Jack and Mel and Mr. Kitty

As the night ends, I swing through the Breakers one last time.

I look for the carts. I look for Jack and Mel.
I spot silhouettes blocks ahead.
Not wanting to spook my quarry,
I dark out and roll forward slowly minimizing engine noise.

As I close in, I blast the floods: Takedowns and spotlight.

I bust out and bark like bad dog.
I read the two the rules.

No bedding down in yards.
No loitering in the neighbors.
No relieving themselves on the street.
Go find a hole in the warehouses district to sleep.

Rebuking their excuses, they have a minute to decamp from the yard they're in.

As they fold their blankets, a young cat creeps out of a cart.
As my eyes shift to the animal, Mel explains,
"That cat has been following us."

Really.

"Uh, yeah. For blocks and blocks."

It's staying with me.

They lose focus, look at the cat, and stall.

You want to go that way.

I point their path with the back end of my mag-lite.

Now.

Without looking back, they drift away, rolling their carts to the highway and the warehouses beyond.

With Jack and Mel gone, I turn my attention to the cat.
He's young and small, a quick snack for the raccoons,
a victim for the feral cats.
He shows off. He climbs a tree,
jumps into my arms, and purrs proudly.

Got a name cat?

A pink tag on his collar identifies him as Mr. Kitty.
An engraved phone number underneath links the cat to a home.
I call and wake the owner.
Mr. Kitty has wandered twenty blocks away.
The owner thanks me, promising to be their as soon as she can
I entertain the animal with the taser's laser as we wait.

Comments

[Peppypilotgirl]

After reading that, I'm thinking I ought to tag Stella for retrieval should she (finally) succeed in breaking free of the yoke of indoor-catdom. Glad Mr. Kitty got home ok.

[Jade]

Did the owner not freak out a little, being groggy and driving up 20 blocks to find their cat being entertained by a taser?

[RD]

She was groggy. When she saw the laser. She said, "Oooh, he loves laser pointers." I don't know if she knew I was using a taser.......

[ToeKnee]

Yea! I'll add you to my kitty heroes file! Makes me all warm and fuzzy.

[historicpup]

Being a pet owner, it is always good to stop the dog that is running aside a busy road. That's why there are dog biscuits in the duty bag.

[RD]

HP,

I thought dog biscuits were in your bag because they are tasty.......

RD
;)