by Nic Saint
Harriet was conspicuously quiet, but her eyes were blazing. Clearly there was more to this story than met the eye.
“How could a small snail like Mr. Ed, who doesn’t weigh more than a few grams, possibly eat four bowls of kibble?” I asked.
“Eight bowls,” Brutus corrected me blithely. “He emptied the bowls in both homes.”
“Even worse! Mr. Ed’s stomach isn’t big enough to even provide space for a single piece of kibble! In fact I’ll bet that if you gave him one nugget he’d be fed for weeks!”
Brutus stared at me. Clearly he hadn’t considered this.
“So how do you explain that, Brutus?” I repeated.
He clamped his mouth shut with a click of the teeth, then muttered, “I know nothing.”
“What?”
“I know nothing,” he said quietly, and the shake of the head Harriet gave at this surprising statement told me all I needed to know.
“You ate our food, didn’t you? And you’re trying to put the blame on Mr. Ed.”
“I know nothing,” the butch black cat repeated.
“Oh, Brutus, you’re such a terrible liar.”
“I know nothing?” he tried once more.
“Harriet, say something.”
“It was the dogs!” Brutus suddenly blurted out.
“Brutus!” Harriet yelled. “Shut up!”
“No, but it was the dogs, wasn’t it? Fifi and Rufus? They snuck in through the pet flap and ate all of our food. Must have been real hungry, too. I didn’t want to say anything cause I know how much you guys love Fifi and Rufus, but there it is. They should probably face the consequences of their actions. A crime like this can’t go unpunished.”
“Fifi would never steal our food,” I said. “She’s too well-bred.”
“And too well-fed,” Dooley added.
“Dooley is right. Fifi probably gets fed more food than even we do. And Rufus couldn’t have done it as he’s too big to fit through the pet flaps. Either of them.”
Brutus’s eyes shifted from me to Harriet and then back again. Then he blurted out, “I know nothing!”
“Oh, for crying out, Brutus!” said Harriet exploded. “You’re the absolute worst!”
“Harriet,” I said, my tail tapping the floor impatiently, “I think you have some explaining to do.”
“Oh, all right,” she said with a sigh.
“Harriet, you know nothing!” Brutus yelled nervously.
“Oh, shut up, will you? Look, we were hungry, all right? And Marge had forgotten to fill up our bowls before she left for work this morning, and so had Odelia. So we just figured…”
“You’d eat our food and blame it on the dogs,” I finished her sentence.
“Yeah, pretty much,” said Harriet, not meeting my eyes. “I’m sorry, Max. And I’m sorry for making up such a lame story. Though the thing about Mr. Ed is something Brutus came up with just now. I swear I had nothing to do with that.”
“A teensy tiny snail could never have eaten all of that food, Brutus,” I said. “If he had he’d be just about ready to explode now.”
“It’s all your fault, Max!” said Brutus.
“My fault!”
“If you hadn’t made such a big fuss about that silly snail I would never have felt the need to try and put him in his place. At the bottom of the food chain!”
I had just about had enough of this whole food chain business, and so I said, “Brutus, Mr. Ed is my friend, and so are you. But if you insist on disparaging him, you’re not my friend anymore.”
He just stared at me for a moment, then said, “Mr. Ed is your friend?”
“Yes, he is. He may be small, and he may be a snail, but he’s also a living, breathing creature, and all creatures, whether great or small, deserve our respect. Is that clear?”
“Yes, Max,” he said, much sobered by my little speech.
“And when I see Kingman next I’m going to tell him exactly the same thing. In fact I should have told him the first time he started spouting this food chain nonsense.”
“You know?” said Harriet as she gave me a tentative smile, “I was wrong and you were right, Max. Mr. Ed does deserve our respect. Especially since it’s obvious he’s been looking out for his human all along.”
“He’s got his own TV set,” Dooley said, “and he watches it twenty-four seven.”
“Yeah, I think Mr. Ed is probably the best-informed snail in snail history,” I said.
