Chapter 88

Class got out at 4 ... add an hour to get home ... an hour mourning Murray ... wasting another hour calling around... 30 minutes pedaling and an hour with the cat ... it was coming on dark 3o when we got away.

“Keep up,” I said.

I have every light on my bike that Austin requires ... and a bunch they don’t ... even a flasher on my helmet ... I’m required ... under 18 must wear a helmet.

Once away, Raul asked, <Where we going?>

Having experienced Murray, I wasn’t surprised.

“Bud Field.”

<Meet you at the gate>

The last I saw was the orange and brown tail fading to black.

I kept pumping away and eventually saw the gate ... and a myriad of red, yellow, blue flashing lights clustered around a new 2021 Toyota pickup wrapped around the street light pole.

The bloody mess on the stretcher was complaining, “I’m telling you ... that cat ... biggest cat I ever saw ... even bigger than the cat last night ... ran me off the road. I couldn’t get away ... even if I’d tried...”

Oops.

“Thank you Raul.”

<You’re welcome, Tyche.>

“Where are you?”

<Crest of the hill.>

I looked ... at the top of the rise a pair of cat eyes reflected the flashing colored lights.

“You made it.”

<He really tried to run me down. He hates cats. Thinks we’re minions of Satan.>

“Why?”

<And I quote... “I give you dominion over the animals.” Dominion over cats? I don’t think so>.

That came across as heavily sarcastic.

I rode up to the gate.

“Excuse me, Miss. This is an accident scene. You need to keep back.”

“I live here, officer.”

“At the airfield?”

“Yes sir.”

“You related to Bud?”

“No, sir. “I own the hangar and dwelling at the end of the runway ... next to the river.”

“Hangar?”

“For my AD-2 aircraft.”

Whoo, boy, howdy ... talk about the wrong thing to say.

“Show me.”

And that meant license, aircraft and building occupancy permit for Travis County ... Bud Field is out of the city limits.

“This is quite the place you’ve got here,” he said.

“Thank you.”

“That’s the biggest piece of yard art I’ve seen,” he said.

Nothing for it ... I fired it up.

“Not yard art ... fully functional AD-2 two seat Korean War era bomber.”

“What’s the kiddie pool full of kitty litter for?”

“Litter box.” I added, “For my cat.”

Raul stepped up and performed.

“That’s a CAT?”

“Yup, Raul ... time for bed.”

He opened the door and moved inside. He looked over his shoulder ... so much as if to say...”Aren’t you coming?”

“No ... I have to let the officer out and lock up.”

He burst out of the house and went with.

<It’s dangerous after dark ... I’ll go with.>

“Escort.” I told the cop, “He doesn’t like me out alone after dark.”