by Ruby Loren
“Oh yes! There was something,” Tristan said, very obviously remembering their house-hunter who never bought property. “If we might speak in private…” He cast a furtive look in my direction. I knew he wanted to get the detective alone so I wouldn’t take any credit for ‘his’ brilliant deductive reasoning.
I made no move to hint otherwise. Detective Gregory already thought I stuck my nose in where it wasn’t wanted. I didn’t wish to perpetuate that view.
The detective left to go into one of the offices at the back of the agents, leaving Tiff and me alone with the three remaining agents and the receptionist. As soon as they were out of earshot, the receptionist started to sob. He was managing to do it silently, but the way his shoulders heaved up and down gave it away.
“I’m sorry, it’s just all so terrible. Who would do that to another person? What if they come after one of us, too?” the receptionist said, in between hitches in his voice.
Esme and Yolanda exchanged a look that turned into a silent duel over whose duty it was to comfort the crying man. Fortunately, Tiff was present and excelled at this kind of thing. She walked over and patted the man on the back, interspersing her pats with comforting words.
It wasn’t long before Detective Gregory and Tristan returned to the main shop. The detective left amidst false pleasantries from the estate agents.
The minute he was gone, the gossip train resumed at full steam ahead.
“It must be one of Harry’s conquests gone wrong. I think the whole missing dog thing is just incidental. Ashley, you saw the scene… it didn’t look like it had anything to do with dog and horse thefts, did it? Well, other than…” Tristan cleared his throat, looking surprisingly embarrassed. Clearly, he wasn’t as cool with what he’d seen as he wanted to pretend. I knew he’d been referring to the dog collar and lead that had been on the floor of the bedroom. “…but that’s all just part of that stuff,” he said, waving his hands around to show how disgusted he was by it all.
He shook his head and a second later the big white smile was back and directed at Tiff. “Now… we were discussing which houses you wanted to look at?”
I was back in my office in the barn conversion at The Lucky Zoo, having booked several house-hunting trips with Tiff, when there was a knock at the door.
“Jor… Joe!” I said, nearly slipping up. “What can I do for you?”
“It’s more what I can do for you,” he said, smoothly slipping into the chair opposite my desk. I’d been working on the zoo’s accounts, but anything from mucking out enclosures to pulling teeth seemed better than that, so I welcomed the distraction.
“Go on,” I said with a smile, before wondering if I was already slipping into trusting Joe Harvey more than I should.
“I have connections, you know that, and one of these connections let me know about something that I think you might be interested in.” He took a breath. “It’s about animals… I believe there’s a group of people who are smuggling a lot of exotic animals in and out of the country and are, thus far, not being stopped by anyone. I even heard, dare I say it…” I waited for him to enjoy his own moment of drama (it must be catching) “…some zoos may be involved, using their animal dealings as a cover for this terrible operation.”
I shot Joe a look that let him know he was laying it on a bit thick. “I’ve heard that story before,” I said, thinking of Auryn’s own father and the way he’d fudged the numbers in order to sell off valuable exotic animals on the black market.
“Sure you have, because it really works. You know what they say - with great power comes great temptation. Criminals are lining their pockets and they’re doing so by profiting off the suffering of animals.” Joe sat back in his chair. “I just thought you should know.”
I digested everything he’d said. Of course I was interested in the kind of scam he was talking about. Everything I worked for was the conservation of animals and what he was talking about broke every one of those ideals.
“What do you want in return for more specific information?” I asked, knowing that while it was a shocking story, Joe hadn’t actually given me anything more than that - a story. I needed some facts if I was going to be able to do something to put a stop to it.
“Well, it’s complicated…” Joe began. I sat back with a sigh. I’d known it would be. “It puts me in a lot of danger telling you any of this. If it could be traced back to me, well…” He drew a finger across his neck. “But, I’m willing to give you the information as a favour.”
“Out of the goodness of your own heart?” I was certainly sceptical.
“Sure, why not?” Joe said with a grin that made him look more like his old persona, Jordan. “You don’t trust me. I get that. I’ve done a lot for you, but I can also see why that would be. I want to change that, and I thought this would be a good way to start.”
“Okay,” I said after carefully thinking through all of the potential downfalls, as far as I could. “Tell me how I go about catching these animal smugglers…”
Joe smiled again. “It’s like this…” he said, and then told me a very dark story about the community of zoos I’d thought I was a part of. By the time he’d finished, I was in shock.
It was more terrible than I could ever have imagined.
4
Doom and Gloom
I spent the next morning feeling gloomy and working on my comic. Everything that Joe had revealed to me was swimming around in my head and the only way I could stop it was to work on my comic. It was actually a surprise when I looked down and realised I’d finished. The book that was supposed to be in stores before Christmas was done and ready to be sent to LightStrike Publishers for approval.
