Dog Gone

by Shannon Esposito

  “What a horrible thing to do,” Lulu gasped.

  We all nodded in agreement.

  “That’s a terrible betrayal,” I said quietly.

  “What did you do?” Beth Anne asked.

  Talia shrugged a slim shoulder. “I paid her, she erased the photos in front of me and I haven’t heard from her since. It’s been almost two years. But I’ve been thinking more and more lately, I don’t think Sammy did this, and Rose is the only other person I can think of who would extort me for money. Plus the million dollar ransom? Seems like more than a coincidence, doesn’t it? That it’s the same amount.”

  “Could be,” I said. “But it’s a pretty round number.”

  “Nude yoga, huh? I’ll have to try that.” Beth Anne shot her a sympathetic grin.

  Talia cracked a smile. “It’s really freeing. Just make sure you’re actually alone.”

  I forced myself to sit up straighter, feeling the weight of the food in my belly and Talia’s dilemma in my heart. “I know it’s embarrassing Talia, but I do think this is something you need to talk to Detective Vargas about. If nothing else just to rule Rose out. Do you have a photo of her? They could at least check the security footage at the ferry for any sign of her.”

  The other ladies nodded their agreement.

  Talia groaned. “I know, you’re right. I’ll do it tomorrow.”

  “Besides Sammy and this Rose lady, do you think your neighbor, Nell, would take Ginger for revenge? And maybe the ransom request is just a smoke screen,” I added.

  Talia winced. “That poor woman. There were feathers all over my yard. I can’t imagine why, but it seemed that someone wanted to set my dogs up to take the blame for killing her peacock. They didn’t do it, of course. I never leave them unattended in the yard.” She shook her head. “Anyway, I don’t know. I don’t know Nell well enough to say if she’d be that devious.”

  “Nell is a bit off her rocker,” Hope said.

  “Yeah, she is,” Beth Anne agreed. “But murder and dognapping? She just doesn’t seem the type. To kill or to need the money.”

  I set my empty coffee cup down. “Well, if the killer and the dognapper are two separate people, we should at least rule Nell out as having taken Ginger. If Ginger got scared off by the killer, she may’ve ended up in her yard, giving Nell the opportunity to snatch her up.”

  The women nodded, everyone getting lost in their own thoughts for a moment.

  “Speaking of Sammy.” Which we weren’t, I’m not sure why I said that. “Has he called you back yet?”

  Talia rested her chin in her hand. Half-moon shadows had formed under her eyes. “No, and it’s not like him. I still can’t imagine him killing Diggs or taking Ginger, though. He swore to me on Holly’s grave that he had nothing to do with this.”

  Beth Anne was pressing leftover pie crumbs onto the plate with her fork. “So, you still trust his word, even after ... you know ... he cheated on you?”

  Talia nodded and looked out the window thoughtfully.

  I followed her gaze. The water was black with just a streak of moonlight across the surface.

  Talia leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms. “I married Sammy because he’s got a heart of gold, despite his profession. I lost him because of my profession. Even though I’m still angry about him leaving me, I understand why he did it. Being married to an actress is not for the faint of heart. I was gone a lot. And when I was here, it was hard for me to leave whatever character I was playing at the time behind. It becomes an obsession, really. To get every nuance of the character right, give her enough depth. Just the right amount of flaws. He never knew who he was coming home to. I don’t blame him, really. Doesn’t mean I don’t want to rip the hussy’s eyes out that he left me for.” She winked at us, causing us to chuckle.

  After a brief silence, Hope asked, “So, are you going to pay the ransom?”

  “Yes.” Talia shrugged. “What else can I do but pay it and pray that the kidnapper will keep his word and give me Ginger back alive.”

  “We still have two days,” I said, with more conviction than I felt. “If we can figure out who has her, we can find her before Friday. We can’t do anything about Sammy right now, or Rose for that matter, but what we can do is find a way to get into Nell’s house and see if there’s any sign of Ginger there.”

  Even Beth Anne was looking at me skeptically. That wasn’t a good sign. She was always up for an adventure.

  ***

  When I got back to the bungalow, Devon was grinning at me from the kitchen.

  “What?” I asked, half-distracted by the two excited dogs vying for my attention.

