A MEOWvelous Witness (Klepto Cat Mystery Book 17) (2 page)

Colbi nodded. “Uh-huh, once Harrison completes culinary school and he’s working full time. That should start in a month or so. Yes, that will help.” Her face brightened. “You know, he’s working part time at that classy restaurant in Straley while going to school. He can’t wait to be a full-time chef and have enough coming in to bring Leah and the baby here.”

“So they’re still planning a life together, are they?”

“Oh yes,” Colbi said, smiling broadly. “He’s eager to be a family man.”

“And he’s okay with that drive to Straley for work every day?”

“For now. He says the restaurant owner has another restaurant in Mason and they might make him head chef there and move the other chef to the Straley restaurant, because he lives in that area.”

“Now, that would be a perfect solution, wouldn’t it?” Savannah said. “It would cut his driving time in half.”

“Yeah, but I don’t know how long he’ll stay there. I can see him wanting to move up in his career. His dream is to open his own restaurant. So the Stanton homestead, where we grew up, may eventually be sold or he might rent it out, I guess.” Colbi stirred a little sugar into her tea. “But that’s down the road. One step at a time.”

“How does Leah feel about all this?”

“From what I can tell, she’s eager to be a part of Harrison’s dream.”

Savannah smiled. “It sounds wonderful. I’m so pleased for you both.” Her demeanor took on a more serious tone. “Who would have thought your brother would change so dramatically? I mean, just a matter of months ago, he and Leah were both living on the streets—him with a drug habit and Leah, a runaway, pregnant with a Hawaiian gang-banger’s child, believing she had no options.”

“Yeah. Heck, this time last year, I didn’t know whether my brother was dead or alive.”

“This time last year,” Savannah said, quietly, “I didn’t even know you had a brother.”

“Yes, that’s right.” Colbi let out a sigh. “A lot has happened in my world in just a matter of a few months.” She smiled broadly. “I feel so blessed to have my brother back.” She hesitated. “People can change, Savannah. I guess the stars finally lined up in Harrison’s favor or he simply found the right motivation…”

Savannah stared across the table at her. “Sometimes all it takes is a rendezvous with death.”

Wincing, Colbi said, “Well, something sure turned him around, and if that’s what it took—if that awful beating is what did it—I’m glad it happened.”

Savannah stared across at her friend for a moment, then took a deep breath. “Okay, Colbi,” she said, a glint in her eye, “what was so important that you had to drag me out of bed to tell me?”

Colbi smiled coyly. “Well, I have a very important question and I couldn’t wait to ask you.”

“What?”

“Savannah, my best friend in the whole world, would you be my matron of honor at our wedding?” She clapped her hands together and bounced a little in her seat. “Please say yes.”

Savannah smiled at her friend’s exuberance. “Of course I will,” she said warmly. “It would be a privilege and an honor. Thank you.”

“Oh good.” Colbi pulled a pad of paper out of her purse and confided, “I’ve been doing some research and here’s a list of some of the matron of honor’s duties.”

When Savannah saw the list Colbi held in her hand, she was taken aback. “Holy moly, girl, that’s some list.”

Colbi chuckled. “Oh no, this one’s mine,” she said. “And not one thing is crossed off yet.” She quickly turned the paper over and raked her pen across it. “There. I crossed off ‘ask Savannah to be matron of honor.’” She then held up the list. “See why I’m feeling so overwhelmed?” She turned to another page. “Here’s your list. I only wrote down those duties that make sense in our situation—help me pick out a dress, hold my bouquet at the wedding, stand up with me…”

“Have a bachelorette party?” Savannah asked, her green eyes sparkling under her highlighted blond bangs.

Colbi frowned. “Um, I’m not sure about that. Things can get kind of freaky when we girls go someplace together.”

“We don’t have to go on a weekend trip—we could go out to dinner or spend an evening watching chick flicks...”

Colbi’s face brightened. “Hey, now those are some good ideas. Sure, we could do something like that—might actually settle my wedding jitters.”

Savannah continued speaking, an impish look on her face, “We could bring in a male stripper, and…”

“What?” Colbi shrieked. She lowered her voice, saying, “Oh no; no stripper. I’ve been to parties like that and I find them terribly embarrassing.”

“Your future mother-in-law and my aunt would enjoy it.”

“Yeah, well, it’s
my
wedding; keep that in mind,” Colbi declared good-naturedly.

