Page 18 of Hot Under the Collar

“But I know you need to get the litter in a safe, secure location before the bar opens again tomorrow anyway … which brings us to the bad news.”

“Great. Just kick me while I’m down, Cals.”

“Deep breath,” Cali sighed. “Don’t shoot the messenger. My rescue friend can’t visit today. But she can drive out late tomorrow. The first piece of advice she gave me was to leave the cats where you found them.”

Lynne was beside herself. “What? No! We open at 11 a.m. tomorrow for lunch. Someone’s going to mess with the litter the minute my back is turned.”

“I know. I know. I told her that. So she reluctantly gave me some tips—some of which might help. You got a piece of paper nearby?”

Lynne glanced around for an order pad and a pen then told Cali she was ready.

“Okay. First, cat food. It can help warm mama cat to you or guide her into the pen once you’ve got them all upstairs.”

Lynne scoffed as she jotted down #1 Food. “Fred ate the only can Leo brought earlier. Of course. I’ve tried some other bland stuff, but Mama’s already highly suspicious of me.”

“I get that. But keep trying,” Cali encouraged her. “Her hunger will beat out the fear eventually. It should be kitten food you’re feeding Mama, so the nutrients transfer in her milk. But we’re running out for all that in a minute. Ethan already texted Leo, but Leo hasn’t replied yet.”

“It’ll be a little while before Leo helps with anything. Long story,” Lynne said. “I’m here by myself again, but I’m sure Leo will check his messages soon.”

“Great. Second tip: move all of them together if possible. Don’t, like, move them upstairs one by one or separate mama cat from the babies.”

“Okay,” Lynne said through clenched teeth. She wrote #2 Fuck me on her order pad.

“Third, use whatever they were nesting in to move them. It’s a familiar scent and will reduce stress. Finally, once they’re moved, just watch them for the next hour or two. Don’t interfere. Feed mama cat and give them all some time to settle.”

“Mm-hmm. Got it,” Lynne said as she scribbled down I’m screwed and threw the pen across the room.

“I wish I had better news for you,” Cali said. “I’d offer to keep them all here this week. I mean, we’ve got the van to transport them. But we’re both gone during the day. It’s not like we could run upstairs to check them while things were slow, like you potentially could.”

“No, thanks. You two grabbing supplies is already a big help. And I have the guest bedroom. It’s pretty bare-bones now. I’m sure they’ll be safe there. I’m just … I never knew Mazzy in her kitten phase. You know? I feel so out of my element here.” She waved it off. “But my bar, my strays, my responsibility. I just hope I can get them upstairs before tomorrow.”

“You’ve got all of us, especially Leo when he’s free again,” Cali reminded her. “That two-days-off, one-day-on firefighter schedule might really come in handy here. Maybe you all can take shifts. It’s only fair. I mean, since Fred’s clearly involved.”

“Yeah.” Lynne glanced over at the sweatshirt Leo left behind, ARFD stitched in red over the chest, ‘March’ along the sleeve. Some of the thread at the corner of the front pocket had been unspooling for years. She picked it up, heavy in her hands. “I’ll keep that in mind. Oh, and Cals? If Leo still hasn’t replied by the time you and Ethan have the supplies, could you just bring them here? For now, all I can do is keep trying to get the litter upstairs by myself.”

“Of course. And we’ll keep pestering the vet’s office, too. Let me text you my rescue friend’s info while I’m thinking of it. Her name’s Nina.” Lynne’s phone let out a soft ding when the contact was shared. “It’s all going to work out, Lynne. Promise. It may be crazy today, but it won’t be crazy forever. We’ve got your back.”

“Thanks, Cals.”

“I’ll talk to you soon.”

As they hung up, Lynne lifted Leo’s sweatshirt to her face and inhaled. It smelled just like him, laundry-soap fresh with hints of coffee and worn steel. Then something clicked. Cali said the litter would need the comfort of the familiar scents. And Fred? If anybody would come for Leo’s scent, it was Fred. If she could get him upstairs calmly, then maybe mama cat would be willing to let Lynne move the rest.

So she tried and, as it turned out, Fred was the easiest piece of the puzzle. Maybe it was because she slipped on Leo’s sweater and placed herself just outside the closet door. But Fred peeked his head out within minutes and let Lynne scratch his head and pick him up. He didn’t fuss at all as she carried him upstairs to her apartment. In fact, he was all purrs. Once they were inside, he jumped onto her couch and started making biscuits with the cushions. She threw Leo’s sweater onto the couch beside him.

“Now if you could let Mama know I haven’t murdered you—that you’re in the lap of luxury up here—that would be great.”

Fred let out a long, almost distressed-sounding mewl as he stared up at Lynne.

“You’ll get more food later, traitor,” she told him, just before closing her apartment door.

7

Leo (Now)

Leo clocked Mike’s look the minute he opened the door to his apartment. The couch was too narrow. The space was too quiet. Mike took it all in like he was looking for the exits first.

“Didn’t picture this being your kind of place for some reason,” Mike commented casually.