The Case of the Angry Auctioneer (Auction House Mystery Series Book 1) (14 page)

“You are a dawg, man, but you’re not my dawg,” Sean mumbled.

“Cats carry disease. Kitty-mouth is a real hazard,” Glenn said.

“Kitty-mouth!” Sean snickered.

Cookie shot him a look. “It’s okay. This cat’s okay.”

“Maybe it was chipped. I’ll take it to Animal Control and see if they can find the owner.” Glenn reached for the cat and it dug its claws deeper into Jasper’s back and chest.

“Big ouch,” she murmured. She turned away from Glenn. “Somebody put the kitty in the dumpster,” she said. “I don’t think his owner was taking very good care of him.”

“He looks healthy enough,” Glenn said.

“Then you don’t think kitty-mouth is a real hazard here, is that right, officer?” Sean asked.

“Detective.” Glenn glowered.

Cookie linked her arm through Sean’s and led him away.

“Look, I know you think you’re doing the animal a favor, but what if its owner is searching for it? And if it has been on its own for a while, it may have picked up something that doesn’t show,” Glenn said.

“Fleas?”

“Ticks. Worms. Distemper. Look, Jasper. Miss Biggs.”

“Jasper’s fine. I don’t know what to call this little guy though. Not yet.”

“If you’re not gonna let me take it to Animal Control, then promise me you’ll get it to a vet first thing tomorrow,” Glenn said.

“Tomorrow’s Sunday.”

“First thing Monday.”

Jasper stroked the cat’s sleek fur. “Mama’s gotta work to earn some cat food. Very soon, okay?”

“Mama’s gotta take care of herself first,” Glenn said.

Jasper looked at him wonderingly. Was this some kind of flirting? She was way out of practice.

Glenn cleared his throat. “Just keep safe is what I’m saying. I’ve gotta go. Call me if you need anything.”

“At the police station?” Jasper pried the cat’s nails out one by one and cradled it like a baby. This was one flexible little animal. It stared wide-eyed up into Jasper’s face. Without thinking, she kissed it on the forehead and it snuggled in closer.

“Wherever and whenever you need me,” Glenn said. He hesitated as if about to say something else. Then he turned and walked away. He passed Sean without a word. “Miss Cookie,” he said.

Jasper led the way to the apartment. Sean and Cookie carried all the aluminum food containers inside to Jimmy’s kitchen. Jasper hadn’t eaten much at the buffet after the memorial service but she wasn’t feeling at all hungry. The little cat had all her attention. Sean and Cookie busied themselves in the kitchen while Jasper played with the cat on the sofa. It seemed to like hand under blanket, hand behind pillow and pouncing hand. Jasper didn’t mind the minor scratches she was accumulating.

Soon Cookie announced she was leaving. She gave Jasper a questioning look which Jasper understood to mean,
Are you okay alone with Sean?
Jasper said aloud, “It’s okay, Sis, the cat is here too.”

“Okay then,” Cookie said. She gave Jasper a hug and a kiss and said she would call her later. Jasper told her to take home a couple cartons of food.

Sean settled himself on the opposite end of the sofa. He was adept at cat games and showed Jasper how to play shoestring-pretending-to-be-a-small-snake and how much felines enjoyed a rough and tumble wrestling match with a human hand. Jasper had a sudden small sense of what it might be like to have a baby with a man she loved. They would sit like this in the evenings and play with their child. She settled in with Sean and the cat, and encouraged Sean to tell her all about his art work. She had to admit, even at a time like this, the man had definite appeal. She loved the way he looked, and his velvet voice soothed her soul.

A sudden shrill sound interrupted them. The cat mrowed loudly and leapt off the sofa. It raced for the bedroom. Jasper and Sean got to their feet. “Is that a fire alarm?” Jasper asked.

“I don’t know. Alarm for sure. Coming from the front of the building,” Sean said. “Come on.”

Jasper shook him off and hurried to the bedroom. “Kitty, kitty,” she called frantically.

With a loud mrow, the cat jumped down from the top of the chest of drawers onto Jasper’s shoulder. Jasper put one hand behind its neck and the other around its tail. Then she and Sean exited the apartment.

They found the parking lot a busy place with two police cars parked just outside the auction house’s front door. Their red lights were whirling around on top. Glenn popped up from where he was crouching beside one of the cars. He and a uniformed officer had their guns drawn. “Get over here,” Glenn ordered.

Jasper and Sean hurried over and ducked down behind the police car.

The other policeman spoke into a microphone and his voice bellowed out from the top of the squad car. “Come out now with your hands up,” he ordered.

Ted Phillips walked out the front door of the auction house, his hands on top of his head.

