by Fitz Molly
Stella looked at her cousin’s bright eyes and flushed cheeks and shook her head. “Nope. Once is enough for me.”
“Hey,” Chester called out as he joined the group. “Did Stella show you what we found?”
“She sure did. Good job,” Pixie grinned. “What else did you find?”
“Not much really. I’ve looked in all directions and I don’t see anything that tells us which direction Midnight came from.”
As Pixie’s grin faded, Stella put her arm around her. “Don’t get discouraged, Chester says he has an idea that will help us find Adam.”
The two witches looked at Chester who was grinning from ear to ear.
“Yes, I believe I do.”
Chapter Ten -Midnight
I couldn’t believe it. We were so close. If only they’d quit talking and do something. Henry looked over at me and I realized I needed to change my attitude, quickly! I hoped my human was okay. I shouldn’t have left him alone. If anything happened to him, it was all my fault. Oh please, please let us find him and let him be okay.
A paw to the side of the carrier startled me out of my musings and I looked into Henry’s big blue eyes. “Settle down. My friends got us this far and they’ll find Adam. It’s not your fault, so stop beating yourself up.”
“It is, though. I should have found a way to stop him from leaving the house. I should have run to get his mom or . . . or. . . something!”
Henry plopped down next to her. “It doesn’t do any good to rehash everything. What’s done is done and you don’t get a do-over. What we have to do now is find Adam and get him home.” He lifted a back leg into the air and stretched. “Does anything look familiar? Do you remember which direction you came from?”
I tried to look around, but my view was limited. “It would be easier to see if I wasn’t in this blasted carrier.” As he put his leg down and lifted his head, I quickly added, “It’s much darker now than when Adam and I set out. It’s hard to see anything. And I was being chased by a wolf, so, there’s that.”
He chuckled. “Yes, there is that. You’re not getting out just yet, but hopefully soon. Chester’s got an idea.”
He nodded in their direction and I realized I’d been so caught up in talking with the cat, I hadn’t been paying attention the others. I hope I hadn’t missed anything important. I pricked up my ears and settled in to listen.
“I am a vampire, you know,” he was saying to the two witches.
“Yes, we know, we know. But what does that have to do with anything? How is you being a vampire going to help us find Adam?” Stella’s voice was shrill, and I realized I wasn’t the only one who was worried about my boy. I guess if I had to nearly get run over by a witch, I could’ve done worse.
“Aha. Chester’s going to see if he can spot Adam from the air.” Henry sounded confident but his words made no sense. How was Chester going to spot Adam from the air?
“It means, my dear cousin, that he can morph into a bat and look for heat signatures as he flies through the forest.”
Oh. I didn’t know vampires could do that. That was kind of cool.
“You can do that?” Stella sputtered. “I mean, I thought bats were blind and flew by sonar or something. How can you see heat signatures?”
“Well, for one thing, I’m not a normal bat. I’m a vampire bat,” he grinned. “We aren’t as limited as they are. But even regular bats have the ability to locate prey based on the heat of their bodies.”
At the word “prey,” I felt my hackles rise and my heart start racing. I got to my feet, ready to do anything to protect my boy, but his next words calmed me down.
“I can use my senses to find Adam’s heat signature, even if he’s under a tree or a log or, like Midnight said, a bunch of branches. He’s not the only warm-blooded creature in the woods, so I expect to find several. But based on the size and location, I should be able to narrow it down. Then I can tell you where to look and also warn you of places you should avoid.”
I flopped to the floor of the carrier in relief. He wasn’t hunting for his next meal; he was trying to get to Adam as fast as possible.
“I told you he was a good guy.”
“I know, I know. It’s just. . . I’ve never met a vampire before. And I’ve only heard horror stories about them.”
“I understand. But that’s why you have judge each person for who they are; not rush to conclusions based on their diet. Or their ability to cast spells.”
I thought about that for a minute. I had been a bit judgmental about the witches, too. They’d accepted me as I was, even when I was hissing and spitting, but I hadn’t returned the favor. It was a lot to think about for a little kitten, and my head was spinning. I shook my head and used my paw to wipe my watery eyes. I guess I had some growing up to do.
