Judy Miller
Judy Miller always thought of herself as a mother before anything else. After getting married to her high school sweetheart John. She never looked back and pushed their relationship to the next level as a mother.
Judy still remembered the day her baby was born. She had tears in her eyes as she said the first words he would never hear "I love you, Adam."
A Doting Mother
Judy always put her son above everything else. She set up a college fund in his name and made sure he went to a good school. At the age of twelve, when he asked her to get him a cat, she got one for him.
That's how little Toothless joined the family. They adopted her as a little kitten from a shelter and never looked back. Adam was overjoyed upon having a new companion, so he wouldn't be all alone anymore.
Finishing High School
Six years passed within the blink of an eye, and Adam had graduated from high school. But when he told his mum what he planned to do, she almost had a heart attack. He told her that he was going to join the army.
As much as it upset her to see him go somewhere uncertain. She understood that it was what he wanted to do. He needed to fulfill what he felt his purpose was and she couldn't stop him.
Toothless
After a year into Adam's service, Judy noticed something unusual going on with the family cat named Toothless. Toothless was now six years old and she was Adam's best friend. It was very clear that she missed him.
But she had never shown such strange behavior before. Judy didn't understand why the cat started acting strange recently. She wanted to be sure of the cat's behavior before jumping to a conclusion.
Strange Behavior
Judy started noticing a particular photo in the living room had always been knocked down. The first time it happened, she ignored it but as it kept on happening like three times in a row, she knew she had to take drastic measures. She knew it wasn't done by her husband and was always suspicious about the culprit.
She thought to herself that it could be the cat knocking down the picture. She had to figure out the reason why Toothless did so. She decided to take action just to find out the truth.
A Camera
Judy decided that the best way she could find out the truth was to install a camera in the living room to watch her son's cat while she was away. She later found an old security camera in a box in their house and set it up to view the footage of the cat.
With the camera properly set up and connected to her laptop, she was able to watch from her home office. All she just had to do was to wait and see what Toothless would do when no one was watching.
The Footage
The next morning, while Judy was tidying up, she caught a slight view of Toothless in the living room. Immediately, she rushed to her laptop to check on the footage. To her greatest surprise, she watched how the cat crept slowly to the picture which was always knocked down.
As she watched the footage, she couldn't control her breathing as the cat continuously stared at the picture and knocked it down. Now, Judy was sure that it was Toothless who kept on knocking down that particular image. However, the reason why the cat kept doing that wasn't clear to Judy.
The Photograph
The photograph that Toothless kept looking at and knocking down was that of Adam. Judy was quite confused. “Why that photo, and why must it be knocked down every day?" she said to herself knowing fully well that the cat hadn't touched any other photo in the living room.
She tried her best to think about the reason why Toothless behaved in such a manner. After she had done all her house chores, made dinner, and watched her favorite movie series. She soon forgot about it
Next Day
The next morning, when Judy woke up, she brushed her teeth, got dressed, and started her morning routine. She made her early morning coffee and went to the office to work.
When she got to the office, she suddenly remembered that she had forgotten to turn off her laptop with the camera on the screen. What she saw when she got back to the house was very strange. Toothless was looking at the photograph through the laptop screen. Her mouth was wide open in amazement, immediately an idea came to her mind.
What Was She Doing?
Judy's heart started racing like someone who was being chased. She looked at the screen and watched how the cat stared at the photo for a long. "Was it that she was trying to tell me something or does it have to do with my son."
She decided to do what she felt was right for her as a mother. She decided to put a call through her son. She wasn't ready for what she would hear when the phone was finally picked up.
Phone Call
The phone was picked up finally and Judy heard a familiar voice from the other end. She was so excited as she heard her son's voice, she asked if all was well with him but unknowingly to her it wasn't a coincidence. She told Adam about the cat's strange behavior.
When Adam heard all that his mum said about his cat, the reaction she got wasn't something she was expecting. She could hear him break down in tears but she wasn't sure why he did that.
Long Service
As much as Adam enjoyed his service, and felt that he was doing a humanitarian service by helping his country. At the same time, it was quite hard for him to cope with his new environment, and with what was so dear to him, he was missing his family and his lovely pet so much. When he heard about what his cat did, he couldn't keep his thought a secret anymore.
He was already planning something which his mother wasn't aware of. Somehow, it seems obvious that Toothless knew about it and Adam didn't want to continue keeping the secret for long.
Surprise Visit
What he had in mind was to pay a surprise visit to his mum and kitten. He had to take matters into his own hands based on his decision, although it was a tough time for him to finally decide on what he wanted to do next. He applied for leave and he didn't inform his mum about his coming. He had been in town for two days and somehow Toothless his cat could sense that he was close by.
The closer Adam got to the house the more Toothless became restless. Adam couldn't imagine that he was so loved by his pet and could feel his presence too.
