Hopscotch Homicide (Zoe Donovan Mystery Book 16) (9 page)

“It seems like it’s been a rainy fall,” I commented.

“Yeah, although it was a dry summer, so we can use the moisture,” Ellie answered. “Do you both know what you want?”

“Sandwiches are fine,” I answered. “No need to fire up the grill on our account. I’ll have turkey.”

I looked at Alex.

“I like turkey,” she said.

“Three turkey sandwiches coming right up,” Ellie replied. “Did you find everything you needed for school?”

Alex spent the next fifteen minutes telling Ellie about each and every item we’d purchased, including her new undergarments. I couldn’t believe how excited she was about the purple and green backpack she’d found. Apparently, the girl liked purple and green. Maybe we should redecorate her room. It was a perfectly nice room, but it had originally been decorated as a guest room for adults. It needed some posters and perhaps a purple and green duvet. There was no doubt about it; I had mommy fever and I had it bad.

The storm moved in with a vengeance, so Ellie decided to close up early. The guys weren’t back yet, so Ellie decided to come to our house and wait with Alex and me. I couldn’t believe the day had started out so beautifully. The few clouds that had begun to wander in had turned into a major storm, with heavy rain and strong wind, which was a dangerous combination for anyone caught out on the lake.

The three of us were sitting at the table that was tucked in a nook, with huge picture windows that looked out over the lake, just off the kitchen. The churning water in the distance coupled with the heavy rain slamming into the glass that surrounded us on three sides left no doubt as to how bad the storm had become.

“I hope the guys aren’t still out on the lake,” Alex worried. I knew she was afraid of storms, so I put my arm around her and gave her hand a squeeze.

“I’m sure they aren’t,” I assured her. “There are lots of marinas around the lake. The guys probably docked and are waiting out the storm.”

I wished I was as confident as I hoped I sounded. I’d tried calling Zak’s and Levi’s phones and neither had picked up. Of course it could just be that the tower nearest to wherever they had docked was out. My phone had bars, as did Ellie’s, but so far neither of them had returned my calls.

“But boats do sometimes capsize on the lake during a big storm,” Alex worried.

“Yes, that has occurred,” I answered honestly. “It’s a big lake, and it might be a problem if you were out in the middle when the storm hit, but the guys were going fishing. That’s more of a shore thing. I’m sure they’re fine.”

Alex’s face turned pale as she stared out the window at the sheets of rain.

“I bet the guys will be hungry when they get back,” Ellie said. “Maybe we should make a big pot of soup.”

Alex glanced at her.

Thank you, Ellie.
Why hadn’t I thought of distracting her? Probably because I was so worried myself. I couldn’t help but remember the long kiss Zak had given me as he’d left me alone in our bed at the crack of dawn. Would that be the last kiss we’d ever share?

“What kind should we make?” Alex asked.

Ellie got up from her chair. “Let’s rummage through the cupboards and refrigerator and decide after we see what Zoe has on hand,” Ellie suggested.

“Zak just went to the store yesterday, so we should be stocked up,” Alex assured her.

I continued to stare out the window and try Zak’s cell as Ellie and Alex decided on the type of soup they were going to prepare. It was midafternoon. Fishing was really more of a morning thing, so it was likely the guys had finished up for the day before the storm hit. Based on the timing of the storm, I was willing to bet they were docked and having lunch as it approached. So why wasn’t Zak picking up? And if the cell tower was down, why didn’t he ask to use a landline?

“Do you hear something?” Alex asked after she and Ellie had been working for a few minutes.

The wind was so strong that the sound of it whistling around the house drowned out almost everything, but Charlie, Bella, Ellie’s dog Shep, and Levi’s dog Karloff, were all whining at the back door. We’d picked up Shep and Karloff on the way back to the house and made sure they all had a chance to attend to nature’s call, so the odds of them all needing out at the same time were slim to none.

“What do you hear?” I asked Alex.

“A sort of scratching noise.”

I got up from my seat by the window and went to the back door. I opened it slowly. A sheet of rain blew inside, but not before I saw a large orange and white cat dash into the bushes on the other side of the drive.

