Chapter Ten
*Author's Note: My apologies, chickadees! After a particularly grueling spring semester, I went to the country for some rejuvenation--and apparently the internet out there sucks...but I am traveling again, so this little story should wrap itself up in a week or two :).
"Ta-Dah!" Teaser produced the red ribbon with flourish. She looked eagerly at the cats seated before her, waiting for their reaction.
"It's a ribbon," Bomba commented dryly. It was evident that no one else understood the significance of the gift either.
Teaser gave a sigh, "It's fo' when we go ta battle. Look."
She deftly took a piece of the ribbon and tied it around Electra's neck, "See? If we wear this, then we'll be able ta tell who's who when the foightin' gets really hairy."
"Oh," everyone said in unison. Now they understood.
"Good thinking, Tease," Tugger nodded. He took a sip of coffee and made a disgusted face, "Who made the java?"
"Me," Pouncival admitted sheepishly. "I've never done it before. I dunno how to make coffee."
"That's obvious," Tugger commented wryly. He unceremoniously dumped the rest of the cup out the window.
"Did you see anything during the night watch?" Bomba turned to Mistoffelees and Cassandra, who had been on patrol the night before.
"Nothing," Cass replied with a shake of her head.
Bombalurina nodded, her mind wandering back into dark thoughts. Ever since the black rat's appearance, the red queen could not keep the image of Macavity from her mind. She now lived in a constant state of fear—it was a good thing that she had reconciled with Tugger; she honestly didn't think she could deal with the stress of fighting along with the constant worrying over Macavity.
Teaser seemed to read her sister's mind, "That dohn' mean a thing. Macavity's one sly cat—he's got somefin' big up 'is sleeve. Oi can feel it."
Everyone nodded in solemn agreement. Next to Bombalurina, Rumpleteaser and Mungojerrie were the experts on the Napoleon of Crime—after all, they had spent several years as his seconds-in-command.
"It still doesn't make sense," Bombalurina shook her head, her voice dipping into a soft whisper as her face skewed in confusion. "This isn't like Mac at all—if he wanted to, he could've already had us killed. Something's not right."
"What do you propose we do?" Tugger asked solemnly, his amber eyes focusing on the red queen.
Bomba shrugged, "There's not much that we can do…unless we go talk to Macavity—a move that I would not personally recommend."
"Me either," Teaser piped up.
"If we go lookin' for Macavity, we're lookin' for trouble," Mungo agreed. "It's best ta jus' keep a safe distance."
"But he's the one coming after us," Cassandra pointed out, stepping forward in an assertive manner. "We can't just let these things happen—we've got to do something."
"And what do you propose?" Bomba asked, cocking her head to the side in mock curiosity. There was an edge of sarcasm in her voice. "Storm the Lair? Hunt down the Hidden Paw, the most dangerous cat in London? We haven't the resources nor the numbers to pull off such a stunt. Our best bet is to simply do what we're doing now."
"I agree," Tugger gave a curt nod. "Keep posting nightly watches, and be more aware of our surroundings in the day time. If we're being watched, then the rats are doing it in shifts—at some point, we should be able to see one of them leaving or coming in. Then we'll pounce."
"And do what, exactly?" Electra seemed confused.
"If we take one of the rats, then we can interrogate him. Find out why Macavity is watching us," Tugger said philosophically.
Teaser raised her paw, "Oi volunteer for the role of interra-gator. Oi'm good at makin' animals talk."
"She is," Mungojerrie nodded in agreement. "When we worked for Macavity, she wos the head of interra-gation. Quoite good at it, if Oi do say so meself."
"Fine—Teaser, when we catch a rat, you can interrogate him," Tugger smiled up at the petite queen, who pumped her fist in victory.
"This is gonna be great," she beamed. She smiled up at Mungo, "Jus' loike old times, Love."
~*~
Demeter looked down at her three kits, who were all sleeping peacefully beside her. She gave a contented sigh—things were definitely looking up. She and Aleyn had recovered and were doing well. Since Aleyn's near-death experience, Munkustrap had become more attentive as a father and as a mate. While Demeter was not thrilled about her daughter's illness, she was grateful for the change that it had wrought in Munku.
"Mummy?" Jemima stepped into the den tentatively.
"Yes, dear."
"I just wanted to see if you were awake," Jemima admitted softly. Demeter smiled and patted the empty space beside her. Wordlessly, Jemima curled up in the basket, next to her mother and younger siblings.
There was a contented silence as Jemima rested her head on her mother's, watching the kits sleep.
"Electra's missing," Jemima said quietly.
"What?" Demeter raised her head in alarm.
Jemima nodded, "Etcetera and Tumblebrutus told Daddy this morning. She must've slipped out with Jellyorum the night Aleyn was sick."
