by B R Snow
“I decided to work from home today,” Max said. “Are you guys at the shoot?”
“Yeah, we’re about to get started,” I said. “Have the plows made it to your street yet?”
“No, I’m on a side street that ends in a cul-de-sac,” Max said. “It’s a pretty low priority on the city’s list. They probably won’t make it to my street until sometime later on tonight. Where’s the photographer’s place?”
“He has a loft at the Wilkerson,” I said. “Fifth floor with an amazing view of the city.”
“Nice,” Max said. “That’s pretty close to my house.”
“That’s good because it’s a total mess outside. But we’ll figure out a way to get there,” I said, glancing out again at the snow-covered streets.
“If worse comes to worse, you can always just walk. It can’t be more than a couple of miles.”
“Sure, sure,” I said, frowning.
“Are you guys going to be hungry when you get here?”
“Rhetorical, right?”
“Yeah, I should know better by now,” Max said, laughing. “I thought I’d make a stew. Or maybe a pot of chili.”
“Perfect. Look, I gotta run. Can’t wait to see you.”
“Me too. Call me later when you get a chance.”
“Will do.”
I ended the call, turned the phone off, and tossed it on a nearby couch. John was chatting with Melinda and Abby. Apparently satisfied with their plan, they nodded in unison and John headed for a wall switch near the bank of windows. He stood quietly as he waited for a signal from Melinda that she was ready.
“You have an incredible view,” I said to John.
“Yeah, I like it,” he said, glancing over his shoulder out one of the windows. “It’s great in the summer when I can open them to catch the breeze, and I love sitting out on the patio at night.”
His assistant turned on two large lights that sat on either side of a rug that filled the area John would be using for the shoot. All the dogs snapped to attention and focused on the lights and reflector screens Melinda was adjusting.
“Okay, I think we’re ready to go,” John said, pressing the wall switch.
A black set of drapes slowly descended from the ceiling and soon covered the bank of windows. John stood in the middle of the rug and glanced around. Satisfied with the lighting, he nodded at his assistant.
“It looks great, Melinda. Okay, let’s get this show on the road,” he said, scanning the immediate area. “Where’s that box of dog toys and props?”
“It’s next to the couch,” Melinda said. “Hang on, I’ll grab it.”
“I thought we’d start with some solo shots of each dog,” John said, glancing around at all of us. “Then we’ll work our way up to some group shots. We’re going for fun, healthy, and happy.” He smiled as he looked around at all the dogs. “With this group, that shouldn’t be a problem. How about we start with the big guy? His name is Captain, right?”
“It is,” Josie said. “But I need to warn you he hates wearing anything except his collar.”
“Really?” Melinda cooed as she knelt down in front of the Newfie and unfurled a large woolen scarf. “You’re such a good boy. What’s the matter, Captain? You don’t feel like wearing a scarf? It’s cute and would look so good on you. They’d be calling you the Natty Newfie.”
Captain snorted, scrambled to his feet, then crawled under a couch and disappeared from sight. Everyone laughed.
“He can be pretty stubborn about it,” Josie said, shrugging.
Josie tried not to laugh as she watched John’s assistant, Melinda, do her best to coax Captain out from underneath the couch. He finally poked his head out and glanced around then woofed his displeasure at Josie.
“You’re such a baby,” Josie said, kneeling down to rub his head.
“I guess we’ll come back to him later,” John said, shaking his head as he focused on Chloe. “How about you? You feel like getting your picture taken?”
Chloe headed straight for the rug and sat down and cocked her head at Melinda.
“I think she likes the idea,” Melinda said, laughing.
“She loves to play dress up,” I said.
“Yeah, we’re still not sure who she gets that from,” Josie deadpanned.
I made a face at her then focused on Chloe who was now wearing the scarf and holding one of the dog toys in her mouth.
“Oh, keep her right there,” John said, taking several shots in rapid succession. “She’s doing great. Okay, let’s see how she looks wearing the fedora.” He kept shooting dozens of pictures as Melinda removed the scarf and positioned the hat on Chloe’s head. “Great. She’s unbelievable. Now, scatter a bunch of the other toys around her and let’s see how she does.”
Chloe sat quietly as Melinda spread a dozen different toys on the rug near her. She dropped the toy she was holding and glanced at me.
“You think you can get her to try all the toys?” John said, not looking up from the viewfinder.
“Sure,” I said, then focused on Chloe. “Go ahead, girl. Play with the toys.”
Chloe selected one of the toys and held it in her mouth as Melinda approached and rearranged the other toys. We spent several minutes watching Chloe work her way through all the toys even as Melinda kept swapping out different scarves and hats. I swelled with pride and looked around at the others who were amazed by her performance. Finally, John lowered his camera and stood up.
“That is one smart dog,” he said. “Did you teach her to do all that?”
“Just a little of it,” I said, shrugging. “Most of it seems to come naturally to her.”
“Spooky,” John said, kneeling down to pet Chloe. “This is my kind of dog.”
“Yeah, she’s pretty special,” I said.
“She is indeed,” Josie said, then glanced down at Captain who was still staring out at the action from underneath the couch. “But you, you’re such a disappointment,” she said, laughing.
Captain woofed at Josie then went back to watching the photo shoot.
“Okay, let’s see how the Goldens handle it,” John said, glancing at Chef Claire. “Maybe we can get them to play tug of war with one of the toys.”
Al and Dente trotted onto the rug and made a beeline for the same toy. Within seconds, they both had one end of it in their mouths and were growling playfully at each other.