“There’s a cat outside. It looks like Marlow, but Marlow clearly isn’t outside.” I nodded toward the window seat across the room, where both cats were lounging. “I’m going to go see if I can get it.”

“Do you want help?” Ellie asked.

“Not yet. Let me see if it will come to me willingly. If I have to trap it I might need help, but for now stay here with Alex.”

I pulled a waterproof slicker on over my clothes and slid out the door and into the storm. With my head down, I pushed my way into the wind, heading to the spot where I’d seen the cat disappear into the bushes. I shoved the bushes aside and found not only the cat but a single black kitten that couldn’t be more than a few minutes old. It was obvious the mama cat was in labor and had kittens left to birth.

“Smart cat to come for help. Let’s get you inside.” I picked up both the mama and the kitten and headed back to the house. Ellie opened the door for me and I dashed into the room. Luckily, Ellie had thought to move all the animals from the kitchen so as not to scare the cat.

“A kitten,” Alex gasped.

“I have a birthing box upstairs. I’ll set our mama up in the laundry room. It’s dark and quiet in there but also close enough that we can keep an eye on her. Alex, I need you to grab some clean towels. Ellie, you make sure Mama is okay until I get back.”

With that, I dashed up the stairs to get the supplies I would need. Once I gathered everything I could think of, I rushed downstairs to find that kitten number two was on the way. I placed clean towels in the birthing box, then placed Mama and her first kitten inside. Kitten number two, an orange and white one like Mom, was born within a minute of our settling Mom in the box.

“What do we do now?” Alex asked.

“We just keep an eye on her and wait. Chances are she won’t need our help, but if she does we’ll be ready to lend a hand.”

“The kittens are so cute. And so small.” Alex seemed to be completely enchanted. “What’s going to happen to them?”

“I’ll post a notice tomorrow to see if Mama belongs to anyone. She looks well fed and healthy, so she probably has a family. She may just have become frightened and disoriented in the storm. There aren’t a lot of houses around here, but it’s possible she’s just lost. If we don’t find an owner, we’ll keep Mom and her babies here at the house until they get a little older, and then we’ll look for homes for them.”

“Can I stay and watch?” Alex asked.

“We don’t want to make Mom nervous, but as long as you sit back here and watch very quietly it should be fine. Let me know if Mom seems to become distressed.”

“Okay,” Alex whispered.

I returned to the kitchen, where Ellie was working on the soup.

“Still no word from the guys?” I asked.

“No. I’ve left at least ten messages on Levi’s phone. Maybe you should call Salinger. If something is going on he might know about it,” Ellie suggested.

“That’s a good idea.”

I decided to head upstairs to the bedroom to call Salinger. I didn’t want Alex to overhear my conversation and realize how really worried I was. Alex had been trapped in a damaged building during a storm when she was a child, so she already had a quite natural fear of heavy wind.

“Donovan,” Salinger answered on the first ring, “I’m kind of busy right now, so I’ll have to call you back if you want to talk about the murder case.”

“I’m worried about Zak and the guys. They went fishing this morning and no one is answering their phone.”

I heard a loud crackling sound. The storm must be messing with the cell reception, as I’d suspected. The call was breaking up, so I could only pick out every third or fourth word before the line went dead. What I did manage to hear was
capsize
,
help
, and
casualties
.

Oh God, let them be okay.

I tried Salinger’s number again, but it went straight to voice mail. I left a message asking him to call and then headed back downstairs.

“So?” Ellie whispered once I returned to the kitchen.

“The reception was bad, so I couldn’t make out what he was saying,” I said, sort of honestly. Why worry Ellie when I really didn’t know anything? “I’ll keep trying. How’s the soup coming along?”

“I decided on a simple white bean and chicken soup. It’s quick to prepare and will keep well if we don’t finish it. I thought I’d make some corn bread, if you have the ingredients.”

“I’m not sure,” I said. “Zak takes care of most of the cooking and shopping. Feel free to use whatever you find. I’m going to go check on Alex and the kittens.”