Chapter Eleven -Stella
“Wow. That’s really something,” Stella exclaimed as Chester snapped his fingers and flew off through the air in his vampire bat form.
“Yeah, it is,” Pixie agreed. She had a silly grin on her face and Stella had to fight the temptation to tease her. She’d recently fallen in love herself and she knew how irritating it was when her friends made fun of her. She’d just be quiet and let Pixie enjoy her feelings.
“So, what do we do now? How will he contact us?”
“I’m guessing he’ll fly back and let us know, or something,” Pixie said.
“Actually, when he’s a bat, I can hear him. He’s going to tell me where we should go and also, where we shouldn’t go,” Henry called out.
Stella turned and found the kitten watching them from the carrier with Henry stretched out beside it. Maybe the big cat was starting to like Midnight, after all. She grinned to herself. Stranger things had happened, but that would be quite a stretch given how much complaining he’d done. Still, it looked like things were turning around.
She turned towards Pixie who was looking off into the forest, in the direction Chester had flown. She couldn’t hold back anymore. “When are you going to tell him?”
The witch jumped at the sound of Stella’s voice and turned to her, a look of confusion on her face. “Tell who, what?”
“When are you going to tell Chester that you like him?”
Pixie’s eyes widened and her cheeks flushed. “What are you talking about? He’s my accountant.”
“Oh, I think he’s more than that,” Stella prompted.
“Well, yeah, he’s my friend, too.”
“Mmhmm.”
“What? You know how I feel about having relationships with people I work with,” she argued.
“I know. But the heart wants what the heart wants. Even if it is an old vampire accountant.”
“He’s not old!” Pixie retorted which made her laugh out loud. “Well, I mean, he’s old, but not really, like . . . oh, I don’t know. Quit teasing me, Stella Spinney!”
Stella wrapped her arms around her cousin and gave her a hug. “I’m sorry, I couldn’t resist. You two are so cute, acting like everything’s normal when everyone around you can see how you feel about each other.”
Before Pixie could respond, Henry cleared his throat to get their attention. “I hate to break up this odd moment between cousins, but I have a direction. Chester says to go about 50 yards in the direction he flew, then turn left at the big, burnt-out tree.”
He turned to look at Midnight who’d started yowling again. “She says she remembers the burnt-out tree. It’s very close to where Adam’s hiding.”
“Come on, I’ll carry Midnight and you hold the flashlight and lead the way,” Stella said. Pixie nodded and once the carrier was firmly in Stella’s arms, they headed off into the woods, with Henry counting off the distance as they went.
Just before he reached 50, Pixie gasped, and let out a loud, “Woohoo!” She turned back to the others, her eyes bright and a big smile on her face. “I see the burnt-out tree! Come on, come on!” she called out.
“Okay, now go left and slow down. Let me see if I can reach C
hester.” Henry paused, head tilted to the side and Stella watched him, marveling at the enchanted creature. “Okay, he says we have a problem and to stay put for a moment.”
“Oh no! What’s wrong?” Pixie asked.
“I don’t know, but I think we’re not the only ones searching for the oy-bay.”
“What? What did you say?” Stella was confused.
Pixie put her arm around her shoulders and leaned in, whispering, “Oy-bay is boy. He’s saying we’re not the only one’s looking for boy, but he didn’t want to say that in front of Midnight.”
“Oh, I see. Do you think it’s his mom? Or the police? Surely she must have realized he’s missing by now.”
“Um, no, I think they’re talking about something else. Like maybe a bear. Or the wolf.”
Stella’s eyes widened in horror. “Oh no! What do we do? We’re not prepared to fight off a wolf.”
Henry’s hiss reached her ears a split second before the kitten started yowling and thrashing around her cage. “Now you’ve done it,” Henry muttered as he turned his back on her to try and calm the kitten.
