Блейз Клемент - The Cat Sitter's Cradle

I let the ball drop, and then both Sophie and the Ping-Pong ball went bopping and bouncing all over the kitchen for a good five minutes. That gave me the opportunity to check the house for any other mayhem she might have wreaked, and it gave her the opportunity to unleash some of that boundless kitty power. She was still at it when I came back, so I even had time to fill her bowl with fresh water and get her dinner ready. If I ever come up with a way to harness the energy created by a cat and a Ping-Pong ball, we won’t need to dig any more oil wells and us cat owners will all be billionaires.

I still had a couple more clients to check on, but first I wanted to stop by Dr. Layton’s office. I knew Joyce and Corina were waiting to hear how René was doing, and I was eager to get him back to Joyce’s so I could get the news on Corina’s appointment with the doctor. I prayed her baby had gotten a good bill of health—things were already hard enough as they were, and Corina didn’t need any more problems on her plate. Thinking about Corina and her baby made the wings of my heart flutter a bit and the corners of my mouth sneak up in a little smile. It made me feel good to know we’d at least given Corina a safe place to stay while she got her bearings. That was one less thing she needed to worry about.

I parked outside Dr. Layton’s office and grabbed René’s cage from the back. Before I went in, I fished my cell phone out and dialed Kenny’s number again. It went straight to his voice mail. If Ken knew what was good for him, he would’ve called me back by now. I figured he probably didn’t like the idea that I was trying to track him down, but he certainly wasn’t going to be any happier when he started getting calls from the homicide department—and if he didn’t talk to me first there was a pretty good chance he’d wind up at the top of the suspects list.

Inside, René was in a cage on Gia’s desk with a view of the waiting room, where there were four or five people watching him with the attention normally reserved for a good TV show, like he was their own personal nature channel. They all looked up at me when I came in, waiting to see my reaction to such a rare and splendid thing. He was clearly the star of the clinic.

Gia waved and said to René, “Here’s your mommy!”

I felt a little blush of pride, as if I’d hatched René myself. Sometimes I like to stand out from the crowd. Having everyone think I was the lucky owner of such an exotic bird made me feel a little special. Gia signaled for me to come on back while she ran to fetch Dr. Layton, and René let out a high-pitched cool! as I came around to the side of his cage. He was swinging on one of the perches, using his long tail feathers for balance. He looked at me with one eye and then the other and then went back to pecking at a slice of fresh orange.

Dr. Layton said, “He’s very talkative today. He’s been entertaining everybody with all kinds of whistles and calls.”

I wanted to say that I’d only heard one or two, but I didn’t want anyone in the waiting room to know I was just the bird chauffeur, so I nodded dumbly.

“He’s still a little tired though, so I’d say it’s a good idea to let him rest as much as possible over the next few days. Whatever he’s been through was pretty hard on him, but his appetite has definitely picked up since yesterday. He’s probably already gained a few ounces. I sent some blood samples over to the lab for testing, but in the meantime, I don’t think there’s any reason to be concerned. He’s a very healthy boy.”

I let out a sigh of relief. With everything that had happened today, getting some good news felt like hitting the jackpot at a slot machine.

Dr. Layton looked me up and down. “On the other hand, you’re looking a little beat. You okay?”

I nodded as I took out my checkbook. “It’s been a very long day.”

She wagged a finger at me. “First of all, go home and get some rest, and second, put that checkbook away.”

“No, you have to let me pay you.”

“No ma’am, you saved that bird’s life, you don’t owe me a penny.”

I wagged my finger back at her. “What about the lab fees?”

“Oh no. Do not try to sass a sasser. That’s a fight you are definitely not going to win. First of all, I always devote a portion of my work to charity, and if there was ever an animal in need of a little charity, this is it. And secondly, he’s out of his normal environment and he’s completely defenseless. If you and your friend hadn’t taken him in he would’ve wound up somebody’s supper. So you don’t owe me a penny. Of course, it’s a good thing you waited a bit before you stuck him in the freezer.”

I nodded in agreement as I set René’s antique cage on the desk. Gia helped me transfer him from his state-of-the-art number. He didn’t look at all upset to be leaving his fancy modern digs, probably because he was eager to get back to Joyce’s house—which I guessed was now what he thought of as home. I wondered if Joyce had considered the fact that she’d now taken in three boarders. She’d been living alone for so long, I think she was probably grateful for the company.

I thanked Dr. Layton, and Gia gave me a list she’d written up of all the foods that were safe for René. As I passed through the waiting room, everyone smiled and waved good-bye to René like he was George Clooney leaving the Academy Awards, and René called out a couple of cools! to let everyone know how honored he was to be there. He skipped and hopped around in his cage all the way to the Bronco, as if he actually had won some sort of award. I guess I’d be happy too if I found out I’d narrowly avoided being packed away in somebody’s freezer. I loaded him into the back and wedged the towels around his cage to keep it from toppling over. The towels were still damp from my morning swim. I made a mental note to hang them up to dry when I got home.

Joyce’s house is only about a block from where we found Corina, so on the way I turned down the side lane that runs along the the park where we found her. I slowed a bit to see if the box she’d been living in was still there, but there was too much foliage in the way to see from the street.

Corina and Joyce met me at the door, both wide-eyed with joy, and before you could say buenos días they had whisked René away. They put his cage down in the middle of the coffee table and huddled over it, cooing at René like two love-struck schoolgirls. Henry the VIII scampered and hopped around the perimeter of the table, wagging his tail and panting excitedly. I was beginning to get a little annoyed with all the attention René was getting.

I said, “Would anyone like to tell me how the baby is doing?”

Joyce said, “Oh, the doctor said she’s in perfect health. What did you find out about René?”

“That’s all she said?”

“Well, the baby’s underweight. She said it was probably at least a month premature, but they didn’t think it was anything to worry about. What did you find out about René?”

I sighed. These two were more excited about the bird than anything else. “He’s totally fine, but he’s supposed to rest up for a while, and he’s also a little underweight, but otherwise she said he’s a healthy boy. They gave me a list of foods.”

Corina nodded expectantly. “So, the bird—he will not die?”

“No, not at all! She said he is very healthy.”

I pulled out Gia’s list of recommended foods and handed it to Corina. “He eats all kinds of things, but fruit seems to be the favorite.” As I spoke, Corina looked down at the list and nodded. I could see tears welling up in her big brown eyes.

Joyce put her hand on Corina’s shoulder. “Oh, Corina. It’s going to be okay.”