by Grace York
"His work phone. He was among the first in here on Sunday morning to get it back, too, claiming he needed it for his trip to Brisbane."
"Did you get any pictures from it?" asked Addison.
Short shook her head. "Nothing. He hadn't even pulled it out of his pocket, according to his statement. We gave it back to him and he went on his way."
"But he didn't mention he had a second phone?" asked Isaac.
Another head shake. "Not a word. And I've checked with the phone company. The phone was turned on and in his possession on Saturday night."
"So why didn't he hand that one in?" asked Addison.
Isaac smiled. "I guess we'd better find out."
20
Addison left Isaac and his team to their work and went home to the beach house for lunch. Adam, Brooke, and Lenny were all locked away in their rooms working, and she didn't want to disturb them, so after lunch she took Charlie for a walk along the beach. Before long she found herself close to the veterinary surgery, and she had an idea.
"How would you like to visit Josie?" she asked Charlie. The little dog jumped up and down and turned in circles at the mention of the groomer's name, which was all the encouragement Addison needed. She walked past the surgery and down the driveway to Josie's business, Hot Dogs Grooming Salon. As she always did, Addison chuckled to herself at the name.
"Charlie!" Josie exclaimed as soon as she saw him.
Addison was getting used to playing second fiddle to Charlie where the Porter sisters were concerned. Both Josie and Juliet always fussed over him, and he welcomed the attention.
"Hi Josie," Addison said, unclipping Charlie's lead so he could run to her. "Do you have time for a chat?"
"Sure, if you don't mind talking while I get on with this big fella." Josie was up to her armpits in suds, a gorgeous chocolate Labrador in the tub in front of her.
"Can I help?" asked Addison as she closed the gate between the reception area of the salon and the main grooming section. It was like a pool fence, designed to keep the dogs safely in, but allow the staff to greet customers while they worked. Josie had a number of groomers working for her when demand was high but, as was the case today, she was often in the salon on her own.
"No, I've got him." Josie continued washing the Labrador while a couple of smaller dogs chased each other playfully around the salon. Charlie joined straight in with the fun.
"You look like you've got your hands full," said Addison, leaning down to pat a dog she recognised as belonging to a Getaway Bay local.
"This? Nah. This is easy. It's still the quiet season, at the end of winter. Give it a month and you won't be able to move in here."
Addison didn't envy Josie her job. As much as she loved dogs, she didn't think she could be surrounded by them all day. Three dogs running around her feet was enough for her. She couldn't imagine a full house in here. But Josie seemed to love it, which Addison admired.
"So what can I do for you?" Josie asked, pulling the extendable hose from the sink and washing the suds off the Labrador. Addison noted he was clipped by the collar to a cable that ran above the sink, so he couldn't jump out of the tub, meaning Josie had both hands free to wash him.
"I remember we spoke a little about Richard Divola, one of the contestants from the dog show. You said something about him complaining you were stealing his clients. Can you tell me any more about him?"
"Sure. I've had a few new clients come from his salon in Riverwood lately. They all say the same thing, that he's not doing as good a job as he used to."
"Why does he think you've stolen them from him?"
Josie shrugged. "I guess he's putting two and two together and coming up with five. I've only met him a few times, but he seems like a very stubborn old man to me. He's been here twice throwing his accusations around. I've tried to be patient, explained that I've done no soliciting or advertising for clients at all, so how could I be poaching his?"
"What was his response?"
"He got grumpy and walked away, eventually. The second time one of his old clients was here, unfortunately. He had a go at her, too. He's not doing himself any favours.
"I think it started when one person wasn't happy with the last cut he did for their dog, so they went in search of another groomer. They found me, they were happy with the result, and they told their friends." Josie finished hosing the Labrador down, and wrapped him in a big towel. "People in the dog community talk. Not just at shows, but at dog parks and pet shops, places like that. Word of mouth is everything in this business."
She towelled the dog off as much as she could before reaching for what looked like an industrial-sized hair dryer. "Excuse me for a minute, this is going to be loud."
Addison watched as the Labrador stood perfectly still and allowed Josie to blow dry his coat. She had such a way with animals. If that were her trying to wash Charlie, she'd have no hope of keeping him that still.
"Does Charlie behave himself like that for you?" Addison asked once Josie was done with the hair dryer.
"Oh yes," said the groomer. "He's one of our best customers." She leaned down to scratch Charlie behind the ears before turning her attention back to the Labrador. "Come on, Tucker. Let's get you clipped. Your mum will be here soon."
Josie unclipped the big dog's lead and he immediately leapt down from the bathing station and up onto the grooming station. Addison was again struck by the command Josie had over these animals. She wondered whether Richard Divola's age might be a factor in his declining ability to keep his customers happy. She asked Josie's opinion.
"I think that's exactly what it is," said Josie as she set to work on Tucker with the clippers. "Controlling other people's dogs isn't easy, especially in an environment like this where you've got a lot of animals running around. You have to be on the ball. Plus you need the strength to handle big dogs when things get out of hand, as they occasionally do. I mean, I love this job, but it's not one I'd want to be doing when I get into my sixties. That's where Richard Divola is now."