A Reunion
Adam decided to put a call through to his mum to tell her that he was in town. He told his mum that he was on his way home. As Judy heard of his coming, she quickly prepared for her son's arrival. Her patience she couldn't withstand, she was so restless while waiting as she heard a knock on her door.
Knock On Her Door
She smiled, "That must be my precious son here now." She opened the door and hugged him so much. She was so overwhelmed with joy as she hadn't seen him for years but only phone conversations made her sure all was well with him. Adam was so happy to be home.
Toothless Was Overjoyed
As soon as Toothless spotted Adam, she immediately hopped on his lap. She was sniffing around his body, the look she gave him was like expressing herself to ask him where he had been and why he left her. It showed how much the cat missed the owner.
Adam was so happy that he had reunited with his best friend. The family reunion was a joyous moment but soon came to a stop
Bad News
Adam had only four days left from his leave. He and his family had planned many outings to spend time together. All was going well at first, the family had planned to go on a hiking trip to the Bulow Creek State Park on a friday that marked the first weekend of Adam's vacation. However, before they could get there, the family got a piece of worrisome news.
News From The Base
Adam got a call from the base commander that he should report back to the barracks in an emergency. He rushed off to pack again and await his flight out. He kept a close eye on the news and kept in touch with other members of his unit.
Days went by, the news grew more distressing. The uprising was gaining traction and military groups in the area began to increase. The threat posed on Adam's base was becoming a reality.
Gone Again
Watching how her son flew at the time they were having a memorable moment was sad for Judy. She had at least had the comfort of knowing that he was relatively safe in the past.
For the first time, she had to face every mother's worst nightmare. The threat of grave danger to her son's life and safety seemed to be something she never imagined. She said a tearful goodbye to her son and just like that he had gone again.
Adam's Service
Adam's first tour in the military had been redeploying to the notoriously dangerous middle eastern region. Despite the risk from ongoing civil unrest and constant animosity towards soldiers stationed there. Adam's service has thus been relatively sheltered.
As a qualified computer engineer, he was stationed at his unit base and spent most of his time away from the action. This would change after he has been given a task to accomplish.
Judy's Worst Fear
Ever since Adam had been enlisted, Judy had gone through the same anxiety and stress that all military members experienced.
Her anxieties had been helped somewhat by the fact that he had spent most of his service within the safety of the base. Judy's Worst fear rose immediately at the forefront of her mind.
Life Of A Soldier
While things near Adam's base had remained relatively calm and safe for many years, this was soon changed. In the short time that Adam had been away from his base, a lot of insurgencies broke out in the region.
Scary Times
Immediately after Adam got to his base, he could notice that things had changed drastically within a short while of his absence. Fortification and security had been tightened considerably around the base.
There was a tense atmosphere around the place that Adam had never experienced before in all his time there. It wasn't long before he realized his days behind a desk and away from the action were over.
The Mission
After he had been briefed thoroughly about the situation on the ground, he learned that an intelligence operation had recently revealed that there might be more threats coming up on the base.
In addition to this, a band of militants had gained a foothold in the mountainous region near the base. This meant that Adam was given his first mission, which placed him right in the middle of the ongoing conflict.
She Was On His Mind
After being pinned back, Adam contemplated the fact that there might not be any chance of him making it home. For a moment, he thought of everyone he loved, based on what was going through his mind, there was someone that kept him pushing through.
It Was A Sign
On this very day, Adam never imagined the whole scenario, being in the middle of being trapped behind a hill and under heavy fire, Adam had seen something that have his hope of making it back home no matter the circumstances.
Despite all the problems around them, Adam spotted something in the distance that he took as a sign that he would make it back home and this was a cat!!!
Back Home
Back home, Judy thought of a way to make Toothless feel like she was still close to Adam without the cat knocking down any more pictures. Toothless had a favorite sitting spot right in front of the TV.
Judy began putting old videos of Adam. Anytime Toothless heard Adam's voice and saw his face on TV, she would immediately start putting and stay glued to the screen.
She Brought Him Home
Victoriously, Adam and his squad were able to accomplish their mission against all terrifying odds, without any loss of life on their side. Whenever Adam wanted to tell the story of his family to friends, he always mentioned seeing the mysterious cat that looked like Toothless.
Adam want the spiritual type but was convinced that Toothless had appeared somehow to him and guided him home.
A Hero's Welcome
After their successful mission, Adam and his team were given medals of Honour for their bravery and courage under fire. Overtime, the insurgency was eventually overcome and relatives safely returned to their base.
After months of grueling and dangerous work and having his leave cut short also, Adam was looking forward to finally getting some time off again.
The Second Reunion
After Adam reached home for his second reunion with the family that year, Judy was grateful to have her son back home safe and sound.
Toothless and Adam were also finally reunited again. Adam's experience on his mission created many bonds that he had with the special cat that he was sure of that saved his life.