“Brutus?” said Harriet, addressing her mate with some bite to her tone. “What do we say now?”
“I know nothing?” Brutus tried, but when Harriet fixed him with a look that could kill, he added, “I’m sorry, Max. I should never have eaten your food. You, too, Dooley.”
“Oh, that’s all right, Brutus,” said Dooley. “You can eat my food any time you like.”
Brutus smiled. “No, I can’t. It’s your food, and I shouldn’t have dipped into it. Or lied about it.”
“It’s fine, Brutus,” I said. “I forgive you. So now that that’s settled, what have you guys discovered about the murder of Bob Rector?”
Two shame-faced looks from both Harriet and Brutus told me all I needed to know.
Chapter 22
Odelia sidled up to Chase, who was standing near the back of the room, looking bored.
“Hey, babe,” said the cop when Odelia joined him. “How was your interview with Evelina Pytel?”
“Embarrassing. She didn’t know that Bob was dead, so I pretty much put my foot in my mouth.”
“Oh, dear.”
“That’s what I said. She did confirm that she paid the ransom money, but then when she didn’t hear from the kidnappers or Bob, she figured she’d either been duped by Bob, or that something terrible had happened. Her sister convinced her it was the former, though I think in her heart of hearts she knew it was the latter.”
“The sister seems to feature into this story pretty prominently, doesn’t she?”
Odelia smiled. “Better have a talk to her?”
“You read my mind.” He gestured to the stage, where Lord Hilbourne was still speaking. The man simply couldn’t stop.
“Want to blow this thing?”
“Yeah, let’s,” she said. “Though there’s a good chance that Emma Bezel is here.”
“Yeah, looks like all of Hampton Cove has managed to cram themselves into this room.”
“I did see Evelina.”
“And I saw your cats—all four of them. They’re huddled underneath those chairs over there, the poor creatures.”
“Let’s at least get them out of their predicament,” said Odelia, and went in search of her four fur babies.
She found them huddled underneath the chair of Father Reilly, of all people, and they looked overjoyed to see her. And immediately followed her out of the reception, which looked like it was only getting started and could last much, much longer. Soon the champagne would come out, and things would liven up even more.
Once they were outside, Chase took out his phone and called Emma Bezel. After talking into his phone for a moment, he announced, “She’s at work. But she can see us now.”
“Where does she work?”
“Nail salon,” said Chase. “It’s only two blocks, so I suggest we walk and you tell me everything you and Evelina discussed.”
“Not much to tell, really. Evelina was really falling for Bob,” said Odelia as they crossed town square and passed the police station then moved in the direction of Myrna Loy Boulevard, where apparently Emma Bezel plied her trade.
Behind them, four cats trailed along in their wake.
“So the kidnappers sent proof of life in the form of a video, and that’s the last time Evelina saw Bob?”
“Yep. I told her to meet Uncle Alec at the precinct to make a formal statement but I don’t know if she’s done it yet.”
“I better get in touch with her and set up an interview,” said Chase. “And take a look at her phone while I’m at it.”
�
��Any idea how Bob got in the truck yet?”
“Well, the driver said he can think of only one place where Bob’s body could have gotten stashed in his truck, and that’s at a truck stop he spent the night at.”
“Did you check the truck stop?”
“Sarah did. She’s still wading through the CCTV footage—the truck stop has no less than four cameras covering both the inside and the outside of the place, ever since they were robbed last year. So far she hasn’t gotten back to me yet.”
They’d arrived at the nail salon and walked in. Only one customer was present, a middle-aged lady having her nails done, and when they entered, the beautician looked up and said, “I’ll be with you in a moment.”
So they took a seat in the waiting area, and four cats dutifully settled down at their feet.
“If someone had told me a year ago that I would be conducting police interviews with a reporter and her four cats in tow, I’d have told them they were nuts,” Chase grunted as he bent over and tickled Dooley behind the ears.
