Without Missing a Bark Page 7

  "You're one to talk," Andrew pointed out. "How many times have you been in danger?"

  Olivia ignored him. "And secondly, you can't just invite suspects out for drinks and offer to hook them up with your coworkers!"

  "What? He seems like a nice guy, and he's clearly struggling. He's got an alibi, and he's not going to be breeding dogs anymore, so maybe we can all be friends!" He shrugged. "And I think this interview went rather well. Maybe we should team up more often!"

  "Yeah," she said in a small voice. "Sure. That's exactly what I was thinking. We make such a great team."

  Great. Now she'd gotten her overly friendly and well-intentioned boyfriend interested in mysteries.

  How long was it going to take for that to backfire?

  10

  After dropping the dogs off at their respective homes, Olivia and Andrew walked Goodwin back to the brownstone. Fender was curled up in his bed at the office. He lifted his head but immediately went back to sleep when he realized that it was just Olivia.

  "All right. I've got to get to work." Andrew gave her a quick kiss. "But this was fun. We should do it more often."

  Olivia could only nod as Andrew retreated. When he was safely out of earshot, she sighed and shook her head. "Weird. So very weird. I need coffee and a cookie. Fender, do you need to go out?"

  The basset hound's ears pricked, but he just shoved his nose under his paw and gave her a long-suffering sigh as if to tell her that he had no intentions of getting out of bed anytime soon. "Okay, then."

  She had a couple of hours before her next walk. Heading down to the bakery, she bypassed the line of customers and walked to the back, where she poured herself a cup of coffee.

  "I'm busy," Janelle grumbled. "So you better be making a fresh pot when you're done."

  "I am," Olivia said as she pulled out the filter. The oven next to her beeped. Abandoning the coffee, she grabbed an oven mitt and opened the door. Pulling out the tray, her eyes lit up with delight. Fresh-baked cinnamon muffins! She definitely needed one of those.

  "Don't even think about it!" Janelle called. "Put them on the cooling tray, and there better still be two dozen when I go back and check on them."

  "Fine." Making a face, Olivia washed her hands and plucked the treats out of their baking cups and onto the cooling rack. After resetting the coffee, she fixed her own cup of hot, restorative beverage with some milk and just a little too much sugar before leaning back and enjoying that first sip.

  Janelle came waddling around the corner. Her chef's coat had long ago stopped fitting her, and her apron barely tied in the back. She could scarcely fit through the tight hallway, and Olivia tried not to laugh as she watched her sister struggle to reach the cinnamon-sugar shaker.

  "I got it." Leaning over, she grabbed it and handed it to her sister. "Business is good out there."

  Janelle sprinkled some cinnamon sugar over the muffins before grunting and leaning against the counter. Alarmed, Olivia grabbed her. "Are you okay? Is this it? Are you in labor?"

  "No, I'm not in labor." She smacked Olivia's arm away. "I'm fine. My feet are just killing me. What are you even doing here? I thought you and Andrew were out walking the dogs together."

  "We did. We also talked to Scott about Madeline."

  "Dear Ruby, huh," Janelle muttered. "The woman was awful, but I did love to read her column. I'm guessing half the town wanted her dead. So what did you find out?"

  "Scott has a reason to hate Madeline, but he also has an alibi. Also, my boyfriend went charging into his house and accused him of murder. If Scott had been the killer, Andrew could have really gotten himself into trouble." Olivia picked up her coffee and shook her head. "Then he made friends with Scott, and now we're supposed to be drinking buddies."

  Janelle chuckled. "Your boyfriend is so charming."

  "He thinks he's going to be good at this," Olivia complained as she leaned back. "I wanted him to feel like I could include him so we wouldn't fight about it, but I also don't want him to do anything stupid."

  The chuckle turned into an outright laugh. "I guess now you know how he felt when you first started investigating. Did you propose to him, yet?"

  "No. I'm still waiting to get a ring for him. Stanley is dragging his feet on that. You'd think he'd want the sale." There was a sudden chorus of ooohs and aaahs from the front. Exchanging a puzzled look with Janelle, Olivia headed out front.

  Sharon was there with her puppy tucked under her arm. From the look on her face, Olivia could tell that the woman couldn't be happier.

