Free Take the Monkey and Run by Laura Morrigan Page A

turned my attention to Marisa.
    â€œI was just looking at a couple of gifts and couldn’t help but overhear. Need another set of hands?”
    â€œActually, we might. Officer Green, would you mind bringing Miss Wilde with you?”
    â€œYou’re with the zoo?” he asked, looking back and forth between us.
    â€œShe’s a consultant with the Jacksonville Zoo. According to one of their veterinarians, she’s very good at handling situations like this.”
    It seemed she’d called and spoken to Hugh.
    â€œIn that case, we’d be glad to have you.”
    As I followed the policeman to his cruiser I told myself Kai wouldn’t be mad. Surely, I couldn’t be faulted for leaving the safety of the police station if I was with the cops, right?
    With that flimsy excuse firmly in mind, I slid into the passenger seat of the police cruiser and headed to apprehend the spunky simian. Fifteen minutes later we stopped near a small crowd of people who were blocking an intersection in—if I’d gotten my bearings—Uptown New Orleans.
    â€œThe monkey just slipped past the trap,” a woman said as we approached the group. “I could’ve sworn we had him.”
    â€œIt was like he knew right where to go,” the man with her confirmed.
    â€œHe got away?” Marisa asked, her tone disbelieving and more than a little frustrated.
    I looked in the direction the man motioned and focused on getting a bead on the monkey. It took some doing because of the weird, intermittent flickering of his brain waves, but I managed to zero in on them.
    â€œThere,” I said, and pointed to the canopy of a huge live oak tree.
    â€œYou see him?” Officer Green asked, squinting at the tree.
    â€œYep.” That wasn’t 100 percent true. I couldn’t really
see
the monkey. But I could detect his brain waves with my ability and home in on their source. It’s really closer to hearing than to seeing, but in that moment, I figured it was better to skip those details and keep it simple.
    Rather than try to pinpoint the animal’s exact location, Iwalked slowly forward. It was something I’d done before. Ninety percent of the time only a few people would notice or follow. Humans were not very observant animals. Unlike elephants, who almost always pay close attention to what you’re doing. Such busybodies.
    In this instance the only people who followed were the cop and the woman who’d told us about the monkey’s narrow escape.
    â€œI don’t see him,” the woman said in a low voice.
    I paused to press my fingers to my lips, then whispered, “I only saw him for a second. He’s in the tree. Maybe we can try to circle around and drive him toward the trap.” I didn’t really know what the trap was but I wanted to get close to the monkey and do so on my own.
    â€œOkay, yeah. We’ll flank him,” the cop said. It was clear from the way he was gazing at the tree that he hadn’t spotted his quarry.
    â€œGood,” I said. “You guys head around the tree. I’ll stay here and keep an eye out for him.”
    â€œIf you spot him again,” Officer Green said, “give us a signal.”
    I nodded and waited for the two to move off before closing my eyes and focusing on the little monkey in the tree.
    When our thoughts connected, I discovered the little guy was pretty calm for a critter who had just escaped capture.
    Hey, buddy, come on down.
    I extended the invitation with the idea of safety and friendship.
    There was a rustle in the canopy and the capuchin came into view. He tilted his head and regarded me from on high, then leapt to a lower branch.
    That’s it. Come see me
.
    With his long limbs and prehensile tail, he made it to the lowest branch in seconds. After a series of curious squeaks, the little monkey stopped half a dozen feet from where I stood.
    I lifted my hand slowly and extended my arm.
    Here you