Daisy's Dilemma - CHAPTER 5

MITZI'S CHRONICLES

Daisy went home today. Her mama had come back. But she looked frail and I noticed that she had lost weight. Her eyes looked lifeless with dark circles underneath.

I sat on the fence watching Annie taking Daisy back to her mama. Her mama hugged Daisy and petted her. Daisy was happy running around, barking and rolling around in the garden.

I felt relieved. I didn’t mind Daisy being in our home. But I couldn’t tolerate her smell. She smelled of mud and damp fur which is honestly yuck. She is very dirty. Never clean herself and tracks mud all over the place.

Alex tried to give her a bath. She screamed murder and ran around the house and slipped on the mud in the backyard and became dirtier. I would say that Alex had more success in getting her dirtier.

Daisy was also a barker. She would start barking for no reason in the middle of the night and disturbed everyone’s sleep. Also she sleep-growls. It’s kinda funny but very annoying. A lot of times I was forced to smack her to wake her up. Then she would start whining.

Mrs. M told me that Daisy had bad experiences, probably someone had hurt her. According to Mrs. M, that was why Daisy was having nightmares. I stared at Mrs. M as if she had lost a marble. When did she become an expert on nightmares?

If that was the case, I would have more nightmares than Daisy. I have had worse experiences especially when I was a child. I was once separated from my mother when I was months old and was attacked by vicious dogs. A passerby saved me and took me to a shelter.

The shelter was a nightmare. A big bad dog attacked me. If the shelter person hadn’t found me on time, I would have been dead. That’s when Annie came to my life and took me home.

I doubt Daisy had experienced any of that. She was usually a happy go lucky dog. Give her pets and food, she would love you to death with kisses and licks.

I didn’t understand what scared her so much to have nightmares.

Anyway, it was presumptuous of me to assume that peace would return to our house.

Because the next day Daisy came back. And she looked very depressed. She refused to talk to us and hid behind the sofa. Alex and Annie had a hard time coaxing her to eat. That’s when I realised that things were really bad at her house.

Later, when everyone had gone to sleep, I went to check around the house.

Violet was asleep as usual. Amber was awake. Her legs had been acting up. She told me her pain had reduced a lot after Annie applied heat on her legs. Poor Amber.

“I think my time is coming, kiddo,” she said in a wheezed voice.

I didn’t say anything. I sat with her. She lived with another woman whom Annie called Granny Debbie. Granny Debbie was bad. She had hurt Amber a lot. She had even killed Amber’s twin brother, Arthur. Later she had tried to kill Annie and me but we were rescued in time by Max and Rex, two rottweilers.

“Poor Daisy,” Amber said. “Did you talk to her?”

“No. Should I?”

Amber stared at me.

I sighed, “Fine. I will talk to her.”

“I think her mama is gonna die. She looked very sick.” Amber licked her paw.

“I know. She smells weird. Unnatural. It makes my fur stand upright,” I said.

“Hmm…” Amber purred and stared at the wall lost in thoughts. I sat with her before remembering that I was doing rounds and got up. But before I left, Amber spoke, “He also smelled weird.”

I stopped and turned, “Who?”

“Remember Henri?” she asked.

I shuddered. Of course I remembered Henri. He was the other cat Granny Debbie had adopted. Henri and I weren’t in good terms. Well! He tried to court me and I got angry and might have bit off his ear. Yikes! But later, Amber told me that Henri was killed by Granny Debbie.

“What about him?” I asked, my ears perking up.

“He smelled weird too,” Amber’s eyes were still fixed on the wall.

“I know,” I sat down and cocked my head towards her. “He was a weirdo.”

“No,” Amber murmured. “He smelled weird when he died. When he was poisoned by Debbie. Just like Arthur, my brother.”

That caught my attention. I went and sat near her. “What are you saying?” my voice was low.

“I’m just saying when someone dies they start to smell differently,” she said in a calm voice looking into my eyes. “Especially when they are poisoned.”

I gulped. Did she suspect that Daisy’s mama was poisoned?

“I will talk to Daisy,” I got up and said goodnight to Amber who lied down and closed her eyes.

I went to find Daisy sitting in the kitchen near the window which faces her house. She was sitting there staring at her house.

I could hear Mrs. M’s snoring. I shook my head and went to sit beside Daisy.

“Hi Mitzi,” Daisy said in low whiny voice.

“What are you doing up?” I asked.

Daisy looked at me with her sad, puppy eyes. “I’m scared, Mitzi. I’m scared that I will never see mama again.” Her eyes twinkled in the moonlight.

“What happened? Why are you here since your mama is home?” I asked. “Did something bad happen?”

Daisy swallowed, lied on the floor and stared at the moon. She raised her head and looked at me, “Yesterday, mama was feeling sick again. She was lying on the sofa and I was very hungry and whined at her. She was too sick to get up and I was lying beside her in the floor. She asked George to feed me. He was staring at that little thingy. You know the one to which they talk?” she asked.

I nodded.

“He got angry and grumbled something. He gave me food after a while when mama attempted to get up to feed me. He yelled at mama and me and even hit me when mama wasn’t looking,” she whispered.

My pupils widened. “He hit you?”

“Yes, he always hits me. He hates me. I don’t know why though,” she said in a sad voice. “Anyway, he gave me food in the backyard and locked me outside.” She exhaled deeply before continuing, “Nowadays, he kicks me outside at night. When mama was OK, she always sneaked me inside after George had gone to sleep. But now mama was too sick and fell asleep sooner.” She stopped talking and stared at the moonlight falling on the floor through the window.

“And… what happened yesterday?”

She blinked as if trying to forget the bad memory, “The food smelled funny and I didn’t eat it. So, today morning, when he saw my food bowl full, he cursed and yelled at me. he would have kicked me if mama hadn’t interrupted. He yelled at her. After he went out, mama fed me and hugged me crying for a long time.” Daisy swallowed.

“Then she called Annie and sent me here with her.” Daisy whimpered. “I think she’s afraid that George will hurt me if I stayed with her. But I’m scared that he will hurt her if I am not with her. I don’t know what to do, Mitzi,” she howled, drooping her ears.

I didn’t say anything because I didn’t know what to say. But I suspected that Daisy’s mama was in danger!

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