Black Cat Crossing

by Fitz Molly

  Chapter Seven -Stella

  “Okay, so how are we doing this?” Stella could hear the annoyance in her own voice and quickly reminded herself why they were there. “I’m sorry. I’m just not really a forest kind of witch. Especially late at night after a downpour.”

  Pixie sighed. “This isn’t fun for any of us, Stella, but it’s not about us. It’s about a little boy who’s hurt. I’m pretty sure he’s not enjoying this either.” Her cousin’s rebuke hit her hard, and she ducked her head so nobody would see the tears that sprang to her eyes.

  “Are you sure we shouldn’t just call the police?” Chester asked. “This is a lot of area to search and we don’t even really know where to start.”

  “And what would we tell them?” Pixie sighed. “That the kitten told the cat her human boy was injured and lost in the woods?” She shook her head no. “And even if we had more to go on, this is Spinney Hills, not a big city like Greveswood.” At Chester’s snort she glared at him, but he just shrugged and gestured for her to continue. “We have what, four deputies? And tomorrow is Halloween, so they went home to early tonight to rest up. Their band, Lawfully Yours, is providing the music for the All Souls Halloween Party.”

  “So, this is all in our hands, at least for now,” Stella confirmed.

  “Yep.” Pixie shrugged as she looked around. “Okay, but where do we start?”

  “How about if Stella and I go this way and you, Henry and Midnight go that way?” Chester suggested as he picked up the duffle bags.

  Pixie nodded. “That makes the most sense. We’ll go East and you go West.” She turned around in a circle. “I don’t know which direction is which. How about you go that way,” she pointed left. “And we go this way,” she pointed right.

  Stella nodded and handed the cat carrier to her cousin. “Here you go. Be careful, she’s still pretty angry.” Midnight hissed as Pixie took her in her arms and Stella grinned as the witch took care to place her fingers far away from where the cat’s teeth and claws could reach.

  “Are you sure we need to keep her in the carrier?” Pixie asked Henry.

  “For now, definitely,” he replied. “Once we think we’re in the general area, she’ll be able to help. For now, she’s so little I think we’d lose her in the underbrush.”

  Pixie set the cat down while they put on their raincoats, turned on their flashlights and checked the walkie talkies. “Okay, then, I think we’re ready,” she announced. She looked up at Chester and smiled. “Take care of my cousin, and yourself, of course.” Her cheeks flushed and Stella had to stifle a giggle. She was definitely smitten with the vampire, but she refused to admit it. He was the accountant for the bakery, and she believed mixing business with pleasure was a bad idea.

  “Of course. And Henry, you take care of Pixie and Midnight, will you?”

  Stella’s eyes went wide at his words. Didn’t he know not to tease Pixie like that?

  “Henry and I will take care of each other, if you please.” Pixie’s hands were on her hips and her lips were pressed tight, but her eyes were sparkling as she glared at him.

  “All right you two lovebirds, let’s get this show on the road.” Henry batted at Pixie’s legs until she turned to pick up Midnight. “See you in a bit,” he called over his shoulder.

  “Wow! You’re either brave or dumb.”

  “What?” Chester asked as they walked in the opposite direction. “Why do you say that?”

  “You just poked the bear, you know.”

  “Oh, you mean what I said to Pixie?” His brow wrinkled but his laugh was easy. “She knows I’m joking with her.” He took a few steps then stopped to look at her. “She does know I was teasing, right?”

  The look of concern on his face had Stella giggling. “Oh my, you have it, too.”

  “I have what?” His furrowed brow had her laughing out loud.

  “Nothing. Just be careful. I’ve known Pixie Styx my whole life and I can tell you that sometimes she can take a joke and sometimes, well, it’s better to just not go there.”

  She could see he was confused, but he shrugged and started walking again, one hand in the pocket of the raincoat while the other shined the flashlight from side to side across the wet forest floor. She raced to catch up, his long legs going a little too fast for her.

  “So, what are we looking for?” she asked.

