DIARY OF A CAT

17th November (7)

9:00 PM  GROUNDED

My heart skipped another beat.

I had been caught and I was going to be in a serious trouble.

My heart gave two double swift beats and that was it. I fell unconscious out of shock. When I opened my eyes, I saw myself the same place I had been standing five minutes before. My sight became clearer and the first person I saw was Kelvin, followed by Uncle Mark, Akua and… I couldn’t believe my sight the next person I saw. I thought I was still unconscious and dreaming. It was Harrison!

Harrison?

I nearly screamed but the sudden shrill mocking laughter from the cat made me think twice and keep calm. It sounded clearer and real. The cat looked at me with two red swollen eyes. He did not look too well for my liking. He in fact looked like a ghost. I closed my eyes for a moment and opened it again, hoping not to see Harrison anymore but he stood in my face when I opened my eyes.

“But you are dead?” I said in whispers.

“Unfortunately I’m not, sorry.” Harrison said in a cold still tone of voice and continued gazing at me as hatred seethed out of those red swollen eyes. “Thanks to the veterinarian, your plans failed! How dare you try to kill me?”

“Kelvin…” I called for help.

“Ofori, I am very disappointed at you.” Kelvin said, still in his seat. “Yes, you are a bad cat and everybody knows that but I didn’t expect you to go that far by putting shaving powder into your cousin’s food”

Shaving powder? But…  I was shocked. I did not put baking powder in Harrison’s food. I remember clearly the inscription on the bottle from which I took the purgative powder. I just wanted Harrison to defecate on himself. Shaving powder was poisonous to cats if ingested. I looked at Kelvin’s face in surprise.

“Please, stop that innocent, surprised show. Akua saw you put the poison in Harrison’s food” Kelvin continued.

“I did not put shaving powder into the food. It was a small amount of purgative powder>” I said.

“According to Mr. Opare, it was shaving powder” Uncle Mark spoke at last.

“No…” I tried to defend myself but Kelvin cut in.

“Please! Please, will you stop lying?!!!” Kelvin shouted. I looked at him eyes wide opened. He has never shouted on me angrily before. I was in triple shock.

“Kelvin…” I tried to speak but I found my voice gone. It was hurt. Hurt because Kelvin did… did not believe me.

“Ofori, you are grounded till I decide what to do with you”

           decide what to do with me?

“Possibly, I’d have to send you to a home or something” Kelvin said as he walked out of the hall.

I could not simply entirely totally believe what I heard! I was so confused and mesmerized that I found my mind floating from one side to another. Kelvin’s undecided decision just knocked me off balance and the hot pain that tightened around my chest flushed out as tears. One fell into my fur. Then another followed incessantly.

Harrison gave me a look of satisfaction and followed Kelvin. Akua followed his brother without looking at me.

“You are grounded and will remain grounded to look after Harrison even as he recovers. I’ll advise you be of your best behavior and avoid any confrontations with anyone here because Kelvin is seriously disappointed and angry.” Uncle Mark said the last words that sent me crying shamelessly. He also followed the rest after giving me a reassuring pat on my head.

I walked to the window shill and cried in sorrow and in anger. It was not about being grounded but it was about losing Kelvin. I could not afford it. Kelvin was my family as well as my best friend. My life will be over soon.

But who spiked Harrison’s food with the shaving powder?