Cat's Don't Squeal Read online

  “I guess so, but I miss her.”

  Savannah laughed. “How can you miss her when you thought she was a male construction worker?”

  “I’ll miss having a spirit in the house, whoever it was,” Iris huffed.

  “Maybe you’ll get lucky and another one will come by,” Savannah teased.

  “Yeah,” Iris said more cheerily, “now that I know I can sense one. Hey, how about I come to your house and see if I can tune into any of those you probably live with?”

  “How about you don’t,” Savannah said. “If there are any here, I don’t want to know about them.”

  Iris laughed, then said, “Anyway, Gail didn’t get a chance to talk to Violet, but I told her she can speak with her mother just by opening up her mind and reaching out to her. Violet is probably with her all the time, anyway. Gail liked hearing that.” Iris softened her tone. “Gail and Ronnie seem really happy. I wasn’t sure how things would turn out for them after such a long separation and all. My goodness, they were practically teenagers the last time they saw each other—well, she was a teenager. Now they’re in their sixties. But they seem so happy, it’s almost sickening.”

  Savannah scoffed. “Like you and Craig when you were dating a few years ago?”

  “Humph. We didn’t act like lovesick teenagers.”

  “You don’t think so, huh?”

  “Oh...well, I guess...um...I’m sure they’re...”

  “Just leave them alone,” Savannah insisted. “Let them have their fun.”

  “I wasn’t going to say anything,” Iris asserted. “It’s kind of...”

  “I think you’re just jealous,” Savannah challenged.

  “Jealous?” Iris shouted. She thought for a moment and said more quietly, “Yeah, maybe a little. New love is something really special.”

  “I need to go,” Savannah said. “You and Craig are coming down to spend time with us at the beach house, aren’t you? Will things quiet down at the inn soon?”

  “Yes,” Iris said. “We plan to drive down late next week. Looking forward to it. Will you arrange for some sunshine for us?”

  “Sure will try,” Savannah promised. She chuckled. “But I don’t know why you’d care if the sun’s shining or not, the way you lather yourself up with sunscreen, wear a cover-up, and sit under the largest umbrella around.”

  “I like sunshine,” Iris said more seriously, “but I have to take care of my skin. The direct sunlight can be hard on your skin.”

  “I know,” Savannah said. “Just teasing. Hey, talk to you later.”

  Savannah had just ended the call when Michael approached her. “See you in a little while.” He looked at his watch. “I should be back by the time Adam gets here. I just want to go over a couple of cases with Bud.”

  She put the phone to her ear again, saying offhandedly, “Okay, honey, see you then.”

  “Are you making another call?” he asked.

  Savannah nodded.

  Gladys grinned at her daughter. “You remind me of when you were a teenager talking on the phone to your schoolmates all the time.”

  “I have a lot of business,” Savannah barked good-naturedly. “...and friends.”

  Michael smiled warmly at her before leaving the house.

  “Hi, Rochelle,” Savannah said into the phone. “Do you have a minute?”

  “Sure. Is everything all right?”

  “Oh yes. I just want to ask you something.” Savannah watched as her mother walked with the children toward the living room, then she stepped into the kitchen for privacy. “Rochelle, you told me once that you use a sort of technique, I guess you’d call it, to help when you feel kind of...well, panicky or frightened.”

  “Yes, Savannah, I think I know what you’re saying. You’ll be in the Los Angeles area next week and you’re worried that you might be blindsided by fear.”

  “Something like that, yes. Anxiety, maybe. I just don’t want to be in that position where I’m feeling afraid all the time.”

  “Of course you don’t,” Rochelle soothed. “It’s reasonable to think that you might feel a bit vulnerable when you return to that city. Something awful happened the last time you were there, and being there again could elicit some of the emotions you felt. Something as simple as walking out of a grocery store as a stranger approaches or seeing a van like the one he drove could be a trigger. So you want to know how to protect yourself?”

  “Yes,” Savannah said. “What’s the magic formula?”

  “I’m sorry to say there is no magic formula.” When she heard Savannah groan, Rochelle said more brightly, “But there is something that should help.”

