by Marja McGraw
“This is getting us nowhere,” Dolly said. “We can talk ‘til we’re blue in the face, but we simply don’t have enough evidence.”
“But there is no evidence. That’s the problem,” I said.
“There has to be something, or Brian wouldn’t have been zeroing in on Nick,” Prudy said. “I just know we’re missing a detail, but I can’t figure out what it is. We need to ponder this a bit more.”
We turned back to our sandwiches and ate in silence, each having thoughts about the murder.
Prudy opened her mouth to say something, thought better of it and took another bite out of her sandwich.
Dolly and Felicity began to speak at the same time, shook their heads and returned to the food.
I couldn’t even come up with a thought worth mentioning.
“I want to go back and talk to Esther,” I said. “I have a feeling Hector was trying to shut her up.”
“I had the same feeling.” Prudy dabbed at her mouth with her napkin. “But what about Hector? He won’t let you talk to her.”
“I’ll wait until he’s not there,” I said.
“And how will you know when he’s gone?” Dolly asked.
“I’ll call before I go over there. I can find out if she’s home alone. Not a problem.” I had a lot of confidence in myself. Maybe too much? I honestly didn’t want to see Hector again unless I absolutely had to. Maybe I should ask Pete to go with me.
“That’s it. I’ll take Pete with me and he can distract Hector while I talk to Esther.” I mentally patted myself on the back.
Felicity drove us home and said she’d stay to visit with Dolly and Prudy for a while. Felicity was jumping right in with both feet. I liked her. She was a good woman. Regardless of her size, I was beginning to think there wasn’t much that scared her. She knew Prudy had been threatened, and she didn’t seem to care if she put herself in harm’s way.
I asked her to come over to my house for a few minutes before she joined the older women. I wanted to talk to her.
“Felicity, you know you don’t have to do this,” I said. “These notes mean there’s someone out there who doesn’t want us bothering them. Someone really, really, really wants us to let this go, and it’s beginning to look like instead of a dead rat, we may end up with a dead Prudy.”
“What dead rat?”
“Someone left a dead rat on my porch as a warning,” I explained.
“Oh yeah? Well. That puts a different light on things. Now I know I have to stay with Dolly and Prudy.”
“Huh?” Her calmness surprised me.
“Sandi, I’ve been through a lot in my lifetime. I was deserted as a baby and adopted. My parents were good people, but I can’t seem to move past the desertion thing. As a single woman living alone, I’ve been burglarized, mugged and physically attacked. I’ve fended for myself against bill collectors, agents, photographers and a whole list of others. I’m a survivor, just like you.”
My eyes widened in surprise.
“Yes, Sandi, I can see you’re a lot like me. You’ve had your share of disasters in your lifetime, and so have I. We’re like cockroaches, we survive. So, no, I’m not worried about staying with the ladies. I can handle just about anything, and size doesn’t matter.” She chuckled. “Besides, Dolly’s had self-defense training.”
“Felicity, you’re really something. I think we’re going to be good friends. And I think Stanley is a pretty lucky guy to find you.”
“No, I’m the lucky one.” Felicity smiled happily. “He’s a good man. He’s smart, he’s funny, and he likes me for who I am, not what I am.”
“Pete and I think the world of Stanley. He’s a good friend. It does my heart good to see him so content.”
“Well, I’m just about as happy as I’ve ever been right now, and you can attribute that to Stan.”
Felicity was someone special, just like Stanley.
“Take Bubba back to Dolly’s house with you,” I said, opening the back door to let him in.
I drove to the office intending to talk Pete into visiting Esther with me, but he wasn’t there.
“Stan,” I said slowly, studying him, “there’s something different about you.”
“Oh?” He was blinking rapidly. “And what might that be?”
“I don’t know. But…”
He leaned forward and continued to blink at me.
“Have you got something in your eye?” I blinked. “Why Stan, you’re not wearing your glasses. I thought you couldn’t see a thing without them. So that explains the blinking.”
