by Patricia Fry
“What do you think you’re doing?” Savannah complained. “Stop that. You’re going to hurt my cat.”
The dowel must have hit its mark, because Rags darted from under the table skirt and skittered out into the aisle. “You hit my cat,” Savannah asserted. She grabbed Rags’s harness and snapped the leash to it, then scowled at the woman, repeating, “You hit my cat.” She started to lead Rags away, but he had other plans. He seemed fixated on something under that table. All Savannah wanted was to get him away from the crazed woman. Suddenly something occurred to her. She looked the woman in the eyes and asked, “Do I know you?”
The woman shook her head and turned away, saying, “No. I never seen you before. No. Now take that cat away will ya, or I’ll call security.”
Savannah stared at the woman for a few moments, then she frowned and spat, “Yes, that’s probably a very good idea. Go ahead and call security. I have something I’d like to talk to them about, Marvelle.”
Chapter Seven
The woman stammered and sputtered, “Who? What did ya say? I don’t know who you think I am, but you’re…” She looked down at Rags, who continued to claw at the table skirt. “Just take your cat and leave. I won’t press no charges. Go on, now,” she barked.
Savannah looked around the room and caught sight of a security guard, who was talking to some people on the next aisle. She was pretty sure she wouldn’t be heard over the racket in the room if she called out to him, so she considered her options. I need to keep an eye on Marvelle. I can’t let her out of my sight. From what I know of this evil woman, the missing cat could be under that cloth. That’s probably why Rags is so interested in the space under there. While keeping the woman in her sight, she stared in the direction of the security officer and finally he looked her way. She raised her hand and motioned for him to join her. Good, he saw me. He’s coming this way. She had another thought, Gads, what if Marvelle has changed her ways and she doesn’t have the cat. She shook her head. No. I doubt that’s the case, not the way she’s acting. She’s trying to hide something. I’m sure of it.
When Marvelle saw the guard approaching, she tried to dart away, but Savannah grabbed her meaty arm and said sternly, “No you don’t. You need to stay right here.”
“What’s going on?” a man asked.
Aware that she was going out on a limb, Savannah said, “I think she has the missing cat. Can you help me hold onto her? Security’s on the way.”
Another exhibitor heard Savannah’s plea and he walked up and also helped block the woman from leaving the area.
“What’s going on?” the security officer asked when he’d made his way to Savannah.
She swallowed hard. “I’m almost certain this woman has the cat you’re looking for. I believe my cat has found her.”
“Your cat, ma’am?” he questioned.
She pointed. “Yes, I’m pretty sure he’s telling us that the missing Persian’s under that table there.” When the guard continued to stare at her, she insisted, “This woman once stole my cat in Los Angeles. I don’t know how they let her into this show, but she’s definitely not to be trusted.” She pointed. “If I were you, I’d look for that cat right under there.”
When the guard looked at the woman, she said, “They’re all a bunch of liars. I ain’t done nothin’. Just leave me alone, I paid my fee to show in this competition.” She began screeching, “I’ll sue the organization! I’ll sue the hotel! I’ll sue the police department!” She scowled at Savannah. “And you, you little…”
“Just settle down,” the security guard said. “Let’s see what we’ve got here.” He looked out at the people who had gathered and motioned toward a young man. “You look agile; do you want to get under there and see what you can find?”
“Sure,” the kid said, dropping to the floor.
When Marvelle kicked at him and began to swear, the officer took charge. He pulled her arms behind her back and led her a distance away. A second security officer joined him. When Marvelle continued to struggle, he cuffed her and held tightly to one of her arms.
It wasn’t long before the young man came out and announced, “I don’t see anything. I don’t think the cat’s here.”
When Rags continued to show interest in the area under Marvelle’s table, Savannah loosened her grip on his leash and said to the kid, “Go with the cat. He’ll show you where she is.” When no one made a move, she said, “Listen, this cat works for a sheriff’s department in California. He knows what he’s doing. By the way he’s acting, I’m positive the cat’s under there, or maybe it’s one of the kittens that found her way in here. Please,” she begged, “let Rags show you where she is.”