The two women pulled back to allow the server to place their meals in front of them. Once Becky had walked away, Savannah began to giggle. “Will Dolly be your flower girl?”

“Oh, wouldn’t that be cute? And Rags could be the ring bearer.” Colbi clapped her hands together. “Yeah, I’d do that. You know me; I can be quirky.”

“And I know how much you love your Dolly-kitty.”

Colbi nodded. “Yes, but I had someone else in mind for our flower girl.”

“You did?” Savannah asked. “Who?”

“Lily, of course.” She took the baby’s hand and kissed her pudgy fingers.

“Oh, I hadn’t thought about her as a flower girl.” Savannah creased her brow. “Are you sure? She’s so young. She probably won’t do what you ask her to.”

“Your Aunt Maggie or maybe your stepson could walk with her,” Colbi suggested. “Little boys like to have something important to do at a boring event like a wedding, don’t they?”

“Or Michael,” Savannah said.

“Oh no, your husband will be standing up with Damon.”

“He will?”

“Yeah, I think Damon’s talking to him today. They’re meeting out at my place to get Michael’s expert advice on their project.” She grinned. “Savannah, you may not know this, but your husband garners just about as much respect for his carpentry skill as he does for being a great veterinarian.”

“Well, he does love to putter, and he hasn’t had a remodeling job at home lately. I’m glad friends provide him with projects to keep him fulfilled in that area.” She chuckled. “Otherwise he’d be tearing out walls at our house.” She smiled at Colbi. “So will your brother walk you down the aisle?”

“Yes,” she said excitedly.

“What about Damon’s younger brothers? Will they have a role?”

Colbi took a sip of her tea, then said, “I think we’ll have them stand up with Damon. We definitely want them to be a part of the ceremony, if they want to be. Brett sounded interested, but we’re not sure about Chris. He’s the shy one, you know. He’s come out of his shell some now that he’s sixteen, but he’s not the extrovert his older brother is.” Suddenly Colbi pointed. “Hey, there’s Craig.”

Savannah turned in time to see the detective walk into the diner. She waved.

“Well, if it isn’t three of my favorite people,” he said, approaching their booth.

Colbi scooted to her right. “Come join us.”

Detective Craig Sledge looked around the café before saying, “Well, I’m meeting someone here, but I can sit with you for a minute. So what are you doing out so early?” he asked. He focused on the toddler. “And you; don’t you need your beauty sleep?”

“That’s what I tried to tell Colbi, but oh no, we had to meet her for breakfast even before the chickens are up.” She smiled across at her and said, excitedly, “But it was worth it. Craig, I get to be matron of honor at the wedding.”

He returned her smile. “Nice.” Glancing at Colbi, he added, “I have a role in the wedding, too.”

“You do?” both women asked.

“Well, yes, aren’t I the stepfather-in-law of the bride?” he winked at Colbi. “That’s a pretty important honor, if you ask me.”

Colbi put her arm through his and leaned her head on his shoulder. “Indeed, it is.”

Suddenly, Craig’s smile vanished. “I think that’s my date,” he said quietly, slipping out of the booth. “See you ladies later.”

“I wonder who that is,” Savannah said, studying the unkempt man who cautiously shook Craig’s hand and followed him to a booth in the back of the diner.

“I don’t know,” Colbi said. “Probably someone he’s arrested or is going to arrest.” She scrunched up her pretty face. “He looks shifty.”

“He looks familiar,” Savannah said, squinting into the distance. She then tilted her head, her blond ponytail brushing across one shoulder. “Colbi, do you know who he looks like?”

“No, who?”

As if in the strictest of confidence, Savannah said, “Your fiancé.”

“What?” Colbi said, turning to get a better look.

“He has the same build and the same dark-red hair—only his hair’s turning gray. Look at his features, Colbi. Can’t you see the likeness?”

“No way, Savannah. That guy’s a mess.”

Savannah sat silently for a moment, then said, “Well, Damon was once, too. I guess it’s the old Damon I’m remembering when I look at that guy—when he was all messed up on drugs and being obnoxious and…and hating cats…” she added, laughing.

“Sure glad I didn’t know him then.” Colbi thought for a moment. “Well, I guess I met him when he still hated cats.” She raised her face to the heavens and said with emotion, “Thank God he changed his mind on that issue. He adores Dolly and she sure is attached to him.”

“Well, he’s the one who rescued her when she was so sick, and then nurtured her back to health.”

Colbi nodded.

“So tell me more about the wedding; who’s coming? Will your cousins from Arizona be able to make it?”

