by Patricia Fry
Pam laughed. “That’s what the kids ask for almost every night, so they’re in heaven tonight.” She smiled at Shari and Evan. “Is it good?”
Both children nodded.
Pam looked around. “Who lives here?”
“It’s my mom’s house. She lives with us now in Hammond and helps with our children. She rents this house out.”
“Furnished?” Pam asked. “Is it an airbnb?”
“No,” Savannah said. “A regular rental. There are still people who want a furnished place, which is fortunate for us.”
“Sure is,” Chris said. “I’m not much one for sleeping on the floor.” She took a swig of coffee and said to Pam, “By the way, Savannah let me use her car to take Angel’s swab to the lab and I got it there just before they closed. If we’re lucky, we might get her result along with the rest of them tomorrow.” She looked at Pam. “Thank you for letting us swab her, by the way.”
“Sure,” Pam said.
Savannah asked, “Pam, have you heard from…” she glanced at the children.
Pam shook her head. “Not yet. I left a message and told him I have the children and would bring them back tomorrow if he has calmed down by then.”
“Daddy?” Seven-year-old Shari asked, placing her pizza on her plate. “Is Daddy mad again? Is he mad at me?”
“No, honey,” Pam soothed. “He’s just mad at the world today, not at any of us. We’re going to stay here for a while, okay?”
The child nodded and resumed eating.
“Hi, Angel,” Chris said, petting the cat when she reached up and rested her paws on Chris’s knee. “You are a pretty girl, aren’t you? Are you hungry?” She asked, “Pam, did you bring her dinner?”
“Oh shoot,” Pam said. “I was in such a rush. I can drive down to that mini-mart around the corner.”
“I have extra,” Savannah said. “Rags won’t mind sharing.” She laughed, “Look, he can’t keep his eyes off her.”
Everyone smiled at Rags, who sat perfectly still watching Angel’s every move.
“Do you think he remembers her?” Chris asked.
“You’re the cat-genetics specialist,” Savannah said. “What do you think?”
“I can run the numbers and do the research, but I’m still learning about cat behavior and inherited traits. I’d hoped to learn more about that on this excursion.”
“Well, Rags is pretty interested in most of the cats he meets, although some more than others,” Savannah said. “I’d say his interest level with Angel is close to a ten. He seems mesmerized, don’t you think so?”
Chris nodded. “Yes. So is it a familial or genetic thing, or does he simply think she’s beautiful?” She spoke to Angel, “Yes, you are beautiful. Look at those eyes.”
****
By the time it was dark outside, everyone but Savannah had gone to their room. She sat down at the kitchen table and placed a call to Michael. “Hi, hon,” she said into her phone. “Sorry I didn’t call earlier. It got kind of hectic around here.”
“Oh?” Michael said. “What’s going on? Did you gals find the missing piece to that genealogical puzzle?” He chuckled. “You’re chasing down Rags’s sire now, right?”
“I’m afraid we’ve found more than we expected.” She paused and petted Rags when he rubbed against her ankles. “Well, Rags found it. Oh, Michael, it was awful.”
“What happened?” he asked.
She spoke more quietly. “Michael, Rags found a body today—it could be a real skeleton in his closet—and Chris and I are harboring fugitives here at Mom’s house in LA.”
“What?” he bellowed. “Savannah,” he warned.
“We’re okay. No one knows where we are, except for the police, of course. We’re safe.” She spoke more hesitantly, “At least I hope we are. We have children here and Rags’s mother.”
“Children? Whose children?”
“Wait, Michael. I think I hear something,” she muttered.
Rags heard it too, and so did Chris. As Rags crouched under Savannah’s chair, Chris entered the room and switched off the kitchen light.
“Savannah! Savannah, what’s going on?” Michael asked.
“I’ve got to go. I’ll text you,” she said, immediately ending the call.
“Someone’s out there,” Chris hissed. She pointed at Rags. “He’s aware.”
Savannah reached for the cat, who was staring at the door to the attached garage and emitting a low grow. “Settle down, Rags. It’s okay,” she whispered. She looked at Chris. “Do you think it’s him? But how?”
