by RM Alexander
“Maybe.”
“I’d like to try to be that right man.”
She shook her head. “I’m not sure you are.”
He leaned down and claimed her mouth, harder than he had inside, more possessive. Cami backed away, staring at him hard. “Did you come to the sanctuary this week?”
Paul shook his head. “No, I would’ve come to the door if I did. Why do you ask?”
She shifted her gaze down, thought for a moment. “No reason. Someone just thought they’d seen you.”
“No, if I had come there, I most certainly would have come to see you. I have no other reason to be there.”
She shook her head, pulling her hands away. “No, that’s true. You don’t.”
Chapter Eighteen
The morning rose with a cold stillness. Cami opened her eyes, and eased up in bed, an invisible, undefinable compression on her chest. She shuddered and pushed the blankets off. She sat still, listening. Something was wrong. The cats weren’t calling for breakfast in the familiar groans. Even Regellius was quiet.
With robe rippling as she pulled the fabric over bare shoulders, bare feet pounding against the floor, Cami flew down the stairs, through the kitchen and out the door. The weighted air felt thicker, the normal chuffing silent. Eyes darted to the soft morning sun rising above the horizon and covered her mouth. Morning roars should've been thrumming the sanctuary this time of morning.
Cami raced to Regellius’ pen. He was no where to be seen. “Regellius. Where are you at, boy?”
No answer, not a single moan. She edged along the perimeter of the pen, searching for signs of the cat she loved.
As she stood mid-cage, searching the shadows, minute movements in the darkest corner caught her attention. “Regellius? What is it, boy?”
The striped cat didn’t move towards her, and Cami’s heart sunk. Without thought, she hurried to the door and slid it open, stepping inside. Alarms sounded deep within her ears, and dismissed. She knew the risk and didn’t care. Something was wrong with Regellius, and she didn’t have the time to call for help.
Keeping her back against the wall, she stepped one foot in front of the other, slowly edging towards the cat. If Regellius knew she was there, and Cami guessed he did, he didn’t lift his head.
She stopped, listened. His breathing sounded shallow, raspy. She bit the inside bottom lip. Something is really wrong.
“Hey, boy. It’s me. What is it, boy?”
He shifted his head an inch, maybe two, against the floor, without raising it. She pulled out her phone and texted Jessica.
With Reggy. Need help. 911
Tucking the phone back in the drooping robe pocket, she sunk to the ground next to him, the cat too weak to acknowledge her presence. Slowly, Cami reached a hand out, hesitated, pulled the hand back, and then gently touched the cat’s head. A weak chuff sounded and silenced in the time it took Cami to pull in a breath.
She stroked his fur, soft and thick, legs stretched out as she settled against the straw and wood chips. "It's going to be okay. Help is coming, and I'm not leaving you."
The large pink tongue eased between his large mouth and disappeared. Regellius groaned, chuffed and fell silent.
“Cami, what in the world are you doing?”
The hushed voice meant nothing as she watched the cat’s breathing labor, the fur rising and falling in long, heart-breaking movements. Settling on impulse more than reason, she eased a hand down to the cat’s large pink nose. Dry.
“Cami? You shouldn’t be in there with him like that.”
She turned to face Jessica. “He’s really sick.”
“Yes, I see that. Even more reason for you not to be in there. He could attack, you
know.”
“No, he won’t.”
“I’d still feel better if you’d come out of there and let me take care of him.”
Cami rubbed his neck. “Okay boy, I’m going to leave you in Jessica’s care. She’ll take good care of you, and I won’t be far.”
She rose in slow motion to her feet, careful not to startle the tiger, sliding against the wall in the same way she came in.
Standing outside the door, she looked at Jessica. “Please, do whatever you can. It doesn’t look good.”
She nodded, voice gentle. “That’s why you hired me. But you being careless like that isn’t going to help Regellius, me, or the sanctuary. You can get yourself killed like that. You know better.”
“Just save him.”
“I’ll do my best.”
