Cats in Cahoots (A Klepto Cat Mystery Book 18) (2 page)

Suddenly, they heard Savannah call, “Michael! Michael, come look at this.”

He took his usual long strides toward the door, opened it, and stepped out onto the wraparound porch. “What?” he asked, his brow creased.

“Look at this. Someone’s been messing with my succulent plants. I just put a new tray under this pot and it’s gone.”

“Well, that’s odd. Did you look on the ground? Did a raccoon knock the plant off the railing there?”

“No, the plant is still in the same spot; only the tray is gone. Darn it, I just replaced those flimsy plastic trays with sturdier ones.”

Just then, they heard a rapping sound. When they looked up, they saw Rags and Adam peering out at them through the large kitchen window. “He wants to come outside,” Adam said.

Savannah shook her head and she and Michael returned to the kitchen. “Sorry, Rags. You’re staying here with the other fur kids.” She gave him a scratch behind one ear. “We’ll be back later.” Then, looking at Michael and Adam, she asked, “Are you guys ready?”

“We were born ready, pilgrim.”

“Oh, Michael, knock it off,” Savannah said, playfully. “We’ve had enough John Wayne for one day.”

He let out a deep sigh. “Well, okay then. I guess I know when I’ve been given the hook.”

“The hook, Dad?” Adam questioned.

“Yeah, you know, when you’re bombing as an actor—the audience is booing—and someone behind the curtain reaches out with a hook and pulls you off stage.”

Adam frowned. “That’s not very nice. They really do that?”

“Yeah. It’s better than being dumped through a trap door.”

“Dad, are you joking?”

“No. I’ve seen it done.”

“You have?” Savannah asked.

“Well yeah, in old movies.”

She rolled her eyes at her husband before saying, “Okay, move ’em out, guys. Got your windbreakers and your hats? Did you use sunscreen?”

Michael drew dramatically in the air with one finger. “Check, check, check.”

“Do you have our lunch?” Adam asked, wide-eyed.

“Sure do,” Savannah said. “And water bottles.”

Michael picked up Lily. “Adam, want to walk with me to take your sister over to Aunt Maggie’s and Uncle Max’s? Or would you rather stay and help Savannah get Peaches ready for a ride in the trailer?”

The boy pressed his lips together in contemplation. He glanced down at his boots, looked at Savannah, and out at the corral where Peaches stood waiting. He then gazed toward Margaret’s and Max’s house and hemmed and hawed a bit more. “Gosh, Dad, I want to do both.” He laughed. “Maybe I should have been twins.”

“Yeah, that would be one solution,” Michael agreed. “Or you can walk with me this morning and help Savannah with the horse when we get back this afternoon. How about that?”

The boy nodded and skipped toward Michael, who was strapping Lily into the stroller. “Yes, good idea.” He waved in the horse’s direction. “I’ll be right back, Peaches.”

****

Later that afternoon, Adam watched as Savannah urged her mare out of the horse trailer they’d borrowed for the day. “Stand aside, Adam,” she warned. “Sometimes she comes out of there pretty fast.” Once she’d unloaded Peaches, she said, “Darn, I think I left the mane comb out in the riding arena. Would you go get it? Her mane and tail are kind of tangled.”

“Can I comb her?” he asked enthusiastically.

“Sure. Go get it and I’ll show you how,” she said, tying the mare to the hitching post outside the tack room. She had brushed her down, checked her legs, cleaned her hooves, and examined the tangles in her mane, when she began to wonder what was taking Adam so long. She stepped out from behind the tack room and gazed toward the riding ring, but he was nowhere to be seen.
Hmmm, I wonder if he walked over to Auntie’s, after all.
When she looked in that direction, however, she saw Michael still making his way to the Sheridan’s house and Adam wasn’t with him.
Oh, he’s probably inside using the restroom or getting a glass of water,
she thought, returning to the mare. After locating an old mane comb in the bottom of the bucket of grooming tools, she began working on Peaches’s tail and another several minutes passed.
Maybe I’d better go look for him,
she thought. As she turned the corner around the side of the tack room, however, she saw the boy running toward her with the mane comb in his hand. “There you are.”

“Yeah, sorry it took me so long. I was talking to the kid next door.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah, he was looking for a rubber-band airplane. It flew out of his yard and landed in your orchard. So I helped him find it. Then I went to his house to watch him fly it.” When Savannah looked puzzled, he said, “That was okay, wasn’t it? I didn’t even know any kids lived there, did you? I thought that was Mr. Crankyshaw’s house. Did he move?”

