The Wicked Cat

by Christopher Pike

  “Why not?” Sally snapped.

  “It’s against the rules to bring a cat into the theater,” Cindy said. “Besides it might scratch me again.”

  “It won’t hurt you unless you abuse it again,” Sally said.

  Adam sighed. “Are we going to get to watch this movie or not?”

  “I know I would enjoy it more if the two female vampires beside us would stop fighting,” Watch said.

  But Sally and Cindy couldn’t stop arguing—or refused to stop—so the guys decided they’d be better off if they all left and came back to see the movie later. Leaving the theater with their buckets of popcorn, they headed for Cindy’s. But Cindy, of course, wouldn’t let the cat in the house.

  “My mother is allergic to cats,” Cindy said. “Even a little cat hair makes her eyes swell up.”

  “I think you just invented that,” Sally said, holding on to the cat. “What if I tell you that if she doesn’t go in, I don’t go in?”

  “You don’t exactly have a lot of leverage in that statement,” Watch said.

  “Why don’t you just come in for a little while?” Adam suggested, always trying to compromise. “The cat seems to like you a lot. It should wait for you on the porch.”

  “All right,” Sally said reluctantly, “but we have to feed her soon.”

  “She can have a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. That’s all we have,” Cindy said, going inside.

  They were in the middle of making the cat a sandwich when they smelled smoke. At first Cindy thought something was burning in the kitchen. But then they all realized the smell was coming from the front of the house. Peeking out the front door, they were horrified to see the porch was on fire!

  “I’ll get the hose by the garage!” Adam shouted. “Watch, you get the other one in the backyard! Sally, Cindy, try to smother the flames with an old blanket or sheet!”

  The porch was old and made of wood, very dry wood after a whole summer of hot days—perfect burning material. But even though the flames were growing and licking the roof of the porch, none of the house proper had been touched. The girls beat at the flames with blankets while Adam turned on the garage hose. The water pressure was excellent, and two minutes after turning the hose on the flames, the fire was out. When Watch returned from the backyard with the other hose, he insisted they water down the entire roof.

  “You never know,” he said. “A cinder may have flown up and it could be smoldering, ready to ignite.”

  The porch was badly damaged, and Cindy stared at it in horror. “My mother’s going to kill me,” she said.

  “But you didn’t do anything,” Adam said. “In fact, if we hadn’t been here the fire might have taken out the whole house.”

  “Yeah,” Sally agreed. “Spooksville’s fire department sure wouldn’t have been able to put it out. If you have a fire in this town you have to fill out six different forms and get each one notarized before they’ll come out. They’re so paranoid about getting sued.”

  “But I was here when the fire started,” Cindy said. “It has to be my fault.”

  “I don’t know about that,” Watch muttered. “This is the second fire we’ve seen today.”

  “What second fire?” Sally asked. “There was no fire at Mr. Coat’s house.”

  Adam and Watch hadn’t mentioned the strange black marks on the tree. But they did now and Cindy became immediately suspicious.

  “It’s too much of a coincidence that these two things should happen in the same day,” Cindy said.

  “What are you saying?” Sally demanded.

  “At both places where there was a fire the black cat was nearby,” Cindy said.

  Sally snorted. “How can a cat start a fire?”

  “The fire that knocked the tree down was not an ordinary fire,” Watch said. “It looked as if the tree had been blasted by an energy beam. I suggest we study the porch to see if it has similar markings.”

  “That would be a waste of time,” Sally protested.

  “We have time,” Adam said.

  But it wasn’t as easy to examine the porch as the tree since so much of it had been burned. They weren’t even sure what part of the porch had started burning first. But after a time Watch found a spot down near the steps where he thought it had begun. He pointed out a set of four black lines, each one an inch thick and separated from the next one by a couple of inches.

  “It looks to me like someone carefully swept this spot with whatever they were using,” he said.

  “That makes sense,” Sally said. “With ‘whatever they were using.’ What were they using and who were they?”

