The Cats that Stalked a Ghost (18 page)

Read The Cats that Stalked a Ghost Online

Authors: Karen Anne Golden

“I pray he follows through.  When did you talk to him?”

“Mum brought him by before they drove to the airport in Indy.”

Colleen stopped, and put a finger to her lips.  “Shhh, Katz, did you hear that?”  She gazed up the stairs. 

“Mao,” Dewey cried.  “Yowl,” Iris answered, behind the closed door of the upstairs front bedroom.

“That’s the cats.  Jake and I made a cat room upstairs.”

“Where, pray tell?” Colleen asked.  “I hope it’s not in the haunted rocking chair room.”

“We haven’t had a paranormal experience since Jake and I found Katrina’s grave.”

“Seriously?”

Katherine nodded.

The two walked to the kitchen, which was beautifully appointed with appliances, but lacked a dining table.  Margie’s and Cokey’s folding card table with metal chairs were in the corner.

“Have a seat,” Katherine said.  “Want something to drink?”

Colleen sat down, and set her large bag on the oak floor.  “No, I’m good.”

Katherine slid a yearbook in front of Colleen.  “Remember when I texted that Jake and I were heading to the library to look at Erie school yearbooks?”

“Yeah, is this one of them?”

“The library didn’t have the year we wanted, but Jake’s great-uncle, at the courthouse, loaned us his copy.”

Katherine opened the yearbook to the page marked with a yellow post-it note.

Colleen moved closer to look.  “Class of 1964,” she read out loud.  “Which one is it?”

Katherine pointed to the middle photo. 

“Ah, she was so pretty.”

“Meet our ghost — Katrina Evelyn Clay,” Katherine announced solemnly. 

“Spirit,” Colleen corrected.  “So, Katz, there isn’t a reason for us to communicate with Katrina.  She’s passed over, and — ”

“Is at peace now,” Katherine finished.

“Do you think we’ll ever find out why she warned you?”

“I don’t think we’ll ever know, but I thank Katrina for saving my life.  She beckoned me to go into the carriage house, so I wouldn’t be in the explosion.”

Colleen agreed. “It makes good sense to me.  Have you decided on a name for the memorial park?”

“Katrina’s Park.  I want it to be a happy place for children,” Katherine said, breaking into a wide smile.

Scout and Abra slinked into the room, and assumed their stalking positions.  They lowered their heads and crept slowly, their stomachs almost touching the floor.  Abra’s tail twitched furiously, while Scout’s thumped back-and-forth, in an agitated fashion. 

Scout clucked.  “At-at-at-at.”

“Girls, what is it?” Katherine whispered, slightly alarmed, thinking the spirit was back.

Colleen swiftly reached into her bag and extracted her K2 meter.

The Siamese continued stalking an unseen force, slowly and steadily, until Scout pounced on the object at hand — a small gray mouse.  The mouse thwarted the great Siamese huntress by running underneath the refrigerator.

Colleen screamed, while Katherine jumped up on her chair.  “A mouse!”

Abra glanced at Katherine, and licked her lips in tasty anticipation while Scout crossed her eyes dreamily.

Katherine got down from her chair, and caught each cat around the middle.  “Oh, no, you don’t.  I’m taking you two upstairs.”

Scout squawked, and Abra shrieked a loud “Raw” in protest.

Colleen leaped out of her chair, and said, “You’re not leaving me alone in here with a mouse!”

The Siamese struggled to be put down.  “Stop it!  You’re not catching that poor creature on my watch.”

Colleen said, “You really want to stay here now?”

“Not thinkin’ so,” Katherine answered.  “As soon as I put the cats in their room, I’m calling Jake.  We’re officially moving to the bungalow — tonight!”

“Na-waugh,” Scout disagreed, and lightly bit Katherine on the chin.  “Naw,” Abra added.

 

The End

 

Dear Reader . . .

I love it when my readers write to me.  If you’d like to email me about what you’d like to see in the next book, or just talk about your favorite scenes and characters, email me at:
[email protected]

Thank you so much for reading my book. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I did writing it. If you liked “
The Cats that Stalked a Ghost
,” I would be so thankful if you’d help others enjoy this book, too, by recommending it to your friends, family, and book clubs, and/or by writing a positive review on Amazon and/or Goodreads.

I love to post pictures of my cats on my Facebook pages, and would enjoy learning about your pets, as well.

Follow me @
https://www.facebook.com/karenannegolden
 

Website:
http://www.karenannegolden.webs.com

Amazon author page:
http://tinyurl.com/mkmpg4d

 

Thanks again!

Karen

 

Acknowledgements

Thanks to my husband, Jeff, who is always the very first one to read my book.

Special thanks to Vicki Braun, my editor, who is a lot of fun to work with. Vicki also edited the first five books of
The Cats That
. . . Cozy Mystery series.

Also, thanks to Ramona Lockwood, my book cover designer. 

Thank you to my beta readers:  Linda Golden, Ramona Kekstadt, and Melissa McGee.

Thanks to my cats that keep me on my toes, and offer so much material for me to write about.  Redmond, a ginger rescue, can open many locks.  He throws books off my bookcase when he wants to chill out from the world.  And, Rusty, a flame-point rescue, graces my Facebook pages with his funny antics.