“Yeah, I guess he did. I just found out about that yesterday. I heard there are a bunch of children living there now. I’ve only seen one of them—a little girl who looks to be about eight or nine,”

“That’s Kira…or Klara.” He spoke more excitedly. “My new friend is Timmy. He’s eleven. He and his little brother, Jacob…they like flying airplanes. Timmy has a whole bunch of different kinds of planes in his room.” Adam turned more serious when he said, “I didn’t go inside to see them. I told him I should have permission from you and Dad before I go in someone’s house.”

“Good thinking, buddy,” Savannah said. “I was starting to get worried about you. Here, let me show you how to use that comb and you can untangle Peaches’s mane. Start at the bottom and work your way up, like this,” she suggested while demonstrating for him.

“I hope this doesn’t hurt you, Peaches,” Adam said as he began pulling the comb gently through her mane. “Like this?” he asked.

Savannah nodded.

After he’d been working for a few minutes, Adam said, “Now I’ll have kids to play with when I’m here.”

“What kids?” Michael asked as he approached with Lily in the stroller.

“The new neighbor kids at Mr. Crankyshaw’s house. There’s a boy about my age.”

Michael thinned his lips. “Do you miss having kids to play with when you come here? It seems like we keep pretty busy.”

Adam stopped combing and contemplated his dad’s question. “Yeah, we do a lot when I’m here. I guess I might not have any time to play with those kids. But just in case I run out of things to do, I don’t have to be bored, right, Dad?”

“I guess not, Son.”

“So did you see the mom and dad?” Savannah asked.

“Yeah, sorta, I think.”

Michael play-punched Adam. “Kinda, sorta, you think?”

“Yeah, well, I saw some adults. There were three of them—a man was cooking on a barbecue and a lady came out once carrying a baby. I saw another man through a window.” He looked up at Savannah. “Timmy told me he and the other kids like to come over here and climb around on Peaches. Did you know they do that?”

She frowned. “No. I sure did not. And I don’t want them doing that. Someone could get hurt.”

Taking on a more sober demeanor, Adam said, “Jacob tried to feed Peaches his sucker one day. I told Timmy that could hurt the horse and kids can only play with Peaches when there’s an adult watching.”

“Good job, Adam,” Savannah said.

“Know what Timmy told me? He said it’s okay just as long as he doesn’t get caught and so far he hasn’t been caught.”

Savannah gritted her teeth. “Oh yes he has. He has just been caught and I’m going over there to have a little talk with his parents.”

“Now, Savannah,” Michael said, in a calming tone.

“What?” she snapped. “Do you want a child to get hurt over here? Or the horse? Oh no, we have to nip this in the bud.”

He let out a sigh. Then focusing on what the boy was doing, he asked, “Combing her hair, huh?”

“Yeah, she has bed head.”

“Bad head?” Savannah asked.

“No, bed head—you know, how when you get up first thing in the morning and your hair is all messy.”

She chuckled. “Oh, yes, bed head.”

“Straw head,” Michael said. When Adam looked puzzled, he explained, “Her bed is made of straw.” He looked at his watch. “Hey, kiddo, you’d better get cleaned up and packed. Your mom will be here in about forty minutes.”

“Awww, there goes my best groomer,” Savannah whined.

“I got a lot of the tangles out,” Adam said. His face brightened. “Hey, if you want help, just go ask those kids next door. They’d probably like to come out of that fence and comb Peaches.”

“I’ll think about that,” Savannah said. She tousled the boy’s hair. “But no one can take your place, Adam.”

He stood tall. “Yeah, I guess you’re right there.”

Michael laughed. “Okay, super-groomer, let’s go get you cleaned up, shall we?”

****

“Want me to go with you, hon?” Michael asked when he saw Savannah slipping into her jacket after Adam had left. “You’re going to the new neighbors’ right?”

She nodded, then said, “No. Why don’t you stay with Lily?” She gazed out the window for a moment. “I think I’ll walk around to their front door rather than traipse through their backyard.”

“All the way around to Maple Street?”

“Yeah, I could use the exercise. Besides, I can cut through that empty lot between us and Auntie’s and I won’t have to go clear down to the highway.”

When she turned to leave, Michael said, rather hesitantly, “Want a little advice?”

“What?” she asked, taking on a slightly defensive stance.

