Parrots Prove Deadly Read Online Free

back the page, look at what his sister had told me about his mother’s decline and death. He didn’t, but I got the feeling he wasn’t happy—either at giving me his contact info or at finding me here in the first place.
    Jane might see him as her naughty baby brother. The one who wouldn’t help out.
    Me, I was thinking about what the parrot had said. I was wondering why he’d misled his sister about their meeting place and tried to sneak into his mother’s empty apartment. I was wondering, too, why he couldn’t meet her eye.
     

Chapter Four
    “A bird. ”Wallis was washing her face. I knew that each time she swiped her white paw over her whiskers, however, it was really to avoid facing me. “She’s listening to a bird now. ”
    I didn’t answer her, even though I could. Wallis and I have something special. With most animals, I hear their thoughts. It’s like I’m eavesdropping usually, and as my brief time with the parrot had reminded me, the give-and-take is pretty iffy. Wallis and I can have actual conversations, although I usually speak out loud and her voice is only in my head. I suspect that this two-way communication is because we’ve lived together for so long. She’s sure it’s because she’s a cat.
    What I did know was that her feline nature lent her a certain attitude toward other, smaller animals. And while a day before I might have agreed with her about avian authority, at this point, I just couldn’t be sure. Those sounds—that virtual reenactment—had been a little chilling for my taste.
    None of which I could explain to my tabby housemate. I’d hit the Internet as soon as I had gotten home and only after a couple of articles had I related my day’s experience. And then the chime of the doorbell, followed by a hard rat-a-tat-tat rap on the door, had interrupted us.
    It was the police. One officer, actually, and he squinted back at me as I eyed him, door opened part way.
    “Evening, ma’am.” With that angular face and the short hair, he looked like a boy scout, all grown up. “We’ve had reports of a disturbance.”
    “No disturbance here, Officer.” I leaned on the doorframe. I could feel Wallis around my ankles, but I tuned her out. I was focused on the cop’s blue eyes. They didn’t blink. Neither did I.
    “You’re not in need of assistance then?” For a moment, he glanced down, and I could feel Wallis tensing ever so slightly.
    “Assistance?” I let my gaze slide over his body. Slim, muscular. Definite boy scout. Definitely grown up. “No.”
    “Well, how about pizza then?” He proffered a flat box. It smelled of anchovies. Delicious, but I wasn’t hungry for pizza.
    “Maybe later,” I said, letting my voice soften. He took my cue, setting the pizza box down to take me in his arms as Wallis trotted away.
    ***
    Twenty minutes later, I was getting dressed. That was supposed to be a hint. Jim Creighton—Detective James Creighton—and I had been seeing each other regularly enough that his showing up unannounced wasn’t totally out of place. But he was pushing, and as much as I enjoyed interludes like the one we’d just had on my sofa, I didn’t want him to get too comfortable. I had a lot on my mind, and the one colleague I wanted to discuss it all with was tiger-striped.
    “You hungry?” He reached over to where the pizza box had been abandoned on the coffee table. “It’s still warm, and I know Wallis wants some.”
    I looked down. Sure enough, my tabby had returned to the living room, and now sat on the rug, tail neatly curled around her front feet and a look of devotion on her face.
    “Well, mozzarella wouldn’t melt in your mouth,” I said to her as I accepted a slice. Wallis brushed against Jim’s shin as he stood and reached for his pants, and I wondered what both of them were playing at. It wasn’t all about the cheese.
    I was right. “I want to ask you something, Pru.” I’d started toward the kitchen, but I could hear fine. “And I don’t