The Cats that Played the Market (The Cats that . . . Cozy Mystery Book 4) (16 page)

“Yes.”

“It was self-defense, Katz. I know you feel terrible about this, but there was no other choice. She would have killed you.”

Katherine shook her head. “I know.”

“I want you to go home now and get some rest. I’m in good hands.” He turned his head and fell back to sleep.

The nurse said, “That’s to be expected. We’ll let him rest now.”

“Can I leave my number where you can reach me?”

The nurse wrote down Katherine’s number. “And when you call the hospital, ask for the ICU, then ask for me. I’ll be here all night until eight in the morning.”

Katherine smiled and went back to the waiting room. Daryl and Colleen were standing outside. Daryl said, “I’m sort of the family spokesperson and referee.”

Colleen said tartly, “Yes, if I stayed in that room a moment longer with Jake’s mother, I would have —”

Katherine interrupted. “It’s okay, carrot top. Jake asked me to go home, so that’s where I’m heading.”

Daryl said, “After you left, Aunt Cora made a scene and went to the front desk. She talked to a doctor who explained that Jake was out of danger. So, I’ll take the two of you home now. I’ll drop Grandpa off on the way.”

“What about Cora and Johnny? Are they staying?” Katherine asked.

Daryl rubbed his brow. “Aunt Cora won’t leave until she talks to her son.”

“That’s understandable. I’m ready when you are,” Katherine said.

Daryl went inside the room and returned with Grandpa Cokenberger. The four walked out of the hospital. It was snowing lightly and the wind had kicked up. The parking lot was nearly empty. Everyone had their coats on except Katherine. Grandpa Cokenberger came over and said, “Where’s your coat, sweet pea?”

“Jake calls me that,” Katherine said sadly.

The burly, elderly man hugged her and said, “Welcome to the family! I insist you wear my coat.” He draped the coat over Katherine’s shoulders.

She gazed ahead at Daryl and Colleen holding hands. She thought at that moment in time, all was right in the world. She basked in the glow that Jake was going to be okay.

*              *              *

Daryl parked his classic Impala in front of the bungalow and the three got out.

“I’m exhausted,” Katherine said. She gazed at the front of the house. Mrs. Murphy had turned on the overhead porch light. The living room light was on, too. Scout and Abby stood tall in the window, watching the group climb the steps to the front porch.

Katherine said to Daryl, “Thank you so much for everything.”

“My pleasure,” Daryl said. He smiled, said good-night, and left. Katherine opened the door. As Colleen and she entered the house, three cats surrounded them.

“Oh, Katz, I don’t know why they’re out,” Colleen said. “Daryl said he locked them in their room.”

Mrs. Murphy, wearing a fleece nightgown with rollers in her hair, came in. “Katz, is Jake all right? I haven’t been able to sleep a wink.”

“Yes, he’s out of danger now,” Katherine answered coldly. She was annoyed at Mum for a number of things, and now she had one more thing to add to her list.

Mrs. Murphy apologized. “I’m so sorry. I hope you forgive me. The cats were makin’ so much noise, I let them out. Then I gave them a bit of food and they quieted down. If I didn’t know any better, I think they’ve been pacin’ the floor and lookin’ out the windows waitin’ for you.”

“Thanks for feeding them.” Katherine sat down on the floor and said to the cats, “Can I have a group hug? I really need one.”

“Waugh,” Scout cried. With Abra and Iris she ran over and circled Katherine. Lilac and Abby trotted out of their room and collapsed against their person. Katherine pulled them close and embraced them for a moment.

Observing Katherine’s private moment, Colleen led her mother to the kitchen.

Once they cleared the room, Katherine said to the cats, “Jake is going to be okay, but you guys probably already knew that.”

“Raw,” Abra said sweetly. Iris reached up and bit Katherine lightly on the ear.

“Thank you, Miss Siam. I needed that.”

Lilac and Abby wanted to be held. “That might be hard to do.” Katherine leaned forward and kissed each one of them on the head.