  He came over and pulled Petey back so Buddha could get his kisses in. When I stood back up, he said, “I found Sammy and you’re never going to believe who he’s staying with.”

  CHAPTER NINE

  “So how did you find him?” I asked, clutching a travel coffee mug as Devon navigated the Jeep down Moon Key Drive toward the Villas. It was early in the morning and the island was calm and still, except for a few white heron birds cruising the unlit skies.

  He had his hand on my knee. I could feel the warmth through my black cotton yoga pants. “There’s a workforce here, keeping the island running smoothly behind the scenes. The gardeners, the maids, the mechanics. People who maintain the golf course, the tennis courts, the common areas. A work force invisible to most.”

  I stared at his profile, the small uptick at the corner of his mouth. “But not to you?”

  It became a full-blown smile. “Exactly.”

  I laughed. “So you have spies?”

  He glanced at me. God I loved that little mischievous gleam in his eyes. “I have observant friends who are only making ten dollars an hour and enjoy a little compensation for their observation skills.”

  I smirked. “Like I said ... spies.”

  Devon maneuvered his Jeep up to the resident side of the gate at Seaspray Villas. These were the two story Mediterranean-style condos sitting on the corner of Moon Key between the west and south side mansions. He reached in the glovebox and pulled out a key card. As he held it up to the receiver and the gates creaked open, I said, “Well, isn’t that handy. Courtesy of one of your spies?”

  “My lips are sealed.”

  I leaned over and kissed him playfully. “I’m sure we can change that.”

  He chuckled, resisting my efforts at distraction, and pulled into a parking space.

  We walked up to the door and my stomach clenched. I wasn’t as worried about confronting Sammy as I was about coming face to face with my recently acquired nemesis. Every time fate has brought us together, she’s made it a point to make sure I knew my place here on Moon Key ... as the poor girl pretending I fit in with the uber-rich.

  The blood rushed to my face as the door opened. There she stood in all her nude-except-for-a-skimpy-silk-nighty glory. Georgia Waters. Femme fatale southern style. She’d already swiped on lip gloss, so I knew she could’ve taken the time to put on a robe, too.

  Classy.

  “We’re here to speak to Sammy,” Devon said bluntly, thankfully saving me from trying to use my dry mouth.

  Her blue eyes narrowed as she stared at me with a smug smile. “Still slumming it I see, Devon Burke, P.I.” Then, when her remark elicited no response, with an exaggerated wave she added, “Come in.”

  My face still on fire, I carefully positioned myself behind Devon. He was my security wall, my shield against Georgia’s merciless venom. I had felt sorry for Talia over Sammy’s affair, now I felt sorry for Sammy. I’d personally pay to see Talia rip this woman’s eyes out.

  Not very yogi-like, Elle, I scolded myself. What do men see in this she-witch?

  Unfortunately, at that moment, I raised my eyes from the floor and caught a glimpse of the yellow rose tattoo through the see-through lingerie, above her perfectly sculpted derrier. Guess that explained that.

  She led us into the great room—blue velvet curtains framing the wall of windows, o
verstuffed butter-yellow leather furniture and gaudy gold and crystal accents. Then she sauntered over to place a hand on Devon’s shoulder, guiding him to the sofa like he couldn’t figure out not to sit on the low coffee table. My blood pressure spiked.

  “Sit. I’ll have Betsy make us some coffee. Someone looks a little tired.” She turned her deep blue gaze on me. I didn’t miss the fact that her nostrils flared with something that resembled disgust ... or hatred as she clicked her tongue at me. “Those circles under your eyes are so unbecoming, Elle. You really should get more beauty sleep.”

  Devon shot me a sympathetic smile that said, “Don’t let her get under your skin.”

  He didn’t have to worry though. I was too frozen with humiliation to take her bait. And besides, she was already swishing her assets as she left us. I imagined her tripping in those fur lined heels and felt a little better.

  We heard her call up the stairs. “Sammy darling, there’s a detective here to speak to you.” No mention of me. Good. The more invisible I am to her, the better.

  “Just ignore her,” Devon said, as I sat stiffly beside him, forcing myself not to enjoy the amazingly soft leather.

