Noah nodded. ‘Thank you.’ As Bella left the enclosure, she continued to hold his gaze, as if willing him to comment. He wouldn’t give her the satisfaction, though. He needed to say goodbye to Monty as a form of closure; he couldn’t have Bella muddying those waters.
‘Hey, old chap,’ he said gently as he sat down where Bella had been. Monty, whose good mood seemed to have vanished the moment Bella left, let out a low growl. ‘It’s great to see you, too.’
Monty said nothing, just turned tail and stalked off to the tiered platform of his enclosure, springing with surprising agility onto the lowermost step, before jumping up to the higher level.
‘Look,’ Noah said. ‘I really am sorry about this, but you’re not helping yourself with the growling. I saw how you were with Bella – you’re not fooling anyone.’
Monty regarded him with narrow green eyes, but the growling ceased. Noah wondered how long a cat’s memory was, and if he recognised the sound of his voice. Gingerly, he approached the platform where Monty had settled down. ‘It’s good to see you, Monty.’ He reached out a hand and then withdrew it again hastily as Monty lashed out with a lightning off forepaw. ‘All right, all right, keep your fur on.’ Noah gave a thin smile. ‘The world won’t miss your temper.’
In answer, Monty gave a long yowl, but his eyes fixed on Noah. Noah felt as though Monty was berating him for abandoning him in the cattery for so long. Although, he had to admit, Monty’s accommodation was clean and pleasant and had plenty of things to stimulate him. He picked up the felt fish on the end of the rod and string that Bella had been entertaining Monty with, and, more in hope than expectation, waggled it in front of the cat’s dark brown nose.
Monty just looked at him.
‘Oh, all right, all right.’ Noah put the mouse back down again. Slowly, he reached out a hand and put it in front of Monty’s snout. The cat gave a sniff, blinked and, much to Noah’s surprise, began to bump his knuckles.
‘That’s an improvement,’ Noah murmured. He assumed Monty recognised his scent, too. As Monty nudged his hand, looking for strokes, Noah felt the beginnings of a smile. He remembered the evenings that Monty had climbed through the window of the spare bedroom of Jack’s house and settled on the end of the bed after a successful night on the prowl. He’d be a stripy, furry weight on Noah’s feet until he got restless, when he’d yowl until Noah opened the bedroom door and allowed him out to settle until the dawn on his grandfather’s bed. Jack had always been the main focus of Monty’s affection, but whenever Noah had come to stay, the cat had made reluctant room for him. Monty’s love always had to be earned. After tomorrow, he’d have lost that right altogether.
He mustn’t think about that. Joel would lose his shit if he reneged on the decision now, and Marc wouldn’t be any happier. He had to think of the future. ‘I’ll miss you, Monty,’ he said, risking a longer stroke down Monty’s back. The cat’s long tail curled upwards in appreciation, and Noah’s heart started to ache. They’d spent a fair bit of time together over the years, and this felt like a bigger wrench than he’d imagined.
‘You understand, don’t you?’ Noah’s voice grew ragged, and he shook his head, trying to brush away the emotions. The last thing he wanted was to break down in front of Mollie or Bella. He had to keep it together.
‘Goodbye, old chap.’
Turning away from Monty, who looked affronted to be left on his own, Noah walked back towards the door of the living space. As he reached for the handle to let himself out, Monty let out another yowl. It felt as though the cat was saying goodbye, too.
21
Noah hurried down the hallway to reception without looking back. If he did, he knew he’d weaken. Monty was as full of life as he ever had been, and far from the image he’d carried in his head of a sickly, elderly moggy whose days were numbered. Seeing him had stirred up too much for a man who was used to compartmentalising his emotions.
‘All right, love?’ Mollie was waiting in reception, rather than in her office.
Noah nodded, not trusting himself to speak.
‘Well, we’ll let you know when everything’s done.’ Mollie smiled and laid a hand on his arm. ‘Don’t worry. It’ll be peaceful. He won’t know anything about it.’
‘Thanks, Mollie. I know Grandpa would have appreciated everything you’ve done for Monty.’ Noah shook his head. ‘I wish there was another way.’
‘Me too, love, but sometimes these decisions just need to be made.’ Mollie gave his forearm a squeeze. ‘Drive safely back to London.’
‘I will.’ Noah walked out of the door to head back to his car. He needed to grab a couple of things from the cottage before he left, but he felt strangely reluctant to return there. He wanted to get as far away from Lower Brambleton as he could. As he walked across the small driveway to his car, he could feel someone watching him again. Turning, he saw Bella standing by the gate to the back garden of the sanctuary.
‘Did you need something?’ he asked, his tone clipped. If Bella was going to have another go at him, he wasn’t sure he’d be able to stay calm in response. She might well end up with the rough end of his tongue, too.
Bella wandered towards him, and he noticed how nervous and uncertain she looked. ‘I wanted to apologise for yesterday. I was out of line, especially grabbing you in the street like that.’ She blushed. ‘I wish I could say it was out of character, but, as I’m sure you’ve worked out by now, I tend to speak before I think, especially when I’m emotional about something.’
‘And you’re very emotional about Monty, aren’t you?’ Noah replied. He found, by focusing his attention on Bella, the ache of guilt about Monty seemed to ease a little. He wasn’t sure why, since they were both at opposite ends of the spectrum about what Monty’s future should be, but for the moment he’d take any respite from the emotions that seeing Monty had aroused.
Bella smiled. ‘I don’t know what it is about him – we’ve taken in cats on the rescue side of the centre with much more awful stories, but something about Monty tugs on my heartstrings.’ She paused. ‘I think it’s because he’s such an awkward bugger most of the time. You never know, when you walk into his enclosure, what you’re going to get.’
‘He was always the same when Grandpa was alive. Sometimes, when I came to visit, he’d see me as an intruder, someone who was taking Grandpa away from him, and he’d ignore me until I’d been there for a few days. Other times, he’d be happy to see me, and he’d be all sweetness and light. He’s a complex animal.’
‘That he is.’ Bella shook her head. ‘I wish…’
‘What?’
‘I wish… no, I can’t talk to you about it. It’s unprofessional. You’re responsible for Monty now. What I think doesn’t matter.’
Noah knew he should end the conversation with a pleasantry and get in the car, but something about Bella’s tone stopped him. It must have cost her a lot to apologise – she could have avoided him until he’d left Purrfect Paws, and then, after tomorrow, their paths might never cross again, save for the pub. But she’d made the effort, and he appreciated that.
