CATS THAT PLAYED THE MARKET, THE Read online

  “Katz, are you okay?” Jake asked, concerned. “You’re three shades of gray.”

  “I just got off the phone with Mark Dunn. Patricia Marston got the maximum sentence on each of the murder counts. Life in prison without parole.” She moved away, her jaw tightening.

  Jake walked over to Katherine and pulled her into an embrace. “Finally, you have closure.”

  Katherine gave a forced smile and hugged him back.

  “Oops, I forgot to take off my boots,” he apologized.

  Iris was now rolling on the snow tracks. She abruptly stopped, then rolled on her back and kicked her paws in the air.

  Katherine broke into a laugh. “I think she likes it.”

  Jake walked back to the front vestibule and took off his boots, placing them on a large boot mat next to the door. He then announced, “The kids and I are baking you a cake.”

  “Get outta here,” Katherine said with a loving look on her face.

  “Yep, headin’ to the kitchen now, but just want to warn you in advance, it will be a surprise, this masterpiece cake, so you’ll have to find something to do and stay out of our way,” he said, walking in his stocking feet to the kitchen, with Iris on his heels.

  “That shouldn’t be hard to do,” Katherine called after him. “Mark Dunn said he had a surprise for me and was stopping by.”

  Jake stopped. “A surprise? Don’t tell me he’s baking you a cake, too,” he said mischievously.

  “That’s for me to know and you to find out.”

  “How’s he going to get here in that Honda he drives when the snow plows can’t even keep up?”

  Katherine shrugged. “It’s a mystery.”

  * * *

  The front doorbell rang with a festive holiday ringtone. “Dashing Through the Snow” had replaced the Addams Family “You Rang.” Katherine got up from an Eastlake chair to open it. Mark stood outside, shivering in his faux fur-lined parka. Katherine looked past him at an older model Ford Explorer.

  “Come in,” she said, opening the door wider. “Did you get a different vehicle?”

  Mark walked in. “It’s my dad’s. My parents are vacationing in Florida. Since I’m minding their house, he let me borrow the Explorer. It has four-wheel drive.”

  Mark sat down on the vestibule’s Eastlake bench and removed his boots, placing his pair next to Jake’s on the boot mat. He gave Katherine an inquisitive look.

  Katherine read his mind, “Jake’s snowed in, so he’s staying with me for a few days.”

  “Where is he?” Mark said with a smile. “He’ll want to be in on the surprise, as well.”

  “Jake and the cats are baking me a cake,” she announced with a wide grin. “I can go get him.”

  “Yes, please do.” Iris ran in and collapsed against Mark’s leg. He picked her up and gave her chin scratches. Iris yowled affectionately.

  Katherine smiled. “Mark, hand me your parka.”

  Mark set Iris down and slipped off his coat. Katherine took it and said, “Make yourself comfortable in the parlor. I’ll go get Jake.” She hung the parka on the Eastlake hall tree and left.

  Mark sat on the loveseat in front of the wide picture window. Katherine returned, holding Jake’s hand.

  “Hey, Mark,” Jake said, dropping Katherine’s hand and extending his to Mark.

  Mark shook it. Jake found a chair nearby and Katherine sat opposite him. Scout and Abra strolled in, with a hint of flour on their velvet noses. Lilac and Abby jumped up smoothly to the large window valance and perched like vultures.

  Katherine observed the cats and said, “I think the cats want to be in on the surprise, as well,” and then, “I don’t see a pony, or any wrapped presents. The suspense is killing me.”

  Mark reached inside his zipped fleece pull-on and pulled out a check. “I had the bank cut a distribution check just in time for your birthday,” he said, holding the check.

  Jake and Katherine exchanged inquiring glances.

  “Katz,” Mark continued, “since it’s obvious you have satisfied and will satisfy the requirements of your late great aunt Orvenia’s will, I am authorized to give you this check in the amount of five million dollars.”

  Katherine’s mouth dropped. Suddenly the reality of inheriting a huge fortune hit her like a ton of bricks. She was momentarily speechless.

  “Ma-waugh,” Scout cried, breaking the silence. She jumped on Katherine’s lap and wrapped her slender, brown paws around her neck.

