Page 62 of Whiskers on Kittens

Crap. I would need to handle the shopping. “But where am I going to get the roast, the turkey, and the ham?”

Darlene gave me a hug, turned me around, and propelled me in the direction of the hallway. “I think we can help you with the grocery shopping. Right now? We have other things to worry about. Those kittens need a soft, fluffy kitty so they feel safe and loved. You’ll be all right. We have to get going. Lucy, grab the wolf. I’ll take the kitty.”

I wore a red Christmas hat, and Lucifer had gotten the bright idea to bring out a small string of rainbow lights, wrapping one around my neck, chest, and back until I resembled a living Christmas tree rather than a self-respecting clouded leopard. Easton got similar treatment although his lights were also wrapped around his legs, likely to keep him from frightening the kittens. We sat in the skyscraper’s lobby while Lucifer’s amused neighbors observed the festivities.

To keep from terrifying anybody, the Devil had opted to mostly appear as a human with black, feathered wings and his tail to warn people a naughty being lurked among them.

“A naughty being?” Lucifer asked in exasperation. “Is that how you think of me?”

As I couldn’t speak English while in my divine female feline form, I nodded.

“You are a naughty being. You’re a naughty being who gets to go home with me tonight and prove just how naughty you are,” his wife said, and she raised a brow at him. Like Lucifer, she showed off her wings, which matched her tail and ears. “I do like the feathers, though. You don’t bring those out often. It means you get to be extra naughty if I get a chance to play with them.”

“I suppose I can tolerate being referred to as a naughty being.”

“You can play the bad boy, and I’ll play the good girl,” she offered.

“I do like when you let me be the bad boy,” Lucifer growled.

“Then I guess you’ll just have to deal with being a naughty being for tonight. Be on your best behavior. We don’t want to scare the kittens. They’ve been scared enough. The mafia will be bringing them soon. Carrie called. Right now, they’re too tired to be scared, which is something. And Kelsie, before you become upset, you will be feeding them and caring for them in a few minutes so there’s no need to waste energy. They’ll be fine.”

I voiced a short, low growl before quieting, keeping an eye on the doors.

Sure enough, Carrie led the charge, and she carried a young girl in her arms, who wore dirty clothes. I couldn’t tell if her hair was naturally dark or was soaked in grease. She clung to Carrie’s shoulder, and the evidence of her tears streaked her cheeks. With a nod to Darlene and Lucifer, Carrie crouched beside me, gave the little girl’s back a pat, and said, “Mollie, this is Kelsie. This is the nice lady who will be taking you home to your mommy and daddy.”

Mollie sniffled, but she turned her head to look at me. Then, after blinking a few times, her eyes widened, and she released her hold on Carrie and leaned in my direction. Darlene swooped in, caught the girl before she could fall, and placed her on the floor beside me, not even attempting to have her stand.

The little girl wrapped her arms around my neck, ignored the Christmas lights, and buried her face against my fur. Mafia men carried the boys over, and following Carrie’s lead, introduced us to the children one by one. Fortunately for my sanity, the boys weren’t duplicates of each other, and the variances in their hair color and features would help me keep track of who was who. Chris had an inch on his brothers, Alan had the darkest hair of the lot, Matthew couldn’t keep his fingers out of his mouth and had a scar between his eyes, and Jerod had paler eyes and hair than his siblings.

Otherwise, they were the sort of kids who could have come from anywhere in the United States, which made them perfect trafficking targets.

While Mollie sought out my attention, the boys favored the big, bad wolf, settling into the important work of petting Easton’s fur, giggling over his reindeer antlers, and bombarding the Devil with questions about wolves.

Lucifer sat on the floor with the kids, and the instant his lap became available, Matthew took up residency, sniffled, and held his arms out for a hug. The Devil complied with the child’s wishes, patting his back and making comforting noises before answering the plethora of questions flooding out of the children.

Their excitement only lasted ten to twenty minutes before the boys swarmed Lucifer, vying for space on his lap. Sometime in the midst of the questioning session, Matthew had opted for a nap, as had Mollie.

It didn’t take long for the other kittens to succumb to sleep.

At a lift of Darlene’s hand, three incubi made an appearance, and they took care with rescuing the Devil without waking the boys. Darlene came for Mollie, purring to comfort her in case she woke.

Lucifer kept possession of Matthew, rising to his feet. “They won’t waken for a while. Please don’t worry. It’ll give us time to prepare for them, get them appropriate clothes, and provide them with toys and other things.”

Ernesto swept into the lobby, and he came carting a basket filled with berries reminding me of grapes although they were a bright orange color. “The others are already heading home, but they offer this gift for the children.”

Lucifer smiled. “I’ll find a way to thank them for their offering. That will go a long way to help.”

“I’ll pass the word along. Do you want me to check their blood for illnesses?”

While I had no doubt one of the angels under foot would assist if asked, Lucifer nodded. “It would be an honor. We should use a pin to prick them for a drop of blood while they sleep. If you can offer guidance on the nature of any illnesses, I’ll wrangle my brothers to handle the work. My holy fire comes with the price of pain, and I’d rather not expose them to any more discomfort than necessary.”

I would need a long time to contemplate how someone with such a heart of gold had fallen from the heavens in the first place. It likely had something to do with his naughty tendencies although I struggled with the idea he might commit any acts of true evil.

Lucifer scowled at me. “Stop that.”

“Is she thinking nice things about you?” Darlene asked, and she snickered. “If you didn’t want to be bombarded with people thinking nice things about you, you’d stop listening in on them.”

“How else am I supposed to monitor when I’m about to be bitten by a cantankerous cat?” The Devil shook his head and carried Matthew to the elevator. While work, both Easton and I managed to haul our Christmas lights across the lobby without tripping over them or breaking anything. Ernesto tapped the up button, and a few moments later, the doors chimed and opened.