by K E O'Connor
My top lip curled. “And you made a big mistake taking Stool.”
“What are you talking about?”
“The three-legged dog!”
Ronald scowled at the cages. “I wish I hadn’t bothered with him. I figured a lame dog would be easy to deal with. He bit me when I put him in the cage.” He raised his injured arm.
I bared my teeth as I stood in front of Stool’s cage. “You’re a disgrace. You’re an embarrassment to your wife, and you shouldn’t be allowed anywhere near dogs.”
Ronald raised the cattle prod. “What are you going to do about it?”
My bravado faltered. The closed door Fleur had stormed through seemed a long way away. “There’s backup coming.”
Ronald shook his head. “Doubtful, and nobody knows I’m here. I hired the warehouse under a false name, so I could use it to keep Maggie here while I was judging the show. Even if anyone finds the hire agreement, they can’t connect it to me.”
“You killed Delia,” I said. “You won’t get away with it.”
“Of course, I will. I kept her quiet, and I can keep you quiet.”
I licked my lips. “What about Fleur? She knows the truth.”
“I can talk her around,” Ronald said. “Fleur won’t want her name linked to any of this. She has her own reputation to consider. Plus, she has a husband. If she decides to spill the beans about what I did to Delia, I’ll have a chat to him about what his wife likes to do when she’s supposed to be judging dog shows. I’m not worried about Fleur. She’s got too much to lose if she opens her mouth.”
I backed up as Ronald advanced, the cattle prod aimed at me. My hands hit the wire cage, and Stool’s nose pressed against my palm.
“Don’t worry. I’ll get you out of there,” I said to Stool.
“No one’s going anywhere,” Ronald said.
“What if I promise I won’t say anything?” My muscles coiled, and I fought against the urge to run. I wouldn’t abandon the dogs.
“I have a feeling that’s impossible when it comes to you,” Ronald said. “I’ve noticed you snooping around in this murder investigation, even though the police warned you off. Now you know what happened, you won’t be able to keep quiet. That is, unless I make you.”
“You won’t do that,” I said. “Ronald, you’re a nice guy. You love dogs.”
He smirked. “The shows are an excuse to have a break from Maggie. They give me a chance to escape the life I’ve chained myself to. And the side-line gigs are lucrative. I’m booked up for the rest of the year. I’m not giving that up.”
He jabbed the cattle prod at me. I leaped out of the way and tried to dodge past him.
“Oomph!” I staggered to the side as Ronald thumped me in the arm with the prod.
“You’re not going anywhere.”
The zombies were watching, their gazes intense. I needed them. I had to get my zombies to help.
“Maggie! Grab Cassie,” Ronald ordered. “She needs to be silenced.”
I shook my head as his wife advanced slowly.
“I’m no threat,” I said to her. “Your husband’s actions are wrong. Don’t listen to him.”
Maggie looked from me to Ronald, her expression puzzled.
“Don’t stand there staring at us,” Ronald said. “Do something useful. Think about how delicious Cassie’s brain will taste.”
Panic shot through me, and I shuddered. I lifted my palm and held it out to Maggie. “I trust you not to hurt me.”
Ronald glared at Maggie. She had stopped moving. “I don’t know why I put up with you. Even the extra money almost makes this too much to bear. Get out of my way.” He shoved his wife to the side.
“No, you don’t.” I grabbed the cattle prod and tried to yank it from Ronald’s hands.
He held on tight and grimaced at me. I tugged and pulled, but he was stronger. The prod slid from my hand, and I stumbled to the ground.
“You shouldn’t have interfered,” Ronald said. “If you’d kept your nose out of this, everything would be fine.”
“Nothing’s fine,” I gasped. “A woman’s been murdered. You’ve stolen dogs. You’ve stolen my dog, and you’ve manipulated our zombies.”
“Say goodbye to your precious dog.” Ronald advanced on me. “It’s the last time you’re ever going to see him.”
