by Blythe Baker
“But I don’t want to leave him just anywhere,” I would say. I’d insist on a tour of the facility and look for any telltale money laundering signs. I wasn’t sure what those would be but I was sure I’d know them when I saw them.
It had only taken me five seconds to load the cage into the car, but somehow it had now morphed and shifted into an awkward monolith that was nearly impossible to retrieve from the back seat. I grunted, yanked and pulled until I finally dislodged the cage. I took the cover off and inspected Moonshine.
“Breakfast, Lazy,” he greeted me.
“Oh, Moonshine, this might be the end for you and me,” I said, surprised to feel a little sad about it.
“Rawk! Stupid!”
My resolve hardened and I said, “But that’s a chance I’m willing to take.”
I puffed a few strands of hair away from my face, lifted the cage and began walking. Although there was a parking spot right in front of Paw’s Place, I didn’t think it would be smart to park there. Instead, I opted for a spot down the block, off the alley.
Finally, I got to the pet shop and looked in the window. There were signs for collars and leashes, a display of rawhide chewies and catnip infused cat toys, and a bin of fluffy guinea pigs.
I pulled the door open and set off a couple of jingly bells.
The place was clean, with several birdcages to the left. To the right were rows of fish tanks. Down the center and to the back of the store was the counter. Behind the counter was the proprietor. He had a bearded dragon draped happily over his right shoulder while his left hand was in a tank with two turtles. He was having a quiet conversation with the reptiles, as approached.
There was no sign of the animal loving older woman who I had imagined would be the face of the false front. The person in charge of Paw’s Place was both large and muscular. He weighed three hundred pounds if he weighed an ounce. His head was bald as a cue ball. The tallest birdcage in the place was suspended on a stand that reached at least six feet and he could easily see into it. As I walked in carrying Moonshine, I felt the man’s beady eyes studying me.
Studying him back, I gulped.
“Hi,” I said nervously. I had thought he was wearing long sleeves but they turned out to be tattoos. They completely covered his arms in flames, skulls, and the face of an English bulldog that was so detailed I was sure it would jump off his skin and bite me. It said “Maverick R.I.P”.
“Can I help you?” the man asked, his eyes squinted.
“Hello handsome,” Moonshine replied, apparently willing to turn on the charm for anybody but me.
“Well, hello, pretty birdie.” The man stooped to look into Moonshine’s cage. “Aren’t you an angel?”
He stuck his finger into the cage.
Now he’d get it, I thought. Surely there’d be a nip from that razor sharp beak.
But Moonshine did no such thing. Instead, he affectionately rubbed his head on the man’s finger.
“This is Moonshine,” I said, “and my name is Maddie Morgan. As much as I hate to do it, I have to find another home for my bird because I’ll be taking care of a sick relative. I was wondering if I could donate him to your store?”
Even as the words tumbled out of my mouth, I was starting to feel a seed of remorse take root. Should I do this?
“Well, it’s nice to meet you Moonshine. Miss Morgan.” He stood up straight and smiled a big, toothy grin. “I’m Calvin Rute. We don’t normally take birds as donations.”
“I understand, but I didn’t know what else to do with him.”
I tried to look less nervous, but I was finding it hard to connect this man’s obviously gentle nature toward the animals with his possible criminal background. Okay, so I didn’t know yet that he was a criminal or that he had been involved in Mamma Jackie’s kidnapping, but I was here precisely because he could be.
“Birds are really quite independent, especially this particular breed,” he said. “The only real chore is cleaning out the birdcage. I have a very interesting product over here.”
He squeezed out from behind the counter, leading me to the left half of the store. The bearded dragon clinging to his shoulder looked on proudly, as if he understood Calvin to be his trusty steed.
“They’re called Cage Cozies. These pads unfold and adjust themselves to the size of the cage. Then, when it’s time to clean out the droppings, you just pinch it by the corners. It folds and traps the droppings inside. No mess.”
“That’s great.” I saw a door that read “No Admittance” and tried to inch my way closer to it. “But I’m afraid it isn’t up to me. You see, my relative won’t have animals of any kind in her house. She’s a little on the particular side.”
“Hello, handsome,” Moonshine chirped again.
Calvin chuckled.
“Can’t you just take the bird and sell him?” I asked hopefully. “I don’t want any money. I just want to know that he’ll eventually get a loving home.”
“I’m not sure about this, Miss Morgan. Birds carry germs that can affect other birds. Although Moonshine looks healthy, there would be no guarantee. I have my business to think about.”
“Please? If you can’t take him, I don’t know what will happen to him.”
That was it. I saw Calvin’s eyes drop and his mind start working.
“Would it help if I held him for two weeks? You could make arrangements in two weeks?” he asked hopefully. “I’ll keep him here for the time being. He can make some friends.”
“Mr. Rute, I would be grateful,” I gushed.
But when he reached for the cage handle, I pulled back. “Just one last thing.”
Calvin looked at me suspiciously.
“If he’s going to stay here, I’d like to make sure that he’ll be comfortable. I’d like to see around the premises please.”
“I can’t do that,” he said, looking surprised. “No one is allowed in the back rooms.”
