Pointer Club Cadaver (Mandy Bell DVM Series Book 3)

by Abby Deuel

  “I think we should as long as we are all the way over here. I can’t imagine O’Mally is guilty of anything. It won’t hurt to just ask him a few questions,” said Mandy. “Has Gerry texted back?”

  “It doesn’t look like it. We must have had enough reception at some point because the message confirmed that it went. We have no bar right now, though,” said Gillian.

  “We’ll be back before he even misses us. That calving could have taken much longer. We are making great time, though,” said Mandy.

  “OK. I’ll drive so you can rest from that herculean effort. That really was impressive. I had heard of that working but hadn’t seen it in real life. I want to try the skateboard method. It sounds like a hoot,” said Gillian.

  “It can be pretty ridiculous. It’s neat when it works. The cow gets a bit sick of it if you have to try it twice,” said Mandy.

  “I can only imagine,” said Gillian. “Well, here we are. Promise me that we will stick together. I have the cell phone in my pocket. We don’t know if the person who murdered Phil is here or not. So we have to be on high alert.”

  “Let’s leave the dogs in the Jeep. We don’t want them exposed to parvo if there are any carriers of it wandering around,” said Mandy.

  “Good call,” said Gillian. Lyle and Anna squirmed to show that they would really have rather gone with them. “It’s pretty cold out here. You are safer in there with the blankets in the backseat.”

  “I always have some wool blankets in the Jeep just in case. Most of the time, they just become snuggle spots for the dogs,” said Mandy.

  They walked up to the main building at the O’Mally compound. It was full of idle hunters who were unable to leave until given the all-clear from the police and were also unable to hunt due to the weather. They were playing pool and darts to keep themselves occupied. Dobs, the butler, appeared from the back once he spotted their arrival.

  “Hello, ladies. What brings you out here in this weather?” asked Dobs.

  “We were just up the road, helping to calve a cow at the Wallace farm. We thought we’d stop in to make sure all of the dogs were doing OK,” said Mandy. “We have a couple of cases of parvo that came from out here. Have any more cases come about?”

  “I see. Not as far as I know,” said Dobs. “Surprisingly, we haven’t had too many dramas despite everyone all crammed in here with nowhere to go and nothing to do.”

  “Did Dr. Neptune get home safely?” asked Gillian.

  “As far as I know,” said Dobs.

  “Is Mr. O’Mally around?” asked Mandy.

  “He is up at the main house. I can radio for him. Can I interest you in something to eat or drink?” asked Dobs.

  “A cup of something hot would be lovely,” said Mandy. Dobs disappeared into the kitchen, reappearing with some hot coffee, creamer, and sugar.

  “I’ll leave you to it while I go track down Pat,” said Dobs.

  “Thanks,” said Mandy.

  They mingled with the Pointer Club members. Most people were visibly frustrated by the situation. One man pointed out that it was hardly horrible to be trapped in such a luxurious location. Another man was perturbed that he was missing work to be at the elongated club meet. Some people asked if Mandy or Gillian knew when they would likely be cleared to return home. Gillian said that, even if they were cleared, they couldn’t travel in the impending winter storm. She recommended sitting tight.

  Dobs returned. “He says I can show you up to the house. We can take the four-wheeler to get you up there safely and quickly,” said Dobs.

  “Perfect,” said Mandy, thinking of Lyle and Anna in the Jeep. She literally only wanted to ask Pat a few questions and then she could be right back on the road to the safety of the clinic. Something about all these people staying, more or less, against their will, made her feel the need to make tracks.

  On the four-wheeler, Dobs brought the girls up the trail to the top of the hill. Instead of heading to the front door of the house, Dobs kept driving on past. He was taking a trail that led into the woods beyond the house. Mandy tapped on his shoulder to catch his attention. He ignored her attempt to communicate, instead speeding up, forcing Mandy and Gillian to hold on tighter. The trail went deeper and deeper into the thick woods. Despite the lack of foliage from winter, Mandy was fast losing her perspective on where they were going. It was becoming clear that Dobs had no intention of delivering them to O’Mally safely or perhaps at all.