“You’ve got to admit they’re a real boon for your investigation, though,” said Odelia.
“Oh, sure. If it weren’t for Max and Dooley we probably would never have known about this whole kidnapping thing.”
“Don’t you think Evelina would eventually have come forward? She lost a lot of money, and even though she claims it’s just small potatoes, I doubt whether she really feels that way.”
“Yeah, she probably wants the men that did this to her boyfriend caught as much as we do.”
“Unless Bob really is the mastermind behind the whole scheme, as her sister seems to think.”
“I ate all of Max and Dooley’s food and then lied about it,” Brutus suddenly announced, apropos of nothing. “Just thought you should know.”
“You did what?” Odelia asked.
“I was hungry!” Brutus lamented.
“Oh, dear. I forgot to fill up your bowls again, didn’t I?”
Brutus nodded shamefacedly. “And so did Marge.”
“I’m so sorry, honey,” she said. “It’s this whole wedding thing. It’s got me distracted.”
“Don’t blame Brutus,” Harriet piped up. “I ate from Max and Dooley’s bowls, too.”
“It’s all right,” said Odelia. “I won’t forget to feed you again, I promise.”
“What’s going on?” asked Chase.
“I forgot to feed the cats this morning,” she said, “and so did Mom.”
Her phone dinged, for probably the hundredth time that day, and she sighed deeply.
“Still getting messages?” asked Chase.
“All the time,” she said.
“You really should stop putting people on the guest list,” he said. “We simply can’t feed them all. It’s going cost us a fortune if this keeps up.”
“I know,” she said. “But these are all people I know.”
“Honey, this is a small town. You know everybody, and they all know you. But you simply can’t invite them all.”
“But how can I invite one and not the other? It’s impossible.”
Once again her phone dinged and she glanced at the message. It was from Ida Baumgartner, who was upset that she hadn’t received her wedding invitation yet.
“How many people do we have on the guest list?”
“Seven hundred and counting,” she said, and winced as he gasped in shock.
“Seven hundred people! But babe!”
“I know, I know. I keep telling Mom I’m going to start refusing people, but how can I?”
“You have to cut back. This is turning into some kind of monster wedding from hell.”
“And don’t I know it. I haven’t slept a good night’s sleep in weeks, and every time I think about the wedding I feel nauseous. Father Reilly is even talking about installing those big screens outside the church, so that the people who won’t fit inside can follow the service outside. Or else he suggested we move the wedding ceremony to the beach, so the entire town can come out and watch.”
“This is turning into a real circus.”
“I’m sorry, babe.”
“It’s all right,” he said. “I mean, if this is what you want, I don’t mind. It is what you want, right?”
She gave him a sad look, and shook her head. “No, it’s not. All I wanted was to have a small ceremony. Just you and our respective families and no one else.”
“Oh, babe,” he said, and placed a comforting arm around her shoulder. “Maybe we should elope?”
She smiled at that. “Very funny.”
“At least you’ll have your cats there to give you support.”
“Oh, no, she won’t,” Harriet spoke at their feet. “We’ve discussed it and we’ve decided not to come to the wedding. Isn’t that right, you guys?”
They all gave her sorrowful looks. “I’m sorry,” said Brutus. “But it’s going to be too much for us. We’re going to get trampled. So we decided it’s best if we sit this one out.”
Odelia didn’t know why, but watching her four cats stare up at her with those big sad eyes suddenly broke something inside her, and before she knew what was happening, she suddenly burst into tears!
Just then, Emma Bezel announced, “I can see you guys now.”
But all Odelia could do was cry!
Chapter 23
“Why is Odelia crying, Max?” asked Dooley.
“I think it’s because Harriet and Brutus just told her we’re not coming to the wedding,” I said.
“Oh, no!”
“Oh, yes.”
“But… we can’t do that, Max!”
“Oh, yes, we can.”
“Yeah, can you imagine?” said Harriet. “Us and seven hundred people, all sharing the same space? We won’t survive.”
