A CAT CALLED MERLOT

Thursday 5th August 2021

As I paced up and down the road, mind racing, I saw Kes walking quickly in my direction, calling my name. I wasn’t in the mood to be sociable and was about to jump over the wall but something about her voice made me stop.

  “I saw them, Merlot!” She said, looking down at me, her brow puckered into a deep frown.

A sense of relief that a human who might actually be able to help, had witnessed Marjorie’s abduction flowed over me and temporarily masked the burning pain in my ribs. 

  “Don’t worry, I know where they live. They come from a local estate. I rented there for a while but it was too awful. Lots of rough people doing drugs and stuff. It was so bad, I decided the streets along the sea front were safer.”

I stared up at her, my eyes pleading for her to help me get Marjorie back. Perhaps she’d go and tell the police that drove around in their white cars that made the terrible noise. 

The only estate I knew was a fair walk from The Avenue and there were stories about the feral gangs of cats that roamed round it. None of the cats around here ever went there. I recalled the man who’d thrown Marjorie into the truck telling his mates that he could “get rid” of Marjorie, “quickly” and my heart sank. Even if the police could be encouraged to find the men, they might be too late. Kes however, must have read my mind as she said, “Come on Merlot, let’s go find Marjorie!” And she turned and began to walk quickly down the road. I trotted behind, ignoring the pain and the prospect of getting assaulted again. 

We walked for what seemed like a long way, cutting across the fields that led away from the beach. As I began to slow, Kes picked me up and carried me for a while and I let her, grateful for the rest. Eventually I could see houses in the distance and a fast, main road running in front of them. We crossed it quickly and turned left into an alley that was full of litter and had writing on the walls. “I’ll not put you down yet,” said Kes, “In this place you could end up with a needle in your paw and then where would we be?”

I assumed the Vets and that added another dimension to an already awful day. I noticed how Kes’s body language changed as soon as we reached the estate. Her muscles tensed and she moved quickly and cautiously, like a wild animal. At the end of the alley she stopped. “I can see you’re in pain but I hope you’re ok to walk now, Merlot. If I carry you, we’ll draw attention to ourselves and we need to blend in. Just follow me but keep a bit of distance. Don’t go near anyone, you hear?” Gently she lifted me to the ground, “And don’t get lost!”