Caprice sat back on the chair and made it squeak. That woke up Sophia. She lifted her head, twitched an ear, and only opened one eye as if to ask, “You’ve got something for me?”
“I think I do,” Caprice said. “Lucy Russell Mathers changes her name to Louise Benton. I’d bet your pint of cream that the death threat, and the harassing calls, were the inciting incidents that convinced Lucy to change her name and maybe even to move here and start a new life. Had the authorities recovered any of her inheritance? Even if they had, maybe Lucy hadn’t wanted anyone to know she had money so she couldn’t be taken advantage of again. Maybe that’s why she’d gotten a job at The Pretzel Party.”
Sophia meowed as if she didn’t want her cream going anywhere.
“Don’t you trust my powers of deduction?”
Lady bobbed her head up as if to say she did.
Staring at the screen once more, Caprice took the questions deeper. Was it possible that Stacy Miller, all these years later, had found Lucy and taken her revenge? If so, was she still in Kismet?
That idea gave Caprice chills. Which way to go from here? There was only one way to go, to her next best lead, the Texas connection. Tomorrow she’d talk to Don Rodriguez again. Since he was from Austin, he might know something about all these incidents firsthand from living there during that time. And if he didn’t? He still might know the truth about Louise Benton Downing that no one else in Kismet knew.
Once during the night and then again early in the morning, Caprice checked on Valentine. After coffee, she called Marcus. He told her to bring the kitten in before his first appointment. He knew she was worrying about whether the kitten might have FIV, feline leukemia, or anything else they could test for. She was grateful that he understood her worries. She waited until eight o’clock and then she phoned around the neighborhood and couldn’t find anyone who’d lost a kitten. She would put up flyers on trees, in the grocery stores, and the drugstore, but she had a feeling about this one.
The icy air singed Caprice’s lungs as she carried the box with Valentine in it to her heated van. This carton had a lid with holes. She’d lined it with old towels and stuck the hot water bottle inside wrapped in an extra one. Valentine had been meowing and hungry this morning, very good signs. Caprice, however, was holding her breath until Marcus did an FIV and a feline leukemia diagnostic.
Furry Friends Veterinary Clinic was devoid of activity and the front parking lot empty when Caprice arrived. She had caught sight of Marcus’s black SUV out back as well as a boxy compact. That belonged to one of the vet techs.
Not knowing if Marcus had opened the clinic yet, she left Valentine in her van as she ran to the door, her maxi-coat flapping around her seventies-style overalls. Her short boots crunched on the gray slush that had frozen again overnight on the macadam.
Marcus must have been watching for her. He opened the door and held it wide. “Go get her before I let all the heat escape.”
“I think it’s a ‘her,’” Caprice tossed over her shoulder as she returned to her van, hoisted the box into her arms, and ran to the door.
“Careful on that ice,” Marcus warned. “I’m going to sprinkle ice melter on it as soon as the temperature rises a bit.”
“It might hit thirty-two degrees by noon,” Caprice returned wryly, glad finally to be inside.
Marcus motioned her to follow him to one of the examination rooms. Once inside, he closed the door. “Hopefully your stray won’t run when we take it out of the box, but you never know. Jenny’s in the back, ready to help if we need her.”
After Caprice unbuttoned her coat, she draped it over one of the two vinyl chairs. “I’m already getting attached.”
Narrowing his gaze, his brown eyes almost black, he remarked pointedly, “You always do.”
He took the lid from the box and smiled. “What have we here?” Carefully, he lifted Valentine in his large palm. His smile grew broader. “Definitely a gray tabby. You were right about that.”
Caprice knew he was teasing her, trying to lighten the mood before he did bloodwork that would tell her what she needed to know.
Ten minutes later Marcus was continuing his examination while they waited for the results of the FIV and feline leukemia tests Jenny was supervising.
“She seems healthy,” Marcus said after looking into Valentine’s ears and mouth. “This flea treatment will take care of the ear mites, too.”
