Home is Where the Bark Is

by Stella St. Claire

  “Ha. Ha. Let me out of here.”

  Telescope barked. Willow turned around and saw her father entering the room. They were busted.

  “It’s not what it looks like,” Wednesday said quickly.

  “It’s not a jailbreak?” Frank asked, cracking a joke.

  “No,” both girls said in unison.

  “All right, all right,” Frank said, maneuvering around the animals. “Let’s get you out of here.”

  He walked next to Willow and unlocked the door, opening it wide. But then, instead of letting Wednesday out of the cell, he corralled Willow into the cell as well. They stared at him through the bars.

  Telescope barked, and Rover let out her version of a bark, which of course, still sounded more like a meow.

  “Do you want to join them?” Frank asked. “Are you accomplices too?”

  Telescope and Rover quieted down and sat on the floor, contented to watch what would happen next.

  “Traitors,” Willow muttered. She sat on the cot. Wednesday was standing in the corner and biting her lip.

  “Now I know that something is going on here,” Frank said to his daughters. “And I intend to find out what it is. I don’t mind waiting all night if—”

  He barely had to wait a minute before Wednesday cracked under the pressure and confessed. Willow stared at her sister as she let it all pour out. “It’s my fault we’re here. I was trying to take a picture. You see, I was offered a campaign.”

  “A political campaign?” Frank asked.

  “A makeup campaign,” said Wednesday.

  “Ah,” he said, nodding.

  “You see, the truth is…” She looked to Willow for support who nodded. “I want to become an Instagram influencer. I’d take photos of interesting things and share it with the social media world. And I was offered a campaign for a Cops and Robbers line of makeup, and I was trying to get a good picture for it, so I could pursue this more seriously. I know that you probably think it’s dumb.”

  Frank cleared his throat. “I can’t pretend that I know everything about being an influencer. But based on what you just said, it sounds like it could be a good creative outlet for you.”

  “You think so?” Wednesday asked, and Willow smiled.

  “I do,” Frank said. “Though, I don’t think using the station for this photo is appropriate on a number of levels. I do think it would be good for you to take on this campaign.”

  The women were forced to agree.

  “After getting locked in here, I discovered it is a dangerous place for a photo,” Wednesday agreed.

  Frank opened the door but blocked the exit, so they couldn’t leave quite yet. Telescope and Rover ran inside to greet their owners. After petting Rover, Wednesday hugged her dad.

  He returned the hug and said, “I don’t think you should leave your current job right now. You’re too good at what you do here, and I’d miss you. Besides, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with having a stable source of income. But I think you can still become an… influencer.”

  “She’s going to become a fantastic one,” Willow said, rising to her feet.

  “Once you do all of this, I’d like to see this campaign of yours,” Frank said to Wednesday.

  “I might have to make you an Instagram account,” she replied.

  Frank seemed less enthusiastic but still agreed.

  “That wasn’t so bad, was it?” Willow teased her sister. “I told you to be upfront with him.”

  “It ended up not being bad at all,” Wednesday said. “Though he is still blocking the way out.”

  “That’s because there’s one more thing I need to discuss with you,” he said.

  They both gulped.

  “It’s about you both looking into this murder case,” Frank said. “It’s dangerous, and I don’t like it.”

  “Who said we were investigating?” Willow asked.

  “Would you like me to lock the door again?” he asked evenly.

  Willow decided to appeal to her father’s rational side instead of an emotional plea about Griffin’s innocence.

  “We had to become involved,” Willow said. “My contractor was accused. All my money for renovations is tied up with him. I can’t do any work until this case is cleared up, so I needed to do something to move it forward.”

  “If this is only about money, then I can help you out,” Frank said, seeming pleased that he might be able to do something.

  “What?” Willow asked.

  “I can lend you the money for your renovations,” he said. “I’d be happy to.”

  Willow waffled. She looked down at her feet, “Well, it isn’t just about the money. I really don’t think that Griffin did it.”

  “I know that you both have become friends with him,” Frank said. “But apart from trusting the man, you don’t have anything else to go on. All the clues point to him.”

  Telescope moved closer to her and leaned on her leg.

  “I just don’t want to see him end up here,” she said, gesturing to the jail cell, “if he didn’t do it.”

  “I understand, but right now it’s looking like he did do it. I’d like you to consider my offer.”

  “Will you not let me out of here unless I take it?” Willow asked, only half-serious.

  Frank stepped aside, clearing a path out of the jail cell. Wednesday ran as fast as she could out of there, cuddling her cat.

  Willow took a few steps forward and looked at her dad.

  “Consider my offer,” he said. “I could make it work. I have the money. I’d like for you to take it and get your business going so it can start on time. You’d just need to find a new contractor.”

  “I kinda like the one I have,” Willow said.

  “I don’t,” Frank said, and the intensity in his voice frightened her. “I think there’s a good chance he’s a killer and I don’t like him being so close to you all the time. You and Wednesday are the most important things in the world to me. You know that I’d do anything to keep you safe.”