  “I don’t know. I think maybe any kind of disturbance in the undergrowth that looks like a cat ran through it. Or a wolf.” At the mention of a wolf, Stella shivered and pulled her coat closer around herself. “Don’t worry, with all the noise those boots are making, I’m pretty sure you’ll scare him off.”

  She turned to face him, ready with a rude comeback, but when she saw the grin on his handsome face, her anger dissipated. “You really think you’re funny, don’t you?”

  His grin grew bigger. “Kind of. Don’t you?”

  “Ugh. I don’t know what Pixie sees in you,” she muttered.

  “What do you mean? What does she see in me?”

  She heard the genuine confusion in his voice and snickered. “You’re clueless, too. Come on, let’s check out this area over here. It looks like something came crashing through here in a hurry.”

  Chester bent down to take a closer look, handing her the flashlight. “Could you hold this and direct it away from me?”

  “Why would I do that? Don’t you need the light to see?”

  He grinned up at her. “I’m a vampire, remember? I see better in the dark than you do in the light.”

  “Oh. Yeah.” She held it so the light was shining in the opposite direction and watched as he searched for clues.

  “Aha!” He plucked something from a clump of weeds and held it up to take a closer look.

  “What is it?”

  “It looks like a clump of black fur.” He grinned up at her. “I think we’re going in the right direction.”

  Stella held up her walkie talkie. “I’ll call Pixie and let her know we found the trail.”

  He shook his head. “Let’s not call her just yet. Let’s see if we can find any other clues. I’m sure Midnight isn’t the only creature in the woods with black fur.”

  Stella’s excitement faded at his words, but she realized he was right. If she called Pixie now and they didn’t find anything else, they’d have to retrace their steps. The best thing was to keep looking. If they found another clue, she’d use the walkie talkie to let her cousin know.

  Chapter Eight -Midnight

  If they don’t let me out of this carrier soon, I’m going to scream! This witch carrying me is not a smooth walker. This has been the rockiest ride of my life. Uh oh. I might not scream after all. I think I’m going to hock up a hairball. “Ack. Ack.”

  Hmm. My pre-hairball noises seem have caught her attention. She’s looking at me strangely and holding the carrier away from her body. Hehe. She’s going to let me out, I just know it. And when she does, I’ll be off like a shot. I’ll find Adam and we’ll go home, and everything will be back to normal. I sighed, a big kitty smile on my furry face.

  “Not so fast, little one,” a big, rough voice interrupted my happiness. “She’s not going to let you out of the carrier unless I give her the go ahead. And I’m not going to do that until I know you’ll behave.”

  “Ack. Ack,” I responded.

  “Gross! Is she going to throw up? She sounds like she’s going to throw up.” Pixie peered into the carrier and I snickered at her expression. Apparently, she wasn’t fond of hairballs.

  “No, she’s not going to throw up. She’s trying to trick us into letting her out.”

  “Well, Stella will have a fit if she barfs in Onyx’s carrier, so I really hope you’re right,” she muttered.

  “Ack. Ack,” I continued.

  “Stop it! What is your problem?” Henry was looking at me now, and he looked pretty angry. I knew he was my only way to communicate with the witches and vampire, but I just didn’t like being told what to do.

  “My prob
lem is that your friend here waddles when she walks and she’s making me seasick.” His eyes narrowed and he lowered his head. His tail puffed up and as he moved closer, I realized I had gone too far. “Now listen here you little brat. My friends are trying to help you. They’re out in the cold, dark, wet woods trying to find the little boy that you lost. Do you really think being a jerk is the smart thing to do?” His sentence ended with a hiss and I swallowed hard.

  He had a point, I had to admit. I had no idea where we were or where I’d left Adam. I was a teeny, tiny kitten and this was a big, scary place with lots of animals who’d enjoy having me as a snack. Did I want to continue to have an attitude?

  “I’m sorry, Henry. It’s just so frustrating being cooped up in here and not being able to do anything to help.” He looked away for a moment, his tail thumping against the ground, and I held my breath. I needed him on my side and I really hoped he’d give me another chance.