  I fought back the tears, trying to take his advice. “I shouldn’t have come,” I said quietly.

  He put a finger under my chin and made me look at him. “You’re here because I need you here. By my side.” He dropped a soft kiss on my lips and rubbed my hands in his. “Shake it off, darlin’.”

  Sammy swaggered down the stairs and into the great room. Luckily, he’d given us the courtesy of putting on pants, though apparently a shirt was too much to ask for.

  Devon stood and held out his hand. “Devon Burke.” I watched Devon’s eyes narrow as Sammy took his hand. I could tell Sammy was squeezing harder than necessary. A message? Devon’s jaw muscle twitched. He smiled at Sammy but it didn’t reach his eyes.

  Sammy plopped down like he owned the place, arms stretched out along the back of the matching leather loveseat. “How’d you find me?”

  Devon didn’t bother acknowledging his question. “You know the police are huntin’ for you to answer a few questions.”

  Sammy licked his bottom lip and narrowed his gray eyes. His large shoulder muscles twitched under heavy tattoos. “And you’re their dog, come to fetch me?”

  Devon was quiet for a second, assessing the situation. “Look, this doesn’t have to be adversarial. We both want the same thing. To find the fella holdin’ Ginger for ransom and to put Diggs’s killer behind bars where he belongs. Can you help us out with that?”

  Sammy’s expression went very still.

  Georgia came back at that moment, thankfully with a white silk robe tied firmly in place, took one look at Sammy’s face and slid down onto the loveseat beside him. Her French-manicured hand went to his knee.

  “Sammy, what’s wrong?” Her voice was different, soft and void of pretense.

  Was it possible she actually cared about him and didn’t just see him as another sugar daddy? Impossible. I didn’t believe there was really a heart beating behind those saline implants.

  Sammy ignored her, instead leaning forward and staring at Devon with a new, dangerous glint in his eyes. “What do you mean holding Ginger for ransom?”

  Devon and I shared a glance, and I knew he was thinking the same thing I was. If Sammy did have something to do with the dognapping, he was one heck of an actor.

  “Your ex-wife received a ransom note from a fella claiming to have Ginger and demanding a million dollars for her safe return.”

  His eyes darkened; his face turned to stone. “When is this exchange taking place?”

  Devon hesitated. “Tomorrow night at midnight.”

  He jumped up and began to pace in front of us. “A million dollars? That’s insane. She’ll pay it, of course. That’s how she is. Those dogs were her life. He better not hurt a hair on Ginger’s head. I’ll crush him when I find him.” He was like a tiger in a cramped cage, raw power filling the room. I inched closer to Devon. Even Georgia sat back into the loveseat, having enough sense to leave the man to his rantings.

  “Sammy, do you have any idea who did this?” Devon asked.

  He shook his head as he rubbed his face and bald head with both hands. “No, I don’t.”

  As I watched his anger, I got angry myself. Talia was the one suffering in all this. He should be thinking of her. I couldn’t stop myself. “Why did you lie? That night you came over to Talia’s ... why did you tell her you’d just arrived on Moon Key when you’d actually arrived the night before? The night Diggs was killed.” Defending Talia made me act braver than I felt.

  At this, Georgia popped off the loveseat like something had bit her behind. Her voice shook with barely concealed rage aimed at Sammy. “You went to Talia’s house?”

  “Not now, Georgia,” Sammy growled.

  The maid walked in with a tray of china coffee cups. With a flick of her hand, Georgia flipped the tray into the air and the cups shattered on the tile floor in front of Sammy, splashing hot coffee on his shins.

  “What the ... ” He glared at Georgia, who simply turned with a swish of her long blonde hair and left the room.

  Sammy swore under his breath and then, with a shake of his head, addressed the startled maid. “Don’t worry about that, Betsy. I’ll clean it up. It was my fault.”

  Devon and I shared a look. “And why aren’t you returning Talia’s calls?” I asked.

  He shot me an exasperated look. “You were just a witness to Georgia’s temper. Returning my ex-wife’s phone calls is akin to committing a crime in her book.” Sammy shook his head, looking defeated, as he squatted and began to pick up the larger pieces of broken china.

