Pepper, Jackson and Leopold stood at the end of the long driveway. The old, dark house loomed in the distance under the collective shadow of the surrounding bony trees. 

 

"Are we sure about this?" Jackson asked.

 

"I don’t think we have a choice,” Leopold said gravely. 

 

"A bet is a bet. Let’s go in there, get some cheese and get out alive," Pepper ordered. 

 

The three little mice squinted at the Cat House in the night.  

 

Pepper huffed and scurried off down the lane, sending the crunchy autumn leaves in a tizzy. Jackson and Leopold scampered nervously behind him. 

 

Leopold said, "I heard from my brother's friend's cousin's sister's friend's uncle that there are at least six or seven."

 

Jackson gulped and said, "Six or seven?"

 

The three mice dashed onto the porch. The Cat House was older than they thought: the white siding was so weathered that it almost looked brown and bore long cracks from the roof to the ground; a cluster of rocking chair covered in thick cobwebs moved ever so slightly in the wind, making the floorboards groan beneath them; and the front door had shifted with age, leaving a small gap near the floor. 

 

Jackson said, “It's a deathtrap in there."

 

Leopold added, "They could just be waiting by the door, ready to pounce on us the second we get inside!"

 

Pepper furrowed his brow and lunged for the small hole, wiggling his way inside. Jackson and Leopold dove in after him.

 

Pepper whispered, “Okay. The kitchen has to be down this hall. On the count of three, we make a run for it. One… Two… Three!”

 

The three mice darted down the long hallway in a straight line. They reached the end and paused, pressing themselves flat against the wall. Pepper peeked around the corner slowly and a squeak escaped him as a haunting silhouette sat just several feet away. Pepper turned back to Jackson and Leopold quickly and whispered, “Cat.”

 

Jackson asked, “What do we do?”

 

Leopold suggested, “Maybe we should come back another day.”

 

Jackson nodded. “Yeah, yeah, I like that idea.”

 

But as they turned to retreat to the front door, another figure stood before their exit.

 

Leopold squeaked at the sight and whispered, “We’re trapped!”

 

Pepper scanned the hall and peaked around the corner again in the dark. He counted at least four—No, five cats. Sweat dripped from his brow and he whispered, “Follow me. I have an idea.”

 

Pepper took a deep breath and darted around the corner and into the kitchen. Jackson and Leopold followed right on his tail, eyes wide as the cats moved in. No matter how fast the little mice ran, it seemed the cats could catch up all too easily, gliding across the room in one swift leap.

 

The mice reached the base of the fridge and Pepper clawed at it, unsuccessfully convincing it to open for them. Jackson and Leopold stood frozen, facing the ever-growing swarm of cats. There had to be at least nine or ten of them.

 

Jackson whispered, “Pepper…”

 

Pepper kept clawing, digging ferociously at the base of the refrigerator.  

 

Leopold tried to speak, but no words left his mouth.

 

The cats crouched down low, each eyeing up a little mouse to pounce.

 

Jackson tried again. “Pepper…”

 

Pepper was busy. Sweat dripped steadily from his forehead and he ignored the burning sensation it left in his eyes. He kept digging.

 

Every cat tail twitched with excitement.

 

Jackson and Leopold hugged each other and squeezed their eyes shut when a loud clatter made them jump a foot off the ground. Even the cats seemed startled. Some of them sprinted from the room!

 

Pepper shouted, “Come on!”

 

Jackson and Leopold spun around and found the base of the fridge had fallen off, thanks to Pepper’s digging. All three of them scurried beneath the giant buzzing cooler before any cats could snatch them up.

 

Leopold asked, “Now what?”

 

Pepper didn’t hesitate. He began chewing at the structure over their heads. In a matter of seconds, he created a hole just big enough to squeeze through. One by one, each mouse climbed up inside the refrigerator.

 

Jackson sniffed. He said, “I think the cheese drawer is at the top.”

 

The three small mice took their time inside; sampling pretty much everything they passed by. Finally, they reached the top shelf. Leopold wedged the drawer open just enough to wiggle inside. He climbed in all too happily and began handing tiny wedges of cheese to up to Jackson and Pepper.

 

Once each mouse hand their hands filled with cheddar, they climbed down, carefully keeping to the back corner beneath the fridge.

 

Jackson eyed the many paws surrounding their escape route, some swatting underneath. “How do we get out?” he asked.

 

Just then, footsteps entered the kitchen. The fridge shifted above them as the door was pulled open, sending a blinding light down to the mice through the little hole in the bottom. Leopold peeked up inside and his jaw dropped. It was the famous Cat Lady. Wrapped in a night robe, she had mountains of rollers in her hair and she wore glasses at least an inch thick. She searched the contents and grabbed the carton of milk.

 

“I see,” she said, “everyone thirsty?”

 

And just like that, the cats abandoned the mice and began following the old Cat Lady around, crying in a terrifying cat chorus of meows.

 

The three mice watched from under the refrigerator as all thirteen cats settled and lapped milk from their individual saucers.

 

Pepper whispered, “Let’s go!”

 

And while the cats were happily distracted with their midnight snack, Pepper, Leopold, and Jackson ran down the hall of the old Cat House and lived to tell the tale.

 

 

The End. 

 

-H.C. Herman