The young man gazed at the security guard, who nodded and grumbled, “Might as well humor the cat.”
Moments later, the young man shouted, “I got her!” He crawled out from beneath the table with the Persian in his arms and reported, “I thought I heard something and the other cat started clawing at a little black box with a bungee cord wrapped around it. That’s where she was, poor thing,” he said, petting her.
By then the security guard was interested in what Savannah had to say. “How did you know?” he asked.
She picked up Rags. “I told you, this cat has a sense for things like this. I’ve learned to trust him.” She glanced briefly at Marvelle. “Plus, I’ve had a couple of experiences with that woman before. She’s a…well, a catnapper, for one thing.” She nodded at Rags in her arms. “She took this one once. It’s a miracle that I got him back. I hope the organizer of this show and every cat organization in the country is informed about Marvelle and her wicked ways.”
The guard let out a deep sigh. “Amazing!” He then asked, “Is she okay? I mean the lost cat; is she all right?”
The young man held the Persian up and looked into her face. “Seems to be.”
“Glori, Glori,” the green-haired woman cried as she ran toward the man who held the cat. “Where was she?” she asked, taking her into her arms. “Is she okay?”
“Seems to be, ma’am,” the young man said. He pointed at Rags. “That cat found her.” He nodded toward Marvelle. “That woman was hiding her in a small box under this table.”
“Can you verify that this is your cat?” the security guard asked.
“Well, yes,” she said, holding the cat close. I’m Sierra Casson. She’s registered to me.” She looked at Rags. “That cat found her? How?”
“It’s just something he does,” Savannah explained.
Sierra looked at Savannah and Rags. She blurted excitedly, “Oh, it’s Rags. I sat in on your presentation. Fascinating! Oh my, he’s a wonderful cat—he really is all that you say he is.”
“And more,” Rob said, joining them. When Savannah looked at him quizzically, he said, “It got slow; I’m taking a break.” He chuckled. “So he found the missing cat?”
Savannah nodded.
Sierra reached one arm out and hugged Savannah with both cats between them. “Thank you so much. So very much.”
“Oops,” Savannah yelped, “I think I got lipstick on her coat.”
“Doesn’t matter,” Sierra said. “She means a whole lot more to me than her show credentials. And this little fiasco made me realize that. She doesn’t even enjoy the show circuit. I think I’ll retire her here and now.”
“Well, she sure is a beauty,” Savannah said, running her hand over the cat’s head and down her back. “Just beautiful.”
Glori’s owner smiled through happy tears. “And your cat is wonderful, just wonderful.”
“Okay,” the security guard interrupted, “so are you going to press charges, or what? What am I to do with this woman?”
“Yes, I’m pressing charges,” Sierra said. “Absolutely.”
“You can’t prove anything,” Marvelle screeched. “I didn’t even know that cat was under there. I’ve been framed, I tell you.”
“I’ll testify to her behavior,” Savannah said, “and how she did everyth
ing she could to keep us from going under there and finding Glori.”
“No worries,” one of the guards said, “there are surveillance cameras here in this room. We’ll go over the videos and find out exactly what happened.”
Just then someone from the next aisle shouted, “Wait, I think that cat belongs to a friend of mine.” The bearded man made his way to where the others were standing.
“Which cat?” a security guard asked.
The man pointed at the pen on Marvelle’s exhibitor table. “That Bumese inside the pen. The Beastons’ cat went missing from a groomer in Los Angeles a month ago. That looks just like him. He has a chip. Anyone got a chip reader?”
To that the security guard shrugged helplessly, and a bystander said, “We can sure access one,” he turned to a man dressed in scrubs, “right, Doc? Do you have one at your veterinary clinic?”
The veterinarian nodded. “Actually, I have one in my truck.” He turned to leave. “Be right back.”
Just then a harried older woman approached wearing a nametag on which Paige was printed. She addressed Glori’s owner. “Oh, Sierra, you found her! I’m so glad.” She looked around. “So where was she?”
Sierra pointed at Marvelle. “She had her.”
“I should have known,” Paige snarled.