He took his stethoscope from his pocket and listened to her heart. When he’d finished, he nodded. “Robust little thing. She only weighs a pound and a half. She couldn’t have gotten far with the snow and ice on the ground. My guess is someone dropped her near your house because they didn’t want her. I can’t believe the cold hearts some people have.”
He glanced at Caprice. “Unlike you. She’s lucky you found her. She wouldn’t have lasted the night in this weather.”
Valentine meowed several times and Marcus stroked her. “So how is your investigation going?”
“What makes you think I’m investigating anything?”
“Wasn’t Louise Downing a friend of your family’s?”
“Yes, she was.”
“As soon as I heard she was murdered, I knew you’d be looking into it.”
Marcus’s analytical mind had helped her figure out a lead in the last murder she’d solved. “It’s complicated.”
“Murder always is.”
The test results they were waiting for took about twenty minutes and Caprice realized Marcus was attempting to distract her. “Louise had a past life in Texas—before she came to Kismet.”
“I see. And you think it had something to do with her murder?”
“Possibly. It was a love-gone-wrong story. Her first husband conned her and took her money. She pressed charges and he went to prison. But he was killed there.”
“And that came back to bite Louise somehow?”
“Not the murder, but the guy’s real girlfriend.”
“Uh oh. A woman’s revenge can be the cruelest.”
“As if you’d know,” Caprice joked.
“I’ve had my share of love-gone-wrong stories.”
Caprice supposed everyone had.
“So what’s your next step?” Marcus asked.
“Do you know Don Rodriguez?”
“The car mechanic who owns the body shop?”
Caprice nodded.
“I’ve taken my vehicles to him now and then.”
“Do you think he’s honest?”
“In business dealings I’ve found him to be so. Why?”
“Because he’s from Austin, where Louise once lived. I’ve spoken with him once but I think I need to do it again and poke a little more.”
“Don’t poke so much that he pokes back.”
“It’s hard to know if I’m crossing a line.”
“Take someone with you,” Marcus advised.
“I thought about that but I don’t think he’ll open up if I do. I took Lady along last time.”
“How did that go?”
“He liked her.”
“What’s not to like? She’s a sweetie. But that’s the thing, Caprice. Lady is not a watchdog. If she senses you’re in danger, she might try to help you. But I don’t believe she’d ever be aggressive. Still, warning you to be careful is like whispering into the wind.”
“I’m careful,” she protested.
He gave her a very long piercing look and she turned her attention to Valentine who’d curled up on the towel on the table and was almost asleep.
With a shake of his head, Marcus checked his watch. “I’ll get those results.”
Five minutes later, Marcus was smiling again as he returned to the exam room. “You’re all clear. Bring her back in two weeks for rabies and distemper injections, if you don’t find her a home until then.”
Caprice would look for a home for Valentine . . . right after she interviewed Don Rodriguez once more.
Once she was home, Caprice put music on in the bathroom and
made sure Valentine was cozy and contented. The flea treatment would take a few days to work. Then she’d have to give her a bath. She fed the kitten again, played with her with a shoelace, and then rubbed her little ears and neck and chin. She fell asleep once more. When Caprice exited the bathroom, Sophia and Lady sat right outside the door.
“She can’t come out to play yet. Not for a few days,” Caprice explained. After all, animals understood much more than humans gave them credit for.
Sophia gave a knowing blink. Lady gave a small bark.
She spoke directly to her cat again. “You can sit there and listen for her or take a nap. Lady and I are going to take a little jaunt. We won’t be long.”
As Caprice drove to Rodriguez’s shop a short while later, she tapped her fingers on the steering wheel. Yeah, she was a little bit nervous because what happened if they got into the sticky questions? Lady would be with her, but would she stand up for her? That was hard to know until it was necessary. She told herself, Keep cool, keep even, and above all, don’t show Rodriguez you’re nervous. With all that in her head, she parked at the body shop, let Lady out of her crate, attached the leash, and guided her to the door where they’d been once before.
