Page 30 of Betting on the Brainiac

She walks to the doorway to make her call, but she doesn’t step out. She’s not taking her eyes off the cats. I hear her entire conversation with whoever Mrs. Lipsky is, and from Madison’s side, it sounds like the information she’s getting matches what I find on Google.

“If the kittens are eating well, we can leave them here with the mama,” she says. “We want to make sure the mom has enough food and water.”

I’m still sitting near the kittens, and I glance up from my phone. “That’s what my extensive research showed too.”

“Okay, cool.” She plucks at the tie on her leggings and studies the nursing kittens. “How do we know if they’re eating enough?”

“It sounds like you’re supposed to watch them and see if they eat every two to three hours. And you weigh them. They’re supposed to gain about a quarter to half an ounce each day.”

Her forehead furrows. “Mrs. Lipsky says to leave them alone as much as possible because if everyone is healthy and the mama has food, she’ll know what to do. And we can definitely keep them here until Thursday. But then it’s going to get hectic because we have an event set up.”

“Question: who is Mrs. Lipsky, and why are we asking her about kittens?”

“My neighbor. She’s old and she has a parrot.”

This doesn’t clear up why we’re taking kitten advice, but I move to the next question. “The event, is it that mask thing I saw on those signs?”

She nods. “We always do a big party on the first Friday of the month, and those are our biggest nights, so it means extra setup on Thursday. We do a masked night in February for Mardi Gras,and this one in the fall with a different theme. Those are our wildest events. People get brave when they have masks on.”

“Why? Are these full-face masks?”

She smiles. “No. But give people a half mask and some liquor, and a lot of fives will take their shot with tens. And they should, because if the chemistry is there, it’s less about looks, so good for them.”

“What about the tens?” I ask. “You aren’t afraid you’ll be fooled by a five?”

She shoots me a smirk. “Did you just call me a ten, Oliver?”

“What? No, I—” I stop my backpedal. “Yes. That’s not news, is it?”

Her shoulder lifts and drops. “Not really. But any girl with expensive highlights who puts in the gym time will score at least an eight. Besides, a five with a good personality beats a ten without one every time.”

I laugh. I can’t help it. Her answer is a mixture of cockiness and self-awareness. “So we have until Thursday to find a place for these kittens before the club becomes the second circle of hell?”

“One, it’s not that bad. Two, the tips are excellent. And three, yes. But I don’t want to leave them here unsupervised tonight.” She gives me a speculative look.

I smooth the hair at my nape. “Don’t look at me like that. It makes the hair on my neck stand up.”

“Look at you like what?” Her voice is way too innocent.

“That’s how my sisters look when they’re getting up to something.”

“I’m not getting up to anything.” Still too innocent. “I’m just thinking maybe you could take them to your place and watch them tonight.”

No way. I’m not a cat whisperer. “You found them. You’re in charge of this place. You should take them.”

She frowns. “I would in a heartbeat, but Ava is wildly allergic. Like, her eyes will puff up if she even walks into a room where a cat once lived in one of its past nine lives.”

“That’s pretty allergic.”

“Yeah, so how about you? Any allergic roommates?”

“No.” Her face brightens again, and I shut it down. “But I’m not bringing them home. They’ll be fine here. Cats have been having kittens on their own for centuries. Millennia, probably. But I’ll research cat rescues who can take them.”

She walks over and crouches near the kittens, resting her chin on her knees as she studies them. “Okay. That’s fair. You’ve already gone beyond the call of duty here.” She pulls out her phone and starts a voice text. “Hey, Ava. Ask Joey if he has any camping equipment I can borrow. Sleeping bag. Cot.”

I narrow my eyes. “Why do you need camping equipment?”

“I’m not leaving them alone. I’ll stay here.”

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