  Watch frowned. “These marks could have been created by a blowtorch, maybe. No, actually they look too neat. They remind me of marks left by a laser beam. What do you think, Adam?”

  Adam nodded. “It does look like the fire was deliberately started. No one saw anybody hanging around the house?”

  “There was just the cat,” Cindy said angrily.

  “And how, my dear, did the cat start the fire?” Sally asked. “I don’t think it’s old enough to smoke.”

  “It’s bad luck,” Cindy snapped. “I’d be a lot happier if you got rid of it.”

  “Fortunately my main goal in life is not your happiness,” Sally said.

  “Where is the cat anyway?” Adam asked.

  “Here it comes,” Sally said, as the cat came from around the side of the house, right on cue. Sally knelt to allow the cat to run into her arms, which the animal promptly did. Sally smiled and stroked the cat’s back while the animal purred appreciatively. Its eyes never left Cindy, who continued to worry about the damage done to her porch.

  “I don’t like the way it looks at me,” Cindy said.

  “You should be pleased she even bothers,” Sally said.

  “Sally,” Adam said diplomatically, “why don’t you take the cat home and we’ll see you tomorrow? It’s getting late.”

  Sally pouted. “I get it. Either I get rid of the cat or I’m no longer your friend. Well, to tell you the truth, I don’t need friends who hates an animal just because it has four legs. You know, Adam, at one time I thought we’d be friends for the rest of our lives. But now I see that you’re just a—”

  “Sally,” Adam interrupted gently. “The situation is not that serious. Cindy is just upset about what’s happened here and you are making everything worse by taunting her.”

  Sally stuck her nose in the air. “All right. I can take a hint. I know when I’m not wanted. I’ll go home now, and if I don’t happen to run into you guys for a few months, then that’s life. None of us should be upset at the lack of contact. I wish you all well. I harbor no ill feelings.”

  And with that Sally walked away, her cat in her hands.

  “Isn’t it wonderful she was so mature about the whole thing?” Watch muttered.

  “What am I going to do about the porch?” Cindy asked miserably.

  Adam patted her on the back. “I think you’d better find your mother and brother so you can tell her what’s happened. She’ll understand, and Watch and I will back you up and say that we weren’t playing with fire or anything dangerous like that.”

  “All right,” Cindy said. She went into the house to call her mom at a friend’s. Watch knelt once more to study the burn marks. Adam stood behind his shoulder.

  “It’s possible the fire was started by a welding gun,” Watch said.

  “Who do we know who has one?” Adam asked.

  Watch stood. “That may not be the main issue. Let’s think about what happened today. We found the cat and we took it to the Frozen Cow. But when Cindy pushed it out of the way, she ended up with several nasty scratches. Next we went to Sally’s house. We left the cat in her backyard where the dog next door started to bark at it. Then a tree just happened to fall on that dog. Finally we brought the cat here, but Cindy wouldn’t let it in her house. And by a strange coincidence Cindy’s house caught on fire.” He paused. “Do you see a pattern here?”

  �
�But you can’t agree with Cindy that the cat was responsible for both fires,” Adam said. “That just doesn’t make sense.”

  “I don’t know how it could have started them either. But I do know that cat doesn’t like to be pushed around or annoyed. It has a nasty temper and seems fully capable of taking care of itself.”

  Adam was concerned. “Should we tell Sally these things? It might be dangerous for her to keep it. For all we know she might let it stay in the house with her tonight.”

  Watch considered. “Whatever we tell Sally right now won’t do much good. She’s obsessed with that cat. Let’s wait and see what happens next.”

  Adam continued to worry. “You know, I never knew Sally was so into cats.”

  “She never was.”

  Adam looked at Watch. “Are you saying the cat might be responsible for Sally’s obsession with it? That it has her hypnotized?”

  Watch shrugged. “I don’t know. Those are pretty far-out ideas. We might be making a fuss about nothing.” He added, “All I know is, that cat gives me the creeps.”

  Adam didn’t respond.

