For Pete's Sake

by Shannon Esposito

  At one point I caught Goldie watching me from her position under the tea table. Her brown eyes tracked me with what looked like concern.

  She was right. I needed to relax. I took some deep breaths.

  Charlie came in around lunchtime to see how things were going. I wondered if she was bored and regretting taking the summer off, or if she just needed to keep busy to keep her mind off of Peter’s death. I told her about the drug that was used to kill Peter and that Will was looking into the vet clinic that worked with Helping Paws.

  I also asked her to make sure she got a nice photo of the golden-mix, Sandy. She said she thought she already had a photo of her, she’d check.

  I felt guilty about lying to the shelter worker and was still entertaining the crazy idea of actually adopting the older dog. The reality was I already had to find one dog a home. Goldie was low maintenance, but there’d be no way I could take care of Petey or a high maintenance dog once my sisters weren’t here to help out.

  “Hey, I have an idea.” I walked over to the blank wall above our bin of homemade treats. “Let’s hang up a bulletin board right here. We can post pictures and descriptions of some of the animals you take pictures of. Give them some more exposure to the folks who don’t visit the shelter and maybe help them find homes faster.”

  Charlie clapped her hands. “That’s a great idea, Darwin. I’ll pick up a bulletin board today and print out some of the photos.” She shot back out the door before I could respond.

  I smiled to myself. She was definitely happy to have something to do, to keep her mind off losing her friend and mentor, I’d bet.

  Mallory and Willow came in with Petey shortly after that, saving me from my obsessive thoughts.

  “We brought you something to eat.” Willow placed a picnic basket on the table.

  “Thanks, y’all,” I said, knowing they probably had an ulterior motive of worrying about me being alone. I lifted Petey from Willow’s arms. I could barely feel his tiny bones beneath the silky hair. They were like bird bones. “Come here, cutie pie. I need some sugar.”

  He immediately began trying to eat my face. At least that was what his little tongue-bath and gnawing felt like.

  Laughing, I tucked him under my chin. “Mmm, puppy breath. The cure for whatever ails you.”

  He bit my chin. I was trying hard not to get attached to the little guy, but he was slowly wiggling his way into my heart. Such a little bundle of love.

  Goldie pawed at my leg.

  “Oh, you missed him, too, huh?” Bending down, I sat him on the floor next to her.

  She shoved her nose into his fur, her tail wagging. With a yip, he leaped at her and she hopped towards one of the aisles, looking back and waiting for him to catch up.

  I could hear Sarah Applebaum from somewhere down the aisle saying, “Oh, aren’t you precious!”

  A potential adopter maybe? I filed that question away for when I rang her up.

  “I think Goldie believes Petey’s her new plaything.” Mallory grinned at me while unpacking sandwiches. “She’s gonna be real sad when you find him a home.”

  “That’ll be two of us. What is that?” I stuck my finger in the dip Willow had just pulled cellophane off of.

  She smacked my hand and handed me a carrot. “Roasted pepper hummus.”

  I laughed, feeling the pressure escape a little as I smiled at my sisters. It was so good to have them here. I would not be handling this as well without them. “So, any news from Grandma Winters?”

  Willow tried to conceal her worry, but I caught it in her tightening lips. “Not yet.” Unwrapping a sandwich, she changed the subject, “Any word from Will?”

  “Yeah, he came in this morning for the flash drive. He’s going to interview the people today who had access to the sux at the vet clinic.” I shook my head. “Though it doesn’t make sense that some of it went missing after Peter was killed.”

  I bit a carrot and chewed. My brain hurt. My heart hurt, too.

  “Will thinks Peter’s death is connected to Helping Paws Rescue somehow. I agree, but I’m still going to try to talk to Margie Bealle, the photographer who’ll probably get all Peter’s clients now. To rule her out if nothing else.” I checked my phone. “If she ever returns my call.”

  “Why is Will so convinced this had something to do with Helping Paws?” Mallory asked. “Just because of the photos on the thumb drive?”

