After the walk and talking a little bit more with Bonnie and Nick, it seemed to me Rosie was simply doing what beagles do. They’re bred to use their noses to track. Rosie was a good detective. She was tracking and finding and letting them know. I suggested some in-the-yard games where Rosie could use her extra-sensitive nose to find things. Also, I suggested a few things to keep her on track during walks.
Promising to check in with the couple in a week to follow up on Rosie’s progress, I packed up. Back at my car, I glanced around again before getting in, but the dark SUV I thought had been following me when I’d arrived was nowhere in sight. It had probably been a product of my over-active imagination.
I didn’t have another client until afternoon so I took the opportunity to call the police and ask if it would be possible for me to collect some of Toria’s things from Cash and Jake’s house. I had cat food and feline treats, but I thought it might make things easier for her if she had some of her own things.
I was put through to Detective Malone who thankfully didn’t give me any grief. He said he would have an officer meet me there. I didn’t know how long I would have Toria, but I wasn’t handing her over to animal control. I truly believed Cash would be back for his cat. After all he’d cared enough to call and make sure she was alright.
The beautiful tabby seemed to be okay at my house. She and Dogbert had come to an understanding yesterday, and Thelma and Louise had decided they would tolerate her. In fact, my new furry resident seemed to be much more of a cuddler than my two felines. Last night she and Dogbert had competed for lap time.
I swung by my house to pick up Toria. I thought taking her with me might be a good idea. That way if I had trouble picking favorite toys or treats, she could weigh in with her opinion.
As I made my way to Cash and Jake’s house, I was sure I spotted the dark-colored SUV again in my rearview mirror. I couldn’t tell if the color was dark blue or black, and, in truth, I couldn’t be sure it was the same vehicle I’d seen earlier. I slowed down and reached for my cell phone, but when I looked again it was gone.
I pulled up in front of the house and parked. I felt my stomach muscles clench. The storybook exterior belied the tragedy that had happened within its walls.
Cash’s red Tesla still sat out front, the sleek car gleaming in the sunlight. A Laguna Beach blue and white was parked beside it, and a uniformed officer got out as soon as I parked. As promised, Malone had sent an officer to meet me and let me into the house. It was just my luck it was young and earnest Officer Hostas. We’d met before under some interesting circumstances in the course a previous investigation. His set jaw told me he remembered me.
Officer Serious unlocked the door and held it so I could step inside. I set Toria’s carrier on the floor in the entryway, and Officer Hostas chatted with her while I walked through. He seemed to like the cat better than he liked me.
I looked around. Needless to say, the day of the murder I hadn’t really stopped to admire the opulent interior. The first room I walked into was a wonderful airy room with large, solid pieces of furniture that seemed at once both expensive and comfortable. It reminded me of a Victorian drawing room but for the lived-in look of computers, magazines, and empty snack-food bags scattered about. Thinking a cupboard where the full bags of snacks were kept might also be a promising place for cat food, I moved on to the kitchen.
The table was still stacked with electronics. I wondered what on earth the two techies had been working on that required what looked, to me at least, to be enough computer gear to power a town.
A pantry off the kitchen area held bachelor staples: jars of salsa, bags of chips, and meals-in-a-box. However, the bottom shelf was dedicated to special cat food, deluxe cat treats, and feline vitamin supplements. I picked them up and carried them back the living room placing them by my bag. I was sure there were kitty toys somewhere else in the house.
Officer Hostas had taken Toria from the carrier and was holding her. I didn’t blame him; the friendly feline was hard to resist. He petted her head, and she leaned against his chest, sending him adoring looks. I could hear her purring from across the room.
“I’m going to go through here and see if I can find her toys.” I indicated a wide opening that looked like it led to a combination family/theater room which was a couple of steps down.
“That’s fine,” he responded. “The house has been cleared. Crime-scene team is completely done.”
As I stepped down into the family room, I caught my foot on a cord. Bang! A stack of equipment fell, and the loud noise echoed through the house. I dashed back to the living room.
Startled, Toria leapt from Officer Hostas’s arms leaving a stripe of red angry scratches.
He let go of her, and the cat pushed off his midsection and shot across the room, a grey streak of fur. Up the stairs she went in a matter of seconds. We followed on her heels, er, paws, but she was too fast.
At the landing she hesitated and turned to look at us, her worried green eyes round with fear. Then she scampered up the rest of the stairs, her short legs and wide low-to-the-ground body gone in a flash.
Once at the top, I looked both ways but didn’t spot her. Super. Most of the rooms’ doors were open, so who knew where the little minx had gone?
Hostas was right behind me. I noticed the blood on his arm. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.” He dabbed at it, but the skin around the line of scratches was beginning to swell.
“Are you allergic?”
“No, not that I know of.” His tone was abrupt.
“Well, in any case, let’s get this washed off and then we’ll find the runaway kitty.” I stepped to the next doorway. “Surely one of these leads to a bathroom.”
“I’m fine. There’s soap in the kitchen. I’ll rinse it off.” He glared at me as if I were to blame, and I guess indirectly I was. “Let me know when you’ve found the cat.”
“Will do.” I smiled weakly and turned back to the hallway.
