by Lena Gregory
“Yeah.”
“But she was doing so much better after Jay disappeared.”
Bee shrugged and looked down the beach toward Beast. “Emma said she ran into her at the library, and Ellie was huddled in the far corner engrossed in something on the computer, but when Emma stopped to say hello, she minimized the screen before Emma could see what she was looking at.”
No surprise there. Everyone knew better than to let Emma know anything you didn’t want shared with all of Bay Island.
“She said Ellie’s hair is back to its former mousy brown, stringy, like she hadn’t washed it in a couple of days. She’s lost weight, got dark circles around her eyes . . .”
“The last time I saw her, she looked great. She’d added highlights to her hair, gained a few pounds, didn’t have that stressed look about her that she’d always had before.” Cass was going to have to give her a call. She’d fallen out of touch with her recently but hadn’t thought much of it. Summer was a busy time for Bay Island’s full-time residents. “What do you think is wrong?”
“I don’t know. I hope she hasn’t gotten mixed up with another abusive man.”
“Yeah.” Calling Ellie shot to the top of her to-do list. “Me too.”
Bee narrowed his eyes as he stared down the beach. “What is he into down there?”
Her gaze shot to Beast. “I don’t know. He’s been playing there for a while now.”
“Well, unless he’s chewing something up, his attention span is not that long.”
“You’re right.” She started toward him and yelled, “Beast. Come.”
Beast looked up at the sound of his name, then want back to whatever he was doing, which as they got closer appeared to be digging. “Uh-oh.”
“Yeah, no kidding.” Bee picked up the pace. “Remember what happened last time he was that intent on digging something up on the beach.”
“Beast. I said come.” They already had one body to deal with. She patted her jeans pocket. How could she have forgotten to bring treats? “Now.”
He ignored her and kept digging. Oh, well, at least he didn’t run away. Maybe he was starting to listen better.
She crept closer, careful not to spook him and make him run. The instant she was close enough, she hooked the leash to his collar. Feeling triumphant, she turned to Bee. “See, he’s starting to listen better.”
“I guess.” Bee bent over to see what Beast was digging up, then gagged and lurched back. He pulled his shirt collar up to cover his nose. “Ugh . . . what is that smell?”
The odor hit Cass like a ton of bricks, and she staggered back, almost dropping the leash in whatever mess Beast had uncovered. “Smells like rotten fish.”
“Someone must have buried it there.”
“Why would anyone do that?”
“Who knows? Maybe they buried the remnants after they cleaned their catches, or maybe they buried their bait. All I know is, it’s better than what he dug up last time, and that monster needs a bath.” Bee allowed his gaze to linger on Beast too long.
Beast took it as an invitation to play and started bouncing around, jumping first toward Bee then the opposite way.
Bee staggered one way then the other in a desperate dance to avoid getting covered in whatever coated Beast’s muzzle.
Cass held the leash in a death grip, trying not to laugh, until Beast turned on her. He nuzzled her leg and looked up at her, his big brown eyes filled with innocence. She didn’t have the heart not to pet him, so she laid a tentative hand on his head and scratched. “Come on, boy. You need a bath.”
Bee’s laughter echoed down the empty beach. “You can’t be serious.”
“What?” Cass had half a mind to let go of the leash. “The groomer doesn’t open for hours yet, and there’s no guarantee they’ll have room for him.”
“I’m pretty sure they keep an appointment slot open for you every day, just in case.”
“Ha-ha.” She glared at him and let the leash slip a little.
Bee stopped short. “You wouldn’t dare.”
He was right. As much as she’d like to, she’d never do that to Bee. He might be enjoying her misery at the moment, but he’d been there for her enough times to earn him that. “You’re right. I wouldn’t. But keep it up and I might change my mind.”
They resumed their trek back to the house, with Beast at Cass’s side as far from Bee as she could keep him. The combination of the night’s events, too much coffee and diet soda, and Beast’s stench turned her stomach. She couldn’t very well bring him to Mystical Musings smelling like that, even if she didn’t have any customers left. “Did Emma say anything about the fiasco at the reading?”
