Kitty-Cat Capers

He crept through the silent house with his prize - the jewelry box. He hadn't been caught. Good. Softly opening the front door, he stepped into the cool night air and ran to the hidden cave. Unnoticed by the thief, a choker necklace inlaid with sapphires dropped from the box into the grass. The burglar escaped to his cave, leaving the valuble necklace behind. Stashing the jewels into the desk, the thief sighed with relief. He had gotten away with his scam. Now he just had to lay low until things cooled off. Anyone leaving the small town after this would be a suspect. He crept back into his own house and went back to bed. It was only a matter of time now. "Katie, hon, time to get up!" Ms. Willow rinsed a bowl and spoon and sighed. She had just lost her job and she had a 5 year old daughter to support. Ms. Willow knocked on Katie's bedroom door and opened it. She was still in bed. Ms. Willow pulled the covers off the bed and said," Time to go to school." Katie sat up and asked," Do I have to?" Her mother nodded. Katie got out of bed and followed her mother to the kitchen. After she had eaten her cereal, she trudged off to school. Ms. Willow watched her until she was certain that Katie would be all right. It was a small town with no criminals, so Katie would always get to and from school safely. Besides, kindergarden let out at 11:30. It was a fairly short day. When ing bell rang, Katie ran out into the sunshine. "Meow!" The gray cat prowled around a grassy area . He stepped on something. "Meow?" He sniffed at the strand with the round blue things on it. It didn't smell right, He'd better tell a human about this. A bell rang, startling him. A little girl's voice said," Hi, kitty." The cat looked disdainfully at the small human. She had almost stepped on the blue thing. He had hoped for a big human, but this little girl would have to do. He meowed and pawed at the ground. Katie bent down and asked," What's this, kitty? It'll look pretty on you." She fastened the sapphire necklace around the surprises cat's neck. Then she picked up the cat and carried home with her. Her mother greeted her at the door and gasped. "What is that!" she exclaimed, staring at the necklace. "Kitty," Katie said, proudly. "Perty kitty." Ms. Willow shook her head and said," No, not the kitty. What is around the cat's neck?" Katie looked at the choker as if she had never seen it before and said," Perty, huh? Found it when I got kitty." Ms. Willow put a hand to her head," Where did you find kitty, Katie-girl?" she asked. Katie smiled and replied," In front of the school. Can we keep him?" Ms. Willow nodded. She unfastened the necklace and studied it. It had real jewels! She went into the bedroom and put it away in a safe place. The next day, Ms. Willow took the choker to the police station. The sheriff looked at it and remarked," Funny. Some valuble jewelry was stolen a couple of days ago and this necklace looks just like one that was taken." He looked at her suspiciously. "I suppose that you're going to tell me that you were innocent?" Ms. Willow nodded," My daughter, Katie, saw the necklace and put it around the neck of a cat that she found." she explained. One of the cops that was listening said," How old is your daughter?" "Five," Ms. Willow replied. "I'm going to ask you two questions," said the sheriff. "First, where did your daughter find such a valuble necklace?" "She's going to say that the little girl just found it lying on the grass," One of the cops commented sarcastically. Ms. Willow blushed and said," As a matter of fact, that's true. Katie found the necklace outside of her school. That's also where she found the cat." "Well, where's the cat?" asked the sheriff. "At home," Ms. Willow answered. The policeman thought for a minute and said," John, come with me to see this cat. I want to make sure she's telling the truth." The three of them piled into the sheriff's car and drove to her house. Just as they got out, a gray cat jumped out of the window and raced down the street. "That's the cat!" Ms. Willow cried, pointing to it. The sheriff watched the cat and said," I know someone with a cat like that. You sure that's your cat?" Ms. Willow said," Well, it was a stray, so I don't know whose cat it is." "John, let's get that cat," the sheriff ordered. The three of them raced after it. "Good," thought the cat. "Big people to show it to." He had been around town that day and had something to show them. The cat led them to the foot of a big hill. There was a cave there. Now he waited patiently while the humans caught up. Humans were not good runners. "I never knew this cave was here!" the sheriff exclaimed. "Let's see what's in it." They tip-toed cautiously in. There wasn't much in the cave, just some books, papers, and a desk. John looked at the books and papers and gave a low whistle. "You'd better have a look at these, boss," he said. The sheriff picked up the papers and examined them. "These are all on how much jewels are worth and stuff like that," he said. "The thief really did his homework." John opened the drawers of the desk. In the back of the second drawer was a bag. He took it out and handed it to the sheriff. He opened the bag and took out a white box. Inside the box was a jewelry box. "The missing jewelry!" he said. "Good work, John." He turned to Ms. Willow. "We can restore the jewels to their owner, who will also identify the necklace," he said. "But we still don't know that you didn't do it. We'll need some proof to figure out who did it." John handed a photo to the sheriff. It was of Mr and Mrs. White. "Ralph and Lorinda at Big Bear." the sheriff read aloud. "1998. Well, you weren't even here when they went on that vacation, Ms. Willow. I guess that lets you off the hook." Ms. Willow sighed. Suddenly there were footsteps outside the cave. The two policemen positioned themselves on either side of the mouth of the cave. Mr. White came in. He gaped when he saw the police, who grabbed him. "Give it up, White," John told him harshly. Ralph White didn't struggle. "Don't arrest my wife," he pleaded. "She had nothing to do with this. It was just me." The police and Ms. Willow marched him away. The next day, the sheriff said to Ms. Willow," You really saved the day!" Ms. Willow petted the cat and replied," No. The cat did." "Say, I'll buy that cat from you," the sheriff offered. Ms. Willow shook her head. The sheriff shrugged. "Oh, yeah!" he said suddenly. "Miss. Crane told me to give you this $25, 000 check for saving her jewels." He dug in his pocket and handed her a piece of paper. Ms. Willow took it, thinking of all the nice things she would be able to buy for Katie. And in a way, everyone did live happily ever after.

Copyright 1999 by Chantessy. All rights reserved.