Stacy and Roger were almost to their apartment when her phone started to ring. She pulled it out of her pocket, looked at the small screen for a second and not recognizing the number. She then held the phone up to her left ear and answered, "Hello?"
"Officer McGrady, this is Commandant Lewis,"
Stacy sat up straighter in her seat, then nervously asked, "What can I do for you?"
"Do you know a Rolf Smith?" He asked.
"Yes, he is my new tomfriend, what about him?" She responded.
"Apparently, he needs a place to stay while his leg heals. He was sort of hoping, he could stay on your couch," the Commandant said.
Stacy pulled the phone away from her ear and looked at it for a second before bringing it back to her ear and asking, "Is he there with you now and may I speak with him?"
The Commandant lowered the phone from his ear, cupped the receiver, and said, "She wants to talk to you Rolf." He then handed the phone over his desk to Rolf.
Rolf took the phone from the Commandant, held it to his ear, and said, "I'm here Stacy."
"Are you out of your mind Rolf!? We haven't even gone on a date yet and you think you can stay on my couch and have me play Nurse-Maid to you!?" She said.
"No Stacy, I have not lost my mind and I don't expect you to have to lift a finger. I'll even watch Roger while you are on patrol," Rolf replied.
"Wait.. What?" Stacy asked. "Why would you volunteer to watch Roger? After all, you just met him as well as me."
"That answer is easy Stacy," Rolf said. "I like you and I like being with Roger too and to be honest Stacy, if things were different, I would like to think that Roger could have been my son."
"Rolf, hold that thought and as soon as I get Roger fed and as long as his uncle Bryce will watch him. I'll come over to the academy and pick you up, then we are going to have a little talk," Stacy said before she disconnected the call and turned around and saw her son was still sleeping in the back seat. She then heard Bryce snicker and she whipped her head around to face him and scowled.
"You still live up to your nickname Stacy," John said as he was focusing on his driving.
"Bryce, you know I love you right?" Stacy said.
"Of course I do Stacy," Bryce answered.
"Good, so when they find your body in the morning, they will know I killed you out of love," Stacy said.
Bryce gulped then asked, "You really wouldn't kill me, would you?"
Stacy reached across the seat and grabbed his right ear in her left paw, before she gave it a not so gentle squeeze and said, "Keep calling me Firecracker and I will."
They pulled up in front of her small house and Bryce parked the car.
Stacy opened the door, got out, and opened the passenger rear door to remove the sleeping kitten from the back seat. She reached in, undid Roger's seatbelt, and lifted him into her arms before giving Roger a light kiss on his left cheek.
Roger started to stir in her arms, then asked with his eyes closed, "Where are we mommy?"
"We are home honey," Stacy replied as she held her son tighter and continued, "Let's get you changed and into bed, you had a busy day."
Stacy walked up the front walkway to the stairs leading to the front door of her small extended ranch followed by Bryce. As he followed her, he kept scanning the area to make sure both Stacy and Roger made it into the house without being jumped by one of the gangs that seemed to populate the neighborhood.
As Stacy inserted the key into the lock, she looked over her shoulder at Bryce, then said, "No one is stupid enough to come after me, especially when I am with Roger. One guy tried that once and I think he is still in the hospital."
"That maybe true Stacy but this is not a safe area of town. Tell me again why you moved here instead of a nice and safe condo uptown?" Bryce asked.
Stacy opened the front door to her house and entered as Bryce followed right behind her and closed the door.
"Roger needs a place he can run around and play in that he can call his own. He can't do that in a condo, do you have any idea how many complaints I would get?" Stacy asked as she started ascending the stairs towards the bedrooms.
"So what? Isn't Roger's safety more important than a few noise complaints?" Bryce asked as he followed her up the stairs.
"Yes it is Bryce but this is what I can afford on my salary alone. It may be a rough neighborhood, but the house is mine. My Ex hasn't even started to pay his alimony much less child support," Stacy said as she reached the top of the stairs, turned to her right, and entered Roger's room. She laid him on his bed, removed his shoes and socks, then deciding not to wake the kitten, she pulled his covers up to his head before kissing him and saying, "Good night Roger."