Instead of a sense of jubilation, I just felt gloomier than ever. What was the point of putting out a good message about animals, both through my own work and the comic stories I wrote, when so many people were actively working to undo all of that good? What Joe had told me refused to budge from my mind, but I had no idea what to do about any of it. I needed time to think things through, I knew that much, but the thought of everything continuing whilst I rested on my laurels was painful
I sighed and dialled the number of my publishers, figuring a distraction was better than berating myself for failing to stop the smugglers immediately. Joe had been careful to explain that the police couldn’t help, as there were more than a few crooked cops among them - who knew that all of this had been going on for years and had done nothing except line their own pockets. I still had questions about how Joe’s stories could be true, but then, he’d heavily implied I should find out firsthand and get some kind of irrefutable proof. And that was exactly what I intended to do.
I just didn’t know how.
“I’m so glad you called! I was just about to give you a ring to ask how things are coming on,” Gloria Lenin said, answering the phone with her usual cheer. I was grateful that she’d gifted me her own personal mobile number. I’d hated having to deal with ‘the gatekeeper’, as I liked to think of the vicious secretary they employed at the publishing house.
“I thought I’d call to let you know the comic is finished at my end. I’ll have it sent over to you later today,” I promised.
“That’s magnificent! I knew you could do it,” my publisher gushed. “We must celebrate! You must be thrilled! I guarantee, you’ll be hitting number one in all of the book charts this Christmas. You’re only going to cement your name in publishing history. Snoopy, Calvin and Hobbes, Garfield, and Monday’s Menagerie… they’ll all be said in one breath.”
“Thanks,” I said, doing my best to sound chipper.
“Don’t you fret. You’ve done your bit. Leave the rest to me,” Gloria assured me, presumably misreading my less than enthused tone for concern over my comic’s success, not depression over a great deception that had been taking place under my very nose.
“Whatever happened about that film deal?” I asked, figuring that my mood was already sour, so the news that my hideous bio-pic (which would h
ave to consist mostly of lies) would be going ahead wouldn’t make it much worse.
“I’m afraid there’s been no advance on that. That’s just the way things are in Hollywood. Ideas get bounced around for years sometimes before someone picks them up and runs with them. Don’t worry, it will happen in good time,” Gloria reassured me.
I made a small sound of agreement, silently thanking my British Intelligence friend Katya, who had surely passed on my concerns to her bosses - who had in turn used their US influence to veto the idea.
“Anyway, I can’t wait to read the comic and announce everything to the press. They’re going to go crazy, I guarantee it!” And on that ominous final note, she said goodbye and hung up.
I was left feeling low. In the end, I decided to take a trip across to Avery Zoo to see how Tiff was faring. Although she’d been acting upbeat, I knew I was scarred by the memory of the horrible scene in the bedroom. Joe’s revelation had somehow made it ten times worse, as the misery piled on top of more misery.
Tiff was repositioning a display featuring some of the most popular animal characters from Monday’s Menagerie.
“New shipment,” she told me when I walked up next to her. “The last lot sold like hotcakes. I bet it will be the same for your next book, too.”
“How are your maps doing?” I looked over at the table she had put out for her animal-themed offerings. I saw that the stock looked fairly low.
She blushed. “Pretty well! It was so nice of you to let me trial them in your gift-shop. When Auryn saw how well they were doing he allowed me to set up here, too.”
“I’m thrilled it’s going well. You’ll need it to buy one of those fancy houses, eh? And for when…” I nodded in the direction of her stomach, making sure that no one was anywhere within earshot when I did it.
“Definitely… although, I think Alex is going to be taking care of most of it. I said we should get some paperwork drawn up, or something, but he seems convinced that nothing is needed. I just don’t want to take advantage of him,” Tiff fretted.
I rather worried that the reverse might be true, but I kept silent. So far, Alex Gregory hadn’t done anything to turn me against him. Long may that continue, I thought.
“By the way, Tristan called up to move one of the house viewing times an hour later. I thought we’d go for coffee beforehand, which is why I didn’t tell you. He also happened to let me know that the house-hunting person has been investigated. Apparently, they’re clean in terms of any thefts and the murder. She was apparently out riding horses all day and late into the evening on the day Harry Farley died. Several people can back that up.”
I raised my eyebrows at Tiff and she blushed again. “He was feeling quite chatty.”
“To you maybe,” I said.
“We’re both off the market for good.”
“We are,” I agreed, hoping that it would prove to be true for a very, very long time to come. Everyone deserved their own little slice of happiness and I wanted to believe that we’d both found ours.
5
Foxes and Falsehoods
On Friday evening, Auryn had announced that a memorial event was being held for Harry Farley on the Saturday. I’d queried whether it would be proper, or even sensitive, for me to come, given that I’d been one of the people to find Harry, but Auryn had assured me my presence would be very much appreciated. According to him, Felicity Farley was grateful that her husband had been found so quickly after his death, as she appreciated how it would make catching his murderer an easier job for the authorities. When I’d queried whether or not she really felt that way - considering the way her husband had been found and what it implied - Auryn had cleared his throat and informed me that those sentiments had been passed on via someone who’d been helping Felicity out, so he couldn’t say for certain if his widow was thinking so generously. I knew if it had been me in her position I wouldn’t have been.
