I lift a shoulder, but yeah. It’s real damn close to Winslow. For a reason.
The rumble of Sawyer’s pickup saves me from admitting I named the cat after the woman I can’t quit thinking about. She parks close to the patio and hops out with a different bag than she used for the sick calf.
She cocks a brow at Bowen and the way he’s cradling the almost-asleep kitten to his chest. “Am I interrupting?”
“Yes,” Bowen murmurs, his thumb stroking Bonnie’s side. “Bonnie needs her rest. It’s been a day.”
Sawyer’s lips quirk. “Bonnie? You’ve named the cats?”
“Winnie,” I say.
“Cheddar,” Meredith says next.
Landry pulls his kitten’s claws out of his shirt. “Belle.”
“Quite the crew.” Sawyer doesn’t sound like she’s talking about the cats. She sets her bag down and gestures for Bowen to give her the sleepy kitten.
Bowen blankets a hand over Bonnie. She’s nothing but a dot on his big frame. “She’s sleeping.”
“She won’t be when her siblings complain about their shots.” She waggles her fingers.
Bowen hovers while Sawyer checks over Bonnie, gives her dewormer, and vaccinates her. Landry starts pacing like a nervous father waiting for his kid’s appointment. I’m not excited about putting Winnie through an inspection. How did I become attached this fast? I come home, see Meredith, and start questioning all my adult life choices. I find a cat, and I’m wrapped around her paw within minutes. I’ve gone twenty years without forming attachments, and now I have two whose lives are in Scandal.
Landry murmurs to Belle after her turn and cradles her in the crook of his elbow. “Before we forget what we came here for, Sheriff Dietz called. We need to get Dad’s car.”
A dark cloud floats over my afternoon, and lead fills my gut. “He got a time in mind?”
“Friday,” Bowen says. “He’s at a conference for the next few days.”
Why would the sheriff care when we get the car, as long as we get it? “We don’t need him to pick it up.”
“We don’t,” Landry agrees grimly. “Finn Sterling can meet us.”
“Can you check on the camera?” Meredith asks, suddenly looking sheepish. “It’s Holly’s. Never mind. I can call him.”
Landry shakes his head. “I don’t mind making Dietz answer about the missing items.”
Bowen nods. “We should bring up the incident at the house.”
The possible breaking and entering. “I never mentioned this, but the first night I was back, I thought I saw something. It was dark, and I couldn’t make it out, but it was no stray cat.”
“Skunk?” Bowen asks.
“Raccoon?”
“Bigger,” is all I say and leave it at that. The sheriff is going to point out that the house was open and nothing was taken. We have nothing to prove someone was in there, and he won’t buy Meredith’s intuition. He’ll likely question her memory that Holly had the camera with her. “We’ll bring it up. Carlos hasn’t heard about anyone having issues either.”
“And there’s been nothing at the brewery,” Bowen adds, “but there’s a sign warning about security cameras.” He lifts a big shoulder. “There’s no reason not to talk to him. Make Dietz earn his paycheck, and if Sterling is working? Fuck him too.”
I’ve made it home this long without running across a Sterling. All of us have. Hoping our luck holds out. “Friday it is.”
THIRTY-FOUR
MEREDITH
I hated to send the kittens home with Bowen and Landry, but I had to fill the fermenter and do the hot washes. Before Bowen and Landry left, a delivery guy arrived with Calder’s order—kitten and cat food, bath shampoo, litter-box supplies, and toys. There’s been no talk of rehoming the cats, and I’m not going to bring it up. I want to see Calder hunch his big frame over a mama cat like he plans to protect her for the rest of her life. I want to see him cuddle a little wriggling pile of fur because he can’t help himself. I like the hard edges to the man, but I like when he melts and doesn’t realize he’s doing it.
“Everything done for the night?” Calder comes down the stairs from the office, his face grim.
