Less than a minute later Tim returned, using both hands to carry a large cat carrier. A low throbbing growl began to emanate from it as he approached. “I had to come back by the station to fix my timecard,” he said, breathless and exuberant. “And I was real worried about her being out in this cold and snow, so I tried to think like a cat. Like, where would I go to be warm, y’know?” He set the carrier down. The growl changed pitch briefly, and I could see some sort of creature shifting within. “Then I remembered what you said about the turkey, and so I said to myself, ‘Self, if you were a cat who liked turkey and wanted a warm place, you’d probably end up over by Kelly’s Deli.’?”
“Um.” I swallowed and tried again. “Are you sure it’s the right cat?”
Chuckling, he crouched and peered inside the container. “Great big calico Manx, right? And it’s a female. I checked, just to be sure, even though male calicos are pretty darn rare.”
“You’re kidding,” I blurted, staring at him. No way he’d found a cat matching my random description. I didn’t even dare look at Eilahn.
He gave an earnest nod. “It’s true! It’s a genetic thing with the way the X-chromosomes carry the coat color.” He shrugged, ducked his head almost shyly. “I like biology.”
I decided not to clarify what I thought he was kidding about. Slowly I lowered myself to peer into the carrier. I saw plenty of teeth and narrow-slitted eyes as it hissed and spat. But beyond that I could see calico fur. Nor was there any sign of a tail.
“That’s Fuzzykins, right?” He was so damn proud of himself. And I could hardly blame him. And what the hell was I supposed to say? It was the goddamn cat I’d described. This was getting ridiculous. Just how many coincidences was I going to encounter today? I could only hope to hell that most of these events truly were pure happenstance. Or maybe I simply needed to go back to bed and start this day over.
“Yes,” I heard myself saying. “That’s Fuzzykins.” I mustered a weak smile. “That’s a good Fuzzykins. Good kitty.”
Fuzzykins gave me a fuck you glare accompanied by a I-want-to-claw-your-face-off hiss. I quickly stood. “Um…she must be traumatized from her time on the street.” Great. A feral fucking cat. What the hell was I supposed to do with this thing?
Eilahn crouched and peered into the carrier. To my shock the growl stopped and the cat gave a perfectly normal mrow? The demon smiled and stuck her fingers between the wires of the carrier door. I wasn’t worried about her fingers getting bitten off—not with demon-fast reflexes, but apparently Eilahn didn’t have to worry about that. The damn creature rubbed her cheek against Eilahn’s fingers and started up a purr that shook the carrier.
Eilahn turned her gaze up to me—no longer the confident, kickass demon, but this time a hopeful eager child with a “can I keep it, pleeeeeeease?” expression on her face. I blinked in surprise. This was a side of her I’d never seen before. I hoped she didn’t want to eat it.
I resisted the urge to sigh and instead forced a smile. “You rock, Tim. Thanks for finding her for me.”