"Why did she leave?" Demeter asked, the shock evident in her voice.
"We don't know," Jemima shrugged.
"I'm sorry, baby," Demeter said quietly, her light green eyes filling with pain. "I know you two were close."
"We were," Jemima admitted with a small nod. She and Electra had been the youngest two queens in their group of friends—a common trait that had quickly formed into a friendship. She couldn't understand why Electra would abandon something like that—a bond that Jemima had believed was strong enough to survive anything.
"I just don't understand," Jemima looked down at the ground sorrowfully. "First Bombie; then Mungo and Teaser, and then Misto and Cassandra and Pounce. Now Electra. It doesn't make sense."
"No," Demeter said quietly. "No it doesn't."
In truth, it made perfect sense to the black and gold queen. She knew exactly why Bombalurina left—the others were easy guesses as well. Suddenly, an odd thought struck her.
"Jemima?"
"Hmm?"
"Did you say Electra went missing when Gramma left?"
"Yes."
"And not…sooner?"
"Yes."
"Are you sure?"
"Mamma, what are you hinting at?" Jemima looked at her mother curiously.
"When was the last time you saw Lecs?"
"I don't know…a couple of days ago, I guess."
"Before or after Misto left?"
"I don't remember. Mamma, why are—"
"Never mind," Demeter answered quickly, smoothing her fur in an agitated fashion. Her own mind was turning about like boiling water as she tried to remember. She was certain that she had seen Electra before Bombie left…but had she seen the dark queen afterwards? She didn't know Electra very well; she didn't really socialize with the younger cats. And she had been ill…still, Demeter could not remember seeing the young queen since her friend's disappearing act over a week ago.
Demeter quickly added the cats in her head—the dissenters were accumulating quite an army.
~*~
Electra peered into the darkness. Tonight she and Pouncival were keeping watch over the loft, and both were terrified of the idea that everyone's safety lay in their paws.
A rustle. Electra whirled around, her dark eyes filled with fear. Her heart rate skyrocketed when she heard the noise again. Quietly, she made her way down the hall, towards the sound.
She looked around, hoping that Pouncival would appear and declare that it was all a big joke. Unfortunately, the young tom did not show up.
Swallowing nervously, Electra stepped tentatively around the corner. She stifled a scream when she saw three black rats at the end of the hall. Quickly, she ducked back around the corner. The rats had not spotted her—they continued muttering amongst themselves, occasionally giving a guttural chuckle. Electra's dark ears swiveled as she strained to hear their conversation.
There was an odd sound…much like water being poured onto the floor. Slowly, the dark queen slid down the wall, turning just so a single eye peered around the corner. She could see the rats were holding large containers. The pungent smell of gasoline filled Electra's nostrils.
They're going to kill us. The thought stopped Electra's heart completely. She took a deep breath to calm her hysterical breathing. Quick, think of something!
Electra looked around wildly, her mind swirling around at a dizzying pace. It was too late to stop the rats—besides, if they spotted her now, a strike of a match would end the whole thing. The dark queen moved swiftly back down the hall on silent paws.
She spotted Pouncival; she motioned wildly to him and gestured for him to remain silent. He moved towards her, his face skewed in confusion and concern.
"Three rats are dousing the place in gasoline," she whispered, her breathing picking up once more as her panic began to rise. "We have to get everyone out of here."
Pounce nodded and quickly raced back to the loft; Electra followed close behind. The two cats went around the room, shaking Misto and Cassandra and quietly informing them of the oncoming danger.
Cassandra was up in a flash; she dashed into the other room, where Tugger and Bomba were sleeping peacefully.
"Get up!" Cass commanded, shaking the red queen roughly. "Macavity's henchrats are going to set fire to the building—we have to leave now!"
Bomba and Tugger sat up in complete shock, crying in unison, "What?!"
"We gotta get out of here!" Misto burst into the room. Next door, Bomba could hear similar cries of dismay as Pounce and Electra roused Mungo and Teaser from sleep.
Suddenly, Tugger gave a suspicious sniff. "I smell smoke."
The cats rushed out of the loft, towards the stairs. They all stopped to look down at the stairwell in horror—the flames were already snaking up the banister, licking the walls and sending ominous pillars of smoke up to the fourth floor.
"We're too late," Electra announced dismally.
"To the roof," Bomba turned around quickly, her long legs easily covering the distance to the door. Tugger pushed everyone in the right direction, taking his place at the end of the line, so that he could keep a watchful eye on the group.
Bomba ran to the door that led to the roof. To her surprise, it did not open.
"What?!" She cried, ramming herself into the frame. Still, it did not budge.
