Молли Фитц - Kitty Confidential

Nan appeared at my side, sitting right down on the pier and crossing her legs like we were at a slumber party and not a rescue mission. “That was good thinking, calling your iPad,” she told me, careful to leave out any direct references to Octo-Cat I noticed. “We were able to record our end of the line and gave it to the police as evidence. And her intention to kill you,” Nan revealed, rubbing my shoulder over the insulated blanket. “It was just awful to listen to, especially when the call went silent.”

My heart clenched, reimagining tonight’s events from poor Nan’s perspective. Luckily she was a tough, old kook, and I seemed to be okay now.

“Of course, you’re going to need to buy me a new iPad now,” Octo-Cat added, pushing his way under the blanket with me. “And seeing all you put me through tonight, you might have to make that two iPads.”

“You did the right thing,” the officer told Nan. “Your quick thinking saved your daughter’s life.”

“Oh, granddaughter, actually.” Nan giggled and coquettishly twirled a ringlet as she looked the officer up and down. The officer, who was way, way too young for her to be flirting with. “What’s your name again?”

Some things never changed, and thank goodness for that.

“Officer Damon Bouchard, ma’am.” He smiled kindly at her, but I felt Nan stiffen beside me at the polite nickname. Her crush had ended just as soon as it had begun. That was good considering we had enough to deal with already.

“Are you ready to get in the ambulance?” the other officer asked—a woman—approaching us from the pier.

“Can my cat come, too?”

Officer Bouchard shrugged and glanced toward his partner. “I guess he can ride over with us, but unfortunately he’s not going to be able to come into the hospital with us.”

“But…” I hesitated. After all we’d just been through, I didn’t want to leave him again especially so soon.

“It’s okay, dear,” Nan said, turning her full focus to me once again. “I’ll take care of him until you’re well enough to come home.”

“Could you just give me a moment alone with him?” I asked, knowing the request made me sound crazy.

“Um, sure,” Officer Bouchard said.

“We’ll just be over there,” the other officer said, pointing somewhere to the right, but I didn’t care enough to notice.

“You can stay, Nan,” I said as she began to struggle to her feet.

She settled back down and wrapped both arms around me, then we waited together until we knew we had the privacy we needed.

“Thank you for saving my life,” I whispered toward my chest, where Octo-Cat still sat nuzzled against me. “I’m sorry I scruffed you, and I’m sorry for all the times I was rude or didn’t understand. During this past week you’ve become my best friend… well, other than Nan, I mean… and I’m so glad you’re in my life. Can you forgive me?”

A few tense moments of silence passed before Octo-Cat finally extracted himself from the warmth of the blanket and came to stand before me on the wharf. “You’re my best friend, too,” he said, rubbing his head against my hand and purring in earnest. “But if you ever scruff me again, I’ll kill you and eat the evidence.”

I erupted with laughter, and Nan joined me even though she didn’t quite know why.

“Thank you for avenging Ethel,” he said when our peals of laughter faded out. “She would have liked you, you know.”

My eyes teared at the compliment. Ugh, more salt water was not what I needed just then. Still, judging from how awesome her cat was, I bet I would have liked her, too.

CHAPTER TWENTY

Ifelt fine—all things considering—but the hospital insisted on keeping me for at least twenty-four hours since I was still in danger of succumbing to my near-drowning even now.

I groaned audibly when a familiar face popped into my room.

“So…” Dr. Artie Lewis, the same ER doctor who had treated me earlier that week, said with an obnoxiously large smile. “You decided to up the ante this time, eh? You know, real life isn’t an action movie. You can’t keep putting your life at risk and expecting to survive.”

Yes, this was the same guy who had made me feel like an idiot when I came to him for care after getting zapped unconscious by the office coffeemaker. It was upsetting to see that his bedside manner hadn’t improved since I’d seen him last.

The doctor bobbed his head, ignoring the fact that I hadn’t responded to his greeting—or his advice. “Drowning is definitely a more impressive way to lose consciousness. Good job.”

Did he really just compliment me on my method of getting hurt? Yeah, because I had a lot of control over that. I briefly wondered if perhaps the not-so-good doc was a bit of a thrill seeker in his life outside of the hospital. He seemed almost excited as he discussed the details of my near drowning.

“Just leave me alone,” I pleaded, finally breaking my silence. Hadn’t I already been through enough that day?

I’d nearly died, for crying out loud!

He shot me a withering glance before chuckling to himself and saying, “No can do. This time you need a lot more than some regular strength Tylenol. You know, a smile wouldn’t hurt you much, either.”

If I had any strength left, I’d have shot out of bed to punch him in the face. I’d had enough violence for one day, however—even though it sure seemed like this doctor guy was cut from the same sleazy cloth as my least favorite colleague, Brad.

Maybe it was time to start exploring some alternative medicine therapies… or to stop getting knocked unconscious every other day. Either worked.

“I’ll be back later,” Dr. Lewis announced after a brief glance over my vitals. “By the way, you have some guests waiting in the lobby. Should I send them in?”

“Yes, please.” I nodded excitedly, wondering if Nan had somehow found a way to sneak Octo-Cat into my room. I definitely wouldn’t put it past her.

It wasn’t Nan who came to see me, though.

A few minutes later, Mr. Fulton and Bethany shuffled into my room. Mr. Fulton carried a giant pink teddy bear that said It’s a Girl which made me giggle.

Ouch. Laughing hurt deep in my chest.

“How are you doing?” Bethany asked, trailing her fingers along the foot of my bed. I’d never seen her out of office clothes before and was surprised to find her personal style was actually pretty fun. She wore red polka dotted pants with a white button down shirt, an outfit that would have fit perfectly with either Nan’s or my own wardrobe.

“Pretty good, considering.” I smiled to show her I was all right and that there were no hard feelings between us.

“I’m sorry my wife almost killed you,” Mr. Fulton interjected, catching me off guard. I mean, I’d only been in the hospital a few hours. It seemed strange that he and Bethany already knew what had happened.

“How did you find out?” I asked, wondering just how much he knew about what had transpired between me and Diane, if he knew that she was also to blame for killing his beloved aunt.

He rushed to explain. “I came home from my trip early and saw your car in front of my house and the door wide open. A short while later, officers showed up and brought me in for questioning. Let’s just say they caught me up on my wife’s shocking extracurricular activities.”

“And you?” I asked Bethany. I remembered now that, in the middle of her maniacal raving, Diane had mentioned something about Bethany being Mr. Fulton’s daughter. I still had so many questions about that but was hoping they might fill me in without being prompted. After all, it technically wasn’t any of my business.

Bethany glanced toward Mr. Fulton nervously. “He called me on the way over.”