Before she could say anything else, the first guard instructed, “Let’s do it. Let’s book her.” He picked up the wire pen at Marvelle’s station, and said, “We’ll take this cat with us.”
“Wait!” the bearded man called out. “The doc’s getting a chip reader. If that’s the Beastons’ cat, I’ll take responsibility for him.”
The guard considered the idea, then told Sierra, “Well, we’d better confiscate your cat until we can untangle this mess.”
“No, don’t do that,” Paige pleaded. “I have someone coming down any minute now with the videos from these surveillance cameras. We don’t want the cat traumatized any more than she already is.” Just then she noticed something. “Here comes Doc Reynolds. He’ll confirm that this cat belongs to Sierra.”
“Thank you,” Sierra whispered, holding tightly to Glori. She looked at Rags again and petted him. When Rags looked into her eyes, she said, “And thank you, dear Rags. I’ll never forget you.”
****
“You had quite a day,” Michael remarked later that afternoon once they’d both returned to their room. “Are you sure you’re up to attending the banquet tonight?”
“Yes. I have to. They want Rags there—can you imagine? He’ll be on the red carpet with the other cats and they also asked me to bring him to the awards dinner.” When she saw Michael wince, she said, “Really, hon, you don’t have to come with me if you don’t want to. I’ve met some nice people. Rags and I’ll be okay.”
“No, I’ll go.” He kissed her. “It just might be a fun night—certainly unique.” He chuckled. “I’ve envisioned attending Lily’s and Teddy’s preschool Christmas programs, Lily’s gymnastics, Teddy’s karate, and their graduation ceremonies, but I never thought I’d be attending a banquet with our cat.” He asked, “Will Rob and Cheryl be joining us?”
“I don’t think Cheryl came with Rob. I haven’t seen her.”
“Yeah, she’s here,” he said. “I saw her in the lobby earlier. She was holding a kitten. She didn’t see me. I wondered if she’d adopted one of those kittens—you know, Rags’s little friends.”
“Oh,” Savannah said, surprised. “Rob with a cat of his own? Now, that’s hard to imagine, but I guess it could happen.” She reached into the closet and pulled out a black sweater with a sequined cat across the front and a black skirt and she laid them on the bed.
“So this is a dressy affair?” he asked.
She nodded and chose a pair of black cat ears to go with her outfit. “I want to look stunning as I walk Rags down the red carpet into the banquet room.” She picked up two bow ties and showed them to Rags. “Which one do you want to wear—the red polka-dot one or this snazzy blue striped one?”
Rags simply stared at the ties, so Michael said, “I like that red one on him myself.”
“Great. The red one it is,” she said, tossing it onto the bed.
“What am I wearing?” he asked.
“Whatever you want to wear, but I brought your red dress shirt and black slacks.” She picked up a pair of red leopard-print cat ears. “And these…”
“Oh no,” he said. “I’m not masquerading as a cat. No way. Nix that idea right now.”
“Okay,” she said, chuckling, “but I’ll put them in my purse, because once we get there and you see that you’re the only one without cat ears, you’ll…”
“Wanna bet?” Michael snapped playfully. “Do you think Rob’s going to put some of those on his head?”
She laughed. “You have a point. Probably not. Okay, then it’s up to you.” She pulled something else out of her suitcase. “How about a cat tail?” she asked, holding up a length of tiger-striped fabric sewn in the shape of a tail.
“Yeah, right,” he snarked good-naturedly.
An hour later the Iveys, with Rags on his leash, headed across the hotel lobby toward the banquet room.
“Hi,” came a voice from behind them.
“Hi, Rob, Cheryl,” Savannah said, hugging Cheryl. “I didn’t know you were here.”
“Yes you did,” Michael said. “I told you.”
“Yes, but I didn’t know it before that. Glad you could make it.”
Cheryl tilted her head and asked Michael, “You knew I was here? I didn’t see you.”
He nodded. “I saw you in the lobby earlier.”
“Oh,” she said, appearing a little puzzled.” She stood back from Savannah and remarked, “You look stunning. Your sweater’s beautiful, and I love the kitty ears.”
