Sir Thomas of Argyle, Bane of Mice (4)

From THE OFFICIAL TRAVELOGUE OF SIR THOMAS CAT, ESQUIRE

Translated from the Meowish.
Copyright May 1983


This story is dedicated to my husband's Aunt Eleanor Campbell Taylor and Uncle Rumsey Taylor, Sr., of Princeton, Kentucky, USA, in whose home the enchantment of Inveraray is alive and well on this side of the Atlantic. May the rest of us who come along after be able to carry on and never lose that enchantment forever.

[Part 4]

The Duke selected from his library a book he had long meant to read and settled down by the fire. For a while he lost track of time, but suddenly he noticed that it was getting late, and Thomas had not come home. He told himself that one shouldn't expect a cat to come home every night, but still he felt uneasy. He went on to bed and finally fell asleep but had the strangest dream--three times! Each time he awakened and remembered the dream he went back to sleep and dreamed it again. He dreamed that Thomas was lying in the snow bleeding and couldn't get home. The foliage in his dream reminded him of the overgrowth of weeds just outside the watchtower on the hill east of the castle. In olden says kilted soldiers had stood guard at the watchtower, both during battle and routinely during peaceful days. Now the stone structure was unused, and the main guard for the estate, Chief Maynard of Clyde, had an efficient and comfortable office in the castle rather than a post in the watchtower.

Day was breaking, and the sun was almost up. The Duke dressed quickly for the day and went downstairs to the kitchen where he got a sprig of catnip out of a drawer in the ten-foot-tall, ten-foot-wide spice cabinet. The Duchess always kept the catnip on the bottom row where Thomas could open the drawer himself, but this morning the drawer was soundly shut. No sign of Thomas's return. The Duke tucked the catnip into a vest pocket and settled down to brew his own tea. All the equipment was laid out--surely he could manage it. On the breakfast table the Duchess had set up a little notebook of hers with a morning prayer and a Bible verse to remember. She had also written the Duke a long note with loving thoughts and many instructions about things he must not forget during the week. One was to share a loaf of her banana bread with Chief Maynard. She had baked and wrapped three loaves which should do them for breakfast that week, and the loaves sat there on the breakfast table looking for all the world like wrapped gifts sitting beside a basket of jellies and jams.