  “Most of the evidence can be tied to the shelter somehow. Except for my vision from Petey of the ginormous diamond ring. But, I’m not even sure his brush with whoever was wearing that had anything to do with Peter’s death. It wasn’t a very traumatic moment for him. More like sad and confusing.”

  “Maybe he just didn’t understand what was happening,” Willow offered.

  “Probably he didn’t.”

  “So, the big clue is the drug used to kill Peter.” Mallory said with a grimace. “What an awful way to die.”

  “Terrible, yes. That and the other big clue is Peter’s missing cameras and laptop.”

  Mallory licked hummus off of her finger. “Which the killer probably stole looking for the photos stashed on that flash drive. So it has to have something to do with that mobile spay truck.”

  “Or his stuff could’ve been stolen by Margie Bealle. It’s equipment she can use, so maybe she just couldn’t resist taking it after she killed Peter?” My shoulders fell. “Pretty thin, I know.”

  I startled as my phone vibrated in my pocket. Jumping off the chair I pulled it out and stared at the number. “It’s her!” I answered it.

  “Miss Winters, this is Margie Bealle. I got your message.”

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  My sisters stayed with me until closing, helping out where they could or chatting with customers as they came in. I think they were just worried about me. Willow kept telling me to stop biting my nails, and Mallory was actually being nice to me.

  Margie was letting me come to a photo session she’d already set up with a group of models tomorrow evening on the beach. I was to bring a bathing suit and a dress … and her doubled fee, of course.

  I was a nervous wreck. “What if she takes one look at me and sees I’m a fraud?” I moaned. “Can you be arrested for impersonating a model?”

  Frankie shook her head at me with a grin. There was red lipstick on her front teeth. She’d come in with her pups for an update and ended up staying to wait out the brewing black skies and sudden uptick of wind that signaled an impending summer storm. “You could easily pass for a model, sugarplum.”

  “Yeah, don’t worry,” Mallory smirked. “Models don’t have hips, either.”

  Well, her being nice to me hadn’t lasted long. I threw a dog treat at her and missed.

  One of Frankie’s pups snatched it up off the floor.

  “Too slow, girl.” I shrugged at Goldie, who had lifted her head and stared at me to see if I was going to toss another one.

  “Just watch the other models and do what they do,” Willow said. “You’ll be fine. It’s not rocket science.”

  The bell jangled above the door as Charlie pushed through trying to juggle an umbrella and a large bulletin board. A loud clap of thunder boomed and the sky lit up white. We all rushed to help her get inside.

  “All of us” included the four dogs, who “helped” by demanding attention from the dripping, laughing Charlie.

  “Let her get in the door! Come on.” Frankie clapped her hands, calling the dogs away from the chaos.

  The excitement of the moment had made them frisky, and they started playing amongst themselves, knocking a row of rubber ball ropes off their hooks in the process.

  Goldie grabbed one off the ground and shook it, teasing the other dogs. She soon had three small, jumping fur balls on her heels as she trotted around, playing keep-away.

  It warmed my heart to see Goldie having fun. She’d been so depressed when I adopted her.

  How would Sandy fit into this group? Would she be annoyed by the antics of the younger do
gs? I shook the thought loose. What was I doing? “Okay, Charlie,” I said. “Let’s get that bulletin board up.”

  “I got it.” Mallory helped Charlie carry the board over to the wall.

  Charlie dug a manila envelope out of her tote bag. “Here are some photos to get started, if you want to go through ‘em.”

  As Charlie and Mallory hung the bulletin board on the wall, Frankie, Willow and I looked through the photos.

  “You really did a great job on these,” Frankie called to her.

  “Thanks, I hope it helps.” Charlie stepped back to inspect their work. “Does that look straight, guys?”

  We all nodded. “Looks great.”

  I paused on the photo of Sandy. A straw beach hat rested on her head, and her kind eyes stared directly into the camera. She seemed so trusting. She had to be wondering why she’d been abandoned. My heart clenched.

  Charlie peered over my shoulder. “I just took that one yesterday. That’s the dog you were asking about, right? Sandy? She’s sweet. Kinda reminded me of Goldie.”