“You mean you suffer from hagarophobia?”
“Agoraphobia,” I corrected him. “No, Dooley. We suffer from being small and vulnerable. Besides, we see Odelia every day, so we can afford to miss seeing her for a couple of hours.”
“Yeah, we’ll simply stay home and when she gets back she’ll be Mrs. Kingsley,” said Brutus.
“But look at her,” said Dooley, and we all looked at her. She was currently being subjected to the comforting efforts of no less than two people, Chase and Emma the beautician.
“It’s all right,” said the beautician. “If you simply put some concealer on that no one will be able to tell you’ve been crying. Trust me. I’m a professional.”
“It’s not that,” said Odelia. “I don’t care if people see me like this. It’s just that… I’m getting married on Saturday.”
“Oh, of course. I remember now. Your mom was in here last week and she told me all about it. She invited me for the wedding and I said yes. So I’ll be there, don’t you worry.”
At this, Odelia burst into tears once more, and Emma cut a questioning look to the groom, who merely shook his head. I could tell he was thinking that this was not the way to conduct a police interview.
“We should reconsider, Max,” said Dooley. “Odelia is very, very sad that we won’t be there. We have to find a way to be there for her on the most beautiful day of her life.”
“Maybe we could sit on the balcony?” Harriet suggested. “Churches do have balconies, don’t they?”
“I’ll bet the balcony will be full of people, too,” I said. “Didn’t you hear what she just said? Father Reilly is going to put up big screens outside so that the people who don’t fit inside can watch. I’ll bet that place will be filled to capacity. Not an empty seat in the house.”
“Almost like a Beyoncé concert,” said Harriet with a smile. “Imagine that. Odelia selling out her first venue.”
“It’s not a rock concert, Harriet. It’s her wedding.”
“I know, I know. Just saying it’s pretty cool for her first show.”
“First and final show, I should hope.”
“Oh, for sure,” said Harriet. “I see a long and happy marriage in Odelia and Chase’s future
. Just like the marriage of Odelia’s mom and dad.”
Just then, I happened to look out the window, and saw Marge stalk past, Tex trying to keep up and yelling, “Marge, wait! I would never cheat on you! Never!”
Bad sign!
“So what did you want to talk to me about?” asked Emma Bezel once Odelia’s flow of tears had lessened to a trickle.
“I talked to your sister this morning,” Odelia said, still sniffling a little but trying her darndest to put on a professional face. “About the death of Bob Rector.”
“Uh-huh,” said Emma, slumping a little in her seat.
“So you are aware that Bob Rector is dead?” said Chase.
“Oh, sure. I saw it on the news this morning.”
“Your sister didn’t know. It came as quite a shock to her when I told her,” said Odelia.
“I didn’t want to break the news to her over the phone,” said Emma. “I planned to pay her a visit later today, after I closed up my shop, and tell her in person.”
“How well did you know Bob, Mrs. Bezel?”
“Not very well. I met him a few times, but only briefly. Actually I was the one who introduced him to my sister. I’d been standing in line at the General Store for what felt like ages and Franklin was getting tired and had started barking—Franklin is my sweetheart. He’s a Shih Tzu. Well, Bob was so kind to help me out with Franklin and so we got to talking and turns out he was a dog person, too, and very sweet and gentle and it got me thinking about Evelina and the bad luck she’s had when it comes to men…”
“And so you set them up for a date,” Chase said, nodding.
“Worst decision of my life,” said Emma. “I should have known the man was too good to be true.”
“Why do you say that?” asked Odelia.
“Look, I’m the people person in our family, okay? I’m good at reading people. Evelina, on the other hand, is terrible at relationships but an amazing businesswoman. She took our parents’ company and turned it into a phenomenon. Amazingly successful. Money, and respect from her peers—the works. But she still sucks at creating a personal life that’s gratifying. That’s always been my department. So I figured I’d help her find happiness in her personal life as well. But Bob… You know what I think happened?”