  “What,” Savannah asked facetiously, “stay out of grocery stores?”

  “Yes, especially at night alone. Certainly, don’t put yourself in that situation. Of course the odds of something like that happening again are practically nonexistent, but still, you want to be careful. Always be careful, as I’m sure you are. But there’s something more I’d like you to try. It will make you feel immensely better, I promise.”

  “What is it?” Savannah asked.

  “Can you imagine things? Can you conjure up mind pictures?”

  “Sure I can. I do that sometimes with Rags.”

  “You do?” Rochelle asked surprised. “With your cat?”

  “Yes. I create a picture in my mind of what I want him to do and most of the time he picks up on it. I’ve had him actually get into his carrier after showing him mind pictures of where we’re going.” She chuckled. “He much prefers being free-range or at the end of his leash, so he balks at going into the carrier sometimes. The other day, I couldn’t find him in the house and I imagined myself giving him some of his favorite treats if he’d come out, and he did. A member of the cat alliance was here at the time and she wanted a lesson on claw-trimming. I was going to demonstrate on Rags.”

  Rochelle asked, “And does he like having his claws trimmed?”

  “Not particularly,” Savannah admitted, “which is why there are usually treats involved, and which is probably why he was hiding in the first place. That’s the downside to our communication technique; he knows when we’re up to something he doesn’t want to be involved in.”

  “Hmmm,” Rochelle replied. “That’s curious. Well, what I want you to do is to quiet yourself by counting down slowly, eyes closed, from five to zero. Then imagine a beautiful white light surrounding you—a protective white light.”

  “That’s it?”

  “Yes. You can put it around your children and Michael, your car while you’re traveling, even Rags. Put the white light in place and relax. Everything within that light will be protected.”

  “Really?” Savannah questioned again. “It’s that easy?”

  “It’s that easy and that complex,” Rochelle quipped.

  “So how often should I do this?”

  “Some say the protection lasts for about eight hours. I’m not sure that’s based on science.” Rochelle chuckled. “Well, none of this is, I suppose.”

  “So I should do the technique each day or before each activity or outing or...?”

  “I would,” Rochelle said. “Now go and have yourself a great time.”

  “Okay, if you say so. Will you and Peter be joining us while we’re at your beach house?”

  “Maybe,” Rochelle said. “We both have a lot of work lined up, but we hope to move past our sense of overwhelm and arrange for some time away. Take care, dear Savannah, and enjoy everything about your trip, will you?”

  “I sure will. Thank you so much.”

  When Savannah returned to the living room, she found Gladys playing at having a tea party with three-year-old Lily. Teddy sat on his grandmother’s lap.

  Gladys looked up and asked, “So there’s no lunch gathering this Sunday?”

  “No, we decided to cancel it. There’s just too much going on this weekend for everyone. You’re leaving tomorrow, Colbi and Damon took Rosemary to see her great grandmother, Iris is pretty busy at t
he inn, and we’ll be heading out on Sunday.”

  “Do you need help with anything?” Gladys asked.

  Savannah thought for a moment. “I don’t think so, Mom. The laundry’s almost finished, I have a pretty complete packing list, I’ve been to the bank, and I’ve made arrangements for the animals.”

  “What are you doing with the horses?” Gladys asked.

  “Well, Adam will be here later today, as you know, and he’ll want to go for a ride, so I’ve cleared tomorrow afternoon for that. I’ll have Bonnie pick up the mares sometime Sunday. I thought I’d board them rather than saddle Auntie with that responsibility.”

  Gladys chuckled. “Saddle her with taking care of horses. That’s funny.” She asked, “So you and Adam are going for a ride tomorrow?”

  “Yes, that’s the first thing he asked when we started making plans for these next few weeks. ‘Can we go horseback riding?’ He knows we have Gypsy here now and he’s eager to ride her. In fact, he has sort of claimed her as his own, just based on the photos and videos we’ve sent him.” She laughed. “He wants to change her name.”

  “To what?” Gladys asked, amused.

  “He hasn’t decided. But he thinks Gypsy is too girlie.”

  “Well, she is a girl,” Gladys said.

  “I know. Actually, it doesn’t matter what he calls her. I hope he likes her and that she behaves for him.”