  He had felt the same way the moment he had seen the cat.

  4

  That evening Sally watched TV alone in her room. She had acted annoyed with her friends for not liking her cat, but the truth was she really was hurt. Sally seldom got really excited about anything, but the cat did mean a lot to her. She couldn’t understand how they could think the cat was responsible for a tree falling and a porch burning. Cindy especially was unreasonable. Whenever anything went wrong Cindy was always quick to come up with the most ridiculous idea why it was wrong. Sally didn’t understand why Cindy couldn’t be more logical—like herself.

  But Sally was a little worried that she might not see her friends—and that included Cindy—for a few days. There weren’t that many days left of the summer, and she didn’t want to waste them being all alone. Sally hated to be alone, especially with a stupid TV set. She couldn’t believe the programs they put on these days. Why, even the shows that were supposed to be scary didn’t deal with half the issues she had to deal with just living in Spooksville. What was so scary about an alien invasion? She and her friends had repulsed several alien attacks, all by themselves. Network executives just didn’t understand what kids could do.

  “Come here, kitty,” Sally called to the cat, which had been sitting on the floor by her bed, staring at the TV with her. Actually, the cat seemed to be following the programs, and once again Sally congratulated herself on finding such a smart cat. The animal jumped on her bed at her call and snuggled up against her. Sally liked having something to love. In a way, she thought, it was nicer than always having to be so insulting. Sometimes she got tired of her own insults, but that was not something she’d ever tell anybody.

  “Nice kitty,” she said, thinking she’d have to think up a name for it soon if she was going to keep it. But she worried that the real owners were going to show up soon. Like Adam said, a cat as beautiful and well groomed as this couldn’t have been running in the wild for long. “Beautiful kitty,” she said.

  The cat stared up at her. It had such incredible green eyes, Sally thought. They actually seemed to glow. And when she stared at them, it was as if nothing else mattered. They were so soothing and loving. Sally thought the cat must have the soul of an angel. She decided right then that she’d let the cat sleep in the house tonight. No way she was going to let that stupid dog next door bark at it again. In fact, Sally thought, she would let the cat sleep on her bed.

  Sally had heard the old superstition that sleeping with a cat could be dangerous because the animal could actually suck the life out of one’s body. Sally thought the superstition was stupid. Cats were much smarter and nicer than dogs, and so much cleaner. If the cat wanted to sleep on the pillow beside her, that was all right with Sally.

  Sally suddenly felt sleepy. Turning off the TV, she got ready for bed, brushing her teeth and putting on her pajamas. In a few minutes she was tucked in, with the kitty resting beside her. Usually Sally’s mind was so active, it took her at least half an hour to unwind so she could sleep. But tonight she found herself drifting off within a few seconds.

  And she dreamed. It was such a vivid dream, and so strange. She was walking in Spooksville late at night but it was a much different Spooksville from the one she knew. It was as if she’d been transported back in time two hundred years earlier. There were far fewer buildings and the ones that did exist were built of large gray stones. Yet she knew it was Spooksville because she recognized the coastline and the surrounding hills and mountains. Even in the dark, she was able to see far off.

  But Sally wasn’t just walking aimlessly. She had an appointment to keep with a friend, Madeline Templeton, who was a young girl like herself, but also a witch with mysterious powers. Madeline was to meet her at the cemetery. Sally knew she would recognize her because she was her friend—of course—and because she looked like the present-day Ann Templeton.

  For Sally, it was as if the two time frames had overlapped. She had memories of the past and the future. She was definitely Sally Wilcox, but she was also someone else as well. She was meeting with Madeline because Madeline had promised to share some of her power in exchange for a small favor. Sally didn’t know what this “small favor” was, but whatever it was she had already made up her mind to do it. She didn’t like being ordinary. She wanted power to make things happen.

  She saw the cemetery, the dark tombstones.

  The wind blew and leaves danced.

  She saw Madeline approaching.

  Madeline’s eyes were so very green and bright, like a cat’s.