Jasper eased to her feet. “Ted, what do you think you’re doing?”

“Stand down,” Glenn said. He sounded disgusted. “Phillips, what the hell are you doing?”

“I started driving away and remembered something I’d forgotten.”

“Yeah, that’s usually what I remember,” Sean said.

“Shut up, Solberg,” Glenn said.

Jasper focused on the cat which seemed content to be part of the excitement. Its purring vibrated reassuringly against her.

“So?” Glenn asked Ted.

“So I got to the door and found out it was unlocked.”

“You left it unlocked?” Glenn asked.

“I always lock it,” Ted said. “I don’t know how it got that way. So I went inside to look around – “

“And get whatever it was you forgot,” Sean said.

Jasper giggled into the cat’s fur. It purred all the louder.

Ted said that he stepped inside and was switching on lights when the alarm went off.

“How’d the alarm get on?” Glenn asked.

“I armed it before I left the first time like I always do,” Ted said.

“What the hell is going on around here?” Glenn signaled to the other cop and they went into the auction house. They emerged a few minutes later. “All clear,” Glenn said. “Why don’t you turn on the alarm, lock up and we’ll all get out of here.” He turned to Jasper. “You and I are going to get whatever you need from the apartment. Then we are going to lock that door and I am going to watch you get in your car and drive away.”

“But Sean’s here,” Jasper started to say.

“Come on,” Glenn ordered.

Sean said to Jasper, “I can follow you home if you want.”

“She lives down the street from me, Solberg. I’ll follow her home,” Glenn said.

“What about me?” Ted asked.

The day was catching up with Jasper. She started walking toward the back of the auction. She turned back and unpeeled the cat from her shoulder. She handed it over to Sean.

“What am I supposed to do with it?” he asked.

Cookie spoke. “Just take it home for the weekend and we’ll figure something out on Monday.”

Sean agreed. Jasper was tired of talk. Of conversation and argument. Glenn followed her to her car. She didn’t say good-bye. She pulled out of the parking lot and headed home to Hickory Lane. She ached for a hot bath and bed. The only thing she would miss would be the little cat.

“Hand me that whatchamacallit, will you,” Cookie asked.

It was Monday morning, and she and Jasper were going through things in Jimmy’s apartment at the back of the auction house. It smelled of oil, dust and those flowery dryer sheets Jimmy had been so fond of.

“Hear you go.” Jasper handed over the old weight scale that sat on top of Jimmy’s bookshelf.

The living room looked taken apart, as if the occupant was just moving in or just moving out. The twins had been working for two hours now and the mess seemed to be getting worse instead of better.

Something might have gone missing, she supposed. Someone could have snuck in Saturday night while Sean and Jasper were out in the parking lot with the police since they had left the door unlocked, but why would someone want to steal something from the apartment of the dead auctioneer? And why did the stray kitty turn up that night in the dumpster? Could the same unknown person be responsible for both?

Cookie took the scale and examined it like a blind person - eyes closed, sensitive hands. “He hadn’t had this very long had he?” Jasper started to speak but Cookie hushed her.

“Somebody focused a lot of attention on this. That’s funny. I’m seeing a young woman in some kind of red smock holding this.”

Jasper smiled. “I got that for him at a flea market last Christmas. It took me awhile to make up my mind.”

“Okay.” Cookie opened her eyes and put down the scales. She dusted her palms off and shook them in the air. She frowned. But she instantly brightened. “So I was right about the red smock!”

Jasper smiled over at her. “Yes, Sis. You’re pretty much always right.”

“Pretty much!” Cookie put on a pretend pout. The cell phone she wore at her side sounded three bell tones – bum, bum, bum. “Psychic Medium Rare, Courtney speaking,” Cookie answered automatically. “Oh, it’s you. Well, I don’t know, honey. Have you tried looking under the bed? Uh-huh. Okay. So maybe it was in the refrigerator last time. That was an honest mistake. You’d left it in the laundry basket. Huh? Well, never mind. Okay. Me too. Bye, honey.” Cookie replaced the phone in her pocket.

Jasper looked at her sister with wonder. “I don’t get it.”

“Easy to explain,” Cookie said. “Will left his favorite household hammer in the laundry room. I was doing laundry and then I remembered I’d left the groceries in the car. So I grabbed the hammer and – “

Jasper held her elbows and rocked her body back and forth in laughter. “That’s not what I didn’t get!”

“But – “

“Explaining how your husband’s hammer – his household hammer?”

“Yes. One of his household hammers. Never to be confused with those for professional use. Those are locked up safe from my reach.”

