Misty Hollow Cat Detective (Darcy Sweet Mystery) (A Smudge the Cat Mystery Book 1) by K.J. Emrick

vicious cat howl that had ever been heard in the history of cats.  Then, in the next instant, all of that fizzled away and I was left staring in disbelief as Butch hung his head and sat back on his haunches.
    "No," he muttered.  "Not a good dog thing.   Butch is bad dog."
    Twist looked up at me where I sat in the branches, and winked.
    "What are you doing?" I called down to her, still wondering if I should jump on Butch's head just in case…
    She shushed me with a little hissing whisper.  Then she turned back to Butch.  "Now, what do you say to Smudge?"
    The dog shook his head briskly, his jowls flapping.  He didn't want to.
    "Come on," Twist prompted.  "What do we say?"
    Whining, the dog sort of looked up at me.  "Sorry.  Butch bad dog."
    "Oh yeah, you are."
    "Smudge!" Twist scolded me.  "You're not a bad dog, Butch.  You're a good dog.  You just get…excited sometimes."
    "Squeaky toy," Butch lamented with a bob of his head.
    "Right."  She came closer to the dog, no fear at all.  "Didn't Smudge promise you a new one?"
    That seemed to make Butch brighten.  His ears perked up a little.  "New toy?"
    She purred at him.  "That's the spirit.  We'll get you a new toy.  A nice rubber bone to chew on.  Hmm?  How does that sound?  Sound good?  Yes it does.  Yes it does.  Who's a good dog?  Who's a good dog?"
    Butch got more and more animated with every word Twist said in that sing-song voice, jumping up on his feet and bouncing and letting his tongue loll out of his mouth.
    "Okay, go home now, Butch.  Go home.  Good dog," she said as Butch turned in a few circles and then bounded away, back the direction he'd chased me from.  "Good dog!"
    I looked down at her in amazement.  Did that really just happen?
    She turns her crystal blue eyes on me, a look of complete innocence in them.  "What?"
    "Are you insane?" I ask her.  "That dog is a killer."
    "Not every dog is bad, you know."
    I can't believe she just said that.  "Yes, they are."
    "Not all of them."
    "Yes," I repeat, "they are."
    She shakes her head at me , like she thinks there's a lot I don't know.  But then she smiles at me with her eyes and I couldn’t care less what I don't know.  I know she loves me.  That's enough.
    "You know," she says, "you could come down from that tree now."
    "Oh.  Right."  I stand up, balancing on the branch, ready to jump down, but then I stop.  My tail twitches mischievously.  "Wait.  What's in it for me?"
    "A job," she answers.
    "Um.  Not what I had in mind."
    "Someone needs your help Smudge."  She starts pacing, and just from the way she moves I can tell this is serious.  "I have a job for you to do."
    "Okay," I say, still holding out, "but I don't think that's going to be enough to get me out of this nice, comfortable tree."  The branch under my feet sways in a sudden wind and I snick my claws in to hold on.  I actually wouldn't mind getting out of here right now, but there's something else I want, too.
    She laughs at my antics, the sound of a soft sigh.  "Fine.  If you come down, there might be a kiss in it for you."
    Good enough for me.
     
    ***
    "I'm not sure about this."
    "But you're going to do i t," Twistypaws says to me with that little smile in her shimmering blue eyes.  "Right?"
    I really should say no.  I don't, but it isn't because I don't want to.  "I'll do it.  Only because it's you asking."
    She nuzzles her nose against the side of my neck.  " Thanks, Smudge."
    It's already worth it.  Almost.
    "I don't like mice," I tell her, for the fifth time.
    "And mice don't like you," she answers, for the fifth time.  "Jocko's not a mouse.  He's a guinea pig."
    "Same thing."
    "Smudge!"
    We're heading down the sidewalk in one of the nicer areas of Misty Hollow.  It's a street right off Main Street, not far from the Town Hall.  Nice houses painted white and brown with carefully manicured lawns and a few shade trees planted along picket fences.  Nice area.  Darcy and I live just a little