“Just be diplomatic like I know you can be, okay? We don’t know these people. We sure don’t want to get off on the wrong foot with a neighbor, do we?”

“No, we don’t. But I want them to know that their children might be putting themselves in harm’s way by sneaking over here and messing around with Peaches. And I don’t want my mare to be in danger, either. Michael, one of those kids almost gave her a sucker—now that’s the kind of thing we need to stop before something awful happens.”

“I know, hon. Just try not to let your emotions drive your message, okay?” He pushed his palms downward and lowered his voice. “Keep it low-key.” When he saw her narrow her eyes and look off into space, he said, “Uh-oh, I see your wheels spinning.”

“Yeah, I have an idea—a peace offering.”

“A peace offering?” he questioned.

She headed toward the kitchen and returned with two jars in her hands. Smiling, she said, “Homemade jam.”

He grinned. “There’s nothing wrong with bribery.”

****

“So how did it go?” Michael asked when he saw Savannah step in through the front door forty minutes later.

“Nice,” she said, removing her visor and windbreaker. “The family name is Crane. Tiffany’s real sweet—a bit overwhelmed, but sweet. She didn’t know the kids were coming over here or even that we had a horse. She agreed with me that the corral should be off limits. She said a couple of the kids are real horse enthusiasts. The little girl I saw over here the other day, Kira, she’s one of them. So I told Tiffany she could bring the kids over someday and introduce them to the horse and I’ll give a lesson on safety.”

“Good idea, hon,” Michael said. “Did you meet the kids’ dad?”

“No. I saw a man walk through the room and another one peer out once from the kitchen. But there were no introductions. In fact, Tiffany got kind of quiet when the men were around. She did point out which one was the dad—he’s covered in tattoos. Looks like a biker dude/tattoo artist rather than a minister.”

“He’s a minister?”

“Yeah, that’s what Tiffany said—he’s a minister on the Internet. They actually belong to our church.” She winced. “…the church we haven’t attended in ages. But he has an online congregation he preaches to and those people help support the family through contributions. She said he has other online businesses, as well.” She plopped down on the ottoman across from where Michael sat. “I can’t imagine anyone working in that hectic household. Tiffany said his office is in the garage.”

Michael frowned. “Interesting. I’ve never met an Internet preacher. Why does he attend church, I wonder…to get ideas for his sermons?”

She shrugged. “Maybe. It’s an odd concept for me, but I can see there would be a need for TV and Internet church for shut-ins. I just hope…”

“You hope what?”

“That he’s more legit than he appears.” She looked across at Michael. “Do you know what I heard him tell one of the children?”

“What?”

“The little girl, Kira, came into the room and asked her mother if she could have a Popsicle. Before Tiffany could respond, this booming voice came from behind her, shouting, ‘What have I told you about begging for food?’ The poor little girl cowered against her mother and Tiffany said, ‘But, Ray, she asked for it like you want her to.’ He said, ‘Sounded like begging to me.’”

Michael frowned. “That’s rather harsh.” Then he asked, “Who was the other man?”

“The kids’ uncle, according to Tiffany.” She smiled and added, “As I was leaving, Kira stopped me. I’d asked Tiffany if it would be okay if I cut through her property, since it backs up to ours. She said that would be okay, and as I was walking away from their house, Kira came up to me and said in her sweet voice, ‘You have a cat.’ I told her, ‘Yes, I have three cats.’ I asked her if she likes cats and she got the biggest smile on her face. She’s really cute—has dimples, you know.”

“So does she want to come over and see the cats? Did you invite her over?”

“Well, sort of. She evidently saw me with Rags on his leash one day and she asked if she could hold his leash sometime. I’ll check with her mom and we’ll set something up.”

He smiled. “Sounds like fun. So do you think your visit was successful, Ambassador Savannah?”

“I hope so. In the meantime, I’ll keep a closer eye on Peaches and, for that matter, Lexie when she’s out in the dog pen.”

****

Early the following morning, Savannah watched her husband pack some of his clothes in an overnight bag. “I still can’t believe you didn’t tell me you were taking this trip.”

Looking sheepish, Michael said, “I told you Saturday.”

She nodded. “Yeah, when I brought it up after my sister told me. How long have you known about it, anyway? Did you tell me before that and I just forgot? You know how busy we’ve been these last few weeks with Auntie and Rags going missing, Colbi thinking she was dying, the wedding, and all.”