“Hi, Lauren. What’s going on? I heard on the news that Bethany Urber’s funeral was today. Were you there?”
“Yes. It was definitely a grand affair. She’d have approved. That’s partly the reason I called.” I laid out my plan. “So you may hear that I’m doing something completely out of character, not in HotRescues’ best interests. But it’s not what it’ll sound like, and I have a good reason.”
“I get it,” he said. “That’s one thing I’ve always appreciated about you, Lauren. You take on problems head-on and find solutions. Even when they’re not your problems.”
When we hung up, I took a deep breath, pondering if I really wanted to do this.
The answer was both yes and no, but I’m not a wishywashy person. My mind was made up, and I knew I could control the situation even if it became unpleasant.
I called Cricket Borley next. She, too, answered right away. “I’ve been thinking,” I said, “especially after poor Bethany’s funeral. I’m intrigued by what she started. I’d like to sign HotRescues up for Pet Shelters Together.” My teeth involuntarily clenched after I spoke that lie. I didn’t truly like the idea, but I was following through for other reasons.
Cricket didn’t know that. “That’s wonderful, Lauren! Bethany would have been so pleased. We’re having a planning meeting on Monday night, and it’d be great if you could attend. It’ll be at the Better Than Any Pet Rescues shelter.”
“See you then.” I shook my head as I hung up. It wasn’t a mistake. But it wasn’t something I was proud of, either. Would I come to regret it even more?
Good thing I’d decided to do it, though, since that evening Mamie called me, hysterical—and sounding as confused as the first time she had called me after all those years I hadn’t heard from her.
“Mr. Caramon says those detectives want to talk to me again, Lauren. I don’t have anything else to say to them. Tell him, please.”
“Tell who—a detective?”
“No. Mr. Caramon. Then he can tell the police, and they’ll leave me alone.”
Poor thing. The latest phone call may have driven her nearly over the edge again. “It doesn’t work that way,” I said softly. “You just do whatever Mr. Caramon says, okay?”
“But you’ll still help me, too, won’t you, Lauren?”
“Yes,” I said. “I will.”
Chapter 22
Zoey was eagerly awaiting me when I got home that night. The kids had been in and out of the house, but she’d been alone most of the day. I gave her a big hug, then took her for a nice long walk.
I’d gotten a call from Matt on my way home. We met for a drink after I fed Zoey and myself, but only a drink, since my kids were in town. Matt told me about the kind of demonstration he was working out for HotRescues. “But before we schedule anything, I need to take another look at the new construction, and how it’s progressing.”
Since he wanted to see it during daylight, I arranged to meet him there the next day, after I had brunch with the kids.
Brunch, by the way, was outstanding—and not just because Tracy and Kevin picked out one of my favorite family restaurants to have it at. The company couldn’t have been better. Summer classes were going well for both of them. They enjoyed their jobs.
And they both seemed happy to spend some time with their lonesome mom.
Both were eager to pop in at HotRescues, so I brought them along for my session with Matt. I took the whole group over to see the progress on the new building. I even led them up to see the outer balconies on the second floor.
“This is cool, Mom,” Kevin said, walking outside and leaning over the short concrete wall to gaze toward the ground below. Which made my heart stop. Eventually, there would be safety railings out there, but for now it looked like too easy an area to fall from.
“It’s perfect!” Matt said, earning a confused look from Tracy that probably resembled mine. “For the demo, I mean. You know that the SmART team practices sliding down mountainsides on ropes, using all kinds of mountain rescue equipment. The idea is to be prepared for any kind of small animal rescue, no matter how difficult.”
“They did a great job rescuing those beagle puppies from where they’d been tossed down a storm drain,” I remarked.
“Their preparedness training definitely helped with that. So why not give them an exercise in sliding off a building? They could start right here, and you could have a crowd below watching them. They’d be able to rescue MARTE just fine from this location.” He looked at my kids. “That’s their little stuffed animal who’s always getting into a lot of trouble and needing to be rescued in training sessions.”
“Cool,” Kevin said. Tracy just smiled. They had both met Matt before, knew we were seeing each other, but I’d made it clear we were just friends. I didn’t want them to think I was about to present them with another father substitute, even though Matt was a whole lot nicer than Charles had ever been.
“I like the idea,” I said. “When could they do it?”
“I’ll talk to the team leader a little more about dates and times, then you and I can coordinate it.”
“Perfect.” I’d let Dante know right away that his fund-raiser-publicity event was going to be awesome.
The kids left to return to their schools a few hours later. I’d gone home with them to watch them pack, and I even drove Tracy to Bob Hope Airport.
I felt pretty lonesome as I headed back to HotRescues. Matt had left at the same time the kids and I did, so I didn’t have his company. I did, however, visit with our residents and a few dedicated volunteers for a while, not even heading to my office to address mounting paperwork.
Good thing I didn’t. A lady around my age, in fraying jeans with a nice umber-colored shirt tucked into them, arrived wanting to pick out a cat to adopt. “I live in Northridge,” she said. “Near the Tarbets. They told me that the best place in the area to find the ideal pet is right here.”
