The Cats that Watched the Woods (The Cats that . . . Cozy Mystery Book 5)

by Karen Anne Golden

  Birdie chimed in, “I’m also from Peace Lake. I moved to Erie in the 1980s. I inherited this house from my late husband’s parents. Have you ever heard the legend of Peace Lake?” Birdie asked.

  “No, I don’t think I have.”

  Elsa commented, “It’s something tragic that happened before I was born.”

  Birdie continued. “There’s a ghost on the lake.”

  “A ghost?” Katherine leaned in with interest. “Tell me more.”

  “In 1968, there was a young man who showed so much promise. He was Peace Lake’s high school basketball star. He won a scholarship to go to the university, but was drafted into the army to serve in the Vietnam War.” Birdie’s voice broke.

  Elsa interjected. “Here, ma’am, take a sip of water.” She held a small bottle of water to Birdie’s lips.

  Birdie took a few sips and then carried on with the story. “His high school sweetheart was my daughter, Marcia. They were going to be married, but decided to wait until he got back home. He never returned.”

  Katherine asked, “What happened to him? Did he die in the war?”

  “I’ll never forget the day when his family came over and told us he’d died in a terrible explosion. Marcia and I went to his memorial service. Several years went by, and my daughter married and moved to New Mexico. Last month, her husband passed away, so she’s moving to Erie to live with me, initially, then she wants to have a ranch house built near Peace Lake.”

  “I’m sorry to hear her husband passed, but it will be nice for the two of you to live close by. You probably have a lot of catching up to do,” Katherine said. “I can’t wait to meet her.”

  Elsa continued her story about the Vietnam soldier, “He never returned, but his spirit did.”

  Katherine said excitedly, “I love a good ghost story.”

  Birdie elaborated, “Some people who knew him reported seeing him near the lake. He’s as young as his high school picture.”

  Elsa added, “One witness said he saw him walking out of the lake. He had his army uniform on.”

  Birdie said to Elsa, “Dear, suddenly I’m very tired. Can we go in so I can lie down for a little bit?”

  “Sure,” Elsa said, getting up and taking hold of the wheelchair. “Nice meeting you, Katz.”

  “Nice meeting you, too.” Katherine got up and touched Birdie on the shoulder. “We’ll talk again. I’ve got to go home now and feed my cats.”

  “Bye now,” the elderly woman said. “Say hello to the kitties.”

  Chapter Four

  In the late afternoon, Katherine found a garden shovel in the carriage house and ventured over to the new flower bed. The previous evening, Cokey Cokenberger had brought over his garden tiller and prepared a place in the backyard.

  Earlier, Connie London had dropped by ten daylily plants in plastic grocery bags. Connie was in a hurry to meet a friend in the city, so she gave a cursory overview of what Katherine, the non-green thumb, should do. Katherine understood the dig-the-hole part, but was nervous about the planting. Her expertise was limited to taking seeds out of a packet, and on many occasions, that didn’t even work for her. Katherine put her foot on the top of the shovel blade and began digging the first hole.

  Stevie Sanders, a son of Erie’s ‘crime boss,’ pulled up in his new Chevy Colorado pickup truck. Katherine wondered why he was driving down the service alley when he now lived in the city. Well, at least according to his sister, Barbie. He powered the window down. “Hey, good lookin’,” he said. “Fallen off any ladders lately?” Back in October, Stevie had caught her when a rung broke on an old wood ladder in the carriage house. If he hadn’t been there, looking for scrap metal, the fall could have caused a serious injury. But that was months ago, and this was mid-summer.

  “Hi, Mr. Sanders,” Katherine said somewhat formally. She didn’t want to give Stevie any hint of interest, considering that the last time they talked he had asked her out to dinner. “How have you been?” she asked cordially.

  “Oh, about six-foot-four and a handsome devil. That’s what my girlfriends tell me.”

  Katherine shot a look of annoyance and wondered what he could possibly want. She wished he’d just move on down the road. Instead, Stevie got out of his truck and walked over. Katherine threw one of the plants in the newly dug hole and pretended she knew what she was doing.

