“I know. I think I’m at my sixth or my seventh.”
“You need me, buttercup.”
“I do need you.”
“Without me you’re going to fall from a cliff and there won’t be a fat man to cushion your fall.”
“Or I’ll stumble into a duck pond and there won’t be Chase to save me.”
“Or you’ll be swallowed up by a sinkhole and I won’t be there to turn on the sprinklers.”
They gazed softly into each other’s eyes, and gently rubbed noses.
“It’s almost like Jack and Rose onTitanic,” Harriet giggled. “With all this water?”
“Only I have no intention of crawling off that raft,” said Brutus.
“There was plenty of space on that raft for Jack!” Harriet cried.
“Right?”
They were quiet, and as Harriet lay down next to him, they both enjoyed this rare summer shower. And the pleasure of each other’s company.
“A sinkhole,” muttered Brutus. “In the rosebushes? How is that even possible?”
“I know, right?”
They gazed at each other.“I do need you, Harriet.”
“And don’t you ever forget it.”
“I won’t.”
“Oh, sugar puff.”
“Oh, cuppy cake.”
“Oh, love angel.”
“Oh, wuggle bear.”
“Ugh,” a voice softly pronounced nearby.
Brutus recognized it as Dooley’s, and both he and Harriet laughed.
Chapter 34
Alec was so nice to take us to the hospitaclass="underline" Me and Dooley, and a waterlogged Brutus and Harriet, who, for some reason, had turned on the sprinklers in the backyard and had been enjoying a rain shower. At least they’d reconciled, and were suddenly all lovey-dovey again. So much so it was giving me a pain in the butt. Maybe that was the reason they fought in the first place, I suddenly realized: to enjoy that sweet reconciliation afterward.
“Now, I’m going to have to smuggle you into Odelia’s room,” Alec warned. “I don’t think they like it when cats come to visit, so you guys will have to be extra-quiet, all right?”
“All right, Uncle Alec,” we all sang in unison, even though he couldn’t understand.
He smiled.“You guys are the best.”
He’d arrived at the hospital and tucked us in two big, bulky plastic shopping bags. I hate being tucked into bags, but I was willing to make the sacrifice for Odelia’s sake.
“What’s going on with Harriet and Brutus?” I asked Dooley as we bumped up against each other while Uncle Alec carried us into the hospital. The police chief was panting. Hard. Apparently four cats are a lot of weight to carry.
“I think they finally got over the whole Darlene thing,” I said.
“Oh, so Harriet finally believes the perspective story?”
“It’s not a story. There was a matter of perspective. I really believe Brutus’s nose wasn’t anywhere near Darlene’s butt. Though from where I stood it definitely looked like it was.”
“From where I was standing it looked as if his nose was up her tail,” said Dooley, “but then my legs are shorter than yours.”
“See? Brutus was right. It’s all a matter of perspective.”
This reminded me of the murder case Odelia and Chase had successfully solved. Ringo had claimed his master was right next to him when Dany was killed, but was he? Maybe he’d thought he was, but just like with Darlene, it was a matter of perspective.
But then we were set down on the floor, the bag was zipped open, and we hopped out of the bag and found ourselves in a hospital room. At least it smelled like one. Phew.
Uncle Alec picked me up first and deposited me on Odelia’s bed, then did the same with the others. Odelia looked pale but alive, and she smiled weakly at the four of us.
“Hey, there, you guys. What happened, huh?”
“You conked your head on the bed,” I said. “And scared the living crap out of us.”
“I scared the living crap out of myself,” she said.
I suddenly noticed we weren’t alone in the room: Marge, Gran, Tex and Chase were all seated around Odelia’s sickbed. Chase was staring at me intently, and I realized he probably figured this whole talking cats thing was really weird. Like, really, really weird.
“You better don’t talk to Max too much, honey,” said Marge. “You should rest.”
“I’ll rest when I’m dead,” said Odelia, then realized her words could be interpreted as a little macabre, and corrected herself. “I’ll sleep when you guys have left, I mean.”
“The doctor is keeping her overnight,” Marge explained for our sake. “He says she has a slight concussion.”
“Nothing on the MRI, though,” said Gran. “Which is a good thing,” she added.
“Right,” I said.
“I know what an MRI is,” said Dooley. “I watchGeneral Hospital, remember?”
“Of course you do,” said Gran with a laugh.
They all laughed, except Tex and Chase and Alec, who weren’t in on the joke.
“Dooley says he watchesGeneral Hospital all the time,” Marge translated for the sake of the others. When Chase stared at her, she realized her mistake, and quickly shut up.
Too late, though, for Chase asked,“What’s going on here?”
Marge said, a little uncertainly,“Oh, nothing. Just messing around. We like to pretend we can talk to our cats. Isn’t that right, Mom?”
“Just a little game we play from time to time,” said Gran. “And of course those little furballs are big talkers and talk right back at us—isn’t that right, Maxie?”
She tickled my ear and I said,“I think you’re in big trouble now, Gran.”
“No, I’m not.”
Chase was frowning, but didn’t say anything.
“So what’s all this about you guys being attacked by the man in the yellow parka?” asked Odelia, a little hoarsely.
“Not now, honey,” said Marge. “You have to rest. In fact we should probably leave so you can get some more sleep.”
“Don’t leave. Just tell me what happened.”
“A flowerpot was thrown at me,” said Tex, his voice quaking with indignation. “Can you imagine? Someone actually tried to kill me with a flowerpot. I’m so upset right now.”
“And I slipped on a roller skate,” said Gran. “And I saw the guy who planted that skate. He was dressed in yellow—clearly the man in the yellow parka is working overtime.”
“And a piece of the pirate ship almost dropped on me,” said Marge.
“I checked the mast. It looks like it’s been tampered with,” said Uncle Alec gravely.
“So it’s obvious, isn’t it?” said Gran. “Someone is targeting this family, and they’re doing everything they can to murder us and make it look like a string of accidents.”
“Remember how they tried to run over Brutus?” Tex reminded the others.
“I don’t know about this, you guys,” said Odelia, her eyelids slowly closing. “It all seems far-fetched to me. Besides,” she added, making an ultimate effort to open her eyes and look at her uncle Alec, “you have the man in the yellow parka locked up, haven’t you?”
“I have,” Alec confirmed.
“So the case is closed. End of story.”
“He’s still out there,” Gran insisted. “And he’s targeting us.”
“Wolf Langdon has a mole on his hand,” said Odelia, her eyes closing again. “Ringo says the man who killed Dany had a mole in the shape of an owl on his hand. Case… closed.”
And so were her eyes. And this time she’d fallen asleep.
“Who is Ringo?” asked Chase in a low voice.
Uncle Alec waved his hand.“Just a witness who’s come forward.”
Chase looked taken aback.“What witness? I don’t know anything about a new witness, and I’m supposed to be in charge of this investigation.”
Alec shrugged.“Ask Odelia.”
Chase looked at Odelia and sighed.“Thank God her cats were home. I can’t imagine her lying there all alone.”
One by one, Odelia’s family members got up and left the room, to allow her some peace and quiet. Knowing them, they’d all stay right there, not leaving her side until she was well enough to return home.