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I was going to formulate a stern rebuke but Gran didn’t give me the chance. ‘The Fat red one?’ Really? Not a very nice thing to say, especially coming from your very own human. But then Gran was in a strange mood. Probably being engaged for a millisecond to a cult leader will do that to a person.

Odelia gestured for us to explore the rest of the house, while she followed Jason into what I assumed was the living room, and Dooley and I did as we were asked and moved along the hallway, following in Jason’s irascible Gam-Gam’s footsteps.

“What if they don’t have pets, Max?” asked Dooley.

“Then we simply get the lay of the land and report back to Odelia on anything we find,” I said.

“Gran is acting a little strange, don’t you think?”

“Well, I’m glad you noticed,” I said. “Did you hear what she just called me?”

“She’s not herself, Max. You can’t blame people when they’re not themselves.”

He was probably right, but still. Then again, we were on a mission, and I wasn’t going to let my personal feelings impede my responsibilities as a sleuth. So I locked my hurt feelings inside a little box, tucked away the key, and stuck my nose in the air, sniffing around for traces of pets. Unfortunately all I smelled was mold, cabbage, and badly ventilated spaces. This clearly was an old house, and not a very well-maintained one.

Dooley, who’d also been sniffing up a storm, wrinkled his nose. “It smells as if someone died in here,” he said finally, and maybe someone had.

We’d arrived at a closed door, and I gave it a gentle push. It yielded to pressure and swung open to reveal the kitchen.

No trace of any pets, though, and I hadn’t been able to pick up the scent of one either.

At the kitchen table, Gam-Gam was sitting and slurping from a bowl of soup. A second person was also present, and judging from her age and appearance, I ventured a guess that this was Jason’s dear, sweet mother.

She looked up when Dooley and I walked in, and blinked.“How did those get in here?” she asked.

Gam-Gam frowned.“They’re that nasty old bird’s cats. No idea why she decided to bring them along. The woman is cuckoo if you ask me.”

Jason’s mom crouched down and tickled me behind my ear. Inadvertently I closed my eyes and started purring. I’m sorry but it’s one of those reflex actions that cats have a hard time controlling.

“You’re a pudgy ball of fur, aren’t you?” she said.

Immediately I stopped purring and opened my eyes to give her as supercilious a look as I could muster on the spur of the moment.

“For your information, I’m not fat and I’m not pudgy,” I said. “I’m merely big-boned. Also, before you make the same fatal mistake Gran made, let me set the record straight on another point of contention: I’m not red, I’m blorange.Blorange. And yes, it is a color.”

“Will you listen to that,” said the woman with a smile. “He’s a real Chatty Cathy.”

“A big yapper, if you ask me,” said the older woman, and took another noisy slurp from her soup. “Good thing we talked Jason out of getting cats, Martha,” she said. “Otherwise we’d have a couple of those hairballs running around and making a fuss.”

“Oh, Mom, you shouldn’t say those things about cats. They’re noble creatures. Master Omar said so himself.”

“Master Omar, Master Omar,” grumbled Gam-Gam. “I’ve known Omar Carter since he was yea high, so don’t you start that Master Omar nonsense with me.”

“Shush,” said her daughter. “Jason will hear you!”

“And what if he does? He knows how I feel about his precious Omar. If that guy is a god I’m the Queen of Sheba. He’s just another fool with delusions of grandeur, and maybe it’s time someone told Jason.”

“But look how well he’s doing. He hasn’t touched a drop of alcohol since he joined Soul Science. And I, for one, feel we owe Omar Carter a big debt of gratitude.”

“Couldn’t he simply have stuck with Alcoholics Anonymous like everybody else?” asked Gam-Gam. “Now we’re all tangled up in that damn cult.”

“Cult or not, it’s done Jason a wealth of good, so let’s not rock the boat.”

“Easy for you to say. You don’t have to sit there night after night and listen to the moron talking a load of twaddle,” grumbled the old woman.

Clearly Jason’s family had some reservations about their offspring joining Soul Science, and I was straining my ears to hear more when Jason himself came bursting into the kitchen. “Do we have tea? My guests are thirsty.”

“Your guests can go to hell,” said Gam-Gam.

“Mom!” hissed Martha. “Language!”

“Oh, who cares? I’m old enough to do whatever I damn well please in my own home. And if they want tea they can get it themselves. I’m not going to coddle them.”

And with these words, she got up and walked out.

“What’s with Gam-Gam?” asked Jason.

“Probably her sciatica acting up again. Better not to pay attention. Now what kind of tea do our guests want?”

Chapter 23

“Do you guys want something to eat?” asked Martha, while her son put the kettle on.