Chapter 20
“Looks like this is one couple we won’t need to break up, Max,” said Dooley.
“Yeah, this is one we can take off our list,” I said.
“What’s this about couples and a list?” asked Harriet.
“Max and I have decided to break up these new couples,” said Dooley.
“What new couples are these?” asked Harriet.
“Well, you know,” I said. “The ones we discussed? Odelia falling for her police recruit, Scarlett falling for Dick, and Marge falling for her guitar player?”
“And Chase falling for Marva Prink,” Dooley added.
“Oh, right,” said Harriet. “I totally forgot about that.” She sighed deeply.
“To be honest, I had second thoughts about this mission of ours. I mean, I’m all for love, you know.
Not for standing in the path of true love, but to encourage it.
But I guess you’re right. If these couples are allowed to fully form, our lives will never be the same. ”
“What’s all this about couples and love?” asked Gran, who had followed the discussion from her position behind the wheel.
“Odelia is at the police academy,” said Dooley, “and we all know what happens when human males and human females get too close together. They start kissing each other. So we want to stop that from happening, because Odelia should only be kissing Chase.”
“And Marge is clearly in love with this German guitar guy,” said Brutus. “So we need to put a stop to that, too, or she will divorce Tex and move out.”
A sort of wistful look had stolen over Gran’s face. “Marge divorcing Tex? Are you sure?”
“Yeah, she’s so head over heels for this band of hers,” I said, “that it’s clear that this calls for an urgent intervention.”
“Is it true,” said Gran, this time addressing Scarlett, “that Marge has stored all of her Turbo Heartthrob paraphernalia at your place?”
Scarlett nodded. “She said she didn’t think her family was ready to find out.
Besides, she claimed she was buying most of the stuff for Tex, since he’s such a big fan of the band.
” She sniffed. “I have to say, I don’t see the appeal.
They’re all men—not a single woman in the lineup—and most of them aren’t even handsome. Not like the Backstreet Boys.”
“Yeah, they’re not exactly works of art,” Gran agreed. “But they are pop stars, aren’t they? Like, genuine stars?”
“They’re stars, but I wouldn’t exactly call them pop stars,” said Scarlett. “Their music is a blend of pop, metal, and techno. A strange combination, if you ask me. There is one handsome male in the band, though, and that is the singer.”
“Handsome, huh? How handsome would you say he is?”
“Oh, he’s divine,” said Scarlett. “Curly hair, nice mustache, clear blue eyes. And he’s such a soft-spoken and kind person.”
“Why, have you met this guy?”
“No, but I’ve seen his videos.”
“I thought you said you weren’t a fan?”
“Marge comes over from time to time, every time she has acquired something new. And also, she likes to peruse her collectibles, and she does show me stuff. She’s in the proselytizing phase of fandom, when you’re trying to convince all of your friends to like the same band you do.
Though, of course, in her case, I was the only person who knew. ”
“Alec knew,” said Gran, and she didn’t look happy about that.
“He only found out today,” said Scarlett. “Because Marge thought that she had done something really bad. Before, I was the only person who knew.”
“You should have told me, hon,” said Gran.
“I couldn’t! Marge had sworn me to complete secrecy!”
“Still. I’m your friend. Oaths like that don’t count when you’re besties.”
“I guess,” said Scarlett.
“Oh, well. The secret is out now, and soon the whole town will know that Marge is a fangirl for this German band.” She directed a glance at me through the mirror. “How are you going to stop Odelia from falling in love with her co-recruits?”
“No idea,” I confessed. “We will go to that police academy, and we will spy on her, and when we see her get too close to someone, we will have to find a way to put a stop to that.”
This seemed to give Gran some food for thought, for she was quiet for quite a long time. Finally, she piped up, “How about a mission tomorrow, honey?”
“A mission? Oh, absolutely,” said Scarlett.
“This mission will take us to the police academy. And our assignment is to make sure that my granddaughter doesn’t get too cozy with some of her fellow police recruits.”
“Oh, no!” said Scarlett. “Odelia is in love with another man?”
“That’s what the cats seem to think. And since the cats are often right about stuff, I think it behooves us to check things out. Are you game?”
Scarlett got a determined look on her face. “I’m game,” she said. “But first we need to find Clarice and make sure that she comes home with me.”
“You may have to beg,” Gran pointed out. “Cats are stubborn creatures, and Clarice is more stubborn than most.”
“I will go down on my knees if I have to,” said Scarlett, which just goes to show what a great pet parent she really was.
Clarice was lucky to have her. Now if we could only convince her of that…
Before long, the BearCat reached the beach, and Gran parked near the boardwalk. We all climbed out and gazed across the ocean. The full moon shimmered on the water, but as far as I could tell, the beach was deserted.
Then I spotted him: a large man dressed as a bumblebee, sitting on the stone wall that runs along the boardwalk and separates it from the beach itself.
“Look,” I said. “It’s the Germinator.”
“And next to him is Clarice,” said Dooley.
“Oh, my God!” said Harriet. “Clarice has already picked a new human!”
“Over my dead body,” said Scarlett, who had noticed the same thing. “I will tell that oversized bumblebee what I think of him!”
And before we could stop her, she was marching straight up to the bumblebee-dressed fellow to give him a piece of her mind.