“I hope so. It would be nice to have extended family there.”

“Extended family you just met,” Savannah quipped.

“Right. Well, Roberta will probably be there and maybe her kids—her girls are sixteen and seventeen, I think. I’m not sure about Klint—it depends on his carnival schedule.”

Savannah began to laugh. “I’ve never known a carnie before.”

“Carnie—that’s funny. Yeah, I’m afraid I have a cousin who’s a carnie. Who knew?”

“Are there other cousins you didn’t know about?” Savannah asked.

“I don’t think so. Dad just had the one brother and they didn’t speak to each other, which is why Harrison and I grew up not knowing about these cousins.”

The two women continued chatting while they finished their breakfast, then suddenly Savannah whispered, “Hey, here comes Craig with that guy.”

Colbi took a quick look. “Sure is a shady-looking dude.” She picked up the ticket Becky had left and began digging in her purse for money. “I’d better get to work. Thanks for meeting me and for agreeing to be my matron of honor.” She smiled across the table at Savannah. “It means a lot.”

“I’m looking forward to it.” As Savannah stood and picked up the toddler, she added, “So is Lily. Oh—what do you want us to wear?”

Colbi started to leave the booth, then relaxed back against the seat. “I don’t know,” she said, sulking. “I haven’t even picked out
my
dress, yet. There’s just so much to do—so many details.”

Sensing that her friend was nearing panic mode, Savannah said, “Hey, how about this: let’s drive over to that little bridal shop in Hayley one evening this week. We need to start crossing things off that to-do list.”

“Sure. Let’s do that. Does tomorrow night work for you?”

“Yeah, I think so.”

Suddenly, Colbi frowned. “What’s Craig doing?”

“What?” Savannah asked, turning to look in the direction Colbi indicated.

“He’s coming down pretty hard on that guy out there; look, he won’t even let him get into his car.”

“Gads, maybe that guy
is
a criminal,” Savannah said.

“I’d say so, from the way Craig’s talking to him.”

The two women rolled their eyes at one another as they left the booth and approached the exit, unsure whether they should step out or not. Before they could decide, the diner door opened and Craig walked in.

“Oh, sorry,” he said when he nearly bumped into Savannah.

“That’s okay. We were just leaving.” She stopped and asked, in a serious tone, “Craig, is everything okay?”

“Yeah,” he said, thinning his lips and glancing toward the street. He cleared his throat. “Yeah, it’s all good.”

“Was that a criminal you were talking to?” Colbi asked. “What did he do?”

Craig grinned at her. “Always digging for a scoop, aren’t you, newspaper girl?” He
called out to a man behind the counter, “Hey, Jack, how about a coffee to go?” When he noticed the two women still staring at him, he asked, “Can I get you ladies something?”

“Uh, no.” Savannah looked at Lily, who was squirming a little in her arms. “We need to get home.”

“Nothing for me,” Colbi responded. “But thanks.”

****

“I hear you have a very important job,” Savannah said over dinner that night at the Ivey home.

“I do?” Michael asked.

“Well, yes. Aren’t you going to be the best man at the wedding?”

“Oh yes. I am. You’re playing a part too, right?”

She nodded and patted Lily’s arm. “And our daughter will debut as Colbi’s and Damon’s flower girl. Did you know that?”

He raised his eyebrows. “No. Really? How do you think she’ll do?”

“Colbi and I agreed she’ll need help. We might have Adam or my aunt pull her down the aisle in the wagon, or walk with her. We’ll play it by ear.” She smiled at Michael. “So you saw what Damon and Harrison are doing in the backyard of the old family homestead? How’s it coming?”

Michael took a gulp of iced tea. “Good, actually. It’ll be real nice, if they finish in time for the wedding.” He looked more serious when he asked her, “Did you know Damon’s father’s in town?”

“No. I thought he was dead. I’ve never heard Iris speak of him. How do you know that?”

“Craig brought their kitty in for his vaccines and he told me. Mr. Jackson evidently showed up with an attorney and he’s demanding child support.”

Savannah creased her brow. “Child support? What do you mean?”

“Well, he said he paid child support toward Damon’s care for eighteen years and never got to see him. He wants all that money back.”

“That’s ridiculous, don’t you think? I mean, I’ve never heard of such a thing, have you?”

“No, but Craig said the guy claims to have paperwork that proves payment every month for Damon’s entire childhood and he wants $65,000 plus interest or they’ll take Damon and Iris to court.”