After she returned to Bryce's side in the small hall, he put his arms around her, then they both watched as Roger curled up and snuggled tighter into his blanket.
"He is such a good boy Stacy, I wish I could be here more for him and be the father figure he needs," Bryce said.
"He is a good boy Bryce and you do so much for us already, well, you and John. You two have been like a father to Roger and I can't repay you two lug heads for that," Stacy said.
"We both love that kitten Stacy," Bryce said as he kissed her between her ears. "So, what are you going to do about Rolf?"
She spun in his arms, then replied, "I'm going to have a long talk with him Bryce, alone. Hearing him say he wants to be Roger's father spooked me considering we just met. I do like him and he seems to really like Roger, I just don't know if I am ready for a serious relationship, no matter what my heart is telling me. I just don't want to get Roger's hopes up only to have them dashed again."
Bryce lowered his head to her shoulder, then said, "Rolf does not seem to be that type of a guy Stacy. Give him a chance."
"I plan on giving him that chance Bryce, but he and I need to clear the air on a few things first. Would you mind watching Roger while I use your car to go and bring Rolf back here?" Stacy asked.
"Not at all," Bryce replied. "Heck, I'll even spend the night here so you and Rolf can talk this out. But trust me on this Stacy, guys like Rolf don't come along too often so listen to what this," he tapped his right fore finger on her heart, then continued, "is saying and less of this." He tapped the same finger to her forehead before bringing it to his side.
"I'll try to but the last time I let my heart lead me anywhere, I got married to Ed and looked how that turned out," Stacy said.
"Yes, look how that turned out. True, Ed is a jerk but without him, you would never have had Roger," Bryce said.
Stacy turned to look at the kitten she loved with all her heart and would do anything for. Then realized; yet again; that without her Ex, she would never had Roger in her life and her life would be a lot emptier without Roger in it. Without breaking her stare at her son, she said, "You should have been a counselor Bryce; instead of a cop."
Bryce smiled then said, "There is only two things I do on a couch Stacy. One is watching Hockey and the other involves whipped cream and my boyfriend. And I'm sure you don't want to hear about that."
Stacy pulled away from him and said, "Now I have an image in my head that is going to take lots of alcohol to get rid of. Thanks Bryce, now give me your keys so I can pick up Rolf."
Bryce handed her the keys to his car, then said, "No alcohol for you until you get back here and take it easy on Rolf Stacy. Believe it or not, he cares for you and Roger."
"I will Bryce," Stacy said as she pulled out a 20 dollar bill from her pants. "This is for the pizza. There are plenty of drinks in the fridge. I'll be back soon."
Artemis woke up from her nap from the sounds of crickets outside of her window. She gently lifted the covers off of her and went over to the window. She looked out into the ocean and listened to the crickets as well as the waves crashing against the shore line. Artemis then left the window, pulled on a pair of sweat pants, and left her bedroom to get something to eat.
As she walked down the stairs to the main level of the house, she noticed Persval and Isis curled up against each other by the fireplace. She went over to them and said, "I really have to thank Callista when I see her again. I haven't slept like that in years."
Persival lifted his head and saw Artemis standing in front of him and Isis. He said, "This house has that affect on everyone miss. My mistress made sure the kitchen is stocked for you. However, she has one simple request. Please stay on the house's grounds."
"I plan on keeping my promise to her and Michael Persival," Artemis said. "I told her that I would stand trial for what I have done and I plan on going through with that promise. Even if I end up in jail, its better than being under David's foot."
"My mistress will do her best to make sure you don't end up in prison Artemis," Persival said. "Although you have committed some serious crimes while you were employed with David, you were coerced into committing those acts, you should be acquitted for what you did."
"I wish I had that confidence Persival," Artemis said. "I have a good feeling that I will be facing the Death Penalty for what I have done."
"My mistress will not let that happen!" Persival said as he stood. "Callista has been the queen for centuries. If she did not feel you were worthy of a second chance, you would be in jail right now instead of her granddaughter's house."
"And that is the main reason I don't want to cause her to distrust me," Artemis said. "I want to be free again and either work in a restaurant or teach dance somewhere and not be rotting in a jail cell, counting down the days until I am taken and strapped to a table for the last time."