  He lifted a paw and licked it, while he considered, then he turned towards me. “Last chance, little one. Behave or we’ll put you back in the van and find Adam without you.”

  His words startled me, and I blurted out, “Find Adam without me? You’d keep looking for him?”

  “Of course we would. It’s nearly midnight and a little boy is injured and lost in the woods. We won’t stop until we find him, I can promise you that. The question is, are you going to help or be a hindrance?”

  The lump in my throat felt as big as the state of Texas. These people didn’t know me, or Adam, and they were willing to help even if I was being rude and whiny. I didn’t deserve their help, but my boy did. “I’m sorry, for real. I’ll behave.”

  He looked up at Pixie. “She’s okay now. She said that she was feeling a little seasick from being inside the carrier as we tromped through the woods. But she’s feeling much better now.”

  “I’m sorry, Midnight. I’ll try not to rock you so much as I walk,” Pixie said.

  Now I really felt bad. She was being so nice and here I was saying she waddled when she walked. I held up my paw to the door of the carrier and when she touched it with her fingertip, I purred as loudly as I could.

  “Aww, she’s purring, Henry. What a sweetheart she is.”

  Henry choked, mid-lick, then nodded. “Yeah, she’s a real sweetheart all right.” I stuck my tongue out at him as Pixie turned to continue further into the forest, and he chuckled before he fell in behind us.

  We continued on with Pixie asking Henry every few feet, “Do you smell anything?” And Henry replying with a snort and a sarcastic comment. They seemed devoted to each other, but I really had to wonder about their relationship.

  Pixie stopped and shifted me to one hip while she wiped her damp bangs from her face. “Do you smell anything?” Here we go again, I chuckled to myself.

  “Pixie! I smell lots of things. This is a forest, you know. There are so many smells, I can’t even tell you.”

  “Well, I know, but you can pick up Midnight’s scent? Or the wolf’s?”

  This time he turned and glared at her. “I’m not a bloodhound or some other confounded kind of tracking dog, you know!”

  “Oh hush, Henry. You are a cat, a dog, a mule, a child and a grumpy old man, all wrapped up in one glorious furry body. Don’t you even try to deny it.” Pixie giggled, jiggling me on her hip.

  For a moment, I thought he’d snarl at her or something, but he just stopped in his tracks, scratched his ear with his hind paw, then swung around with a look of pride on his furry face. “Well, you’ve got me there. I am all of those things, and more.”

  My jaw dropped. I’d never met a talking cat before, and I’d never met a cat who wasn’t offended by being called a dog. But then again, I was a kitten and the only other cats I’d ever met were my mom and my brothers and sisters. What did I know?

  “Then call on those parts of yourself—the dog and cat parts, not the grumpy old man and mule parts,” she laughed, “and find something we can follow.”

  Henry stood up and stretched, then muttered, “Ma’am, yes, ma’am.” He wandered around the trunk of a pine tree, sniffing delicately, then backed up quickly.

  “Did you find something?” Pixie asked, enthusiastically.

  “Well, whoever left that puddle of pee behind the tree needs to be checked for an infection,” he mumbled, his eyes watering. He used his paw to clear his sight and shook his head, sending cat slobber flying everywhere.

  “Gross,” Pixie snorted, trying not to laugh.

  “You have no idea,” he retorted. “I don’t know, Pix, I’m really not getting any leads. I don’t think she came from this direction.”

  I felt my heart drop in my tiny chest. I heard Pixie exhale and she turned in a circle. “Maybe we should go this way. It looks like someone, or something, recently ran through here.” She sighed and started walking in that direction. “I hope the others are having better luck.”

  Me too. I could hear the defeat in her voice, and it was nearly my undoing. I hunkered down in the carrier as she walked over broken branches, lifting me in the air to try not to rock me too much.

  “Don’t worry. We’ll find him,” Henry told me. But his voice didn’t sound as confident as before.

  I dug my claws into the bottom of the carrier in frustration. We had to find Adam. We just had to.

