Picture Perfect

Chapter 40

    I opened the door and Cain was sitting there to greet us. "Chyler meet Cain. The cat who thinks she's a dog or a human. I'm not sure which." The comment made Chyler laugh and I walked towards the kitchen. I was surprised when I picked up Cain's dish and she wasn't at my heels.
    "She's quite friendly." Chyler said as Cain rubbed against her leg and meowed at her. "And talkative."
    "Yeah. She was a stray who wandered into our yard. She charmed the boys and Hayley instantly."
    "Not you?" Chyler asked. She was now seated by the door with Cain purring on her lap.
    "She didn't have to charm me. I've always wanted a black cat with yellow eyes so I just had to see her and I was sold. The outgoing personality was just a bonus." I pulled out the food which instantly got Cain's attention and brought her into the kitchen.
    Chyler followed and said, "You know you should be feeding her kitten food."
    "You really think she's that young? I know she's small but I figured she's at least a year old."
    Chyler laughed, "Have you taken her to a vet yet?"
    "No, I've been a little distracted you know. Psycho killer focused on my family and all."
    Chyler picked up Cain then said, "Well your family will be at least a couple beings bigger sometime soon."
    "Huh?"
    "Your cat is pregnant." Chyler grabbed my hand and put it where hers had been on Cain.
    "Holy shit!" I yelled when I felt something move inside my cat's stomach. This is the last thing I needed right now.

    "I can't decide if I'm annoyed or amused." The killer thought as she was watching on of her potential families playing catch at Alcott park. It was unusual behavior for this normally dysfunctional family but they seemed to be there with a couple other families so they were obviously putting on a show.
    She had been checking the camera she's had focused on Ashlee and Aaron's house all day and Ashlee hadn't gone to work. It amused her to think that Ashlee seemed to think staying home would change anything. Yet it annoyed her because Ashlee wouldn't receive the two envelopes she had sent if neither Ashlee or Hayley went into work.

    "So, how's it going Hayley?" Cassidy asked, trying to make conversation. She was secretly hoping Chyler would come in any moment. For some reason she felt slightly uncomfortable around this woman.
"It's going." Hayley said as she gathered up plates, silverware, cups and napkins for dinner. She had no idea why Cassidy was standing in the kitchen, but she hoped Chyler had a good explanation for why she brought along her brothers girlfriend whenever she decided to come inside. Though the sight of Cassidy being scared of Zebbie was thoroughly amusing.
"Well you seem to know your way around this kitchen fairly well." Cassidy commented, reaching for any topic of conversation to fill the awkward silence.
Hayley shrugged, "I've spent a lot of time in this house. Aaron didn't really change much from how Ashlee kept it when he moved in here."
This comment sparked Cassidy's interest. Chyler had developed a fast crush on Ashlee so Cassidy decided to find out just what kind of competition her sister had, "So you and Ashlee spend a lot of time together?"
"Well yeah, we're partners." Hayley replied simply.
"Obviously, but I meant outside of work." Cassidy said with a smile then added, "In my experience a lot of people who work together don't always associate with each other outside the job."
"We have been partners for years, first as beat cops then as homicide detectives. I guess luckily we've been friends since before we were partners." Hayley replied, wondering where Cassidy was going with this line of conversation.
"Interesting." Was all Cassidy could say. She still wondered just how close Hayley and Ashlee were but wasn't sure if she should ask. Normally she could care less about being careful with her words but she wanted Hayley to like her, Ashlee too for that matter. But more importantly she wanted them to trust her so delving into their possible personal connection may not be the best move at the moment. Being a member of the press was a definite strike against her with these women and she wanted to be accepted so she didn't need any more strikes for being too nosy or jumping to incorrect conclusions. Obviously she wanted the exclusive on this story but she actually felt confident that she could help track down this sick son of a bitch.