Never Tease a Siamese: A Leigh Koslow Mystery by Edie Claire Page B

sharp elbow-jab to her ribs. "Told you so!"
    The lawyer read off a long list of personal items and nest eggs to be split among a half-dozen men, then bequeathed smaller parcels of money to several other employees, including Nikki. Leigh noted that of the dozen or so people in the room, only the young couple had not yet been mentioned. Were Lilah's son and daughter-in-law her only relatives?
    "As for the Murchison residence—" the lawyer raised his voice, and several attendees, most notably Adith Rhodis and the girl with the green lips, sat up at attention. "It is my desire that the house be used to maintain my precious cats in the level of comfort to which they have been accustomed. Toward this end, I would ask that Nikki Loomis continue to reside in the house and care for my pets as long as she so desires, knowing that doing so will earn her her current salary, with regular increases, until such time as all the cats have passed on. I do not wish that anyone else be allowed to reside in my house; however, Jared Loomis may continue to occupy the garage apartment as long as his sister remains in my employ. Should—"
    The lawyer was interrupted by the younger Mrs. Murchison, who bounced off the couch spewing a steady stream of vulgarity. "The cats. The CATS ? This is m y house!" she screamed at the attorney. "I want it. I've always wanted it. Dean said I could have it!"
    Dean Murchison rose slowly, the seams in his pants visibly straining. "Now, look, dude," he said calmly, more as if addressing an errant child than an attorney, "That's just wrong. This house belonged to my old man. When my mother died it was supposed to come to me."
    The lawyer, who had faced the woman's onslaught without visible reaction,  adjusted his tie. "If you would allow me to finish, Mr. Murchison?" he said coolly.
    Nikki Loomis cleared her throat, shifting in her own seat just enough to flex her biceps in Dean's direction. He looked at her with contempt, but nonetheless took hold of his wife's arm and pulled her back down to the couch. "Let's hear the rest of it, Rochelle, honey," he soothed, loud enough for the cats upstairs to hear.
    The lawyer continued. "As I was reading, Mrs. Murchison states: Should Ms. Loomis choose to leave my employ, or should she not abide by the terms I have set forth, she will be replaced by a like employee, to be hired by Randall Koslow, DVM."
    Leigh's ears perked.
    "Inasmuch as Randall Koslow has provided my pets with top-notch health care for over thirty years now, and given that he is undoubtedly the only truly honest and dedicated man that I know, I ask that he oversee the care of my pets indefinitely, on the terms of a generous retainer as outlined below."
    The lawyer paused, explaining to Leigh that the will then went on at great length about the disposition of each and every cat, and that he would share the details with her father at a later date. The gist of it, she gathered, was that in exchange for a handsome but not excessive amount of money, her father was now the godfather of twenty-three Siamese. "In addition," Mr. Sheridan continued, "I am bequeathing a total of $500,000 to the feline charity or charities of Dr. Koslow's choice."
    Rochelle exploded for a second time. She maligned the good name of the Murchison Siamese—and cats in general—for several ear-shattering moments before her husband finally clapped a hand over her mouth. "Half a million ," he bellowed, struggling to keep Rochelle down, "to cat charities?"
    The lawyer puffed up his own chest. "Mr. Murchison, sir, I ask that you and your wife please restrain yourselves. If you cannot, I'm afraid we will have to end the reading."
    "Ouch!" Dean screamed in pain as Rochelle bit his hand, but he managed to pull her into his lap and hold her with a wrestler's grip. He wasn't a big guy, but weighing in at about a hundred pounds, his female opponent was mostly fingernails. Once her arms were safely pinned, he slapped a conciliatory kiss on the back of