  “Ahhh, thanks, Scout,” Katherine said, as Scout made herself comfortable on her lap, circling two times, then lying down.

  “Katz, what a special birthday present,” Jake remarked, without something better to say. He was in shock, too.

  “The estate will receive some tax advantages by making this distribution before the year ends. Actually, by giving you this money now, the bank’s trust department will be doing the estate a favor.”

  Katherine was still reeling in the shock of reality. Mark stood up and placed the check in her hand. She gazed at it in disbelief. Finally she stuttered, “Thank you. And thanks for bringing it over in this horrid weather.”

  Mark said, “I need for you to sign this receipt, then you’re good to go.” He extracted a small document from his fleece jacket, and handed it to her along with his Pelikan fountain pen. When Katherine leaned forward to take the receipt, Scout didn’t like being disturbed, so she sprang off and cried a barrage of Siamese mutterings that only the other cats seemed to understand.

  Katherine signed the receipt and handed it back to Mark. He put the pen back in his pocket. “Katz, since it’s your money, you can do with it whatever you want. But there’s a new financial advisor in town — straight from Wall Street — and he has some interesting investment ideas. You could easily triple your money. I’ve already invested.” Mark handed Katherine the advisor’s business card, which she accepted.

  She read, “G. Robert Brentwood, 531 Fifth Avenue, Twentieth Floor, New York, New York. Why is someone of this caliber in Erie?” she asked.

  “Robert’s mother lives here. He’s moved in to care for her. She’s eighty-nine and needs someone at the house. As long as Robert has Wi-Fi, he can work at home. By the way, his mom, Elizabeth, hung out with your great aunt. In fact, they were best friends back in the day.”

  “Really?” Katherine asked. “I’d love to meet her.”

  “She’s in a band; they play the senior centers in this area.”

  “I’ve met her,” Jake added. “When I was writing my dissertation, I interviewed her. She was too young to remember Prohibition, but she gave me a lot of local information about the swing era.”

  “The swing era?” Katherine asked. “When was that?”

  Jake explained. “The swing era is also referred to as the big band era. That’s when Elizabeth hung out with Orvenia. In the Forties.”

  “Cool,” Katherine remarked, then asked Mark, “I have a question about the Erie properties my great aunt left me in her will. Is there any way I can have a portfolio for each one, including the estate’s appraisals, property taxes and zoning rules?” She thought, I wonder if any of these properties could house the new, no-kill animal rescue center I’m planning to finance.

  “Sure, give me a couple of days and I’ll compile that for you,” he said, standing up. “I’ve got to head home and answer a ton of emails. Katz, I’ll text you Elizabeth’s phone number. I’ll have the Colfax properties summary to you as soon as possible.”

  Katherine and Jake walked Mark to the door. Iris followed them and yowled softly.

  “Goodbye, Iris. Hope to see you soon.” Mark pulled on his boots. Katherine handed him his parka, and then the estate attorney left with a smile on his face.

  “Katz, this is your special day. Money, cake, and me. What more could you ask for?” Jake kidded.

  “Maybe I should call this Brentwood guy and see what he has to say. Tripling my money sounds like a good thing. I’ve got lots of ideas about how I’m going to spend the inhe
ritance. I’ll call him and schedule a time to meet.”

  Jake looked at his watch. His brown eyes grew big. “I forgot the cake!”

  In the kitchen, the smoke alarm blared its sharp, irritating screech. Iris, Lilac and Abby thundered upstairs to avoid the sound.

  The smell of smoke floated through the air. Jake and Katherine bolted to kitchen. While Katherine climbed on the kitchen footstool to disable the alarm, Jake opened the oven door. A thick, black cloud rose from what remained of the masterpiece cake. “I think I need to edit what I just said. How about money and me? I’ll have to bake another cake. Cats? Where are my helpers?”

  Scout and Abra sprinted in with their upper lips curled. “Waugh,” Scout coughed. The two hiked up their tails and trotted off to another room.

  Katherine sat down on the kitchen chair and laughed until her side hurt. “I’ll help you,” she said. “Where’s the recipe?”

