Crime Stories

It was an old building, only three floors high. The fire escape was added later, so it looked ugly and misplaced. It was dark inside, all the lights were off. Since he never went to bed before midnight he had to be out. The old lady who lived on the first floor was already asleep and the couple from the second seemed to be out, too. The cat decided to wait at the front door. Someone will come and open it. There were cats fighting nearby. It must be near the litter. He wasn’t hungry, so he didn’t care. He laid down at the staircase and waited.
Finally, the couple from the second floor arrived. It may have been minutes, it may have been hours, he wasn’t sure. The girl always cuddled with him, but he wasn’t in the mood tonight. He just went in and ran straight up to the third floor. It was cold outside and he didn’t like it. He had no other choice but to lie down on the “Welcome” sign. He thought it was there for him since he never saw anyone come over. He fell asleep almost immediately.

***

The dizziness, the pain, it was all there all the sudden. She couldn’t open her eyes. It seemed her head was about to explode. Her ankles and arm wrists were in pain. She tried to get up, but she couldn’t make her body move. How did this happen? She was confused. She couldn’t remember what was she doing last. What day is today? Is it weekend? Work day? Was she home? Nothing. Her head was just pulsing all the time. The more she tried to remember something the worse pulsing was. “Breathe. Relax. Breathe. Stop thinking.”, although she wasn’t sure how to do it, it worked. The pulsing in her head wasn’t that strong anymore. She could think. She could open her eyes. Could she? She wasn’t sure. Is it dark in here? Is that what it is? She tried harder to remember. After few minutes of thinking she finally remembered! The cat, the cook, the kitchen, marble floor,… But… What happened after? Where is she now?

***

Presence. Someone is here. He woke up. Feet in front of him. Man opening the door. “Finally.”, he thought. As soon as the door opened he ran inside and right towards his water dish. He was thirsty. The door closed and he heard feet bats on the wooden flour. The man came into the kitchen and stopped at the doorway. “What’s up lil’ friend? Hear you had a catch tonight, ha? That’s my boy!”, young, masculine voice said. He looked at him, as if he was asking is there anything else what he can do. No answer. The man just turned and left. He waited for a while, listening to what is the man doing. Then he decided to join him. The man was on the couch, watching the late night news. Obviously, there was nothing interesting. Half an hour later they both went to bed: cat in his basket, man in his bed. It seemed like a perfect, quiet night.

***

She was afraid. Although her eyes got used to the dark she still couldn’t see anything around her. But she could feel. And what she felt was pain. A lot of pain. She was chained to the wall behind her and her wrists and ankles were badly wounded. She tried to take them off, but it only made things worse. She tried yelling. No answer. Nothing. She couldn’t hear a sound, besides her own voice. She felt tired again. It was freezing in there, where ever “there” was. Cold concrete flour, concrete walls, massive steel chains. Everything cold as ice. She was shaking. She laid on the flour and tried not to think about her situation. Unfortunately, the only picture that was coming to her mind was the one of the back alley and the kitchen entrance. Some moments she could remember the kitchen itself, others the cook. Most of the time… Just the alley. First shock was gone. She gave up on screaming for help or trying to break the chains. Now she was just cold…

***

Barely opened his eyes and already he feels hungry. Looked up. The man was still asleep. It must be very early morning, otherwise the man wouldn’t be here. Went to his dish, but the man didn’t put any food last night. Like he knew the cat has already eaten. He jumped on the kitchen counter, still trying to find some food. Hence he had no luck in the kitchen, he went through all other rooms. Nothing. Nada. Not even junk. His tummy didn’t like this at all. But he was afraid to wake up the man. The man had a temper sometimes. Especially in the morning. No open window either. So, going out is not an option. He just had to wait. Or… did he? It seemed like the man was waking up. His whole body cringed in hope.

***

Running through a desert, she feels thirst, but she can’t find water anywhere around her. She has to stop. She is too tired, she is shaking. It’s freezing cold. “How come it’s so cold in the desert?”, she wonders. Drops of cold sweat formed all over her body. She feels weak. She can’t stand anymore. Falling through an abyss. Screaming for help, trying to catch the air, trying to see what’s underneath. She can’t catch her breath any more. Dark hallway. Sound of chains. Dungeons. Wooden doors with steel locks. Screams. Cold… cold… cold… 
Darkness. She feels cold, standing air in her nostril. Chokes on her own breath. Tries breathing slower. It still hurts. Her body is shaking, it’s covered in cold sweat. She tries to sit up straight, but any movement give her enhance pain. After a few minutes she started crying in desperation.

