A Picture-Purrfect Christmas (A Klepto Cat Mystery Book 13) Read online

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  “So your mall walk resulted in a riding invitation, did it?” Michael asked as he relaxed on the sofa with his wife later that evening.

  Savannah nodded. “And a chance to do a little photography.” She faced him. “Did I tell you I may enter a photo contest?”

  “Yeah, you started to when Lily interrupted with demands for more watermelon.”

  “Yes, bless our amazing gardener Antonio for his green thumb and the hothouse he built. He tries to keep watermelon on the vine year-round for her.” She took a breath. “Anyway, the winner of the contest gets to go on a photo-shoot trip to Hawaii.”

  “Really? What pictures will you enter? Have you decided?”

  “I’m thinking about that gnarly close-up shot I took last year of the hummingbird in flight, or the one of Rags leaping out of the bushes after the bumblebee. But maybe I’ll get something better when Shelly and I go riding.”

  He squeezed her hand and gazed at her admiringly. “So you’re going to be a teacher again?”

  “Yes.”

  “You enjoyed that before, didn’t you?”

  “Sure did. But this will be even more fun. I get to pursue my photography. Only…”

  “Only what?”

  “Only these are at-risk kids. I don’t know what to expect—insolent kids who don’t want to learn? Will they bring machine guns to class? I must say I’m a little apprehensive about what I’m getting myself into.”

  “Awww, hon, they’re probably just good kids without much family support.” He turned to face her. “I once helped a friend with a group of supposedly at-risk boys. We took them camping at the beach and had a great time. Not one of those kids was rude or unruly.” He thought for a moment before saying, “Well, there were a couple of kind of rowdy boys, but we helped them channel their energy in positive ways while making sure they were still having fun.”

  “How’d you do that?” she asked, creasing her brow.

  “We organized boogie-board and tug-of-war contests. We challenged the kids to see who could drag the largest batch of firewood back to camp…things like that. I learned that praise goes a long way with these kids—well, probably any kid.” He chuckled. “Look at how Lily responds to a little applause.”

  Savannah laughed. “She thrives on it, doesn’t she? Without it, she may not have learned to walk until she was in kindergarten.” She then said, “Oh, by the way, can you and Adam entertain her tomorrow while I ride? You’re taking the day off again, aren’t you?”

  “Sure. We don’t have anything planned, except I promised Adam we’d go to the mall and look at new skateboards. Lily can hang out with us.” He grinned. “Adam has his eye on a fancier skateboard—one that won’t embarrass him when he takes it to the skate park. He reminded me that Christmas is just around the corner.”

  “Don’t I know it,” she said. “It’s coming much too fast to suit me. I have only about half of my shopping done and nothing wrapped.” She tilted her head and peered at Michael. “I wonder if Adam would like to ride with us tomorrow—he’s ridden Wilson, the gentle horse at the Teagues’ stable, a couple of times.” She thought for a moment, then said, “Maybe this wouldn’t be the best test ride for him—we’re going over the hill to the river and we hope to see some wildlife to photograph. Not sure that would be his cup of tea.”

  “Yeah, why don’t you take him for a shorter ride one day while he’s here? He’s staying until Thursday.”

  She nodded. “By the way, Michael, our first photography class is Wednesday. Maybe he can go over to Auntie’s for a while that day. He loves helping them out with the cats.”

  “Why don’t you take him with you?” Michael suggested.

  “To the class? I guess I could do that. I’ll ask Shelly what she thinks. He could use one of my point-and-shoot cameras if he wants to get involved.”

  Michael chuckled. “Adam want to get involved? You know he will. He’s always interested in learning something new—especially if you’re the teacher.” He asked, “Do the other kids have cameras?”

  “I don’t know. I have two I could let them use—well, one extra camera on Wednesday if Adam’s using the other one. I’ll learn more about it when Shelly and I ride.”

  Suddenly, Michael flinched. “Look out!”