“Not even just a quick look around the place?” I raised my eyebrows, the universal gesture of con artists everywhere. His voice and demeanor made me sure he was trying to hide something.
Just then, a huge ruckus came from behind the door with the “No Admittance” sign.
“Wait here, Miss Morgan. I’ll be right back,” was all Calvin said, as he turned and hurried through the “No Admittance” door, leaving it open.
I heard dogs barking and assumed they had a few puppies back there and probably a couple of kittens, too. With Moonshine’s cage still in my hands, I tiptoed to the door and peeked through it. It looked like there was an office to the immediate right. The hallway was lined with empty cages and some bags of dog and cat food stacked high.
I slipped through the door and ducked into the office. Quickly, I scanned the contents of a desk near the wall. Was there anything that looked like a lead? Anything at all?
“Dog food receipts. Vet bills. Inventory lists,” I mumbled, taking in the things lying in plain sight. “Nothing that looks out of the ordinary.” I looked around the room, but there was no locked closet or doors leading out, except the one I had entered through.
My arms were screaming in pain from lugging Moonshine around. I set the cage on the floor and tiptoed to the file cabinets. Cautiously, I eased them open and began rifling through the hanging folders.
“What is it you think you’re going to find?” I asked myself. “A file marked money laundering? Maybe something that says list of possible hostages? Kidnapping?”
Carefully I shut the drawer and searched for anything that might have looked out of place or maybe, if there was a miracle, something of Mamma Jackie’s that would let me know she had been here. All I could see were binders of receipts, timecards punched with dates and times on them, calendars with dates circled and marked with notes I couldn’t read. There was one day that was circled in red. It was the day Mamma Jackie was last seen. There was some scribbling on the date. When I leaned down and squinted, it read “vet visit”.
I sighed in defeat.
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Just as I was about to take one last look on the other side of the desk, I froze. Calvin walked past the open door of the office and back into the storefront. He didn’t notice that I’d slipped in here.
My body began to feel hot and cold as sweat surged to the surface of my skin. I held my breath. What did I do now? If Calvin caught me in here snooping through these papers, I’d be trapped. If he did have Mamma Jackie, we’d be trapped together.
That was enough to propel me into action. I walked from around the desk, grabbed Moonshine’s bulky cage and walked out of the office and into the store like I had been casually looking around and had nothing to hide.
“Well, I’ve had a change of heart,” I declared loudly. “I just can’t part with this bird.”
Those words tasted slightly sour in my mouth. With as much grace as a bull in a china shop, I hoisted Moonshine’s cage up in both hands, bumping dog collars and boxes of fish food to the ground in the process, and went the long way around the store to beat Calvin to the front door.
“What do you think you’re doing? Were you in the back rooms just now?” Calvin asked, eyes wide with shock. I couldn’t say he looked mad. In fact, if I weren’t so terrified myself, I thought he might have been a little scared of me.
“Never mind, I’m leaving now!” I rushed.
“Wait a minute!”
“Bye!” I yelled, as I yanked the front door open and took off down the sidewalk. In my mind, I was running like a gazelle with the cage in one hand and car keys in the other. In reality, I was probably weaving clumsily back and forth, as I struggled with the cage, sure that Calvin was just a step or two behind me.
I finally got to my car, shoved Moonshine’s cage into the back seat, pulled the door closed behind me and dove over the front seat to get behind the wheel. I was panting, as I pressed the automatic door lock.
It didn’t take but a few precious seconds to get the car started and peel out of the parking lot into traffic. As I sped past Paw’s Place, I saw Calvin standing in the doorway, scratching his bald head.
“Well, that was a bust,” I muttered.
From the backseat, Moonshine squawked in response.
I let out a sigh. Maybe I had read Drake’s notes wrong. Or maybe he had that note in there because he wanted to buy an exotic pet. Some fish or maybe some geckos. Maybe Paw’s Place was just a pet store and Calvin was just a leathery, tattooed animal lover.
It seemed I had hit a dead end.
11
When I walked into my home, I knew the carpenters were gone already. Their truck wasn’t in the driveway. But I never expected to find what I did.
“Oh my!” I gasped.
My fake marble kitchen countertop had been installed. I ran my hand along the smooth cool surface and nearly cried. With giddy delight, I set Moonshine down and picked up my coffeepot from the floor. I placed it near an open outlet and squealed.
“It looks beautiful,” I gushed, although there was no one around to hear. “Doesn’t it look beautiful, Moonshine?”
“Breakfast, Lazy!”
I finally got Moonshine’s cage back on its stand in the front room and gave him some fresh water and food. Then I flopped down on the couch and tried to refocus.
“Maybe I’m going about this all wrong.” I pulled my hair back from my face. “Someone had to see Mamma Jackie. The woman is impossible to miss.”
If I could find the people or person who saw her last, maybe that would point me in the right direction. The only people who I knew had seen her were the folks at the community garden.
“Drake already went to see them and said nothing about it,” I reminded myself.
But then I thought again. If I knew Drake, and I did, he had probably stormed over there like a twister through a cornfield. Those folks probably took one look at him and shrugged him off. I didn’t think his hands ever touched dirt and the idea of cutting the grass or pulling a weed was something he’d pay someone else to do.