“Sparkle, sparkle,” Savannah said, grinning. “From what I hear, that’s what this evening’s all about.”
Cheryl looked around at the others who were filtering into the area, many of the women dressed in formal attire. “I guess so. I feel a bit out of place,” she admitted.
Savannah dug into her bag and asked, “Want cat ears?”
Cheryl glanced around the room again and said, “Yes, I’d love them. Those are cute. Thanks.” She slipped the band onto her head, and posed for Rob. “What do you think?”
“Meow!” he said.
“Maybe Rob will wear the cat tail,” Michael suggested, grinning.
This caught Rob off guard. “What?”
“Yeah, she has a cat tail,” Michael explained. “Want to wear it so you’ll fit in tonight?”
“Oh, I think I’m just fine,” he said.
While the humans chatted, Rags approached Cheryl and began sniffing the air around her. Paying little attention to him, Savannah asked, “Hey Cheryl, did you adopt a kitten?”
She smiled slyly, reached into her pocket, and lifted out a small grey-and-white kitten.
Rob ran his fingers over the kitten’s head. “She’s a little Rags clone, only it’s a girl.”
“How cute,” Savannah gushed. “Look Michael, a little Ragsette.”
Michael squeezed Rob’s shoulder and looked into his eyes. “You have my sympathies, guy.”
“Huh?” Rob said. “You don’t think we should get a kitten?”
Michael picked up Rags. “Yeah, a kitten’s fine, but I sure wouldn’t hope for it to grow up in the shadow of this guy.”
“Oh, Michael,” Rob said, “he’s a jewel—a one-of-a-kind cat. You’ve gotta get a kick out of him.”
Michael ruffled the fur around Rags’s neck and looked into his eyes. “Yeah, he’s a good cat…sometimes.” He focused on the kitten. “What’s her name?”
Cheryl looked at Rob. “We haven’t decided.”
“Heck, I didn’t even know we had a cat until this thing clawed her way up onto the bed while I was trying to take a nap and started nibbling on my toes. I thought we were being invaded by rats.”
Cheryl giggled. “You should have seen him jump.” She then observed, “It looks like they’re getting ready for the parade.” She pulled a little pink bow on a tiny clip from her pocket and attached it to a tuft of fur on the kitten’s head.
“Awww,” Savannah said in her small voice, “she’s so cute.” After taking a couple of pictures, she led the way, saying, “Let’s go.” When they reached the red carpet, she adjusted Rags’s bow tie and took him from Michael’s arms. “Let’s go for a walk, Rags,” she said, placing him on the carpet.
Rags obediently walked along with her and Michael, looking around at the activity as people snapped pictures and commented on the adorable cats and kittens walking and being carried past.
Once the two couples were seated at a table with others and everyone had commented on the handsome cat and the sweet look-alike kitten, Cheryl put the kitten on her lap, where the little thing immediately fell asleep. Cheryl held up a small carrier to show Savannah. “A vendor outside the cat show had this for sale. I think it’s actually a vintage purse. It should work fine for her tonight and for our flight home, don’t you think so?”
“Purr-fect,” Savannah said, petting the kitten gently. She shuddered. “She’s so yummy.”
Cheryl smiled.
Savannah looked around. “I see people from the cat show here. I wonder if they’re members, or maybe guests. It’s a nice showing for only their third year.”
“I don’t see many cats,” Rob said.
“Yeah, probably most people want to eat in peace,” Michael said, “so they took their cats back to their rooms.”
Once dinner was served and the dishes had been cleared away, the awards program began. Member after member walked onto the stage to accept an award for their work in some aspect of cat education or care. Enthusiastic applause followed each presentation. When the program seemed to be winding down, Kat approached the lectern. She congratulated each winner, made a few announcements, then said, “Before we end this magical evening, I have one more award to present. This is a first and I hope to make it an annual award if we can continue to get funding. When I spoke to Molly Cleaver, a representative for one of our sponsors yesterday about this idea, she immediately called her office and got permission to go ahead.” She smiled. “I’m so pleased to make this presentation.” She looked out into the audience. “Molly, would you come up and help me do the honors, please?”
