Meow for the Money (A Klepto Cat Mystery Book 14) (5 page)

****

“A missing boy and a dead body? Good Lord, Savannah; what a day you’ve had,” Michael said that evening after dinner. “Do they think the two are related?”

Savannah shrugged. “I don’t know. I can’t imagine how they could be—on the other hand, how could they not be?”

“Thankfully you found the boy safe. How did he get so far away from the house, do they know?”

Savannah shook her head. “I hope a sheriff's investigation will answer some of those questions.” She sighed deeply. “That poor woman. She’s so distraught with all the perceived distrust among those close to her. And now this…” She leaned toward Michael. “Only she seems to stand strong in spite of what’s going on. She has a strong constitution, I guess you’d say. You know she’s hurting, but she’s not going to show it if she can help it.”

Michael cocked his head. “You seem to have some deep insight there, hon. You’ve only known June for a few days and you’ve learned that much about her already?”

Savannah pressed her lips together. “Well, she’s interesting.” She thought for a moment. “I mean, it’s like she’s a wise young woman in an old lady’s body. The way she lives her life fascinates me. She’s…” Before Savannah could finish the thought, her cell phone chimed. She looked at the screen and reported to Michael, “It’s the detective.” She answered, “Hi Craig.”

“Hi.” There was a long silence. “I hear you and—your cat—ran into a hornet’s nest today.”

“Yes. Sure did,” she said, quietly. “A bit too much excitement, if you ask me. Craig, do you know what happened?”

“Not exactly. But we know that Andrew Pritchard was probably murdered and it happened sometime between two and four thirty in the afternoon. He was stabbed with an unknown object. How the baby got out in that ravine is still a mystery. Savannah, you have a little one; do you think that boy could have followed the cats to the ravine from where Mr. Pritchard was found?”

“Hmmm. I guess it’s possible. Carlo’s a little older than Lily.” She hesitated. “It’s hard to imagine her covering that much ground, but I guess she probably travels that far in a day just running around the house.” She thought for a moment and said, “He likes cats. He might have followed them. I don’t think he could have made it all the way from the house, but yes it’s possible he could walk from where we found…” She paused. “When I found Carlo, he was awfully sleepy. I guess that could have been because he walked so far. Craig,” she added, “did you know that his mother found his pacifier near the body?”

“Yeah, which makes me wonder if Pritchard took him that far then someone caught up to the poor man and killed him.” Craig hesitated. “From the looks of what we saw out there, the boy was on his own at the ravine.”

“Maybe Carlo hid from the killer. Maybe Mr. Pritchard hid him away—protecting him when the killer appeared,” Savannah suggested. “Craig, maybe the killer had the little boy and Andrew Pritchard tried to fight him off and got himself killed.” She paused, then asked, “Did the child say anything? Did you try to get him to identify the person who took him—if that’s what happened?”

“Well, I don’t think he says much, yet,” Craig said. “His mother tried to ask him some questions, but she said he didn’t respond with any sort of clarity. The boy’s the only one who knows what happened, and he isn’t talking.”

“Well, I know he can say ‘cat.’” She hesitated. “There was one other thing he said several times. I couldn’t figure out what it was and his mother didn’t seem to respond to it.”

“What was it?” Craig asked.

“Let’s see…
tetah
or
tahtah
…something like that. I actually thought it was significant, because he pointed and said it.”

“What was he pointing at?”

“Oh, I don’t know. Kind of off to our left toward those sheds, I guess. I don’t know what he was trying to show me.”

Craig chuckled. “You deal with baby talk all the time, and you don’t know what that means?”

“I’m afraid not. It seems that he speaks a different language than Lily does.”

Craig paused, then asked, “I’m curious, Savannah; how did you get involved with these people, anyway?”

“Well, Rags…”

“Oh no, don’t tell me.”

“Yup. Craig, he found June’s cat…the one with a reward on her head. That’s how I met June. She’s been bringing her cats to Michael for a while, so he knew her. She loves Rags and invites him for playdates. She’s joining the Hammond Cat Alliance, as you may know. Iris was at the last meeting. The woman has some issues with her family and maybe some of her staff, and she seems to trust Michael and me and has shared some things with us.”

“And there you are in the wrong place at the wrong time, again,” Craig said, chuckling.

“Or the right place at the right time,” she said. “We did find the cat and the boy.”

He paused. “I think the woman has some real concerns for her safety or at least the safety of her cats. She doesn’t seem to know who she can trust. Did you get that sense from her?”

