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„I already tried every trick I found online,” I say as I drag her into the living room, where Zeta and her boys are resting on the couch, seemingly oblivious to the fact that one of them has gone missing. „I put out food, even one of their litter trays, because I heard they might get attracted by the smells. I called for her, but maybe…maybe she needs to hear your voice to find her way back.”
„How long has she been gone?” she asks while I walk her to the terrace door.
„I don’t know,” I say. „I was out on the terrace earlier today and I must’ve left the door open. She could be anywhere.”
„And you’re sure she’s not in the house? This is a big house, you know, and—”
„No, of course I checked,” I snap, a little too aggressively. „Besides, she always, always shows up when I lure them with snacks, they all do.”
I can’t help but smile at the thought of it, the way those little paws climb up on my leg, every time I get those bags of snacks out. Once, Pi even tried to climb up my leg because things weren’t happening fast enough.
She takes my hand in hers, causing me to pause and look at her.
„We will find her, I promise you that,” she says again, while a single tear rolls down her cheek. „We have to. Maybe we should bring some of those snacks with us.”
I nod and hand her one of the small bags I’ve hidden in my pants pockets.
„I’m sure she’ll come if she hears your voice,” I say. „She loves you.”
She freezes, and my words are followed by an awkward pause, while we stare at each other, as if I’d just said something else, as if I wasn’t just talking about Pi.
And maybe I wasn’t.
„I-I hope I can help,” she mutters eventually, and I retreat, clearing my throat as I go.
A chilly breeze meets us out in the backyard, and I suddenly realize that she has never been out here. It’s still too cold to spend any time outside, so I never took her out to the terrace.
She steps through the door, and I can tell from the look of awe on her face, that she likes what she’s seeing, which fills me with pride.
„I already looked that way,” I say, pointing to the right where a fence separates my garden from the next property. It’s high, but not high enough to stop a cat, especially one that is as much of a climber as Pi.
„The other side is a bit harder to get through,” I say, now pointing to the left, where there’s a cement wall, higher than the fence and surrounded by thick bushes.
„She may have gone through the undergrowth there,” she says, pointing. „That’s definitely something a cat would find intriguing.”
„That’s what I thought, too,” I reply. „It’ll be a little tough for us to get through, though.”
„Pii!” She cries out, causing me to startle in surprise.
She shakes the bag of snacks, before calling out Pi's name again, and we both hold our breaths for a moment to listen for a response.
Nothing.
„Pi!” she calls out again, before moving closer to the thicket, searching for a way to climb through. But there really is no passage that would allow for a human to get through. Even for a cat, it must be quite challenging.
I turn around, carrying another bag of snacks and holding it up in the air while shaking it wildly. We both continue to yell her name while shaking the bags of snacks and pacing up and down on the terrace. It’s impossible to say what direction she might have gone, but I’m beginning to think that we’re not getting anywhere with this.
I turn back to Claire. „Maybe we should—”
I stop mid-sentence and listen, alarmed by Claire, who places a finger on her lips and stares at me through wide eyes.
„Pi?” she asks, turning around disoriented, as if she heard something.
Then I hear it, too. A faint meow, coming from somewhere behind the cement wall.
„That was her, wasn’t it?” Claire asks, her eyes wide with hope. „That’s Pi!”
Another meow confirms her suspicion, and we both run over to the wall.
