Small Town Angel

by K'Anne Meinel

  “I just didn’t want it to go to the pound, they put them in the gas chamber there!” he said earnestly.

  “I understand and I guess if Toby can learn to get along with it, it can stay,” she said but really worried about what she was going to do with it. It was probably feral and wasn’t an indoor cat.

  “It’s a really sweet cat,” Bailey said as though reading her mind.

  “Has it been indoors?” she asked wondering at a cat pan.

  The boy looked immediately guilty and nodded. “I let her into our house, that’s how Mom found out,” he told her reluctantly.

  Amy almost laughed. Just the other night Abby had tried to talk her into having the cat and now the boy had taken the situation out of her hands completely. “You walked here all that way from town with the cat in your jacket?”

  The boy nodded looking ashamed and yet hopeful. “You’ll keep her won’t you? You won’t let my mom take her to the pound?” he asked in a concerned voice.

  Amy pretended to consider, she did need a cat to take care of whatever was in her kitchen. She didn’t want the boy to think she was a soft touch though. “I don’t know Bailey, with Toby to consider I don’t know if I’ll have time to take care of a cat too,” she began.

  “I’ll help,” he offered, not thinking of what would be involved.

  She smiled briefly before she continued, “Does your mother or grandmother know where you are?” she asked as Toby tried to get out from her hold on his collar. She glanced at the doorway herself that the dog was staring in rapt fascination. She saw nothing, but it didn’t mean there was nothing there. Cats were canny that way.

  The boy squirmed. Not only had he let the cat in the house, but it had been so cold! But he hadn’t told anyone where he was going either and he knew that would get him in trouble.

  Amy shook her head and the boy took that to mean she wouldn’t keep the cat. “Oh please, it’s a really nice cat!” he pleaded.

  “Well, let’s get you dressed and home. I’m going to have to stop at the store and pick up some things,” she told him non-commitally as she herself got up holding Toby and pulling him over to the door she grabbed his leash.

  “You won’t get rid of her will you?” he pleaded as he went to put his boots back on.

  “I have to think about it,” she told him as she put on her own boots and Toby made it difficult as he lunged with his leash on. “No boy, leave it alone,” she said to the eager dog who wanted to go sniff out the intruder.

  “It’s a girl,” the boy said as he looked down to tie the laces on his boots.

  ‘Great,’ Amy thought as she stamped into her boots and reached for her jacket. Another thing she had to take care of and she had just opened her store, just another responsibility.

  They were soon in the SUV with Toby and on their way back to town. “That’s a long way to walk in the cold,” she commented to the boy noticing the footprints on the side of the road that led towards her cabin. Toby was relegated to the back seat with the addition of a passenger and he let the boy know that he was in his spot by hanging his head over the seat and licking him when the boy wasn’t shoving his snout away. “Back Toby,” Amy told the dog who sat back for a moment before considering if he could get away with it again.

  “Yeah, it was cold,” the boy agreed. He still didn’t know if she was going to keep the cat, but he hoped so.

  “What’s your Mom going to say about it?” she asked and glanced over to see him squirm a little.

  “Can we not tell her?” the boy asked looking up to plead. Today hadn’t worked out at all like he had planned it to.

  Amy glanced at him to see that he was serious. Abby could be a bit intimidating she guessed. She knew how she had felt finding out that she was the local law.

  They were soon in the little town and she was pulling up outside of the house adjoining her store. She glanced at the store and saw a couple of people coming out of it and wondered briefly if she should go inside and then decided against it. It was her day off; she had to trust her employees.

  “Are you going to keep the cat?” her thoughts were interrupted by Bailey.

  She sighed deeply and then nodded. “I guess so, but don’t bring any others!” she teased.

  He smiled brilliantly as he got out of the SUV with a wave and headed up the sidewalk. Amy watched as the door opened and Bonnie stuck her head out. She waved at her before driving off. If she was going to have a cat in the house she was going to have to get a few things for it and Northpoint didn’t have a large enough market for what she had in mind.