Jessica shot the tranquilizer at Regellius, and the cat echoed a plaintive roar as the dart drilled into the thick fur, hitting the mark. He didn’t stand, didn’t pace.
His eyes simply closed.
“Is he …?” Cami couldn’t finish, nausea hitting her in waves.
“No, but we have to act fast. I’m going to need some help. Please page Alyssa. Have you checked on the other cats?”
She shook her head as trembling fingers send a message to Alyssa. “No, but something’s wrong. I haven’t heard any of them this morning, and usually they’re waking me up to be fed.” She finished the text, and messaged Alex. Sliding the phone in the robe, she crossed her arms, staring as Jessica examined the tiger, the back of Cami’s throat constricting tight.
““Go check the other cats, Cami. I need to know if they are all sick.”
She stood steadfast for a moment, then turned away, knowing she could do nothing for Regellius. Utterly helpless.
She rushed from cage to cage, heart heavy as each cat lie hidden in corners and darkness, unwilling to come to her, all without response.
At Cato’s cage, Cami stopped, dropping to her knees, no longer able to hold back the tears. The fiercest of the cats, the one cat no one was able to approach. The Bengal lie next to the fence, still. She stared, knowing life vacated him sometime in the night, the stench of death curling her nose, the contents of last night’s dinner emptied in his bowel and vomit.
She poked a finger through the fencing, doing what she’d been unable to do when Cato lived, and stroked a lifeless ear.
“Cami?”
“He may have been mean, but he was still part of the family here. He came from one of the worst environments, fought through it, came here to live out his life.”
Alex stooped next to her, arm around her waist. “You did good by him.”
“Did you stop by Regellius’ pen? Is Alyssa here yet?”
“Yes.”
“Is Regellius …”
“He’s still alive. They’re working on him. What about the other tigers?”
She shook her head. “I don’t know. Xena, Bianca, they all are not responding. Shikar came to the fencing, but she looked dazed. Whatever happened to Cato,” she paused, stroked his ear again, and turned away. “They all seem sick with it.”
“Some kind of bug?”
Cami allowed Alex to help her stand, hands tucked in back pockets, head hung. “I don’t know. This isn’t my thing, you know. But I can’t think of where they would have caught a bug that would have left them all sick in such a short amount of time.”
“Something they ate? Bad meat?”
“It's delivered fresh daily, and carefully prepared with all the nutritional supplements. We use it too quickly for it to go bad.” She dug her toes into the earth, the soles sore from Regellius cage and running from cage to cage.
Alex's eyes trailed down her body. "You're not dressed to be traisping around the sanctuary. You're feet okay?"
She frowned, shook her head.
He nodded. "We’ll have to wait, then, I guess. Did Shakir eat the same thing as the others?”
“They all eat the same thing. None of them are on a special diet.”
Alex took off his hat, whapped it against a leg, and sighed. “Okay, well, we’ll leave that to Tommy. Are you going back to Regellius?”
She nodded.
“Okay. I’ll go check on the others, see if any are like Cato.” He said the words and fiddled with
his hat, fingers playing alongside the rim. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
She nodded again, staring at Cato’s body. “I’m made of tough stuff, remember?”
“Yeah, but that’s just your outer shell. You can’t hide it from me, Cam.”
“I know.”
She turned away, certain Alex would remove Cato from the pen and scrub out the enclosure. Leaving him to such a gruesome job was wrong, but she didn't want to do it. Couldn't do it. She'd failed the Bengal.
Regellius’ pen was a flurry of action as Cami approached, Jessica and Alyssa both huddled over his body. The quickness of their movements and hurried whispers no more than a series of hisses and muffled hums spoke volumes.
He’s not dead yet.
She trotted to the fence, peered in to see Regellius still unconscious. “How’s it going?”
“He’s in bad shape, but he’s fighting, and so are we. We’re going to rush him over to the clinic now, give him some support. What about the other cats?” Jessica asked without looking up from her patient.
Cami watched as the women, along with a couple of volunteers, hoisted the cat on a cart. “Cato is dead. Alex is checking on the others again, but they all seem sick, all except Shakir. She seems to be okay.”