  “Here, let me help,” Stevie suggested. He kneeled down and removed the plant. He added soil from the Miracle-Gro bag and carefully set the daylily back in the hole. Then he began adding soil and patting it around the plant. He didn’t talk while he did this. When he finished, he said, “You’ve got to water it down to git any air pockets out of it.”

  Katherine smiled. “Thanks. I printed instructions from the Internet, but—”

  Stevie interrupted with a smirk on his face. “You’re a city girl and ain’t never planted a plant before.”

  Katherine stood up and handed Stevie a towel.

  “What do you think of my new truck?” he asked, wiping his hands.

  It was then that Katherine noticed the logo painted on the driver-side door: Stevie’s Electrical. “I didn’t know you were an electrician.”

  “Yep, got my electrician’s license the other day. Learned the basics when I worked for the state; then went to night school at Hoosier Tech.”

  Katherine knew working for the state meant Stevie’s stint with the penitentiary. Curiosity got the better of her and she asked a personal question. “What did you do time for?”

  Stevie looked at her for a moment—his blue eyes looked deeply into hers. Then he hung his head and said quietly, “Ma’am, I did somethin’ stupid. I drove my buddy to a convenience store for beer, and the dumbass—excuse my language—robbed the place. I’ve had priors, so I did time for it.”

  “Hope that guy isn’t still your buddy.”

  “Nope. He can’t be,” he said, then paused. “Cause he’s dead. Went and shot himself down by the river.”

  Katherine was shocked, but didn’t ask any more personal questions.

  Stevie fumbled in his pocket and retrieved two business cards. “I stopped by to give you my card.”

  “But there’s two here?”

  Stevie ignored the question. “If you ever need an electrician on one of your jobs, please keep me in mind.”

  “I will,” Katherine said. “I’ll give these to my project manager.”

  “One of those is for you,” he winked. “Its’ got my landline number on it and my cell.”

  “Okay, thanks,” she said dismissively, heading to the house. She thought that was the only way he was going to leave.

  “I’m fixin’ to go now. I’d still like to take you out to dinner, but my sister tells me you got engaged. I’ll respect that.”

  Katherine held up her left hand and flashed her diamond ring. “Yes, to Jake Cokenberger.”

  “Yeah, I knew that part. Jake got lucky. Well, keep me in mind. Like I said, if you need any electrical work here at the house, or on one of your projects, I’m your man. Good afternoon, ma’am.”

  Katherine followed him with her eyes. What a transformation, she thought. Clean cut, well-groomed, tall and handsome. No more unwashed ponytail. I bet he does have a lot of girlfriends, but he’s dreaming if he thinks one of them is going to be me.

  The truck was new, and looked like Stevie spent all his free time keeping it clean. It was a perfect shiny black. He tapped the horn when he left. Katherine resumed her gardening when she heard a young voice say, “Hey, Katz, guess what we got?”

  Katherine turned to see Margie with her two children, Shelly and Tommy, walking down the alley. “Come over and tell me,” she said.

  Shelly ran over wearing a Mickey Mouse ears headband. “Daddy’s in the dog house.”

  Katherine thought, What has Cokey done now? Bad luck seems to follow him around. First the brief affair with a murderer, then being accused of the murder of Robbie Brentwood.

  Margie said to Shelly in a scolding voice,
“Young lady, explain to Ms. Katz what you just meant.”

  Shelly giggled her signature cackle and said, “Daddy’s building a dog house. We got a new puppy.”

  “That’s wonderful. What kind did you get?”

  Tommy answered, “A yellow lab. We named him Oscar.”

  “Congratulations!” Katherine offered, then to Margie, “What does Spitfire think of the new puppy?”

  “Well, kiddo, Oscar isn’t a puppy, but Shelly calls him one anyway. He’s a rescue from the shelter. His foster mom said he was great with cats, so we adopted him. And do you know what?”

  “Oh, no! Don’t tell me,” Katherine said hesitantly. “Are the two of them not getting along?”

  “Not at first, but I think they’ve arranged some sort of truce. Oscar stays out of Spitty’s way, and vice versa.”

  “That’s cool! I want to see him. I want to pet him.”

  “He’s assisting Cokey with the grill right now. We’ll bring him over some time.”

  Tommy picked up the shovel. “Can I dig, Ms. Katz? Please, I wanna dig.”