  “I know, Dad.”

  “Please, do the same. Keep yourself safe.”

  20

  Willow stared at the work that Griffin had already completed around the house and sighed. She had asked him to come back to her house so they could talk. He had sounded excited on the phone, probably thinking that she had found another clue to help the case. Instead, she might have to fire him.

  It was a difficult decision to make. She felt like she needed to choose between Griffin and her father, and that wasn’t fair.

  She knew that her father had the best of intentions and that he sincerely wanted to help her. He also did think that she was running around with a dangerous killer, but he was still trusting her to make her own decisions instead of trying to forbid her from seeing Griffin.

  It was also tempting to take the offer because it would mean that starting her business on time would be guaranteed. Her business meant everything to her. It was her chance to rebuild her life and continue with her dream.

  Was she sabotaging herself if she decided against her father’s offer? Would it be possible to gain clientele after the show training season had started? Would she lose another business by banking on Griffin being cleared?

  On the other hand, she was certain that Griffin wasn’t the killer. She shouldn’t turn against an innocent man just because the going was getting tough. What sort of friend would that make her?

  She knew that others in town were turning against Griffin, and she knew that it would hurt him deeply if she did too. She didn’t want him to feel shunned in his community.

  “Why aren’t there any other suspects?” she lamented as she moved to another room to look at what Griffin had started there.

  Telescope came over and barked. She sensed that he wanted to tell her something, but she didn’t know what it was.

  “What would you do?” she asked him.

  He lowered his front half onto the ground into a playful stance and yipped.

  �
��I wish I could be as relaxed as you. But maybe I took being in jail harder than you. Seeing as I couldn’t fit through the bars like you could.”

  He yipped again.

  Willow led him to the kitchen where she gave him a treat that he thoroughly enjoyed. Wandering around her house wasn’t helping her reach a decision, and she knew she needed to come to one quickly. Griffin would be there soon.

  If she was planning to fire him, she’d need to figure out what she was going to tell him. She might have to practice it too, so she wouldn’t let him know how emotional this was making her.

  But if she wasn’t going to fire him, what would she say then? Would she have to tell him that she was sorry, she believed in him, but he was probably going to be arrested anyway?

  There was a knock at the door and Telescope bounded towards it to greet Griffin. Suddenly, Willow knew her answer. When faced with making the decision, she knew what the right one had to be.

  Griffin was her partner in solving this crime. He was going to be her partner all the way through. However, she was going to have to prepare him for a fight. He was the only viable suspect that the police had, and she didn’t have any new ones to offer.

  She opened the door, and Griffin was smiling at her. He gave Telescope a quick pat on the head and then moved into the house.

  “You seem in a good mood,” she said as she followed him into the kitchen.

  “Why?” Griffin asked. “Is there something going wrong that I should be aware of?”

  Normally, she wouldn’t have liked this levity when she was feeling so serious, but his good mood was infectious. She suddenly didn’t feel as gloomy.

  Telescope must have felt it too because he began dancing around.

  “So, what did you want to talk about?” Griffin asked, turning to face her.

  “I’m afraid I only have bad news,” Willow said, leaning on her kitchen island. “I spoke to my father again, and they’re still convinced you did it. In fact, right now it looks like you’re the only one who had the means, motive and opportunity to do so. There are no other suspects.”

  “Oh really?” Griffin asked.

  He removed an envelope from his pocket and waved it valiantly in the air. Telescope jumped in excitement.

  “What’s that?” Willow asked.

  “More suspects,” he said, grinning.

  “Then, what are you doing with it here? Let’s bring it to the police right now. We need to get them looking at other people ASAP.”

  She was all set to grab her jacket and head out the door, back to the station, but Griffin held her arm.

  “Not so fast. Hold your horses – or, hold your Chihuahuas.”

  Telescope wagged his tail in appreciation.

  “Why?”

  “I can’t show this document publicly yet,” Griffin said. “Not without the permission of all the other people locked into the deal.”

  Willow shook her head. “If anyone knew how annoyingly law-abiding you are, they’d know how ridiculous it was to accuse you of murder.”

  Griffin shrugged. “I will show it to you, though. We are partners in solving this thing, aren’t we?”

  “We are.”

  Willow smiled at him and moved back toward the counter as he set the document down. It looked like a legal contract.

  “What is this?” Willow asked, figuring he could spell it out for her quicker than she could read and decipher the legalese.

  “It’s a deal the Lee Hunter made with people who lived in a building he owned. They received a small settlement in exchange for their silence. Of course, now that Lee is dead, they could be allowed to speak.”

  “What will they say?”

  “Lee used contaminated pipes in this building. People could have gotten sick from it.”

  “That’s terrible,” Willow said. “But also not that surprising from what we’ve heard about Lee’s repair work.”

