by Patricia Fry
“Probably because we practically always get to him as soon as he calls for us,” Michael reasoned.
“Hi, Mommy! Hi, Daddy,” the toddler said when they entered his room.
Savannah picked him up and snuggled with him. “Hi, honey-bear. Did you have a good sleep?”
Teddy nodded.
“Hey, buddy,” Michael greeted, blowing raspberries on Teddy’s neck. He and Savannah both laughed when their son giggled.
Savannah faced Michael. “I’d better make sure we have something for us to eat while they’re here. Whew, I’m getting dizzy just thinking about all there is to do. Maybe we should just sit around this weekend and visit with the Whitcombs and the boys—you know, not make any plans.”
“With those two active boys?” Michael questioned. “Not to mention Lily and Teddy.” When Rags approached them and meowed, he added, “And then there’s your crazy cat.” He picked up Rags and led the way to the kitchen, where Gladys and Lily were preparing breakfast.
“Good morning,” Gladys said brightly. She wrapped her arms around her daughter and grandson and held them for a few moments, then pulled back, tears in her eyes. “I can’t tell you how thankful I am that you helped Craig bring Karl home where he belongs.”
Michael held Rags up in front of Gladys and attempted to disguise his voice. “What about me, Grammy?”
She laughed and petted the cat. “You too, Rags. You were all wonderful.” She bowed toward Rags. “I’m in your debt.”
Using the same distorted voice, Michael said, “You can pay me in kitty treats, or how about a nice chicken dinner?”
“Do it again, Daddy!” Teddy shouted. “Do it again.”
“Oh, I think that’s quite enough,” Savannah said. “Let’s eat breakfast, shall we?”
“You don’t like my ventriloquism?” he asked.
She rolled her eyes, and helped Teddy get settled in his high chair.
****
“Hello, Rags. Hi, Glori,” the director of the retirement home cooed when they arrived later that morning. She leaned down toward Lily. “And who is this lovely young lady?”
“This is my daughter, Lily,” Savannah said. “Lily, this is Joyce.”
“How nice of you to come and visit us,” Joyce said. “Lily, how old are you?”
“Four and a half.” Lily looked up at Savannah. “I’m four and a half huh, Mommy?”
“Almost, honey-bun,” Savannah said.
“My, you are a big girl and so grown up in your pretty dress.”
Lily smiled shyly. She held up a basket full of colorful paper. “I made presents for the people.” She glanced around. “Where are the people? I made ten.”
“How nice of you,” Joyce gushed. “Savannah, she’s cute as a button.”
Savannah smiled.
“Well, come in, ladies and kitties. What I thought we’d do today is visit quietly with residents who want to spend time with the cats in their room. We have nine people eager for a visit today, and I figured around five minutes each.” She ran her hand over Glori, who Savannah held in her arms, and looked down at Rags, who sat at the end of his leash. “Will that work?”
Lily pulled on Savannah’s sweater. “Mommy, I have ten presents. Is that enough?”
Savannah nodded. “Yes, with one left over.”
Savannah and Joyce began to chat when Lily interrupted again. “Mommy, can I give that lady a present even if she isn’t old?”
“Oh, Joyce?” Savannah asked. “Yes. I think that would be very nice.”
Joyce had already turned away to lead them to the first resident’s room, when Savannah said, “Joyce, Lily has something she’d like to give you.”
The director looked down at Lily, who rifled through her basket, finally choosing a piece of blue paper with yellow hearts drawn on it. She handed it to Joyce.
“Oh, Lily, it’s beautiful. Thank you very much. I’ll put this where I keep my very most special things. Did you draw these hearts yourself?”
Lily nodded. “With a yellow crayon.”
“I love it. Thank you so much for the sweet gift.”
Lily smiled shyly.
Savannah smiled proudly.
Joyce held the drawing to her chest and patted it affectionately, then continued leading the others down a long hallway to room twelve. “This is where Ingrid lives. She used to have two little girls and a lot of kitty cats. I know she’s waiting eagerly for your visit.”
****
Later that evening during dinner, Michael looked across the table at Savannah, then at Lily. “How did your morning with the old folks go?”