  "Sharon! I see you've been in touch with Nick," Olivia said with a smile. "And you've got your baby back."

  "Oh, yes. I can't thank you enough for finding Brady! He's so happy to be home! I'm on my way to take him to Lady Celeste and make sure that he's okay psychologically. I'm sure being kidnapped was traumatizing!"

  As the rest of the customers were petting and passing the puppy around, Janelle cleared her throat. "Sharon, I sell food here. He can't stay," she said gently, but when the puppy came her way, she reached out and took him, cuddling him under her chin.

  Everyone laughed. The redhead next to Sharon clapped her hands. "That's those motherly instincts kicking in, Janelle. You're going to lose your heart to anything with cute baby eyes."

  "You'd think with Olivia's job that I'm be immune to it," Janelle sighed as she passed the puppy along.

  "Olivia, this is Joyce. She's my best friend. She organized a neighborhood hunt for Brady when he disappeared," Sharon explained.

  "You got to him first," Joyce laughed. "And with Dear Ruby, of all people! You know, I think my mother used to read that column."

  "Oh, don't lie. You read it, too," Sharon smirked as she took Brady back into her arms. "All right. I just came to thank you, Olivia. Do you want to come to see Lady Celeste with me?"

  Olivia's eyes widened. "Oh, no. No. No. No, thank you. I've got stuff to do upstairs. And my employee also works with Lady Celeste, so I'm sure I'll hear all about Brady's inner thoughts when I see her next. So good luck."

  She couldn't get out of there fast enough. Gripping her coffee mug, Olivia hurried up the steps before Sharon could ask her again to visit Lady Celeste. It wasn't that Olivia didn't want to see Celeste. She just didn't want to hear anything else about her future from the woman.

  After catching up on some paperwork, Olivia worked on the schedule for the next few weeks. Quite a few people had signed up for doggie daycare. The new Shar-Pei owners wanted their puppies to be around other dogs and learn to play. After seeing a reservation for a day with three puppies and four other dogs, Olivia grimaced. She would definitely need Natalie's help on that day.

  "Knock, knock." Jackie walked in with a tight smile on her face. "You got a minute?"

  Olivia spun around in her chair. "Sure. What's up?"

  Both Goodwin and Fender went to greet Jackie. She sat down on the floor and rubbed their ears. The dogs plopped on the floor next to her and rolled around under her caressing hands. "Nick called a couple of days ago to say that they were hitting a dead end with my case. He says that it's probably just kids messing with me."

  Olivia arched her eyebrows. "That doesn't make you feel better?"

  "I'm getting phone calls in the middle of the night. Hang-up phone calls—and always from a different number." She started fidget on the floor. "It feels personal, Olivia. It doesn't feel like a prank."

  "Did you tell Nick?"

  "I did. He ran the numbers but he said that they’re untraceable. Burner phones. What teenager buys a bunch of burner phones just to wake me up at night?"

  Tapping her fingers on the desk, Olivia mulled that over. "It does sound suspicious. You want me to start looking into it again?"

  "No. You've got a lot on your plate. I'm sure that Nick will be fine. If it is a teenager, I'm sure they'll get bored soon. If it's not, they'll make a mistake, and Nick will find them. I'm just not running on a lot of sleep, and Brent and I are fighting."

  "Really," Olivia
said slowly. "I thought that everything was great in paradise. After all, you've practically moved in with him."

  "I have not," her friend protested loudly. "Okay, maybe I have, but that's beside the point. You avoided moving in with Andrew for a long time. Why was that?"

  "Stubbornness," Olivia admitted. "But I'm not you, Jackie. I didn't want a commitment. I wasn't ready for Andrew, and I'm pretty lucky that he stuck around. But you're not like me. You're comfortable with your independence, but you’ve also wanted to be with someone. You're crazy about Brent, and he's insane about you. So what exactly are you two fighting about?"

  "Everything, but it started with the phone calls. I didn't tell him about them." Jackie gave Olivia a guilty look.

  "You already danced that jig," Olivia pointed out. "Remember? The break-up that had you eating gallons of ice cream? Why would you keep this from him?"