Persival knew in his heart that Artemis could very well be sent to death for all she had done against society. However, he was determined for as long as he possibly could not to let that happen. He left Isis' side, went over to Artemis, and put his front paws on her shoulders so he could look her directly in the eyes. Persival narrowed his gaze, then said, "Artemis, from what my mistress has told me, you have murdered several toms as well as she-cats without batting an eye. I agree, you should be punished. However, since you have been here, you seem to be remorseful about what you have done as well as being very nice and polite to myself as well as my mate. So I guess you are not that bad at all."
"I appreciate that Persival," Artemis said as she stroked the top of his head. "How about I make us all something to eat for dinner? From what my Ex-Coworkers told me, I'm pretty decent in the kitchen."
Persival's eyes lit up as soon as food was mentioned since he hadn't had a decent meal since her young mistress went back home. He replied, "Definitely, my mate is eating for both her and our cubs so I know she is hungry."
When Isis heard what her mate had told Artemis her ears perked up. She turned her head to face them and said, "Persival, dear. I might be eating for more than me now, but you make is sound like I eat an entire gazelle by myself. Please be careful with your choice of phrases."
Persival removed his paws from Artemis' shoulders, lowered himself to the ground, and walked over to where Isis was still laying. He affectionately nuzzled her neck and said, "I will watch what I say, my love. Care to sample some of Artemis' cooking?"
"Yes I would Persival," Isis answered then looked past Persival to Artemis and asked, "May I ask you something?"
"Please go right ahead Isis," Artemis replied.
"May I name one of our cubs after you?" Isis asked.
"You most certainly can Isis. Actually, I would be honored if you did," Artemis answered. "Come on you two, we have an elaborate dinner to prepare and eat!"
Felina arrived at Make Out Point, madder than she had ever been in all the years of service. She parked her car, opened the driver's door, got out, and slammed the door closed, making the entire car shake. Felina slipped under the caution tape and went over to where Adonis and Pirouette were sitting in paw cuffs.
Adonis and Pirouette noticed a very pissed off Felina coming towards them and Adonis said to Pirouette, "I have only seen that look on her face once and the cat on that was on the receiving end crapped his pants before he was yelled at for about a half hour."
"Who is in charge here!?" Felina barked.
A Sergeant heard her and went over to Felina saying, "I'm in charge here Lieutenant and why are you here and not the Commander!?"
"My uncle sent me here to take charge of the situation, before someone screws up the evidence collection, Sergeant!" Felina spat back.
"Why would he send you instead of a Captain or his deputy Miss Feral?" The Sergeant asked.
Felina almost had enough of this Sergeant. However, she kept her anger under control as she answered, "My uncle does not trust his second in command, nor any of the captains that were appointed instead of working their way up through the ranks. Please explain to me why two SWAT Kats are over on that bench in paw cuffs? And do it in simple sentences that you can understand."
"How dare you?! I have worked my tail off ever since I graduated the academy to get these bars and you have the audacity to insult my intelligence! Just who do you think you are?" The sergeant asked.
Felina grabbed the sergeant by the lapels of his coat and brought him to her angry face. She then spat back, in very plain words, "I am your future boss!"
The sergeant pushed himself away from her, straightened his coat, and asked, "What!? You are a Lieutenant and not a Captain. There is no way you can be my boss!"
"Oh yes I can sergeant!" Felina answered. "My uncle is retiring and named me as his replacement. Do you have a problem with that?!"
"That is impossible! Not even the Commander can name a Lieutenant to that position without permission from the mayor and the council," the sergeant said.
"You're right, he couldn't name a lieutenant to his position without consent of the Mayor's office and the City Council's permission," Felina said. "My uncle caught a hell of a lot of flack when he handed in his retirement papers. But after he explained how the senior officers obtained their positions, the Mayor's office and the entire council approved my appointment almost instantly."
The sergeant huffed at that and walked away.
Felina then went over to Adonis and Pirouette. She then yelled, "Someone give me a key to these paw cuffs!"
Not one officer could produce a key to those particular set of paw cuffs.
"Figures," Felina said after she blew a few stray hairs away from her face. "And why do I have two SWAT Kats at Make Out point?"
"Lieutenant, my wife and I followed a station wagon here and witnessed the occupants dumping that body into the river," Adonis said. "After they left, I retrieved the body for you."