It was already warm when we approached the country pub where the farewell get-together was being held. I realised something was badly wrong as soon as we started to walk down the lane towards the pub.
A flash of red caught my eye as a man dressed in a bright red jacket spun his large horse around and then nudged it back around the side of the pub. Next there was the sound of dogs baying as their handlers let them loose.
“You can’t be serious,” I hissed, turning to Auryn for an explanation.
“I had no idea. None at all,” he quickly said. I noticed that his face was just as pale as mine was.
No one had told us that Harry Farley’s farewell celebration of life would be held at a fox hunt.
“We should go. We can't be seen here! Imagine if the press…” I muttered, feeling like a drip for pulling the fame thing into it, but it would devastate me if I were seen to be supporting such a dreadful pastime. I understood that foxes could be a dire pest to farmers. Avery Zoo was in the grip of such a nuisance right now. But to me there was a huge difference between dealing with so-called pests humanely and allowing them to be terrified and ripped to pieces by hounds.
“It could be a drag hunt,” Auryn said hopefully, referring to when the hounds followed scent laid by a person instead of chasing foxes. But I knew he didn’t believe it. This was the real deal.
“We should go,” he echoed a moment later, but unfortunately it was too late. We’d already been spotted.
A woman on a dappled grey gelding was trotting towards us, waving a hand in greeting.
“Auryn Avery, bless my soul! I can’t believe I’m seeing you,” she said, bending over her horse’s neck and extending a hand to my fiancé.
Auryn glanced around and then shook her hand quickly. I wasn’t the only one conscious of being seen at such an event.
The woman sat back upright, giving me a chance to take in the kind of person who enjoyed setting a bunch of dogs on a fox. My first impression was that she had much too kind a face to be doing this sort of thing. There were smile lines around her eyes and mouth, the first signs of age, but her big dark eyes and beautiful glossy dark hair she’d pinned back into a bun made you very aware that she was an attractive woman.
“This is Sophia Blanky. She used to be my riding instructor,” Auryn filled me in.
I did my best to smile at the woman on horseback.
“I know who you are already of course,” she said, beaming at me. “Auryn… why aren’t you here riding with us? You had such a natural talent for riding!”
Auryn muttered something nearly inaudible about being too busy with work.
“That’s no excuse! Blanky Country Houses has taken up a lot of my time over the past couple of years, but I’m still out here, seizing the day. There’s always time to do the things you love.”
Both Auryn and I were silent, surely thinking that we already did the things we loved - as a day job.
“You’re the one who found him, aren’t you?”
We all turned to see a woman with bleached blonde hair walk out of the pub’s entrance and nearly fall flat on her face on the tarmac.
“That’s Felicity Farley,” Sophia said. There was a definite note of distaste in her voice and I could see the reason why. Felicity Farley was probably only one drink away from passing out.
She staggered over to us and embraced me. I took a steadying, wide stance and semi-caught her.
“He was a scumbag, but he was my scumbag,” she told me, breathing fumes in my face.
Another woman exited the pub, looking left and right before she saw Felicity Farley and rushed over to us. I was exceedingly grateful when the weight was very literally lifted from my shoulders.
“I’m so sorry. People keep buying her drinks, but it’s hardly helpful,” the new woman said before sighing. “I’m Lucinda, Harry’s sister. Thank you both for coming here today. I know it would have meant a lot to Harry.”
We both knew that she didn’t have a clue who we were, but now wasn’t the time for introductions.
“He’ll be much missed,” Auryn tactfully
said. I noted that he didn’t say by whom.
“By the female community probably,” a male voice said.
Lucinda spun round with anger on her face. “You keep your mouth shut, Charlie!” She turned back to us, her face full of apologies. “You just ignore my husband. He’s never liked my brother.”
“What was there to like?” the man carried on, puffing on a cigarette.
While I heartily agreed with her husband, I wasn’t foolish enough to believe that now was the right time for anyone to express their true feelings about the deceased. Especially when his killer still hasn’t been caught, I reminded myself.
“They’ve taken everything from me,” Felicity raved, her face crumpling in on itself. “First Harry and now… and now…”
Lucinda looked apologetically at us. “I don’t know if you’ve already heard, but Harry’s horse Columbia was taken from us. We’d hoped that when the killer realised their coverup of Harry’s death hadn’t worked they’d let the horse go… but it seems he’s gone for good.”
“How could they keep him?” Felicity said, sniffing. “It’s like they took Harry from me all over again.”
“One more drink and then we’re off! Tally ho!” a male voice shouted over the throng of the hounds and the whinnies of the horses. A hearty cheer went up and everyone dismounted and tied their horses, leaving them under the watchful gaze of the kennel master, before piling into the pub.
“That’s our cue,” Sophia said cheerfully before trotting away to do the same.
Before Auryn and I could even think of making a dash for it, she was by the pub door beckoning. Felicity and Harry’s sister had already vanished back into the pub, leaving her cantankerous husband behind to smoke his cigarette.
I shot a resigned look at Auryn before we both followed them inside. We’d made a mistake coming here, of that I was certain, but there wasn’t a lot we could do about it now.