  A bit poorer for her shopping expedition she now had an adequate supply of wet and dry food for the cat, a litter box, and a few toys she hoped would entice the kitty, but she wondered if they were to entice the human buying them as well. She had felt guilty and Toby now had a few new things that he didn’t need as well.

  Back at the cabin though Toby went off in search of the newest member of their household and got his nose scratched for the effort.

  “I’m not going to feel sorry for you,” Amy told the pup, he had to learn and she had told him repeatedly to leave the kitty alone.

  She made the cat box up by the back door with Toby sniffing it intently and her pushing him away. She put out a bowl of dry food that Toby was really interested in, but again she told him no and then considering she put it up on the counter only to yell at the exuberant pup who wanted to climb up and eat it. Shaking her head she wondered about feeding times for felines.

  She herself knew the cat was in her spare bedroom and was leaving it alone until it wanted to make an appearance. As she was having a lazy day and half of it had already been taken up by the shopping expedition she wanted to veg out on the couch with no more interruptions. She could tell when the cat tried to make an appearance by Toby’s lifting his head from his paws to stare at the doorway intently. She herself couldn’t see it but knew it had to be curious.

  It was only as she mindlessly began channel surfing through the limited stations offered without buying more cable service that she heard the distinct sound of a vehicle pulling into her driveway. The crunching of the frozen snow under its tires was rather distinct. A cutting of the engine and a few minutes later a knock on her door didn’t surprise her, Toby had heard it all too but didn’t explode into his exuberant barking until the actual knock. Amy didn’t know if was the knock itself or the dogs bark that had her jumping, she had been expecting both so she didn’t appreciate the heart palpitations that had her sitting up annoyed. Turning off the television she got up from her convenient sprawl on the couch to answer the door.

  “Down Toby,” she told the master protector of the house. He sat expectantly, waiting for her to open the door. “Who is it?” she asked, it was dark after all.

  “Abby,” the muffled voice told her and she wasn’t surprised. “Hurry up, it’s cold out here!”

  Amy was laughing as she unlocked the door and opened it up to the cop who let the outer door slam behind her as she stepped into the warm cabin. “Well officer, this is an unexpected surprise,” she drawled, even though she had a feeling it wasn’t really unexpected or a surprise. She wondered if Bailey had told her or Bonnie had questioned the boy.

  “To us both,” Abby mumbled through the scarf she was unwrapping.

  Amy laughed at her as she went to help and ended up making it worse. Finally, hands raised she stepped back to let the woman get herself out of her winter apparel. She did take the pieces though and hung them up on the hooks by the door drilled into the wood. “To what do I owe the honor of your visit?” she asked once Abby was down to sweat shirt and jeans and her jacket hung up.

  “Got any hot chocolate?” Abby pleaded, hoping she had some of the same delicious treats she had at the store. She was already addicted as were several of the people around town to the various flavors that were offered in the store, they were better than the expensive coffee offered at the Coffee Clutch. The only complaint anyone had about Amy’s offerings at
The Emporium was that she didn’t have a drive-thru, a physical impossibility with the lake and docks.

  “Why I sure do,” Amy said as she headed for the kitchen with Abby following her. She felt immediately guilty seeing the bowl of cat food on the counter but ignored it hoping her guest wouldn’t see it. That was the problem with having a cop as a friend, you always felt ‘guilty’ about certain ‘things’ in your life.

  She turned on the stove and reached for the kettle to fill with water. She’d had hot chocolate herself earlier in the day after running around so there was still water sloshing in the kettle. She couldn’t help but feel a little self-conscious around the other woman and quickly put the kettle on the stove and reached for the cabinet door to open it and find the extra canisters of hot chocolate.

  “Do you bring home work supplies?” Abby asked teasingly as she noticed Amy’s flushed cheeks, almost as though she were guilty of something.

  Amy laughed as she nodded. “Why yes, yes I do.”

