“And I’m very proud that Brutus learned to bury his doo-doo and his wee-wee,” said Dooley. “It shows that we can all change for the better, if we make an effort.”
Brutus grinned cheekily, and I had the distinct impression that his litter box etiquette had taken a turn for the worse again. But since he was now the master of his own box once more, as we all were, that was fine by me.
Tex, who had been flipping burgers, now joined us.“So what did I miss?” he asked. “With the sizzling from the grill I couldn’t hear what you guys were talking about.”
A collective groan rose up from his family members. But then Scarlett said,“Okay, so there were these three criminals who needed a place to lay low for a while. And a cousin of theirs had heard about a retirement home where a resident was killed by another resident, and the doctor hadn’t noticed a thing, which gave them an idea…”
And as Scarlett recounted the story of Happy Home, the four of us decided to take a little nap. After our harrowing time at the retirement home, I think we deserved that. But this was before Charlene came over, and handed each of us a little trinket.
We glanced at the trinket in confusion, until she explained this was the key to the city. And since we were cats, and our role in what had happened at Happy Home couldn’t officially be recognized, she had taken it upon herself to give us this token of her appreciation.
Tex had already received his key, and so had all the other humans, as per the promise Charlene had made, and now it was our turn.
“I can’t give you an official reception at Town Hall,” she explained, “since people wouldn’t understand, and they’d think I was crazy. But I just want you guys to know how much I appreciate everything you do for this town. And so from now on, you’re all honorary citizens of Hampton Cove.” She smiled. “Thank you for your service, Max, Dooley, Harriet and Brutus.”
I actually had tears in my eyes as I glanced down at my official gold key.
“I love it, Max,” said Dooley. “But where am I going to put it?”
“Like we agreed before: on Odelia’s nightstand,” I said.
And it wasn’t over yet, for now Uncle Alec also walked over to us. He, too, was carrying gifts, in his case in the form of four small badges! “I know I don’t always appreciate you guys,” he said with a touch of gruffness, “but after what you did at Happy Home, I think it’s only fair that the four of you should be deputized. So these are your badges, and from now on you can consider yourselves official feline consultants attached to the Hampton Cove Police Department. Congratulations, and thank you for your service, and for making our proud community a little safer every day.” And since Odelia had told them we had a thing against pins, he had put the badges on ribbons, which he now placed around our necks. And it was a testament to the emotions we were all experiencing, that even Harriet was quiet as a mouse!
And then the humans all got up and gave us a rousing round of applause!
“You guys,” said Harriet, wiping away a tear. “You shouldn’t have done this!” But we could tell that she loved it all the same. “I’m finally a real star,” she murmured.
And so we applauded her also. Because it isn’t every day that you find yourself in the company of greatness. What exactly Harriet is great at, I don’t know. At being great, maybe? For a diva must shine, and that happens to be something Harriet is particularly good at.
“Let’s celebrate, cuddle cakes,” she told Brutus, and they both jumped off the swing and trotted across the backyard and disappeared into the rose bushes.
“I like my key, Max,” Dooley reiterated. “And I love my official police badge. They’re both so nice and shiny. I guess this is the pinnacle of our career, isn’t it?”
“I guess so,” I said, wiping away a tear. It was such a proud moment for us.
“So are we going to retire now? And move into a retirement home? Is that what Charlene and Uncle Alec want? Is that why they gave us these?”
“No, of course not. A true detective never retires, Dooley. Because crime doesn’t retire either.”
“No, it doesn’t, does it? Even when criminals retire, they still remain criminals, as we’ve just seen.”
But since no criminals seemed to be in attendance at that moment, we finally settled down and fell into a deep sleep. Not without a touch of vigilance, though, for you never know. We’re detectives, after all, and we have the badges to prove it!