Chapter Twelve -Midnight
Oh no! The wolf? I have to get out of here. I started throwing myself around the carrier, hoping to loosen the door, or the seams, or something, so I could escape and keep the wolf away from Adam. I couldn’t believe they thought I was too dumb to realize what they were talking about. To be honest, I didn’t get it right away. I thought Henry just forgot his words or something. This was horrible. We had to protect him. I had to protect him. Let me out!
A huge paw slammed against the carrier door and snapped me out of my panic. “Be quiet!” Henry hissed. “You’re not going to be able to help Adam if the wolf comes looking for whatever’s making that awful racket and eats us all up! Then who’ll be left to rescue the boy?”
I let out a few more yips and yowls before his words, and his warning growl, sunk in. I took a few breaths to calm down, but it wasn’t working. I opened my mouth to let out the loudest, longest yowl a little kitten ever yowled.
“If you’re quiet, we can come up with a plan to trap the wolf or lead him away, so the witches can get to Adam. If you keep wailing like a banshee, he’ll have the advantage and come hunting us. Which do you prefer?”
His words hit me right in the gut. I couldn’t let my emotions get the better of me. I could do this. I could control my fear and convert it into energy to save my boy. As I gained control, I could feel Henry’s tension ease, and he gave me a look of respect.
“That’s it. You’re doing great. Just keep breathing and I’ll be back in a moment.”
I took in big gulps of the damp, musty forest air as he walked over to the women. I couldn’t hear what they said, but Stella seemed to be apologizing. She almost looked like she was about to cry. Henry’s ears perked up and his tail flew into the air. He was still as a statue.
“Chester says whatever was perched near Adam is heading away from us, and the boy. He said we can start making our way along this path, but we should go slow, so he has time to warn us if the creature returns.” He padded back over to me as the witches conferred.
“Did you hear that? We can move closer now.”
“I did. Thank you, Henry. I’m sorry I’m being such a baby.”
He looked at me, his eyes wide. “I can’t imagine how scared you must be. And you’re just a kitten. You have nothing to apologize for.” He started to turn away, then added, “Let’s go get your boy.”
As he headed towards Stella, Pixie was headed for me. “Hey there, Midnight. How are you doing in there? Only a little bit longer. I think Chester found Adam. We have to be careful, though, so you have to stay in here where you’re safe. Once we’re sure the wolf is gone, and that it’s Adam’s heat signature he’s seeing, I’ll let you out. Okay?” She peered into the carrier and I rubbed my head against the bars, to let her know I understood and appreciated her help. “Good girl,” she said, nodding her approval.
“You coming, Pixie?” Stella called out.
“On our way.” She hefted the carrier into her arms and trotted along, jostling me from side to side. But I didn’t mind. I knew we were close, and a little nausea was a small price to pay.
A dark shape suddenly swooped down from the sky, causing Stella to scream. “It’s okay. It’s only Chester.” As the bat came in for another fly by, Henry lifted a paw and swiped at him. The bat tumbled and Pixie gasped, but it righted itself and flew back up into the air.
“Why did you do that?” Pixie asked. “You could have hurt him, or worse.”
“Naw, I knew what I was doing. It was just a little payback for scaring us. I mean you. Scaring you. I wasn’t scared.” He puffed out his chest and sat up straight, but I knew it was all for show. He’d screamed, too. But I wasn’t going to tell anyone.
Chapter Thirteen -Stella
Stella’s heart was racing, and her hands were shaking. She didn’t know what Chester was playing at but scaring them wasn’t nice and she was going to give him a talking to once they found Adam and got him home. For now, she had to pull herself together. They were almost there, and she wasn’t going to let a little scare stop her now.
She looked over at Henry, who was trying to look brave, and Pixie who looked annoyed. She wasn’t sure if Pixie was irritated with Chester or Henry. Probably both. Why did the males of the species always have to be so blasted ornery? She shrugged. They had a little “male of the species” to find and she was more than ready to get out of here and go home to a nice warm bath.
“So where to now?” she asked.
