Watching Kate, he knew she needed to settle back into the real world, after the dark sorcery of the black tom, after the touch of a beast who would take great pleasure in destroying Kate's natural joy of life, a beast who worshiped only destruction.
The waiter brought their sandwiches, and Kate's salad and Joe's shrimp cocktail sans sauce. Joe ate with greedy concentration, standing up in the backpack with his front paws on the table, lifting each shrimp out where he could chomp it more handily. If he garnered glances and smiles from nearby diners, he ignored them. Finishing the shrimp he had a little wash, then, yawning, he curled down inside the backpack again, against the soft package. It had been a busy morning. Drifting off, he wondered where Kate would go from here? Back to Molena Point, to work for Hanni? Or Seattle, as she'd told Clyde she might, to work there for her present firm?
But she'd be alone in Seattle, no friends around her. She'd told Clyde it was only a short flight down to the village, maybe two hours to San Francisco, then thirty minutes to Molena Point. But how often would she come, once she was caught up in that new life? How often would she return to the village to be among friends who were like family?
She'll be all right, Joe told himself. No need to get protective and soft-minded over a self-sufficient, beautiful, and soon to be wealthy human. Kate will do just fine. And Joe Grey slept, the deep dreamless sleep of contentment, the untroubled sleep of one who had changed a life or two. He didn't wake to say good-bye to Kate and the Greenlaws, but somewhere in sleep he heard Clyde and Kate as she lingered for a moment by the car.
"Back there in that old house," Clyde said, "I was afraid you wanted to follow him."
"Maybe, for a moment," she said softly. "There are two drives in all of us, Clyde. One toward heaven, one toward hell. It's our choice that matters. What I truly wanted, deep down, was to be done with the beast. With everything he believes in. If there ever was such a world, and if that beast is drawn there, then it must be dark and twisted and terrible. Maybe," Kate said, "maybe it was different once, long ago, when McCabe wrote of such a place. When perhaps my parents wandered there. I don't know, Clyde. But that is not my world; this is my world. This world is full of more wonders than I can handle." She was silent a moment, then, "Thank you, Clyde, for coming, for being here. Thank you, Joe Grey." Joe felt her fingers caress his head and ears, then heard her turn and walk away.
Joe didn't stir when Clyde tucked the backpack onto the passenger seat and fastened the seat belt around it. He didn't wake in San Jose when Clyde stopped for a cup of coffee, didn't wake until they passed Gilroy, when Clyde swerved hard and hit his horn. Yawning, Joe crawled out of the backpack looking blearily around. "What was that about?"
"Some drunk went over the line," Clyde said angrily. "Damn near sideswiped me." Then he smiled. "There's a black and white behind us, they just pulled the guy over." He glanced down at Joe. "You were out like a light."
Joe yawned and didn't answer. Settling down atop the backpack for another snooze, he didn't wake again until they were pulling into their own drive. It was just dusk, the falling light among the trees and cottages soft and inviting, the smells of cooking along the street bringing Joe wide awake. He was starving. And what was this? Why was their house lighted up?
Every light must be on downstairs, bright behind the drawn curtains. Joe stared up at Clyde. "What did you do, rent out the house?"
Clyde looked back at him, then at the street where Charlie's blue Chevy van was parked. "Something's wrong." He swung out of the car fast, but held the door open for Joe. Joe paused. Crouching on the seat ready to leap out, he saw Dulcie in the window, standing tall on the sill, looking.
She did not look distressed. In fact, her whiskers were straight out, her ears sharply alert-just glad to see them home. She disappeared as Joe leaped from the car; and when he hit his cat door Dulcie and the kit were there, pushing out to greet him.
It was a very small, very private party. At first, just Wilma and Charlie and Clyde, Joe and Dulcie and the kit. Dulcie and Kit licked his ears and whiskers as if he'd been gone for weeks, but then the kit was all over him demanding to know about Lucinda and Pedric. Where were they, why hadn't they come back with Clyde, when were they coming home and did they really mean to stay this time? She wanted them here in the village safe and she didn't want them to roam anymore.
The aroma of spaghetti sauce filled the house from where it was simmering on the stove. When they all moved into the kitchen, Charlie put the pasta on to boil, and got out the grated cheese and salad dressing. The table was set for six. A big basket of Jolly's best French bread waited on the counter beside a huge salad. And in the middle of the round table stood a cake decorated with one candle and with red lettering on white icing. The sentiment portrayed in Wilma's inimitable cake-decorating style said,
Well done, Joe Grey! You are a prince among cats.
Joe was just rearing up to blow out the candle, not an easy move for a cat, when the phone rang. Charlie hit the speaker.
It was Kate. "They get home okay?"
"Just got here," Charlie said. "He's blowing out his candle. We only have enough time for Joe to cut his cake and have a toast or two before Max and Dallas and Ryan get here."
"Drink cheers for us," Kate said. "Lucinda and Pedric are here, helping to clean up the apartment. Tell Clyde and Joe thank you. Lucinda and Pedric say thank you. We love you all."
When they'd hung up, Charlie opened a bottle of champagne and they toasted Joe Grey for helping recover Kate's jewels, for finding Clyde's Packard, and for operations of a clandestine nature in the investigation that should soon break Marlin Dorriss's identity theft scam. Then Clyde cut Joe's cake, which was a delectable combination of goose liver and cream cheese. This was served on crackers with the champagne-and for the cats, warm milk. Dulcie and Kit's cashmere stoles were presented by Joe himself, the tomcat hauling them out of the I. Magnin bag and laying them at the ladies' feet: blue for Dulcie, amber for the kit. Dulcie's green eyes caressed Joe lovingly. Clyde's four hundred dollars could not have been better spent. The kit's round yellow eyes were wide with excitement as she patted at the soft, folded cashmere then curled down to roll on it, loudly purring.
Before Max and Dallas and Ryan arrived, all evidence of the celebration had disappeared. The officers and Ryan came in laughing, Harper and Garza very high indeed with the way the Dorriss cases were shaping up. And Ryan too, hugging Clyde, was filled with excitement. An upbeat atmosphere at the station always put her in a happy mood-her uncle Dallas had helped raise her, she was practically a cop's kid; the ongoing drama of his work was an important part of her life.
"You saw Kate," Ryan said, taking Clyde's hand. "Will she be all right? She got her jewels back!"
"She'll be fine," Clyde said. "I guess the jewels will make her a wealthy woman." He searched Ryan's eyes for a glint of jealousy, but he saw only concern. Ryan was Kate's friend. Kate had worked a long time for Ryan's sister, she was like part of the family. He put his arm around her, liking the smell of fresh sawdust that clung to her hair.
Ryan's arm came around him bolder than Kate's caress would be, and somehow steadier. When she looked at him, her green eyes beneath her dark lashes were filled with humor, and with challenge. Clyde liked that, he liked challenge, in the right woman.
As they took their places at the table, Max was still smiling. Clyde liked seeing his old friend happy; and it was not only the resolution of the three cases that made him grin. Since Max and Charlie married, Max had come back to life in a way Clyde had not seen since before he was widowed.
"Consuela and Hollis are in custody," Max said, "and that bizarre display in Dorriss's condo has been dismantled-San Francisco PD e-mailed us a copy of the video they took of Dorriss's trophy wall.