"So you think it's time he retired?"
"That's not for me to say. I'm saying I would, if I was his age. But that's his business. All I know is people who used to bring their dogs to him are now bringing them to me, and he's not very happy about it. I've done nothing to encourage them to come to me over him. But I've not sent them away, either. It's up to the client who they choose to bring their dogs to."
"That's fair enough," said Addison. "Thanks for your time."
"No problem. Always happy to see the two of you."
Addison clipped Charlie's lead back on him and was about to leave when Juliet came through the front door.
"I thought that was you," said the vet. "I had a break between patients, thought I'd come and say hi."
"I'm glad you did," said Addison. Charlie jumped up and down in front of Juliet, who bent down to give him a cuddle.
"Has this little one been behaving himself?" Juliet asked.
"Of course," said Addison. "Unlike a few of the local boys, I'm led to believe."
Juliet smiled. "You mean Brandon Short and his mates. Yes, I've got a couple of them coming in to see me after school today, I believe."
"Ooh, what did they do?" asked Josie. She'd finished using the clippers on Tucker and was now going over him with a pair of scissors, snipping the bits she'd missed.
Addison and Juliet filled her in on the boys' attempts to amuse themselves at the dog show on Saturday night, and how Isaac and their parents had organised for them to help Juliet in the surgery as part of their punishment.
"That's terrible," said Josie. "How could they want to hurt innocent dogs like that? Send them down here when you're finished with them, I'll set them straight."
"I don't doubt it, sis," said Juliet. "But don't worry, I've saved up some special jobs for them this afternoon. I hope their parents have the sense to put them in old clothes."
Addison chatted with the twins for a few more minutes before she left with Charlie, safe in the kno
wledge that between the two of them Juliet and Josie would make sure those boys never hurt another animal.
As she walked, she thought through her conversation with Josie about Richard Divola. Between his behaviour with her regarding their clients, and the restraining order and feud with Perry Abbott, Addison was getting a picture of a very grumpy old man.
But did that make him a murderer?
21
Back at the beach house Adam had finished his writing for the day and was itching to discuss the case.
"What did you find out at the station today?" he asked through a mouthful of cheese and pickle sandwich.
"A couple of things," said Addison. "But it wasn't just at the police station." She told him how Helen Abbott had come into the café and burst into tears, and their subsequent conversation.
"So she's off on a cruise by herself straight after her husband's funeral? That's a bit callous, isn't it?" said Adam. He took a break from his sandwich to pour himself a glass of orange juice.
"Not really, not the way she explained it. She doesn't want to stay in the house because it reminds her of him, and she doesn't want to be a burden on anyone else. Her daughter lives in Perth with her own family, and to be honest Helen doesn't strike me as the sort of person who would have close friends she could lean on. It seemed like she and Perry were very close, living in their own little bubble."
"What do you mean?" Adam asked.
Addison chose her words carefully. Adam had only recently disclosed aspects of his childhood to her, and she was conscious that he had a different perspective to most people when it came to close family relationships.
"She indicated that Perry was a different person to the outside world than he was at home with her. He was a criminal lawyer, and outwardly he had the brash, arrogant persona to go with it. But at home with his wife he was apparently a caring, gentle man. I got the impression Helen enjoyed keeping that side of him to herself."
"Which doesn't leave room for outside friendships of any substance… is that what you mean?"
"Something like that, yes. Anyway, while I don't think I could have gone off on a cruise or some such holiday right after we buried Rob, I do understand the need to get away from the memories of the family home. It's why I moved here."
Adam was silent as he finished his sandwich and juice. "Okay," he said eventually. "I suppose I get that. What else did you find out?"
Addison explained how Kendall had discovered that Ted King withheld his second mobile phone from the collection on Saturday night. "They're interviewing him as soon as he returns from Brisbane this afternoon."
"That'll be interesting," said Adam. "Did we have a motive for him?"
"Only that he wanted to be the head judge. Juliet said he'd been quite disparaging about Perry Abbott on the day of the dog show. Doesn't seem like a strong motive, though. Why resort to murder? Why not just wait until Abbott retired? It doesn't seem like the Abbott's plans to go travelling were a big secret."
"Then why withhold his second phone from the investigation?" asked Adam.
Addison couldn't think of a reason. "I guess we'll have to wait and see what Isaac gets from him."
Adam nodded. "Anything else I missed? What about Lucy McGregor?"
"She's the other person Isaac was going to interview today, so we'll have to wait and see there, too. Oh, and he spoke to Short's cousin, Brandon. He admitted firing rocks at the dogs with his mates. Isaac rounded them up and sorted them out."
"I don't doubt that," said Adam. "So it wasn't the killer who caused the distraction, then."
"No. But Isaac thinks they most likely took advantage of it to slip the poison into Perry's glass."
Adam loaded his plate and glass into the dishwasher. "So where are we at, really?" he asked. "I mean, who are our suspects? There are too many people who had access to the glass."
"So we should forget about opportunity then," said Addison. "Let's look at means. How many of the dinner attendees knew about the poison on Sam Clayton's farm?" asked Addison.
"Well, there's the Claytons themselves, obviously."
