Halloween Comes Early to Hermitage

So about five months ago, just before I started my current job, Marissa and Victoria went to Miami with her mother and I spent about four days in Shelby County visiting my mother with Annie the dachshund. At some point during that time one of our cats, who we called Baby disappeared. Either my sister-in-law let her out when she came to feed them, or I did before I left to go to Alabama. Either way she was gone when we returned after Memorial Day.

Now my wife and daughter have been suspicious of me during the last five months, because I've taken cats to the pound before and I had been grumbling about having too many animals. At the time we had two dogs and two cats and it was about two too many. Marissa even asked me in private if I had done something with Baby but I swore I hadn't. Honestly, I figured she got out and a raccoon ate her or she got run over and the vultures got her. She was fairly scrawny. Marissa and Victoria have maintained the firm belief that Baby was taken in by someone and was being taken care of.

So this morning as I'm getting ready for work, Marissa starts saying "Alan! Alan! Come here quick," from the kitchen. I go in the kitchen and look out into the back yard with her. Just past the trampoline next to a tree is Baby walking towards the back fence. Marissa goes out on the deck and yells "Baby!" and the cat turns around and looks and meows and then starts walking again. Marissa goes out into the back yard and calls her for about five minutes, but didn't see the cat again.

I still feel like I saw a ghost. Now I just need to figure out if I didn't tie the burlap sack tight enough or if I didn't put enough rocks in it. Heh, heh, heh.