I rolled away but wasn’t fast enough. The cold metal pole struck the back of my head.
Black dots filled my vision as I attempted to crawl toward the zombies. It was like moving through quick sand. I couldn’t coordinate my arms and legs. “Help.”
My nerves exploded with pain as Ronald jabbed me with the cattle prod.
Then he hit me again.
As I fell into unconsciousness, my senses jumbled, and I heard barking, yelling, and then... nothing.
Chapter 20
My eyes blinked open. I was on my front on the cold floor in the warehouse. I was alive, but my back and head throbbed from where Ronald had whacked me.
Several hands gently touched my arms.
I flinched away as I slowly turned my head. The concerned face of a zombie loomed near.
“Still alive?” the zombie asked.
I nodded. “Just about. Where’s Ronald?”
“In trouble,” the zombie said.
I allowed him and his two friends to help me to my feet. My head pounded and my vision was blurry. I blinked slowly several times as I looked around.
“What are they doing?” Ronald shrieked. “Get them off me.”
I sucked in a breath and swallowed the nausea caused by being struck repeatedly by a piece of metal.
Ronald was being held by the rest of the zombies. He thrashed in their grip, but they weren’t letting him go. The cattle prod he’d been holding was abandoned on the ground.
“Did you make them do this?” Ronald gasped. “How are you controlling these zombies?”
I kept hold of the three zombies who were helping me stay upright as I walked slowly toward him. “You deserve this. You misused our zombies. You certainly misused your wife.”
Maggie stood a short distance away, still looking perplexed.
“Get them off me.” Ronald writhed in their grip. “They’re going to bite me. I don’t want to become a zombie.”
“They won’t waste their effort biting you.” I gingerly touched the back of my head and felt an egg-shaped lump.
“Cassie, please, I’ll do anything. We can come to some agreement,” Ronald said. “Just don’t say anything about Delia and you can go.”
“Thanks for the offer. The only one who’s going anywhere is you,” I said. “You’re going to prison.”
I looked up at the sound of running feet.
The warehouse door smashed inward. Nick raced through, his gun out.
His eyes widened a fraction as he saw me being held by the zombies, and he lifted his gun.
“No! Wait! Everything’s good here,” I said to Nick. “The zombies are helping.”
“Let her go,” Nick ordered. He advanced, his knees bent as his gaze shot around the warehouse before returning to me.
“It’s not what it looks like,” I said.
Nick’s expression morphed into one of concern as he grew nearer. “Cassie, your head’s bleeding.”
“Thanks to Ronald,” I said.
He looked at the group of zombies who had hold of Ronald.
“Show Nick you’re not going to hurt either of us,” I said to the zombies. “Let Ronald go.”
The zombies yanked Ronald closer to Nick and dropped him to the ground.
Ronald choked out a wheeze before crawling toward Nick. “Shoot them! Shoot them all. They’re out of control. They just tried to kill me, and they’re going to eat Cassie.”
Nick blinked once as he stared at me. “Explain this.”
“Ronald killed Delia. He cajoled the zombies into taking the dogs.”
Nick shook his head. “Go back a few steps. How do you know Ronald killed Delia?”
; “He just told me,” I said. “How come you’re here?”
“We received an anonymous tip-off about you being in a warehouse with Ronald and a bunch of out-of-control zombies.”
“Was it a woman?” I asked.
“Yes,” Nick said.
“That would be Fleur, another judge at the dog show,” I said. “Ronald’s having an affair with her. Delia found out and blackmailed Ronald. He’s making a profitable side-line in giving expert advice on how to have a happy zombie wife. It turns out that his idea of happiness involves taking a mistress. Ronald silenced Delia before she could ruin everything for him.”
Nick looked at Ronald, who was still on his knees. “Is that accurate?”
Ronald licked his lips. “Being married to a living, breathing woman is hard enough. Add in the complications of her being a zombie and you can see my problem.”
Nick holstered his gun and pulled out his handcuffs. “Turn around.”