“Right. So that’s the easy part of it all,” Jasper continued. “What I don’t understand is how you managed to find the right man when you were only 17.” She flopped down on the leather sofa, and Cookie settled in next to her. The sisters kicked off their shoes, Jasper flinging her stinky sneakers over to one corner, Cookie tidily arranging her blue ballet flats side by side. They sat cross-legged.

Cookie pushed a strand of stray blonde hair off her face. Although she had started out a medium brunette, and her sister a dark, almost black brunette, Cookie’s hair color changed season to season. “Actually, Sis, I was only 16 when I met Will.”

“See – my point is just that! You were so young. And you met and fell in love, and now it’s two great kids and lots of years years later, and you guys are still going strong.”

Cookie examined her manicure. “Now don’t you go kicking yourself.” Neither of the twins relished the other one feeling badly especially by way of comparison to each other. They’d put up with enough of that when they were back in high school. When Jasper went off to college and Cookie got married and had kids, they were both relieved at first to have people stop comparing them. Their names and appearances had gone through so much change since then that people didn’t believe them when they said they were twins.

Jasper touched her sister’s arm. “You’re not making me feel bad, Cookie. It’s just that I wonder, I really do, how you managed. Maybe I can learn something from you.”

“Whatever could I teach you? I’ve always wanted to go to college.”

“You could still do that. You think I could still have kids?” Jasper asked.

“Everything gets harder when you get older.”

“We’re not old ladies yet. Maybe you could start with community college.”

“Maybe you could start with a pet,” Cookie said.

The door buzzer sounded.

“Will you drink more coffee if I make another pot?” Cookie, asked, heading out to the kitchenette.

“Sure,” Jasper called back. She peeped through the spyhole on the otherwise solid door. As usual, she saw only a blur. How did other people use these things? she wondered. She opened the door and there stood Sean Solberg holding the dark cat from the dumpster.

“Somebody misses you,” Sean said. His wide blue eyes looked into her own. She was such a sucker for blue eyes in a guy. But come to think of it, Glenn Relerford’s dark eyes held their own kind of fascination. “I’m standing here holding a cat,” Sean said. And that voice…

“So you are.” Jasper forced her gaze down to the cat. In the morning sunlight, its fur appeared more brown than black. More like dark chocolate than licorice. Its little dark face was shaped like a wedge, wide at the forehead and narrow at the chin. Jasper found it quite beautiful and exotic looking. She leaned in and kissed its dark brown nose. She had never tasted cat before. Sort of like freshly ironed scarves.

Its purr motor went into high gear. It gazed on Jasper with huge eyes. It blinked at her. Instinctively, Jasper blinked back. The cat opened its little mouth and bellowed forth a huge “Mrow.” Sean eased his hold and the cat leaped over to Jasper’s shoulder. It felt surprisingly heavy for such a small animal. It purred in close against her chest, with its front paws resting on her shoulder. “Well, hello yourself,” Jasper whispered. “Come on in, both of you.”

Cookie appeared with a tray holding three coffee mugs, a bowl, and a carton of half and half. “Looks like you’re in love,” she said. “Ask and you shall receive.”

“W-h-a-t?” Jasper and Sean asked in unison.

Cookie laughed. Sean took the tray from her and set it on the coffee table. Cookie stroked the little cat’s head between its large, translucent ears. “She – whoop’s, he - is a little beauty. Wasn’t I just saying you needed a pet?”

Jasper sighed. She leaned her cheek gently against the cat’s face. How could one little animal emit such a soothing deep noise? Jasper thought she felt her heart slow in response to the loud, rhythmic purr. She cuddled the cat in closer. She gave him a hug, then pried his claws free and handed him over to Sean. The cat opened its mouth wide and yowled. Sean pushed him gently back into Jasper’s arms.

“I tell you – he’s been asking for you. I’ve hardly gotten any sleep since I took him home Saturday,” Sean said.

“But – “

“He looks good on you,” Cookie said. “Anyway, treats for everyone.”

Everyone - twins, artist, cat – settled in for coffee and cream. Although the cat made its rounds from person to person after lapping up its treat, it took only a few minutes before settling in next to Jasper with a satisfied sigh.

“But I tell you, I can’t keep it,” Jasper said. “I don’t know how to take care of a cat. What if I’m not a good cat mother?”

Sean and Cookie laughed. “You’ll be fine,” Cookie said.

“Cats take care of themselves,” Sean said.

“And you don’t want him
why
?” Jasper asked.

“He’s like a huge operatic bass in the body of a tenor,” Sean said.

The little cat let out another major meow as if he were joining in the conversation. Jasper stroked the glossy fur.