  Gillian gripped into Mandy’s shoulder. Both girls had realized that Dobs was up to no good. They hadn’t discussed what kind of plan to put in place should they be hijacked by a crazy man on a four-wheeler only to be led on a twisty, curvy trail into the dense woods in the middle of a blizzard. At least they were together. Mandy decided to try something before Dobs did. She squeezed Gillian’s hand to hopefully convey that she should hand on. Since she was directly behind Dobs, she decided to put her scarf over his eyes and hang on for dear life. She had very strong hands from all of the calvings and surgery. She was able to hold tight to the scarf while Dobs flailed to gain his vision back. Gillian had realized what Mandy was doing. She clinged onto the four-wheeler while hanging onto Mandy so as to prevent them both from falling off when Dobs finally gave up.

  Dobs, on the other hand, was not ready to give up. He managed to get the scarf away from his eyes. He made the mistake of pulling it down his chin. Mandy took the opportunity to use the scarf to choke Dobs. Under normal circumstances, Mandy would never hurt another human. This, however, was not normal. Dobs had evil plans in the works and Mandy was not going to stand for it. The choking finally got Dobs’ attention. He was so distracted by it that he swerved the four-wheeler, throwing Mandy over the top of it and into a tree still holding the scarf. Gillian was able to hold on better since she still had two hands. She stayed on the four-wheeler as it slammed into a ditch. Dobs had been catapulted even farther than Mandy, landing in a drift of snow.

  Chapter 40

  Gillian jumped of the four-wheeler, leaving it running so the headlights would help with visibility. It was awfully dark in the dense woods, despite the reflection of what light there was on the snow-covered trees. She ran over to Mandy who was groaning with pain. She confirmed that Mandy was mostly OK. She had scratches and cuts as well as something clearly wrong with her foot which was no longer facing the correct direction. Her injuries would have to wait while Gillian checked their assailant.

  Dobs was unconscious, faced-down in a drift of snow. Gillian knew he was still alive because his pulse was strong. She removed her scarf and tied his feet together. With Mandy’s scarf, she tied his hands together. She found a rope on the four-wheeler which she used to tie his bound body to a tree. She was taking no risks that he would come to and try to hurt them again. She returned to Mandy who was visible miserable. Her pain level was immeasurable based on the fact that she couldn’t even focus to answer Gillian’s attempt at communication. Finally, Gillian smacked Mandy in the face to get her to concentrate. Gillian didn’t want to risk moving Mandy if she had any chance of a spinal injury.

  “It’s just my foot, don’t smack me again,” Mandy screamed.

  “Sorry, I had to get you to calm down. It worked. Let’s make a plan,” said Gillian. “Can you get up?”

  “We can try,” said Mandy, gritting her teeth. Gillian put her hands under Mandy’s shoulder, lifting with all her might as Mandy pushed off the ground with her good leg. They fell on the first attempt but got her moving on the second attempt. Gillian helped Mandy drape herself over the four-wheeler, protecting her foot from any movement.

  “What should we do with him?” asked Gillian.

  “We can’t leave him here. We’ll never find him again in this snow,” said Mandy.

  “The snow is fluffy enough. We could drag him behind us like a sled,” said Gillian.

  “That will have to work. We don’t have any tools for any other options. I certainly can’t help you,” said Mandy.

  Gillian drove the four-wheele
r up to Dobs’s body. She untied the rope from the tree, tying it under his armpits in a harness-like fashion. She tested the rig to see if he would ride behind them safely.

  “It’ll be a bit bumpy but he’ll just have to live with it. He’s unconscious anyway,” said Gillian.

  “Here we go,” said Mandy. “Try not to hit any bumps. This is the most pain I have every known.”

  “Will do,” said Gillian. They drove slowly back to the main compound. They had intended to find O’Mally’s main house but got lost in the snow. The best they could do was go toward the building emitting the most light. They weren’t sure what the plan was after that. They were only focused on step one. It seemed like the journey took much longer than it should, mainly because Mandy screamed with any slight bump. Finally, they pulled up to the doors of the meeting house where Dobs had given them coffee just a few hours before.