“They’re really nice people, aren’t they? Oh, and by the way, they happen to be right.”
She laughed, and I accompanied her personally into one of the cat rooms in our middle building—where mostly young adult kitties were housed. One of our volunteers, Sally, a student who only worked on weekends, came along. The woman—Trix, she said her name was—laughed at the felines’ antics on the miscellaneous stands and other recreation equipment we’d obtained from HotPets and installed to keep our cats exercised and occupied. In only a few minutes, she’d narrowed her choices down to two: a calico and a yellow kitty.
“Maybe . . . do you think it’s a good idea to adopt two at the same time?” She looked at me with troubled brown eyes. “I just lost my only cat about a month ago, and it’s been so hard adjusting. If I get two, I might not wind up all alone this way—but only if it’s okay for them, too.”
“Let’s let them help with the decision, okay?”
With Sally’s assistance, I moved the two she was considering into an otherwise empty room. We put them down on the floor and watched them. They didn’t exactly bond right in front of our eyes as lifelong friends, or if they were they didn’t show us. Neither did they display hissy fits.
“Here’s what we’ll do,” I said to Trix. “If you’re interested in adopting them, come back to our welcome area and fill out the paperwork. I require an application so I’ll know the kind of environment you’ll provide—a house or apartment—and a contract where you’d make some promises about how you’ll treat them. Also, you’d give permission for someone from HotRescues to drop in and visit now and then to be sure everything is going okay. I may want to see your place first, but if you could bring back any pictures of your home, that would be fine, too.” The knowledge that she was another in a list of referrals from the Tarbets worked in her favor. “Assuming everything pans out, you can adopt them both, but if there’s ever any trouble between them, or otherwise, you can bring one or both of them back.”
I went into my office and called Margie Tarbet while Trix filled out the forms. �
��Oh, yes, I know her, Lauren,” Margie said. “Not well, though. She lives a few blocks from me. I wasn’t aware that she’d lost her cat, poor thing. I didn’t refer her to you, but I would have if I’d known she was looking. Must have been Davie. Hold on a sec.”
It was over a minute before Davie got on the phone. “I’m the one who sent her there, Lauren,” he said. “I hope that’s okay. I take Moe and Beardsley on lots of walks, so I know what’s going on with people and pets around here. Sometimes I—I mean, I stopped to talk to Trix the other day and she really seemed to want a new cat after losing hers, so . . . I knew you’d do a great job of helping her.” He paused for a moment, then said, “She seems like a nice lady to me. I know you check references and all that. It’s one of the really great things about HotRescues.”
I smiled at his enthusiasm, said goodbye, and hung up, then went back into the welcome room.
Trix’s paperwork passed muster with me. She invited me to go with her right away to her place, but I declined—instead just looking the house up on Google Earth as she watched and pointed out its features. She promised she would keep both kitties indoors—a major consideration before I permitted any cat adoptions.
I called and made an appointment for her to talk to Mona the next day. Assuming our shrink had the same opinion I did, this lady would be able to pick up her new kitties within a couple of days. She seemed thrilled.
When she left, after hugging her prospective kitties, I went back into the shelter area, found Sally, and we highfived. More HotRescues residents had most likely found what I hoped would be a good home.
A little later, I called Dante about Matt’s idea. He loved it. I called Matt with some dates and times Dante suggested. We picked a couple that he thought matched SmART’s availability, but he’d double-check.
He also told me that a few more animals rescued from Mamie’s were finally available to private shelters. Otherwise, due to an influx of other animals at city facilities, their lives might be in danger. Fortunately, no euthanasia would occur at least for another couple of days if no one took them in.
“I’ll take some,” I assured him. “And I’ll be meeting with other rescuers tomorrow. One way or another, I’ll make sure to find a place for all of them.”
“Somehow, that doesn’t surprise me.” I heard a note in his voice that suggested more than relief.
Turned out that neither of us had any plans for that evening . . . until we spoke. We decided to grab a light dinner together. Brunch was still taking up room in my stomach, so I didn’t want anything heavy.
We rented a DVD of a movie we’d both missed, a romantic comedy, and he accompanied me back to my home.
The rest of the evening? Well, it turned out not so lonesome after all.
The PST meeting wasn’t until seven the next evening, which gave me a lot of time to anticipate what would happen.
After getting to HotRescues that morning, and doing my first walk-through, I phoned Cricket to confirm I’d be there, and also to ask that she put into the agenda a request that everyone take in more rescues from the hoarding situation.
She sounded thrilled. “Of course, Lauren. I’m sure we’ll be able to accommodate all of them. That’s what a network like this is for.”
I intended to use it to try to find a murderer, but I didn’t tell her that.
However, the conversation reminded me of the number one suspect, and if I’d understood correctly, today was when her next police interrogation was scheduled. I’d no idea what time, so I called Mamie.
“It’s at eleven o’clock this morning, Lauren.” Her voice was soft and choked and scared. “Mr. Caramon is picking me up soon. Have you figured it out yet?”
“You mean what happened to Bethany?”
“She was murdered.”
“Yes, I know,” I said patiently, although I was a little confused. “What do you want me to figure out?”
