The Perfect Kitten

“Chris – hi!”

The library books shifted under Flower’s paws as Chris set the bag down and started chatting to the neighbour who’d waved at him. The bag slumped open, revealing the pile of books and the little white kitten perched between them. Flower peered over the edge of the bag and then hopped out. Chris and the neighbour were too busy gossiping and complaining about someone dumping an old mattress on the grass verge down the road to notice her. Flower padded away, sniffing thoughtfully at the cars-and-lorries smell of the air.

She wandered along the pavement, flinching at the rumble of the cars’ wheels and the way the air moved as they sped by her. It ruffled her fur and her whiskers, and she knew that they were large and perhaps dangerous. A big truck went past, scaring her with its heavy rattling vibration and Flower crouched down by a gatepost, where it felt a little safer.

Then there was a sudden rush of air and movement as a car rolled past her into the driveway, so close that the ground shook under her paws and her ears and whiskers were blown straight back.

The kitten stumbled backwards with a mew of fright. She had never seen a car so close up – she didn’t know what was happening.

The car’s engine was turned off and the terrifying shake of the ground settled to an uneasy nothing. Flower stayed frozen for a couple of seconds and then raced away, desperate to escape the fearful rumbling thing that she was sure had almost flattened her. She dashed wildly along the pavement, shooting round a corner into a side road and then down a little alley.

The shuddering vibrations of the cars were a little further away now and her hammering heart slowed. She flung herself under a clump of scruffy bushes and crouched there among the dead leaves and dust, shivering each time another car shook the ground.

Mum didn’t have any meetings after school that day so she brought Abi and Ruby home, rather than Chris picking them up as he usually did. They opened the front door in the careful, kitten-watching way they’d learned, peering round to make sure that Flower was nowhere nearby, and then bundling themselves in.

But Flower wasn’t anywhere to be found. They searched and searched, all over the house, in every cupboard and on top of every bookcase, in all the places they’d ever found her lurking.

“Perhaps she’s asleep and can’t hear us…” Abi said, even though she knew that couldn’t be true. Somehow Flower always knew when they were home. She would appear, padding eagerly down the hall and rubbing herself round their ankles until someone picked her up.

“Maybe she’s got out,” Mum said worriedly, looking about as though she expected to see an open window.

“She can’t have done.” Chris shook his head. “I checked before I went to the library and the shops. She was asleep in her cat tree – and even if she hadn’t been, I’d have noticed her sneaking out of the door. She’s got to be here somewhere. She just has to.”

But she wasn’t, even though they searched everywhere all over again, with Ruby crying and Abi trying very hard not to. At last even Chris had to admit that Flower wasn’t anywhere to be found. “We’d better go and look for her outside,” he said, sounding shaken.

“What if she’s gone in the road?” Abi whispered. She was thinking about what Maria had said – that the road in front of their house was too dangerous for a cat. Any cat, let alone a kitten who couldn’t hear and had never been outside before. Not since she was really tiny and been found in a box, anyway.

Mum swallowed. “I’m sure she wouldn’t… She’d be scared. I expect she’s hiding in someone’s garden. We’ll go and look.”

They went outside, peering around the front garden, looking under all the bushes and over the fence into next-door.

“Flower! Flower!” Ruby called, and Abi glared at her.

“She can’t hear you, Ruby! Don’t be silly!”

Ruby sniffed loudly and began to cry again. “Abi’s being horrible to me!”

“You’re right, Abi, but you shouldn’t shout at Ruby like that,” Mum told her. “Actually, I wonder if there is a way we can call her? Tapping isn’t going to work, not unless she’s really close.”

“I don’t think so. There’s too much noise and vibration from the road.” Chris shook his head. “And I still don’t understand how she could have got out. I’m going to walk down the street and look in all the gardens. Do you want to come with me, Abi?”

“Yes.” Abi nodded. She was so worried and upset that it was making her grumpy, and if she stayed searching their garden she’d probably snap at Ruby again.

They walked out on to the pavement just as a car raced past and Abi shivered. She tried to imagine what it would have felt like to Flower if she’d come out on to the pavement – the kitten would have been terrified. Abi leaned over the fence, trying to see round the bushes in next-door’s garden, while Chris did the same in the garden along.

“Are you all right?”

Abi looked up in surprise. She hadn’t noticed their neighbour, Annika, opening her front door. “We’ve lost our kitten,” she explained. “Sorry about leaning over your fence – I was looking for her. She’s meant to be an indoor cat, you see. She’s deaf.”

“Oh no – well you’re very welcome to come into the garden and see if you can find her.” Annika stepped out on to her front path and crouched down to look around. “What colour is she?”

“She’s white and she’s really tiny.”

Annika looked up, her eyes widening. “A really little white cat? I think I saw her this afternoon!”

“You did?” Abi felt her hands tighten on top of the fence. “Where was she?”

“Running down the pavement. She was further along the road, a few houses down from the supermarket.” Annika frowned. “And she was definitely going that way.”

Abi stared at her. The supermarket was right at the end of the road. She had been hoping that Flower would be in Annika’s garden or possibly the next one along. How could Flower have gone so far? She must have been terrified, with all the cars speeding by on the busy road. “Wh-when was that?” she asked, her voice shaking a little.

“Well, my shift finished at two,” Annika said. “So it must have been about half past, I guess.” She looked worriedly at Abi. “It might not have been her…” she added gently.

“Did she have blue eyes?” Abi asked, not sure whether to hope Annika would say yes or no.

“I think so… She was running, I didn’t see her for very long…”

“Thanks – I’d better tell Chris.” Abi turned to look for her stepdad but he was already walking back towards them.

“Did Abi explain, Annika? About our cat?” Chris asked.

“Annika saw her!” Abi burst out. “All the way down the road, going towards the supermarket!”

Chris turned round to look, and Abi saw him make a face without meaning to. He was thinking what she was thinking – that their road joined on to another one close by the supermarket, which was even busier. It definitely wasn’t somewhere a little deaf kitten wanted to be running about.

“Thanks, Annika. You’ve been really helpful.” Chris nodded to her. “Sorry to disturb you. We’ll go and look down there for her now.”

Abi slipped her hand into his as they walked along and Chris squeezed her hand. “We’ll find her, Abi,” he said firmly. “It’s going to be OK.”

Abi nodded. She wanted to think so too. But as the cars kept rolling by, she wasn’t so sure that her stepdad was right.