deja vu
About a week after we took in the three kittens (Phoebe, Harry and Gus) in July 2004, I came across two more, an all-black female and a mottled calico (presumably female), 5-6 weeks old, in an old woodshed on our property. I gave them food and water, and later took a few pictures, but when I went back the next afternoon they were gone. I searched our north field for them and called them for a few days, but I never saw them again.
But I guess I did meet the black one again. Last night I was going through some photos from that time, when I came across a picture of that black kitten (above) and had a small revelation. I am 99% certain that she became the mother of the kittens now in our garage (i.e., the cat our neighbor apparently shot). She was a very small cat even as an adult, and her prominent ears and sharply triangular face were very distinctive.
Perhaps our earlier encounter explains why she wasn't afraid of me when I started feeding the current crop of garage kittens.