Talons

Talons

By

Karolyn Cairns

Copyright 2012 by Karolyn
Cairns

Smashwords
Edition

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We don’t have a cat!
The young woman stared in confusion at the notice
posted on the front door from the landlord. It was neon pink in
color, pretty hard to miss. It screamed bad news. Vivvie Collins
saw it as soon as she pulled in the lot.

Mrs. Donaldson had a color
system to inform her tenants of current events. Yellow was news
from her. Blue was monthly pest control visits. Green was
landscaping schedules. Pink was used to identify a problem
tenant
. Shit!

They had enough pink ones. She looked
around, feeling eyes on her. Blinds scraped back into place next
door and beyond. The other tenants were probably shaking geriatric
fingers at her.

This was becoming a regular occurrence
at the rented townhouse she lived in. They received six such
complaints in the last three months since her new roommate moved
in.

Every new incident caused Mrs.
Donaldson to rethink renting to them. The most numerous complaints
were of blaring music and late night parties. Dina’s friends always
took the handicap parking spots. The tenants using wheelchairs and
walkers weren’t amused.

An incident at the pool put the whole
complex in an uproar. Dina and her friends decided to even out
their tan lines the old fashioned way. Vivvie was grateful the old
people didn’t suffer heart attacks to see four topless girls
frolicking at the pool. And now, the claim they had a cat, when no
pets were allowed.

After working a double at
the local diner she wasn’t in the mood for this
. Whatever!

Taking a deep breath, Vivvie balled up
the latest complaint with her misery, fumbling with her keys. She
opened the door wondering if her roommate was home.

Dina’s red sports car was missing in
the lot, not uncommon after a Saturday night. Sometimes her
roommate and her girlfriends were too drunk to drive. Well, most
times.

Inside, the AC was on a
chilly mode, rap music was heard thumping from the back hall
bathroom. The TV was on mute. The place looked like a cyclone hit
it.
So much for sharing the chores.
Vivvie tripped over Bud Lite cans on her way in.
Slamming the door, she surveyed the scene with dread.

Empty pizza boxes lay strewn
upon the coffee table, cardboard beer boxes littered the floor, and
someone’s bra lay discarded in the middle of the room.
Home, sweet hell.

Not now, OCD, not
now
, she begged, cringing all the way to
the kitchen to get a bag
. Don’t you do it!
Don’t you dare clean up after her and her friends again!
Sucker!

Vivvie sighed in defeat and grabbed a
plastic grocery sack from the pantry. She was exhausted and wanted
nothing more than to go to bed. The mess would taunt her until she
dealt with it.

“
Hey, where ya been?” her
roommate Dina called from the hallway outside the bathroom. She was
going to town with a purple toothbrush, dripping frothy paste on
the neutral shag carpet and her Sponge Bob slippers.

“
I stayed over. Somebody
called in,” Vivvie called back in annoyance, bending down to pick
up beer cans. “Hey, where’s the cat? We can’t have pets here,
Dina!”

Dina looked like she could have been
Paris Hilton’s twin with her pale blonde hair and porcelain skin.
The pretty blonde’s mismatched Victoria Secret jammies displayed an
enviable figure, enhanced with breast implants from her
over-indulgent father.

Dina went back into the bathroom to
spit and came out into the living room. Her clueless blue eyes
looked at the mess as if she just saw it. Dina sported an alarming
hickie at her throat and appeared unmoved by her roommate’s show of
anger.

“
Hey, don’t worry about
that,” Dina said in a cheerful voice. “I’ll clean it up
later.”

“
Where’s the damn cat?”
Vivvie snapped again, fuming and glaring up at her slob of a
roommate. She snatched up more cans. “I mean it! I’m not getting
evicted because of you, Dina! We can’t have pets. Wherever you’ve
been hiding it; it has to go!”

“
What cat?” Dina asked and
shrugged, looking confused. “You really need to mellow out, Viv! We
don’t have a cat!”

Vivvie glared at her and then at the
mess. She decided she couldn’t deal with either of them right now.
Exhausted, she handed Dina the bag and stomped up to her
room.

The mess seemed to pull at her,
demanding her attention at once. It was like that. Even as hard as
she tried; she couldn’t help herself. Messes were her triggers.
When pulled, they discharged a repetitious onslaught of cleaning
impulses.

Vivvie tossed her purse into a chair by
the door, cringing to see her bed was destroyed. Some things just
weren’t sacred. Her bed at Dina’s beer parties was one of those
things.

The cloying stench of the evening still
hung in the air, making her reach for the can of Lysol on her
dresser with a grimace. Frustration made tears brighten her eyes.
Vivvie swore under her breath and snatched up the comforter. She
yanked the soiled sheets off the bed, deciding washing them was the
only recourse. No way was she sleeping there now.

Dina stuck her head in. “How was your
night at work?”

Vivvie looked at her, rolling her eyes.
“How do ya think it went? When your short three waitresses at a
shithole diner; in a shitty town, and it’s the only shitty place
open for all the shitfaced drunks to go to after the bar. Great,
I’d say!”

Dina grinned in sympathy. “Sounds
pretty shitty. I’m sorry, Viv.”

Vivvie eyed her roommate gratefully. It
wasn’t Dina’s fault she had a bad night at work. It wasn’t the only
thing bothering her. She frowned, remembering the notice on the
door.