“Okay, it’s time to go to bed. I’ll join you shortly.” Katherine got up and made her way to her bedroom. The cats followed and jumped on top of the bed. She hurriedly locked them in.

She then went to the kitchen. Mrs. Murphy sat across from Colleen at the built-in table in the breakfast nook. She wore a worried expression on her face. She began in a low voice, “Katz, you know I think the world of you. Never in this life would I want anythin’ to happen to you. I’ve made so many mistakes today.”

Katherine turned and switched on the counter light. She was quiet and didn’t answer.

“For starters, I should have never let that deranged woman in. If this woman would have come to my door in Queens, I wouldn’t have even opened the door. I keep askin’ myself, ‘What was I thinkin’? Why did I let her in?’”

Colleen muttered under-her-breath, “You were drunk, Mum!”

Katherine finally said, “Patricia is — was — very persuasive. She was an excellent liar. But Mum, why didn’t you stay in your room when I told you not to come out until I’d let you know? You could have been killed, popping into the living room like that.”

“I heard the shots. I just wanted to help you.”

“What about the cats? Why were they out when I got home? Why did you let them out of their room when I specifically asked you to leave them in there? They could have been shot by that nutcase. And you just did it again. Daryl locked them in, but
you
let them out. It’s like you don’t respect my wishes.”

“I do respect your wishes. I’m so sorry. I’m leavin’ tomorrow. I know you’re angry at me, but I want you to know I love you very much. You’ve been like a daughter to me,” Mrs. Murphy choked and started to cry.

Colleen said, “Mum, please don’t cry. We’re
all
really tired. Let’s just call it a day.”

Katherine said, “Yes, let’s do. I plan on getting some sleep and then going back to the hospital. Colleen, what time are you leaving to take Mum to the airport?”

“She’s got a ten o’clock flight. Daryl is picking us up at seven-thirty.”

Katherine walked over to Mum and touched her hand. “I
am
angry, but I also love you, too. In time we can talk about other things.” Then she said to Colleen, “Get me up when you leave. I want to say good-bye.”

“Okay.  Good night, Katz.”

“Good night.” Katherine walked to her room and found five cats curled in a single, breathing fur pile. She crawled beside them and went to sleep with her nose burrowed in Scout’s back.

Chapter Ten

As she climbed the stairs, Katherine juggled a wooden tray with a bowl of soup, a fresh bottle of water, and Jake’s medicine. He was recuperating at the pink mansion in her bedroom with the tall, renaissance-revival bed. Cokey built a two-level stair unit to sit flush against the bed so Jake could climb up and out of bed. Jake used a cane to help him with his balance.

The state police informed Katherine they were finished with their evidence gathering and that she could move back into the mansion. The mauve loveseat had been taken into evidence, together with the Belter chair Robbie Brentwood had been so fond of. Katherine said she didn’t want them back. They also suggested she hire a professional cleaning company to thoroughly clean the living room. Before Patricia’s death in the mansion, Katherine didn’t know such services existed. She mistakenly thought the police took care of that. But they didn’t.

Katherine wouldn’t leave the bungalow and move back into the house until the cleaning crew was finished. She closed the pocket doors to the room and refused to go in there. Cokey installed hook and eye locks, up high, to also prevent the cats from entering. She’d asked Margie to come up with a design plan to incorporate the Victorian features with new furnishings. But she couldn’t get rid of the wingback chair. Katherine knew there were two cat rules to strictly obey. Never give up Iris’s and Abby’s favorite wingback chair, and never throw out Lilac’s bear, no matter how tattered the stuffed toy had become.

Abby followed her into the bedroom, chirping sweetly. Ever since Patricia Marston had tried to kill her a second time, she clung to Katherine. Lilac was following close behind. Katherine found Jake sitting up in bed. “Look at you! How long have you been up?” she asked.

He closed the cover to his laptop. “Come here,” he said, patting the bed.