  Chapter Two

  Cokey drove his new Dodge Ram, equipped with a snow blade, to the mansion and plowed the driveway, so that Katherine could move her Subaru out from under the covered carport. She drove Jake to the garage to pick up his Jeep so he could drive to the university, where he taught a one o’clock class. Katherine was meeting G. Robert Brentwood, the financial advisor, who had an office in Mark Dunn’s building downtown. As she pulled into a parking space and got out of her car, a very tall, barrel-chested man approached her.

  “Are you Katherine Kendall? I’m G. Robert Brentwood. Just call me Robbie. I’m so glad to meet you. Did you have any trouble getting here? What do you think of this weather? Mark said you were from New York. Have you been there lately?”

  Katherine just stared at the man with her mouth open because he asked a million questions and didn’t give her time to answer any of them.

  “I’m on the second floor,” Robbie continued in a thundering voice. “Mark Dunn is also on my floor. You know him, of course. He’s your late aunt Orvenia’s lawyer. Here, I’ll show you the way.”

  He held the lobby door open and continued, “I’m so sorry. I haven’t let you get a word in edge-wise. My mother says it’s a terrible habit of mine. Please, let’s take the stairs. I need the exercise.”

  Katherine agreed. He carried an unhealthy amount of weight. On the second floor, Robbie escorted Katherine to a small office with sparse furnishings. There was a desk and office chair, computer, and combination printer and fax machine. Against the windowed wall was a credenza with mounds of paper stacked on it. Obviously, Robbie’s forte wasn’t filing.

  “Please have a seat,” Robbie said, pointing at a leather-covered side chair. He sat behind his desk and immediately began nervously twiddling with a pen. “Mark has told me that you are interested in investing. I’m privy to a new, high-performing mutual fund that is paying off in big bucks. I also do direct management of investments for high-net worth individuals like you.”

  Katherine took a deep breath and wondered when the man would let her talk. “I would like to hear more about it.” She plucked another business card from a holder near the edge of the desk. The reverse side of the card had raised, bold letters spelling out Licensed Financial Professional.

  “It’s as simple as this,” Robbie continued. “You give me the sum of ‘x’ dollars. I’ll set up an account at the Erie bank of your choice. You’ll give me access to the money and I’ll make decisions on what to buy and what to sell. I guarantee within three months, I will have tripled your money.”

  “In this economy, you must do very well with what you do,” Katherine remarked. She glanced at the wall, which held three mat-framed diplomas: an undergraduate degree from a university in New Jersey, an MBA degree from a prestigious school, and a certificate identifying him as a certified financial planner.

  “I worked on Wall Street for a number of years and I’m aware of the best investment opportunities available on today’s market. In fact, I still have an office in Manhattan.”

  “Interesting,” Katherine noted. “As a matter of fact, when I worked in midtown, your building was very close to mine —”

  Robbie interrupted, throwing his hands up in excitement. He said in a booming voice, “We could have bumped into each other and not even known it. As I was saying,” he returned to the topic at hand, “If you sign this account agreement and deposit a mere five thousand dollars I will begin my magic. I’m sure you’ll be so happy with the results.”

  Katherine thought, Mom used to say if it looks too good to be true, then it probably is. “I’d like to explore your offer further. Do you have a website I can access? Any literature I can study?”

  “I assure you, what I do is completely legitimate,” Robbie said, undaunted, “I will invest a major part of your money in this new mutual fund, and you’ll see the windfall within a month or two. The more you put in, the more you make. Easy sneezy,” he said. “Everyone in Erie is investing. Why not jump on the bandwagon today?”

  Katherine thought, What a salesman! He won’t take no for an answer. Standing up to leave, she gathered her bag and folded her coat over her arm. She smiled politely. “I’ll take this under advisement and get back to you. Thank you so much for meeting with me.” She stepped for the door, but Robbie stood up and called her back.

  “Oh, by all means. Here’s my website,” he said, scratching the address on the back of one of his business cards, which she already had, but accepted this one, as well. “Check it out! Check me out! And don’t delay. Get back to me right away!”

  Katherine hurriedly headed for the elevator bank. A line had formed outside Robbie’s office door. She recognized the mayor’s wife and Cokey Cokenberger.

  “Hi, Cokey,” she said, stopping to talk. “I want to thank you for plowing my driveway this morning.” She knew it was a lame excuse to talk to him, because she had already thanked him earlier. She was curious why he’d want to meet with the new financial advisor in town.