“Good,” Savannah said. She smiled at Lily. “We had fun, didn’t we?”
Lily nodded. “I gave away all my presents that I made.”
“Did everyone like them?” Gladys asked. “You sure worked hard on them. I’ll bet the people loved them.”
Lily nodded again and scooped up a spoonful of peas with the help of her pudgy fingers. “Everyone said, ‘Thank you.’ ‘Thank you.’ ‘Thank you.’” Lily tilted her head. “Grammy, want me to make you one?”
“I’d love that,” Gladys crooned.
Lily took a couple more bites of peas, then said, “Glori got lost.”
“She got lost?” Michael asked, concerned. “Oh, you mean at the nursing home? What happened?”
Lily held her hands out, palms up. “We couldn’t find her.”
“Where was she?” he asked. “You brought her home, didn’t you? You didn’t leave her there?”
“No, Daddy. We didn’t leave her there. We brought her home.”
“Where was she?” he asked again.
Lily turned to Savannah. “Where was she, Mommy?”
“There!” Teddy shouted, pointing. “Glori, there. See, Daddy? It’s Glori.”
“Yes, I see. Good job, Teddy. You found Glori.”
“Where was she, Mommy?” Lily asked again.
“In Wayne’s closet,” Savannah said.
“Wow! In a closet?” Michael repeated. “Was she scared?”
Lily giggled. “Uh-uh. She was just sleeping.”
“Oh, did she go in there for a nap because she was bored with the old people?”
“There was no board, Daddy,” Lily insisted.
He chuckled. “I mean did she get tired of being petted?”
“Wayne made her tired,” Lily said.
“So she took a nap in his closet?”
The child nodded.
“She probably was bored with Wayne,” Savannah said. “She lay on his bed next to him for a while, sleeping through his long-winded stories, until someone opened the door to Wayne’s room without me noticing. After a few minutes I realized Rags was gone, and Lily and I went out looking for him. When we returned with Rags, we couldn’t find Glori.”
“Did Rags go in a closet too?” Michael asked amused.
“No,” Savannah said. “We found that little twerp in Hector’s room helping himself to an old avocado-and-tuna sandwich he’d found collecting dust behind the nightstand.” She made a face and shuddered.
“How old?” Michael asked.
“How old was the sandwich?” Savannah asked. She shook her head. “I don’t even want to know, but I don’t think Rags got a good bite of it. Hector wasn’t too happy that Rags found it, especially when Joyce threw it away.”
“Sounds like it was a good thing Rags found it,” Gladys said. “Hector might have gotten ptomaine poisoning.”
Savannah laughed. “Gads, that’s a term I haven’t heard in ages.”
Michael nodded. “Yeah, ptomaine is probably nothing to worry about these days, now that we have some really deadly poisons.” He asked, “So you think that’s when Glori sneaked into the closet for a nap—when you went looking for Rags?”
“Could be,” Savannah said.
Lily’s eyes flashed. “Rags bit that lady’s toe. What was her name, Mommy?”
“Adele.”
Lily repeated, “Adele. He thought her
toe was a bug.” She frowned. “It looked like a bug.”
Michael choked a little on his iced tea. “He bit her toe? What kind of bug?”
“I don’t know,” Savannah groaned. “It was one odd-looking toe—something from outer space or…” She shuddered. “He could have thought that knot was a piece of hamburger she’d dropped, I guess.”
“Disgusting,” Gladys said, making a face.
“Why was she barefooted?” Michael asked.
“Good question,” Savannah said.
“She had no shoes,” Lily chirped. “Rags and Glori took her shoes.”
When she saw that the others were waiting for clarification, Savannah explained, “Yeah, well, she was wearing these really fluffy, puffy slipper things…”
Lily gestured to demonstrate how puffy the slippers were.
Savannah smiled and nodded. “The cats were fascinated with them. Adele thought it was cute at first, until Rags actually pulled one of them off her foot and trotted away with it in his mouth. While Adele called out for someone to retrieve her slipper, Glori wrestled the other one off, and she rolled around hugging it and licking it and biting it for a while. I don’t know what scent the cats were attracted to.” She glanced at the others. “Maybe they thought those slippers were some sort of furry animal they could play with. They were trying to make new friends.”
