Liza and I returned from her nail clipping appointment and I settled myself in for some dinner. Just about then, she started acting really strange. The hair on the nape of her neck was standing, there was something that her senses didn’t agree with. I ignored it at first and continued heating food. They say dogs can see spirits and where I live, sometimes, I have quite a few friendly visitors. I usually let open the door and pretend to ignore them and her barking into thin air. Whatever it is settle it out, I don’t need to get involved and after a bit, it’s all calm. But not tonight, she paced, uncomfortable on not being able to see what she’s sensing. I decided to distract her with food, it usually works for both of us. But this time it didn’t. She wouldn’t come to me & hid under a sofa, growling at the sofa opposite the room. I ignored it until the growls got really aggressive, the barking had now begun, the hair on her neck was reaching for the ceiling. That’s when I froze. What if there IS someone hiding behind the sofa? While we were away, someone broke into the house and was startled by our unexpected early return? So it hid behind the sofa. Lame, but when you’re looking for cover, you’re not thinking.
Now we’ve established that there’s something there that does not belong in this house, but with a cold the best I can do was a squeak. I live in an old villa with no neighbors. It would be morning before my body is found! But…how can someone fit behind the sofa? A spirit? But why would Liza keep sniffing the floor. Surely spirits don’t leave scents and besides the only dead spirit in the house at this point in time is me!
Realizing that I cant handle this on my own, I rang the maid, who didn’t pick up. This is getting really suspicious, why isn’t the maid picking up? It’s only 9:30, she can’t possibly be asleep and it takes precisely 25 secs from her room to the house. So, WHERE IS SHE? Under the sofa? Dead? Oh my gosh! I’ve watched too many Hindi movies to know anything is possible. To add to the drama, I was suddenly suffering from an uncontrollable bout of hiccups. On Grey’s Anatomy, I’ve seen a women die because of hiccups (ok so I watch too much TV, but can we worry about that later?)
I can’t do this alone. Can’t pull a body out and Liza’s behavior is unnerving me. What do I do? What do I do? Just then, Mary, with obviously better timing than my hiccups rushed in through the door as an answer to my questions. A relief. So its not her dead or hiding behind the sofa (I didn’t think she’d hide behind the sofa, but still) what the fuck is it then?!!!
We’re trying to hold Liza back so that whatever it is, doesn’t get her first. I can see headlines already – ‘Two Asian ladies -SS & MD found dead in Jumeirah villa. Motive unknown. Dog rescued. Traumatized, is not speaking and will be put up for adoption’
As Mary pulls parts of the sofa away, Liza is getting uncontrollable & trying hard to wiggle away. Animals can also sense danger. So is this her trying to run for cover? We decided to open the main door first, if need be we can run or scream or whatever. As soon as the second sofa is moved, she pauses. I see it too. A brown tail first and then the whole brown and black stripped body emerges. The tiger leaps for the door and vanishes into darkness. Ok it wasn’t a tiger, but it still belonged to the cat family. The fuss, and all I have is a bleeding scratch from Liza’s freshly manicured claws.
That would have been the last paragraph of this entry if Liza hadn’t started barking before I finished with this post. The whole routine is all too familiar. We just went through this an hour back. The cat couldn’t have come back again unless….
It was a different room this time and she’s barking around my bed. MAAAAARRRRYYYYY!!!!
Another cat, a pregnant one and this time after chasing her out we looked for other aunts, uncles, mistress’, kittens left behind. I mean we’ve just witnessed a family picnic today. How do you choose a dog’s house as a safe haven for delivering your kittens? I changed my mind. Cats were meant to be smart. Too tired…need to sleep. But she won’t. Her rights as a dog have just been violated. Two cats, under her very nose, in her kingdom and I let them get away…. the sniffing continues…
In the house?! Was the orange one that used to walk on the wall? What an insult to Liza, it must be avenged!
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