***

His happiness is never-ending! The man is up and prepares food! He even turned radio on! It must be a very good day for him, today. He turns the radio on only when in good mood. Oh, here it comes. Delicious sausage! His favourite! He was so busy eating that he almost didn’t notice the man going out. He ran towards the door like a falcon towards its prey. He made it once again. He was out and free to run around. He ran down the stairs barely noticing the man behind him. The street was calling him, he had to answer. Half way down the street he looked back to see if the man is heading in the same direction. The man was nowhere to be seen. Nothing can stop him now!

***

Footsteps. She could swear she heard footsteps. Sound of a rusty metal door opening. Someone is definitely coming. Is it a friend or foe? How can she know? She remained still and quiet. Whoever it was, they were going her way. Somewhere on her left side sound of key turning in an old and rusty lock. She tried to get up or at least sit up straight, but she couldn’t move. She was cold and in pain. The door opened inch by inch. Rays of light entered the room. She couldn’t look at the light. She was only able to see a dark figure entering the room. “Please…”, she tried to speak, but couldn’t, “Water…”, she tried once more. The person who entered the room had a bottle of water. It looked like they were thinking about it, so she tried again, “Please…”. She was given the water bottle, but she couldn’t open or drink it. A blanket was thrown at her. It was really thick, but it had intense smell. It smelled like urine. The person left something else on the floor nearby and left. Before the door was completely closed she tried for the last time, “Please…”, but got a “clang” instead of an answer. Tears of desperation formed in her eyes and started dropping. She couldn’t reach for water, nor for blanket. Desperation took over. She was shaking in tears.

Hours later she woke up again. She felt a little warmer. She reached for water, but could drink just three or four sips. She managed to take the blanket and cover herself. She wondered how many hours or days had passed. Did they notice her absence at work? Did they call the police? Is anyone looking for her? Should she be hopping? So many questions without answer. Few moments past. Panic took over. What if she is never going to be found? What is that man going to do to her? Who is he? Is he the cook? Why did he take her? Her fear grew by the moment, her body was cringing in pain. She passed out.

***

Running around can be quite tiring. He felt exhausted. Unfortunately, he was pretty far from home. This was a fancy neighborhood, nothing like the one he’s coming from. There were no buildings here, just family houses with huge back yard. A yard means at least one dog and most of these houses had two or even three of them. Problem was: should he go home now or should he stay here for the night? He came here before, he knew the neighborhood, but… Always that but… How much did this place change since? He was welcomed at some of these houses, but what if the owners changed or got a dog? He decided to take a risk. It was late to go home, some of the territories he was supposed to cross belonged to fight-oriented cats. He was too tired to fight with any of them now. He chose carefully. Somewhere in the middle of the street was a nice, always freshly painted house. They had a small dog who was friendly and usually slept inside.
On his way there he noticed something different. Like, the street itself has changed since he was last here. He tried to find out what it was. He was walking very slowly and carefully, looking all over. Finally, he got it! There were papers on the trees! It seemed like they used to be on every tree, but they have fallen down from some of them. He wondered what those papers were. he saw one of these on the street. As he came closer to it he recognized the girl from the photo. It was one of the girls from the house he was heading to! It seemed to be the older one, but it’s been a couple of years… It might be the little one, too. On the paper, just about the picture, were those things he sees everywhere. People use them for communication, or something.

“DID YOU SEE HER?!”

He was looking at the paper trying to decide if he should go to her home anyway or not. This happened before, to other girls. He has been seeing these kind of papers all over. Especially on his territory. And he has met every single of them. He felt bad about it. That something has happened to them. They were all nice to him. He liked them. And then, all the sudden they were gone and instead of them these papers were all around. Not always, though. Sometimes they would move or something. Cats can change their territory, why wouldn’t people? Although still indecisive he continued towards the house. He couldn’t afford to be picky right now, because going home was not an option anymore and there were dogs in almost every yard. Sleeping out on the street was not an option either- it was too cold and he didn’t like cold.
When he arrived in front of the house he could see how the papers impacted it. It wasn’t a nice, freshly painted house that he remembered anymore. It look sad and bitten by weather. Like its owners didn’t care about it anymore. He instantly felt sorry for it and for them. Whatever happened to the girl from the photo had some serious consequences. He sat there, unable to go to the back yard. It wasn’t just because he felt sad. He also felt guilty.

