Part 5
Claire drew her hand back. Dove stopped growling, but she stayed in front of Mist, her body pressed across the corner of the pen. The kitten tried to look around her and was nudged back.
“Give her room,” Dana said.
Claire moved onto her heels. They had carried this same mother out of an alley, but she had not behaved this way then. Claire had expected the second departure to be easier because she understood where they were going. Dove understood only that the carrier had returned.
“Should we wait?”
“A little. Don’t keep reaching.”
They sat beside the pen. Elsewhere in the garage, one of Dana’s cats scratched at a blanket, and water rattled in a bowl. Dove’s ears followed every sound. Claire loosened her fingers where she had clasped them between her knees.
Dana moved the carrier closer, still within the secured space, and turned its open door toward the blanket. When Mist came forward, she lifted the kitten gently and placed her inside. Then she took her hands away.
Mist huddled against the far wall. Her small cry brought Dove out of the corner.
The mother stopped at the opening. She could see her daughter, and Claire could see the tremor in her forelegs. Nobody touched her. Dana shifted a little farther aside until the route was clear.
“She’s right there,” Claire said.
Dove stretched her head through the door. Mist pressed toward her, and the mother stepped inside to meet her. Before Claire had closed the latch, Dove was washing the kitten’s face in short, determined strokes.
They let the two settle before carrying them to the car. Claire held the bottom of the carrier while Dana fastened it securely for the drive. Through the openings, she could see a piece of her old wool blanket beneath the folded gray bodies.
The trip took more than an hour. At first Claire looked into the carrier whenever they stopped at a light. Eventually she made herself watch the road ahead, leaving the cats to the small, familiar space they had made inside it.
Dana drove with the radio off. Once, when Mist complained, Dove shifted, and the carrier went quiet again. Claire remembered bringing the folded blanket to work and wondering whether she had any right to offer help when she couldn’t take the animals home.
Now she had spent weeks learning their routines. She knew which toy Mist carried, which corner Dove chose, and how long to leave her hand still. In another hour, Ruth and Tom would begin learning those things without her.
Dana glanced over. “You’ve got your phone on?”
“Yes.”
“Good. So will I.”
It was the only reassurance Claire wanted to hear twice.
Ruth and Tom met them at the gate. Tom wore a faded flannel shirt with the sleeves pushed up, and Ruth held a little saucer between both hands. As they came up the path, Claire saw steam fading from the milk.
“I remembered cats having this when I was little,” Ruth said, suddenly uncertain.
“We’ll use water,” Dana said gently. “Keep their food familiar at first.”
“Of course.” Ruth turned toward the kitchen at once. A moment later she came back with a fresh bowl and an apologetic smile, and Dana helped her find a place for it.
They had closed off the living room so the cats could explore a quiet, contained space. The beds stood together near the window. Litter and food were accessible, doors and screens secured, and Tom had moved the loose electrical cord Claire had mentioned during the visit.
Dana set the carrier on the rug. Claire knelt at the door, undid the latch, and moved away from the opening. Ruth started to speak, then stopped herself.
Mist came out first.
She stood with her front paws on the carpet and her back paws still inside, turning her head at each unfamiliar scent. Then she stepped fully out and followed the edge of the rug toward a chair. Her mother appeared behind her, paused, and looked across the room.
Tom stood by the window. He lowered himself slowly into a crouch and rested his hands on his knees. Ruth sat on the couch, holding her own hands together so they wouldn’t go reaching for anything.
Dove moved into the room.
She investigated a potted palm Ruth had checked was safe for cats, lifting a paw to touch a leaf that swayed above her head. Mist tried to do the same and missed. Dove watched the leaf settle, then sat down and began to wash her chest.
Ruth pressed her lips together. When she looked at Claire, her eyes were wet.
Claire didn’t say that everything was settled. She stayed still and listened to the small rasp of grooming. Dove could see the room, the kitten, and the people without having to turn her body into a wall.
Tom waited until the cat looked his way.
“Hello, Dove,” he said. “Take your time.”
She stopped washing. For several seconds, she studied him without moving. Then she walked toward his bent knee, paused close enough to sniff his jeans, and rubbed her side against him.
Tom looked at Ruth as though he needed somebody else to confirm it. His hand lifted, hesitated, and settled lightly on the cat’s head. Dove remained where she was.
Claire felt her own palm close against the rug.
Claire had been ready to show Tom where Dove liked to be touched, but his fingers had already found the space between her ears. He watched the cat closely, stopping when she moved and continuing when she leaned into his hand. Mist had discovered the edge of a curtain.
Dana touched Claire’s shoulder. “We can let them get acquainted.”
Claire nodded, but it took her a moment to stand. Ruth walked them to the door, asking when she should send the first update.
“Whenever you want,” Claire said. Then she added, “Soon would be nice.”
“You’ll probably have to tell me to stop.”
Claire looked back once. Dove had settled on the rug beside Tom’s feet, her body curved toward the chair. Mist disappeared behind the curtain and emerged on the other side, surprised by the route she’d found.
Claire left the wool blanket with them. At the door she had started to pick it up with the spare supplies, then put it back where its familiar smell could stay.
Outside, Dana checked that the gate had latched. Claire got into the passenger seat and fastened her belt with both hands. Through the open window came Tom’s low voice, followed by Ruth laughing at something the kitten had done.
Claire waited until the sound ended before she closed the window.
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