“Who killed her. I didn’t like her, I yelled at her, but I didn’t kill her. So, who did?”
“I’m still working on that,” I said. A thought occurred to me. “But if you really want me to try to help, you can’t tell the police I’m doing anything. It’s our secret, okay?” I wasn’t sure she even knew what a secret was, at least with her once more befuddled state of mind.
“Okay,” she said.
“I’ll call you later,” I told her.
Which I did, mid-afternoon, but got no answer. Nor did I reach her an hour later. I went out to the welcome area, where Nina was holding down the rescue fort, and asked her to check on the Internet to see if she could find a “Mr. Caramon” who was most likely a public defender in L.A. She did, with no trouble. I called his office and was told he was out with a client, and had been all afternoon.
That didn’t bode well for poor Mamie, or so I figured. Which made what I intended to do that evening potentially more important. Could I preserve her freedom?
Could I prove her innocence by figuring out who killed Bethany?
Or was Mamie in danger of imminent arrest—for something she had actually done?
Chapter 23
Once again, I felt as if I’d relocated to the southeastern United States of a century and a half ago as I walked up to the huge, ornate gate at Better Than Any Pet Rescues. I arrived at the same time as a couple of other people who looked familiar both from Bethany’s funeral and my visit here for the hoarder discussion, but I didn’t recall their names. Even so, since I was here under somewhat false pretenses as one of them, I smiled and held out my hand.
“Hi, I’m Lauren Vancouver.”
“We know,” said a young African American woman with light-toned skin and a solemn expression I couldn’t read. “I’m Sylvia Lodner. I understand you’ve decided to join PST.”
“That’s right.”
“Why?” asked the other woman, taller than me with puffy golden hair. “You run HotRescues, don’t you, and you’re funded by the guy who owns HotPets? I’m Raelene Elder, by the way. I’m the chief administrator of Redondo Rescues.”
I’d already thought of an answer, but the gate opened and all three of us headed inside.
Instead of Bethany greeting visitors from the top of the stairs leading into the plantation house, Cricket stood there. She didn’t look as fashionable or elegant as her predecessor—and didn’t wear the antique-looking gown she’d had on at Bethany’s funeral—but she seemed to be an enthusiastic hostess, smiling and ushering us all inside. She wore a peachcolored suit with a floral blouse, business-like yet not especially formal.
“I’ll address your wonderful news first, Lauren,” she told me after waving us all toward the first-floor conference room where the prior meeting had been held.
Which item of news? I wondered, but I didn’t have long to wait.
I slid into an aisle seat halfway down the group of mostly occupied chairs, and saw I was right behind Darya and Lan Price. They both turned to say hi, just as Cricket took her place at the front of the room and began speaking.
“Welcome to the regular monthly meeting of Pet Shelters Together, everyone. Some of you already know her, but I want to introduce you first thing to Lauren Vancouver. She’s the head of HotRescues, and she is interested in joining our network. Please stand, Lauren.”
I tried not to roll my eyes as I complied. Being singled out and applauded wasn’t something I enjoyed, but I could understand why she did so.
“Lauren also has some other good news for us. A bunch more of the animals rescued from that”—she made a face that probably curled my hair as much as hers—“terrible hoarding situation need to be rescued from the city shelter system within the next couple of days. I’ve assured her that our network will find room for every one of them. Right?”
“Right!” came the enthusiastic reply. Okay, I’m not a particularly emotional person, but their response made my eyes tear up.
“I’ll pass around a sign-up sheet. Everyone write down your shelter and how many animals you could take in, if necessary.�
� Cricket waved a spiral notebook in her hand, opened it to the first page, and handed it to a person in the first row.
I wondered how many rescue organizations belonged to PST. Judging by this group, there had to be nearly two dozen.
Unsurprisingly, some of the people I wanted to hear more dirt about—the men who’d been part of Bethany’s life—were not here.
Cricket next gave a short eulogy of Bethany, although I thought that most, if not all, of these attendees had been at her funeral. This would have been a good time for me to talk, but I didn’t want to interrupt whatever program Cricket had devised for this evening. My intent wasn’t to incur her wrath—at least not any sooner than necessary.
She moved into some business items that sounded as if they were left over from Bethany’s tenure.
Discussion ensued. Some of it was interesting, including the suggestion that their current provider of supplies might need to be replaced with a more reliable source of good food and other items for less money. Perfect opportunity for me to jump in to show I could be a valuable member of the group. I raised my hand.
“Lauren?” Cricket called on me with a smile. “Are you going to suggest HotPets as our supplier?”
“We know you have an in with the owner,” Raelene said dryly. She’d taken a seat in the front row and had turned to look at me. “Will he sell us great stuff cheap?”
I laughed. “I can’t guarantee anything other than the quality of the products I get from HotPets, but I’d definitely suggest that you get a proposal from them along with whatever other sources you’re looking at. I’ll put in a good word for Pet Shelters Together.”
That earned a group laugh in response.
Other discussion ensued, including suggestions on other pet rescue organizations people knew about that might be good fits as new members. That earned me a number of glances, too—as if some of these people welcomed me, and others were questioning my attendance. Oh, well.
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