Katherine placed the tray on the dresser, then climbed up onto the tall bed and joined him, carefully sitting next to him. Their backs leaned against the headboard. Lilac and Abby jumped on the bed and launched onto the high pediment of the headboard. They peered down at the couple with interest.

“It was hard to sit up, but I did it,” he said.

“What are you doing online? Surfing the web?” she asked with a sparkle in her eye.

“I was reading my email. I’m officially on leave of absence until the doctor approves my going back to work. The Dean already has an adjunct professor lined up to teach my classes in two weeks, when the students come back from break.”

“I brought you some homemade potato soup. Courtesy of Colleen, who insisted on using fresh potatoes.”

Jake teased, “Oh, she flew to Ireland to dig them up.”

Katherine moved to get the soup, but Jake caught her arm. “Would it hurt Colleen’s feelings if I didn’t eat it just now. I’m not really hungry. You can warm it up for me later, if you don’t mind.”

“Okay. You’re due for another pain pill in about an hour.”

Jake said, “It’s strange how the pain knows when to rear its ugly head right before its time to take the next pill. Oh, well.” He sighed. “I want to show you something funny.” Jake reopened his laptop. He keyed in the URL for the
Erie Herald
web page. Then he scrolled to December 13 — the date of the holiday fundraiser. The reporter/photographer Russell Krow had taken a series of pictures of Lilac flying from the cat carrier to the cake table.

Katherine started laughing. “You probably know what this publicity means?”

“What’s that, sweet pea?”

“Lilac and I will be banned from the next event.”

They looked at a few more pictures, then Jake shut down the computer and pushed it aside. “While you were at the drugstore getting my meds — thank you very much, Nurse Katz — I had several brown-masked visitors.”

“Really,” she said, amused. She reached over and took his hand, intertwining her fingers with his. “Let me guess: Iris, Scout, and Abra?”

“Just Scout and Abra.”

“And what did you and your visitors have to talk about?”

“The girls said I should go for it!”

“Go for what?” Katherine smiled. “What have you guys been up to?”

“Okay,” Jake began slowly. “Katz, I know they’re
special
.”

“Of course they’re special. They used to be stage performers,” she joked.

“I know that,” he said with a wry smile. “I think your cats, not just Scout and Abra, have . . . special abilities.”

Katherine grew very serious. Her eyes grew very big and she turned to face him. “How are they special?” She wondered if Jake knew about their extraordinary gifts.

“The day I got shot and I was lying wounded on the floor, I was aware of you and the cats surrounding me with — I don’t know how to explain it — a great sense of love. Maybe it was the shock or loss of blood, but I felt connected to
all
of you. I couldn’t speak. I couldn’t open my eyes, but I
sensed
you.”

Katherine squeezed his hand. “We were there. We surrounded you.”

There was a long silence.

Jake broke it. “I want to ask you something very important to me, but it requires helpers.”

“Feline helpers? Let me guess. When you get better you’re going to bake me another cake?”

Jake smiled his famous Cokenberger grin. “Scout! Abra!” he said in the loudest voice he could muster, considering his healing shoulder wound.

Katherine heard the jiggling of a bell in the hallway. When she turned to follow the sound, Abra came through the door and jumped up onto the bed. She wore a rhinestone collar with a bell on it. There was a small velvet-covered box clamped in her jaws. She dropped it in Katherine’s lap. “Raw,” she said, closing her eyes and blinking a kiss. Scout hopped up next to her and nudged Katherine’s hand.

Jake said, “Well, open it!”

Katherine slowly opened the box. Inside a diamond ring gleamed in the light of the ceiling chandelier. A happy tear slid from her eye.

Jake said, “I love you. I will always love you. And I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Katz, will you marry me?”

Before Katherine could answer, the rowdy cries of five cats were ear-piercing. Lilac and Abby took long leaps from the top of the headboard to the foot of the bed, and began prancing figure eights on the bedspread, me-yowling and chirping happily. Iris joined them and belted out a couple of yowls. Scout stood up on her hind feet and put her paws on Katherine’s shoulders. She cried “waugh” right in Katherine’s ear.