  Gerry was waiting for them with Lyle and Anna at his side. He looked both frightened and proud, particularly when he saw that they had Dobs trailing behind them. His expression turned ghostly when he saw that Mandy had suffered some kind of injury. He ran over to examine her.

  “What happened?” asked Gerry.

  “We came out here to talk to O’Mally. Dobs tricked us into thinking he would take us to him. I still haven’t worked out what happened after that,” said Gillian. “Suddenly, he was taking us out to the woods presumably to kill us and leave us for dead. Instead, Mandy tried to blindfold him before resorting to choking him. He got knocked out when he lost control of the four-wheeler. I seem to be alright. Mandy has injured her foot.”

  “The ambulance will meet us on the main road. They couldn’t make it up this road,” said Gerry. “You two just sit tight. Let’s get you in my truck so I can deliver you safely. Larry can handle Dobs.”

  They got Mandy into the truck with much difficulty since her ankle was three times the size it should have been, with her foot pointing in the opposite direction. She took up the whole backseat of the truck while Gillian sat in the front with the two dogs. Mandy couldn’t find a single position that kept her from wincing and wailing. The arrival to the ambulance could not come soon enough.

  “Tell me the ending to keep my mind off of this pain. What on earth happened?” asked Mandy.

  “Well, Dr. Neptune did not leave suddenly on a trip. Someone killed him. The same someone who killed Phil, cut your power, stole the journals, and tried to hurt you,” said Gerry.

  “Dobs?” asked Mandy. “But why?”

  “He had figured out that Phil was O’Mally’s brother. He isn’t just the butler. He’s a keen investigator himself. He knew all about O’Mally’s LDS, having served him for many years. He wondered why Phil had become such a groupie. One day, Dobs searched through the contents of Phil’s belongings while they were on a meet. He found the same drugs that O’Mally was on. This seemed like too much of a coincidence so he looked into LDS more. He found a strong genetic component so on another meet, he took some of Phil’s DNA of f his toothbrush and sent it off for comparison with O’Mally’s.”

  “How cunning is that?” said Mandy, gripping the truck handle until her knuckles were white from the pain.

  “It gets better. So, he confirmed that they were related, brothers in fact. Meanwhile, with no heirs, O’Mally had told Dobs long ago that he was next in line for his estate. Dobs was worried that Phil was going to mess that up by telling O’Mally about their bloodline. He couldn’t risk it so he spike Phil’s e-cigarette with a drug that would react with another drug Phil was already taking for the LDS. It cause anaphylaxis when Phil was out taking a walk. Then, to make matters worse, Dobs worried that Phil had figured it out too. For some reason, people like to consult veterinarians about their own health concerns,” said Gerry.

  “Tell me about it,” said Mandy.

  “Well,” Gerry continued, “both O’Mally and Phil had confided in Neptune about their LDS. He didn’t have any insight into their illness. But, he did say to Dobs casually how strange it was that both of them had LDS. This is what made Dobs suspicious that Neptune was hot on the trail. Instead of rushing away to a family emergency, Neptune was killed in cold blood. We discovered his body about an hour ago. Dobs must’ve been desperate and got sloppy. He merely strangled poor Neptune. We connected everything together when we did some crude fingerprint comparisons from those taken from everyone at O’Mally’s to those on your circuit breaker at the clinic, to those on Neptune’s door. He didn’t leave a trace of evidence at Phil’s murder scene. However, we believe he played a part in Phil’s death. We will have to investigate further for a connection. My guess is that we will find a paper trail that shows Dobs ordering some suspicious medicine that matches the traces found in Phil’s e-cigarette.”

  “Holy cow. That is quite convoluted. All over some money,” said Gillian. “I’m glad I don’t have any so no one will need to off me.”

  “Too right,” said Gerry. “The funny part is that O’Mally had changed his will anyway. He was going to donate everything to the Pointer Club. He did, however, include that Dobs would be able to stay on as the butler as long as he desired and would be looked after for the rest of his life. So, he would’ve won no matter what.”

  Chapter 41

  They finally made it to the ambulance that was waiting at the beginning of the main road. The ambulance drivers launched into action, ready to move Mandy to their gurney.

