Cats and Caboodle Read online

  Cats and Caboodle A Klepto Cat Mystery

  Book 37

  by Patricia Fry

  Cats and Caboodle A Klepto Cat Mystery

  Book 37

  Author: Patricia Fry

  ISBN: 978-7332772-1-1

  All rights reserved

  © 2019 Matilija Press

  Contents

  Cats and Caboodle A Klepto Cat Mystery

  Cats and Caboodle A Klepto Cat Mystery

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Stay in touch with Patricia Fry, author of the Klepto Cat Mysteries

  Chapter One

  “Iris, hi,” Savannah said into the phone. “How are you? I hear you have some sort of mystery on your hands.”

  “Oh, Savannah. Are you back from your book signing event?”

  “Yes. I got home a little while ago. I thought I’d call while the kids are napping. So what’s going on? Michael said…”

  Iris let out a deep sigh. “I wish I knew.” When Savannah didn’t comment, she continued, “We’re experiencing a sort of juggling of cats.”

  “A juggling?” Savannah asked. “Of what cats?”

  “My cuddle cats—you know, at the inn. They’re disappearing then reappearing, like they’re caught up in some warped game of musical cats.”

  Savannah laughed. “Oh, Iris, cats do that. They hide. The more creative ones find new places to hide—places you’d never think to look for them.”

  Iris hesitated, then asked, “Do they come back wearing another cat’s coat?”

  “What?” Savannah yelped. “What are you talking about?

  “And I haven’t told you the weirdest part,” Iris warned. “New cats are showing up. Craig says they’re coming to audition for a job as a cuddle cat. They want to live in this cozy inn and entertain guests.”

  “Yeah, I can imagine they would.” She giggled. “Are any of them making the cut?”

  “No, Savannah. As you know, we carefully handpicked the cuddle cats. I’m not going to bring in cats I know nothing about.” Her voice became shrill when she said, “But that isn’t the point. I don’t want strange cats coming into the inn uninvited. I don’t know if they’re even safe to be around; they could be diseased.”

  “Well, don’t let them in,” Savannah suggested. “Either feed them outside, away from the inn and let them hang out in that old orchard out there, or call Auntie. She’ll help you trap them and get them whatever care they require.”

  Iris was quiet for a moment, then insisted, “I’m not letting them in. They’re sneaking inside all by themselves.”

  Savannah chuckled. “Or someone else is inviting them in. Have you asked Francine about it?”

  “Of course, and Mattie and Ruth and Rupert, the gardeners, the housekeepers…no one is letting them in, I tell you. We wake up and they’re here.”

  “You’re staying there?” Savannah asked. “At the inn? Why?”

  “Yes, I am. Francine’s so freaked-out by this cat thing that she threatened to quit. I suggested she take a leave of absence while we figure out what’s going on.”

  “She wants to quit? That’s odd. So you’re staying there to take Francine’s place?”

  “Yes,” Iris said. “I’m trying to resolve the issue before it drives the rest of my staff away.”

  “Oh, Iris,” Savannah said, “it can’t be that big of a deal.”

  “Strange cats inside the inn? You don’t think that’s a big deal? Savannah, they’re peeing and pooping, and they’re scaring the staff.”

  “Scaring them?” Savannah questioned. “Are these aggressive cats?”

  “Well, no,” Iris said, “but their sudden presence is startling. We never know where we’re going to find them. Yesterday they got into the pantry and tore open a bag of cat food.”

  After a brief pause, Savannah said, “Sounds more like raccoons or bears to me.”

  “Nope, it’s cats. And the worst thing is that some of our sweet cuddle cats have gone missing. They usually come back, but we haven’t seen Oscar in a few days. Ginger disappeared this morning.”

  “How long has this been going on?” Savannah asked.

  “A week or so, I guess. I didn’t think much of it at first, but when it started to escalate, I began to panic. I just don’t know what to do. Any ideas?”