  “This was the same problem on the project that I worked on for him. I knew that the pipes needed to be replaced, but he didn’t want to pay for the changes. He tried to reuse pipes from older buildings too. I knew this meant there was a potential for bacteria to form in the imperfections. And it looks like that did happen in one of his properties. I looked into his other buildings and was able to track this down.”

  “I just can’t believe he got away with this,” Willow said, disgusted.

  Telescope barked.

  “He might not have,” Griffin said. “This might be the reason that Lee was killed.”

  “Because he kept using contaminated pipes?”

  “I think he was even using them in his new luxury building,” Griffin said. “It might be harder to get access to that, but I’ll try.”

  Willow tapped her fingers on the counter, thinking about it. It certainly made her mad to think that Lee had used bad pipes in all of his buildings – even his newest one. It might be possible that someone would kill over that.

  “You think one of the people from this building could be the killer?” she asked as she saw several signatures on the document.

  “That would make the suspect pool bigger, wouldn’t it?” Griffin said.

  Willow began scanning the names. There was one that stood out to her, and she pointed at it.

  Griffin nodded. “Thomas Danielson?”

  “He lived in Lee Hunter’s first building,” Willow said. “That’s why he knew about the shoddy repair work.”

  “Since I already spoke to him, he’s going to be the first person on that list that I talk to tomorrow to see if he would mind disclosing this document. I’ll have to get everyone’s permission, and I’ll see if anyone accidentally mentioned it to someone else.”

  “You mean that maybe they told someone who moved into his new building and was mad to learn about the contaminated pipes there too?”

  “Exactly,” Griffin said.

  He folded the document back up and replaced it in his jacket pocket.

  “Well, I should get going. I have a lot of people I should contact in the morning,” Griffin said. “And I suppose that if you want to contact your father and let him know that we’re working on something but can’t quite explain what it is yet, you could.”

  “I think that would backfire on us,” Willow said.

  “Maybe you’re right,” he said, smiling. He was obviously still in a good mood after the new lead.

  Willow saw him to the door, and Telescope clamored for attention before he left. When she shut the door, she turned to the dog and said, “You really like him, don’t you?”

  Telescope nodded.

  “I guess I do too.”

  She headed further back into her house and then suddenly stopped. A thought had just occurred to her, and once it had, it led to another and another.

  “You really like Griffin, but you didn’t like Thomas Danielson,” Willow said to the dog.

  Telescope barked.

  Willow tried to organize her thoughts. They were running so quickly now that it was hard to contain them. What if Telescope didn’t like Thomas Danielson not because he was a stranger in her house, but because Telescope sensed something bad about him?

  He had a motive, and the more she thought about it, the stronger it became. Thomas had lived in Lee’s building with the contaminated pipes. His wife had died. Nadia said that her mother died of an illness, but that her father believed it was murder. Contaminated pipes could make both of those statements true at once.

  Then, to add to it, Lee was continuing to use those pipes in his new building. Nadia said her father had ripped up her papers for an apartment there. He must have known about the danger in the pipes. He didn’t want his daughter living there, and yet she was ignoring him and moving there anyway.

  Thomas Danielson must have killed Lee both as revenge for his wife’s death and to stop the same thing from happening to his daughter. Willow could definitely understand the emotions Thomas would have felt, but he shouldn’t have taken the law into his own hands.

  Be
cause he was a real estate agent, he must have been able to come up with an excuse to get Lee Hunter to visit him that night. Maybe he had even told him that Edna’s property was going on the market.

  Well, Willow thought, maybe two could play at that game.

  21

  The next morning, Willow peered out of her living room window, admitting that she was a little nervous. She had invited a killer over to her house, and he was due any minute.

  Maybe it wasn’t the safest plan of attack, but she had to do something. If Griffin couldn’t present that document, and it was going to take a while to get everyone to agree, then Griffin still looked like the number one suspect. There was nothing to prove Thomas Danielson had a motive.

  She couldn’t go to her father without proof. He would think that she was just trying to distract the police from Griffin. So, she realized, she would just have to get the proof.

  After realizing that he was the killer, Willow called Thomas that night and asked if he would come over in the morning. She told him that she valued his opinion and was interested in selling her property right away. Of course, the real reason for meeting so early was so Griffin couldn’t tip him off about the document.

  Willow felt a little bad about not including anyone else in her plan, but she knew Griffin and Wednesday might have tried to talk her out of it. She knew her father definitely would have tried to stop her and even would have locked her up again if necessary.

  Willow checked on Telescope. She expected everything to go fine, but Telescope would act as her backup if need be, ready to run for help. She had even set up his walker in the backyard in case he needed it for a long distance.

  There was a knock at the door, and Telescope growled.

  “Play nice,” Willow said. “It’s just a friendly real estate agent here to help me out.”

  She put a smile on her face as she answered the door and faced who she suspected was the killer.

  Griffin hung up his cell phone and stared at it, feeling uneasy. He had been summoned to the police station bright and early for another chat, but then they had made him wait. He assumed this was some sort of interrogation technique but had decided to use the opportunity sitting in the hallway to make a call.