"The bastards knew we'd troiy the roof," Teaser's brow furrowed in anger. "They blocked us in!"
"What do we do now?" Pounce asked, looking around wildly. Bomba was still beating the door hysterically, as if she could break it by force.
"Try the windows," Tugger replied, rushing to Mungo and Teaser's room. The window opened easily, the cold wind hitting Tugger's face at full-force.
"That's a long way to fall," Teaser appeared beside him, her large eyes looking fearfully down at the dark alley.
"Cats always land on their feet," Tugger announced philosophically. Had it been a less dire circumstance, Teaser probably would have laughed at the quip. But now as not the time for fun and games.
"It's reached the door!" Cassandra's voice pitched in panic. Already the smoke was becoming unbearable.
Tugger turned back to Teaser, his amber eyes filled with complete seriousness, "Do you trust me?"
"Of course," Teaser replied.
"Good," Tugger deftly picked up the petite queen and tossed her out of the window. There was a shriek of panic, followed by a soft thud as Rumpleteaser landed in the dumpster.
"Tease!" Mungo cried, leaning out the window.
"Oi'm foine!" The tiger-striped queen replied, quickly pulling herself out of the garbage. She looked up at him, "Jus' jump!"
Mungojerrie nodded and followed her example. As soon as he was safely out of the way, he yelled back to Tugger, "Send another one!"
"Time to go, ladies," Tugger motioned to Cass and Electra.
Without a single word, Electra swung her legs over the window sill, disappearing into the smoke-filled air. Cassandra pushed Misto and Pounce in front of her; the two toms dutifully leapt from the window.
"Let's go, Cass!" Tugger had to yell to be heard over the crackling flames. The wood rafters were now creaking and groaning under the pressure of the fire; things were falling and making terrifying noises. The fire had not reached the fourth floor yet, but it was definitely taking its toll on the remaining three floors.
Cassandra nodded, pulling herself into the windowsill. Suddenly, she sat back, looking around wildly.
"Where's Bombs?" She cried out.
Tugger looked around. The red queen was nowhere in sight.
"I'll find her," he promised. "Go."
Cass nodded and pushed off, giving a short yelp as she plummeted four stories into the open garbage bin.
Tugger moved back through the room, choking on the thick grey smoke that invaded his lungs. He called the red queen's name, but he knew that she would never hear him over the fire.
Suddenly, he spotted her—she was slumped over, grasping her chest as she struggled to breathe in the smoke-filled air.
"Boms!" Tugger rushed to her, helping the red queen to her feet. "What are you doing?"
"I—can't—breath—," she gasped, still clutching her chest.
Tugger nodded, quickly pulling her back into the next room. He moved her to the window, allowing the cool, fresh air to hit her face. She fell back, almost passing out from lack of oxygen; Tugger easily caught her. He held her quietly, waiting as she tried to regain control of her lungs, her breathing coming in deep gulps.
Bomba slowly pulled herself back together. She gave a small smile, "Thanks."
"Thank me later," Tugger replied quickly, turning his fearful eyes to see the flames that now danced up the staircase. "We've got to get out of here."
Bombalurina nodded, pulling herself out onto the windowsill. With one last look at Tugger, she disappeared into the dark night.
Tugger quickly swung his legs over the sill, looking down to see Teaser and Pouncival pull Bomba from the bin. He took a deep breath and pushed off.
~*~
"That's strange," Tantomile's brow furrowed in confusion as she stared out at the night sky.
"What?" Corico appeared beside her. His gaze was focused on his sister's face, rather than the object of her scrutiny.
"The sky," she answered slowly. "It's...orange."
Now Cori turned to look at the spot on the horizon, which was glowing with an odd, almost ghoulish color.
"Fire," he said quietly.
"Yes," Tantomile nodded. "Fire."
~*~
Tugger dusted off his coat, looking up in dismay at the burning building. Then he turned to see seven expectant faces, all awaiting his decision.
"Wot do we do now, Boss?" Mungo asked.
"I think I know of a place to stay, at least for tonight," Tugger replied. With a heavy sigh, he turned and trudged down the alleyway. The night was filled with the sound of sirens as the human fire brigade rushed to save the burning building. Tugger stopped at the street corner, taking a moment to watch the frenzied proceedings.
Bomba came up softly behind him, her shoulder rubbing against his in a comradely fashion. Tugger didn't say anything. He simply turned to her and gave a soft smile of gratitude. Bomba gave a small nod of understanding. She stood beside him, quietly slipping her paw in his.
"On to the next big adventure, fearless leader," she whispered softly, a gentle smile of reassurance on her soot-streaked face.
Tugger gave a wry smile at the comment. He turned north, "On to the next big adventure."