  Savannah was silent, then said, “No, other than to call Auntie. If she and Max can’t help, they can put you in touch with another rescue organization. It sounds like you need to bring in cat-rescue specialists.”

  “Or an exorcist,” Iris cranked.

  “What?” Savannah squealed. “You think they’re ghosts? Ghost cats?”

  “Not the one that scratched me a couple of nights ago,” Iris complained. “No, that scoundrel was real. I stepped out of bed to use the bathroom and I guess he was curled up on my slippers. I tripped over him and he snagged me with a claw.”

  “They’re sleeping in your room with you? Now, that sounds really odd. I’ll have to come over and see what you’re talking about. Hey, I hear the kids waking up. I’d better go.”

  “Yeah, come over when you can get away. I’d love your opinion. This is just too weird. I don’t know what’s causing it or how to stop it. Do they have cat exterminators?”

  “No. You don’t want to exterminate them, just have them removed from the premises. That comes under the function of a cat-rescue team.” Savannah thought for a moment and suggested, “I guess first you need to find out where they’re coming from. You don’t have any idea?”

  “Be my guest,” Iris said. “Even my detective husband hasn’t been able to figure that out. Hey, maybe Rags…”

  “Oh, no,” Savannah argued. “I’m not letting him out of my sight. I had an awful scare with him in San Francisco over the weekend. I thought I’d lost him for good this time.” She shuddered. “No. Let’s leave Rags out of it. In fact, I think I’ll retire him to couch-potato status. My heart can’t take any more grief where he’s concerned.”

  Spiritedly, she said, “But, Iris, you hang in there. I’ll come over and see if I can help you figure out what’s happening. Will you be there tomorrow?”

  “I’m here pretty much around the clock these days, so come any time.”

  “Great. Take care. See you soon.”

  “Mommy!” Lily screeched when she saw Savannah.

  “Hi, punkin.” Savannah scooped the almost four-year-old into her arms and smothered her with kisses. “I missed you.”

  “I miss you, Mommy,” Lily said, holding her tightly around the neck. “Buffy miss you,” the child said when she saw the Himalayan-mix cat approaching.

  Savannah sat down with Lily and reached out to pet Buffy. “Hi, you sweet thing,” she cooed, scratching the cat around the neck. She ran one hand over her fur. “You’re such a pretty girl.”

  Just then Gladys walked into the room with seventeen-month-old Teddy in her arms. When the baby saw Savannah, he reached for her and she took him onto her lap with Lily. “How’s my big boy?” she crooned, kissing the baby’s cheeks and blowing raspberries on his neck.

  Teddy giggled and so did Savannah. She asked her mother, “Were they good?”“Angels,” Gladys said, sitting down across from her in an overstuffed chair. “Just angels.”

  “Did you let Auntie help?”

  Gladys nodded. “Yes, we took them to the park, together with Lexie.”

  “Wow! That’s a lot of responsibility,” Savannah said. “How’d it go?”

  “Good. Lexie’s a dream, but Teddy sure
kept us busy running after him. He doesn’t walk much anymore; he runs.”

  Savannah smiled down at the child.

  “Maggie went with us to ride the mall train one afternoon and we had ice cream cones.”

  Lily pouted. “My ice cream broke all on the floor.” She smiled brightly. “I ate Auntie’s.”

  “Well that was nice. She gave you her ice cream?” Savannah asked.

  Lily nodded. “It was pink.”

  “Pink ice cream?”

  “Raspberry or strawberry,” Gladys said. She chuckled. “Actually, I think Lily dropped her cone on purpose when she saw Maggie’s pink ice cream. I told my sister she shouldn’t reward bad behavior, but she insisted it was an accident and she gave Lily her cone.” Gladys gazed at Savannah. “So did you have a good time?”

  She nodded. “Yes, for the most part.”

  “I hear Rags took you for a ride.” Gladys asked, “He got away from you, did he?”

  “Yes, I’m afraid he did.” Savannah watched as Rags walked into the room. He rubbed against her legs, then lay down on her foot.