  “Probably cheaper buying in bulk,” Abby wryly noted as Amy indicated the different flavors she favored. “Oh that one,” she said pointing, glad to see they had similar tastes.

  “That one is one of my favorites too,” Amy answered as she pulled down the inconvenient sized canister. It was made for a restaurant not her small cabin kitchen.

  “You could make a fortune selling these flavors that you offer in the restaurant,” Abby commented as she anticipated the flavor.

  It was like a light bulb went off for Amy and Abby watched it happen before her. “That’s a terrific idea and I don’t know why I hadn’t thought of it before,” she answered back thoughtfully.

  “Probably because you had a million other things on your mind?”

  They shared a laugh and then heard the sound of Toby’s nails on the wood floor scrambling across it as he huffed out his breath chasing something. Amy looked up at an alarmed Abby guiltily as she called out, “TOBY!” in a warning voice.

  “What’s he after?” Abby asked.

  Amy studied her for a moment and then decided honesty was the best policy. “Probably the cat,” she said dryly.

  “You got a cat?” Abby asked amused and then her eyes narrowed. “That tabby?” she asked putting one and one together and coming up with two easily.

  Amy nodded and waited.

  “You stole my cat?” she asked alarmed and a little amused.

  Amy shook her head. “No, I didn’t steal your cat.” She hesitated; she didn’t want to get Bailey in trouble.

  It was the hesitation though that allowed the facile mind of the brunette to put it together. “Bailey?” she asked.

  Just then the water began to boil and Amy turned to the whistling kettle, reaching to turn off the burner. At the same time she reached for two coffee cups to fill them with the hot water. “He brought her to me,” she answered and glanced at the cop.

  “Well I’ll be,” Abby answered with a grin. “He figured out a way to keep her and not keep her.”

  “You didn’t want her did you?” Amy asked wondering if she had just spent money on the cat for nothing.

  “I did but I didn’t, I threatened to take it to the pound when I found him sneaking her in through his bedroom window. That lets out a lot of heat waiting for that cat to decide if she is going to come in or stay out. I guess,” here she hesitated. “I guess he believed me.” She sounded contrite.

  “Well, I hope this doesn’t get him any more hot water,” she grinned as she spooned up some of the hot chocolate into the cups of hot water.

  Abby grinned at the joke. This woman was funny. “How’d he get you to pick her up? Does he have your home number?”

  Amy now felt uncomfortable. She wasn’t sure of the rules around Abby’s house but she was pretty sure walking out of town on a freezing cold winter’s day was probably one of the no-no’s.

  Abby saw her question had made her twitch. “Bonnie said she saw you drop Bailey off…” It was then her observation on the way out to ask about that paid off. “He walked out here?” she asked alarmed.

  Amy looked up guiltily and nodded as she mixed the hot chocolate. “He brought me the cat under his coat.”

  “That little…” Abby was alarmed but she also admired the little twerp. He must have known that Amy was a soft touch. She shook her head; he couldn’t manipulate people this way though.

  “I gave him hell,” she drawled in her sexy southern way. “I also said he was going to have to ‘pay me back,’” she used fingers to emphasize the quotation marks around her words. She picked up both mugs and handed the one mug to the brunette and took a cautious sip of her own. It was so good the smell made her want to gulp the concoction but she was careful as it was still boiling hot. “Let’s go sit in the living room by the fire,” she offered hospitably.

  Abby was still shaking her head at her son’s audacity. Although she had teased Amy the weekend before about the cat she hadn’t really thought of imposing on her. She had said she was going to get rid of the cat in the heat of the moment; it made her want to bite her tongue now that he had called her on it. “If you want, I can take the cat back…” she began hesitantly as she took a sip of the heavenly hot chocolate.

  “Nuh uh, nope, possession is nine tenths of law,” she quipped in return and smiled showing off a slight hot chocolate mustache.

  Abby found herself strangely aroused at the sight but resisted the urge to lick it off. She wanted to be friends with Amy and counted her as one in the months since she took over the store, but hitting on her friends was a sure fire way to lose them. She laughed at the southerner’s sally though. “Okay okay, if you wanted a cat that bad I know I could have found you a better one!” she returned.