  Then Sally woke up and her own cat was staring at her.

  Sally thought she was awake. Her eyes were open. Yet she couldn’t move her body; it was so heavy it felt made of stone. Plus the cat’s eyes were so big that when Sally tried to turn her head, she couldn’t. She suspected that even if she could, she would still see the cat’s eyes. They seemed to fill the room. The cat licked its white teeth with its pink tongue. Then it spoke to her without saying anything aloud. There was a peculiar quality to the telepathic voice. It hissed and crooned, as a cat’s voice might. It spoke to her as if it were wiser and older than she.

  “You know who I am?” it asked.

  Sally heard her own voice respond. It seemed as if she heard it from a thousand miles away. “You are my cat.”

  “I am much more than a cat. I am a powerful magician.”

  “Oh. Then why do you look like a cat?”

  “That’s because I choose to look like one. But I can look any way I wish.”

  “Could you look like a lion?”

  “Yes. I could look like a lion or the most beautiful girl in the world. Would you like such power?”

  “Sure.”

  “I can give it to you. I can give you all you wish.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes. You believe me, don’t you?”

  “I suppose. Did you set Cindy’s porch on fire?”

  “Yes. She was mean to me. She was lucky I did not set her on fire.”

  “Don’t do that.”

  “Why not? I do what I wish. Are you sure you would like my power?”

  Sally hesitated. There was something not quite right, but she couldn’t figure out what it was. She just wished she could totally wake up. She still felt as if half her mind were dreaming. Yet the things the cat was saying were very interesting. It would be nice to work spells and magic.

  “I would like your power,” Sally mumbled. “I just don’t want to hurt anyone.”

  “You can do what you want with the power. It is up to you. Would you like me to tell you the secret of how you can have it?”

  “Yes.”

  “All you have to do is take hold of my front paws, and stare deep into my eyes, and wish you were a cat.”

  “But I don’t want to be a cat.”

  “That doesn’t matter. You just have to pretend you want to be one. Here,
take my paws, one in each of your hands.”

  Sally did as she was told.

  “Now look deep into my eyes and repeat to yourself again and again, ‘I want to be a cat. Sally wants to be a cat. I want to be a cat.’ Just keep saying that to yourself and keep staring at my eyes and soon you will have all the power that I do. ‘Sally wants to be a cat. Sally wants to be a cat.’ ”

  “I want to be a cat,” Sally whispered. “Sally wants to be a cat.”

  Sally suddenly felt dizzy.

  “Don’t stop! ‘I want to be a cat Sally wants to be a cat.’ ”

  Sally felt very strange. But she wanted those powers.

  “I want to be a cat,” she kept saying.

  And the cat’s green eyes kept growing larger and larger.

  5

  The next day three-quarters of the gang—Adam, Cindy, and Watch—were having milk and doughnuts at their favorite coffee shop. The main topic was Sally, naturally—whether she was going to show up and whether she’d have her cat with her. Cindy didn’t think so but Adam and Watch were optimistic.

  “Sally gets bored when she’s alone,” Watch said. “She begins to talk to herself.”

  “She does that when she’s around people,” Cindy said.

  “Maybe I shouldn’t have told her to take her cat home,” Adam said.

  “She should just get rid of it,” Cindy said. “It gives me a weird feeling.”

  Adam and Watch had not discussed all their fears with Cindy, worried they might scare her unnecessarily. Also, they didn’t want her more mad at Sally than normal.

  “I don’t think she’s going to part with that cat any time soon,” Watch said.

  “We have to get used to it,” Adam agreed. “Maybe it’s not so bad.”

  “Yeah,” Cindy said sarcastically. “It will be perfect to have around at Halloween.”

  Just then a pretty girl about their age walked by the coffee shop. She waved to them through the window as if she knew them. Her black hair was long and very thick. Smiling, she pointed to the front door of the coffee shop as if asking whether she should join them. Adam and his friends didn’t know what to do so they just nodded. The girl headed for the entrance.