  Savannah glanced up in time to see their oversized, grey-and-white cat race into the room. “Oh no!” she shouted. Before she could react, Rags leaped onto the coffee table in front of them and slid across a stack of photographs, landing not so gracefully on the floor. Obviously annoyed and maybe a little embarrassed, the cat swished his tail, then looked down at the pictures scattered around him. When he started to lick one of them, Savannah said, “No you don’t, Rags.” She grabbed the photo from him and began scooping up the others.

  Michael leaned over and helped her pick them up. “These photos must have been developed the old-fashioned way.”

  “How do you know that?” she asked. “Do they look different?”

  “No,” he said, pursing his lips, “but Rags knows the difference.”

  “Oh yeah, you’re right,” she said. “He likes the emulsion chemicals on the older ones. He doesn’t seem to bother those I print from the computer.”

  “So he’s fussy about what chemicals he ingests, huh? Does that make him a health-conscious cat?” Michael joked. He then pointed. “Uh-oh, I think he just slunk away with one of your pictures. Rags!” he called, as he headed after the cat.

  When Michael returned, Savannah asked, “Which one did he take?”

  He looked confused. “What?”

  “Which picture did Rags take?”

  “What difference does it make?” he asked.

  “Maybe a lot. Maybe he took a particular picture for a specific reason.”

  Michael shook his head. “Savannah, don’t be…”

  “Really, Michael,” she insisted, “which one did he take? Let me see it.”

  Grimacing, he held the photo up and stared at it. “Hmmm,” he said, raising his eyebrows, “it’s a picture of him.” He chuckled. “Maybe he wants to decorate his toy closet with selfies.”

  Savannah laughed. “It’s not a selfie, Michael, unless he took the picture himself.”

  “You never know about that cat,” he said, sitting down and handing her the photo.

  She stared at the picture for a few moments. “It’s actually a pretty good shot of him. I took it when he was about eight months old. Yeah, Rags, you were a handsome young devil. Trying to recover your youth? Is that it, old boy?”

  “You’d better put these up where he can’t get them or he’ll wreck all your pictures,”

  Michael suggested. “Why do you have them out, anyway?”

  “Oh, I was just working on my self-esteem,” she admitted.

  “What?”

  “I don’t have any training,” she explained. “I just shoot by the seat of my pants. I don’t know if I’m good enough to help with the class or to enter the contest. So I dug out some of my old photos to…sort of build my confidence.”

  He pinched her playfully around her ribs. “So, did it work?”

  “I guess so. Kinda,” she said, squirming under his touch.

  “Good,” he said, yawning. Then, burying his face in her neck, he whispered, “Let’s go to bed, shall we? Six o’clock in the morning comes early.”

  “Why are you getting up so early on your day off?”

  “Uh…wife of mine, where have you been these last twelve months? Our daughter does not sleep in. And Rags doesn’t allow Adam to sleep in, either. I predict this whole household will be wide awake by…say…six thirty.”

  ****

  The next morning, Michael sat at the kitchen table with his two children watching his wife prepare for her ride. “All set for your outing? Got your horse fed and your camera batteries charged up?”

  Savannah nodded. “Yep, Peaches and I are ready. It’s blustery out there. Guess I’d better we
ar my gloves and beanie.”

  “Do you have any of those fingerless gloves so you can work your camera while keeping your hands warm?” he asked.

  When she shook her head, Adam suggested, “You could make some—just cut the fingers off.” He jumped up from his place at the table. “I’ll do it for you. Where are the scissors?”

  “No thanks, kiddo,” Savannah said, smiling. “I think I’ll just wear the gloves the way they are and take them off for shooting.”

  “Shooting?” he repeated, wide-eyed. “It sounds like you’re going hunting.”

  “I am…hunting for wildlife…to photograph,” she said, tousling his hair.

  “Are you riding from here?” Michael asked.

  “No. Shelly’s picking me and Peaches up. We’ll leave the trailer at the trailhead.” She faced him. “I’m sure glad we set up that round corral where Peaches can stretch her legs every day. I lunged her yesterday, so she should be in shape for the ride.”

  “Yeah, I imagine she behaves better when she works out before you take her somewhere.”

