by Fry,Patricia
“Good lord. What kind of people have moved in next door, anyway?”
“Good people, for the most part,” Savannah said defensively.
“Well, the only one we’ve spent any time with is Kira and she’s just a child. What do we really know about her parents and this uncle who got himself killed?” he asked.
Savannah gazed at him. “Not much. But I can say with certainty that those people are hurting. Michael, they just lost a family member. I feel like I should offer my condolences—maybe take them a casserole or something.”
“Now, hon…” Michael started.
“How can I not?” she challenged. Rushing toward the kitchen, she muttered, “I have a tamale pie in the freezer. I’ll take that over.”
“Savannah, wait,” Michael said, gently grasping her arm. “Look at me, hon.” Once she faced him, he continued, “They probably just learned of his death—or maybe they haven’t even gotten word, yet. I suggest you wait until tomorrow or the next day to visit the family. I’m sure they don’t expect neighbors so soon after their loss. They probably want their privacy. Wouldn’t you?”
“I guess.”
“Now, let’s have supper and spend a quiet evening at home. Okay?”
She nodded. “You’re probably right.” She stood quietly for a moment before saying, “I’ll heat the Texas hash from last night and make a salad. Okay with you?”
“Sure.” He pulled her to him and held her tightly for a few seconds. Suddenly, something caught his eye. “What’s she doing?”
“Who?” Savannah asked. When she noticed Lily sitting under the dining room table, she squinted in her direction. “Yes, what is she doing?” She approached the baby. “Lily, what do you have there, sweet pea?” Suddenly she shouted, “My pendant!” She took it from the toddler and glanced around. “Lily, where did you get this?”
“Look, there’s more,” Michael said, getting down on his hands and knees near where the child sat. “Here’s another necklace and that bead bracelet you were looking for last week.”
She gasped. “Oh, my gosh. How…? Where…?” she stammered, taking the items from Michael.
In the meantime, he crawled around, peering under furniture and pulling up the area rug. When he noticed Buffy and Walter watching the activity, he asked them: “Do you know where this stuff came from?” He scratched Walter on the neck and ran his hand over Buffy’s lush fur. “Come on, spill it,” he joked. When he saw Lily crawl past him toward a large dark-blue pot that held a silk ficus tree, he said, “Oh, so that’s the secret hiding place, is it?”
“Where?” Savannah asked eagerly.
Just then, Lily leaned into the pot and pulled out a freshwater pearl earring. She held it toward Michael. “Pretty,” she chirped.
“When’s the last time you looked in this pot?” Michael asked.
Savannah shrugged. “Maybe never. But you’d think Helena would see those things when she takes the plant outside and washes it.”
“Unless Rags just discovered this great hiding spot,” Michael reasoned. He scooped up all of the items he could find and handed them to Savannah. “Better keep a lock on that jewel box.” He chuckled. “Or handcuffs on your cat.”
She laughed. “Yeah, paw-cuffs.”
“Now what’s this?” Michael asked, examining something he held between his fingers.
“What?” she asked.
He looked up at her and asked in a serious tone, “Hon, where did you get this plant?”
She thought for a moment, finally saying, “Oh, Auntie left it here when she got married and moved in next door with Max. Why?”
“Do you know where she got it?”
Savannah shook her head. “No. I don’t recall her telling me that. Why, Michael?” she asked, impatiently. “What is that?”
“A slug,” he said.
She made a face. “A slug? Like a snail?”
“No. I bullet. A spent bullet.” As if deep in thought, he added, “Now where do you suppose that came from?”
****
“You’re brooding,” Michael said, kissing Savannah on top of the head when he entered the kitchen the following morning and found her staring into her coffee mug.
She jumped a little, sprinkled a few more pieces of fruit into Lily’s bowl, and encouraged her to use her spoon. “I was just thinking about Kira and how the news of her uncle might affect her.”
