Misty Hollow Cat Detective (Darcy Sweet Mystery) (A Smudge the Cat Mystery Book 1) by K.J. Emrick
Authors: K.J. Emrick
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caws again, loudly, his wings fluttering and jittery.
" Corvin!" I yell at him, annoyed and trying to hide how my heart is thudding a mile a minute in my chest. "What are you doing?! Where did you come from?"
Corvin twists his head at me in that annoying way that crows do. "The sky. The sky. Where else would I come from, friend Smudge?"
I blink at him. He's serious. "That's not what I… Nevermind. Go away, will you? I'm trying to enjoy the sunshine." It was still early, but I wondered if I could find Twistypaws out and about somewhere. Have a walk or a run through the trees.
Just thinking about her made my tail twitch. In the good way.
Corvin hops around in front of me again, breaking up my daydream, leaning in and twitching his head back and forth to stare at me with either eye.
"Don't do that!" I tell him. "You know that freaks me out."
"Sorry, sorry!" he screeches. "Can't go away. Can't go away. Need your help. Need your help, friend Smudge! Caw! Need your help!"
With every word he's getting louder and louder, flapping his wings still, all black-feathered agitation. At this rate he's going to wake up the entire neighborhood. As much as I'd like to see Jon Tinker's sleep get interrupted like mine was, I don't need anyone seeing me with a crow.
"Shh!" I hiss. "Keep it down, already!"
"Need your help!" he repeats in a loud whisper that wasn't much better than what he'd been doing before. I swear it's like crows can only hold one thought at a time and even that was too much for their little bird brains.
Me and Corvin have a complicated, uh, arrangement. He's one of the crows who live in the town center near the park. Now, don't get me wrong. I can't stand crows. They're less annoying than dogs, more annoying than…well, you know the rest. But Corvin here has been a help to me more than once. So I tolerate him, and bring him a sparkly bit of broken necklace or bright piece of string every once in a while, and he acts like I'm his only friend in the world. Which, for all I know, I am.
Why do I need help from a crow, you might ask? Trust me. Some days I need all the help I can get.
"Okay, okay," I say quickly, looking around and hoping that no one has seen us. There's any number of cats in this town but where Darcy and I live—and the bed-stealing Jon Tinker, too—is on a lonely road that doesn't really go anywhere. There's exactly two houses here, and the neighbors don't have animals. No reason for anyone to come over this way. Still, I'd be more comfortable somewhere else. "Meet me in our tree, all right? We'll talk there."
"The tree, the tree!" Corvin cries excitedly. "Yes, the tree! Meet ya. Meet ya!"
He flaps his wings hard and then he's aloft, not exactly gracefully, flying off toward our secret meeting spot.
For just a moment, I look up toward Darcy's bedroom window, growling at how Jon Tinker has ruined my day. I'd still be in bed sleeping next to Darcy if not for him. Not having early morning meetings with a crow.
***
It took me a little longer to get to our arranged meeting spot than it took Corvin. He can fly. I can't. I wish I could, sometimes, but I wouldn't give up being a cat to be a bird. Not ever. Even if it would be cool to know what it felt like to soar over housetops and swoop down on mice from above…
Ahem. Anyway.
I have to run through the trees surrounding the town, from one to the other, sniffing out a trail that I know very well but isn't marked in any way. I don't want anyone seeing me and Corvin together. Might give certain cats the wrong idea.
When I get to one particular tree with hoary bark on a narrow, straight trunk rising high up above the ground, I stop to get my breath. I hear Corvin up there in the branches, cawing at me to hurry up. My eyes narrow. This had better be worth it.
Scrunching down on my back legs, I wiggle back and forth, tensing, getting ready
" Corvin!" I yell at him, annoyed and trying to hide how my heart is thudding a mile a minute in my chest. "What are you doing?! Where did you come from?"
Corvin twists his head at me in that annoying way that crows do. "The sky. The sky. Where else would I come from, friend Smudge?"
I blink at him. He's serious. "That's not what I… Nevermind. Go away, will you? I'm trying to enjoy the sunshine." It was still early, but I wondered if I could find Twistypaws out and about somewhere. Have a walk or a run through the trees.
Just thinking about her made my tail twitch. In the good way.
Corvin hops around in front of me again, breaking up my daydream, leaning in and twitching his head back and forth to stare at me with either eye.
"Don't do that!" I tell him. "You know that freaks me out."
"Sorry, sorry!" he screeches. "Can't go away. Can't go away. Need your help. Need your help, friend Smudge! Caw! Need your help!"
With every word he's getting louder and louder, flapping his wings still, all black-feathered agitation. At this rate he's going to wake up the entire neighborhood. As much as I'd like to see Jon Tinker's sleep get interrupted like mine was, I don't need anyone seeing me with a crow.
"Shh!" I hiss. "Keep it down, already!"
"Need your help!" he repeats in a loud whisper that wasn't much better than what he'd been doing before. I swear it's like crows can only hold one thought at a time and even that was too much for their little bird brains.
Me and Corvin have a complicated, uh, arrangement. He's one of the crows who live in the town center near the park. Now, don't get me wrong. I can't stand crows. They're less annoying than dogs, more annoying than…well, you know the rest. But Corvin here has been a help to me more than once. So I tolerate him, and bring him a sparkly bit of broken necklace or bright piece of string every once in a while, and he acts like I'm his only friend in the world. Which, for all I know, I am.
Why do I need help from a crow, you might ask? Trust me. Some days I need all the help I can get.
"Okay, okay," I say quickly, looking around and hoping that no one has seen us. There's any number of cats in this town but where Darcy and I live—and the bed-stealing Jon Tinker, too—is on a lonely road that doesn't really go anywhere. There's exactly two houses here, and the neighbors don't have animals. No reason for anyone to come over this way. Still, I'd be more comfortable somewhere else. "Meet me in our tree, all right? We'll talk there."
"The tree, the tree!" Corvin cries excitedly. "Yes, the tree! Meet ya. Meet ya!"
He flaps his wings hard and then he's aloft, not exactly gracefully, flying off toward our secret meeting spot.
For just a moment, I look up toward Darcy's bedroom window, growling at how Jon Tinker has ruined my day. I'd still be in bed sleeping next to Darcy if not for him. Not having early morning meetings with a crow.
***
It took me a little longer to get to our arranged meeting spot than it took Corvin. He can fly. I can't. I wish I could, sometimes, but I wouldn't give up being a cat to be a bird. Not ever. Even if it would be cool to know what it felt like to soar over housetops and swoop down on mice from above…
Ahem. Anyway.
I have to run through the trees surrounding the town, from one to the other, sniffing out a trail that I know very well but isn't marked in any way. I don't want anyone seeing me and Corvin together. Might give certain cats the wrong idea.
When I get to one particular tree with hoary bark on a narrow, straight trunk rising high up above the ground, I stop to get my breath. I hear Corvin up there in the branches, cawing at me to hurry up. My eyes narrow. This had better be worth it.
Scrunching down on my back legs, I wiggle back and forth, tensing, getting ready
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