Henry tilted his head, then chuckled. “Chester told me he didn’t mean to scare us and that I have a mean right hook. He also said to go this way.” He gestured to the right with his head and started to walk between two large pine trees that leaned towards each other, the branches intermingling, making it look like they were holding hands.
She gestured for Pixie to go ahead of her and she took another look around, before following them. Henry was sniffing the ground, then lifted his head to sniff the air. His tail went straight up and he stopped, holding very still. Pixie was focused on stepping over a bunch of twigs and Stella had to reach out and grab the back of her rain jacket to stop her from plowing into the cat.
“Oh geez, thanks Stella. What’s going on?” she asked.
“I’m not sure. I smell something . . . different.” The kitten yowled quietly, rattling the door of the carrier. He turned to her and responded, “No, I don’t think I’m smelling little boy.” He lifted his nose again, then let out a whimper. “Something’s coming. And it’s coming fast. Hurry, get under these branches!”
The women hurried to do what he said, and Stella pulled a large branch over all of them just as something came bursting from the other side of the path. She peered through the branches, but it was so dark, she couldn’t see anything. She heard something snuffling around and she stuffed her hand in her mouth to keep from screaming. There was the sound of wings in the air and the creature snorted. Then it whimpered. Then it ran, howling in pain.
“It’s okay. You can come out now,” a familiar voice called out.
“Chester?” Stella lifted the branches and turned on her flashlight. Sure enough, the vampire stood there, looking mighty pleased with himself. She turned and took the carrier from Pixie so she could climb out and stand up, then turned back to Chester. “What was that?”
He shrugged. “I’m not entirely sure. I think it might have been a werewolf.”
“I was wondering if that was it. It smelled familiar and yet . . . different,” Henry muttered.
“I think the actual wolf smelled him, too. When Midnight yowled, I was sure he was going to go after you, but then he paused, sniffed the air and ran in the other direction.”
“How did you get him to leave?” Pixie asked.
“A little nip here and a dive bomb there,” he grinned. “I don’t think he liked being attacked by a bat.”
Stella walked over and
punched him in the arm with her free hand. “Hey, why’d you hit me?” he asked, rubbing his shoulder.
“That’s for scaring us!”
He grimaced and shrugged. “I didn’t mean to. I forgot I was in bat form. I was just coming to tell you which way to go.”
“Well, you did scare us, and I don’t appreciate it.” Stella sniffed and stuck her nose in the air, but she wasn’t really angry anymore.
Chester walked over to Pixie. “Do you want to hit me, too?”
She tried to keep the grin off her face, but it was a losing battle. “No, I’m good. I think Henry and Stella made their point.”
He smiled back and nodded. “Yep. Don’t swoop down on your friend’s when they’re in a dark forest and don’t know you’re coming. They don’t appreciate it. Lesson learned.”
Stella found herself giggling and even Henry let out a soft chuckle. “Alright, already. Where is this little boy?”
“Well, the wolf was prowling around down this way, and I spotted a smaller heat signature under some brush. Follow me.” Chester took off through the woods at a fast clip. When they didn’t immediately follow him, he turned back, a confused look on his face.
“We can’t see in the dark like you can. Go slower!” Pixie admonished. Once they’d caught up, he started moving again, but at a slower pace.
“It should be right over there,” Chester said, pointing to a large tree trunk with a pile of branches at its base. It looked like the storm had knocked another tree across the pile of branches, and mud covered everything. “We’re going to have to remove that tree first, then dig through the mud.”
“Oh my,” Stella said, looking at the mess. She was sure it had kept the boy safe from wild animals, but it wasn’t going to be easy to get him out. The kitten started going wild and she nearly dropped her. “Whoa there, little kitty.”
“Set her down, Stella,” Pixie said as she walked over. Once the carrier was on the ground, Pixie leaned down and peered inside. “I told you I’d let you out when we were sure we’d found him, so I’m going to do just that. But I’m trusting you to lead us to him and not run away or cause any other problems. Is that understood?” The kitten meowed, Henry nodded, and Pixie opened the door of the carrier.