When Rodriguez looked up, he was at the desk again. He was surprised. Did he look a bit worried, too?
Thoughts began running through Caprice’s mind. Maybe Don Rodriguez wanted Louise to leave Chet and be with him. When she wouldn’t—he got angry enough to kill her.
Somehow that didn’t quite ring true. But she did have to find out what would ring true.
“Do you mind talking to me again?” she asked.
“Would it make any difference if I would?”
“No, not this time.”
He gave a resigned sigh. “Do you think you know who did it?”
“I think I’m on the trail of the person who did it. What do you know about Lucy Russell Mathers from Austin?”
“That was a big story a long time ago.” Rodriguez thought about it. “I knew the same thing everybody else did. Some guy from Killeen hornswoggled her. He took her for all her money, but she got revenge like most people don’t. He was killed in prison a few weeks after he was sent up there. She received death threats and everyone thought they came from the guy’s live-in.” He gave a shrug. “All of it was big news back then, when there wasn’t something new every minute like now. There wasn’t a twenty-four-hour news cycle. I had heard Lucy had left Austin, and her house was sold.”
“Do you know if Stacy Miller, the man’s mistress, was ever heard from again?”
Don leaned back on his stool. “Big Brother wasn’t watching then like he is now. Stacy Miller wasn’t important enough for anyone to take notice of.”
Caprice wondered if killing Louise was a way for her to make everyone take notice now.
“Did Louise ever mention Lucy?”
He looked genuinely surprised. “We talked about the story once in passing. But I can’t remember that Louise showed any particular interest. Why?”
“Because I think Louise was Lucy.”
Now he seemed shocked. “You’re kidding.”
“Not even a little bit. Are you saying Louise confided nothing about her past?”
“I really didn’t care about her past or how she ended up in Kismet. After all, I landed here, too.”
“How did you find the town?”
“Friends took a trip up the East Coast. They visited lots of small towns. They had photos of Kismet. I took a look at the Chamber of Commerce Web site online, then came for a visit myself. I had nothing to keep me in Texas so I started over here.”
“People usually talk about starting-over stories.”
He thought about that, then responded, “Louise never did.”
Because she was hiding heartache? Because she never wanted to think again about a past that could search her out and bite her?
Caprice spent a few more minutes with Don Rodriguez and realized she wasn’t going to learn anything else here today.
She had barely stepped outside into the cold February wind when her cell phone played. Fumbling under her outside coat into the pocket of her retro overalls, she pulled her phone out and saw Nana’s face.
She suspected what this call was about, and Nana confirmed it when she asked, “So how was the party? Maybe you should take me along sometime. I’d like to meet a rock star.”
Caprice laughed as she walked to her car, and told Nana all about it. She also told her about going home and finding the kitten.
Nana was silent a few moments, then asked, “And what are you going to do with this kitten?”
“I’m not sure. Lady and Sophia keep me busy enough. I’m trying to find out if someone lost Valentine. If no one comes forward, I’ll try to find her a good home.”
“Valentine,” Nana said quietly, and Caprice heard something in her voice. She waited.
“That’s a special name, don’t you think?”
“She’s a special kitten.”
Nana laughed. “You think they’re all special.”
Again she was quiet for a few seconds, and Caprice stopped at her van with Lady and waited again.
“Do you think I’m too old to have a kitten?” Nana asked.
“No one’s ever too old to have a kitten. Not as long as they can stoop over, clean out a litter box, and feed a pet several times a day.”
“I can do all that,” Nana said confidently. “I haven’t had a pet since I was a small girl.”
Nana still seemed to be thinking about it, so Caprice asked, “Do you want a constant companion? I think Valentine’s the type that will like to be close. It’s hard to tell at this stage, but she likes to cuddle.”