  “Well, she’s such a willing mare, but yes, it seems to take the edge off if I exercise her before a ride.” Savannah glanced out the window. “Here she is.” She opened the kitchen door and called out, “Hi Shelly. Come in and meet my family.”

  When Shelly stepped into the kitchen, she glanced around the room. “Nice house.” She smiled at Lily, who sat in her high chair eating bits of fruit and cereal puffs with her fingers. “Hi, little one. Nice to see you again…awake, this time.”

  Lily laid her head on the tray and smiled up at Shelly.

  “Perfect,” Michael said with a sigh, “rub your hair in your food.” He laughed as he tweaked one of the baby’s feet. “We aren’t going to get away with just a sponge bath today, are we?” he said, standing to greet their guest.

  “You thought you’d get off easy, huh?” Savannah teased. “Oh no, she loves her baths—water bath, food bath, it doesn’t matter.” She then said, “Shelly, I think you met my husband at the clinic.”

  Shelly removed a glove. “Yes, small world, isn’t it?”

  Just then, Adam shouted, “No Rags, you can’t have that! Give it back,” he demanded as he raced after the cat, who had run out of the room and headed lickety-split toward the staircase.

  Michael laughed and apologized to Shelly. “Sorry about that. The boy and the cat are either in cahoots or having a dispute about something. It looks like Rags helped himself to one of Adam’s ninja-turtle figures this time.” He extended his hand. “You’re Tiger’s and Olive’s mom, aren’t you?”

  She took his hand. “Yes, and you’ve yet to meet the rest of my menagerie—Bootsy, Tuesday, and Fred.”

  “Sounds like an eclectic group,” he said, chuckling.

  She nodded. When she noticed the boy had returned to the room, she greeted him. “You must be Adam.”

  He nodded.

  “How many animals do you have?”

  “Let’s see,” Adam said. He pointed at the Afghan-mix dog who sat next to Lily’s high chair, looking rather regal. “That’s Lexie.”

  Shelly walked over to pet the dog. “Hi, Lexie. Waiting for a yummy morsel to drop on the floor, are you?”

  “There’s Buffy in her bed,” Adam said, indicating the part-Himalayan cat peering into the room from under a filmy canopy. “Rags was just here a minute ago, and Walter—he’s probably on his favorite chair in the living room playing…what do you call it, Dad?”

  “Camouflage?”

  “Yeah, he plays camouflage. He’s black, so when he lies on that chair, you can barely see him.” He took a breath and said, “Okay, that’s four—three cats and one dog. I have a cat at my other house, too—so five.”

  Shelly smiled. “Cool.” She addressed Savannah, “We’d better hit the trail before the animals go in for their naps.”

  “What animals?” Adam asked.

  “The wild animals we want to take pictures of,” Shelly explained.

  Still standing, Michael said, “Well, nice to see you again. You ladies have a good ride and be careful. I hear they’ve seen bear out that way.”

  Shelly patted her jacket pocket. “Got bear spray.”

  “Bear spray?” Adam asked. “You’re gonna spray a bear?”

  “I sure hope not,” she said. “It’s just in case a bear gets too close. It’s our last-resort defense.”

  “Be sure to get a picture of him before you spray him,” Michael joked.

  The two women looked at one another with raised eyebrows. “Sure,” Savannah said, laughing. She kissed Michael, tousled Adam’s hair affectionately, then ran one hand over Lily’s curls and down her back, saying, “Well, you guys have fun. Keep a close eye on Lily. She’s getting more adventurous.”

  “We’re on it like ugly on an ape,” Michael quipped.

  “What?” Adam asked, wrinkling his nose.

  Savannah shook her head as the two women left through the kitchen door and headed out to load Peaches and her tack into Shelly’s rig.

  ****

  “She’s an agreeable mare.” Shelly said as she drove toward their wilderness destination. “She loads nicely; seems to listen to your commands. I like that.”

  “Believe me, so do I,” Savannah said. “I want riding to be a pleasure, not a fight. I so appreciate Peaches and the work Bonnie Teague has put into her.”

  Shelly glanced at her passenger. “Oh, she’s one of Bonnie’s prodigies, is she?”

  “You know Bonnie?”