  “I’m sure he’ll like her. She’s been a good horse so far, hasn’t she?” Gladys asked. “I understand your sister did okay when she rode with you the other day. She must be well trained because, as you know, Bri isn’t the experienced rider that you are.”

  “Yes, she’s a sweet, gentle mare. Bonnie has done an excellent job with her training.” Savannah frowned. “Although, you just never know what might happen when you’re in the company of such a large animal.” Just then she thought of something. “I’ll make sure the ride goes well.” She closed her eyes and silently counted down from five to zero. She opened her eyes and smiled. “There; done.” She tilted her head. “Gosh, that was quite amazing.”

  “What?” Gladys asked, a puzzled look on her face.

  “Just something Rochelle taught me.” She added flippantly, “I might tell you about it someday. In the meantime, I think it’s going to work for me.” She took Teddy from her. “Hey, how about a bath, little man? Let’s get a bath, then we’ll dress you up in one of your new outfits. Your brother’s coming to see you today, you know.”

  “Adam?” Lily shouted. “Adam’s coming?”

  “That’s right, punkin.” Before Savannah could say anything more, the child ran to the living room window.

  “What are you doing?” Savannah asked.

  “Looking for Adam.”

  “Come on, honey,” Gladys urged, “he won’t be here for another few hours. Let’s get you bathed and dressed.” When Lily stuck out her lower lip, Gladys suggested, “Want to wear your cowgirl shirt?”

  Lily thought for a minute, then asked, “The pink one? Can I wear the pink one, Mommy?”

  “Sure, honey. Come on, let’s get you children ready for your brother’s visit.”

  “Adam’s a big boy,” Lily said, as she walked with her mother and her grandmother toward her bedroom. “A big brother.” She looked at the baby. “Teddy’s my little brother.” She smiled up at Savannah. “I have a big brother and a little brother.”

  “That’s right, punkin. You are a big sister and you are a little sister.”

  Lily seemed to be thinking about that before saying, “Teddy’s one. I’m three. How old is Adam, Mommy—six?”

  Savannah chuckled. “No, Adam’s eleven years old.”

  “’Leven?” Lily repeated. She raised her hands high over her head. “’Leven is really big, isn’t it, Mommy?”

  ****

  By noon Saturday, Gladys had left for Los Angeles and the rest of the family, including Adam, had enjoyed a light lunch together. While Michael prepared to put the small children down for a nap, Savannah and Adam geared up for their horseback ride.

  “Can Rags go with us?” Adam asked, petting the cat while Savannah slipped into her riding boots.

  “No. I think he’ll be happier here at home taking a nap with the little kids.”

  Adam thought for a moment, then finally asked, “You do?”

  “Yeah. Don’t you?”

  “Not really. I think he wants to go with us. Peaches is one of his best friends, isn’t she?”

  Savannah nodded. “Yes, he does love Peaches, but I don’t think he’d like to go on a trail ride. No, let’s leave him at home. He can come out and see Peaches when we get back if he wants to.”

  “Okay,” Adam said, obviously not convinced. He looked Rags in the eye. “Sorry, your mom said no.”

  Savannah grinned at Adam and walked with him out the door.

  Before the pair had walked very far, they heard rapping at the kitchen window. They turned and laughed when they saw both Lily’s and Rags’s faces against the window pane. Lily waved wildly as Michael held onto her. They waved back. A few seconds later, the kitchen door opened and Lily called out, “Bye, Mommy. Bye, Adam.”

  “Bye, sweetie,” Savannah said. She blew her daughter a bunch of kisses.

  When the door opened again, Savannah turned and saw Michael scoop up the child and carry her back inside as if she were a sack of potatoes. Lily laughed and Michael called out, “I think I’ll have to hogtie this young heifer.” He waved. “Have a good ride.”

  ****

  “Gypsy’s tall,” Adam said as they rode toward a mountain trail. He looked down. “It’s a long ways to the ground.”

  “Are you afraid you’re going to fall off her?” Savannah asked.

