Population Miniscule

Chapter 4: When Cat's Away, The Mice Will Play

Kendon was hesitant to leave the house; afraid that he might miss something with Catherine. He was waiting for a tidbit of information about her plans for the week. She usually had her mom come by and check on the cat at least once when she was away for a whole week at a time. Kendon hated when her mom came to visit. He was planning to have the run of the house and not have to clean his tracks as meticulously as normal. Monday morning, he overheard Catherine on that dreaded phone call with her mom. She would be stopping in to check on the cat. Kendon fumed, that cat was more trouble than he ever thought about being worth! He could take care of the cat. Let him starve! It was set nonetheless; Catherine's mom would be in probably midweek at any given moment and Kendon would have to be on his toes until then. The moment she left, he'd be able to cut loose. He grinned a little to himself as he listened to Catherine close and double lock the door. He was right, she never said goodbye.

It was neither here nor there at this point. She wouldn't be back until Saturday and he had the week to wreak whatever havoc he felt like. Her vacation was his vacation and life would hit a normal stride when she returned. Summer was always an easier time for them both. There was more time for the things they enjoyed and less stress weighing on the situation. Right now, Kendon's only stress would be that beast of a cat. He swung his feet up on his desk and leaned back relishing a few moments of the morning for himself. It wasn't long before all three kids showed up since they were also out of school for the Summer.

Kendra was a simple beauty. She inherited her dad's dark hair and tendency toward mischief. No doubt that her intentions for the week were nonstop play with the neighborhood kids rain or shine. Kendon waved her off with one simple request.

“Go ahead and play. Be careful and be back in time for lunch!”

He called after her as she left the room.

A muffled, “Okay, Dad!” came from around the corner and she was gone.

Jack was tall, slender, and nearly sixteen. His dark red hair fell into his eyes. He shook the strands to the side with a quick jerk of his head. His brown eyes alight with anticipation. His younger brother, Josh, stood at his side. The boys knew that with Catherine away they were looking at a week of freedom. They enjoyed these laid-back times every year. The move to this house was the best decision they'd ever made.

There were always hundreds of things to do. They moved out into the surrounding county after spending years as city dwellers. In the city, they always had to be so cautious. They didn't have the freedom of going out to “hang out with the guys” as they liked to call it, and there wasn't much space for it anyway. There wasn't much to do in the city, but since they had moved here, they never wanted for activity. They had a freedom here they had never known in the city. Of course, living on the outskirts made other aspects of life more difficult. Inside the city, there was transportation readily available, it was easier to stay in touch with friends and family, and shopping wasn't such a daunting task. Ultimately though, they didn't miss much about the city at all.

Kendon had taken the liberty of planning meals for the week and the kitchen was well-stocked with kid-friendly foods like pizza and chips. Such delicacies were a rarity that he planned to take full advantage of. The boys looked on in anticipation.

“Well, Dad, can we go?” Jack prodded with an excited smirk.

“Yeah, guys, but be back for lunch and don't forget, later this evening there's the barbecue.”

Affirmations and approval followed them out of the room.

Kendon shuffled through the stacks of documents on his desk. He knew he wouldn't be getting much work done this week with the TV all to himself and that was fine. It could all wait. It had been waiting for a very long time. In this business, any progress was progress, small or great. The job couldn't be done by just anyone. A historian had to have a drive and fair amount of self-discipline. Kendon prided himself on both. He had no boss; only a community that supported his work with vigor and that was all he really needed. He walked to the center of his office and gave the desk a parting glance. Nothing felt quite as sweet as the first day of vacation.

There sure weren't very many manly choices on TV during the day. Kendon decided to pop in a movie and let the junk food fest begin. Pizza was a solid choice since it would be easy for Kendra and the boys to grab a slice or two and heat them up when they came in for lunch. They loved pizza and enjoyed the rare opportunities they had to indulge. Catherine's tastes in food leaned toward “health food nut.” It wasn't so bad since she had a taste for things like chips and cookies. They just ended up with the healthy equivalents most of the time, so it was nice to indulge in the real thing once in a while.

Kendon's thoughts wandered to Catherine. He wondered if she had taken off yet. He had high hopes for her trip this year mainly surrounding the fact that she wasn't at home. He felt like the king of the castle instead of some interloper from off the street. He contributed to the household. Catherine really had him to thank that there were no mice in the house rather than the stupid cat. Sometimes he felt guilty for thinking about Catherine so much. After all, he did have a wife. Starla had been away since the week before visiting her family in the city. Starla kept Kendon grounded and steady. They complimented each other perfectly. She still remained the most beautiful woman he had ever encountered. She had dark red, curly hair that reminded him of a crimson ocean tide. Her eyes were dark brown, but bright. Jack had inherited her bohemian beauty and dark coloring. They both tanned a golden bronze in the sun. Not to mention, she tolerated the strange situations that were a part of loving Kendon like them living with Catherine.

The week went on without complication and Kendon managed to sleep through the visit from Catherine's mother. They all enjoyed having the run of the house and the kids had the neighboring children over a couple nights to enjoy the carefree atmosphere. Their days and nights were nearly completely turned around by Friday, and Kendon found himself up later than usual pacing the house. Even the cat had long since retired to Catherine's bed for the night. Turk paid no attention to Kendon's insomnia. Something had him uneasy.