It takes a moment for Lillie to change back. As soon as she does, I move her to the couch, making sure the blanket stays on her, while Dad and Viv move the coffee table back. I put Lillie’s head in my lap while Viv does the same with her feet, and Dad sits on the chair.
“So… What now?” I ask, laying my head against the couch. I feel like I’ll fall asleep the minute we stop talking. As though Mom hears me looking for something to keep me awake, she pulls into the drive.
“Well, how about coming up with a lie for Mom?” Viv snarks. I give her a side eye.
“Lillie! Are you here?!” Mom calls, coming inside in a rush. Lillie stirs in my lap.
“She’s right here,” Viv whispers, pointing to our lap. “She just fell asleep.”
Mom comes over to check on her. She then closes her eyes and takes a deep breath of relief. She leaves the room momentarily to grab a chair and call Tina. I listen in on the conversation.
“Hey, She’s here. Do you want me to come back and you come to her?” Mom offers.
“How is she?”
“Fine, she’s just sleeping right now.”
“Then I’ll wait. Can you find out what happened on Ashka’s side? Charlotte was trying to tell me they were just cats, but I know what I saw.” At least I get a warning that I’m going to be interrogated.
“Sure, I’ll also cross-check her story with Charlotte. I’ll come back when I’m done.” I look over at Viv, who is setting up a voice recorder on her phone.
‘For Charlotte.’ She mouths. I nod.
“Ok, See you then.” We hear before Mom hangs up and brings a chair into the room.
“So, Ashka, what happened at the Avilia’s today?” Mom asks. Lillie again stirs at the talking, so we remain silent for a moment.
“Let me take her to her room.” Dad volunteers. He picks her up. I wait for him to come back, stalling so that I can come up with a story.
“Well, so Charlotte came over to say hi, and we got a call from Tina saying something was wrong with Lillie, so we went over. I kept feeling like something was wrong, so when we got there, I rushed to her room and banged on the door. She had locked the door and wouldn’t answer so I … “ I stop, knowing I’m likely going to get into trouble with Mom for breaking down the door.
“You broke the door down, what’s next?” Mom says it for me.
“There were what looked like two large cats in her room and I couldn’t see Lillie. One even - “
“I’m sorry, did you say cats?” Mom asks, incredulously. She raises her eyebrows in a classic ‘don’t try to lie, I know what’s going on’ mom expression.
“Yes. What did she tell you they were?” I ask.
“I’ll tell you afterwards. Keep going.” Her face relaxes back into a poker face.
“Okay… anyway, one even growled at me.” Mom clears her throat, so I pause again but she waves for me to continue. “Charlotte hears this and comes running in and Tina screams. Luckily, Charlotte calms the cats down, and I find Lillie in the closet and hide with her. I heard Tina come in before running out again. We stay hiding until Charlotte comes and gives us the all clear. We left past the cats that had calmed down and I brought Lillie here, where she fell asleep.” I finish.
“That’s close to what I heard. Except she told me there were two tigers. There is far too much of a difference between the two animals.”
“Well, yes. I actually thought they were tigers too at first. But when we passed them to come out of the room, I realized that there were actually four cats, not two. “ I silently pray that Tina didn’t see me stand since that would discredit this part of the lie.
“So you're saying the reason they looked like tigers is because they were four cats huddled together?” Mom questions.
“Yes. That’s right. You can even ask Charlotte and Lillie when she wakes up.”
“And where is Charlotte?”
“She stayed behind to help with animal control.”
“Hmm… something tells me Tina isn’t wrong though.” Mom says, but by her tone, she’s on the verge of believing us.
“Mom, what’s harder to believe? Four striped cats huddled together in a way that looks like two tigers, or two tigers in the middle of Montana.” Viv chimes in.
“I suppose that’s true. What do you think, dear?” Mom turns to ask Dad.
“I think the surprise and adrenaline made Tina believe she saw two tigers instead of cats. You know Tina has always been a bit afraid of cats.” Dad backs us up.
“Well, let’s see what Charlotte says. Do you know when she might be coming?”
“No. She did say she'd be over once animal control leaves Tina’s place.” I answer.
“I’ll text her and find out.” Viv volunteers, picking up her phone. Mom nods and we wait a few minutes for a reply. “She says they just left and she’s about to be on her way.” Viv reads out her response.
“Ok. I’m going to eat while we wait. Do you girls want something as well?” Mom asks.
“Yes.” We both answer at the same time. Mom gets up and moments later, brings us some sandwiches. We eat in silence until a knock at the door heralds Charlotte’s arrival.
Mom lets Charlotte in and we exchange greetings.
“Sorry for taking so long. The cats ran out while I was helping Ash get Lillie in the car, so we had to look for them.” Charlotte says, coming to sit between Viv and I.
“How many were there?” Mom asks.
“Four. They were cute, though they looked like four halved tigers.” And with her testimony, Mom is won over.
“Alright. I’m sure they looked cute. Were you able to fix the door?”
“I did move the one she broke but I still need to buy a new one.”
“Alright. If you excuse me, I’m going to buy a replacement for the door. I also need to finish my shift at the store and talk to Tina.” Mom gets up, puts the chair away, and leaves with a series of goodbyes following her out. Heavy sighs of relief fill the air as she drives away.
“That was close. Now let’s hope Tina believes her.” Charlotte says.
“What about animal control?” Dad asks.
“I told them they were cats, helped them look for a while, then they gave up. Anyway, I’m going to peek in on Lillie then head back. I’ll see you girls later.” Charlotte says, leaving as well. We see her off before heading back in.
“I’m going for a nap.” I tell Viv and Dad, and head up to my room.
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