I forgot, too. No problem, we'll go shopping."

  "Okay. See you tomorrow, then."

  ****

  The next morning, Peter strolled into the main part of the house around nine and found Michael and Adam on the deck munching on cookies and drinking milk.

  "Milk and cookies for breakfast?" he asked, when he joined them.

  "Yeah, want some?" Michael offered.

  "Sure do. Thanks." He addressed Adam: "So you liked Disneyland, did you?"

  The boy's face lit up. "Yes, it was awesome!"

  "Good morning," Savannah said, yawning as she joined the others on the deck with Lily in her arms. "Why didn't you wake me? I missed the sunrise."

  "Sorry, hon; figured you'd like to sleep in. You have a big day planned."

  "Sure do—what time tonight and where?" Savannah asked Peter.

  "I'll have the driver pick us up at seven."

  "Driver?" Savannah asked.

  "Yes, we're arriving by limo." Peter looked at Michael and then Savannah. "Blake will be with us tonight."

  Savannah smiled. "Oh, good. I'd like to meet her."

  "My phone," Peter said, edging it out of his pocket. He walked away to answer it. When he returned, he said, "Well, that's just darn weird."

  "What?" Savannah and Michael asked.

  "Whales!" Adam hollered. "Look, a bunch of whales!"

  Michael laughed. "No, those are dolphins, Son. They come to visit us most mornings. Cool, aren't they? Sometimes they ride the waves like surfers."

  "Can I go down to the beach and look at them closer?" the boy asked, excitedly.

  "Sure. Take the binoculars, if you want."

  "Okay," he said, grabbing them off a nearby table. "Can Lexie go with me?"

  "Uh…yes," Michael said, reaching for her leash and handing it to the boy.

  "Come on, Lexie," Adam said, rushing with her down the steps and onto the beach.

  "What a whirlwind of energy, that son of mine," Michael said, chuckling. He then focused on Peter. "So everything okay?"

  He frowned. "No. That was Dawna. She wanted to give me a heads-up before I came in—said sales were slow yesterday. That doesn't make sense," he said. "There was a big convention going on and one of their tour stops was my gallery. I spent a lot on an advertisement in their program. Should have sold $10,000 at the very least. Dawna said sales amounted to less than $2,000. Man, that's a blow." He ran his hand through his black hair. "What is going on? I've had as much as $30,000 in paintings go out the door when we've done this sort of promotion." He sighed deeply. "Well, it leaves me more paintings to display at the mansion this evening, I guess. Hopefully, some of them will sell there."

  "Gosh, that's bizarre," Michael said. "Maybe sales were down yesterday because you weren't there—people would rather buy from the artist."

  "I don't think that's it. Dawna was on the floor yesterday and she's an amazing salesperson. I've watched her turn a casual browser into the owner of one of my paintings. She's got what it takes. Kara, too. She's young, but she does a good job in sales."

  "Maybe you pegged the group wrong," Savannah suggested.

  "What?" Peter asked.

  "Could be that the folks attending that convention don't have money or the type of homes for art like yours."

  "Naw, that's not it. These were corporate leaders. Oh yes, they have the means." He shook his head. "Well, I'd better get down to the gallery and survey the damages. See you this evening at seven if not before."

  "Can I take Rags for a walk, now?" Adam asked, bounding up the steps to the deck with Lexie.

  Michael and Savannah looked at each other. "Yeah, I guess," she said. "I don't know if he's ever walked on sand."

  "Well, yes, he has," Michael said, grinning. "He walks in sand every day."

  Savannah looked confused and then she exclaimed, "Oh, I guess he does! You mean in his litter box." She handed the baby to Michael. "I'll go get his harness and leash."

  "What do you want for breakfast?" Gladys asked, joining the others on the deck.

  "Morning, Mom. Sleep well?"

  "Really good," she said. "I'm not used to traipsing all over a theme park like that. I was so tired, I thought I'd sleep for a week."

  "Sorry, Gladys; was it too much?" Michael asked. "Didn't mean to wear you out."

  Her eyes widened. "No, I had a great time. It was a good tired. No, Michael, I wouldn't have missed it for the world."

  Well, good, then," he said. "Breakfast? Adam and I've been munching on those cookies Peter's housekeeper made and washing them down with milk. Anyway, we didn't invite you here to wait on us."

  "Don't mind a bit. I miss cooking for my family." She giggled a little, as if she had a secret, saying, "I'm having fun in that big kitchen with all those gadgets."

  Savannah returned from the house with Rags in his harness, handed the leash to Adam, and told him, "Stay where we can see you."

  "Okay." He looked up at her. "That means where I can see you, right?"

  "Right, buddy," Michael said.

  "How about a veggie omelet, or do you want blueberry pancakes?" Gladys asked.

  "The omelet sound good to me," Michael said, glancing at Savannah.

  "Perfect," she said. "I'll help, Mom. Michael, do you want to feed Lily her cereal and applesauce?"

  "Sure do," he said, smiling at the baby. He set her in her chair and began feeding her the mixture Savannah handed him.

