were the same height, their foreheads banged.
That
kind of smacked. Vee shoved out her arms to keep the woman from falling but ended up pushing her down with the pie pans. They clattered loudly on the corridor, along with the can opener at the same moment as Mrs. Sissy walked out the door across the way. Hermann was with her.
Mrs. Sissy leaped forward to help the Cat Woman, pushing away Vee’s assistance. “What are you up to now?” she cried. “Pushing down helpless old women?”
Vee remembered Sunny telling her they were not allowed to call the seniors “old.” It did not, however, seem a good time to remind Mrs. Sissy.
Hermann set the Cat Woman on her feet. Then the two turned and regarded Vee. Hermann’s face set in hard lines. Vee’s face flamed like a bad sunburn. She knelt and picked up the can opener and pans.
“I forgot the can opener and pie pans,” she said, her words jerking a bit over her madly beating heart. Honestly, you’d think she’d knocked over Cat Woman
on purpose.
Hermann grunted. “Kots und kids. Bah! You tink you got und easy job. Yah! My way is better. You vill see.”
If people would just leave them alone, they would get this project finished and get those cats into good spots. Hermann would see. She shifted impatiently, sneaking a look at her watch. No way was she going to be late a second time for Math Man.
“You!” Cat Woman huffed and straightened her velour running jacket, which, Vee noticed, was covered in cat hair. She suddenly remembered where she’d first seen the woman. During the girls’ first adventure, she’d been the woman who wouldn’t stop talking about her cats when they stopped at her door with an important mission. She opened her mouth to say more when Frank joined the group.
His gaze took in the can opener and the pie pans then went up to Vee. His eyebrows slanted together. She remembered Aneta’s comment, “Do we need Frank here?” From the indignant expression on his face,
yes.
“What happened to including the project supervisor in your little project?” he asked, folding long, skinny arms over an equally skinny chest.
“Hey, you!” It was the friendliest voice so far. Nadine walked up to her husband and slid an arm around his waist. She smiled at Vee.
“Whatcha up to?”
“Our project,” Vee stammered. “We’re going to catch the cats to start our project.”
A heavy silence sucked the oxygen out of the corridor before four voices chorused, “Oh no, you’re not!”
An hour later Vee and the girls stood shaking their heads.
“Who knew?” Sunny said.
“Not us,” Aneta said.
“We messed up big-time,” Esther said.
Nothing is going right
, Vee agreed.
Chapter 13
Caught in a Trap
T hey listened to the unhappy cats in the sheet-covered traps.
“I am so glad I smacked into the Cat Woman,” Vee said.
The girls gave her the stink eye.
“I mean, in a good way. She had the traps in the senior center closet. Weird.”
1. You need special traps to trap Dumpster cats.
2. You might not catch them all (one got away).
3. Dumpster cats do NOT think you are helping them.
4. Dumpster cats make scary monster noises when they are not happy.
5. Sheets are required.
6. When Frank gets mad, his face gets blotchy.
Sunny started to giggle. “The Cat Woman told us to cover the traps with sheets so the cats can begin to de-stress. Maybe we need to put a sheet over Frank.”
Frank had his head tipped back as though speaking to God. “I survived the first time with these four. Wasn’t that enough? Like I need the drama again?”
Vee wished the parking lot would swallow her up. How was she supposed to know that there was training involved to do this project?
Sunny swallowed her giggles and walked up to Frank. “Oh, Frank, I’m sorry. I think—” She paused and looked at Vee, who had a suspicious feeling Sunny was thinking Vee should be saying what she said next. “We didn’t think this through.”
Frank stomped into the
That
kind of smacked. Vee shoved out her arms to keep the woman from falling but ended up pushing her down with the pie pans. They clattered loudly on the corridor, along with the can opener at the same moment as Mrs. Sissy walked out the door across the way. Hermann was with her.
Mrs. Sissy leaped forward to help the Cat Woman, pushing away Vee’s assistance. “What are you up to now?” she cried. “Pushing down helpless old women?”
Vee remembered Sunny telling her they were not allowed to call the seniors “old.” It did not, however, seem a good time to remind Mrs. Sissy.
Hermann set the Cat Woman on her feet. Then the two turned and regarded Vee. Hermann’s face set in hard lines. Vee’s face flamed like a bad sunburn. She knelt and picked up the can opener and pans.
“I forgot the can opener and pie pans,” she said, her words jerking a bit over her madly beating heart. Honestly, you’d think she’d knocked over Cat Woman
on purpose.
Hermann grunted. “Kots und kids. Bah! You tink you got und easy job. Yah! My way is better. You vill see.”
If people would just leave them alone, they would get this project finished and get those cats into good spots. Hermann would see. She shifted impatiently, sneaking a look at her watch. No way was she going to be late a second time for Math Man.
“You!” Cat Woman huffed and straightened her velour running jacket, which, Vee noticed, was covered in cat hair. She suddenly remembered where she’d first seen the woman. During the girls’ first adventure, she’d been the woman who wouldn’t stop talking about her cats when they stopped at her door with an important mission. She opened her mouth to say more when Frank joined the group.
His gaze took in the can opener and the pie pans then went up to Vee. His eyebrows slanted together. She remembered Aneta’s comment, “Do we need Frank here?” From the indignant expression on his face,
yes.
“What happened to including the project supervisor in your little project?” he asked, folding long, skinny arms over an equally skinny chest.
“Hey, you!” It was the friendliest voice so far. Nadine walked up to her husband and slid an arm around his waist. She smiled at Vee.
“Whatcha up to?”
“Our project,” Vee stammered. “We’re going to catch the cats to start our project.”
A heavy silence sucked the oxygen out of the corridor before four voices chorused, “Oh no, you’re not!”
An hour later Vee and the girls stood shaking their heads.
“Who knew?” Sunny said.
“Not us,” Aneta said.
“We messed up big-time,” Esther said.
Nothing is going right
, Vee agreed.
Chapter 13
Caught in a Trap
T hey listened to the unhappy cats in the sheet-covered traps.
“I am so glad I smacked into the Cat Woman,” Vee said.
The girls gave her the stink eye.
“I mean, in a good way. She had the traps in the senior center closet. Weird.”
1. You need special traps to trap Dumpster cats.
2. You might not catch them all (one got away).
3. Dumpster cats do NOT think you are helping them.
4. Dumpster cats make scary monster noises when they are not happy.
5. Sheets are required.
6. When Frank gets mad, his face gets blotchy.
Sunny started to giggle. “The Cat Woman told us to cover the traps with sheets so the cats can begin to de-stress. Maybe we need to put a sheet over Frank.”
Frank had his head tipped back as though speaking to God. “I survived the first time with these four. Wasn’t that enough? Like I need the drama again?”
Vee wished the parking lot would swallow her up. How was she supposed to know that there was training involved to do this project?
Sunny swallowed her giggles and walked up to Frank. “Oh, Frank, I’m sorry. I think—” She paused and looked at Vee, who had a suspicious feeling Sunny was thinking Vee should be saying what she said next. “We didn’t think this through.”
Frank stomped into the
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