“What word would this be?” asked Dooley.
“From what I heard Odelia was seen kissing with Mr. Dexter,” said Kingman, another one of our dear friends. “In fact they were kissing so much the windows of his electric car were all steamed up.”
“They were not in an electric car and no windows were steamed up,” I said with a sigh.
“They could have been steamed up,” said Harriet. “In fact they could still be steamed up, if only Odelia wants them to be.”
“She doesn’t,” I said.
“What windows would this be?” asked Dooley.
“I like Edward Dexter,” said Shanille. “He’s going to make us all go electric.”
“And shoot us into space,” said Kingman.
“But I don’t want to be shot into space!” Dooley cried, alarmed.
“Too bad, Dooley,” said Brutus with a grin. “You don’t get a say in the matter, I’m afraid. Before you know it, we’ll all be living on Mars. Or the Moon. I’m not sure which.”
“But I don’t want to live on the Moon!”
“Tough luck, buddy.”
Dooley turned to me.“Tell Odelia not to say the word, Max, and let Mr. Dexter steam up her windows, otherwise we’ll have to fly to the Moon!”
“Don’t listen to these cats, Dooley,” I said, shooting a disapproving look at Brutus and the others, who now stood shaking with laughter at my friend’s distress. “They’re all talking out of their behinds.”
And I placed a paw on Dooley’s shoulder and led him away.
“How do you talk out of your behind, Max? I didn’t even know that was possible.”
“It’s a tough trick to master, Dooley,” I said. “And it works better for some than for others. But Brutus does it better than anyone I know.” And with these words, I directed a final critical glance at Dooley’s tormentor, but Brutus merely gave me a grin in return and even shook his patootie at me!
Some cats have a lot of nerve.
CHAPTER 21
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I still hadn’t found what I was looking for, but then I spotted the very cat I’d come there to see. Fr?d?rique is a very pretty red cat of unknown descent, who lives with the man who runs the gas station, located on the main road between Happy Bays and Hampton Cove. It’s a very popular gas station, andMel Corset, the man who owns it, has been running it for many years.
“Fr?d?rique,” I said, approaching the tiny redhead. “Exactly the cat I need.”
She’d been licking her tail, and now looked up, clearly surprised. “Me?”
“Yes, you,” I said. “We’re conducting an important investigation, and I’m hoping you might be able to help us.”
She stared at me, wide-eyed.“Are you sure you mean me?”
“Yes, I mean you,” I confirmed.
“Oh, boy,” she said, suddenly looking extremely bashful. “Oh, boy, oh, boy, oh, boy.”
“Why do you keep saying ‘Oh, boy?’” asked Dooley, intrigued by Fr?d?rique’s speech pattern.
“Because it’s not every day that the great Max needs my help,” she said, eyeing me from beneath lowered lashes.
“I wouldn’t exactly call myself great,” I said.
“Oh, but you are,” she assured me. “I’ve been following your adventures with great interest, Max. How you always manage to get your guy. It’s uncanny.”
“I get a lot of help,” I said, referring to my friend, who was eyeing Fr?d?rique with marked curiosity.
“It’s his head,” said Dooley now. “It’s very big.”
“Thank you, Dooley,” I murmured.
“It has to be big, for his big brain to fit,” Dooley continued. “And then because his head is so big and heavy, he needs a big neck, and also a big body, otherwise his head would fall down all the time. Which is why Max is as big as he is. And why he’s so successful at what he does. It’s all to do with his bigness.”
“Yes, Dooley, I think we get the picture.”
“I don’t think Max is big,” said Fr?d?rique. “I think he’s just the right size. Very butch, and very brave, too, to be fighting crime like he does.”
“Well, thank you, Fr?d?rique,” I said, “but…”
“And he must be very clever. So clever that he can outsmart any villain.”
“That’s very kind of you,” I said, trying to get a word in edgewise.
“In fact I think he’s probably the smartest cat that ever lived, and it’s an honor for me to finally be able to assist you, Max.” She stared at me fervently, and I would have wondered if a feverish blush was mantling her cheek, but with all of that hair it was hard to know for sure.
“Okay, so the thing is that two weeks ago a woman passed through town with her boyfriend, and they’ve since vanished from the face of the earth.”
“Joined a circus,” Dooley intimated.
“They were traveling in an RV and the last place they were seen was at your human’s gas station. They were heading in this direction, and the final signal from her phone came from the road just outside of town, so—”
“You want me to help you look for her. Join the gang. How cool!” said Fr?d?rique with pretty excitement.
“Well, no, but I do want you to think back, and maybe to remember if you saw that RV, and perhaps any details of the transaction that you can remember.”
“You don’t want me to help you track down this woman?”
“I think we’re fine for the tracking,” I said with a smile, “but we do need more information about what happened when she pulled into the gas station.”
Fr?d?rique frowned, and set herself to searching her memory. Finally she must have hit upon something, for she brightened. “I think I’ve got it!” she announced excitedly. “I did see an RV. It was bright pink, and there was a family inside. A woman, a man, a little boy, another little boy, and two girls—twins!” She sat beaming at me, as if she’d just performed the greatest trick in the world.
“Um… how old were this man and this woman?”
“Oh, I don’t know. You know how hard it is to know for sure how old humans are.”
“Take a guess,” I suggested.
“Okay, so, like, maybe a hundred? Or two hundred?”
I heaved a mental sigh.“Addie and her boyfriend were traveling alone, as far as we know, and they have no kids, since they’re practically kids themselves. She just graduated from college, and so did Ted Machosko, her boyfriend.”
“Oh,” said Fr?d?rique, visibly disappointed. Then all of a sudden she burst into tears. “Oh, Max! I was trying to help you but I failed! I’m so, so sorry!”
“It’s all right,” I said, patting her on the back. “You did your best.”
“It’s just that so many of these RVs pass through town, especially in the tourist season, it’s hard to keep track!”
“No, I’m sure you’re right,” I said. I hadn’t taken into account that traveling in an RV is a very popular pastime, and possibly hundreds of these vehicles pull into Mel Corset’s gas station every month, possibly even every couple of days, since the Hamptons are very popular as a tourist destination.
“Look, tell you what we’ll do. We’ll talk to your human tomorrow, and hopefully he’ll have a camera and recording equipment, and maybe he’ll have caught the RV on tape. And then I want you to keep an eye on him during our visit, and also later on, and when you notice anything suspicious, I want you to tell me. Do you think you can do that?”
She nodded about sixty times in quick succession, drying her eyes in the process.“Yes, Max. I’ll do that for you. I’ll keep a close eye on Mel and I’ll tell you if he acts suspiciously.” Then she reconsidered. “Only… how do I know he’s acting suspiciously?”
“Well… if he talks to someone on the phone about that RV, for instance, or if he suddenly acts different.”
“Okay, yes, I think I can do that,” she confirmed, and gave me a look of determination. “Fr?d?rique at your service! Consider me part of Team Max!” And to prove she wasn’t kidding, she stood up straight, and gave me a salute by placing her paw against her forehead. “Fr?d?rique is Team Max all the way!” she cried.