I began a systematic search of the second floor. In each room, I looked under the beds and behind the curtains, calling Toria the whole time. The rooms, like the downstairs, were furnished with large, dark-wood furniture. Bedspreads were brocade but in deep, solid, masculine colors.
I finished one side of the hall and started down the other.
“Have you found the cat?” Hostas called from downstairs.
“No,” I yelled back.
I could hear Officer Hostas’s cell phone ring, and he answered. “No, we’re not quite done. The cat escaped and the pet shrink is looking for it. I’ll be there as soon as I can.” His irritated voice got closer as he climbed the stairs.
“You can go if you need to.” I poked my head out from the bedroom I was searching. “I’ll keep looking until I find her.”
I could tell he was torn. “There’s a protest at Main Beach that’s maxed our uniformed resources.”
“Go.” I tried hard to look responsible. “I’ll find the cat and lock up.”
“All right.” He’d wrapped a dish towel around his shredded arm. “Make sure the front door is locked. I’ll take the keys with me.”
Once he was gone I continued combing through the remaining rooms, still checking under beds and still calling Toria.
“Here, Toria. Here, kitty, kitty.” There was no sign of her at all. Maybe she’d somehow gone back downstairs. I stood in the hallway and listened.
Wait a minute. I could hear a faint meow. I moved quietly up and down the hallway attempting to figure out where the sound was coming from. It was slightly louder toward the far end of the hallway where there was another set of stairs. I slowly climbed the short flight, but once at the top could no longer hear the soft mewling.
At the top of the stairs was the turret room. I peered in, fascinated with the round tower-like room. Then I came back down, one step at a time. I stopped and listened on each step. And then back up, continuing to listen. I stepped inside the room. It was filled with all sorts of int
eresting gadgets, as well as a shiny telescope and shelves that should have held books but instead held more gadgets. There was a massive round computer desk in the center of the room.
“Toria? Here, kitty,” I called.
Finally in frustration I sat down at the desk and listened.
“Meow.” There. I could hear her.
I stood, and as I did the wall beside me soundlessly slid open.
Toria shot out of the open wall and leapt into the middle of the desk, sliding across the papers and scattering them on the floor. I opened my mouth to scream, but nothing came out.
Then a man stepped out of the open wall.
This time I did scream, the sound echoing in the high-ceilinged room.
“Who are you?” he demanded.
I could barely hear him over the sound of my heart pounding in my ears. He was skinny and not very tall, but his blond hair was wild and his face bright red which somehow made him seem more menacing. He held a small, black metal box.
“The question is who are you?” I shot back. Was I face to face with Jake’s murderer? I automatically felt my jeans pocket for my cell phone, but then, with a sinking feeling, remembered it was downstairs with my bag. I was really sorry I’d sent Officer Hostas on his way.
“I’m no one you need to concern yourself with.”
“This is a crime scene and there’s an officer downstairs,” I bluffed.
“No, there’s not.” He shook his shaggy head. “I saw him drive away.”
Toria walked back and forth on top of the desk and meowed at us as if mediating.
Well, good news, I guess. The cat was found.
“How did you get in that room?” I pointed at the wall that gaped open and the space I could see beyond. I also eased myself from behind the desk and closer to the door, hoping he didn’t notice my movement. I had no cell phone and no weapon. I would have to make a run for it.
“Stop,” he ordered, and I flinched. The guy didn’t seem to have a weapon, just that small box, but the image of Jake with the computer cord around his neck was burned into my memory.
“What were you doing in there?” I squared my shoulders and asked. Meanwhile, my eyes searched the room for any sort of object I could use to slow him down. There was the telescope which I was sure would be pretty heavy. And all those gadgets on the shelves might work if I could hurl one of them just right.
“Listen, lady. I don’t know what you’re doing here, but you need to mind your own business.”
“I’m just the catsitter.” Maybe if he thought I was no threat he wouldn’t kill me.
He nodded as if somehow that fact really did let me off the hook, then suddenly he turned, tucked whatever it was he’d taken under his arm, and brushing past me, ran from the room.
I heard his feet pound on the stairs as he went down and then heard the front door slam. I know I should have followed him, but my whole body was frozen in place by my narrow escape. I hurried to the window. He ran to a small, white sports car parked in front of the house next door and sped away. I was too far away to see the make and model. The car had California plates, but I couldn’t see the license number.
I stumbled to the desk and collapsed into the chair. My gaze was drawn to the small secret room beyond the open wall. There were shelves of what looked to be additional electronics. It looked to me like stereo receivers, but I’m betting that wasn’t what they were.
I hurried downstairs, glanced out the front door, and then locked it. I know it sounds silly with people popping out of walls, but it made me feel safer. I picked up my tote which was by the door where I’d left it. Then fishing my cell phone from my bag, I dialed Detective Malone.
“Hello?” Malone answered immediately.
I found my lips quivering, but I gripped the phone tighter and made myself explain what had just transpired. I could tell Malone was a bit irritated that Officer Hostas had not stayed with me.
“I’ll send an officer over,” he said.