“No, Sandi. I’m wearing contact lenses.” He sounded disgusted. “I was trying to make you notice without telling you.”
“Why, you look terrific. You actually have pretty… No, make that handsome, eyes.” I knew that he wouldn’t appreciate a feminine word to describe his eyes.
“Thank you. Now I won’t feel like such a nerd next to Felicity.”
“Oh, Stan, she likes you the way you are. She doesn’t care if you wear thick glasses or not.”
“Well, I do. And I’m going shopping for a new wardrobe, too. I’m going to be a new man by tomorrow.”
I understood. Felicity was a beautiful woman, and Stanley was, well, Stanley.
“But Stan, she likes you for you, not for your clothing, and certainly not because you do or don’t wear glasses.”
“Yes, but I’ll feel better about myself.”
“Okay, I understand. Why don’t you wait and take Pete with you. He’s a sharp dresser, and a second opinion never hurts.”
Stanley sighed. “Men don’t need to go shopping in pairs like women do. I’ll be fine on my own.”
“You’re – ”
I was interrupted by the phone ringing. And for some unknown reason, I knew it was important. I snatched it out of its cradle.
“Webster and Goldberg,” I began. “Can I – ”
“Sandi, it’s Felicity. You’d better come home right away. Something’s happened.”
Thirty-eight
“What’s going on, Felicity?” I asked.
Stanley perked up at the mention of her name.
“Someone tried to poison Bubba. Whoever’s been making those threats has stepped things up. Dolly and Prudy are very upset.”
“I’m on my way.” I hung up and turned to pick up my backpack. My heart was pounding. I hadn’t asked if my dog was okay or not, and I was close to tears. They could threaten me all they wanted, but I drew the line at hurting Bubba. He was huge and kind of scary looking, but he was gentle. Yeah, a gentle giant.
“What’s going on?” Stanley asked.
“Someone tried to poison Bubba. I’ve got to go. Will you tell Pete what’s happened?”
“I’m going with you. We can call him on the cell phone on our way to your house.”
I ran out to the parking lot and started the car while Stanley locked the office door.
By the time I backed out of the parking space, he was waiting for me and jumped into the car. He had his cell phone out and punched in Pete’s number while I pulled out of the driveway.
“He says he’ll meet us at your house,” Stanley said.
“Good. Do me a favor and call Dolly. I need to know that Bubba is okay.” I was still close to tears. I hadn’t realized just how attached I’d become to the big bruiser.
“Don’t cry. He’ll be fine. Felicity would have told you if he wasn’t. What’s Dolly’s number?”
I recited the number before commenting. “Maybe she didn’t want to give me the bad news over the phone.” I thought for a moment. “No, he’s okay. She said someone tried to poison Bubba. I’m sure if they’d succeeded she would have been calling me from the vet’s office.”
Stanley held up his hand and pointed at the cell phone to shush me. “Dolly, how’s Bubba?” He listened intently for a moment. “Yes, Sandi is quite concerned. She’ll feel better knowing that he’s in good health.” He clicked off and smiled at me.
I let out the breath I’d been
holding. “Thanks, Stan. I do feel better.”
It seemed like I hit every signal on red driving home. The more I tried to rush, the more I was held up. Isn’t that always the way?
Pulling up to the house, I threw open the car door and jumped out, slamming it behind me as I ran to Dolly’s house.
Felicity was waiting on the porch, looking to all the world like a miniature sentry. She was pacing, looking up and down the street, alternately putting her hands on her hips and crossing her arms across her chest. There was a certain anger in her tiny footsteps.
“What happened? Where’s Bubba?” I was glancing around, waiting for him to greet me.
“He’s in the house. The ladies are pampering him, and he’s loving every minute of it.”
She turned to Stanley. “You came to help.” She smiled and her face lit up almost as much as his did.
I was impatient. “What happened?”
Felicity turned to me. “Bubba was begging to go out, whining at the front door, so I let him out. I happened to glance out the window, and he was sniffing something. He looked so intense that I was curious, so I decided to see what he was interested in.” She stopped and gave Stanley another look.
