Anarameha

Chapter 25

The days pass into a blur of too much television, lousy food and sleep. Between those times, Ana checked the security system that kept going off. If it wasn't the cops patrolling the catwalks, it was Keoni checking to see if she'd returned to the other apartment.

Mister Tinkles was a frequent visitor, and to ensure that no one could see in, Ana lowered the sun shield. It was enough to keep anyone on the outside seeing into the apartment. The security shutters remained lowered unless the cat was hanging around. Then Ana would raise it enough so that he could use the cat door. Ana would not realise it at the time, but the cat would be the clue that Keoni needed.

It had taken a lot of searching, watching, waiting, but on one warm evening, he ventured back to the apartment complex and saw a woman leaning over one of the upper balconies. She was calling out to the cat.

Keoni knew all about Mister Tinkles. Ana spoke about him as if he was her own cat, but Keoni knew that he belonged to someone else in the building, though Ana didn't know who.

He watched as the cat emerged from one unit and ascended the building exterior and metal paths to where the woman was calling out to him. The cat went inside, and Keoni knew that it was only a matter of time before he returned. He'd gone in for dinner, but it was clear that the cat liked to be outside.

Keoni looked at the apartment in question. The shutters were down, aside from the section where the cat door was. This unit was also right above Ana's place, and Keoni wondered if she'd obtained more than one unit. Maybe she'd created access between the two and was utilising both areas. He didn't know but wanted to find out.

An idea popped into his mind.

Keoni lifted from the rail with his mind racing. He wondered if the idea would work.

There was only one way to find out, so Keoni formed a plan and raced down to a shop, purchasing a pen and a notepad. As he walked back to the eleventh level, Keoni wrote a note to Ana. He didn't know if she'd respond to him, but he hoped she would.

Garlet told him that she was safe. Ana was corresponding with Garlet, but the information that was given to Keoni was always limited. Keoni believed that Garlet was withholding a lot of information about Ana which he understood, but it wasn't helping the situation. Keoni wanted to speak with Ana in person, not through someone else that would dictate what was said to the other. Keoni felt that while Garlet was good to him and offered a lot, he wasn't going to win his approval any time soon.

Despite explaining the situation, Keoni knew that Garlet was not happy. Ana was upset, she was in hiding, and that meant that he was down a thief, one that was good at what she did. Keoni wanted to point out that he could fix the issues if given a chance to talk to Ana but knew not to waste his breath.

Approaching the apartment that he believed Ana was in, Keoni searched for the cat. He looked up at the path above him, seeing the fur poking through the metal grate. Climbing up onto the rail, Keoni lifted himself up and found Mister Tinkles.

"Hey, buddy,"

The cat stopped cleaning his face and looked at Keoni. With a meow, the cat walked over and began rubbing himself against the poles.

"I have a job for you."

Climbing back down, Keoni waited for the cat to jump down to the next level. He always used the building to move up and down, something Keoni thought was far better. He'd freak out if the cat tried to jump from the exposed edge.

When the cat approached, Keoni picked him up and gave him a cuddle.

"You're a good boy, aren't you?"

Carefully he tucked the note into the collar and then took the cat to the plastic door. Pushing him through, Keoni sat on the path and waited.

Keoni wanted to stick his head through but didn't because if he was wrong and this wasn't Ana's apartment, then it could get him into a lot of trouble. It was bad enough that he'd just pushed a cat into the place. He did not need to invade someone's privacy or gain the attention of the police.

When the seconds become minutes, Keoni wondered if the cat was getting into something he shouldn't be. If there was someone in there that did not know the cat, Keoni expected that they would have kicked him out by now.

Frustrated that his plan was not working as he hoped it would, Keoni considered his options. With a quick glance around the area, he leaned down and pushed open the cat door. Keoni couldn't see much. The apartment was almost a copy of Ana's except that there was a lounge below the cat door, and Ana's apartment didn't have a cat door. Mister Tinkles was on the lounge chair cleaning himself. There was no one else. Admittedly though, he could not see through or around the panel between the lounge and where the bed should be.

Keoni was grateful that the note had stayed tucked into the collar. He hoped that if this was Ana's hiding place, she'd find the note and read it. He also hoped that she'd respond to his note, but as time passed, he began to think that she didn't want to speak to him ever again.

Reluctantly, he turned away. Would he keep going? Keoni didn't know. Ana hadn't responded to the note. His requests to Garlet were met with vague answers and, sometimes, no answers. Garlet was trying to be diplomatic but was stuck in a difficult place. Keoni understood that but wished that Ana would give him a straight answer.