TO BE CONTINUED…

Do you like animals? Domestic animals for example, like cats. You do? It doesn’t really matter if you do or don’t. She did. She loved them. She always made time to cuddle with them on the street when they meet. She always took care of them. She would bring them food, take them to a vet… She genuinely cared about them. I talk about alley cats, of course. She couldn’t keep a cat in her tiny apartment. Cats can be unpredictable. She didn’t like unpredictable. She did things as previously planned. She always had a well-organized day, she made weekly and monthly schedules. She used the same route from home to work and back, she always did shopping on weekends… You must be thinking- “What a boring life she had!”. Don’t worry, she thought that to. We are all slaves of our own habits, she knew she was stuck in a routine, but she couldn’t change it. She didn’t know how. Cats were the only unpredictable thing in her life. That’s probably why she loved them so much.

***

I would like to say that the cat remembers that day, but I’m afraid he doesn’t. It was a day like any other for him- running around, looking for food and female cats, sleeping, cleaning, sleeping again and so on. He ran through many streets, he couldn’t tell where he was, nor did he care, but it was getting dark. He decided to go back to his territory when suddenly- that smell. It smelled like freshly cooked food damped into trash can behind a fancy restaurant. He followed the smell and BINGO! There was a man who kept calling him, too: “Hey kitty, kitty, kitty! Come kitty, kitty!”. Was there any reason for him not to go? No, there wasn’t. It was a very dark and lonely alley. He followed the smell of food and the voice calling him. When he came in front of the man his expectations were justified- grilled steak, potatoes, sauces and something what he couldn’t identify. He started eating and the man sat on the chair next to the door and started talking to him. He didn’t even pretend he’s listening.
While he was eating the man got up from his seat and went inside. He didn’t notice that, he was enjoying his meal. If he was listening, he could have heard a woman walking very fast on the main street. It was almost 9 p.m. All the sudden he heard a dog barking. The dog was very close, somewhere in the main street, so he looked up at the street to see if it’s coming in his direction. The dog kept barking but it didn’t move. He looked at his meal and then again at the street. He couldn’t decide what to do. Then he heard two cats. They were also at the main street. The dog was barking at them. He was relieved. He started eating again, but that fight in the main street continued. It made him nervous. He looked at his meal, which was almost done and decided to go out in the street. As soon as he stepped with his two front paws out of the alley and onto the street he saw them. A man had the dog on a leash and two cats were hiding behind a woman who angrily talked to the dogs’ owner. They were across the street, a little bit on the right side. He sat and watched. He wasn’t hungry anymore. He was looking at that lady who’s fighting across the street. There was something about her. She had some very special glow and quite a lot of energy for such a small woman. Since she wasn’t very tall, she wore high heels. She was very skinny, but well-dressed. She was angry, but still pretty in some strange way. Her voice was high and irritating, but that didn’t seem to bother him at that moment. He wasn’t sure why, but he kept looking at her.
After a few minutes the man with the dog got tired and left, cursing the woman while walking away. The woman turned to those two cats and started cuddling with them. He felt jealousy. He wanted to be cuddled. He wanted her to cuddle with him. She wasn’t looking in his direction, so he looked at the street and ran on the other side. Car drivers started honking and cursing him, but he didn’t care. He made it. He was there, in front of her. She was looking at him. “Oh, poor baby! Did they scare you? Don’t be afraid, I’m here.” She took him in her arms and cuddled with him. He felt happy. He purred in her arms and almost fell asleep when he saw them. Those two cats were going straight into the alley where his food was. He jumped out of her arms and ran across the street again. “They wouldn’t dare!”, he thought. They were just about to start eating the food he had left when he appeared in front of them. They started fighting, but he knew he is going to win. Lady from across the street appeared in a moment or two. He could hear she was scared by the tone of her voice while she was trying to calm them down. The fight was quickly over and he started licking his wounds. He was the victor. The other cats left. Lady came close to him, but she was turning around and looking at the street constantly. He didn’t understand why was she so scared.
She was telling him something, it looked like she begged him to leave the alley with her. Suddenly, the door behind him opened. Man who fed him went out and looked at the small lady. He was twice her size. The lady froze. He could see fear in her eyes and smell it in the air around her. He wanted to tell her the man was a good person. “Meow!” She didn’t understand him. The man started talking and asking questions to the lady. She kept staring at him, without saying a word. The man started to laugh. He was laughing really loud. He invited the lady inside, but she just looked at the cat. He understood and took the cat in one hand, opened the door and entered. He left the door open.