Before Michael could respond, there was a knock at the kitchen door. He looked up and saw a blue bow tied around a shock of brown hair barely visible in the bottom panel of the window. “I think that’s her now,” he said, heading for the door.
“Kira,” Savannah said, “come in, honey. You look pretty—all ready for school?”
The nine-year-old stepped into the kitchen and stood just inside the door. When Lexie approached, she petted the dog, then looked around the room. “Where’s Rags?”
Savannah winced. “I’m afraid he ran away from home again. We don’t know where he is.”
Kira stared at Savannah for a moment as if she wasn’t quite sure what to say. Finally she uttered, “I don’t want to go to school today.”
“Oh?” Savannah paused, then said, “Kira, come sit down here. Let’s talk. Do you want a cup of cocoa?”
Kira sat next to Lily and nodded. “Yes, please.”
“I’ll get it,” Michael offered.
“I heard about what happened,” Savannah said quietly, easing into a chair near Kira’s.
The child nodded. “About my uncle? He died.”
“I know. You must feel awful.”
Kira looked up at Savannah. “Someone killed him.”
Uncertain as to how to respond, Savannah remained silent.
Dry eyed and rather trance-like, Kira continued, “He was killed and I know who did it.”
He doesn’t know I was there.” She took a quick breath and began to sob. “I can’t tell my mom. I can’t tell anyone. I don’t know what to do,” she wailed, throwing herself into Savannah’s arms.
Savannah continued to hold the child, making eye contact with Michael as he placed a cup of cocoa on the table out of Lily’s reach. Finally, she felt Kira relax a little. “Honey, do you want to talk about it? You said you saw something?” When the child didn’t respond, she said, “Kira, if you know something that will help the police find the bad guy, you have to tell.”
“No! I can’t. He’ll…” she pulled away, looked up at Savannah, and started to say something more, then turned and fled out into the early morning mist.
“Kira!” Savannah shouted, rushing to the door, but the child was already halfway home. “Oh my gosh,” Savannah said, facing Michael, her hands over her mouth. “Do you think she saw what happened? What in the world was she doing out in that field behind the park at night?” She moved toward the window, then turned back. “Maybe it happened during the day while the children were on the playground.” Her voice was quietly shrill when she said, “What if it’s someone she knows? Oh Michael, what should we do?”
He ran his hand through his straight dark-brown hair and began to pace. “I don’t know.” He gazed out the window toward the Crane property. “I just don’t know. Ordinarily I’d say we need to tell Craig, but…”
She finished his sentence, “But would we be putting the child in danger?”
“That’s what we don’t know.” He looked at his watch, then spoke more directly. “Hon, I think we should forget about what we heard this morning.” When Savannah started to protest, he said more loudly, “just for now...until we know more about what happened. Okay?”
“Okay,” she agreed. “For now.”
He studied her for a few moments, then said, “I’d better get to work. I have a couple of surgeries scheduled this morning.” His tone became more upbeat. “We’re neutering a two of Luke’s male ferals.”
After glancing once again out the window, Savannah took a deep breath, forcing herself to focus on the present. �
�So how’s he getting along at the cat ranch?”
“I’d say Luke’s in his element. He’s more outgoing now that he doesn’t feel he has to hide. He seems to enjoy working for June and Nola. They gave him one of the small bungalows on the property and he and his cat Sunbeam have set up housekeeping.”
“Oh, he gets room and board and a paycheck?”
“Yes. I guess it’s not much, but enough to help build his confidence and make him somewhat independent. He bought a secondhand bicycle, so he has transportation. June furnished a helmet and insists he wear it. She seems to enjoy being a mother-figure for the kid.”
Savannah smiled. “That’s neat. I’m so glad. And what about his schooling—do you know what the plans are?”
“He has signed up for a summer-school program at the high school campus, where he’ll join just a handful of other students for a few hours each day. It’s kind of an accelerated program where the students are required to do most of the work on their own. Nola and June will make sure he gets the work done. So far, he’s okay with it. No meltdowns, according to Nola.” Michael picked up his lightweight jacket. Before kissing Savannah goodbye, he said, “Back to Kira, why don’t you see if you can talk to her again today—or get her to talk. Try to find out what the deal is. Once we know a little more about the situation, then we can decide what we should do.”