Without another thought, I grabbed my car keys and headed over to the community garden at Peet and Central to see if there was anyone around who might have seen Mamma Jackie before she disappeared.
It never ceased to amaze me how much the community garden had flourished. In my mind’s eye, I could still see the cinder blocks and old tires and broken glass that had covered this little piece of property just a short while ago. Now it really was a beautiful green oasis. I parked my car and slowly walked toward the garden, trying to see who was tending at the moment.
There was Mrs. Lustyk, who was almost a permanent fixture at the garden. She lived just a few houses down Peet Street. There was Mrs. Lopez and her husband. They also were there a couple times a week and were neighbors to the Lustyks.
The three of them waved, stopped what they were doing and came up to me.
“So sorry to hear about Mamma Jackie,” Mrs. Lustyk said. “Let us know if there’s anything we can do. She’s just such a joy.”
I cleared my throat at the unlikely description and smiled.
“I was wondering when the last time was that anyone saw her. Did you guys see her the day before yesterday?”
Mrs. Lustyk answered, “A big man in a suit was by today, asking the same question. He said Jackie was his mother.”
“Yes, that was my ex-husband,” I admitted.
“He’s a bit of a gruff fellow,” Mr. Lopez added.
“That’s a very nice way of putting it, Mr. Lopez. I would have said he was rude but that’s just me.”
All three of them admitted the last time they had seen Mamma Jackie was earlier in the week.
“But Mr. Butler was here the other day. He might have seen her.” Mrs. Lustyk pointed to a gray-haired man, who was stooping over some tomato plants, trimming off any dead leaves and making sure their vegetable cages were secure.
I thanked them for their help and walked over to Mr. Butler. I searched my mind and vaguely remembered Mamma Jackie talking once or twice about this man, so I didn’t feel like we were total strangers.
“You are Jackie’s daughter-in-law?” He smiled and his hazel colored eyes twinkled. “Well, it’s a pleasure to meet you. My name’s Gerald Butler.” He put aside his gardening tools, pulled a dirty glove from his right hand, and offered to shake.
“Jackie is a lovely woman,” he told me. “She just brightens the whole place up when she’s around. She’s also got quite an eye for antiques.” He winked at me. “There are two things I love more than anything. Gardening.” He affectionately rubbed one of the velvety tomato leaves between his thumb and forefinger. “And antiquing. I had hoped your mother-in-law would be able to join me on one of my excursions sometime to scour for treasures. We’ve got some great shops around here.”
“Well, I hope you’ll get the chance to do that sometime,” I said absently. “Mr. Butler, I heard you might have seen Mamma Jackie here the night she went missing. Was she acting strangely to you?”
“No. Like I told her son when he came asking earlier, she was here helping out, like she usually does. She sat in her lawn chair when she got tired, had a couple sips of water, and then got right back to it.”
“Sips of water?” I asked.
“Sure. We all bring our own canteens.”
I nodded my head. Poor gullible Mr. Butler. If he ever took a sip from Mamma Jackie’s canteen, he’d find she was replenishing more than electrolytes.
“So, you didn’t notice her acting differently? She wasn’t acting confused or forgetful?”
“Nope. That woman is sharp as a tack. At least, she was when I saw her. Nothing unusual at all.”
“Mr. Butler, did you see anyone loitering around, who looked like they didn’t belong? Anyone acting suspiciously?”
“Not that I can recall. I wish I had more to tell you.”
I took a deep breath and let it out slowly.
“I appreciate your help,” I said.
“Listen, would you keep us posted if you hear anything?” he asked. “We’re a
ll praying for her and hope this whole thing gets cleared up real soon.”
“Thanks, Mr. Butler. I appreciate that. Of course I’ll let you know the minute I hear anything.”
As I said good-bye, two things confused me. First, that no one could offer even the tiniest clue to point me in the right direction. Second, that everyone loved Mamma Jackie so much. It certainly wasn’t the Mamma Jackie I knew. But that was what was so troubling. Maybe I didn’t know the real Mamma Jackie. The crotchety old lady who drank on the sly and rarely changed out of her leopard printed silk pajamas long enough to do any real work didn’t seem to exist. I was the only one who ever saw that woman.
Part of me wanted to think that these people were just being nice. But there was a nagging in the back of my mind that was almost more of the truth than I was willing to accept. Maybe I had misjudged Mamma Jackie.
By the time I got home, I had sank deep into guilt. It had to be me. Mamma Jackie was abrasive with me because I was abrasive to her. I was, after all. I lost my temper. I critiqued her clothing. I called her “old woman” when I was mad at her and that was almost all the time.
“I’m horrible,” I groaned, as I walked into my house.
It was then I decided that, no matter what, I needed to find Mamma Jackie and bring her home. The sooner the better.
“I never in a million years thought those words would cross my mind,” I muttered, as I walked over to Moonshine. “You too, you dumb old bird. This is your home too.”
Moonshine squawked one of his ear-splitting screeches in response.
“I’m going to let that go because I’m feeling guilty,” I said.
I looked at the clock on the messy dining room table.