Ronald shuffled around on his knees and placed his hands behind his back, so Nick could handcuff him.
Nick’s gaze lifted to the cages. “Stool’s here!”
I nodded. “Ronald convinced the zombies to round up dogs for his wife to eat.” I pointed at Maggie. “Stool was one of the unlucky ones. He must have been found on the beach when we were walking him and Asadi this evening. We must have just missed it happening when we were busy with Mischief.”
Nick glowered at Ronald. “Don’t move. If you even breathe deeply, I’ll shoot you for what you’ve done.” He strode to the cages and unlocked all of them.
Stool limped out, and Nick hugged him before checking him for injuries. Stool licked his face before limping over and looking up at me.
I nodded at the zombies who were helping to keep me upright. “Thanks. I think I’ll be okay now.”
They reluctantly let me go, and I knelt in front of Stool and hugged him. “He was such a brave boy. It must have been so scary inside that cage.”
Stool licked my cheek.
The other dogs stood outside their cages looking confused but unharmed.
“Cassie, your shirt’s burned at the back. What happened?” Nick touched my shoulder gently.
I squeezed Stool one more time before letting him go. “Ronald used a cattle prod. That’s how he was trying to control the zombies.”
Nick lifted me slowly to my feet. He wrapped his arms carefully around me and hugged me tightly. “You could have been killed.”
“I’m here, and I’m alive.”
“You almost weren’t,” Nick said. “The woman who called in the tip-off sounded panicked. She said that Ronald had lost his mind and was going to kill you.”
“It was nothing,” I said. “But you need to get Fleur before she leaves town. She has to tell you what she heard Ronald confess.”
Nick kept hold of me. “We will. I’ll get the others to bring her in before she has a chance to escape. Alex is already on his way here. I’ll get him to take Ronald and then he can track down Fleur.”
“And release Ashton,” I said, “if he’s not already free. He’s not involved with this.”
“Of course,” Nick breathed out. He surprised me by kissing the top of my head. “This was too close a call. What were you doing looking around here at this time of night?”
“Searching for Stool.” I pulled back from Nick’s embrace. “I saw a light on in the warehouse and came to investigate. I found Ronald and his zombie wife plus a number of our zombies. Then, I spotted the cages with the dogs and had to stop Ronald. He was going to get his wife to eat one.”
“And the other zombies?” Nick glanced at the group who stood close by watching us.
“They don’t want to eat the dogs, but Ronald was insisting they take part. It was creepy.”
Nick looked at Maggie. “I guess living with a zombie wife full-time might make a person lose their sense of reality.”
“That doesn’t make it right,” I said. “Ronald’s life is a lie. He claimed to be on the side of the zombies, but he’s anything but. He’s mis-using them and lying to the woman he married.”
“Well, you’ve stopped him now.” Nick brushed hair from my face.
The warehouse door opened. Alex strode through.
I stepped discreetly away from Nick, only wobbling slightly from side to side as my knees threatened to give out.
Instantly, two zombies were by my side keeping me steady.
I smiled at them both. “Thank you. You’re always here when I need you.”
They both nodded sagely.
“Alex, take this suspect to the station and read him his rights,” Nick said. “We need his confession. He murdered Delia.”
Alex’s eyes widened, but he nodded. “On it, boss.”
“And get the others to bring in Fleur, a judge at the dog show.” Nick turned to me. “Where is she staying?”
“Harborside Inn,” I said.
“She’s also involved in this,” Nick said. “We need to corroborate her involvement with Ronald.”
“And let Ashton go,” I said to Alex.
Nick sighed but nodded. “Yes, Ashton is free to go. He’s no longer a suspect in this investigation.”
I blew out a breath as exhaustion washed over me. I watched Alex take Ronald away. The mystery was solved, all the dogs were safe, and Delia’s murderer could be brought to justice.
Nick approached but slowed and eyed the zombies either side of me warily. “It’s time you went home, too.”
