Misty Hollow Cat Detective (Darcy Sweet Mystery) (A Smudge the Cat Mystery Book 1) Read Free Page A

if there's anything we can…"
    Wait a minute.
    Over her shoulder, I saw another letter that had been tossed aside on the table.  Usually, human mail is boring to me.  "You've won a million dollars," or "New credit card offer," or "Happy Birthday!"  Who needs all of that noise coming at them day after day?  Not cats.  That's for sure.
    This paper was very interesting to me, though.  I actually can read better than just really well.  I'm faster than a lot of people, in fact.  I read the whole letter in two blinks of an eye and nearly forgot my whiskers were tangled up in Twist's when I realized what the letter said.
    "Uh, Smudge?" she said, quietly.  "What were you saying?"
    I nearly jumped.  For the love of catnip, I can be so stupid.  All I've wanted is a chance to get close to Twistypaws and here it was, but instead of enjoying it I was about to do the right thing.
    "I was looking at this," I said.  Stepping away from her , wishing I didn't have to, I snagged the paper with my claws and pulled it out more.  Sure enough, it was exactly what I thought it was.  "Dear Benson LaCroix," I started to read to her.
    " Twistypaws?" a man's deep voice came from upstairs.  "Is that you, kitten?"
    Twist's ears drooped and she crouched back on her paws.  "Oh no!  Oh no oh no oh no!  Smudge, Benson's awake.  He's going to come down here and see us.  You have to go!"
    Wait.  What?  "But, I was just—"
    "It doesn't matter!  You have to go!  Benson hates it when I bring guy cats over."
    Oh.  Well, okay, that made sense.  I didn't want Twistypaws getting in trouble, after all.  I went to follow her off the table, then paused.  "Uh, wait.  How often do you have other guy cats over?"
    She looked back at me with that look some girls could manage so well.  "Really?  You want to talk about that now?"
    "Oh, right.  No.  Not now.  Let's go."  I took two more steps before an idea occurred to me.
    As Twistypaws jumped down from the table I went back and bit into the edge of the second letter I had found, gently but firmly, and started tugging it after me.
    "What are you doing?" Twistypaws called up in disbelief.
    "I neef thif," I said, my mouth full of paper.
    "You what?"
    "Kitten?" Benson called again.  I could hear his footsteps on the stairs now.
    " Hurry!" Twist hissed.  "Get down from there!"
    I did.  Jumping with paper in your mouth is nowhere near as easy as it sounds, but I managed it and landed gracefully on the floor next to Twist.  If you can call sliding on all fours and flopping half onto my backside graceful.  I spit the paper out.
    "Kitten?" I asked her, repeating the name Benson had called her, an amused smile crossing my lips.
    She looked away, up the stairs.  "It's a pet name.  And don't you dare repeat it to anyone!  Now, go!  Wait, you can't take that letter!"
    Benson was halfway down the stairs now , still calling for Twist.  "Hey, where are you at, Twistypaws?"
    "Doesn't look like you have time to argue," I said, still smiling at her, which really frustrated her.  I couldn't help it.  She was so cute when she was angry.   I didn't want to get her in trouble, though, so snatching the letter back up in my mouth I ran for the door.
    Through the cat door I ran, paper flipping up over my eyes so I couldn't see.  From behind me, I heard.  "Oh, there you are kitten.  Where you been tonight?  Come here, now."
    I could tell how much Benson loved Twistypaws.  It made sense to me that he didn't want to make her move to a new house.  Maybe a new town, for that matter.  For the love of catnip, I hadn't even thought of that.  Well.  Now I just had to fix this for her.
    As I ran through the night I couldn't help but chuckle, though.  "Heh.  Kiffen."
     
    ***
     
    My path took me through the park again.  It was lit up at night, floodlights around the gazebo and three tall lamp posts that pretty much illuminated the whole place, even if it did leave some nice dark shadows to slink