  After Gladys and Savannah carried the omelets and toast out to the umbrella table, Savannah walked to the edge of the deck to look for Adam. She saw a group of people gathered a short distance away, and shaded her eyes and squinted in that direction. "Michael," she said, "Adam seems to have a crowd around him. Why don't you go check and see what's going on—have him come eat his breakfast, would you?"

  When Michael approached the group of about eight people, he spotted Adam and Rags among them. Everyone seemed to be staring down at the cat. Some were snapping pictures with their cell phones.

  "Hi, Dad," Adam said. "Rags is famous!"

  Before Michael could respond, he heard, "Hi there, Michael."

  "Oh, Sydney…Glenn, hi." He looked around at the others. "What's going on?"

  "Just introducing
Rags to my family," Sydney said. "They've never met a celebrity cat before."

  "Yeah Dad, Sydney hid a dollar and Rags dug it up." He leaned toward Michael as if sharing a secret. "I think he's showing off."

  "Yes, he does like an audience," Michael said, chuckling. "Hey, buddy, it's time for breakfast. Wanna bring the world-famous cat back to the house?"

  "Okay," he said. "Come on Rags."

  "Hey, cool cat," a teen among the group said. "He's not even afraid of the water."

  "Maybe you could teach him to surf and get rich showing his video on YouTube," one young woman suggested. "Rags could go viral."

  "Thanks for sharing," another one called out.

  "You're welcome. Glad you enjoyed him," Michael said, turning and walking with Adam and the cat back to the house.

  "Hey, Bri and Bud are here!" Adam said as they approached the deck. "Hi!" he called out. "I'm taking Rags for a walk."

  "Hi there, cutie," Brianna said, walking to the edge of the deck to greet Adam and Michael. "Great place, Michael," she said, hugging him briefly.

  "Welcome to our dream vacation, Bri," he said.

  "Say hello to Rags," Adam prompted.

  "Hi, old boy. Been in any trouble lately?" she asked, ruffling the fur on the cat's head.

  "He's escaped twice, so far," Savannah said, walking up behind her sister.

  "Hi Bud," Michael greeted. "Everything okay at the clinic?"

  "No problems there," he said. "It's been fairly quiet, actually."

  "That's good. Glad you could get away. How do your folks manage out at the ranch when you're gone?"

  "They do okay. They hired a couple of hands when I went full-time at the clinic, so my chores at the place have diminished some."

  "Did you eat? Want a veggie omelet?" Gladys asked the couple.

  "Sounds wonderful," Brianna said.

  Bud nodded.

  Once everyone had eaten, Savannah announced, "Bri and I are going shopping. Anyone want to come with us?"

  Michael looked at Adam and winked. "Want to go shopping, buddy?"

  The boy looked down and glanced quickly up at Michael and then Savannah. "Um…"

  "Well, I don't," Michael said. "I want to stay here and maybe do some boogie-boarding and body-surfing and play Frisbee."

  Adam's face brightened into a wide smile. "Me, too. That's what I want to do."

  "Sound good?" Michael asked Bud.

  "Hey, I'm in," he said.

  "What about you, Mom?" Savannah asked.

  She thought for a moment and said, "I think I'll just hang out here with Lilliana. You don't want to drag her all over town after our big day at Disneyland, do you?"

  "Probably not," Savannah agreed. "If that's what you want to do, that would be great."

  "Truly it is. I'm enjoying being a grandmamma, and I have a couple of books on my Kindle for when she takes her nap," Gladys said.

  Savannah looked at Brianna. "I guess it's just you and me."

  "Cool. Sistah time. When do you want to go?"

  "Well, I promised Adam we'd build a sand castle this morning." She punched her sister in the arm playfully and said, "How about let's get sandy, then we can clean up around noon and head out for the shops."

  Brianna smiled. "Great, I'll go put on my suit."

  "Oh yes, let me show you to your room," Savannah offered, looping her arm in her sister's.

  Brianna motioned to Bud. "Come on, babe. Bring our bags, would you?"

  "An ocean view!" Brianna exclaimed.

  "Cool," Bud said.

  Brianna looked around. "And our own little deck and attached bath. I love it! I also like that little fish print on the bedspread. Makes me feel like a kid again."

  A short time later, Brianna emerged from the house. "Bri, you look good in that suit," Savannah said. "I love it on you. And by the way, I like your hair straightened like that."

  "Yeah, but I'll be curly by noon in this ocean air," she complained.

  "You were meant to have curls," Gladys snapped, "yet, you've always fought them." She stepped back and studied her younger daughter for a moment. "Honey, you look like I did when I was young. You still have a nice figure, which isn't easy when you're built like we are."

  Brianna smirked in Savannah's direction. "Yeah, then there's skinny Minnie, stilt-woman."

  "Come on, it's not always easy being taller than everyone else," Savannah said. "It's hard to find slacks long enough in my size. Tall women can look kind of awkward and disjointed."

  Brianna laughed. "Yeah, but you can reach things we can't reach, see over heads in a crowd, break through the finish line first with those long legs…"

  Savannah sighed. "I guess we all have our assets and our shortcomings. I mean, you have the beautiful Brannon skin. I have freckles and stick-straight hair."

