“Mrroww.”
The chirp of a cat interrupted her words. We both glanced down at the orange cat that curled around one of her legs.
Mina heaved a soft sigh. “Joe, you can’t come.”
The cat chirped again and ignored her, twining between her legs.
I leaned down and held out a hand.
“Careful. He’ll bite.”
Joe, however, did the opposite. He butted my hand with his head and purred.
Smiling, I scratched his chin. “Hey, bud.”
“What are you? Some kind of animal whisperer? First Pebbles and Betty, now my demon cat?” Mina shook her head, but a smile toyed with her lips.
I chuckled and straightened. “I just like animals. I guess they sense that.”
“Maybe.” She lifted a foot and nudged the cat back into the house. “Let me grab my purse, and we can go.”
When she stepped back, I stepped into the doorway to make sure the cat didn’t escape. “Why did you name him Joe?” It wasn’t a name I heard often, especially for a cat.
Mina picked up a gray backpack-style purse. “It’s short for cup of joe. I got him about the same time I opened my coffeeshop. I guess I had java on the brain,” she said with a quick laugh. “In reality, I should have named him something like Diablo or Ted, after the serial killer Ted Bundy.”
That surprised a soft chuckle out of me. “Why?”
“Because he lures mice and bugs to him, then murders them without compunction and plays with their corpses.”
I wrinkled my nose. “That’s, um, pleasant.”
She laughed and motioned toward the door. “It’s not, but at least my house is regularly pest-free, even if I do occasionally find a gutted mouse by the back door.”
I gave the cat one last assessing glance before I closed the door as we exited the house. I would do my best to stay on the cat’s good side, lest he attempt to slice my throat in my sleep some night.
“So, where are we going?” Mina asked as she hopped up into my truck.
Shutting her door, I walked around and got in before answering her. “There’s a great seafood place on the water in Juneau. I thought we could go there, then head down to the beach and hunt for sea glass.”
Her eyes lit up as she smiled. “That sounds fun.”
“Good.” I grinned. “I didn’t really have a backup plan, but I’m sure I could wing it if truly necessary.”
She laughed. “I’m glad I agreed, then, I guess, and that you didn’t have to overtax your brain.”
“Me too. I do enough of that at work.”
“How’s that been going? How’s your dad?”
Reaching up, I rubbed the back of my neck as I drove out of her neighborhood. “It’s going. Busy. Thankfully, not too many fires. Just… busy. And Dad’s doing great. We’re hopeful he’ll get to go home soon.”
“Really? That’s great.”
“Yeah. He’s ready. Says the nurses and therapists are pleasant people, but he’s ready to be back in his own space.”
“I get that. I’m a homebody too,” Mina said. “I like vacation as much as the next person, but I’m always ready to go home. I can’t imagine how much worse that feeling is when you’re somewhere you didn’t choose to be because you were ill.”
I nodded. “He’ll get there. Hopefully, he won’t drive us all crazy before that happens, though.” My sister and I had been taking turns spelling Mom, just so she could have a break from Dad’s orneriness. He wasn’t mean about it. Just fidgety and annoyed with it all.