***

She wondered why did she follow that cat. It was an alley cat like many others. What made her leave the main street and enter this small, dark, smelly alley? If she hadn’t done that she could have been home by now. And then that sweaty man took the cat inside. Why did she care about the cat so much? She should have walked away. But no, she didn’t. She took a deep breath and entered through the open door.
The light was very bright when she entered. She needed few moments for her eyes to adjust. Then , she saw she was in a kitchen, a very modern fast food restaurant kitchen. There was no one there besides the man and the cat. The smell of the freshly cooked food was all over it, so he must be the cook. “Would you like some tea?” the man asked. “Yes, thank you.” She was surprised by her own words. He poured tea into a cup and added some milk. He gave her the cup. “You don’t drink tea?” she asked. “I drank enough for today, trust me. I’m here since 6 a.m.” he replied, “I always stay longer so that I can feed the cat. Cats are nice animals. They make you feel warm and loved.” She was surprised. That’s exactly what she thought about them. “I like cats, too”, she said. “Really? I didn’t notice!” said the man and started laughing. She felt a bit ashamed. It was a stupid thing to say. “So, how old is she?” she asked. “Who? The cat? How should I know? I’m a cook, not a vet. I give her food. That’s all.” Now she was really ashamed. She felt like she couldn’t make a conversation. She took a sip of her tea. It was nicely warm. She didn’t know what to say, so she took few more sips and all three of them were sitting there in silence.
The cat got up and moved to her lap. He was purring while she cuddled him. He felt sleepy. He turned around on his back. She smiled. He was so cuddly. His fur was almost entirely black, only his paws and fur around his left eye were white. He was so beautiful. She wasn’t afraid anymore. She felt quite relaxed in here, as the matter of fact. She was a bit sleepy, though. No wonder, it was almost 9:30 p.m. She reached her hand toward his belly to rub it, but saw something that surprised her. “Have you ever checked if the cat is male or female?” she asked. The cook looked at her and seemed surprised. “Why would I? Does it really matter? We are all hungry, no matter what gender we are.” he replied. She knew he is right. It didn’t matter. But she couldn’t restrain herself. “It’s a male cat.” She said. The cook only took a deep breath and shook his head to show that he didn’t care. She started rubbing the cats’ belly when he jumped and bit her. She got scared and left him to fall on the floor. He fell and ran toward the kitchen door. Since it was closed he started scratching them. The cook went there and opened it. The cat ran out into the night, furious.
She was in shock for couple of minutes. She couldn’t understand what happened. “Mama didn’t tell you not to touch cats’ belly, did she now?” asked the cook. Still in shock, she couldn’t reply. “There, take a glass of water.” She drank it and started to feel a little bit better. “Why did he do that? Why did he run?” she asked the cook. “Because he is a cat, not a dog. Cats hate belly rubbing. It disturbs them.” He replied. “I didn’t know. I thought that’s why he turned on his back.” The cook smiled “He just wanted you to rub his head. Misunderstanding I would say. Too bad he couldn’t understand that.” He started laughing again. “I don’t think it’s funny.” She said a little bit angry. “How’s that scratch he made you? Do you want some alcohol?” “Yes, I need to disinfect it. And, it’s a bite.” she said angrily. The cook opened a cupboard over his head and took an unmarked bottle out. “This will do. It’s pure vodka. No better alcohol than that!” “Don’t you have some alcohol for medical purposes? I’m not sure vodka is a good choice.” The cook laughed again. “I didn’t mean for you to drink it, I meant you can pour it on that scratch. But, if you insist… Here are the glasses…” “No, no, I don’t drink. I just thought that you maybe have some medical alcohol, but never mind. Vodka will do.” The cook poured vodka into their glasses and gave her the rest in the bottle. She looked for handcuffs in her bag. She was feeling a little bit dizzy. She managed to find handcuffs and pour some vodka over the bite. She felt something strange in her stomach, like she is going to throw up. Everything around her was blurry. She couldn’t focus, it was a chaos in her head. She was taking deep breaths, so that she doesn’t start to panic. Finally, she couldn’t stand it anymore. ” Where is the bathroom?” she asked. “Right there, down the hall. First door on the right.” the cook answered. But it was too late. She couldn’t get up on her own. She fell on the cold marble floor and her eyes gently closed. She couldn’t feel anything anymore, nor the stomach problems, nor the dizzy head. Not even the pain from the fall. She fell deep into the dream world.

TO BE CONTINUED…