“A constant companion. You know, I think I’d like that, too.”
“Do you want to think about it a couple of days? She can’t go anywhere until her flea treatment takes effect.”
But Nana wasn’t an indecisive woman. Once she made up her mind, she made up her mind. “I don’t need a couple of days. I’d like to have a furry friend. They seem to make you happy. What do I have to do to get ready?”
“You don’t have to do anything. I’ll stop in at Perky Paws and supply you with everything you need. When Valentine’s ready for a home, I’ll bring her and all of it over. I’ll get you set up.”
“In the meantime, I’ll crochet a little blanket for her,” Nana decided, obviously eager to do something.
“I’m sure she’ll like that. They like to knead afghans and blankets with their claws. It reminds them of their mom. This little one must have been taken from her mom early.”
“I’ll make her feel as if she has one again. Thank you, Caprice. Valentine could be just what I need to make this winter not seem quite so long.”
Nana loved to nurture and care for, and now she’d have a little being of her own to do that for. Nana and Valentine would be a perfect fit.
Chapter Seventeen
Lady was always welcome at Perky Paws Pet Shop. That was the fun aspect of this store along with baked treats for canines that looked and smelled fabulous enough for humans to want to eat them. The manager of the store—Gretta Hansen—made some of them herself and imported others from a dog treat maker in York.
As Caprice went inside with Lady, her mind wasn’t merely on the list of supplies Nana needed. It was also on everything Don Rodriguez had discussed with her—revenge, untimely death, a crime, and a former husband. That history was a far cry from Chet and his affair, from someone who wanted to rob Louise and the robbery had gone wrong. Was she headed in the right direction now with the Texas connection?
In the front case today, Caprice recognized several types of biscuits, from peanut butter nuggets, gingermen-sized ginger biscuits, pumpkin biscuits, and cheese and bacon biscuits. Colorful dog cookies also decorated the case and were adorned with yogurt icing. Lady noticed them, too, and stood at the case as if she expected one to jump out at her and she could eat it.
On Caprice’s way o
ut, she’d purchase a few of them.
After waving to Gretta, she headed for the back of the shop and litter pans and supplies. Once there, however, she almost ran into Danny Flannery! The teenager was painting a mural on the back wall.
“Danny, how are you? I haven’t seen you since fall. How’s your senior year going?”
Danny had been an almost truant teenager until Caprice had noticed his artistic bent and introduced him to Ace Richland. Ace had hired Danny to paint a dolphin mural on his poolhouse wall as well as a horse mural in his daughter’s room. Danny had done such a terrific job on both that Ace had offered to cover his art school training after he graduated.
In the meantime, Ace had helped him set up a Web site from which he sold custom hand-painted T-shirts and sweatshirts.
“I’ve gotten my grades up,” he announced proudly, crouching down to Lady and offering his hand for a sniff. “Mom framed my first-term honor roll card. She hasn’t had one of those since I was a kid.”
Lady sniffed his hand thoroughly. He grinned and petted her. Caprice chuckled. “Good for you on the honor roll. Have you picked out an art school?”
“Ace says I can go anywhere I want. But I don’t want to travel too far that I can’t get home on weekends. Mom could need me.”
With a mother who’d worked hard for years to keep a roof over their heads, Danny was protective of his mom and had become a suspect in a murder investigation because of it.
Now he went on. “I talked to Ace about art institutes in Philadelphia.”
“My sister Bella went to a fashion institute in Philly.”
“Ace said he’d loan us his chauffeur so we can visit a couple in April. Then Mom doesn’t have to worry about her car breaking down.”
Underneath the rock star façade, Ace was a great guy. If only he and his ex-wife could work out their differences. Was that her Pollyanna complex at work again?
Danny rose to his feet once more and Lady sniffed around his sneakers. “Mom’s working more hours at the Cupcake House so she could cut back cleaning houses. Now we’re even home at the same time some nights.”
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