  Jackie snorted. "First of all, that man could sleep through the apocalypse. The phone calls didn't wake him up, and our schedules have been different, mornings. I thought it was a fluke, so I didn't say anything. Then, when he did find out, he flipped out. Said I obviously hadn't changed."

  Olivia cringed. "Jackie, Brent's your boyfriend. You love him. He loves you. You're supposed to share these things with him. Andrew used to give me the same lecture. Don't take as long as I did to figure that out. If you want him by your side, then you need to share."

  "I get that," Jackie frowned. She rubbed Fender's belly as the old dog rolled over and grunted encouragement. "He just doesn't always give me a chance to explain. We go from slight disagreement to full-scale war in less than a minute. It's awful."

  Smiling, Olivia clapped her hands softly, making Goodwin sit up and take notice. She caressed his head in apology, and he slumped to the floor again, nudging Jackie’s hand to ask her to resume the interrupted belly rub. "Brent is not used to being in a relationship, Jackie. That's the problem, and that's what you need to talk about. He was a womanizer. That means he’s never really learned how to argue with women. He knows how to love them and leave them, from past experience, but not really how to work things out. He's got a lot to learn, and you need to teach him."

  "Yeah?" Jackie sighed. "I guess I didn't look at it like that. He is a little dense, sometimes."

  "You two are going to be fine, and I don't think that a few prank phone calls are anything to worry about. Like you said, it’s probably a teenager who will get bored soon."

  Jackie narrowed her eyes. "I'm gonna wring their necks when Nick does finally catch them."

  "I'll have Janelle hire them," Olivia chuckled. "She's just a peach to work for these days."

  Laughing, Jackie gave both dogs a final rub, stood, and stretched. "She yelled at me as soon as I walked in the door today. Told me that if I stole a cinnamon muffin, she'd feed me on decaf coffee for a year."

  Olivia shuddered. "That's horrible. Did you risk it?"

  "Risk my coffee? Never! So how's the plan to propose to Andrew going? Or have you found yourself too embroiled in the mystery to get the job done?" Jackie teased.

  "You all think I'm kidding. It's going to happen. Of course, I've sort of gotten Andrew involved in the mystery as well, so I don't think that's going to be a factor." Olivia filled Jackie in, and her best friend shook her head.

  "I just can't imagine Andrew interrogating anyone. He's so nice." Jackie wrinkled her nose. "Anyway, everyone is talking about it. The identity of Dear Ruby. I think the editor is going to make a mint."

  "Doing what?"

  "Didn't you hear? They're rerunning Dear Ruby's greatest hits as a memorial to her."

  "Really?" Olivia cocked her head. "When I was talking with Sylvia about the article on the puppy disappearances, she was frustrated because Madeline had quit. We're talking about a small-town newspaper that doesn't report on a lot. The loss of the column is going to be a big blow for them."

  "So you think the newspaper editor killed ‘Dear Ruby’ in a fit of rage?"

  "Stranger things have happened. She's definitely going on my suspect list. Along with half this town." Olivia slumped in her chair. "I have lots of suspects and no leads. It feels a little impossible."

  "You're going to solve it. You always do, and this time you have a partner!"

  "You're going to help me?" Olivia asked.

  Jackie smirked. "Nope. I mean your boyfriend. Good luck with that." She laughed as she walked out, and Olivia shook her head. Jackie was just poking fun, but it was fine.

  Everything was going to be just fine.

  11

  “Now you’re accusing me of killing her?” Christopher bellowed. “Have you lost your mind? I brought you the case!”

  Rose narrowed her eyes as she lifted her chin. “Maybe you thought that I couldn’t handle it. Maybe you thought that I’d fall apart if I started investigating again. I don’t know what you were thinking, Christopher. I never know! But you knew about her secret hiding place behind her closet, and you didn’t say anything!”

  “Secret hiding place? What are you talking about?”

  “Your fingerprints are all over the papers inside!”

  “Papers? I haven’t talked to Lizzy in months. You’re not making any sense!” He stopped suddenly and stared at her. “Wait, do you mean letters?”

  “Yes. They look old.”

  Christopher sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose. “She was the one who stole them.”

  “Stole what?”