“Well, that’s something.” Jessica nodded to the men. “Thanks, guys. Can you please go touch base with Alex, see where we are.” The men grunted and rushed off, Jessica turned to Cami. “We’re going to need more help here. We’re only two people, and we’ve got seven or eight very sick cats, one dead.”
She nodded, yanked out her phone and started dialing. “I’ll contact everyone I know. I’ll get you as much help as possible.”
Jessica nodded. “We’ll save him, Cami. I’ll do everything I can, and pray the rest of the way through.”
She nodded, and turned away as the other end of the phone was answered. Running towards the house, she talked as fast as she could, hung up, dialed another number as she flung open the front door and bounded up the staircase. With two more nearby vets already on the way, Cami tore a shirt from the hanger, opened and slammed dresser drawers to retrieve whatever clothes trembling fingers clasped onto. Shoulder propping phone to ear, she talked and hopped into a pair of rugged jeans. Two more volunteers on the way. Cami laid the phone on the bed, speaker turned on, pulled a shirt on and hopped into a pair of work boots. One more vet, three more volunteers.
She tore down the steps.
Chapter Nineteen
Regellius rested in the vet clinic, machines monitoring the large cat which looked smaller than a hamster lying on the metal table. Five other cats rested in the small room, and, after a morning of testing, Jessica ascertained what was making the cats sick wasn’t natural.
Pesticide.
Intentional.
Cami stood looking down at the cat’s body, fur raising and falling with shallow regularity. She reached out and touched a massive paw, holding it like she imagined she’d do with any relative lying sick in a hospital bed. His mouth hung open, a tube feeding down his throat, eyes closed. The free hand rested against her lips as she glanced at the monitors, only faintly aware of Jessica and Alyssa buzzing from cat to cat.
Alex walked up behind her, wrapped an arm around her waist. “How’s he doing?”
“Have you heard the news?” Her head dropped against his chest.
“About the pesticide in the blood?”
Cami nodded. “Tommy is on his way.” She touched the cat’s tremendous head. “It’s funny, standing over him like he’s a child or something. I’m sure I look ridiculous.”
He kissed her forehead. “You look amazing, like you always do. What can I do for you?”
“Find me the bastard who did this.”
“Any thoughts on who it is?”
Cami heard the words and swallowed hard, fighting the words blaring in her head. Her head moved in small motion, lips clamped tight. No proof. There’s no proof. Don’t voice the accusations.
“But you have suspicions?”
She turned to him. “You know me too well.”
Alex reached out, fingertips brushing a few strands of hair to trace Cami’s cheek with a feather touch. She lifted her eyes, studying an expression she didn’t understand. She held it for a moment, felt her cheeks flush beneath his lingering fingers curled in a broad arch, turned away. Focus adjusted back to Regellius.
Alex rested his hands on her shoulders, massaging the painful tightness. “He’s going to be okay. All of them will be.”
Cami dropped her head against his chest, the woodsy smell of Alex’s cologne capturing her, letting her go. Never realized how good he smells. “I hope so. Beside the cats, this could attract attention. We just opened, and already to have a major issue like this, it could shut us down.” A stray tear escaped, and she wiped it away, hard. No tears. Crying didn’t accomplish anything, and she didn’t have time for waterworks. “Someone wanted us shut down. That’s the only reason to do something like this.” Cami closed her eyes, the pressure of strong hands bearing against exhausted muscles reaching deep within her. She rolled her head, side to side in rhythm with Alex’s hands, then opened her eyes and pulled away.
This was Alex, not some boyfriend, some lover. What was she doing?
“Tommy will be here soon, I better get out front.” She looked up at him, glanced away. Stretched her shoulders, she brushed away the remnants of Alex’s fingers pressing against her shoulders, “Yeah, I’ve got to go. I’ll talk to you later.”
Alex turned to catch Cami by the hand, but she brushed away too quickly.