  Gladys laughed. “Looks like he missed you while he was missing.”

  “He probably misses his bird friends.”

  “He has bird friends?” Gladys asked.

  Savannah nodded. “Yes, two parrots and a big old owl. Or it could have been a big young owl.”

  “Don’t owls consider cats prey?” Gladys asked, wide-eyed.

  “Sometimes they do,” Savannah agreed, “but this owl saved Rags’s life twice.” She backpedaled. “Actually once, but if Rags had been locked away for several more days, the owl’s actions would have been life-saving.”

  Gladys creased her brow. “What did he do?”

  “Well, he attacked a woman who was about to shoot Rags.”

  “An owl?” Gladys asked disbelieving.

  Savannah nodded. “I imagine that woman will have life-long scars on her head.” She eased Teddy from her lap and watched him run across the room to where Rags was now sniffing Buffy. “The owl also took food to Rags when he was locked up in that room without anything to eat.” She brightened. “Rags turned on the water faucet all by himself. At least, I’m pretty sure he did. That witch who locked him up wasn’t feeding him or providing water.”

  “That’s terrible,” Gladys barked. “Those are just basic needs. Even the dullest dullard knows that.”

  “Isn’t that the truth?” Savannah agreed. “Well there was definitely something wrong with that woman who took him. She was either certifiably crazy or she was just highly motivated by her dream to be rich.”

  “She thought Rags could make her rich? How, by writing books about him or renting him out to police departments?”

  Savannah chuckled. “Well, maybe. Actually, we think she took him because she believed he could help her find what she thought was a treasure—you know, money. Turns out the rodents living inside the old building where it was hidden had used the bills for nesting material over the years.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes, a whole lot of it had been shredded.”

  “Who put it there?” Gladys asked. “How’d the woman know the money was there?”

  “She found her grandfather’s journal. He was involved in a men’s club in the city back in the sixties and seventies. He had evidently stashed quite a bit of money in their meeting place, the old Bamford Building, along with some bodies.”

  Gladys gasped. “Bodies?”

  “Yes, they think the wicked woman catnapper might have killed one of the people whose remains they found in there. Her grandfather and maybe her father probably killed the others.”

  “What a family legacy,” Gladys remarked, shaking her head. She thought for a moment, then said, “Your father and I were at the Bamford Building for a tractor convention once back in the late seventies or early eighties. There was a rally of some sort going on while we were there. We needed escorts to get in and out of the place. That’s where your book show was?”

  Savannah nodded. “What was the rally about?”

  “A protest of some sort. From what friends told us, that place created a lot of controversy. It was still being used by a men’s club group at that time. They’d rent it out on occasion. I actually knew someone whose husband was a member. She was a friend of your grandmother’s. This woman said her husband walked the straight and narrow, but she protested at these rallies anyway, because she believed the other men were corrupt. She and her friends figured that men who were involved in a club where there was gambling, alcohol, and so much secrecy were up to no good.”

  “Interesting.”

  “Your aunt dated an older man once who belonged to that club.” Gladys swooned. “The things he told her.”

  “About…?” Savannah egged.

  “About what went on behind closed doors—you know, loose women, cigar smoking, high-stakes gambling… As I understand it, to belong you had to take an oath and if you were found to have broken it by such things as sharing secrets, you were ousted.”

  Savannah leaned back against the sofa. “Well, the stench from that old place will no longer ire the women. It should be rubble as we speak.”

  “What?”

  “Yeah, after the bodies and money were removed, they planned to demolish it.”

  “Another landmark gone by the wayside,” Gladys complained.

  “Sounds like good riddance to me,” Savannah muttered.

  ◆◆◆

  Later that evening as Savannah and Michael prepared the children’s dinner plates, he asked, “Where’s your mom?”

  “I gave her the night off,” she quipped. When she realized he wanted to hear more, she explained, “Karl’s leaving next week for Spain with his daughter and son-in-law, and he invited Mom out to dinner.”