Both Michael and Gladys laughed loudly. Michael asked his daughter, “So what other mischief did the cats get into? Sounds like they were kind of naughty.”
“They weren’t naughty,” Lily defended. She spoke in a small voice when she said, “Just a tiny bit.” She opened her eyes wider. “Glori broke that brown lady’s puzzle.”
“A puzzle?” Michael repeated.
Savannah rested her head in her hand briefly before explaining, “Oh yes, Maria had been working on this puzzle for the last several months and was eager to show it off to her family when they visit next week. While Maria was petting the cats, Glori must have seen a moth, or it was her imagination, and she leaped from the bed onto that puzzle, which was on a card table. Glori slid across that thing onto the floor and puzzle pieces went everywhere.” She laughed. “It was funny as all get-out, but I had to squelch my laughter because poor Maria was devastated. She’d worked so hard on the puzzle.” Savannah giggled. “I got a picture of Glori sitting on the floor looking puzzled with puzzle pieces all around her.”
“On her fur,” Lily said. “Puzzles fell on her fur.” She paused, then added, “Mommy’s going to fix it for the brown lady.”
“Is her name Maria Brown?” Gladys asked.
“No,” Savannah said. “Her name’s Maria, and she’s brown.”
“Oh,” Gladys said, chuckling. “I see. So, Vannie, you’re going to help her put it back together?”
Savannah cringed. “I kind of have to. It was our cat that did the damage, and it means a lot to Maria to show off her project to her friends and family. Joyce and some of the other residents will help. We should be able to repair it in a fairly short time.”
Gladys smiled. “That’s nice of you.”
“Want to help, Mom?” Savannah asked. “As I recall, you’re pretty good with puzzles.”
“I just might, although Karl will be heading back to Arizona soon. We’d like to spend some time together before he leaves.”
“Does he still have his little dog and his father’s cats?” Savannah asked. “Didn’t he have a westie?”
“Yes. He thought he’d be in Arizona more than here, so he took them back there with him. His daughter keeps them when he’s traveling. The grandkids are pretty attached to them.”
“Nice. So what plans do you have with Karl? Why are you eating dinner with us tonight?”
Gladys looked down at her plate. “Karl wanted to take care of a few things today—you know, make some phone calls and so forth. I imagine he needed some unwind time. I certainly would. Tomorrow we plan to take a drive. We’ll have a picnic and maybe go down to the beach and walk.” She smiled. “He told me he needs a quiet day with someone like me and away from other people.”
“Sounds nice, Mom. I hope you two have a great time. I’m sure he’s missed you.”
Gladys nodded. “So, Vannie, if you want my help with that puzzle, you need to do it in the morning before I leave.”
“Yeah, I think Teddy would like to go to day care and see some of his friends. Lily has school. Why don’t you spend the morning preparing for your date? Maybe make Karl some of your ginger cookies.”
Gladys smiled. “Good idea.”
“So will you take Rags to help with the puzzle?” Michael asked, laughing.
Savannah shuddered. “Heck, no.”
“Well, he didn’t knock it off the table,” Michael reasoned.
“No, but he did tamper with some drugs while we were there.” She shook her head. “I swear, Michael, I turned my back just long enough to untangle Glori’s leash from around someone’s wheelchair and Rags was gone. Next thing I knew, I heard a scream coming from the kitchen. I handed Glori’s leash to Joyce, grabbed Lily’s hand, and ran to see what had happened. I didn’t see Rags anywhere, but I was certain he was involved. Sure enough, there he was, hiding behind a broom. The chef—or maybe he was the resident nurse—well, he was scowling at Rags. Oh, such a scowl.”
“What did he do,” Michael asked, “steal a steak, tip over a pot of stew…?”
“Worse,” Savannah said disgustedly.
“Worse?” Gladys repeated.
“He spilled the pills,” Lily blurted. She waved her arms. “All over everywhere.”