I could hardly stand it. “And?” I demanded.
“And, it was raw hamburger. I told him to leave it alone and he moved away. I was a little nervous that he might bite me if I took his burger away, but he just whined again.”
“How do you know it was poisoned?” I asked.
“Well, I don’t really know if it’s poison, but here.” She picked up a big chunk of burger that was nestled in a piece of butcher’s paper. “Smell that.”
I sniffed. The meat was mostly red and fresh looking, but it had a very slight, distinct odor. I thought I recognized it.
“What is that?” I handed it to Stanley.
He sniffed before returning the meat to its resting place on a porch chair. “I know that odor. That’s… I can’t quite place it either, but I know the scent.”
Felicity shook her head. “I can’t believe that he didn’t just gobble the meat up.”
“Bubba does and doesn’t do a few things that surprise me,” I said. “One of them is that he won’t eat anything unless someone he trusts gives it to him, and even then he frequently studies it before eating it. I could leave a cake on the kitchen counter, and he wouldn’t do more than sniff it unless I gave him the okay. I guess his picky attitude paid off in this instance.”
Dolly opened the front door and Bubba came loping out, with Miss Kitty right behind him. Dropping to my knees, I grabbed his neck and hugged tight. “You’re such a good boy, yes you are. You’re just the best doggie I ever knew. I just don’t know what I’d do without you, li’l snookums.” Ick. I was speaking baby talk, but I couldn’t seem to help it.
“Why, Sandi, I’ve never heard you sweet-talk that dog before.” Dolly looked surprised. “You sound like me when I talk to Miss Kitty.”
“Well, I never thought I’d lose him until now.”
I turned back to Bubba. “Yes, you’re a good boy. And smart. No nasty smellin’ treats for you, huh boy?” Baby talk, dog talk… Who cared? Actually, I was relieved because the scent emanating from the meat was sweet, not nasty, which could have tempted him.
“Stop before I gag.” Prudy had joined us on the porch. “He’s a nice animal, but for crying out loud. He didn’t even let us know someone had been here. He simply sniffed some meat.”
Miss Kitty leaped up and began to sniff the meat. I shooed her away and she gave me a disgusted cat look before sauntering to the other side of the porch and delicately licking her paw. Silly cat. I didn’t want to lose her anymore than I wanted to lose Bubba.
I patted his head. “Oh yes, he did let you know someone was here. There are only two times that Bubba whines at the door. When he needs to take care of doggie business, and when there’s someone outside.”
“Oh.” Prudy made a clicking noise with her tongue. “Guess we should have paid more attention.”
I stood up. “Well, this is war now. I’m going to find out who’s behind this, and they’re going to pay. No more Ms. Nice Guy. I’m through pussyfooting around.”
“But you’re a female,” Stanley said.
“Huh?”
“You said Ms. Nice Guy. And you’re a girl.”
I turned away from him, ignoring the comment. “Did any of you hear or see anything?”
“Nothing.” Dolly shook her head.
“Nope.” Prudy’s expression told me she felt guilty.
“Only Bubba’s whining. I feel like I’ve let you all down.” Felicity berated herself.
“At least you saw Bubba and got the meat away from him. I don’t think he would have eaten it, but you never know.” I patted his big head and he smiled at me. He obviously liked all the attention he was receiving.
“That smile of his just cracks me up,” Felicity said.
I had a sudden brainstorm and picked up the butcher’s paper with the meat on it. Looking at the bottom side of the paper, I saw the name of a butcher shop printed on the tape that had held it together. “Felicity, is this the paper that the meat came in?”
“Yes.”
She turned away from me. “Stan, you look different,” Felicity said, examining his face. “Where are your glasses?”
“I’m wearing contact lenses. What do you think?”
Felicity chuckled shyly. “You look wonderful.”
