The answer is:

...The Snow Storm …

I was fortunate that the wind had piled the snow at the side of my home, and with the help of the spade I could clear a way out of both the front and back doors, although I doubted if I should ever be able to dig a path to my gate.

An eerie light flooded the house, partly reflected from the snow, and partly from those windows which were plastered with it and filtered the morning light.

I soon had my kettle on, and was thankful that the electricity had not failed. But I was perplexed that Tibby had not appeared. Surely that comfort~loving animal had not ventured out during the night?

…

By mid~morning there was still no sign of Tibby and I was beginning to get alarmed. There were no tell~tale footprints around the house, but then they would soon have been obliterated in last night’s conditions.

I rang the Annetts and also Mrs. John in the hope that they had seen him, but there was no help there. I called until I was hoarse, hoping to hear an answering mew from some over~looked shelter, but nothing happened. I had gloomy visions of the poor animal entombed beneath the blanket of snow like John Ridd’s sheep in Lorna Doone. How long could a cat survive without food in such a situation? One thing, Tibby had plenty of surplus fat to live on, as Bob Willet was fond of pointing out, but could the cold kill him?

I began to get more and more agitated as the hours passed, and remembered all the captivating ways of my truant, and how much his companionship meant to me. By the time early evening began to cast its shadows, I was near despair. At that moment, the lights began to flicker continuously, and I decided that it would be as well to delve into the recesses of the cupboard under the stairs to find the ancient Aladdin lamp stored there.


I undid the door, and bent double to locate the lamp in the gloom. A lazy chirruping sound met me, and Tibby emerged sleepily and greeted me with much affection. Relief overcame my initial irritation with the maddening animal. Why had there been no response to my anguished cries? Why, last night of all nights, had he decided to sleep in the cupboard? I suppose I must have left the door ajar on my first visit there for candles, and then automatically shut it in passing later on. In any case, it was good to see my old friend, and a double portion of Pussi~Luv vanished in a twinkling.
. . .

Changes at Fairacre ~~ Miss Read



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