A Picture-Purrfect Christmas (A Klepto Cat Mystery Book 13) by Patricia Fry Page A

enter.
    Savannah lifted Lily off Marissa’s lap. “Hi Max, this is Marissa. We came to visit the cats.”
    “Well, nice to meet you, Marissa,” he said, helping her out of the stroller.
    “Hi.” She laughed a little. “Getting into that contraption was kinda awkward. I forgot to think about what it would be like to get out. Thanks for the help.”
    “You’re welcome,” he said with a slight bow.
    Just then, Margaret stomped into the cathouse.
    “What’s wrong with you?” Savannah asked.
    “Oh, there are more cat food recalls. I just can’t keep up with it all. I’m so irritated with manufacturers who want our trust and who can’t be trusted. It just throws me into a rage. How are we supposed to keep our cats healthy when the powers that be can’t get it right—when they’re manufacturing food that’s tainted? I’m not even sure what we feed them is good for them anyway—if it is, why do so many cats get kidney disease and other maladies?” She thinned her lips and added, “Plus, I can’t find my glasses…AND, I broke a damn fingernail.”
    Suddenly, Margaret heard a melodic voice and turned abruptly toward it. “Hi, Ms. Maggie.”
    “Oh, hi Marissa. I didn’t see you there. How are you? Come to see the kitties?”
    Marissa nodded. “You have so many. It must cost a lot to feed them all. Why are they in cages? Did they do something wrong?”
    “Oh no, it’s to protect them,” Margaret said, smiling. “…to keep them safe.”
    “Where did they come from?” she asked, wide-eyed.
    Margaret thought for a moment, then said, “Each of them has a different story and we hope to give all those stories happy endings.”
    “Like all us children who live in my house,” Marissa said quietly, “we all have different stories, too.” She looked up at Margaret and then Max. “I’d like to hear some of the kitties’ stories.”
    Margaret gestured toward a large orange cat with an unusually short tail. “Well, this big guy here, he lived in a barranca over behind the old lumber yard probably for a very long time before someone decided to catch him and bring him to us. A family may have moved and left him behind or someone could have taken him to that location to be a mouser—to catch mice. When he’d done his job, they just decided to let him fend for himself. He has known people. He isn’t afraid. But no one has cared about him for a long time. He needs someone to step up and take him into their home and heart.”
    Marissa moved closer. Peering into the pen, she asked, quietly, “Can I pet him?”
    “Yes, certainly,” Max said. “Come on, you can go inside with him if you want.”
    Once Max had helped Marissa get situated on a cat tree in the pen, the cat walked right up to her. She sat petting him for a while, then leaned over and seemed to be whispering something in his ear.
    “What did you tell him?” Savannah asked.
    “I told him I’d pray for a home for him.” She looked up at Max and Margaret. “Do you think he’ll get a home?”
    Margaret nodded. “Yes, there’s a real good chance that we can find him a home. We’ve placed seventy-four cats in forever homes this year.”
    “Yeah,” Max said, “we wish it was more—lots more—but we can only handle so many kitties here at a time. Thankfully, there are other people doing the work we do, so there are lots of people helping. Still, too many cats are being dumped, abandoned, abused…”
    “That’s sad,” Marissa said scratching the cat’s cheeks and looking into his eyes. She then noticed another set of eyes looking at her. “A kitten!” she exclaimed. She shifted her position and got a better look at what was in the adjoining pen. “Three kittens!”
    “Yes, they came in a few days ago. It’s unusual to get kittens this time of year, but not unheard of.”
    “Are they friendly?” she asked.
    “Yes, and they love to play. Want to sit with them for a while?” Margaret asked, smiling.
    Savannah stepped closer.