Chapter Eight

 

When Philip saw the car in the driveway, he knew Angel was home from the hospital so he ran. He reached her front door, took some breaths, and knocked. Angel’s mother opened the door.

“Hi, can I talk to Angel?”

“Is that Philip, Mom?”

Angel’s mother invited him in, and he walked into the living room. Angel lay on the sofa in her pajamas with a thin yellow blanket over her.

“Don’t talk too long, honey,” her mother said. “You know Dr. Keating said you should rest.”

“I am resting. Look at me.”

“Just not too long, please.” Angel’s mother left.

“Angel, I found a cat family.” Philip told his story. “What should I do with them? If I leave them there, they’ll all get crunched when the recycle truck comes.”

Angel had a serious look on her face. She shifted uncomfortably. “You’re right. We can’t leave them there.”

Philip waited while Angel pondered. He could hear her mother buzzing around in the kitchen. He recalled looking down over the cardboard to see the two little kittens drinking milk. They were so small. No bigger than his fist. He thought of the two kittens who weren’t moving. Angel’s voice woke him up.

“You know the little shed behind my house?”

“I know it.”

“You can bring the family there. There’s even a hole in the back wall where the mother can get in and out. You’ll need a box to carry the kittens.”

“What about the mother? She growled at us when we got close.”

“She wants food. Go and buy one can of cat food. If you look in the shed, you should find the old hamster cage I never got to use. It’s big enough. Put the food inside the cage, and when the mother goes in to get the food, close the door. The kittens you can pick up and put in a cardboard box.”

“You should see how small they are. Their eyes aren’t even open.”

“Helpless,” Angel murmured.

“Okay. How much is cat food?” Philip reached into his pocket and took out three quarters.

“That’s enough,” said Angel. “And get a paper plate to put the food on.”

Philip started for the door. He stopped and turned to Angel. “What about the two not-moving ones?”

“After you take care of the mother and kittens you can bury those two. They should be buried.”

“Buried? In the ground?”

“No, in a chocolate pie, silly. You and your friend can do it. Come back and let me know how you did. Oh, wait. Come here.” Philip walked closer. “Don’t let my mom or dad see you use the shed. Go through the yards from the other block to get to the shed.”

“Okay. I’ll let you know.”

Philip ran up the street to Emery’s house and got his friend.

“Listen,” Philip said. “You gotta help me.” He explained what they had to do.

“Okay, let’s go get the food,” said Emery. “Wait.” He went back inside his house and returned with a paper plate. “Two babies, you know. We eat off these a lot.”

“Okay, put it in your pocket. Let’s go get the cage.”

Philip and Emery knelt behind some bushes staring at the shed in Angel’s backyard.

“How come that girl is telling you to do all this?” Emery whispered.

“She’s sick all the time, she says, and all she can do is look out the window. This must be fun for her, I guess. She knows who you are. She’s pretty smart.”

Emery looked at the back of Angel’s house. “Is she watching us now? This is pretty spooky.”

Philip looked at Angel’s windows.

“No, I don’t see her. She was lying on the sofa before. Stop talking and let’s get the cage.”

The two boys crept to the shed, opened the door, and went inside.

“A lot of junk,” Emery whispered. “There. That looks like a cage.”

Philip looked where Emery pointed. “Grab it and let’s get out of here.” Emery picked up the cage and they left.

When they were back on the sidewalk heading toward the supermarket, Emery said, “That was easy. Maybe me and you should be spies or something.”

Philip gave Emery a look. “Yeah, we’ll be spies tomorrow. Come on. Let’s run.”

“Not so fast,” Emery called. “I’m carrying the cage.”

When they reached the supermarket, they read the overhead signs and found “Pet Supplies.” Colorful cans of cat food lines the shelves.

“What kind shall we get?” Emery said.

“How about the blue one?”

Emery picked up the can and read it. “‘Beef’ it says. Beef comes from cows.”

“So what? Let’s go.”

“Wait a minute. Cats don’t eat cows. How could a cat eat a cow? The cow could fall over and squish it. The cat won’t like this.”

“Then get the red on. Come on.”

Emery grabbed the red one. “‘Chicken,’” Emery read.

“Chicken’s good. Let’s go.”

“Wait a minute. Whoever saw a cat eat a chicken? Chickens are bigger than cats. They can fly, can’t they, and peck? And where would a cat who lives in a city get a chicken? I’ll bet the mother cat doesn’t even know what a chicken looks like. She never heard of chicken. I don’t think she’ll eat chicken.”

“Then get the green one. Get something.”

Emery put the red can back and stood on top of the cage to reach a green can of cat food. “‘Turkey.’” He looked at Philip.

“Don’t tell me,” said Philip. “Cats don’t eat turkeys.”

“A turkey is even bigger than a chicken. A cat could never eat a turkey.”

“How about on Thanksgiving?” Philip asked.

“I never thought of that,” said Emery. “But it’s only May, not even close to Thanksgiving.”

Philip grabbed the can from Emery and put it back.

“Fish. Here’s fish,” said Philip. “Cats eat fish, right?”

“We don’t have any rivers near us. How would the mother know about fish? Look around. They must have mouse-flavored cat food.”

The two boys scoured the cat food shelves for mouse-flavored cat food but couldn’t find any.

“They must be out of it,” said Emery. “Mouse’s gotta be the most popular flavor. Do you see any bird-flavored cat food?”

“No, I don’t.”

“Let’s get the fish then.”

Philip grabbed the fish-flavored cat food, and together he and Emery went to pay. Outside, Philip said, “We have everything we need. Ready?”

“Rescue mission to save cats ready.”

“Then let’s go,” said Philip.