“Who else?” Chris said. “Call the police.”
“Wait,” Savannah said. “Where are the others? We have to make sure they’re safe.”
“Call first,” Chris insisted.
Savannah picked up her phone, then reached out to check the lock on the door. Just then, the door opened and a man burst into the room.
“Where are they?” he demanded.
“Who?” Savannah asked, backing up quickly toward Chris. When she saw the man glower at Rags, she picked up the cat, and with all the confidence she could muster, she demanded, “Who are you and what do you want?”
“My children,” he said.
“What children?” Savannah asked, her voice unsteady.
The man snarled, “I know they’re here. Do you want to get them, or shall I tear the place apart to find them? It’s your choice.”
Before she could respond, Pam walked into the room. “Drew, what are you doing here? How did you…?”
“GPS,” he said, grinning. “I knew I couldn’t trust you, so I put a GPS tracker on your phone, just in case you tried something sleazy like this.” He looked at Savannah and Chris. “Who are these people and where are my children?”
“They’re here with me, waiting for you to calm down,” Pam asserted.
“I’m not going to calm down. Animal control stole all of my cats. Why, Pam? Why? Do you know?” he bellowed.
When Savannah realized that Pam was losing her courage, she said, “Mr. Gerard, I saw your cats today when we visited Pam, and I could see that they were not being cared for properly. I’m the one who called animal services.” When he started to raise his voice again, she put her hands up and said, “Now, as I understand it, they’re holding the cats until you can provide appropriate conditions for them.”
“What do you mean appropriate? I feed those cats,” he shouted. “I…I keep them clean and I train them to behave. They’re going to be the best-behaved cats in the show ring.”
“Mr. Gerard,” Savannah said calmly, “it’s abuse to keep cats in small cages like that with no exercise. You’ll raise scared cats with all sorts of joint problems and other health issues, not to mention…”
“Who says?” he bellowed. “I want those cats back, and you’d better damn well make that happen.”
“Mr. Gerard,” Chris said, “you will get them back as soon as you learn what they need and how to care for them.”
“And who are you to tell me…” Suddenly he stopped and looked down. “You have my cats here, don’t you?” He pointed at Angel, who was sitting just outside the kitchen door with Rags. “That’s one of my cats.” He stormed toward the cats, demanding, “Where are the rest of them?”
Savannah put her hands up to stop him. She said more calmly, “Yes, that’s Angel. Pam is keeping her safe here with us. We don’t have any of your other cats. Pam saved Angel for you.”
Drew stared down at the two cats. “What’s she doing running around loose, and where did that other cat come from?” He aggressively grabbed Angel. Glaring at Rags, he said, “What if he’s diseased? We can’t have disease in the kennel.”
When Angel squirmed to get down, he held her tighter and she yowled.
“What have you done to this cat?” he asked. “She’s all worked up. Didn’t you give her the food I prepared for her? I told you she must have the food I prepare.”
“Because it’s laced with drugs?” Chris asked. “You’ve b
een drugging this cat, haven’t you?”
When Angel let out another yowl, Rags jumped up on the table and stared at the man, his ears back.
“What’s he doing?” Drew asked. “Challenging me? Yeah, you just try challenging me,” he snarled, moving toward Rags.
Frightened of what Drew might do, Savannah shoved a kitchen chair in front of him and he fell over it, losing his grip on Angel. The cat leaped to the floor and the two cats ran out of the room.
“Come here you little…” Drew shouted, picking himself up off the floor.
Meanwhile, the two children walked quietly into the room and sheltered against Pam. She put her arms around them and held them close. Drew saw them and shouted, “You two go get in the car! Go on, go out and get in the car!” He looked at Pam. “I don’t care what you do, but my children and my cat are coming home with me.”
“No they’re not!” Pam asserted. “Not until you calm down. I’ll bring them home in the morning.”
“Like hell!” he yelled. “You kids get in the car!”