  “Sure. I take Clyde to her for a tune-up once in a while.”

  “Tune-up?” Savannah questioned.

  She nodded. “When he seems to forget some of his lessons, I know he needs Bonnie’s firmer hand. She has a nice touch with horses, and Clyde listens to her.” As if confiding in Savannah, Shelly said, “Actually, I’m the one who needs the tune-up and I go to the Teague Stables for riding lessons, too.”

  The sun was just making its appearance over a mountain peak when they arrived at the trailhead. Shelly put the truck in park and lifted her camera from the seat. “Now there’s a spectacular sight. Look at that, Savannah. Isn’t it an amazing welcome?”

  “Oh, it’s beautiful…almost spiritual. Wow, what a moment,” Savannah said, focusing her camera on the sunrays that had formed a giant cross in the distance through a crevice between two mountains.

  “Did you get it?” Shelly asked.

  “Yeah. That sight, alone, was worth the trip out here.”

  “Let’s hope it’s an omen of more good things to come.”

  Savannah smiled. “I like your way of thinking. In fact, it’s encouraging to see the sun at all. Maybe it’ll warm up some and our fingers won’t freeze solid.”

  “One can only hope,” Shelly said.

  Once the horses were saddled and the women had ridden along the trail for a few minutes, Savannah suggested, “Shelly, tell me about the children in the program.”

  “Well…” she hesitated, “we have a kind of mixed bag. There are five boys and three girls. The girls seem more interested in photography than the boys do.” She gave Savannah a sideways grin. “Three of the lads have been given an ultimatum.”

  “Ultimatum?” Savannah questioned. “By their parents?”

  Shelly shook her head. “Unfortunately, no; by the sheriff’s department.”

  Savannah raised one hand toward Shelly. “Wait, didn’t you say these kids are in grammar school?”

  “Yeah.”

  “And they’re already in trouble with the law?”

  “A couple of them, yes. And we want to nip that in the bud.”

  “Through photography?” Savannah asked.

  Shelly peered at her for a moment and said quietly, “Through positive human contact while learning new skills related to a creative endeavor, and the opportunity to…shall we say…experience success.”

  “So it’s a confidence-building sort of thing,” Savannah surmised.

 
; “Bingo.” Shelly stared out over the horizon. “Photography may not ring their bell or tickle their passion, but it might give them the confidence they need to pursue the activity that will.” She tilted her head, squinting a little into the sun that shone from behind Savannah. “Know what I mean?”

  “Sure do,” Savannah said. “I like the way you think.” She lifted out of the saddle briefly then settled back down. When she noticed Shelly nudge Clyde into a slow jog, Savannah smiled and urged Peaches to keep up.

  The women had traveled at a walk, intermingled with an occasional jog, for half an hour when Shelly reined her gelding in. She sat tall in the saddle and stared off into the distance.

  “What is it?” Savannah asked, gazing in the same direction.

  “Looks like a couple of dudes on dirt bikes.”

  “So there are methods of getting back in here other than by horseback or on foot, huh?”

  “I guess so. Well, there goes our potential for seeing much wildlife,” Shelly lamented. “They’re coming this way.”

  “Maybe they’ll ride on past.”

  “I wonder what they’re doing,” Shelly said. “There’s nothing out here, except a few ancient mine shafts.”

  Savannah thought for a moment. “I imagine those are kind of interesting to explore. Maybe they’re searching for old treasures left by the miners. Or they might be into photography, too.”

  “I suppose,” Shelly said, obviously not convinced.

  “Is this where you plan to bring the kids?” Savannah asked.

  Shelly shook her head. “No. It’s a great place—when it’s peaceful—but not practical for transporting eight kids. Naw. I know of a spot closer to civilization that we can get to by car.” She pointed. “It’s down near the river on the other side of that rise…off the old frontage road.”

  “Yes, I’m familiar with the area. I got a great shot of an eagle near there once. I’ve seen a couple different types of woodpeckers over there and another colorful bird I couldn’t identify. Hey, we could make this a bird-watching adventure for the kids, too. I can bring my bird book. The kids might enjoy that.”