  “By all means. Go for it,” Katherine laughed, handing him the shovel. “I need nine more holes.”

  “Nine?” Tommy scrunched up his face. He started to dig while Shelly supervised.

  “What did that Sanders boy want?” Margie asked nosily.

  Katherine was used to Margie’s frank questions. “He has his own business now. He’s an electrician. He stopped by to find out if I had any work.”

  “Oh, lordy. Not one of the Sanders. They’d steal you blind—”

  “How?” Katherine interrupted.

  “Well, for starters, taking off with the construction equipment after the job is finished. Stealing copper tubing and pipe is a big thing now, or air compressors, nail guns, you name it, then selling it on the black market.”

  “Really? Indiana has a black market?” Katherine asked skeptically. “You think Stevie Sanders would do that?”

  “I wouldn’t trust anyone who did time for theft. He robbed a convenience store. On that sour note, I’ll leave ya now. Kids, come on. We’re walkin’ to the gas station for fountain drinks. Cokey’s grilling hotdogs in a minute. Katz, want to come over and join us?”

  “Oh, thanks, Margie, but Jake’s coming soon. We’re doing something else.”

  Margie winked. “Gotcha.”

  “When are Cokey and you taking the kids to Disney World?”

  Margie said happily. “Soon! I’m countin’ the days. We’re leavin’ on Wednesday.”

  Shelly jumped up and down. “I’m never taking my ears off. I can’t wait to meet Mickey.”

  Katherine said, “When you do, I want a pic of it.”

  Margie nodded and said to her twelve-year-old son, “Tommy put down the shovel and come on. I can’t carry four biggie drinks by myself.”

  Shelly giggled and skipped ahead. Tommy sullenly put down the shovel. “See ya, Katz,” he said shyly. “Say ‘hi’ to the cats. Two head pats for the one who flies.”

  Katherine knew exactly what he meant. “I’ll give Lilac a chin scratch, too.”

  * * *

  The following morning, Katherine walked outside to water the daylilies she and Jake had planted the evening before. She scratched at the multitude of mosquito bites she’d gotten and lamented at not using the bug spray as Jake had suggested.

  Her cell rang, so she reached in her Capri pants’ pocket. It was Barbie Sanders—former student—now a busy career woman with two Siamese kittens named Dewey and Crow.

  “Katz, how are ya?” Barbie began amicably.

  “Fine. How’s school?”

  “I’m taking the summer off from classes. I’m working full-time at a vet clinic. Today’s my day off. I’ve got a minor problem-o.”

  “What’s that?” Katherine asked, wondering why Barbie would be calling with a problem when she was so sure of herself.

  “It’s the kittens.”

  “They’re okay, right?” Katherine asked, concerned.

  “Yeah, they’re okay, but I’m not. They’re driving me crazy. They keep me up all night with their playing. They’re constantly under my feet. They’re very demanding . . .”

  Katherine held the cell to her ear and finished watering the plants. “Kittens are always like that. When Iris was a baby, she was the most hyperactive cat I’ve ever seen. Give them time. They’ll settle down.”

  “Well,” Barbie said, then hesitated. “I was wondering if I could bring them for playtime with your cats. Maybe the kittens need adult cats to teach them manners.”

  “Sure. Let’s schedule a time to do that,” Katherine answered.

  “How about now?”

  “Now? Where are you?”

  “Oh, ha! Ha! I’m parked in front of your house.”

  Katherine laughed. “I’ll be right there.” She pressed the End button and put the cell back into her pocket. Walking to the front of the house, she watched Barbie get out of a new red Mustang. A premonition hit her in the head like a ton of bricks. She thought about Carol Lombard and the last time she’d seen her. Carol had been driving a new red Mustang.

  Barbie flipped the front passenger seat and pulled out a cat carrier. Katherine rushed over to help. Sitting calmly inside were two of the most adorable, long, lean and slinky seal-point Siamese boys. Their bodies were a light cream color with seal masks that hadn’t darkened yet. Their slanted eyes were a dark blue and slightly crossed. One of them belted an explosive, loud, “Mao,” while the other one yawned.

  “They’re so cute . . . I can’t take it,” Katherine gushed.