  I couldn’t believe it. This tough guy was actually afraid of Georgia. Sheesh.

  He glanced up at us. A large vein bulged in the middle of his forehead. “Where is Talia supposed to drop off the ransom money anyway?”

  “You’ll have to talk to Talia about that,” Devon said, after a moment of thought. “She should be the one to decide if she wants you involved.”

  “Didn’t you just hear me say I can’t talk to Talia?” Sammy glared at Devon. “You know this person is not going to give her Ginger back, even if she pays him. Why would he?”

  “I know,” Devon said, holding his gaze.

  His shoulders fell in defeat. “Fine, I’ll call her.”

  “How do you think they met? Sammy and Georgia?” I asked Devon as we drove back to the bungalow to pick up Buddha before my first doga class of the day.

  “I guess here,” he said, obviously distracted. “They used to vacation here together before the divorce. Guess Georgia got her hooks in him on Moon Key.”

  I noticed the tiny lines bunching up at the corner of his eye. “What are you thinking about?”

  “I’m thinking about a way to follow that boat tomorrow night without bein’ spotted. The problem is there won’t be any boats on the water at that time of night, so tryin’ to follow by boat would be too obvious.”

  “Ah.” I watched a golf cart rolling over the dark green grass of the course to our right. Above it, the morning sky was a baby blue with mountains of white clouds. It looked like a tropical postcard. “What about some kind of tracker that we can put with the money?”

  Devon rubbed his chin roughly. “I’m sure he’ll look for that as soon as he gets the bag.”

  I tapped my foot against the floorboard. “So you don’t believe the person who comes for the money will be an oblivious middle-man either?”

  “I don’t. Salma’s right, the dognapper won’t want anyone else involved in the exchange. Too risky.”

  I pushed my hair out of my face. “But, if everyone truly believes he’s not going to give Ginger back alive anyway, what’s the risk if he does find it? At least we might be able to get to him before he hurts Ginger if we know where he is.”

  Devon half-nodded, half-shrugged. “True.”

  I was getting excited, feeling like a plan was f
orming. “Do you think Salma would give us one?”

  “No need. I’ve got a couple of luggage trackers that’ll do the trick. We can even sew them into the bottom of the bag to make it harder for him to spot. But, you’re forgetting one thing. You’re going to have to talk Talia into letting us do this. It puts Ginger at risk and I don’t think the argument ‘he’s going to kill her anyway’ will be helpful.”

  “Yeah, you’re right. Okay, say we can convince her that this is Ginger’s only hope. How would we follow the tracker?”

  Devon bit the inside of his cheek as he slowed for a light. “I’d have to wait off-island to see where the boat docks, hopefully it won’t be too far of a drive. There is a possibility he could run up the coast, and it’d take me awhile to get there by car, but I’m betting the dognapper didn’t venture too far from Moon Key.”

  “This could work. I’ll talk to Talia tomorrow. You said before that Salma seems to think the person who has Ginger could be a different person than the one who killed Diggs. A crime of opportunity, if Ginger got scared, ran off and someone found her. If that were true, wouldn’t it have to be someone on the island, and—besides the possibly of her neighbor, Nell, taking Ginger for revenge—I can’t imagine any of the millionaire residents stealing Ginger for ransom money. But maybe a person working on the island?”

  Devon thought about that for a moment. “Maybe. But I’m not so sure I agree with Salma. I think the murderer and dognapper may just be the same person and money was the motive to begin with. It usually is.”

  I reached over and squeezed his hand. I knew he was thinking about his parents’ deaths. I sighed and changed the subject. “Do you think we should tell Talia that we know who Sammy’s mistress is?”

  Devon glanced at me. “Would you want to know?”

  I thought about that. “Yeah ... if it was anybody else but Georgia Waters.”

  CHAPTER TEN

  I awoke Friday morning with my heart pounding and an immediate sense of dread. I scanned the room for any sign of my childhood dog, Angel, and breathed a little easier when her spirit wasn’t perched on the end of our bed or staring at me from the doorway. I wasn’t in danger at the moment, at least. That was more than I could say for Ginger. Today was the day. I had to talk Talia into letting us put the tracker in the ransom money tonight. How was I going to do that? I had no idea.