Chapter 22: The Ride Home

"You win this one Petko!" Ethan said aloud as he shook his fist in the air.

"Why do you always do that whenever you're showing you're displeased with something?" Jade asked as she drove the HUMV home.

"It just feels like the right thing to do when the moment arises." he replied.

"I hardly think this is one of those appropriate situations for such an action. All I did was change the station, I don't like that song, it gets stuck in my head. Then the secret messages in the music tell me about which statues don't love me anymore. I have to run them down with the vehicle so that they will love me again. Usually I can ignore them but if the song gets stuck in my head, I have to eventually break down and listen."

Nikki interrupted. "Hey have you seen Tigerlily? I haven't seen her since we left."

Jade and Ethan looked around the vehicle. Suki's tail was hanging out of the open glove compartment, swaying slowly back and forth as she slept. If Suki could find somewhere she couldn't fit, she'd try to sleep there.

Cleopatra was apparently sleeping in the backseat curled up in a ball with one paw on the rocket launcher. "We really should get that away from her soon" Jade said. Cleopatra stirred for a moment, looked at Jade with big kitten eyes and made a short kitten squeak noise. "And by that I mean we should let her keep it." Cleopatra after hearing Jade, rested her head against her body and tried to go back to sleep.

"I'm not seeing her" Ethan said finally after looking everywhere in the vehicle. "Did we really leave her?" Cleopatra stirred again and pointed a paw at the roof of the car. "What are you trying to tell me Cleo, is Tigerlily trapped in a well?"

Jade said "No, check the roof, stick your head up the machine gun hole and see if she's up there."

"I got it" Nikki said as she climbed into the back of the vehicle and stuck her head up to view the roof. Tigerlily was sitting up there clenching the rack mounted on the roof with the wind blowing in her fur. She was wearing a set of tiny aviator goggles as well. She turned to look at Nikki, gave a salute with one of her paws and then turned back to face foward.

Nikki pulled her head back in before speaking. "She's on the roof wind surfing. Where did she get a pair of googles anyways?"

Ethan smiled. "Its good to see she still as a bit of energy in her still, she doesn't seem too happy much anymore."

Jade laughed to herself. "She's really happy when you try to feed her, but she has problems eating usually if anyone is within her comfort bubble. That is pretty much as big as the kitchen and dining area. It's been rumored you can watch her eat if you have a good pair of binoculars."

Then Ethan commented "Yes and she's patient too when it comes to food. You notice how she'll sit on the floor next to us when we're eating any meal at all staring the whole time. If you look at her, she'll look the other way as if she's trying to hide the fact she's staring, though not hiding it very well. If you break down and give her something, usually she'll sniff it, reject it, and walk away."

Nikki poked the tail swinging in front of her producing a meow from the glove compartment. "Suki's the one to watch out for, she'll walk by your food plate and just 'happen' to drop her tail in your food and leave it there till you shoo her away or give her the rest of what's on the plate."

Jade laughed. "It's really a shame that Suki shot out the tires on Amber's car. We aren't even in a rush to get home or anything."

"Well I have to turn in my quest as soon as.." Jade shushed Ethan before he could finish.

"Actually Jade, if you feel bad for Amber and all of them, why didn't you stop and pick them up?"

"Its not safe to have Millie around babies. Actually come to think of it, its not safe to be around Millie no matter who you are. The same thing could be said about Cleopatra" Jade looked in the back seat to make sure the rocket launcher wasn't pointed at the baby. "But Cleo is family. Nikki be a dear, make sure Cleo doesn't point her weapon at the baby if you could, I can't keep an eye on the road and on that kitten at the same time. We're almost home but I don't want to risk it."

Nikki looked over at Jade and shook her fist in the air. "You win this one, Petko!"