“Not too much, and I did feel her out. I told you people would forget all about your blunder as soon as the next good gossip hit. And what better gossip than a body turning up, especially since that body was fighting with someone in your shop a few hours earlier.”
She glanced at him from the corner of her eye.
He held up one finger. “No, for the record, I did not kill Dirk to salvage your reputation. And if I find my name on any kind of suspect list, I’ll ruin your reputation myself.”
“Oh, come on, Bee. It was one mistake I’ve apologized for a hundred times.”
“And will have to apologize for a hundred more. At least.” He nudged her arm and grinned. “Good thing being so forgiving is on my never-ending list of good qualities, huh?”
Chapter Six
Cass tried to hold her breath to stave off the smell as she pulled Beast closer to her side and quickly crossed the kitchen. She was going to need a shower anyway, and keeping him close was better than letting him spread the mess all over the house.
Bee followed a safe distance behind.
She shot a look over her shoulder. “Don’t you have work to do or something?”
“And miss this?” he scoffed. “Not a chance. Besides, you made me promise I’d stay with you ’til morning if you told me what went on at Emmett’s, remember?”
Great. Just what she needed, an audience. “I don’t see what the big deal is. Nicole always says he’s good when she grooms him.”
He laughed out loud. “That’s because Nicole knows what she’s doing, but you, my dear, don’t have the first clue.”
She led Beast to the bathroom. Thankfully, his nose only nudged the hallway wall once. She could clean that later. She’d have to vacuum and mop, anyway, after she scrubbed the bathroom, since she hadn’t bothered to brush any of the sand off their feet, but it could have been worse. She guided Beast into the bathroom and scowled at Bee when he stopped in the doorway. “If you’re going to stand there, why don’t you at least make yourself useful and turn on the tub.”
He eyed Beast warily. “You’ll hold on to him?”
She smirked but gripped Beast’s collar.
With one eye on Cass, Bee reached in and turned the water on full force.
Beast jerked back, jumped up, and practically crawled into Cass’s arms.
“It’s okay, Beast,” she soothed. “It’s only the bathtub. Just like at the groomer.”
Bee leaned over and adjusted the water, but his shaking shoulders gave his laughter away. Once he was satisfied with the water temperature, he unhooked the handheld showerhead and let it hang so she could reach it easily, then bowed, gestured toward the tub, and retreated to the doorway. “Have at it.”
Used to his theatrics, she ignored him and concentrated on calming Beast, who was still cowering against her. “You’ve lain on the bathroom floor while I showered a million times. How do you even know this time is different?”
He stared at her with those soulful eyes, and she wished she didn’t have to disappoint him. Then he snuggled closer, and she got a good whiff of dead fish. “I’m sorry, Beast, but you have to get washed.”
Bee rested his forearms against either side of the doorjamb and crossed one leg over the other, settling in for what promised to be a good show.
Smart aleck.
> “Come on, boy, let’s get this over with so I can shower and get a couple hours of sleep before I have to open the shop.” With a firm grip on his collar, Cass started leading him toward the tub.
Beast sat.
Keeping her gaze pointedly focused on anything but Bee, Cass slid around behind him, still holding his collar, and tried to push him across the floor to the tub.
He didn’t budge.
Bee snickered.
How hard could it be to move this animal? The floor was tile; he should slide right across the lousy three feet it would take to get him to the tub. Cass put one foot on Beast’s behind and a hand on his back and tried to slide him across the floor. When that didn’t move him, she put her hip into it, releasing his collar for just an instant to get a better grip.
Beast bolted for the door.
Bee’s squeal could probably be heard from town as he jumped back and tried to dance out of Beast’s path. He hit the opposite wall of the hallway hard, bounced off, and crashed straight into Beast, who was trying desperately to escape.