“Do I need to stay?” I was already late for an appointment with a new client. I hadn’t planned on my stop for Toria’s things to take so long, and I needed to take her back to my house before I met with the client. And, to tell you the truth, I wasn’t wild about sticking around alone in the empty house.
“Go ahead and leave, but lock up. We’ve got all personnel on duty tied up right now but we’ll check it out. I’ll get your statement later.”
“Okay, thanks.” I noted Toria on the stairs watching me. I grabbed the bag of treats and shook a few in my hand. She trotted right over.
Brilliant. Why hadn’t I thought of the treats earlier?
I put Toria into her carrier so she didn’t take off again. Then I went to re-stack the equipment I’d knocked over. I don’t think I’d ever seen so many computers in one place, short of a big-box store. Once I’d cleaned up my mess, gathered my things to leave, I locked the door and pulled it shut, and then transferred the carrier and Toria’s things to my vehicle.
As I walked around to get in my car, I noticed the next-door neighbor, a tall thin man, standing in his front yard. It was a big house also, though less imposing than Jake and Cash’s. Still, any property in this part of town, you were talking millions. Seeing me, he bent to pull some weeds from the large planter near the stone walkway.
I walked over to the sturdy stone and wrought-iron fence that surrounded the property, but he turned to leave as I got close.
“Hey,” I called. “Did you see the guy that was just here?”
The man didn’t look up. “No, I was busy.” His dark dress pants and blue-striped Brooks Brothers’ shirt seemed like odd attire for yard work.
“He was in that white sports car that just drove away.”
He raised his gaze from the flowers, his thin face expressionless. “Didn’t see it.”
“Fine.” There was no way he could have missed it if he’d been outside.
“What are you doing in there?” He pointed at the house.
“Just picking up some things for Toria, Graham Cash’s cat.”
“She’s vicious.” His hard tone matched his expression.
“What?” I was taken aback by his vehemence. “No, she’s not.” Though I thought maybe Officer Hostas might disagree. Still she’d only scratched him because she’d been startled by the noise I caused when I’d knocked over the computer equipment.
“I hope you take that nasty creature away from here and never bring it back.” He stomped to his front door, went inside, and closed the door with a heavy clank.
Well, heck, not everyone is a cat fan.
I shook my head. What had started out as a mission to pick up some cat food and a few kitty toys had turned into quite an adventure with an injured officer, a secret room, a strange intruder, and an even stranger neighbor. I wondered what the man did for a living. Jake and Cash’s neighborhood wasn’t exactly working class.
I got in my car and put it in gear to back out.
Toria stuck a paw through the carrier door, and said, “Meow!” with a decidedly irritated tone.
“I know, girlfriend.” I patted her paw. “I’m with you. Something is not right.”
Chapter Six
I CALLED OLIVIA, the client I’d been supposed to meet, and apologized. She was very understanding and more than willing to reschedule. I was relieved because having a guy walk out of a wall unexpectedly had thrown me for a loop, and then my interaction with Jake and Cash’s neighbor had heaped on more unease. At the moment I was having trouble keeping my mind in the game.
After dropping Toria off at my house and taking Dogbert for a short walk, I felt a little more composed. I picked up my to-do list and my bag. I hoped I’d be able to concentrate once I got to the office.
My stomach growled as I drove past Green’s Deli, and I took that as a signal I should turn in. You’d think all the stress of the past two days would have caused me to lose my appetite, but it doesn’t work that way with me.
A parking spot opened up i
n front of the deli, and I parked and grabbed my handbag. They had the best pastrami sandwiches in miles, and while I’m partial to a chocolate éclair from C’est la Vie when I’m stressed, Green’s pastrami was a close second.
As I reached the deli’s entrance, I could almost taste the Swiss cheese and peppery-rub combination that made the sandwich special. Suddenly the glass-plated door opened and Heidi Sussman stepped out. Dressed in her usual pseudo-surfer-girl couture, she held a deli sack and a drink.
“Hello, Heidi.” I couldn’t imagine. In the space of one day, to have someone you were close to die and, on top of it, someone you cared about missing and under suspicion for the friend’s death. “How are you holding up?”
“I’m okay.” Her brightly colored tropical sundress set off her petite stature, her blond hair, and her trim figure. “How about you?”
“Well, since you ask.” I blew out a breath. “I have to tell you I’ve just had quite a scare.”
“What do you mean?” She took a big gulp from the open energy drink can she held.
“I’m really glad I ran into you.” We stepped to the side so others could enter the deli. “I’d like to ask you about a couple of things.”
“Me, really? What about?”
“I was at Cash and Jake’s house today to get some of Toria’s things.”
“I thought no one was allowed in there,” she interrupted.
“I had permission from the police, and an officer went with me,” I explained. “While I was there, this guy appeared from a hidden space in the turret room.”
“I thought you were just there to get stuff for the cat?”
“I was, but I had Toria with me and she got loose and I had to find her.” It seemed to me Heidi was distracted. “Do you know anything about this hidden room?”
“No, they were both pretty secretive about their work though.”
I hadn’t said it had anything to do with their work, but okay.
“So you didn’t know about it?”
“No.” She moved to leave. “I have to get back to work.”
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