Tails of Spring Break by Anne Warren Smith

Author:Anne Warren Smith [Smith, Anne Warren]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-4532-7082-0
Publisher: Albert Whitman & Company
Published: 2012-07-02T17:32:00+00:00

Chapter 12

Where is China Cat?

“WE NEED TO MAKE a business calendar,” Claire said later that morning. “We can write down all the things we have to do.”

“We don’t need a calendar,” I said.

“Think of it,” Claire said. “We can make it seven pages long—a page for each day. Every day will have a list in it.”

I thought about it. Maybe Claire’s idea was okay, after all. “It has to be very big,” I said. “We’ll put it up on the wall.” I ran to get my construction paper and colored pens. We divided each day into Morning, Afternoon, and Night.

“We have two pets,” I said. “Let’s use a different color for each.”

Claire looked at me with her eyebrows raised high. “Three,” she said.

“Huh?”

“Three pets.”

I groaned as I remembered China Cat. “But there’s nothing we can do about her, except look for her.”

“We’ll write that in,” Claire said. “LOOK FOR CHINA.”

“Muffin stuff is three times a day,” I said. “Our calendar will get really full. It’s going to look great.”

“The fish have to be in purple,” Claire said, picking through my markers, “because that’s Ruby’s favorite color.”

I sighed. “It’s my business,” I reminded her.

“The calendar was my idea,” she said.

I frowned at her. “China will be red,” I said. “Sierra’s favorite color.”

“Make Muffin blue,” Tyler said. “And read everything to me.”

Claire picked up the purple marker. FEED THE FISH, she printed in the middle of each morning square. I wrote in blue, FEED MUFFIN, for every morning and every afternoon. Then, I wrote THROW THE BALL. PLAY HIDE AND SEEK. WIPE UP PIDDLE. I put a frowny face next to “piddle.”

FIND CHINA, Claire wrote in red marker. She set the marker down.

“There’s not enough red,” Tyler said.

“We have to do more for China,” I said, trying to swallow over the terrible lump in my throat. “We have to stop being afraid of her. We’ve got to turn her back into a pet.”

“Write BRING HER A TOY,” Tyler said. “And SING HER A SONG.”

“How can we?” Claire asked. “We don’t know where she is.”

“We’ll do it where she maybe is,” Tyler said.

“We’ll go different places and do it.”

I picked up the red marker and began to write.

When we finished, the calendar looked really important. We taped it onto the family room wall.

At eleven, I filled China’s water dish. “Come for your water,” I called. “Nice kitty.” I thunked her water dish three times with a spoon. Would she hear her dish? Would she come out? If she came, would she leap at me? I waited. Nothing happened.

At one, Claire filled China’s food dish. She went into every room, waving the empty can in the air. “Dinner for China,” she sang.

No cat.

At three, Tyler decided she was behind the couch even though we’d looked there a hundred times. He sang a long song to the couch. China never answered.

At four o’clock, when it was time to take care of Muffin, Claire came along.

“If you’re going to be a business partner,” I said, “you have to do half the work.

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