Beast rebounded off Bee, twisted himself around, and aimed for the door again.
“Okay, Beast, that’s it.” Thankfully, Cass was able to grab Beast’s collar before he made it all the way through the doorway. She coaxed him around Bee toward the tub. “No more Mr. Nice Guy. You are going in that tub and getting a bath.”
Bee stood in the middle of the bathroom, arms out to the side, mouth and eyes open wide, staring down at his shirt.
“Oh, Bee, relax. There’s not even anything on your shirt.”
“Maybe not, but I can smell fish from here.”
Ha! Not laughing now, are you, buddy? “I’m sure whatever was on him is already dry. You just imagine you smell it, or you smell it because the whole bathroom stinks.”
He lifted his shirt and took a tentative sniff. “Hmm . . . I guess you might be right.”
Cass snatched a rubber chew toy from a small basket in the corner and tossed it into the tub.
Beast dove in after it.
Before he could change his mind, Cass grabbed the showerhead and wet him down, rubbing her free hand over his back, trying to soothe him while soaking the water into his thick fur. “See, boy, that’s not so bad, is it?”
Beast shook his whole body, spraying water everywhere.
She sighed, having already resigned herself to scrubbing the bathroom before she could sleep. “Bee, squirt some shampoo on his back. Quick, while he’s staying still.”
Without a word, Bee complied.
She lathered him up, making sure to get the suds all the way to his skin, especially through his thick mane.
He tried to lick the suds.
“No, Beast.” She nudged his mouth away from the soapy water circling around the drain. The last thing she needed was him throwing up that mess. Once he was fully lathered from head to toe, she glanced over her shoulder at Bee. “You can either come hold his collar while I rinse all the soap off or run the risk of him escaping when I let him go. Your choice.”
He muttered something about this not being as fun as he’d expected, then tentatively gripped Beast’s collar between his thumb and forefinger. “Hurry up, because that’s the best you’re gonna get.”
Beast licked his arm.
“Ugh . . . Can you brush his teeth or something?”
“Now you’re pushing it.” But she was going to have to do something. The bath was actually going smoother than she’d expected, so maybe she could get his teeth brushed too. Nicole managed all the time.
“It’s Raining Men” blared from Bee’s pocket.
“Don’t you dare let go. I’m almost done.”
He reached across his body, using his left hand to fish his phone from his back right pocket. “Hmm . . . that’s weird. Hello?”
Cass looked Beast over, rinsing the last of the soap from underneath him, making sure she got it all off. No way was she going through this again. And next time she took him to the groomer, Nicole was getting a massive tip.
“Uh . . . yeah. I’m just helping Cass give Beast a bath . . . Don’t ask.”
There was no mistaking the deep, rich laughter she could hear from the other end of the line. But why would Luke be calling Bee? Even though they’d become friendly, she didn’t think they regularly chatted on the phone in the middle of the night. Maybe he was trying to reach her. Where had she left her cell phone? Probably in her bag in the kitchen. She took Beast’s collar from Bee and whispered, “Could you grab a towel, please?”
Bee nodded, retreated to the hallway linen closet, and returned with a towel. He handed it to her while still listening to whatever Luke was saying.
Hoping to keep the water damage to a minimum, she threw the towel over Beast’s back before helping him out of the tub. Then she scrubbed him as dry as she could. The instant she took the towel off, he shook himself again, and water sprayed everywhere. Apparently, she hadn’t gotten him as dry as she’d thought.
“Uh-huh. Okay. I’ll be there.” Bee disconnected the call and stood staring at his phone.
“Is something wrong?” Cass scraped the wet dog hair off her arms and untangled it from between her fingers, then dropped it into the garbage pail and washed her hands. As much as she dreaded the thought, she was going to have to get the hair dryer out and try to do something with Beast’s sopping wet fur.
“Luke wants to talk to me.” Bee frowned.
“Okay, so why do you look like you’re about to be handed over to the executioner? I thought you liked Luke.”