  Frankie slid an arm around my shoulder. “You can’t save ‘em all, sugar.”

  I swallowed the lump in my throat and nodded. Then took her photo over and tacked it to the middle of the board. I sent up a silent prayer to the universe that she would find a good home soon.

  *****

  “So, how’d today go?” I asked Will eagerly as I slid into his sedan. Closing up the boutique had gone much faster with my sisters there to help.

  He leaned over and pressed a kiss on my lips. “I don’t know yet, my day’s not over. I’ve got a few alibis to follow up on. One right now if you don’t mind taking a ride with me over to the Seaboard condos. We can grab a bite after that.”

  “Sure. Whose alibi are we investigating?”

  “Remember the vet tech, Lincoln Lee?”

  “Sure.”

  “Well, he said he’d spent the night with his girlfriend and had a rare Saturday off so they didn’t leave her apartment until around noon that day. Thought it’d be better to talk to her in person about verifying that. Seeing as Mr. Lee is tied to both Helping Paws and Southern Cross Clinic and was one of Peter’s clients, I don’t want to make any mistakes here.”

  I frowned. “You really think he’s capable of murder? He seems so nice.”

  Will glanced over at me. “Nice people can make bad decisions.”

  Will rang the apartment doorbell.

  When the door opened, I was taken aback. “Daisy?” I blurted out.

  Her eyes and smile both widened in surprise. “Darwin! What on God’s green earth are you doin’ at my door?” She gave me a spontaneous hug.

  Her blonde, freshly shampooed curls tickled my nose. Her skin seemed warm and flushed, even though she was wearing a short, sleeveless dress.

  When she released me, she glanced at Will. “Oh, forgive me … Detective Blake, right? Lincoln said to be expecting a call. I didn’t realize you’d be calling in person. Well here, I’m being rude, come in, come in.” She ushered us inside.

  The main space was a living room/dining room combo. The dining room had a glass table centered in a square area of beige tile. The living room had plush cream carpeting and a marble fireplace. There was a cut through to the kitchen and a hallway. The place held the sweet scent of flowers, though I didn’t see any in the room.

  A white dog with bristly fur pushed itself up and ambled slowly over to us, tail wagging. I bent down, letting him sniff my hand and then took a chance and scratched the brown patch on his chest. No recent trauma, that’s good.

  “Who’s this cutie?” I asked.

  “That’s Felix. We’re still getting to know each other. I just got him from the shelter a few weeks ago. So far, so good, except for a slight skin rash. Lincoln said it might be allergies.” She gestured toward a white wicker sofa against the far wall. “He’s got the best personality, though. Real chill. Have a seat. Can I get y’all a drink? I have bottled water or sweet tea, my gran’s secret recipe.”

  “No, thank you.” Will held up a hand as he perched on edge of the sofa. “We really won’t take up much of your time, Miss Beaumont.”

  I glanced at Will sideways. Some real southern sweet tea would’ve been nice. But whatever, down to business.

  “All right.” She slid into a matching chair to our left. “What can I do for you?”

  Felix had followed us over to the sofa and now leaned his full weight against my leg. I stroked his head and glanced around the condo.

  It was pristine and looked unlived in, like a model home. There was no art on the walls, no nicknacks, no personal touches of any kind. The one exception being a single photo of Daisy and Lincoln sitting on the end table next to me. It looked like it had been taken in some restaurant.

  “As you know, I’m investigating the death of Peter Vanek,” Will said. “I interviewed Lincoln Lee earlier today, and he said he was with you on the morning of August thirteenth. Can you corroborate that?”

  “Well, sure. That Saturday we were together here until around noon. Then we went to lunch at BellaBrava’s.” Worry pinched her brow. “Detective Blake, you don’t really think Lincoln had anything to do with Peter’s death do you? I mean, Lincoln was really fond of Peter, as a person and as a photographer. And besides, he’s just not that type of guy. He spends his spare time helping animals … he wouldn’t hurt a fly.”