At the
Rainbow Bridge, special hugs to my Siamese cat, Princess Pee Wee, who inspired me to write the character of Scout.  Also, Iris, who was a Siamese thief, and Lilac who really did cry “Me-yowl.”

 

The Cats that Surfed the Web

Book One in
The Cats that
. . . Cozy Mystery series

If you haven’t read the first book,
The Cats that Surfed the Web
, you can download the Kindle version on Amazon:
http://amzn.com/B00H2862YG
Paperback is also available.

With over 272 Amazon five-star reviews, “The Cats that Surfed the Web,” is an action-packed, exhilarating read.  When Katherine “Katz” Kendall, a career woman with cats, discovers she’s the sole heir of a huge inheritance, she can’t believe her good luck. She’s okay with the conditions in the will: Move from New York City to the small town of Erie, Indiana, live in her great aunt’s pink Victorian mansion, and take care of an Abyssinian cat. With her three Siamese cats and best friend Colleen riding shotgun, Katz leaves Manhattan to find a former housekeeper dead in the basement.  There are people in the town who are furious that they didn’t get the money. But who would be greedy enough to get rid of the rightful heir to take the money and run?

Four adventurous felines help Katz solve the crimes by mysteriously “searching” the Internet for clues.  If you love cats, especially cozy cat mysteries, you’ll enjoy this series. 

 

The Cats that Chased the Storm

Book Two in
The Cats that
. . . Cozy Mystery series

The second book,
The Cats that Chased the Storm
, is also available on Kindle and in paperback. Amazon:
http://amzn.com/B00IPOPJOU

It’s early May in Erie, Indiana, and the weather has turned most foul. We find Katherine “Katz” Kendall, heiress to the Colfax fortune, living in a pink mansion, caring for her three Siamese and Abby the Abyssinian. Severe thunderstorms frighten the cats, but Scout is better than any weather app. A different storm is brewing, however, with a discovery that connects great-uncle William Colfax to the notorious gangster John Dillinger. Why is the Erie Historical Society so eager to get William’s personal papers? Is the new man in Katherine’s life a fortune hunter? Will Abra mysteriously reappear, and is Abby a magnet for danger?

A fast-paced whodunit, the second book in “The Cats that” series involves four extraordinary felines that help Katz unravel the mysteries in her life.

 

The Cats that Told a Fortune

Book Three in
The Cats that
. . . Cozy Mystery series

The third book,
The Cats that Told a Fortune
, is available on Kindle and in paperback. Amazon:
http://amzn.com/B00MAAZ3ZU

With over 150 Amazon five-star reviews, “The Cats that Told a Fortune” is an action-packed, exhilarating read.  In the land of corn mazes and covered bridge festivals, a serial killer is on the loose.  Autumn in Erie, Indiana means cool days of intrigue and subterfuge.  Katherine “Katz” Kendall settles into her late great aunt’s Victorian mansion with her five cats.  A Halloween party at the mansion turns out to be more than Katz planned for.  Meanwhile, she’s teaching her first computer training class, and a serial killer is murdering young women.  Along the way, Katz and her cats uncover important clues to the identity of the killer, and find out about Erie’s local crime family . . . the hard way. 

 

 

The Cats that Played the Market

Book Four in
The Cats that
. . . Cozy Mystery series

              If you haven’t read the fourth book,
The Cats that Played the Market
, you can download the Kindle version or purchase the paperback on Amazon at:
http://amzn.com/B00Q71LBYA

              If you love mysteries with cats, don’t miss this action-packed page turner.  A blizzard blows into Indiana, bringing gifts, gala events, and a ghastly murder to heiress Katherine "Katz" Kendall. It's Katherine's birthday, and she gets more than she bargains for when someone evil from her past comes back to haunt her. After all hell breaks loose at the Erie Museum's opening, Katherine and her five cats unwittingly stumble upon clues that help solve a mystery. But has Scout lost her special abilities? Or will Katz find that another one of her amazing felines is a super-sleuth?

              With the cats providing clues, it's up to Katherine and her friends to piece together the murderous puzzle . . . before the town goes bust!  With over 123 five-star Amazon reviews, this thrilling, suspenseful read will keep you guessing until the last page. 

 

 

The Cats that Watched the Woods

Book Five in
The Cats that
. . . Cozy Mystery series

If you haven’t read the fifth book,
The Cats that Watched the Woods
, you can download the Kindle version or purchase the paperback on Amazon at: 
http://amzn.com/B00VKF9Q2M

What have the extraordinary cats of millionaire Katherine “Katz” Kendall surfed up now?  “Idyllic vacation cabin by a pond stocked with catfish.”  It’s July in Erie, Indiana, and steamy weather fuels the tension between Katz and her fiancé, Jake.  Katz rents the cabin for a private getaway, though Siamese cats, Scout and Abra, demand to go along.  How does a peaceful, serene setting go south in such a hurry?  Is the terrifying man in the woods real, or is he the legendary ghost of Peace Lake?  It’s up to Katz and her cats to piece together the mysterious puzzle.  The fifth book in the popular “The Cats that . . . Cozy Mystery” series is a suspenseful, thrilling ride that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

Table of Contents

Prologue

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty-one

Chapter Twenty-two

Chapter Twenty-three

Chapter Twenty-four

Chapter Twenty-five

Chapter Twenty-six

Chapter Twenty-seven

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