“Oh, don’t get me wrong, I do. As a friend.” He stuffed the phone back into his pocket and went to the sink to wash his hands.
Beast used their momentary distraction to make his escape. He bolted through the doorway, skidded on the hallway floor, scrambled to right himself, and barreled toward the kitchen.
“Then what’s the problem?” So much for drying him. At least now he was clean, and she already had to vacuum and mop so, really, what was the difference? Not like he’d be cold, considering their current heat wave and the fact Mystical Musings still had no air-conditioning. But she was going to have to give him a good brushing. If she didn’t get to it before she left, she could always take him out on the deck at the shop and brush him.
“He doesn’t want to talk to me as a friend; he wants to talk to me in an official capacity, as a detective.” Bee swallowed hard.
Even though Bee was prone to theatrics, this was different. Talking to the police wasn’t easy for Bee. “It’ll be fine, Bee. Do you want me to come with you?”
He shook his head. “Thanks, but he told me to come alone.”
“Oh.” A roller coaster of emotions rocketed through her, then settled. Luke had already told her he needed to question everyone involved, and Bee had been there the night before. “Don’t worry about it. He said he had to question as many people who attended the reading as possible before morning. He knows you’re usually up at night, so he probably just wants to get your opinion on what happened.”
He offered a shaky smile and kissed her cheek. “I’m sure you’re right. Anyway, I have to meet him at Emmett’s garage, so I’ll see you later.”
“Yeah . . . see you later.” She watched him go, then looked over the bathroom. Water pooled in big puddles all over the floor, splatter marks covered, well, pretty much everything, and loads of dog hair and dirt covered the tub, clogged the drain, and carpeted the floor. It was going to be a long night, especially until she heard back from Bee.
By the time she’d finished cleaning the house and showering, there hadn’t been much sense in going to bed. Between the fiasco at her reading, the situation at Emmett’s, and Bee’s nerves about being questioned by Luke, she wouldn’t have been able to sleep anyway.
With a couple of hours before she had to go into Mystical Musings, she left Beast sleeping, apparently exhausted from his bathing ordeal, and headed out. If she wasn’t mistaken, Ellie usually worked the early shi
ft at the antique shop just outside of town. If she could catch her before they opened, she might be able to talk to her for a few minutes and at least make sure she was okay.
Leaving the boardwalk, quaint shops, and residential areas behind, Cass headed toward the center of Bay Island. Farmhouses nestled amid patchwork quilt fields, and early morning mist hovered over everything. Despite the early hour, farmers had already begun their work, and she crept along the narrow road behind a tractor taking up too much room for her to pass.
She was in no hurry, though, enjoying the scenic view and the change of pace from the hustle and bustle of tourist season in a beach community. She needed time to figure out what to say to Ellie, anyway. She certainly didn’t want to admit there had been speculation she’d taken up with another loser.
The tractor turned onto a narrow dirt road, removing any excuse for procrastinating. She rounded a curve, and a line of statues announced she’d arrived. Several life-size cows painted in a variety of colors and patterns lined the road in front of the shop. What anyone would do with a life-size cow covered in a map of Bay Island or blue and black stripes, she had no idea.
At least the dinosaur statues looked real or, at least, how Cass imagined they’d have looked—reptilian, painted in greens and browns, not birdlike with bright colors as some people now theorized. But who knew?
She parked in the small dirt lot and approached the two-story Victorian that housed Auntie V’s Closet. Now, if she could just figure out how to get Ellie to confide in her and how best to help her out of whatever mess she might have gotten herself into.
“Cass?”
She barely focused in time to keep from running smack into Ellie. “Oh, Ellie, I’m sorry. I must have been more caught up in my thoughts than I realized. I didn’t even see you there.”
“No worries.” Ellie stood from beside the porch where she was bent over a large barrel filled with potting soil and brushed the dirt off her hands. “Is there something I can help you with?”
