Author: marylowd

by Mary E. Lowd

An excerpt from Otters In Space: The Search for Cat Haven.  If you’d prefer, you can start with Chapter 1, return to the previous chapter, or skip ahead.

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As the bill was already settled, Kipper had herself dressed and back out on the main drag in no time.  She caught herself looking at the otters around her, trying to catch their reaction to her in their eyes.  She wove between them, staying as far away from the artificial river as she could manage.  She didn’t want to get tripped or pushed into the water again.  The otters, by and large, gave her a respectful amount of space.  Perhaps they understood what she was doing.  She imagined herself walking in the paw steps of all the other cats who had come to this station and who carefully edged their way away from the water. Continue reading “Otters In Space – Chapter 10: Kipper in the Red Quarter”

by Mary E. Lowd

An excerpt from Otters In Space: The Search for Cat Haven.  If you’d prefer, you can start with Chapter 1, return to the previous chapter, or skip ahead.

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Kipper folded her tunic, trousers, and scramball jersey into her little purple duffle and stowed it beside Maury’s desk.  She wrapped the white sheet around her, under her arms, and pushed the pink curtain out of her way.  Maury was arranging the tools of his trade on the work table beside the closest reclining chair.  When he noticed her, he patted on the chair’s Naugahyde seat, inviting her to take her place there. Continue reading “Otters In Space – Chapter 9: A Whole New Kipper”

by Mary E. Lowd

An excerpt from Otters In Space: The Search for Cat Haven.  If you’d prefer, you can start with Chapter 1, return to the previous chapter, or skip ahead.

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The door opened, spilling space station light into the hold.  Kipper could hardly wait to set paw on the light-kissed ground.  The closer she got to otter space, the more buzzed she got.  She wanted to get out there and see what Deep Sky Anchor was really like.  She wanted to join the otters, swimming in their “rivers in the sky.”  Continue reading “Otters In Space – Chapter 8: Kipper on the Deep Sky Anchor”

by Mary E. Lowd

An excerpt from Otters In Space: The Search for Cat Haven.  If you’d prefer, you can start with Chapter 1, return to the previous chapter, or skip ahead.

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Chip was a harsh task-master.  He kept Kipper lugging crates of shrimp, tanks of crabs, and other sea-farmed delectables along with trunk after trunk of passenger luggage until her agile cat-spine ached.  Cats weren’t built for hard work, and this work was back-breaking. Continue reading “Otters In Space – Chapter 7: Kipper Rides the Elevator”

by Mary E. Lowd

An excerpt from Otters In Space: The Search for Cat Haven.  If you’d prefer, you can start with Chapter 1, return to the previous chapter, or skip ahead.

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The next few days were a blur of countries outside Kipper’s window.

Guatemala became El Salvador and then Honduras.  The terrain grew mountainous, green, and jungly.  Wild rainforests alternated with farmland, growing sugarcane and coffee beans.  Kipper slept through Nicaragua and most of Costa Rica, but she took the wheel through all of Panama and down into Colombia.  South America at last! Continue reading “Otters In Space – Chapter 6: Kipper in Ecuador”

by Mary E. Lowd

An excerpt from Otters In Space: The Search for Cat Haven.  If you’d prefer, you can start with Chapter 1, return to the previous chapter, or skip ahead.

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The guard flicked his ears in the chill desert air.  Mornings were cold, but it would be hot when the sun got overhead and started beating down.  During the day, it was no place for the thick, full mane of a rough Collie; but, right now, it was a bit nippy for a smooth one.  The guard dog scratched the barrel of his rifle against his chin.  A car was coming. Continue reading “Otters In Space – Chapter 5: Kipper in Mexico”

by Mary E. Lowd

An excerpt from Otters In Space: The Search for Cat Haven.  If you’d prefer, you can start with Chapter 1, return to the previous chapter, or skip ahead.

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After a quick sweep of the alleys surrounding the bar, Kipper thankfully concluded that Petra wasn’t lying, bleeding to death in any of them.  Though, even with a big black dog tailing her, watching her back, Kipper still felt like jumping at every shadow.  And her heart stopped when she saw a crumpled bag beside some trash bins — in the dark, it could have been her sister.  But Trudith was very reassuring and convinced Kipper that if anything had happened to Petra — if thugs had dragged her out of the bar or caught up with her outside — she would still be pretty close.  Close enough that they would have found her. Continue reading “Otters In Space – Chapter 4: Kipper Flees to Mexico”

by Mary E. Lowd

An excerpt from Otters In Space: The Search for Cat Haven.  If you’d prefer, you can start with Chapter 1, return to the previous chapter, or skip ahead.

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After Kipper finished her exciting day of balancing accounts, and Petra finished her last-minute canvassing of the water-cooler dogs, the two sisters headed down to their favorite hangout, deep in the heart of Old Town.  The bus ride between Luna Tech and All Cats Go To Hell was short and, unlike that morning, uneventful.  The walk from the bus stop to the bar’s front door, however, always made Kipper a little nervous.  And tonight she was extra jumpy, seeing shadows everywhere. Continue reading “Otters In Space – Chapter 3: Kipper Gets in a Fight”