"That was nice of you. I didn't get your name," Felina said.
"Adonis and this is my lovely wife, Pirouette," he said.
"As I was saying, that was nice of you Adonis, but you tampered with evidence and I should really haul your tail downtown for questioning," Felina said.
"Officer," Pirouette started to say but she was interrupted by Felina saying, "Lieutenant miss."
"Sorry, Lieutenant. If my husband didn't dive into the river, you would have never found the body. And I'm almost sure there are more of them at the bottom," Pirouette said.
"That might be true Pirouette but he shouldn't have done it," Felina said. "He should have waited for the Enforcers and pointed out where the body was."
Adonis huffed, then said, "Fine, I won't do it again. Can we go?"
Felina winked at him, then said, "You both can go, as soon as I can get those paw cuffs off of you. That is if someone can find a key!"
Adonis smirked, then said, "That won't be necessary Lieutenant." He pulled the cuffs tightly across his lower back, then with one mighty tug, he broke the paw cuffs into many parts. After the broken metal fell to the ground, Adonis rubbed his wrists and said, "You can send me the bill for those Lieutenant."
Felina could not believe what her eyes saw. She remembered the salesman telling her those cuffs could not be broken by anything and Adonis broke them like they were made out of cheap plastic. "Those were supposed to be unbreakable," Felina said.
"I guess I'm stronger than most toms Lieutenant. Can I now take my wife and go home?" Adonis asked.
Felina leaned forward and whispered, "Where are Sniper and Havoc? I thought they went with you."
"Havoc said something to Sniper which she took offense to," Pirouette answered. "Havoc took off running that way with Sniper hot on her tail." She was pointing towards the bluffs a few hundred yards down river.
Felina righted herself and looked over her shoulder to where Pirouette was pointing. She then asked, "I wonder wha those two are up to?"
Behind the bluffs, the two lovers laid on the beach. Both of them were as they were born into the world, holding the other tightly.
Tina kissed Katerina on the lips, then rested her head on her breasts before she said, "That was amazing Katerina. I can't wait until we move into our house and we can live out our lives as a happy couple."
Katerina loved having Tina in her arms, especially after they made love. As she ran her fingers through Tina's hair, she responded, "I agree Tina, I so want to move into our house and once we are established, we can start looking for a kitten to adopt."
Tina lifted her head and looked into Katerina's eyes, then asked, "Are you really sure about this Kat? Remember when I was out with Mark and Sarah and I was called an abomination? I don't want to adopt a kitten and have her or him taunted because I'm her mother."
"Why would you think that would happen Tina?" Katerina asked. "You are going to be an amazing mother to our kitten. He or she is going to be so lucky to have you as an adoptive parent."
Tina lowered her head again to Katerina's chest, then said, "I hope so Katerina." She played with the fur on Katerina's stomach before she said, "I was taunted all through high school after I was forced to come out. Even after I started dating Drucila, I was still made fun of and called the 'Gay Girl', I just wanted to have a normal school life and those so-called friends I had took that from me."
"You know what Tina?" Katerina asked. "If you weren't the taunted, gay, lynx ocelot hybrid that runs around with more hardware in her ears than a teenaged punk rocker, I don't think I would have fallen so far in love with you than I have and our kitten will feel the same way. Tina, you are an amazing she-cat and I love every little thing about you."
Tina lifted her head and moved so her lips were inches above Katerina's before she said, "I love you Katerina. I love you more and more each day. Drucila may have been my first real love. However, the love and passion I feel for you goes much deeper Katerina. I can't wait for the day when I can marry you." Tina then kissed Katerina, showing her exactly how she felt about the she-cat under her.
Katerina pulled Tina tighter to her body as she slipped her tongue into Tina's waiting mouth. Her left paw stroked her back all the way to her tail then let it slip between Tina's legs.
"I think we had better get back to Mark and Lisa. And when we get back to Felina's tonight, I'm going to make you scream in pleasure Katerina," Tina said.
"Niet Tina," Katerina replied. "I'm going to be the one making you scream."
Reluctantly, they separated from each other and dressed in their uniforms again before walking paw in paw back to Make Out point.
End of Chapter