  Will gave her a disarming smile. “Mr. Vanek was killed with a drug called sux, a very strong muscle relaxant that paralyzes the respiratory muscles. He suffocated, completely aware but unable to move. This drug went missing at the Southern Cross Vet Clinic where Lincoln works so I have to consider everyone who had access to it a suspect. You understand.”

  Then he let silence fill the room. I could hear a clock ticking nearby. Felix was snoring lightly.

  Daisy was staring at Will with her mouth open, her hand around her throat. “Of course. What a horrible way to die.”

  Will only nodded in agreement. I knew what Will was doing, using the silence as pressure to get her to talk and all that, but I couldn’t help myself. I was dying to know something.

  “Daisy, you and Lincoln didn’t act like you were a couple at Rachel’s party. How come?”

  She moved her attention to me and shook her head sadly. “Jealousy, plain and simple. Lincoln is one of those rare guys with the whole package—sweet, gorgeous, talented, loyal. He’s got more than a few of those models chasin’ after him. They will take down any women he dates like a pack of she-wolves, and I just don’t want to be in their crosshairs. So I’ve asked Lincoln to keep our relationship private for now. I’m having a hard enough time getting jobs because of my age, I don’t need to add being sabotaged to the list of hurtles.”

  “How long have you and Mr. Lee been dating?” Will’s tone had softened.

  “Almost a year.” Daisy got that dreamy look in her eye again at the mention of Lincoln. Seemed like she really loved him.

  “No wedding bells?” I glanced at her hand. No supersized engagement ring. Lincoln didn’t seem like he could afford the type of ring I saw in my vision anyway.

  She blushed and smiled softly. “No. We’re just enjoying each other’s company for now.”

  Will scribbled something in his notebook then asked, “Have you spent time at Helping Paws Rescue with Lincoln?”

  “Well, sure, how do you think I got that little guy?” She nodded down at Felix, who’s feet were twitching in his sleep. “You can’t go to that place without saving one of ‘em. Not if you have a heart.”

  Guilt twisted my gut and I dropped my eyes.

  Was that the universe giving me a nudge? More like a nice, subtle kick in the stomach.

  “Did Mr. Lee ever talk to you about the recent controversy surrounding their mobile spay and neuter program?”

  She shook her head, a wrinkle appearing between her brows. “I only know what I read in the paper about the fraud accusations. When I asked Lincoln about it, he brushed it off. Sai
d the director’s not worried.”

  “What about any personal conflict with Sassy White? Does he get along with her?”

  A wide grin lit up her face. It was dazzling. I could definitely see her in commercials selling toothpaste or those teeth whitening do-hickys. I’d buy ‘em.

  “Detective, Sassy White has conflict with everyone from what I saw there, but not in a serious way. Lincoln seems to find her amusing. Although …” Her expression grew thoughtful. “I don’t want to spread gossip, but if you’re asking about Sassy White in particular … now that I think about it, I think she may be takin’ the fraud investigation more seriously than she’s letting on. I did overhear her yelling at somebody in her office a few weeks back … something about suing the pants off the ‘lilly-livered piece of garbage who started the investigation.’ Her words, not mine.”

  “Do you know who was in her office at the time?”

  “No, sorry, I was just passing through.”

  “So you don’t know who she was referring to either?”

  Daisy shook her head.

  “All right. I think that’s it for now. Can you spell your last name for me?”

  “Sure. You won’t find me under Beaumont though, if you’re checkin’. That’s my stage name. My maiden name is Vanderhall.” She spelled it out.

  Will scribbled in his notebook and then closed it with a smack. “Well, thank you for your time.” He stood and left his business card on the coffee table. “Please give me a call if you think of anything else that might help move the investigation forward.”

  I patted Felix one last time and then followed Will.

  Daisy walked us to the door. “Peter was great, you know. One of the good guys. I hope you find out who did this.”

  *****

  Will and I grabbed a late supper at The Moon Under Water on the corner of Beach Drive. It had rained recently and water was still dripping off the large red patio umbrella over our table. I pushed my vegetable curry around my plate, too tired to actually chew. I noticed Will had barely touched his burger. Instead, his chin was planted on his fists and his mind was somewhere else as he stared across the street into North Straub Park.