“Sure did,” Savannah said. “Sad isn’t it? She’s out auditioning strangers now to honor her deathbed wishes for her cats. But can she actually get a true-blue and honest caretaker for them when she’s giving so much in return? How can she be sure the person she chooses is passionate about the task and isn’t doing it for the enormous perks?”

“What do you mean? Does she plan to pay the cat caretaker well?” he asked.

“From the sounds of it, this person will get almost everything—the whole fortune—at least for as long as these cats are living. After that, I think what’s left is supposed to go to help other cats.”

“Hmmm—someone sure could take advantage of a deal like that.”

“Well, I plan to have a talk with June. I think the only way she’s going to find the right person is by dampening down the reward.” She paused. “Craig, she’s considering hiring a young woman who’s in jail. I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”

“What?” Craig said. “Who? Do you know her name?”

“Um, Nora…Nona…no, Nola. Nola Kat Hope. Do you know who she is?”

“No,” Craig said, “but if I have time, I’ll see what I can find out about her.”

“Good. I’m sure June would appreciate that.” Savannah hesitated. “Or maybe not. Once she sets her mind about something, it seems like it’s hard to sway her.”

“So what did Craig say?” Michael asked when Savannah ended the call.

“Oh, he wanted to know what I knew, which isn’t a whole lot. And he told me what he knows, which isn’t a whole lot.”

“I heard you suggest that June should entice someone to care for her cats with something less…enticing. Good idea, hon.”

“Yeah. In fact, that’s how she got herself into the predicament she’s in now, don’t you think? She suddenly can’t trust any of her formerly trusted staff and relatives because she fears they’re only out to get her money. I mean, none of them has stepped up and offered to take care of the cats, but it doesn’t appear there’s anyone among them she would trust with that job, anyway.” She thought for a moment, then said, “Andrew was apparently the only one she trusted with the cats and someone has killed him.”

“Sad, isn’t it? Really sad.”

Savannah nodded. “Yes it is.” She picked up her phone again and looked at the screen. “It’s June calling.” Into the phone she said, “Hello?”

“Hi, Savannah. Just wanted to tell you, Drew was apparently stabbed with some…something sharp…” there was a long pause.

“June?”

“Yes, I’m here. A sharp…oh, what’s it called?” she asked, slurring her words a little.

“Object?” Savannah said, frowning.

“Yes, that’s it. It might be a knife or maybe not. There was no…”

“Weapon?”

“Yeah, weapon.”

“June, are you all right? You sound funny. You haven’t been drinking, have you?”

“Oh no…just had my dinner a…a while ago. I’m sipping tea. I love my…evening tea. Chamo…chamo…”

“Chamomile?”

“Yes.”

“I don’t think I can talk anymore, Savannah. I’m so very tired. Good night, Savannah. Thank you for…calling me.”

“June. June, wait,” Savannah said.

When Michael saw the strained look on his wife’s face, he asked, “What’s wrong?”

“I don’t know. She didn’t sound right. Hey, I have the number for the house phone. I’m going to call. I think someone should check on June.”

After placing the call, Savannah heard: “Balcomb residence, Megan speaking.”

“Oh, Megan, hi. This is Savannah Ivey. Listen, June just called me on her cell. She sounded odd…like she’d been drinking or something.”

“Oh no, Junie doesn’t drink…not a lick. In fact, I just took her a cup of tea. She seemed fine. Just fine.”

“How long ago, Megan?”

“Let’s see, fifteen minutes, maybe.”

“Go check on her, would you?”

“Okayyy. I can do that.”

“And call me back, please.” She recited her phone number.

A few minutes later, Megan called. “Hi, Savannah. She’s fine, just a little groggy. It’s been a long day for us all. She’s going to sleep now. Why don’t you call her in the morning to finish your conversation, okay?”

After hesitating, Savannah let out a sigh. “Okay. Thanks, Megan.”

****

The next morning, Savannah watched the clock as it ticked away. She was eager to call June and make sure she was okay.
I don’t want to call too early,
she thought.
She probably doesn’t get up until eight thirty or so…maybe even nine. I’d better busy myself in the meantime or I’ll go crazy waiting.
She turned to Lily. “Hey baby girl, want to go for a walk? Want to go see Auntie?”

“Auntie? Auntie?” Lily said brightly, holding her arms up, asking to be lifted from her high chair.

“Yes, Auntie,” Savannah cooed as she picked up the baby and wiped her face and hands. Let’s get your bath and we’ll go see Auntie.”

“Auntie. Ki-ki?” the baby said.

