Chapter
One
The ginger cat formerly known as Tiddles was seated between Thane and me, her tail swishing back and forth with considerable vigour. I shaded my eyes from the bright sun and glanced down. ‘What’s wrong?’
She didn’t immediately answer and her narrowed gaze remained fixed on the far corner of the garden. There was a faint rustling sound and the leaves on the blooming rose bush quivered.
I tilted my head. ‘It’s fine,’ I told her. ‘It’s not a problem.’
Thane squinted. ‘It’s late in the day for the ferals, isn’t it? Didn’t you already feed them?’
I nodded, somewhat distracted by the glimmer of a dark shadow beneath the bush. ‘The regulars know what time to come by.’ Although there was a water bowl nestled nearby, I’d already cleared away the other bowls that had been emptied of kibble a few hours earlier. I craned my neck to try and get a better view. ‘But there are occasionally stragglers who arrive at odd hours.’
There was a chirrup from the open door behind us. I didn’t need to turn my head to know that the sound came from SheWithout An Ear. It went without saying that I could recognise each of my marvellous moggies by their individual miaows, but it was interesting that it was She Without An Ear who had chosen to make her presence known. The last time she’d engaged with the feral cats, which I fed on a daily basis, there had been bared teeth, unsheathed claws and flying fur. To put it mildly, She Without An Ear wasn’t known for her sociability.
I pulled myself out of the comfy garden chair with considerable effort and turned around. ‘Don’t be a dick,’ I told her sternly, as if my words might make an actual difference to her behaviour. Then I nipped indoors to fill another bowl to feed the latest arrival.
I wasn’t gone for long. Two minutes if that. When I returned to the garden, Thane was on his feet holding his writhing, yowling ball of ginger fur in his arms, and She Without An Ear was sniffing at the bush. Goddamnit. Nobody needed a catfight.
‘Hey!’ I said sharply. ‘Get back here!’
Unsurprisingly, my grumpy tabby cat ignored me. Time for Plan B: unashamed kitty bribery. I softened my voice. ‘I’ve got treats.’
She Without An Ear continued to pay me no attention. She chirruped once more, dipped her head – and a moment later a pink-tipped nose emerged from beneath a curling rose. To my utter astonishment, She Without An Ear leaned forward and touched her nose to it in greeting, then flopped down, rolled onto her back and presented her furry belly to the incomer. Wow.
‘Wonders will never cease,’ I murmured. I crept forward on the balls of my feet, moving slowly so as not to cause alarm. Whoever this cat was, they were definitely new to the area. I had never seen She Without An Ear act in this manner towardsany other cat, not even to my placid old darling She Who Loves Sunbeams.
‘If you’re going to do something, Kit, do it quickly.’ Thane’s voice was strained as he continued to deal with his furious ginger demon.
I grinned at him, nipped forward, put down the food bowl then pulled back to give the newcomer some space. ‘They’ll be scared,’ I told him. ‘It will likely take a few minutes before they feel brave enough to come out and…’
I stopped in mid-sentence as a large furry head emerged from the bush. I gazed at the two fur-tipped ears and lion-like mane while the cat pushed himself out from his hiding place to investigate the bowl. Huh. No wonder She Without An Ear was suddenly acting girlish; I was tempted to do the same.
‘Wait,’ Thane said. ‘Is that aMaine Coon?’
‘Certainly looks like it.’
‘I’ve never seen a cat like that in Coldstream.’
Neither had I. Demon moggies of every shape and colour abounded in the city but, other than the odd house-kept Persian, there were few cats of pedigree. There was no doubting this guy’s pedigree, however. His regal posture, silver fur and larger than usual frame spoke volumes. The chance that a cat like this was a feral stray beggared belief.
He was already eating from the bowl, crunching on the chicken-flavoured kibble like a cat possessed. Whatever this furry boy’s story was, he was certainly hungry. As I crouched down, he paused mid-chew to glare at me. I recognised the fierce, wild look in his eyes in an instant: this cat was no pet.
I examined his body. His fur was well-groomed and too thick and fluffy for me to tell whether he was skin and bones underneath. Without getting closer, I couldn’t know whether he was genuinely starving or simply needed one or two decent meals. Either way, I was more than happy to oblige.
He grabbed another mouthful, but before he could start chewing it properly there was a hiss and yowl from behind me followed by a loud curse from Thane.
A blur of ginger fur ran at the Maine Coon and he vanished beneath the rose bush. I caught a flash of silver as he leapt over the garden wall and bounded away. At the same time, She Without An Ear hurled herself onto all four paws, her back arched as she hissed with genuine rage.
‘Your cat is a damned menace,’ I told Thane.
He grimaced. ‘Tell me something I don’t know.’ He raised his head. ‘She Who Commands!’ he snapped. ‘Get your ginger arse over here before you end up looking like She Without An Ear!’
‘You know that's not her full name,’ I said in a mild tone, while the young ginger cat ignored him entirely.
‘It'smostof her name,’ Thane returned.
I tried not to smirk but I wasn't very successful.