  “Nice,” Michael said. “She seems to enjoy Karl’s company. Does he plan to stay on here in Hammond or will he return to Arizona once his father’s estate is settled?”

  Savannah shrugged. “I guess the jury’s still out on that question. He had planned to go back once he put his parents’ house on the market, but since meeting Mom, he seems to be in no hurry to leave.” She smiled. “I’m glad. I think he’s been good for Mom. I like seeing her get out more and create a life of her own away from here. We all need some grown-up time.”

  Michael focused on his wife. “So are you all settled back in?”

  “Yeah, it doesn’t take long with these two.” She smiled at the children. “Their needs continue no matter the circumstances.”

  He chuckled. “You got that right. So did you talk to Iris?”

  “Yes. She’s pretty upset and I’m not sure why. She’s even living at the inn.”

  Michael winced. “Well, once you see the situation you’ll understand.”

  “You’ve been out there?” she asked.

  “Yes. Bud and I went by one evening to see what Iris is dealing with and to check a few cats she was concerned about.”

  "Were they sick?” Savannah asked. “So they aren’t wild cats. The way Iris talked I thought they were wild cats. She told me one scratched her.”

  “Yeah, when she stepped on his tail.”

  Savannah scooped up a few peas and put them on Teddy’s high-chair tray. “So, Michael, why did Iris call you?”

  “She wanted to make sure the cats weren’t diseased. I checked for chips—you know, to see if they belong to anyone. No chips, which surprised me, because the cats we saw are in very good condition. Only a few of them had a few mats and one was kind of dirty.”

  “Have they been spayed and neutered?” she asked.

  “It appears that’s been done, at least for those I saw.”

  “So they’re healthy? Iris said they’re peeing on the floor.”

  Michael reached for a piece of French bread. “Yeah, that can be easily resolved. I suggested she provide additional litter boxes—you know, until we know what’s going on.”

  He shook his head. “Where those cats are coming from
all of a sudden and how they’re getting in is certainly a puzzle. We’re talking about eight or maybe a dozen cats coming and going out there.”

  “So what’s she going to do?” Savannah asked. “She won’t have them euthanized, will she?”

  “No. That’s not an option.”

  “When I talked to her today I suggested she contact a rescue group, but she seemed reluctant,” Savannah said.

  Michael took a swig of iced tea. “I don’t think it’s going to be as easy as that.”

  “Why not?” she asked.

  “Well, it appears the cats belong to someone, so she’d rather talk them into going home, wherever that is. Besides, it’s kind of overwhelming. It’s like a cat explosion—a tidal wave of them or a lava flow.”

  Savannah frowned. “A lava flow of cats? What are you talking about, Michael?”

  He sighed. “When are you going over there?”

  “Tomorrow.”

  “Then you’ll see the problem.” He looked into her eyes. “I wouldn’t take the children.”

  “Ohhh, they love Sophie and Oscar.”

  “But we don’t know enough about the onslaught of new cats yet to be exposing our children to them or vice versa. I’ve only health-checked a few of them.” He took a deep breath. “The way they keep showing up and disappearing, I don’t know if we’ll ever catch up with them all.” He raised his eyebrows. “While I was there the other day one of the housekeepers reached into a linen closet and came out with a bloody hand.”

  “What?” Savannah said.

  “Well, it was a minor scratch, but startling, just the same. Cats are slithering from everywhere. It’s almost like a horror movie over there.”

  Savannah scrunched up her face. “Oh Michael, you’re exaggerating. It can’t be all that bad. If it’s dangerous or causing too much chaos at the inn, Auntie and Max should be able to take care of the problem in just a few days. They can set some of those humane traps and haul the cats away, then find their home or re-home them. That’s what they do! Don’t you think that’s a reasonable solution?”

  He shook his head. “I doubt it. Yeah, go see for yourself. But no kids. Leave them here with your mom or Maggie.”