The cat came back

Missing for years, feline inexplicably appears at owner’s former workplace

By DAVID COLBURN

News editor

When Linda Frye worked at Coneburg Inn, she had a frequent four-legged visitor.

“Our cat, Sosea, would always come over and see me at work,” Frye said. “Sometimes I would go into the kitchen and see him out of the back door.”

Frye and her family lived across the street in a mobile home, but in December 2012, they moved along with Sosea and Leo, another cat, to a house on Walnut St.

“Sosea kept going back to the trailer,” she said. “We had to bring him back three times.”

One day, after the Fryes had been living in the home for about a year and a half, Sosea disappeared. Two days later, Leo vanished, too.

As weeks passed, the family gradually gave up hope of seeing either cat. Her husband, Chris, and children, Samantha, now 18; Adam, 17; Lindsey, 14; and Ciara, 12, were heartbroken.

“They’re supposed to take care of their pets, but you know how moms end up doing most of it,” Frye said. “I guess you could say I was grandma. I think it hit me the hardest.”

Frye held on to a scratching post, a little house, and toys that Sosea was fond of, but finally sold those last year. A new cat, Pookie, didn’t have any interest in them. It was time to move on.

Then, last week, came a phone call Frye never expected to get.

“I think it was around 10:30 that night,” Frye said. “I didn’t answer it. Then they called Chris’s cellphone. It was Lindsey Marshall at the Coneburg. She said, ‘Linda, it’s Sosea. Your cat’s up here.’”

Frye arrived to find an emaciated, gray-and-white cat, covered in burrs, but there was no doubt it was Sosea. Both Marsall and Frye recognized a distinctive notch in one of Sosea’s ears.

The Coneburg may have lured him back.

“I guess he recognized it (the Coneburg) and maybe he was looking for me up there,” Frye said. “Lindsey brought him inside. He was hiding under a booth. I called him, and he knew exactly who I was.”

The family was overjoyed.

“Everybody’s still in shock,” she said. “I’m so happy, and I can tell he’s happy, too.”

Since being home, Sosea appears to be the same lovable cat he was before he went missing. He nuzzles and cuddles just the way he used to, and has resumed an old habit of playfully biting Samantha’s chin.

The only difference Frye has noticed is that Sosea doesn’t have any interest in going outside.

However, Pookie’s response hasn’t been as favorable.

“They are not fond of each other,” Frye said. “I’m hoping they’ll become friends.”

Frye said she hoped that the story of Sosea’s unexpected return would encourage Danielle Savage, whose morkie, Tuttles, has been missing since July 5.

“I wanted to let her know not to give up hope,” she said. “Miracles do happen.”