Sean covered his ears. “I love cats. I love their independence. This one is more like a dog. A noisy dog. Not only does it show up wherever I am, it has to comment on its life all day long. ‘I got up. I laid down. I fell in the toilet. Again.’ It’s been trying to tell me how to run my life.”

“You fell in the toilet? It fell in the toilet?” Jasper asked.

“More than once? Why didn’t you just close the lid?” Cookie asked.

The cat looked up, yawned, and let out another loud meow.

Two of the three people present laughed. Sean groaned. “You think it’s funny now. Try living with this little loud mouth following you around. Look, you women can understand. I live alone. I make art. I love my privacy.”

“Oh-h-h,” Cookie said. “You’re playing the privacy card.”

“Oh.” Jasper felt rather sad all of a sudden.

“I’m not playing,” Sean said miserably. “I can’t work. I can’t sleep. I have a headache.”

“That’s too bad,” Jasper said although she didn’t really mean it. What she felt mainly was disappointment. Strong handsome artist man too selfish to share his life even with one small cat. He probably would not be good father material. She blushed. With an effort, she brought herself back to the conversation at hand. “So you thought you would just bring the poor orphan over here and dump him off on me?”

“Atta girl,” Cookie whispered.

“Guilty,” Sean said. “But I’ve also begun to wonder if Little Bugle Breath here might belong to someone.”

Jasper smiled at the affectionate nickname. Maybe Sean Solberg was not so bad after all

“Just look at him. He’s more than an average alley cat. He might be some sort of purebred that wandered away from home.”

“He’s certainly beautiful,” Jasper agreed. The cat stretched out in a full-length arch as if inviting further admiration. “But how did he get into the dumpster?”

“This cat leaps before he looks. He’s like a ballet dancer in shoes that are too big for him.”

The kitty purred alongside Jasper. It didn’t seem to disagree.

“You could ask people at the next auction.”

“Wait.” Cookie closed her eyes and held her hands above the cat. “He’s right, Sis. This kitty has a chip.”

“Poor kitty,” Jasper said.

“No. To ID it in case it gets lost,” Cookie said.

“You can tell that with your hands?” Sean asked.

“I can tell a lot even with no hands.” Cookie focused her gaze on Sean who slurped down some coffee and got to his feet in a hurry.

“Can you tell who the owner is?” Jasper asked.

“No. Just that they don’t want the cat. But I could just be picking up the vibes in this room.”

Sean looked at his shoes. “I don’t want to shirk responsibility here,” he said. He brought out his wallet and held out two twenties to Jasper. “Is that okay?”

“You’re buying me off?” she asked, her disappointment in Sean plodding around her stomach like a good meal gone bad.

“Expenses. For the cat. Food. Advertising. Vet.”

Cookie took the money from Sean and handed it to Jasper. “What about a cat box and kitty litter?”

“I just used a shoe box and some old newspapers,” Sean said.

“I’m glad
you
can’t read
my
mind,” Cookie said.

“Mine either.” Jasper scratched the cat between its ears. It gave out one of its basso profundo meows.

“Three of you,” Sean said. He handed over an additional ten.

“Thanks for caring,” Jasper said. “See you at the auction.”

“Can I call you?”

“Sure,” Jasper said, but she kept her attention on the cat.

Sean backed toward the door. “Will you answer? Jasper?”

Jasper didn’t look up until the door opened and shut with a lonely clunk.

“Oh, Sis,” Cookie said.

“I am in love with a cat.” Jasper lifted the cat up and cradled it like she had once cradled Cookie’s children when they were small. The dark kitten opened his eyes and gave her one wise, trusting blink, then settled in with a sigh and a satisfied rumble.

***

Instead of leaving Jimmy’s apartment, as she and Cookie continued to call it, when her sister did, Jasper lay on the sofa cuddling the sturdy dark cat. He purred away and Jasper relaxed under his warmth. It felt nourishing to have some time away from the hustle and bustle of the auction house proper and the too-closeness of her smoky neighbors at home. Soon she would have to re-enter the world and face her worries. How had Jimmy really died? Had there been someone else present in the house? Was it really an accident? Or could it have been a deliberate accident? A murder. Jasper felt unexpected anger. Here she was, newly relocated, newly freed from a marriage haunted by deceit, newly arrived in her new life. Why couldn’t she be free to enjoy this peaceful nap with an innocent little being purring against her heart? Jasper felt that she had the potential to be a happy and carefree person although she was enough of a grown-up to realize that no one’s life was really picture perfect.

Even this cat came to her with a trunkload of trouble. Jasper would have to take it to the veterinarian and perhaps give it back to its original owner if what Cookie had said about the owner not wanting it turned out to be false.