“What?” Michael asked.
Savannah let out a sigh. “You see, they have a system. Well, you have to have systems when you’re running a place like that. He managed to tamper with a wall shelf thingy filled with pill bottles, all carefully arranged for each patient.”
“Oh no,” Gladys said.
“Oh yes.” Savannah continued, “I guess he found it interesting, and he may have been trying to climb up onto it. Or he saw the same bug Glori saw earlier when she slid the puzzle off the table. Anyway, it came crashing down. Pills were everywhere.”
“Blue pills, red pills, white pills, big pills,” Lily recited. “Little yellow pills, purple pills.” She gestured. “All over the floor.”
“They were going to have to call in a doctor or a pharmacist to help them identify some of the pills and get the right ones back into the right cups.” She shook her head. “Oh, it makes me dizzy to even think about the problems he caused on that one whim.”
“What happened to childproof caps?” Michael asked.
“I don’t know. I guess they’re not cat-proof.” She added, “Actually, I think most of the bottles were okay, but the bottom shelf had pills in little cups, ready to dispense. Those were the ones that spilled all over the place.”
“So he’s not welcome back?” Michael asked.
“No,” she said emphatically. “No way am I taking either of them back anytime soon. Joyce and I agree that maybe taking cats to a nursing facility might not be the best idea on the planet.”
“Rags helped a man,” Lily said quietly.
“He did?” Michael asked. “How? Did he help him fall down? Or take an overdose? Or…”
“No, Michael,” Savannah scolded.
“He gave him bread,” Lily said.
Savannah laughed and corrected, “He made bread on the man.”
“What?” Gladys asked. “How’d he do that?”
“Old Joe couldn’t talk,” Lily said concerned.
Savannah smiled at her daughter and nodded. “He was having trouble breathing. I think it was a heart problem. He had a spell, and I guess no one noticed, until Rags jumped on him and began kneading his chest.”
“That lady pushed Rags,” Lily said, pouting.
When Michael looked at Savannah, she explained, “A couple of nurses came to Joe’s aid, and of course they didn’t want Rags in the way. I picked him up once I saw what was happe
ning.” She shook her head. “It was a rather wild day, wasn’t it, Lily?”
The child nodded.
“Joyce told me later that Rags may have helped to keep Joe alive until the nurses got to him. That happened while we were all in the kitchen picking up the pills. Everyone was so focused on the mess with the pills that we didn’t notice Joe having a problem, but Rags did. He knew that something was wrong and he reacted.” She reached down and petted the cat when he approached her. “You’re a good boy, huh, Rags? Well, sometimes.”
Chapter Three
“Did you tell Rochelle how helpful her vision was, hon?” Michael asked Friday afternoon as they entertained the Whitcombs, their foster son, Simon, and Michael’s son, Adam.
“What?” Savannah asked.
“Oh yes,” Rochelle said, “you were looking for Aaron Baker. I saw in the paper that he was found in an old icehouse. Were you and Craig involved in that rescue?”
Savannah nodded. “And Rags. Your vision sure helped us with that.” More intently, she said, “Rochelle, there was even a wide swath of blue paint on the door of that thing, and it was buried under a bunch of rubbish just like you said it would be.”
“Rags found his winning lottery ticket,” Michael added.
“Lottery ticket?” Peter repeated.
“Yes,” Rochelle said. “Didn’t I tell you about that? Aaron was on his way home with a winning lottery ticket when he was hit.”
Michael joked, “He was hit while he was hitting it big.”
Savannah smirked playfully at him and reported to the others, “He didn’t know he had a winner. The accident happened before he could scratch it off or while he was in the process. Then those punks took the ticket away from him. They hid it under some boxes, but Rags found it just before someone torched the place.”
Peter let out a sigh. “Fires happen down in that area.”
Rochelle agreed. “Yes. There’s a big push to clean up that place. They need to remove or renovate those dilapidated buildings.”
“They ought to at least take the door off that old icehouse. It’s dangerous like an old refrigerator is,” Savannah said. She smiled. “Rags actually found Mr. Baker.”