  The boy thought for a moment. “No. I guess not. It just looks farther down than it does from the top of Peaches, or Wilson, or Beulah.” He burst out laughing. “That name. Savannah, I’m glad you didn’t buy Beulah; her name cracks me up.”

  Savannah smiled at the boy, then offered, “I’ll trade horses with you if you want—you know, if she’s too tall for you.”

  He shook his head and grinned. “I’m okay. It’s kind of cool way up here.” He looked ahead. “Are we going up that mountain?”

  “I thought we would. You’ve been part of the way up there with me before. It’s an easy trail.”

  “Hey, is that where we found that boy?”

  “Yeah. We’ll be going past the same area. I thought we’d go to the top this time.”

  “The top of that mountain? Yeah, I’d like to look down from up there. That would be rad.” He then asked, “How is the boy we found?”

  “I’m sure he’s just fine. I haven’t heard anything about him in a while.”

  Adam thought for a moment and said, “I wonder what we’ll find up there today.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Every time we go riding we find something—a lost little boy, a hurt bird...remember the bird we tried to help?”

  Savannah frowned. “Yeah, that didn’t go well. Poor thing was in pretty bad shape.”

  “And the snake,” Adam said excitedly. “That was the first time I saw a wild snake. It was rad.” He was quiet for a moment before saying, “Yeah, I wonder what we’ll find today.”

  Savannah smiled. “I don’t know. Keep your eyes peeled; you’re bound to see something interesting.”

  The pair had been riding for about twenty minutes when Adam reined Gypsy around. “Hey, Savannah,” he called. “I see something back there.”

  She stopped her mare. “What?”

  “I don’t know, but I’ve been looking for something interesting like you said, and I keep seeing something back there.”

  “Why are you watching behind you?” she asked.

  “Because I thought I saw something.”

  “And you don’t know what it is? What does it look like?”

  Adam spoke more quietly. “I think it’s a coyote or a wolf, maybe—a small wolf.”

  “
Yeah,” she said, squinting into the distance, “I’ve seen coyotes out here. There’s one in particular that seems to follow me sometimes.”

  “Did you bring binoculars?” he asked.

  She winced. “No. I should have, darn it. Your dad gave me a nice pair and I forgot to bring them.” When she didn’t see anything behind them on the trail, she nudged Peaches ahead. “Come on. Let’s keep moving.”

  “There it is,” Adam said, pointing. “See it? Is that a coyote?”

  “Where?” she asked, reining her mare around again. “I don’t see anything.”

  “It went into the bushes. Savannah, I don’t think it’s a coyote. It’s small. Maybe a baby coyote or a puppy.” He pointed again and said excitedly, “There it is.”

  Savannah shaded her eyes. “Oh, I see something moving. Do you mean that spot to the left of the trail?”

  “Yeah,” Adam said. “What is that?”

  “Gosh, I’m not sure. Maybe a raccoon or a fox.”

  “A fox? Are there foxes around here?”

  “Sure, but we rarely see them in the daytime. If it’s a fox, he could be sick.”

  Adam thought for a moment, then asked, “Should we go look at it? Maybe we could take it to the clinic if it’s sick.”

  Savannah frowned. “I don’t know about that.”

  “Doesn’t Dad help wild animals? He’s a veterinarian.”

  “Sure, occasionally. Generally you call animal control or the Department of Fish and Widlife for a wild animal that’s sick or injured.” She rode closer to Adam and contemplated the situation, finally suggesting, “Okay, let’s ride back down the trail and see if we can get a look at this baby coyote, or fox, or raccoon, shall we?”

  “Yeah,” Adam said, eagerly clucking and bumping his heels against Gypsy’s sides.

  He led the way at a trot until Savannah called out to him, “Slow it down there, cowboy. We don’t want to scare the critter.”

  Adam quickly reined in the mare. “Yeah,” he said, “then we won’t get to see what’s wrong with it.” He continued walking Gypsy toward where they’d seen the animal. “I think it went into the bushes right here. Whoa, Gypsy,” he said more quietly, trying to look into the brush. Suddenly, he shouted, “Oh my gosh, Savannah! It’s a cat!” He frowned in disbelief. “I think it’s Rags. Rags has been following us.”