  “You’re welcome, Katz,” he said, then whispered. “I heard I can triple my investment in a matter of months, so I’m investing big-time.”

  Katherine’s eyes grew wide. “Oh, Cokey, is that wise? Have you investigated this man’s credentials?”

  Cokey shrugged and said dismissively, “No big deal, but don’t tell Margie. I want it to be a surprise.”

  Katherine looked skeptical. “I guess.” Mark Dunn was coming out of his office and literally bumped into her.

  “Fancy meeting you here,” he said amicably. “I take it you took my advice and met with Mr. Brentwood.”

  “Yes,” she said non-committedly. “I know you said you’d invested money with him, but I need to think about it.”

  “Don’t wait too long,” Mark advised. “I was just heading for lunch. Care to join me?”

  “Oh, Mark, I’d love to, but can I take a rain check? I’m meeting Michelle from the library. We’re having lunch at the diner.”

  “Okay . . . hang on a second. I’ve got those property documents for you.” He dashed back in his office to get them. He returned, holding a three-ring binder with side tabs peeking out along the edge. “Any questions, just give me a call.”

  “I appreciate it,” Katherine said, walking with him to the elevator.

  When the doors swished open on the first floor, Mark’s cell phone rang. He stopped to answer it, then said to Katherine, “Catch you later.”

  Katherine smiled and made her way out of the building. As she opened the front lobby door, she was forced to move aside by a very angry man who was cursing to himself. “When I get a hold of that lyin’ son of a bitch, I’m gonna snap his neck in two,” the man said, storming for the elevator bank. She heard Mark say, “Hey, Nick, let’s calm down there, buddy.”

  Wow! I guess I’m leaving just in time, Katherine thought. Wonder what that was all about? Wonder who Nick is?

  Once outside, Katherine slid on a patch of ice and instantly righted herself. She thought she was getting very good at this and wondered if there was a special category in the Olympics for suc
h an athletic skill. The town of Erie couldn’t keep up with the streets, let alone clear the sidewalks. She climbed in her Subaru and drove to the diner. She parked close to the door and walked inside. Michelle had reserved a booth in the far corner. She waved Katherine over.

  “Hey, Katz, how are you? Long time, no see.”

  “Where does the time go?” Katherine said, sliding into the booth.

  “How’s your new computer class going? Any serial killers enrolled this time?” Michelle said, tongue-in-cheek, referring to her disastrous date with the Festival Murderer himself.

  “I have four super students. The session is almost finished, but I’m going to take a month off before the next group.”

  Frank, the waiter, came over and took their orders. He repeated, “For you, Katz, one Reuben with extra sauerkraut. And for you, Michelle, one breaded pork tenderloin with mayo and dill pickles.”

  “Oh, Frank, could you add a spring water for me?” Katherine asked.

  “Yeppers,” he said, smiling. “Michelle, the same?”

  “Yep. Thanks, Frank. Oh, by the way, how’s your mom doing? I heard she was in the hospital,” Michelle asked, concerned.

  “She fell and broke her hip, but the doc patched her up. She’ll be dancing the jig in no time.” He grinned and walked away.

  Michelle smirked, “Frank’s mom is a hoot. You’ve got to meet her. She’ll be at the annual holiday fundraiser, I’m sure. She makes these white chocolate cakes in clay flowerpots. They are to die for! Oh, by the way, Katz, you never got back to me. Are you attending, or not? I’m organizing it this year and I’ve reserved a table for you, but you never gave me the heads up.”

  “I’ve given it much thought, but what can I make to sell for charity?”

  Frank brought the spring water over and poured each a glass. After he left, Michelle said, “Well, Orvenia always baked her famous iced sugar cookies. They were made from butter and were absolutely delicious. Why don’t you try that?”

  Katherine chuckled to herself, remembering baking the ‘masterpiece’ birthday cake with Jake. She wondered if he’d help her make the cookies. “That’s not a bad idea, Michelle,” Katherine said enthusiastically. “I found her cookbook in the attic, of all places. I’ll look for the sugar cookie recipe. Wouldn’t it be fun if I cut them in the shape of cats?”