by Patricia Fry
The guard stepped up onto the deck as Michael walked toward him, reaching out for the cat. "Well, you see, sir, he wandered into Rudy's Fish Place and was evidently bothering the diners. Someone there recognized the cat and sent me up here with him."
"Oh my gosh, that's a first," Savannah said, feeling a sense of panic. "Where is this place?"
"Across town," he pointed, "—say a mile or so. Someone saw him climb off a bus just outside the restaurant."
Michael's jaw dropped. "What?"
In the meantime, Peter and Rochelle sat stunned.
"He rode a bus?" Michael asked, disbelieving. "He's never done that before. How did he…?"
Savannah walked up to Michael and put her hand on his arm. Looking sheepish, she said, quietly, "Well, yes, he has ridden a bus before." She winced. "Haven't I told you that story?"
Michael shook his head. "Honey…you've gotta be kidding me. The cat has a bus pass?"
"Yeah, I guess he does," she said. "He rides for free." She petted Rags as Michael held him, and then glanced up to see everyone looking at her, waiting to hear the story. "Well, when I lived in LA, I used to take him for walks. When I wanted to go over to Mom's or one of us got tired of walking, we'd sometimes get on a bus. He loved riding the bus. So one day, we get on the bus and the driver tells me that he had taken Rags for a ride by himself a few times."
"Oh my gosh," Rochelle said. "Where did he go?"
"Well, one time, he just rode the bus through the route and when they came back to the stop close to our place, the driver booted him out. Oh yes," she said, "he knows how to ride a bus."
By then, Peter and Rochelle were bent over laughing. The security guard attempted to stifle his amusement.
Savannah continued, "So this evening, he may have hopped on a bus at the corner and ridden for a ways. When he smelled the aroma of fish frying, he decided to get out and investigate. Gosh," she said, shaking her head. "I haven't thought about that in a long time. I would never have guessed he'd…"
"But he's not supposed to be getting out at all," Michael said. "He has evidently found a way." He addressed the cat, saying, "Sorry, buddy, but tonight, you're sleeping in the big cage." He walked into the house with Rags and disappeared.
The security guard took off his hat and rubbed one hand over his balding head. "Well, if that don't beat all," he said. "I've had a lot of experiences on this job, but never a bus-riding, escape-artist cat." He turned to leave. "Well, thanks for the chuckle," he said, as he stepped down off the deck.
"And thank you for bringing him back," Savannah called.
Once Michael had joined the others for one last good-bye, Peter said, "What an entertaining evening. Hey, you've gotta bring Rags to Frisco. He'll steal the show."
"And everything else that's not nailed down," Michael said. "I don't know, gang. It's a big responsibility taking him anywhere. Lily has better manners."
"But yeah," Savannah said. "He'll probably be with us. It is his movie debut, after all."
Other books in the Klepto Cat Mystery series
Catnapped
When Savannah Jordan agrees to help her aunt while she recovers from a broken foot, she doesn’t expect to walk into a mystery, become part of a not-quite-legal surveillance team, be kidnapped by a deranged stranger and meet a steaming hot veterinarian.
Beloved neighborhood cats are missing—the community can only guess at their fate—and Aunt Margaret’s life is being threatened. Is it because she has a clue to the missing cats or is it something more sinister? Of course, as in all of the Klepto Cat Mysteries, Rags, an ordinary cat with a most unusual habit, has a paw in saving the day.
If you like light mysteries with only a little terror, if you’re infatuated by interesting cats and if you love a love story, you must read this book.
Available at Amazon.
Cat-Eye Witness
Savannah and Aunt Margaret open the old Forster home to the Hammond Cat Alliance for a fundraiser to help rehabilitate the abused horses rescued months earlier from the catnappers.
Before the afternoon is over, the collected funds go missing and someone is murdered in an upstairs bedroom.
Suspicion surrounds Iris, a local waitress and Savannah’s new best friend. The only witness to the murder is Rags, Savannah’s cat. With the assistance of a cat psychic and Rags’s good friend, Charlotte (the young girl with Downs), the cat helps to “paw” the killer…but not before an attempt is made on Rags’s life. The case is solved only after Rags comes face-to-face with the killer for the second time.
Detective Craig Sledge is new to this book, as is Damon, Iris’s errant son. Sledge finds this to be one of the muddiest cases he has ever worked, with inconsistent clues and no apparent motive. He’s constantly surprised, perplexed and impressed by the cat’s uncanny ability to come up with clues he has missed. His fascination with the attractive Iris Clampton also mystifies the detective.
In this story, one of the rescued horses goes into labor and there’s a night of high drama
at the ole corral as veterinarians Savannah and Michael work to save the foal. This experience renews Savannah’s deep interest in horses and riding, which ultimately serves to help her bond with a very important surprise character who finds his way into her life and Michael’s just as they prepare to say their wedding vows.