“
Mrs. Donaldson left us
another complaint,” Vivvie said wearily as she unbound her long
dark hair from the ponytail. She felt itchy and uncomfortable in
her waitress uniform. “She thinks we have a cat. This has to stop.
We’ll get evicted if this keeps up. Look around you. We’re the only
ones here under seventy. She just wants the excuse.”

They received many complaints since
Dina moved in. The cat was out of the bag, literally. Her roommate
could care less about rules and annoyed the neighbors. If Dina
didn’t learn to toe the line; they’d be evicted. Mrs. Donaldson was
tallying up the many transgressions. Eventually some form of
reckoning would be posted on the door. Vivvie wondered what color
that would be.

“
We don’t have a cat
though,” Dina said in annoyance, making a face. “I don’t even like
cats! So don’t think I have one stashed somewhere, Viv! Why would
she think we have a cat?”

“
I don’t know. Whatever,
it’s probably just a stray,” Vivvie agreed tiredly. “I’ll call Mrs.
Donaldson to straighten it out.”

“
That old lady needs to get
a life. Geez, all she does is pick on us,” Dina fumed. “You
would
live in a complex
full of old farts! They go to bed at nine o’clock, Viv!”

“
That old lady charges us
four hundred dollars a month to live here because she used to play
Bingo with my grandma. She charges everybody else six-fifty. Don’t
piss her off, Dina,” Vivvie warned, wanting to go to bed. She
snatched up her comforter. Dina had the grace to look guilty then.
“And do me a favor; keep your friends out of my room. I’m tired of
finding used rubbers under my bed.”

“
Sorry Viv. I didn’t know
Rachel was bringing a friend over with her,” Dina said, looking
apologetic.

Vivvie cocked a disbelieving eyebrow,
making a disgusted noise. “Rachel always brings a friend, Dina.
Come on, no more! You know this bugs me. You guys gotta quit
bringing guys back here after the bar. I’m sick of finding this
when I come home.”

“
Where are we supposed to
take them?” Dina asked with a look of confusion again. “Rachel
still lives with her mom, Vivvie. That’s not happening!”

“
Try going to their place
for a change!”

Dina looked annoyed at that. “Hey, I
pay rent here too, Vivvie! I can have my friends over if I want to.
I’m sorry if it bothers you. What doesn’t bother you?”

“
Keep them out of my bed,
out of my food, and out of my damn sock drawer!” Vivvie fumed,
blowing a piece of stray hair out of her face.

Dina giggled at her words then, looking
amused. “Nobody was in your sock drawer. Rachel just borrowed some
underwear. She started her period and took a pair of your granny
panties. I told her it was ok.”

Vivvie stared at Dina in stunned
dismay. Was it just her or was a person’s underwear an extremely
private thing, not meant to be shared? Obviously Rachel didn’t
mind. An icky feeling started to come over her.

Vivvie knew Dina was a bit of an
airhead and dropped the guy thing. It went over Dina’s head that
she didn’t need to bring home every guy that bought her drinks. The
front door was now a revolving one. Dina was chased down and
tackled for bill money. Vivvie hid food if she wanted to eat. Her
too-few clothes disappeared whenever Rachel stayed over; and on it
went.

Dina smiled and came over to hug her.
“Viv, everything gets on your nerves. I swear to God you were a
porcupine in your first life.”

Vivvie agreed with her. The
only reason she wasn’t voted off the island was her efforts to keep
it clean. She grabbed her comforter and headed downstairs. She
sighed and did a mental count after she opened the lid to the
washer in the kitchen, seeing a finished load of Dina’s clothes
still inside. The dryer proved to be full as well. Her hands itched
to complete the chores, knuckles whitening as she gripped the lid
until the inclination passed.
Go away OCD.
I promise to be good.

~~~~

Vivvie woke up at ten in the evening.
She dragged herself out of bed and wandered downstairs. The
complication of working third shift was obvious when she opened the
fridge. Beer, more beer, bottled water, dubious leftovers, and
ketchup were the only things inside.

There was a suspicious-looking take-out
box her hand itched to grab and toss out. That meant she had to
touch it. Then she would probably wash her hands a half dozen times
until the impulse faded.

Everything in the sleepy coastal town
of Sebastian closed early on Sunday. She couldn’t even hit a
drive-thru off I-95 for a burger. Hunger pangs made survival mode
kick in. Opening the pantry with determination revealed a box of
generic mac and cheese, a can of sweet corn, and a dented can of
tuna. Vivvie knew it was disgusting, but she told herself it was a
casserole.

She found a decent movie on cable and
leaned over to switch off the lamp next to the oversized sofa.
Settling down to watch it, she caught something out of the corner
of her eye. The hair on her arms bristled and stood up. Heightened
awareness told her she was being watched. Glancing at the sliding
glass doors made her eyes widen in sudden alarm.

Staring at her through the glass was a
pair of glowing yellow green eyes. The slanted orbs were filled
with malevolence. A low deep growl made a current of fear ripple
through her. Vivvie let out a loud shriek and bounded off the
couch, running and hiding in the hallway.

Peeking around the wall, she
looked to the glass doors, heart hammering in her ears. The animal
was gone. Vivvie suddenly relaxed, feeling like an idiot. The cat!
She’d forgotten about it after she slept the last twelve hours like
a corpse. Obviously they had a stray invading the
patio
. No biggie
!

Vivvie felt insecure enough to check
and make sure all the doors and windows were locked, uneasy still.
Her wary feeling didn’t subside. Her freaked out senses were on
high alert. Just to be sure; she repeated the action. She realized
she was slipping into old habits and walked away
finally.