“No, no, no!” The girl quickly looked up, seeing a glimmer of hope as she explained, “It’s not that serious! There’s an eighty percent chance it’s still alive! Still alive!”
Tom Fritz, who had just calmed down, felt his heart tighten again. “Eighty percent alive?”
The girl swallowed hard, too scared to make a sound.
He turned his gaze again, sweeping over the empty cat bed, then looked down at the girl kneeling before him, his eyes turning stern.
“What exactly happened? Why wasn’t I informed immediately?” Tom Fritz restrained his emotions, feeling extremely displeased inside.
The girl, steeling herself, met his gaze with her hands nervously twisting her apron, her heart nearly trembling with fear.
Tom Fritz calmly sized her up. “Stand up and speak,” he said, controlling his emotions.
The girl still dared not move. Although it wasn’t dead, Bubu was still missing.
“Don’t you understand?”
The man stood firm in front of her. He did not want anyone kneeling before him, so his voice softened considerably, “Stand up and speak; let’s solve this together.”
Gradually, the girl withdrew her gaze and slowly stood up.
She felt her nerves were about to snap. “Mr. Fritz, Bubu was adopted by someone…” she barely dared to speak aloud.
The man’s brow furrowed. “How could this happen?”
The girl bit her lip, afraid to answer.
He didn’t blame her but asked calmly, “Didn’t you know Bubu was my cat?”
“I knew…” the girl regretted deeply as she explained the facts. “I had something urgent that day so I asked my sister to cover for me for two hours. I didn’t explain to her that Bubu was your cat so…”
“Who adopted it?”
“When did this happen?”
“Did you try to get Bubu back after you found out?”
Tom Fritz’s expression turned grim. “Only two hours and you couldn’t fix it?” He tried to keep his tone gentle.
“I…”
The girl was particularly panicked as she confessed, “Spencer took him away, but he left a disconnected number. We couldn’t reach him or find him.”
“Spencer?” Tom Fritz seemed relieved as he remembered the day Spencer called… It had been some time since Bubu was taken away.
“Yes,” the girl replied.
He breathed a sigh of relief; it would be easier if Bubu was with Spencer.
Tom Fritz casually put one hand in his pocket and with the other took out his phone and dialed Spencer’s number.
“Hello, Spencer, did you take Bubu?” he asked directly. “And you left a disconnected number?”
“Yeah,” Spencer sounded pleased and expressed his gratitude again. “Thank you so much; the kitten is adorable and the new owner loves it!”
How could he not be happy if the kitten pleased his niece?
“It’s a cat I’ve had for many years; it was just staying at the care center for a few days and wasn’t meant to be adopted.”
“How so?” Spencer sounded slightly surprised then joked with a laugh. “Are you saying you want me to return it?”
“Exactly,” Tom Fritz didn’t beat around the bush. “Where is the cat?”
Spencer paused then laughed out loud. “That won’t do; I’ve already registered it and besides, it gets along well with its new owner. We’re friends now, Mr. Fritz; don’t be so petty! It’s just a cat!”
“It’s not about being petty; this cat means a lot to me, like family.”
Tom Fritz spoke earnestly. “Pick any other cat from the center; just return this one to me. Bubu is delicate and has a sensitive stomach; most people can’t take proper care of it.”
“I’m sorry then,” Spencer said brazenly. “I’ve already given it away! It’s not with me anymore!”