She nodded in agreement. “I just hope she’s not in any danger in the meantime.” She pressed her lips together. “If that big tattooed fraud of a preacher she calls a father has threatened that child, I’ll…”
“You’ll what?” Michael asked.
She looked up at him. “Michael, I don’t trust him. I don’t like him. I didn’t like him from the first day I saw him and heard how he talks to his children.” She shook her head, saying under her breath, “Phony-baloney Internet preacher.”
“Now hon, what do we actually know about him? All you have is an impression, and first impressions aren’t always valid. It might not be her father she saw. You don’t know that. Don’t jump to empty conclusions.”
“Kira’s fear was no empty conclusion, Michael. That child saw something and she’s terrified. We have to find a way to help her and to keep her safe. And it’s not an empty conclusion that her father hated his wife’s brother. Remember when Kira told us that?”
Michael pulled Savannah into a hug and murmured, “I’m sure Kira will be okay. Some kids have big imaginations.” He stepped back and searched her eyes with his. “Try not to worry. There’s nothing we can do right now, anyway. Okay?” When she didn’t respond, he said, “Hey, why don’t you and Lily meet me for lunch today? Would you like that?”
She nodded. “Yes, that would be nice.” Taking a ragged breath, she quickly added, “I’d better call Colbi and see if the cats came home.” She kissed him. Her tone only slightly elevated, she said, “Thank you, hon. I’ll see you later, okay?” After checking to make sure Lily was still eating her breakfast, she placed a call to Colbi. “I’m almost afraid to ask.”
The response was immediate. “No. They didn’t come back. I checked for them nearly every hour on the hour last night—in the bathroom, out in the yard—nothing. No sign of them. Oh, Savannah, I’m so worried.” She raised her voice a little. “I’m going to call the animal shelter when they open.” She chuckled nervously as she quipped, “It could be that they got arrested.”
“Yeah, wouldn’t that be a blessing? Actually, I called the shelter yesterday afternoon. Nothing. They have my number and yours in case the renegades show up.”
“Where could they be?” Colbi asked. “Why do they do that?”
“It’s in their blood, I guess.” Sounding frustrated, Savannah added, “I don’t know. Maybe they like worrying us. I vacillate from being worried to being angry.”
“I hear you,” Colbi said. “Even little Molly’s upset.”
“Aww. Sorry to hear it. She doesn’t like being an only cat?”
“Well, she’s staying awfully close to me, like she doesn’t know quite what to do. She obviously senses that something’s wrong.” More excitedly, Colbi said, “Hey, I made flyers to put up. Want to help me do that later today—maybe during my lunch hour?”
“Yes. Absolutely. That’s a good idea,” Savannah agreed. She hesitated before asking, “What time do you go to lunch?”
“Just about anytime I want. Why, do you have something else planned? I can probably work around your schedule.”
“Okay. How about if I come to your house around 11:30? Lily will be fresh up from her nap. We’re meeting Michael for lunch, but I’m pretty sure I can get him to take a late lunch.”
“Perfect. See you at 11:30.”
“Colbi,” Savannah said before her friend could end the call, “what do you know about the murder?”
“Murder?” she asked, her voice raised.
“Yeah, it was evidently one of our neighbors they found dead Saturday—the one they thought might be Mr. Kittleman. Only I don’t know why they’d think that, since he’s much older than the victim. Maybe the body was mutilated or something.”
“Ewww, Savannah, you sound gruesome this morning. No I haven’t heard the details of that case. How do you know about it?”
“My aunt told me. She’d talked to Iris. I guess it took them a while to ID him, so I don’t even know if it’s been in the newspaper yet.”