The children continued holding tightly to Pam, which angered Drew to an even greater degree. He lurched at her. Before he could put his hands on her, however, he let out a scream and fell to the floor.
“What happened?” Pam asked, her view blocked by the kitchen table.
Chris pointed. “I think the cats are in cahoots.” With an air of satisfaction, she said, “Those two little dickens stopped him in his tracks.”
“Call 911,” Savannah said, picking up a kitchen chair and placing it strategically over Drew, who lay writhing on the floor. Chris saw what Savannah was doing, and she picked up a second chair.
“I already did,” Pam said, watching the two women. Her eyes wide, she said, “Um…I’ll…I’ll go make sure the door’s unlocked for the police.”
When she returned, Chris asked, “So what did you tell the dispatcher, Pam?”
She grinned slyly. “Well, I told him that a man had burst into the house uninvited, then I left the line open so he’d hear Drew’s rant.”
Chris grinned down at Drew as he lay pinned to the ground, holding his shins and moaning. “The cops have GPS trackers, too,” she said.
****
“What’s going on here?” a uniformed officer asked when he and his partner showed up at the door minutes later.
“Come in,” Pam said. She nodded toward the kitchen. “The intruder’s waiting for you in there.” She faced the officers, “Oh, I’m Pam.” When they entered the kitchen, she pointed, “That’s Savannah, this is her mother’s home, and that’s Chris.” She looked at one officer’s chest for a name badge. Not seeing one, she asked, “And you are?”
“Officer Bill Tanner. This is Sergeant Ralph Everett.”
Savannah pointed at the officer. “You were there at the Gallagher house earlier.”
He nodded, a little confused. Still standing just inside the kitchen door, he asked, “So the intruder, you say, is still here? Where is he?”
“Well, come on in here,” Chris suggested. She pointed toward her feet.
The officers glanced at one another, then took a few steps into the kitchen. “Good lord,” the sergeant said. “What happened here?”
“Get me out of this!” Drew demanded. “Make them let me up! These crazy-ass women took advantage of me. Arrest them—all of them!”
“Yes,” Savannah said, “we took advantage of him, all right, “after he stormed in here with all kinds of accusations, tried to put his hands on Pam, there, and abused one of the cats.”
“Cats?” Officer Tanner repeated.
Savannah motioned across the room where Rags and Angel sat watching the human activity. “Yes, they scratched him up a little to keep him from hurting Pam and the children. He’d already manhandled that sweet little cat over there.”
“Lies!” Drew shouted. “Those cats are evil. They should be put down. If I could get my hands on them…” he said, struggling to get up.
The sergeant laughed. “Well, I don’t think you’re in any position to put your hands on anyone or any animal right now, sir. Both officers took in the scene before them, marveling at the women’s ingenuity. What they saw was Drew lying face down on the floor under two kitchen chairs, which were being held down by Chris and Savannah. The women had caught some of the fabric from his trousers and his shirt under the legs of the chairs, then each sat on one of them so he couldn’t squirm out of the situation.
“Get them off me!” Drew shouted. “I need a doctor. Those cats scratched me all up. Well, don’t just stand there looking stupid, get me up. I know people in high places who could have your jobs.”
“Brother,” Officer Tanner said, “I think we might just leave you there to stew in your own juices for a while. We let you up and you’re liable to go berserk on us.”
“No!” Drew said. “I promise. I won’t. Just let me up. I have things to do. I don’t have time for this.”
“Okay,” the officer said. “We’ll let you up, but you have some explaining to do. These women seem to have some complaints.” He looked at Savannah for confirmation.
All three women nodded. “Yes,” Pam said confidently.
The officers motioned for Savannah and Chris to stand up, then helped Drew to his feet and instructed him to sit in one of the kitchen chairs.
“Just let me take my children home, will you?” he said, standing up from the chair.
“Sit down!” the sergeant ordered.
Drew did as he was told, then he pulled up his pants legs. “Look what the cats did to me. I could die of rabies!”