“Yes, we’ll go see Auntie and the kitties.” Savannah laughed when Lily began clapping her little hands together.

“Good morning Max,” Savannah said as she rolled the stroller into the former greenhouse. “How’s everything in the cattery this morning?”

“Good. How’re you two?” He bent down and tickled Lily. “How’s my girl?”

“Ki-ki,” she said pointing.

“Yes, there are ki-kis all over the place, aren’t there?” He reached for her, asking, “Want to see a ki-ki have a bath?”

“Bath,” she said.

Savannah unbuckled the baby and Max carried her to where one of the volunteers was bathing a very dirty and unhappy cat. Lily watched the struggle for a moment, then pulled her little hands against herself, a worried look on her face.

“Hi!” Margaret said, entering the cattery. “What brings you out so early?”

“I need to call June Balcomb and don’t want to call too early. Just killing time.”

“What’s going on with June?”

“A lot. Hasn’t it been in the papers, yet?”

Margaret lowered her eyebrows. “Haven’t had a chance to read the paper. What happened?”

Before Savannah could explain, her phone rang. “It’s June,” she said, quickly stepping outside. “Hello. How are you?”

“A little wobbly, actually.” She chuckled. “More wobbly than usual, but otherwise okay. At my age, I do have my spells.”

“I was worried about you last night. You sounded so…”

“It was a rough day, Savannah. You have to admit that.”

“Sure was. Glad to hear you’re okay.”

“I’m meeting with my attorney today. I’d like you to be here to accept the check for the cat alliance. Bring Lily, if you like. And, of course, Ragsdale. I think he’s happy here.”

“That he is,” Savannah said, smiling. “Sure, we can come over. What time?”

“Eleven. Dotty’s coming around noon to discuss the girl who was wrongfully jailed. If you can stay, I’ll have Gwendolyn fix us lunch.” She paused. “I’d like to have you here, if you don’t mind. I trust your judgment. Frankly, I’m a little uncertain about mine, lately.”

“Why do you say that?” Savannah asked.

“Apparently someone I trusted killed one of my employees yesterday and kidnapped my grandnephew.”

Savannah hesitated. “Do they know who it was?”

“I don’t think so, but who else could it be but someone close to me and my staff?” She was quiet, then said, “I had to let an employee go last week. I caught him bothering one of the cats.”

“Bothering?”

“Yes, he was being unkind. Homer was taking his time going from the outdoor enclosure to the room inside that afternoon, and Kenneth started yelling at him impatiently and sort of pushing him along. That is not how I want my cats treated,” she said defiantly. “Well, you know that. I won’t have it. He obviously can’t be around my cats…not acting that way.”

“Could he be the one who took Mazie Mae?”

June was silent for a few moments. “It’s possible. I doubt we’ll ever know.”

“What about Carlo? Would that employee take him?”

“I sincerely hope not. Savannah, I can’t stand to think that everyone I have ever trusted is out to get me, but it’s starting to look that way. Or am I simply becoming a bitter, paranoid, old woman?”

“So everything okay?” Margaret asked, when Savannah stepped back into the cathouse.

She nodded, still staring down at her phone. “I think so.” She looked up at her aunt, who was holding Lily. “I hope so.” She then focused on her daughter. “Did you see the kitty take a bath?”

“Bath,” Lily said, wide-eyed.

“She sure did,” Max said. “I hope the experience didn’t influence her.”

Savannah frowned. “In what way?”

“Well that cat didn’t like his bath. He was giving us a terrible time. We got the job done, though.” He took Lily’s hand. “I just hope she doesn’t decide a bath is a scary thing.”

“Oh, I don’t think that’ll happen. She’s a regular pollywog.”

“So what happened at June Balcomb’s place?” Margaret asked.

“One of her staff was killed yesterday and her little grandnephew was missing for a while. We found him with a band of feral cats.”

“What?” Margaret said, frowning. “Have you started writing fiction, Vannie? It sounds like you’re making up some wild stories there.”

Savannah chuckled. “Oh no. June just seems to attract a lot of drama. I’m not sure if it’s the people she associates with or the decisions she makes.” She thought for a moment. “Maybe both.” She looked at her aunt. “She called me last night and sounded like she was off in some sort of la-la land—almost incoherent. I thought maybe she’d been drinking.” She sighed. “But she sounds okay today.” She looked at her watch. “Hey, she wants me to meet with her and her attorney at eleven this morning. Better scoot.” As she strapped Lily into the stroller she asked her aunt, “What are you up to today?”