1
“Boots, you sentimental old cat, there’s no reason for you to be cranky with me. I was only gone a week.” Annie Dawson bent down to scratch the gray cat under her chin. Boots closed her eyes, stretching her chin forward to get a better angle for enjoyment. “All forgiven?”
As if coming to her senses, Boots’s eyes popped back open and she turned away from Annie. She sidestepped away from the legs of her human housemate without rubbing against them as usual. Apparently, forgiveness was going to be a process. Boots had been even more eccentric than usual since Annie’s friend and neighbor had brought the cat back home. “I know Alice spoiled you rotten while I was in Texas, so don’t try to make me feel guilty.” Boots’s tail jerked quickly forward before she padded down the hall from the kitchen to the living room, jumped onto the couch and settled down among the pillows.
Annie picked up her Lone Star coffee mug to take a final sip. Concerns had lurked in Annie’s mind before the trip to celebrate her twin grandchildren’s birthdays. Would she find it too hard to leave her daughter, son-in-law, grandchildren, and friends again to return to Stony Point, Maine? Would staying in the home she had shared so many years with her late husband, Wayne, bring fresh grief? Would she regret her decision to allow her church in Texas to use her home as a missionary retreat? But, like the cup of French roast coffee she’d just finished, the trip had satisfied and invigorated her.
Annie washed out her mug at the sink, setting it on the drain board to dry. As she walked down the hall to grab her purse and a sweater, the doorbell rang. That’s got to be Alice, she thought. Before she could get close enough to reach out for the doorknob, a gray blur shot out from the living room. Boots planted herself, her back to the door with her fur fluffed, a miniature dragon protecting her treasure. “Boots, don’t be silly.” Annie stepped closer and reached to open the door. The cat put up a paw to bat at her trouser-covered legs. “Hey, watch those claws.”
From the other side of the door came Alice’s voice. “Annie, is that you? What’s up with the door—another chore for Wally?”
“I’m being held hostage by an ornery feline! I wonder if Wally does hostage negotiation.” Annie laughed as she bent down to try and scoot Boots out of the path of the door. The cat simply sidestepped along the door, and Annie scooted only air. The door remained blocked.
“Try a Kitty Crunchies bribe. If that doesn’t work, call her bluff and open the door anyway. Boots won’t let herself get whacked with this old heavy door. Cats are creatures of self-preservation.” Alice’s voice lilted with semi-suppressed giggles.
“That’s why she stays. She knows a softie when she sees one.” Annie turned her back on the topic of the conversation, heading back to the kitchen. Pulling out the box of Kitty Crunchies from a bottom cabinet, she shook the box as she walked slowly back. She put on what she thought of as her best bribe voice, crooning, “What does a dragon kitty need to turn back into a beautiful Boots? Come get some Kitty Crunchies.” Looking back at the door as though weighing her options, Boots straightened her tail into the air and abandoned her post. Annie poured a good portion into Boots’s bowl and gave her a quick pat before rescuing Alice from the porch.
“How long is she going to give me this treatment? Will we go through this every time I go on a trip?” Annie said as Alice entered the foyer.
“I think she’ll snap out of it pretty fast. But don’t rely on the Kitty Crunchies too often, or she may decide to make it permanent.” Alice shuddered but couldn’t hide her grin.
“Good point. I also don’t want to quadruple my budget for cat treats. Hey, I need to go to town this morning to find Wally. Do you know where he’s working this week?”
“At Ian’s house, I think. I heard him mention it to Peggy this weekend at The Cup & Saucer. I was planning to go to town too. Want to ride together? I’ll put the top down.” Alice took the keys to her Mustang convertible from her jeans pocket and dangled them in front of Annie.
“Second successful bribe of the day, and it’s not even nine o’clock yet! Use your powers for good, friend.” Annie scooped up her purse and sweater from the hallway table. She lowered her voice. “We better slip out fast.”
Alice cocked an ear toward the kitchen. The soft sound of crunching seemed to be slowing. She opened her eyes wide in mock terror and tiptoed to the door. Turning the knob, she opened it inch by inch to keep it from creaking. They kept their silence until safely in the convertible. Alice slowly backed out of the driveway onto Ocean Drive.