While Rags is the animal star, he isn’t the only animal featured in this story. Layla is back in all of her tangerine feline beauty. And Rags makes friends with Buffy, a perky almost Himalayan cat and the inseparable duo, Walter, an all black cat and his sidekick, Lexie, a charming Afghan mix dog. Savannah’s new ride, Peaches, also debuts in this story. An incident with this mare adds another dimension to Savannah’s and Michael’s relationship. Can he hold her with open arms?
Some say this is a love story with a mystery in the background. And it’s a story of family and friendship as newlyweds Margaret and Max continue to be a meaningful part of Savannah’s and Michael’s world.
Available at Amazon.
Sleight of Paw
In this story, Michael Ivey, the local veterinarian (Savannah’s new husband) is attacked by an enraged client and then later accused of this man’s murder. The evidence quickly stacks up against Michael, until Rags, Savannah’s kleptomaniac cat, starts digging up clues implicating the unlikely suspect.
Coinciding with the details of this challenge is the discovery that the old house, which the couple purchased from Savannah’s aunt, is cursed. Is this why the couple has not been blessed with a child?
Savannah’s sister Brianna comes for a visit. She teams up with the Iveys’ vet tech, Bud, to discover how to break the gypsy spell and they fall hard for each other. Will their courtship be strengthened or weakened by a frightening carjacking incident?
Detective Craig Sledge is prominent in this story as the lead investigator in the murder case. As usual, he engages in some creative tactics to get the information and the confessions he’s after. He has also become embedded in Savannah’s friend, Iris’s family. He’s dating Iris and helping with her son, Damon’s rehabilitation in prison. If you read the 2nd in the series, you know that Rags (the cat) helped to put Damon in jail.
Available at Amazom.
Undercover Cat
A popular local journalist goes missing just before she has the opportunity to turn in her story exposing unscrupulous cat hoarders. Not only is Colbi a friend of Savannah’s and Michael’s, Damon (now out of prison and employed by the local newspaper) has a strong personal interest in her. In fact, Damon breaks some rules and some trusts in his search for Colbi.
Is this a love connection? It’s doubtful because Colbi is a strong advocate for the feral cat population and Damon hates cats—or so he believes.
Colbi’s rescue is almost too late. She needs time to heal both physically and emotionally. So the Iveys invite her to recuperate in their home. Just when Colbi begins to feel safe, a body is discovered in the Iveys’ orchard and Rags (their kleptomaniac cat) goe
s missing. Can someone in a nearby homeless camp shed some light on the evolving mystery?
Available at Amazon.
The Colony Cat Caper
Savannah Ivey, a veterinarian out on maternity leave; her aunt Margaret, the founder of the Hammond Cat Alliance; and Colbi Stanton, a reporter for the local newspaper take on a cat colony at an old, abandoned building. Odd activity around the place makes them wonder if it actually is vacant; some believe it’s occupied by something other-worldly.
When a stranger comes to town and suggests the Alliance open the old building to a fund-raiser, everyone gets involved, including Rags, Savannah’s kleptomaniac cat. He finds something that day that stirs a lot of people—both law-abiding and crooks—into action. Are the feral cats and their caretakers in serious danger? What (or who) lurks inside the old building? What secrets does it hide? And who has the key that unlocks the mystery?
Available at Amazon.
The Celebrity Cat Caper
Rags, the kleptomaniac cat, opens up a whole new bag of tricks, when he becomes a therapy cat in a children's reading program. A documentary film crew arrives to capture the cat in action and they get more than they bargained for. Find out how Rags handles his sudden celebrity status.
In this story, Savannah and Michael Ivey invite strangers into their home during a torrential rainstorm and learn that one of them has a sinister past. Someone is murdered, Savannah is stalked, Michael's life is threatened, and Rags helps to uncover an old mystery that, until now, has everyone baffled.
The Iveys' baby Lily is three-and-a-half-months old and, along with nine-year-old Adam, provides some sweet and warm moments throughout this fast-moving story with many twists and turns.
Avalable at Amazon
The Corral Cat Caper features a lot of horse energy. It's rich in adventure of the feline as well as equine sort. In one scene, Rags attempt to save their sweet kitty, Buffy, from a catnapper and Savannah helplessly watches this drama unfold via a surveillance camera app on her phone.
This story is full of sweet and evil surprises, unexpected twists and turns, and plenty of action and adventure.
Available at Amazon
Coming early spring 2015
Mansion of Meows (Book Nine)
Rags's documentary is scheduled to debut. The showing will take place at the investor's San Francisco mansion, where the Ivey family and film crew will stay. Of course, the mansion holds secrets and Rags is instrumental in letting the cats out of the bag.
Savannah and Aunt Margaret share another daring adventure and, of course, find themselves in deeper than they expected.
This mystery may be the most eerie in the Klepto Cat Mystery series.
Table of Contents
The Gallery Cat CaperA Klepto Cat Mystery Volume 8 Author: Patricia Fry ISBN: 978-0-9908313-0-3
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Other books in the Klepto Cat Mystery seriesCatnapped