After Happily Ever Afte- Astrid Ohletz Page 0,18

closed the door behind her.

At first glance, the room was empty. But something wasn’t quite right. Pieces of green were scattered around the floor.

Diana picked one up. Salad. And wasn’t that a bit of bread? She followed the path of the breadcrumbs to the couch that was farthest from the door. It was empty, so Diana kneeled on the floor to look under it.

There she was. A cute tabby cat munched on the rest of Liz’s sandwich. Or rather toyed with it. She seemed as unenthusiastic as Liz had been.

Diana sat back on her heels. Should she call Tony? Or attempt to catch the cat herself? The animal didn’t look threatening at all, and if Diana couldn’t save any lives today, she could at least be another sort of hero.

What would motivate the cat to move out from under the couch? Just grabbing and dragging her wouldn’t work. Diana knew from experience that cats could be even more stubborn than her ex. But they were curious and playful too.

Diana moved a few feet away and sat cross-legged on the floor. She had no toy or string to entice the cat, but maybe something else would do. With her fingertips, she tapped a rhythm on the linoleum floor. Slow at first, so as not to startle her feline audience, then faster. She added a nonsense song, mostly words like kitty and come here.

After a couple of minutes, toes scratched over the floor as the cat crept closer.

Ignoring her, Diana kept on with the music, until the cat came over.

Purring, she brushed against one knee, then crossed to the other and back again.

When Diana stopped singing, the cat meowed in protest but didn’t run. She stretched out her hand to pet her.

With another long-drawn meow, the cat settled on Diana’s lap.

“What should I do with you now?” Diana fished her phone from her pocket and dialed Tony’s number.

He answered almost immediately.

“I got her. In the staff lounge.”

“Don’t move. I’m on my way.” Steps slapped on the floor as if he was running, then he disconnected.

“Mm, kitty, that was weird. Even for Tony. Why are you so special? Can’t be your cuteness.”

The cat only purred in answer. As if to emphasize her cuteness, she snuggled closer and licked her tail.

The door to the staff lounge opened and closed in quick succession. “Where are you?”

“Over here, behind the couch.” Diana let her hand hover over the cat to stop her from escaping, but she didn’t even blink.

Tony tiptoed to her and set a small cat carrier next to Diana.

The cat hissed and tried to get up.

Diana quickly restrained her. “I don’t think she likes that thing very much.”

“But it’s all we’ve got. Put her in.” Tony opened the door.

“I don’t know.” Diana’s protective instincts urged her to cuddle the cat, not lock her away. “Whose cat is it anyway? And what’s her name?”

“A patient’s. Tiger.” Tony gestured at the carrier. “We need to hurry up. Not one word to Emily!”

“Tony! I can’t keep secrets from her.” Diana had learned her lesson about keeping secrets—it never worked, especially not in a hospital. She cuddled Tiger closer. “And you just announced over the intercom that we lost a cat.”

“Oh.” Tony paled. “I didn’t think… I’ll talk to everyone once we get her back in the cage.”

“Good luck.” Diana doubted it would work, but it was his time to waste. “Okay, Tiger. We’ll get you into your temporary home, and then you can go back to your family.”

Diana lifted the cat toward the carrier.

Tiger wriggled in her grip, hissing and trying to scratch Diana.

The door opened, and someone entered the staff lounge. “Achoo!” Someone sneezed loudly.

Diana’s grip slipped for only a second.

It was enough. Tiger used her chance to break free. Before either Diana or Tony could react, she ran toward the door and freedom.

“Achoo! Achoo! Achoo!”

“Hi, Alexis.” Tony greeted the newcomer without even looking up.

“Tony?” Dr. Alexis Pine’s growl was almost as annoyed as the cat’s hiss had been. “Don’t tell me—achoo—don’t tell me we’ve got another Catpocalypse on our hands!”

Tony jumped up, still holding the open cat carrier. “No! This is nothing like the Great Cat Incident. We only lost one cat today, and we almost had her until you startled us.”

“What are you talking about? Catpocalypse? Cat Incident?” Diana was grateful that Tony split the blame between them for losing Tiger, but she had no idea why everyone made such a fuss about it.

Tony looked guilty, an expression she’d never before seen on the