“That’s a good idea. I feel the need for a sit down and maybe some tea and a big slice of something sweet.”
“You should go to the hospital,” Nick said.
I tried to ignore the ache at the back of my head. “I feel fine.”
“You have a burn on your back and most likely a concussion,” Nick said.
“I just need to rest for a bit,” I said. “No hospital. It will be a waste of time.”
“Then I’ll take you home,” Nick said. “If you feel dizzy or sick, tell me immediately. I’ll put in a call to Selina, so she can check you over.”
“Sure, whatever you think’s best.” I was too tired to argue.
“What about your zombie friends?” Nick asked.
I looked around to see them watching me. “Thanks for your help tonight, everybody. You can all go home now. You don’t need to be here. Ignore everything Ronald has told you.”
The zombies slowly walked over to me one by one. They touched my arm and face before turning and leaving the warehouse.
Nick shook his head. “Your control over the zombies is astonishing.”
I closed my eyes for a second, my head pounding. “Let’s talk about that another time.” I made a move toward the door but staggered.
Nick caught me around the waist. “My car’s right outside. Let me collect these dogs and take them to their owners, then we’re going back to yours.”
Stool did an excellent job of rounding up the other dogs. They were soon sitting in the back of Nick’s car while I rested in the passenger seat and let my eyes close as the gentle rumble of the car engine relaxed me.
I must have dozed off for a short time because, the next thing I knew, we were outside my house, and the dogs were gone.
Nick helped me inside and settled me on the couch, Stool close to my side.
Asadi hurried over and sniffed me before sniffing Stool and grabbing a tennis ball to show him.
“I should go to bed,” I said.
“No, you’re staying where I can see you,” Nick said. “Unless you want me in your bedroom.”
I stared at him. “What do you mean?”
“You’ve had a head trauma. Since you won’t go to the hospital, you need to be observed. You sleep, and I’ll sit watch.”
I shook my head and instantly regretted it. “There’s no need. I just need some pain pills and a strong mug of tea.”
“What you need is rest.” Nick scraped a hand down his face. “You almost died tonight, Cassie.”
“So you keep telling me,” I said.
“No more arguing. Lie on the couch and rest. If you need anything, I’ll be right here.” Nick knelt in front of me and took off my shoes.
I should have objected, but I was in shock. Ronald had meant to kill me tonight. If it hadn’t been for Fleur’s tip-off, I’d be dead by now. And, if Nick hadn’t reacted so quickly, it would have been too late. He really had saved me tonight.
I rested my hand on his shoulder. “Thanks.”
He pulled off my other shoe and set it to the side. “What for?”
“For not giving up on me. For not arresting me when I mess around in your investigations. For always being there when I need you.”
Nick cleared his throat and looked away. “That’s what I’m paid for.”
I nodded slowly. “I guess so. Even so, I like having you around. You make my life more interesting.”
“Lie down,” Nick said gently. He reached over and pulled the throw off the back of the couch and covered me with it. His fingers brushed my cheek. “You make my life more difficult, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
As I drifted off to sleep, I smiled.
Chapter 21
I jerked awake. A thud came from the kitchen. I went to sit up but stopped as my head protested. I sucked in a few deep breaths and noticed daylight creeping around the closed curtains over the window.
Stool appeared next to me and licked my face.
I wrinkled my nose as I gently pushed him away. “Good morning to you, too. What’s all that noise?”
Asadi also appeared and snuffled my hand. “Hey, boy. I bet you liked having a companion last night.” Slowly, I eased myself into a sitting position.
“You’re awake,” Nick said from behind me.
I turned slowly, wrapping the throw around me as I did so. “You’re still here. What are you doing?”
“I told you I’d stay while you slept.”
“You stayed awake all night?”
“I might have dozed once or twice. Stool sat guard most of the night.”
I kissed the top of Stool’s head. “He’s such a wonder dog.”
“He’s a greedy dog,” Nick said. “He’s already polished off two lots of breakfast.”