  "Oh boo-hoo. You wouldn't know what to do with curly hair if you had it. It's a hassle, I'm telling you."

  "Not if you just let it go natural," Gladys said. She gave her daughter a disgusted look. "But you interfere with nature by straightening it."

  "Are you guys mad at each other?" Adam asked, wide-eyed.

  The three women turned toward him and noticed a look of concern on his face.

  "No," Savannah said, laughing. "We're just having a…"

  "Family discussion," Brianna said, smiling.

  Adam continued to look confused. When he glanced at his father, Michael winked at him, saying, "It's a girl thing."

  "Okay." He looked up at Savannah expectantly. "Are you ready to build a sand castle?"

  "Sure am," Savannah said. She glanced at her mother. "Are you going to help us?"

  Gladys thought about the invitation for a moment. "I might bring the baby down and watch you."

  "Here, I'll carry a chair for you," Savannah offered.

  An hour and a half later, the three women walked back up the deck steps with Adam.

  "You should have seen it, Dad," Adam said. "It was awesome and then a wave came and wrecked the whole thing."

  "Well, I have a surprise for you, buddy," Michael said.

  "What?"

  "I took pictures of it. Wanna see?"

  "Yeah!" Adam shouted. "Hey, Dad's got pictures! Come look, Savannah, Aunt Bri, Grandma."

  "It's a video, actually," Michael said. He pushed a few buttons on his phone. "Are you ready for this?"

  "Yeah!" Adam said.

  Brianna cringed. "Oh, I'm afraid to look."

  "Drum roll. Here it is," Michael said, handing his phone to Adam.

  The three women stood behind the boy and stared into the screen.

  "Hey, there it is," Adam said. "Awesome! And we didn't even know you were taking pictures of us, Dad."

  "Yeah, thanks a lot," Brianna said, sarcastically, pulling her cover-up tighter around herself.

  "There you are, Aunt Bri, trying to get that seaweed decoration out of the water," Adam said, laughing.

  "Yeah, from the back. Lordy, Michael, I owe you one," she said, scowling.

  Savanna chuckled. "Oh, you look cute."

  Suddenly, Brianna began to laugh. "So do you, Sis. Real cute." She roared with laughter. "I see what you mean about being awkward."

  "Huh?" Savannah asked, looking at the phone screen. "Michael!" she scolded. "What were you thinking? Erase that this minute," she demanded.

  "Wait," Bud said, "I want to see it."

  Savannah put her hand over the phone screen. "Just you never mind."

  Adam giggled. "It was pretty funny, Savannah, when that wave knocked you down."

  "Yes," Brianna said, "it certainly was."

  "How'd I miss that?" Gladys asked.

  "Just never mind," Savannah said. "Now, Bri, if you want to go shopping with me, you'd better be in the living room in fifteen minutes."

  "Fifteen minutes?" Brianna complained.

  "Sharp," Savannah said.

  "Here Vannie, tell your daughter goodnight," Gladys said, holding the baby toward her. "I'll feed her and put her down for her
nap."

  Savannah took the baby from her mother and hugged and kissed her. She blew raspberries on her neck and made her giggle. She then kissed the baby's chubby hands and said, before handing Lily back to her grandmother, "'Bye my angel. Mommy loves you."

  Brianna tweaked the baby's toes, saying, "You are such a doll baby." She kissed Lily on the cheek and then let out a yelp. "Let go!" she said. "Let go!"

  Savannah and Gladys began to laugh as they attempted to pry the baby's chubby hands from around strands of Brianna's hair. "No, no, Lily," Savannah said between fits of laughter.

  Once Brianna was free of the baby's grip, Gladys said, still laughing, "I guess she was trying to help you straighten it back out."

  "Or she wants your curls," Savannah said. She looked more closely at her sister's hair. "It is getting curly, isn't it? That's from the damp air?"

  "Yup, humidity is my enemy," Brianna said, pulling on some of the strands that were starting to kink.

  "Maybe for your hair," Savannah said, "but it does wonders for your skin."

  ****

  By twelve thirty, Savannah and Brianna had walked to the nearest shopping district in the beach community.

  "This is so quaint," Brianna said. "I love it." She looked at her sister. "So what am I looking for? What are you wearing?"

  "My little black dress with pearls," Savannah said.

  Brianna cast her eyes downward. "Oh."

  "What's wrong?" Savannah asked.

  "I'll never look as good as you, no matter what I try on," she whined. She exaggerated a pout. "This is going to be an absolute disaster."

  Savannah sighed. "Now that's no way to approach a shopping trip." She looped her arm through Brianna's and led her into the closest store. "Come on, let's check out this place."

  After they'd looked at practically everything on the racks in Brianna's size, they walked out. They entered the next store and had the same experience.

  "You're too fussy," Savannah said.

  "I don't see anything that's me," Brianna complained.

  Savannah sighed impatiently. "Well, I think there's only one more dress shop. If you don't find something you like here, we can get in the car and head for the mall. What designers do you usually wear?"

  "I don't know—whatever fits and I'm comfortable in. Oh look," she said, pointing to a dress on display in another store window. "I like that one."