“What cats?” Officer Tanner asked. “Do you mean those docile little pussycats sitting over there minding their own business? Those two fluff-balls took you down? Is that what you’re saying?”
“Oh,” Drew stammered. “Um…well, maybe it was a jungle cat of some sort. I didn’t see what kind of a cat it was—a bobcat or a mountain lion, maybe.”
When the officer looked at Savannah, she grinned. “Nope, it was those two cute little ordinary housecats there. They didn’t like it when he threatened to put his hands on Pam and the children.”
“Awww, I wasn’t going to hurt anyone,” Drew said. “Those are my kids. I just wanted to take them home where they belong…you know, I’m a single dad now.”
“What?” Pam cried.
Drew ignored her and continued babbling. “I just want my children home.” He prepared to stand up again. “Just let me take my kids home. They haven’t done their chores yet. They have homework.”
When Evan moved behind Pam and whimpered, the sergeant said, “They don’t seem to want to go with you, Mr. Gerard.” This infuriated the man, and he turned his frustration toward Rags and Angel. “I want those cats destroyed,” he yelled. “They’re a menace to society.”
Meanwhile, Pam said quietly, “I can’t believe Angel did that. She’s a really different cat when she feels threatened.”
“And when she isn’t being drugged,” Savannah muttered.
“Someone’s drugging cats?” Officer Tanner asked. “Hey, I don’t think that’s kosher.”
“No, it’s definitely not.” Savannah explained, “We turned Mr. Gerard in to animal services earlier today because he was abusing cats—keeping them in very small cages and obviously drugging this one. His wife’s in prison for something she probably didn’t do, and we think possibly he did—you know, that he framed her and tricked her into taking the fall.”
“Those are some pretty serious accusations,” the officer said. “Do you have anything to back them up?”
“I think that can be arranged fairly easily,” Savannah assured him.
Chris stared across the room at Drew. “I think the guy has some issues that go way back. I knew someone like him once who was belligerent and horribly confrontational. It didn’t take much of anything to set him off and it got worse with time. Turns out he’d been responsible for a horrible tragedy and the guilt had been eating at him, driving him absolutely crazy.
”
“Yeah, it happens,” the sergeant said. He asked Drew, “So what’s at the root of your anger? Do you know, sir?”
“Nothing!” he shouted. “Absolutely nothing. I have no problems with guilt or anything else. I just want my children and my wife and my cats to do as I say, that’s all. Is that too much to ask? I do all the work. I pay all the bills. I just want order,” he said, choking up. Suddenly, he began to weep. He bowed his head and mumbled, “If only that woman had stayed out of my way.”
“What woman?” the officer asked. “One of these women?”
“No.” When he realized that the others were all waiting for him to continue, he clammed up.
“What’s that cat doing?” Officer Tanner asked, peering under the table at Rags. “I think he picked up something. What is that?”
The women followed the officer’s gaze and saw Rags with something dangling from his mouth. “It’s a piece of jewelry,” Chris said, squatting to get a closer look. “An earring, maybe.” She asked Savannah, “Did you bring a pair of diamond earrings with you?”
Savannah shook her head, and approached the cat, crooning, “What do you have, Rags?”
Suddenly Officer Tanner said, “Rags? Is that Rags, the cat Detective Sledge works with up north of San Francisco?”
“Yes,” Savannah said, wide-eyed. “You’ve heard of him?”
“Sure we have.” He turned to his partner. “You know that cat, right?” He kneeled down and tried to entice Rags. “Come here boy, let’s see what you’ve got there.”
When Rags approached the officer, Drew quickly reacted. “That’s mine. It must have fallen out of my pocket just now.” He grabbed for Rags, but the cat darted to one side and dropped the earring next to the policeman’s foot.
While the sergeant physically lowered Drew back into the chair, the officer picked up the earring and emitted a low whistle. “Where’d you get this, Mr. Gerard?”
“Um…you see, they’ve been in my family for a while. I just took them out of my safe deposit box. I planned to give them to my wife—you know, for her birthday.”
“Her birthday was three months ago,” Pam said, dryly.