"Right. But what's their motive? Vanessa was favourite to win Best in Show with Lola. She had no reason to kill the judge. And why would they use poison so easily traced back to their farm?"
"Good point." Adam pulled out a stool from under the bench and sat. "Did Ted King know about the strychnine?"
"I don't know," said Addison. "We know the neighbours of the Clayton's farm were all informed, one of whom was Richard Divola. Is there another way people could have found out?"
"Lucy McGregor works in the pharmacy that sold it to Sam Clayton, so she knew. And anyone else who worked there, for that matter. It's not something that would necessarily have been kept a secret. People talk about that sort of stuff, I guess. 'Hey, I hear Sam's doing a baiting program.' That's all it would take. One person chatting to another in the pub, someone else overhears."
Addison put the kettle on. "So anyone could have heard about the poison," she said with a sigh. "We're not going to get far with means then, either."
"That leaves motive," said Adam. "Who would want Perry Abbott dead, and why?"
"The two we know about are Richard Divola, who had a long-standing feud with him, and Ted King, who wanted to be head judge."
"Plus, I don't think we can discount the wife," said Adam. "The spouse is always the first suspect, and historically poison is a woman's MO."
Addison frowned at him. "That's sexist."
"I know, but that doesn't make it any less true."
Addison didn't have an answer for that. She thought over her conversation that morning with Helen Abbott as she bent to fetch the teapot out of the cupboard. She fancied a proper pot of tea.
"So what's her motive then?" asked Addison. "She seemed quite distraught today in Hazel's café." She told him how Helen had cried at the sight of the sponge cake, apparently one of Perry's favourite desserts.
"Who knows what really goes on inside a marriage," said Adam. "People can look like the perfect couple on the outside, but behind closed doors it may be a totally different story."
"That could be true the other way around too, you know," said Addison. She spooned tea leaves into the pot. "By all accounts Perry was not a nice person to just about everyone outside of his home, yet Helen spoke of a gentle, caring man. She seemed genuinely devastated."
"If she's so devastated why is she going on a luxury cruise so soon without him?"
"I told you, she feels she needs to get out of the house. Cruising and travelling was what they'd planned to do together, so maybe she feels closer to him by doing that. People grieve in different ways, Adam."
Adam shrugged. "Okay. But I'm keeping her on my list."
"Fair enough. I'm sure Isaac is too. But I'm more interested in the idea that Perry was killed for something to do with his job as a criminal lawyer." The kettle boiled, and she filled the teapot and covered it with the blue-and-white-striped tea cozy her great aunt had hand-knitted.
"Didn't the cops do background checks on all the people at the dog show dinner? I thought only Richard Divola came up as having any kind of record, for that restraining order ten years ago."
"That's right. But it might not be someone who was a criminal themselves. Maybe someone who had a connection to one of Perry Abbott's cases in a different way. Anyway, Kendall and Diaz are looking into that."
"So what do we do in the meantime?" asked Adam.
Addison had been wondering the same thing. She couldn't get her conversation with Josie and Juliet out of her mind.
"I want to go and speak to Richard Divola," she said.
It was Adam's turn to frown. "We're not supposed to interview witnesses, Addison. You'll get us kicked off the case."
"I won't mention the case," said Addison, her face a picture of innocence. "I want to tell him to stop accusing Josie of stealing his clients."
"Oh. Well in that case, I'm coming with you."
22
Adam chattered away about his new manuscript on the drive in to Riverwood, and Addison was happy to listen. She was glad he was making progress with it. She'd heard countless stories of authors who'd struggled with their second books. Maybe it was a good thing his first one hadn't been released yet, so he didn't feel the pressure of living up to any expectations.
"It should be in that arcade there," said Adam, pointing with one hand while holding his mobile phone in the other. He'd been giving Addison directions as she drove. She found a parking spot outside the arcade, and they went off in search of Richard Divola's grooming salon.
They found Pampered Pooches at the end of the shopping arcade, and Addison noted it had a grassed area out the back for the dogs to run around while they waited their turn on the grooming table. There were two dogs in the yard, one of whom Addison recognised as Divola's own dog, Diesel. Another dog stood on a table inside being clipped. Richard Divola was seated at a desk in the corner while two staff members bustled about doing the work.
"Good afternoon," said Richard, getting up from his desk with some effort and coming to the counter to greet them. He looked around at their feet. "Where's your dog?"
"Hello," said Addison. They'd agreed in the car that she would do most of the talking. "I'm Addison Lake, and this is Adam O'Loughlin. We're not here to get a dog groomed, I'm afraid. I was hoping we could have a quick word with you. Is there somewhere more private we can talk?"
Richard seemed confused, but shrugged and led them through the shop and out into the enclosed yard. There was a picnic table and chairs out there, and he waved a hand indicating they should sit.
"This private enough for you?" he asked. Diesel immediately nudged his master's hand for a pat, then settled on the grass beside him.
"Yes, thank you," said Addison.
"So what do you want to talk to me about?" he asked, then frowned. "Who did you say you were again?"
Addison re-introduced herself and Adam. "We're friends of Josie Porter," she added this time.