  “It would just be too painful to move again. Can we just ride into town behind the ambulance?” asked Mandy.

  “As you wish,” said Gerry.

  “Besides, I still have more questions. Where is O’Mally?”

  “Dobs had called him from the meeting house when you guys arrived. He made up some story that there was something way off in the lower forty that needed attention. He sent O’Mally on a wild goose chase to get him out of the way so he could get you guys off by yourselves,” said Gerry.

  “And do we know if Dobs is going to make it?” asked Gillian.

  “He was just coming back into consciousness when we left. They are going to bring him into the hospital right behind us. In fact, I think I can see tail-lights behind us,” said Gerry. “We’ll know more when we all get to the hospital to see Doc Tom. You two will be examined first.”

  “How did you know to come and rescue us?” asked Gillian. Lyle was sneaking her head to the backseat to lick Mandy’s toes. She seemed to know how much pain Mandy was in because she was managing to lick just her toes and as gentle as could be.

  “Little Lyle, you’re such a sweetheart. Your poor mom is infirmed again,” said Mandy.

  “I got your text about the Wallace farm. I wasn’t completely sure whether you had figured out O’Mally was the brother so I didn’t know if you’d be headed out to talk to him or not. I did know that the roads were getting pretty risky so I wanted to come out this way to check on you and escort you back to town. When you didn’t answer your phone, I decided to check for your vehicle at O’Mally’s just to be sure before I headed back. You couldn’t have passed me on the roads without me seeing you so you had to be somewhere out this way. Sure enough, your Jeep was at O’Mally’s. I didn’t even have to rescue you. You had the suspect all but gagged and tied. How did you two get into the mess you were in anyway?” asked Gerry.

  Gillian took over explaining their research online that led them to the O’Mally farm while Mandy concentrated on keeping the pain from making her pass out. The road was not smooth and each bump felt like someone was shoving spikes through her ankle. Gillian went on to explain how they had arrived to find Dobs most helpful. They didn’t suspect a thing until he wouldn’t slow down. She described how Mandy had been brave enough to try getting Dobs to lose control of the four-wheeler. Once Gerry was up to speed, he congratulated the girls for thinking on their feet. Most people would also have left Dobs behind.

  “It sure was decent of you to cart him in rather than leaving him for dead,” said Gerry.

  “We knew that in this sn
ow we would never find him again,” said Gillian.

  The hospital was finally in their view. Two strong men came out to lift Mandy right out of the truck and into a wheelchair. Gillian got out of the vehicle and immediately fell to the ground.

  “What happened? Are you OK?” asked Gerry, kneeling down to help her up.

  “Something’s wrong with my knee,” said Gillian. A nurse brought out a second wheelchair for Gillian.

  “What a pair we are,” said Mandy as two nurses wheeled them in.

  Doc Tom assessed both women, finding a sprained knee in Gillian and a pretty severe trio of fractures in Mandy’s ankle. Gillian would be able to wear a brace and regain function while Mandy would have to undergo surgery to stabilize her fractures. Neither Mandy nor Gillian were happy with the diagnoses because they would need to be immobilized for a while.

  “Who is going to run the clinic?” asked Mandy.

  “We’ll just have to take one day at a time,” said Gillian. “This town is getting used to helping you. They’ll just to be patient with us.”

  “I wouldn’t worry too much. The entire lobby is full of people concerned about you two. Despite the blizzard, word got out. You have enough food to eat for the remainder of the year and more,” said Gerry.

  “It’s almost Christmas. There’s not much of the year left,” said Mandy, smirking. The pain medication had finally kicked in and her sense of humor was back.

  “What a Christmas we are going to have this year,” said Gillian, disappointedly.

  “Don’t worry about that either. We have it covered,” said Myrna, peaking her head in the room. “They let me through because I said I would chaperon Hamish. He is begging to see you.”

  “Hi, Mom. Dr. Bell. We got this. I heard about what happened. Thank goodness you are OK,” Hamish said, giving Gillian and Mandy a hug each. “I can be your legs. You can finally teach me all the stuff you’ve talked about. We have my whole winter vacation ahead of us,” said Hamish, talking to both Mandy and Gillian. “It’ll be great.”