  “I told you that Lizzy and I met at the university. I was researching several prominent families connected to the gold rush, and she was a descendant. I got my hands on several letters that suggested a rather large stash of gold was hidden away at a bunker. The investigation didn’t go anywhere, and I had no more contact with Lizzy, but the library called me to say that the letters were misplaced. I guess Lizzy stole them.”

  “Hidden treasure?” Rose’s eyes nearly bugged out of her head. “Seriously?”

  “If I wanted to get my hands on those letters to search for it, I wouldn’t have needed to kill Lizzy to do it. I photographed them. You’ve got to stop second-guessing your feelings, Rose. You made a bad call with your ex, but that doesn’t mean that every man you fall for is going to be bad.”

  She swallowed hard. “You’re assuming that I have feelings for you?”

  “I’ve always been in love with you, Rose. I think it’s time that we quit dancing around the truth. You need to admit how you feel about me.”

  “What I feel is that you have key evidence in this investigation. We’re going treasure hunting. I need those photographs.”

  Natalie arrived bright and early the next morning for the dog walks. She was dressed in a gleaming white track suit with neon blue trim, accented by with her blue scrunchie and tennis shoes. On anyone else, the outfit would have looked ridiculous, but Olivia was used to Natalie’s unique fashion sense by now.

  Looking over the schedule, Olivia’s assistant nodded. "Sure, that works. Lady Celeste is closing the shop down for a few days next week, anyway. Something about the Brady reading spooked her."

  Startled, Olivia looked up from the computer. "Brady the puppy? I don't suppose he told her who murdered ‘Dear Ruby’?"

  "She didn't say. She just told Sharon that Brady was fine and would grow up to be a mischievous but happy dog. Sharon left happy, but then Lady Celeste got very upset. She said that she needed to close for a few days next week, and then she said she wanted me to pick up extra shifts here?" Natalie shrugged. "I'm glad that you need me."

  “I definitely need you." Her phone rang, and Olivia held up a finger to Natalie while she picked it up. "Olivia Rickard, Wagging Tails. How can I help you?"

  "Olivia? It's Julie. Any chance that you could stop by the jewelry store today? I wanted to thank you for returning Floofy."

  "That's not necessary," Olivia smiled. "But I'm glad he's home safe and sound."

  "No, really,” Julie said. “My son made something to give you."

  "Give me ju
st a second." Olivia pulled the phone away from her ear to speak to Natalie. "You've got three dogs this morning. You're good with that?" she whispered to her assistant. The young woman gave her a thumbs-up sign, and Olivia returned to the call. "I can be there in about an hour."

  "Oh, great! I'll see you then. "

  Hanging up, Olivia stood. "Okay, so this morning you've got Jax, Lily, and Clyde. Honestly, I'd grab the sling for Clyde. I keep trying to explain that he's not into long walks anymore, but his family says the exercise is good for him. Thirty minutes. I should be back by noon and . . ."

  "Olivia," Natalie laughed. "You hired me so that you could have some time off, remember? I'm good until the last walks for the day. Take the day off. Enjoy yourself. Go have lunch with Andrew."

  "You're right," Olivia laughed. "And you're great. I don't want you to think that I don't trust you. It's just that since the article ran in the newspaper, we've had an influx of business. I hadn't meant to use it as advertising, but that's what it ended up being."

  "That's great! Maybe you'll be able to hire someone else soon!" Natalie looked around the office. "No Goodwin or Fender today?"

  "I just gave them their flea and tick medicine. Goodwin freaks out every time and tries to roll in literally everything, so he's on house arrest for the morning. Fender is surprisingly energetic this morning, so I'm going to bring him with me."

  "Aw, he'll love that. He's such a sweet boy."

  "I swear, I think Fender likes you more he likes me," Olivia laughed. Pocketing her cell phone, she swiped her keys. "Okay. I leave the office to you. Call me if you need me."

  Goodwin was not happy about being left behind, but then, the flea and tick treatment just made him unhappy in general. "You know, you get the same treatment every month. You’d think you'd be used to it by now!"

  Grumbling, Goodwin just plopped over and rolled around on the carpet. Olivia clipped Fender to a leash, and the old dog slowly made his way down the stairs to the Jeep.