The door was positioned so that I could only see her as I got closer, but at least I could see she was smiling. That had to mean Noah was okay. Relief hit like a gut punch, and I actually had to put a hand out to steady myself for a second, but finally I managed to make my way over to the closet. When I looked in, I froze. Noah was sitting cross-legged on the ground clutching what looked like a piece of wadded up newspaper.
“Look what I found!”
Noah lifted his hands to show me the furry, dirty thing. And then it meowed.
“A kitten? Where the hell didthatcome from?”
“I’d like to know as well,” Nina breathed. “How long has this poor baby been trapped in here?”
Noah shook his head, glancing between the two of us. “I’m not sure. I heard it, or…her, or maybe him? He raised the kitten to look into its blue eyes. “What are you?”
“Here, let me check,” Nina held out her hand, and he placed the scrawny thing in her palm.
She ran her hand down its back then slowly flipped it over like she was a kitten whisperer. The kitten didn’t struggle as Nina peered to look at the equipment.
“This little baby is a girl,” she said as she righted the kitten and handed her back to Noah.
He kissed the top of the kitten’s head and clutched it against his chest, to my dismay.
I didn’t want him to get too comfortable with the thing, cute as it was. Or, I assumed that it had thepotentialto be cute, if it was cleaned and possibly fumigated. Right now, it looked like it came from a dumpster.
“I love you already,” he whispered in the kitten’s ear. “You’re the best kitty. Don’t be scared, little baby. I’ve got you. I’ll take care of you.”
I shuffled. I could already tell where this was headed, and I didn’t like it one bit. I could feel Nina studying me.
“Dad?” Noah asked.
“Yeah?”
He stroked the squirming little thing, and it seemed to calm the kitten. It crawled up the front of his shirt and nestled below his chin.
My son looked up at me with an expression that almost knocked me backward.
Fear, hope, confusion as he clutched the now drowsy kitten.
“Can I keep her?”
4
NINA
Iheld my breath waiting for Logan to respond to Noah. Based on the frown and crumpled brow, it didn’t look good for the little stowaway and her new caretaker.
“Please?” Noah added, his lower lip trembling.
“Bud,” Logan began with a sigh. “Bringing home a pet is a big deal. We’ve never even talked about it.”
“Yeah, but haven’t you ever heard of the cat distribution system?” I asked.
They both turned to stare at me, like they’d forgotten I was there.
“Thewhat?” Logan asked, his displeasure clear.
He could be as displeased as he wanted—I was on Team Noah. The kitten could be a way to help him come out of his shell.
“The CDS is this understanding that if the universe gifts you with a cat—like, one shows up unexpectedly in your life—it means that you’re destined to be together. And to me, this feels like the perfect example of the cat distribution system, because howin the world did that little baby make it on board with no one spotting her?”
“Yeah!” Noah said.