“Gosh, that’s creepy. I’ve been away from the office so much that I don’t know what’s going on. Maybe they’ll put me on the story today. Why are you so interested?”
“Just curious, that’s all. I’ll let you get to work. See you later.”
****
It was eleven thirty-five when Savannah rapped on Colbi’s front door. “I don’t see her car,” she told Lily. “Maybe she’s not home yet.” When no one answered the door, Savannah returned to her SUV with the baby. “Let’s get your stroller out. We’re going for a walk with Aunt Colbi. Want to go for a walk?”
“Kitty,” Lily said, pointing.
“Kitty?” Savannah asked eagerly, turning to face the direction Lily pointed. But when she saw that it was a black cat, she said, “Yes, that’s a kitty, all right, but not our kitty. It must live next door.” Addressing the cat, she murmured, “Hi, kitty. You haven’t seen any of your kind on the lam, have you?” After watching the cat wander casually up the street, Savannah placed Lily on the grass next to her car. “Stay right here, Lily,” she instructed, while she removed the stroller and opened it up—constantly keeping one eye on her daughter.
“Kitty,” Lily said again.
This time when Savannah looked in the direction the child indicated, she saw Molly peering out between the drape panels in Colbi’s living room window. “Hi, little Molly,” she said, lifting Lily into the stroller and fastening the buckle. Then she waved. “Look, there’s Aunt Colbi.”
“Any sign of them?” Colbi asked, easing out of her car.
“No. Lily spotted a black cat.”
“Yeah, I’ve seen him in the neighborhood. I think he lives across the street.” She looped her purse strap over her shoulder. “Let me use the bathroom and get the flyers. I’ll be right back.”
****
The two women had walked for thirty minutes, talking to people and posting flyers with the cats’ pictures on them, when Colbi suggested, “Let’s cut through this tract and head toward the house. I have to eat lunch and get back to work. Damon and I’ll drive out beyond this area and leave more posters tonight.”
“Okay.” Savannah let out a sigh. “It’s strange that no one we’ve talked to has seen those two.”
Colbi shook her head. “I can’t begin to imagine what they’re up to.” She faced Savannah, shading her eyes from the sun. “Oh, about the murder—it was a younger man named Rodney Turner—probably a druggie. They’ve made an arrest.”
Savannah’s heart dropped, but she asked anyway, “Do you know who they arrested?” She thought about Kira’s visit and her
shocking confession. Did she take my advice and tell what she knows? Oh, that poor little girl. I hope she’s okay.
“Savannah, did you hear me?” Colbi asked.
“Huh?”
“You tuned me out there for a minute. Are you all right?”
“Yeah. So do you know who they arrested?”
“I knew you weren’t listening. Yes, I said it was a transient. They found the murder weapon—a knife—and the prints match.”
“Really?” Savannah said. “Why didn’t he take the money and drugs, I wonder?”
Colbi peered suspiciously at her friend. “How’d you know about that?”
“Iris told my aunt.”
“Of course,” Colbi said, grinning. “Speculation is that the killer planted that stuff. It really wasn’t very much money…or drugs.”
Savannah’s thoughts started to run away with her. How does a nine-year-old child know a transient, for heaven’s sake? Why would she have been out in that field to see this terrible thing occur? She muttered rather unconsciously, “Maybe they’ve arrested the wrong person.”
“What?” Colbi asked.
“Just thinking about the murder and the possible motive, that’s all.”
Colbi chuckled. “You really should have been a detective rather than a veterinarian.”
Before Savannah could respond, Colbi continued, “Now I see why Craig’s always asking for your perspective on his tough cases. He respects your opinion, doesn’t he? Is that because you think outside the box?”
“Well, sometimes, I guess.”
“So what are your thoughts on this one?” Colbi asked, trying to keep pace with her long-legged friend as they continued making their way toward her house.
“I don’t know enough about it to come to any conclusions. Anyway, it sounds like they’ve arrested someone.” Savannah paused. “It’s just so sad for the kids to lose a family member.”