  “Thanks, Katz,” Barbie grinned ear-to-ear.

  “They’ve really grown. How old are they now?”

  “A little over eight months. It’s hard to tell them apart, so I put collars on them. Red is Dewey, and black is Crowie.”

  “Ah, you call him Crowie. Sweet. Come, bring them inside.” Katherine grabbed one end of the carrier and led the way.

  Inside, Scout and Abra sat on the parlor windowsill, looking apprehensively at a cat carrier being brought into the pink mansion. This could only mean one of two things: either a short trip to the vet, or a long road trip in the car. They jumped off the windowsill to officially greet Katherine and Barbie at the door.

  Katherine used her cell phone to tap in the code to disable the house alarm. “Okay, now we can go in,” she said, opening the door.

  Barbie asked, “You set the alarm when you’re just outside?”

  “Pretty much.”

  The two walked into the atrium and set the carrier down. Dewey and Crowie were very interested and ventured closer to the front of the cage. Scout and Abra began circling the carrier while Iris sat stoic, peering in with curious, blue eyes.

  Lilac and Abby dove off their parlor valance perch and came in, as well. They began circling the carrier in the opposite direction as Scout and Abra. Finally, getting dizzy from the activity, Lilac and Abby hopped on top and began pawing the outside of the cage. The kittens didn’t make a sound. Curiously, the other cats didn’t, either.

  Barbie kneeled down on the floor. “When do you think it’s safe to open the door?” she asked.

  Katherine pondered, “I’ve always thought it best to make introductions slowly, but the kittens look rather sedate. My cats just had breakfast, so they should be pretty sleepy and want to take a nap.”

  Barbie laughed her signature, but subdued laugh. “Oh, ha! Ha! What’s the worst thing that could happen?” She slowly opened the door.

  Scout and Abra quickly moved to the front of the carrier and stood like prison guards on either side of the cage’s open door. Lilac and Abby craned their necks to lean over and look inside. Iris made the first move. She sauntered over, sniffed briefly, and licked one of the kittens on the head.

  Katherine cooed, “Ahhh, Iris, my sweet girl. Barbie, I don’t think we have anything to worry—” She didn’t have time to finish her sentence. The kittens wiggled their rumps and shot out like cannon balls wi
th the five adult cats in hot pursuit. The kittens were flying—leaping over furniture, dodging underneath tables, springing off walls. They fled to the living room, which displayed the most expensive antiques.

  On top of a mirrored chest of drawers, a Tiffany lamp careened. Barbie screamed, “Katz, grab that lamp.”

  Katherine ran to the chest and rescued the lamp. “Barbie, look out behind you!”

  The kittens vaulted to the five-shelf display stand that displayed Katherine’s great aunt’s Lladro porcelain collection. They did a dead stop, and then used their back legs to launch off the bottom shelf. The display stand began to wobble as if the town of Erie had been struck by an earthquake. The figurines began swaying, teetering, close to falling and being smashed to smithereens. The kittens shot out of the room. The adult cats were getting tired of the chase; Lilac and Abby bowed out and assumed their regular positions on top of the window valance.

  “No. . . no. . . no,” Barbie scolded, sprinting to the stand. She began catching the figurines that were tumbling off the shelves. She handled them like a professional juggler and managed to return them to their original places without any damage.

  Scout, Abra and Iris galloped after the kittens as they thundered upstairs. Each cat tried to out-paw the other. Katherine and Barbie heard a loud crash.

  “Oh, no, Barbie! We’d better get up there to make sure none of them is hurt.”

  It was too late for a sprint up the stairs. The three cats and two kittens had returned and were now heading for the back office.

  Katherine joined the chase and called back to Barbie, “Close the door behind me.”

  Barbie couldn’t move fast enough. The race shifted and the cats galloped back upstairs.

  Returning to the atrium, Katherine said, “Hopefully the kittens will discover the new playroom up there.”

  Barbie asked, “Playroom?”

  “I converted one of the guest rooms into a cat room. It’s a cat’s dream come true.”

  “I want to see it,” Barbie said excitedly.

  The two climbed the stairs and found the kittens busy in the playroom. They’d discovered a stash of busy balls and were batting them around the room.

  “What did I tell ya?” Katherine said knowingly.