  “Why, what’s wrong with this one?” she asked picking up the banter.

  Abby shook her head. “Nothing that I know of, except she is a bit of a pest.”

  “Ah ha, see I knew there was a catch here,” she grinned.

  The two of them found they were having fun teasing back in forth and while Abby felt awkward about what her son had pulled she also admired his spunk in taking care of it. It sounded like Amy didn’t really mind and they continued chatting as they got to know one another more.

  “Well, you will have to give me one of the kittens or at least let me have first pick of the liter,” Abby told her.

  “Kittens?” Amy said weakly realizing she was in for a lot more responsibility that she had intended when she agreed to this deal.

  “He didn’t tell you she was pregnant did he?” she grinned admiringly at her son’s trick.

  “No, he didn’t mention that little tidbit,” she said back and caught the grin and twinkling brown eyes.

  “I’m sorry, I can take her back if it’s really a hassle,” she offered contritely, it really wasn’t fair to unload the pregnant cat on her like this.

  “Nope, I’ve already bought a cat pan, she’s mine now,” she replied firmly, but she was taken aback a little at the news.

  “Okay, okay, I won’t argue with you,” Abby replied but she grinned to show she was still teasing. The conversation went on to other things and Abby mentioned about how her wife had coped with her pregnancies.

  “So how did your wife die?” Amy felt bold enough to ask after they had been chatting for quite a while.

  “She died of a pulmonary embolism. That’s a sudden blockage of a major blood vessel in the lungs. They are usually caused by a blood clot after giving birth,” Abby told her sadly as she looked down into her now empty cup of hot chocolate.

  “Oh, I’m so sorry I asked,” Amy immediately felt contrite for asking too intimate a question. She had heard that Abby’s wife had died in childbirth but didn’t know the details. Their sharing tonight had opened them both up and she suddenly felt awkward.

  Abby shrugged. “I’m sure you’ve heard things around town.”

  “Yes I have,” she admitted. “But that doesn’t give me the right to ask you so personal a thang.” She was blushing an
d Abby noticed it.

  “Well, it was a long time ago. But now it gives me a chance to ask you questions,” Abby said with a grin. Her eyes were sparkling in anticipation. This wasn’t like a cop asking a suspect questions, but a friend being nosy. She noticed Amy immediately becoming tense. “If you don’t want to answer you don’t have to,” she added.

  “Fair is fair,” she drawled.

  “So what is your story?” she asked and watched her friend closely but could only see the shutters coming down on her eyes. “Have you ever had children?”

  Amy was grateful for the second question. It allowed her not to answer the first. “No, I’ve never had children. Not that I didn’t want them but it just didn’t happen for me.” She didn’t elaborate but then she was becoming very adept at not answering direct questions from anyone who asked them. She was careful though, very careful, and very adroitly changed the conversation back to Abby. She learned how Abby had grown up in a fairly conservative household and how her grandparents had been so wonderful. She had met her wife who lived in the area and fallen in love with her. She told of their romance, their plans, and how they dealt with being the ‘only’ same sex couple around for a long time. But tourists and some who moved in brought in a whole lot of gay and lesbian couples so they didn’t feel isolated forever. Her own grandparents had adored her and despite her parent’s misgivings they had ‘married,’ or at least had a commitment ceremony, before giving each other legal paperwork that would bind them and keep others from making decisions for them. Even the children were legally adopted by Abby despite the fight with Bonnie and Jake over them. It had been Jake really who had kept it from becoming a nightmare as they worked out what to do over their shared grief over losing the woman they all loved.

  It was a bonding of friends that they both enjoyed over the hot chocolate and the tabby finally made a reluctant appearance, showing that the dog didn’t faze her as she made her presence known in the cabin. She checked out the living room quite thoroughly as the two humans pretended to ignore her and the alert pup watched her respectfully from his position next to his human.