I glared at them. How dare they be sweet and cute when I was busily trying to keep everyone safe? Well, in all fairness, if I hadn’t been worried I would have thought the whole thing was very romantic. New love and all that garbage. Garbage. Huh. My mood really was on the edge.
I heard a car door slam and turned around to see Pete coming up the walk.
“Is Bubba okay?” he asked.
“He’s fine. Someone left meat laced with something for him to eat. Guess they wanted him out of the way so they could get to Prudy.” Oops! I didn’t want to scare Prudy. Me and my big mouth. I glanced at her, but it didn’t appear that she’d heard my comment.
Pete patted Bubba’s head affectionately. The dog actually looked surprised. So did I. Pete and my dog normally just put up with each other. There was a war of the wills between them. Who was the alpha male?
“Good boy,” Pete said. “We’ll get whoever tried to do this to you.” He reached down and scratched Bubba’s chest. Would wonders never cease?
“What did they put in the meat?” he asked, turning to me.
“I don’t know. Stan and I both recognize the odor, but neither one of us can place it.” I handed the burger to Pete.
“Oh yeah, that’s antifreeze. It’s not a strong scent, but it’s sweet and recognizable.”
Stanley slapped his own forehead. “Of course! I should have known that.”
He immediately bent over and began a search of the porch. “Don’t anybody move.”
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“Contact fell out. Don’t move until I find it. Ah, here it is.”
“Pete, look at that paper.” I pointed at the meat and its wrapper. “There’s a butcher shop’s name stamped on the tape.”
He turned it over. “I see that. Let’s drive over to the shop. Maybe they can tell us something. Seems like most people buy their meat at the grocery store, so it could be that he’ll remember his customers.”
“Can we take Bubba with us?” I asked.
“Hey. I’m glad he’s okay, but not that glad. He can stay with Stan and the ladies. We won’t be gone that long.”
Pete drove to the butcher shop while I tapped my finger impatiently on my knee. “I can’t believe this. Why would someone hurt an innocent animal?”
“Because Bubba is big, and his size alone makes him scary looking. And someone out there doesn’t want to face him when they come after you.”
“Oh.” I should have told Pete about Prudy’s note right away. “About that. Prudy received a note this morn
ing saying that if she doesn’t back off, she’s a dead woman.” I tried to sound very conversational.
It didn’t work.
Thirty-nine
“What? And you haven’t sent her packing back to Bullhead City? What’s the matter with you?”
“I did suggest it to her, but she’s an adult, and I can’t force her to go home.”
“Well, maybe I can. I want her son’s telephone number when we’re done here.” He mumbled something to himself that I couldn’t quite hear. When he spoke again, he said, “I think you’re more worried about that dog than you are about Prudy.”
“Not true. It’s just that in this case, the poison was meant for him, not her.”
We pulled up to the butcher shop and the conversation came to a blessed ending.
“This is a small shop,” Pete said. “Maybe we’ll have some luck.”
A bell over the door jingled when we entered the business. There was only one customer in the store and she was paying for her purchases. She smiled at us when she turned to leave.
“Hi,” I said to the heavyset man behind the counter. “I wonder if you might be able to help us.”
“What do you need? I’ve got lamb chops on sale today – great price.”
“I was wondering if you might remember a customer. Someone came in, probably today, and bought a pound of hamburger.” As soon as the question was out of my mouth, I knew how foolish it sounded.
The man snorted. “Yeah, like I’d remember someone who bought hamburger.”
“Well, it might have been the only thing he or she bought, if that helps. And it would have probably been sometime during the last couple of hours.”
The man appeared thoughtful, but he didn’t reply.
Pete was looking into the display case, studying the meats. “Those steaks look pretty good. I think I’ll take a couple. And that roast looks good. Not a lot of fat. Let me have that, too.”
I glanced at him. Was this his way of paying for any information the guy might have?
The man pulled out a tray of steaks and let Pete pick out the ones he wanted before pulling out the roast. He started wrapping the meats in paper. “I guess I do recall someone coming in recently and buying a pound of burger. I don’t remember too much about him because it was busy in here.”