  Chapter Nine -Stella

  Chester was really good at seeing in the dark. Stella, not so much. She’d already hit her head on a tree branch, slipped in the mud and nearly fell flat on her bottom when he stopped suddenly in front of her. If he hadn’t grabbed her arm and pulled her towards him, she’d be entirely covered in mud and muck, not just her boots and jeans.

  “Be careful here,” he told her as he climbed over a fallen log. He reached back to take her hand and help her over it.

  “Are you sure this is the right way?”

  “I wasn’t, until now,” he said. He pulled his flashlight of his pocket and turned it on, shining it into some bushes. He reached forward and touched something, then looked at his fingers in the light. “Yep, we’re on the right track. This looks like the spot where Midnight encountered the wolf.”

  As he turned towards her, she saw a flash of vampire teeth and his eyes glowed red. For a moment, she was afraid. She knew several vampires, but she’d never actually seen one in vampire mode. It was terrifying.

  He sniffed the air, then walked towards her slowly. She took a step backward in spite of herself and he stopped moving, sighing heavily. “It’s okay. You’re not in any danger. Look,” he said, holding out his hand. “I found drops of blood on the tree trunk and below it.”

  He held the flashlight so she could see the red fluid smeared across his fingertips. “Oh yeah. Henry told us Midnight was bit by the wolf, then ran up a tree to escape it.”

  “Yes. And this fits that scenario. I think we’re really close to where she left Adam.” He grinned and she was relieved to see that he was back to normal. No vampire teeth or red eyes. She breathed a sigh of relief. “Stella,” he said, his voice low and cautious. “I would never hurt you. I’m sorry you had to see me that way. It was just the scent of the blood, nothing more.”

  “I know you would never hurt me,” she responded. “It was just a little shocking, since I didn’t expect it.” She moved closer to him, to prove that she wasn’t afraid of him, and she saw him visibly relax.

  “I’m glad. I’d hate to think I’d frightened you away. Especially since you’re going to have to see more of my vampire abilities.” He grinned and even though she felt a shiver of fear, she was intrigued.

  “What does that mean?” she asked.

  “Well, get Pixie on the walkie talkie and once she arrives, I’ll show you. I have an idea that might help us find Adam faster. While you call her, I’m going to see if I can find any other leads.” He headed off in the opposite direction, eyes to the ground.

  She squeezed the button to talk and jumped at the loud crackling of static. “Pixie. Come in, come in. Pixie, can yo
u hear me?”

  “I think you’re supposed to say, ‘over’ when you’re done talking and you have to let go of the button so she can respond,” Chester called from somewhere off to her left.

  “Oh. Yeah. I forgot about that. Over and out,” she said, then she released the button. Almost immediately there was a response.

  “I think the whole forest heard you, Stella,” Pixie’s laugh carried across the airwaves. “Did you find Adam? Over.”

  “Not yet. But we found the tree that Midnight climbed to escape the wolf, so we’re really close. Can you come over here right away? Over.” She had only just released the button when Pixie, Henry and Midnight materialized right in front of her. “That was fast,” she laughed.

  “Well, this kitten may be small, but she’s not light,” Pixie complained. “I decided to zap us over here instead of walking so I could set her down for a minute.” Stella took the carrier from her and she stretched her back, making a moaning noise.

  The kitten was looking at Stella and she smiled through the bars. “I think we’re close, Midnight. I think we’re close!” She purred and rubbed her head against the bars. “Aww, what a sweetheart.”

  Henry snorted and she looked down to find him looking around. “Where’s Chester? Did you lose him?”

  “No, I didn’t lose him. He’s taking a look around.” Stella knew the cat was teasing her, but it still ruffled her feathers. She found a flat, dry-ish spot to set the carrier down then led Pixie past the fallen log. “Look, here’s the tree where the kitten escaped the wolf.” She pointed to the drops of blood and the claw marks on the branches of the tree.

  Pixie’s face turned white and her brows drew together in concern. “Um, did Chester see the blood?”

  “Yes, he did. And I saw something I never thought I’d see and don’t really want to see again,” she admitted.

  “Yeah, the first time is pretty disturbing. But it’s also kind of fascinating.”