I tried to suppress my urge to panic as I made my way to the laundry room.
Capsize
,
help
, and
casualties
sounded bad, but it didn’t necessarily mean Zak was in trouble. Salinger could have been saying that Zak was holed up in one of the lakeside bars because he’d realized the boat might
capsize
due to all the wind
and he didn’t want to have to call for
help
or risk any
casualties
.

Even I knew I was kidding myself. I had a knot in my stomach that wouldn’t go away. The urge to take action was overwhelming, but really, what could I do? I had no idea where Zak and the guys might be, and even if I did know, I had to trust him to take care of things. My responsibility at the moment was Alex.

“How’s our mama doing?” I whispered to Alex.

She looked up at me and grinned. I could see she at least had forgotten all about the storm.

“We have three babies now. The black one, the orange and white one, and now a gray one.”

I sat down on the floor next to Alex.

“Do you think there are more?” she asked.

I glanced at Mama. “It’s hard to tell from here, but I’m guessing one more. Two at the most.”

“It’s really fascinating to watch the kittens being born. You’re so lucky to have a job where you get to rescue animals every day. When I grow up I want to run a shelter just like you.”

While I was flattered, I was certain that Alex, with her superior intelligence, was destined for bigger things, but I didn’t say so. Instead, I put my arm around her shoulder and watched baby number four, a pure white kitten, being born as I prayed that Zak, Levi, Pi, Scooter, and Tucker were all okay.

“Remember before, when you asked me if I wanted a cat of my own?” Alex said as we watched the mama nurse her babies.

“You changed your mind?” I guessed.

“It would be fun to keep one of the kittens,” Alex admitted. “Do you think Marlow and Spade would mind?”

“I can’t guarantee they would like the kitten, but I’m sure they would get used to it after a time. Marlow can be playful, but Spade is set in his ways. My guess is that if you introduce a kitten into the mix, Spade at least would find somewhere other than your bedroom to hang out.”

Alex didn’t say anything. I was certain the intelligent little girl was calculating all the options.

“Will the cat family stay in the laundry room?” she asked.

“No. We’ll move them upstairs once Mama is done delivering. If we don’t find the cat’s owner we can set them up in one of the extra rooms.”

“The kittens sure are tiny.” Alex rested her head on my shoulder. “They look so helpless. I’m glad you found them in time.”

“Me too, sweetheart.”

Alex and I sat and watched the kittens until my phone buzzed. I looked at the caller ID. It was Salinger.

“I need to take this. You can stay and watch as long as you want to.”

I quickly made my way into the living room and away from listening ears.

“Are Zak and the others okay?” I asked the minute I answered.

“They’re fine,” Salinger assured me. “I realized you might only have heard part of what I said, so I called back as soon as I could.”

Thank God. I let out the breath I’d been holding all afternoon.

“What happened?”

“Zak and the others were having lunch at the South Shore Marina when they noticed a boat that was heading that way was taking on water. Zak and Levi left the younger boys in the restaurant with Pi while they went out to try to help the smaller boat.”

“Is everyone okay?” I asked.

“Everyone is safe and sound, but I’ll admit things were hairy for a while. An eight-year-old boy in the boat fell overboard and his dad, who isn’t an experienced swimmer, went in after him. They were both in real trouble by the time Zak got to them. Both Zak and Levi dove into the water to help the pair. I’m afraid their phones were in their pockets and are ruined, but everyone is back on shore and fine. Zak and Levi are both soaked, so the restaurant owner is lending them some clothes. I’m sure Zak will call you from a landline as soon as he can.”

“Thanks for calling me back. I was really worried.”

“Figured you would be. I gotta go. The barge is here to retrieve the damaged boat. I need to talk to the guy and then head out to respond to the dozen or so accident calls I’ve had in the past hour. It’s pretty bad out here, so stay inside until the storm passes.”

With that, the line went dead.

I returned to the kitchen, where Ellie was waiting anxiously. I told her what had happened and she let out a sigh of relief.

“Thank God everyone is okay,” she said.

“Yeah. I have to admit I was getting worried.”

“Zoe!” Alex yelled from the laundry room.