Page 85 of New Beginnings at the Cosy Cat Cafe
‘She’s not here,’ said Tori, her heart sinking. ‘She can’t have escaped can she, Mum?’ The thought made Tori’s heart race. The safety of the cats had been her top priority when they’d been redesigning the layout. She was sure the café was escape-proof.
‘She’ll just be hiding somewhere, don’t worry. Let’s have another look,’ said Joyce, leading the way out of the kitchen.
‘Excuse me, everyone,’ said Tori, loud enough to get the attention of the customers. ‘I’m sorry to interrupt your lunch but one of our cats is playing hide-and-seek with us. Would you mind having a look under your tables to see if she’s there? Her name’s Daisy and she’s a tortoiseshell.’
Everyone began rising from their seats and peering underneath chairs and tables in search of Daisy. Leo was quick to spring to Tori’s side, while Lara checked all of Daisy’s favourite hidey-holes.
‘She’s got to be here somewhere,’ said Leo, taking Tori’s arm. ‘This place is escape-proof; there’s no way she’s got through two sets of closed doors to make it out to the street. It’s not possible.’
Tori hoped he was right. She looked around the room again, scanning every inch of the café for a sign of Daisy.Running back to the counter, she grabbed a packet of treats from under the till.
‘I’m so sorry, I just need to call her.’ A hush fell over the café as Tori shook the treat packet frantically and called Daisy’s name. Valentine, Mr Wiggles, Angel and Norris all rushed towards her, meowing in the hope of scoring a snack. All the cats were accounted for, allexceptDaisy. She couldn’t explain how it had happened, but Tori now felt certain that, wherever Daisy was, she wasn’t in the café.
Chapter 28
Most of the customers had returned to their seats and Tori could hear a few of the unfamiliar faces among them muttering in hushed tones:a cat’s escaped apparently… one of the cats is missing…
Tori’s head was spinning, and she could feel the room closing in around her… then Leo’s arm was around her waist, steadying her.
‘Don’t panic, she can’t have gone far,’ said Leo, giving her a reassuring smile.
‘He’s right, love. She might be somewhere in here and we just can’t see her. I’ll keep looking,’ said Joyce, giving Tori’s hand a squeeze.
‘Me too,’ chorused Lara, ‘cats are good at hiding. Domino got stuck under the dishwasher the other day and we didn’t find him for ages.’
‘Oh, bless you, Lara,’ said Tori, forcing a smile. She took a deep breath and calmed herself. ‘You’re right, she must bearound here somewhere,’ she said, turning to Leo and automatically grabbing his hand.
‘Why don’t you and I head out to the green and see if she’s made it out of the building? Lara and Joyce, can you keep looking inside in case she’s hidden away somewhere we haven’t looked yet?’ said Leo.
‘But what about this lot?’ said Joyce, gesturing to the customers. ‘Shouldn’t we carry on serving?’
‘Let’s find Daisy first, then we’ll worry about the customers,’ said Tori decisively.
Tori and Leo made towards the lobby. As they approached, the door was flung open to reveal Claire, clearly out of breath, holding Daisy in her arms.
‘Have you lost someone?’ asked Claire.
‘Daisy!’ cried Tori, taking the little tortoiseshell from Claire and nuzzling her face in the cat’s soft fur. ‘Where did you find her?’
‘I spotted her on the green when I was heading back to the salon. I thought she looked like one of yours and you were probably going frantic—’
‘Oh, thank you!’ said Tori, hugging Claire with her free arm. ‘I was really starting to panic! I just don’t understand how she could have got out; I mean she’d have to get through two sets of doors to make it out the front, it just doesn’t make sense—’
‘Oh, you know cats,’ replied Claire, waving a hand. ‘Ingenious little creatures, aren’t they? Anyway, she’s back safe and sound now, that’s what matters.’
‘You’re right. I’d like to know how she managed it, though – I don’t want it to happen again,’ said Tori.
‘Why don’t we get Daisy settled inside and let Claire get on her way?’ suggested Leo.
‘Sorry, Claire, I know you said you were heading back to the salon, or I’d offer you lunch to say thank you. Why don’t you stay next time, when you’re not so busy?’ said Tori.
‘Did I? Oh, I’ve got plenty of time…’
‘Perfect! Well, lunch is on me then, it’s the least I can do. Why don’t you join Leo and Lara? I’m just getting something for them too.’
‘I’m sure Claire would rather—’
‘I’dloveto join you,’ said Claire, interrupting Leo and slipping her arm through his. Tori noticed he looked decidedly uncomfortable all of a sudden.