He glanced at Jessica as she moved to Regellius’ side wearing a small smile. “What’d I do wrong now? I’m telling you, lately, I’m not getting it right with Cami no matter how I play it.”
Jessica tucked a pen in the pocket of her lab coat, unwrapped the stethoscope from around her neck. “A little too close for comfort with that massage there, Alex.”
He watched as she listened to Regellius’ breathing, and traded the stethoscope for a needle resting on a nearby tray. “She was tense.”
Poking a needle into the cat, she drew blood and wiped the area with a sterile pad. “And you’re finally making a move. We’re all glad to see it, but don’t think Cami’s going to come around overnight.”
He reached for Reggellius’ forehead, scratched the feline’s head, something he knew he’d never able to do if the cat was awake. “I guess I’m just going to have to keep trying then. How is Reggy?”
A heavy breath and Jessica shrugged. “He’s steady, and that’s the best we can hope for right now. He was given a huge amount of pesticide, and only his sheer size saved him from being like Cato right now.”
“The others?”
Jessica glanced around the room. “All different amounts of poisoning. There’s no rhyme or reason. It looks like random dosages.”
Alex rubbed his chest. “Maybe someone who didn’t know what they were doing?”
She shrugged. “Maybe. Or someone in a rush. Either way, we’re lucky so far, that it was only Cato we’ve lost at this point. But Alex, there may be more. You’ll need to be ready for that, because Cami’s not.”
He nodded and turned away.
If more tigers were lost, and especially Reggy, there wasn’t enough preparation to help Cami.
In the driveway, Tommy held a notepad, aviator glasses covering his eyes, royal blue uniform and car completing the scene of a professional call rather than a personal one. Cami stood in front of him, hand clasped over her shoulder, head bowed.
Alex trotted next to her, offered a hand to his friend. “Hey, Tommy.”
He shook Alex’s hand, smile absent. All business. “Hey there, Alex. I was just about to come looking for you. Quite a mess you all have here.”
He nodded. “I’m afraid so, buddy. Thanks for coming out.”
“It’s the job.” He scribbled something onto the notepad, looked up. “I’d be here anyway. Cami tells me it’s pesticide?”
<
br /> “Looks like. She knows more than I do. I arrived after the fact.”
“Did you notice anything yesterday, Cami, any of your volunteers acting funny, someone strange hanging around beyond the gates? Something you might have brushed aside, but looking back, it seemed unusual?”
She shook her head, “No, nothing Tommy. Honestly. With everything that’s been happening, I’ve been watching. We all have. I don’t risk my animals.”
He nodded, made another note. “I know that, but I have to ask. I want to find out who’s doing this, before something worse happens.”
Cami shook her head, sucked her lips over her teeth. “They got to my cats Tom, killed one, maybe more if Jessica can’t help them. There’s nothing more serious than that.”
Alex and Tommy shared a glance.
“Cami, if something happening to you, or one of the ranch hands –"
She held a hand up, stopping Tommy from going further. “You don’t have to say it. But they’re not after me, or my people. They’re after my cats. I took these cats in to watch out for them. I want you to take this as seriously as if they had attacked any one of us humans.” She rolled her eyes. Alex knew to her, there was little difference. “You are going to get whoever’s doing this, right Tommy?”
“Look Cami, if you have to ask me that, you and I’ve got a problem. I’m here because I care, not just as law enforcement, but as a friend. You got that?”
She nodded. “I know. I’m sorry. I just, I can’t believe someone did this. And if I lose more cats, if the public finds about this, it’s going to become a media circus around her. Everyone who wanted to shut me down is going to shut me down. You know that.”
“Yes, I do. And I’m going to do everything I can to make sure that doesn’t happen. I’m going to go there and look around. Are any of the cats in their cages now?”
She raked a hand through her hair. “Just Shakir and Neptune. She didn’t get sick. The rest of them are in the vet building.”
He tucked the notepad in a pocket, took the glasses off and hung them at the top of his shirt. “Alex, can you show me around, make sure I don’t pay a visit to Shakir?”