“Yeah, I think we can probably make that happen,” Chef Claire said, grinning at her Goldens.
John resumed shooting. Then he swapped out the Goldens with Abby’s spaniels. Fifteen minutes later, he paused and glanced at Captain.
“Okay, Big Guy,” he said to Captain. “Your turn.”
Captain woofed at him and slid back further under the couch. Josie headed for the rug and returned with one of the toys. She placed it on the floor in front of the couch. Captain stared at it, then cocked his head at Josie.
“No, you’re going to have to come out from underneath the couch if you want it,” she said. “Come on, get your toy.”
Captain snorted but gradually inched his way out and grabbed the toy.
“Good boy,” Josie said, nodding. “Now, go play with it on the rug.”
Captain trotted onto the rug and stretched out with the toy in his mouth. John and Melinda stared at each other.
“These guys are amazing,” he said, snapping several shots of Captain.
“You want to try a hat or a scarf on him?” Melinda said.
“No, let’s not push our luck,” John said. “But let’s see if we can get all of the other dogs next to him for a group shot.” He glanced over at us. “Do you think we can make that happen? If not, I should be able to Photoshop them all in later.”
“We can do that,” I said, glancing at Josie and Chef Claire who both nodded. “Chloe, go say hi to Captain.”
Chloe trotted over and sat down behind Captain then draped her head over his neck. Captain continued to focus on his toy.
“Let’s go, guys,”
Chef Claire said as she headed for the rug. Both Goldens followed her, and they sat down behind Captain. “Good dogs. Stay.” Chef Claire returned to where we were standing a few feet away.
“You guys set the bar pretty high,” Abby said, laughing.
“See if you can get the Springers to lay down in front of the Newfie,” John said, raising his camera.
“That I can do,” Abby said. “C’mon, guys.”
Moments later, all six dogs were holding dog toys in their mouths as they lounged together on the rug. Several other toys, all part of the new Wags’ collection, were scattered around the rug. John shot continuously for the next few minutes then lowered the camera and stood up. The dogs stayed right where they were.
“Wow, that was way too easy,” he said. “These are going to look fantastic.”
“Look at them,” I said, shaking my head in amazement. “It’s like they’re all smiling.”
“It is,” Josie said. “They’re all very happy.”
“Content,” Chef Claire said. “Like they don’t have a care in the world.”
“That’s probably because they don’t,” Josie said.
“That’s it,” John said, nodding his head as he continued to study the dogs.
“What?” I said, glancing over at him.
“The tagline for the company,” he said. “I’ve been trying to come up with the right one.” He continued to nod his head. “It’s perfect.”
We all looked at him and waited.
“Wags: The Happiest Dogs On Earth.”
“Oh, that’s good,” Abby said.
John beamed as he glanced back and forth at us.
“I’m going to assume that we have a deal,” he said.
Abby looked over at us and waited for us to respond. I glanced at Josie and Chef Claire who nodded immediately. I smiled at our CEO and gave her two thumbs up. Abby smiled back then turned to John.
“We got a deal.”
Chapter 4
John and Melinda huddled for a few moments, then outlined their next steps to us. And after everyone had agreed to reconnect tomorrow, weather permitting, to review the mockups they would be working on tonight, we loaded the dogs into the SUV and headed for the parking garage exit. I was pleased to see that one of the building maintenance staff was just finishing snow blowing the exit ramp that led out to the street. At the bottom of the ramp, I made a right onto the freshly-plowed street and merged into light traffic.
“This might not be so bad,” I said, glancing over at Josie in the passenger seat.
“Don’t speak too soon,” she said. “It’s bad luck to tempt fate.”
“I doubt if the hand of fate is interested in whether or not the city streets are plowed,” I said, frowning at her.
“Hey, don’t say I didn’t warn you,” she said, then glanced out the window at the blanket of white that dominated the city. “I can’t wait to see what they come up with.”
“Me too,” I said, glancing down to review the directions Max had given me. I slowed to confirm the name of the street then put my turn signal on. “That was quick.”
I made a left onto a street that had been plowed earlier. But several inches of new snow had already accumulated since then, and I slowed to a crawl to work my way around a couple of cars parked on the side of the street and half-buried by what the plow had shoved over them. I noticed the street sign that matched Max’s address and was about to make the right turn when I pumped the brakes. I came to a stop and stared at the five-foot-high snowbank that was blocking access to Max’s street.
“Uh-oh,” I said, staring at the wall of snow the plows had left behind. “It looks like a couple of the plows decided to build a snow fort.”
“I told you not to talk about it,” Josie said, shaking her head at the scene right outside the car. “Now what do we do?”
“What’s the problem?” Chef Claire said, leaning forward from the back seat.
“The plows somehow managed to leave a wall of snow blocking access to Max’s street,” I said. “I suppose we could just try to drive through it.”
“Bad idea,” Josie said. “The last thing we want is to get stuck in a snowbank. Not to mention what it might do your car.”
“Yeah, you’re right,” I said, nodding. “Let me give Max a call and see what he has to say.” I grabbed my bag and searched for my phone. Moments later, I looked over at Josie. “I can’t find my phone.”
“Where did you leave it?” Josie said.
“I thought I put it back in my bag,” I said, digging through it again. “But it’s not here. I must have left it in the loft.”
“Not a problem,” Josie said. “You can pick it up tomorrow. I’ll call Max. What’s his number?”
I frowned as I tried to remember it. Eventually, I glanced over at her and shook my head.
“I don’t know it,” I said. “Since it’s stored on my phone, I never bothered to memorize it.”
“Okay,” Josie said, shrugging. “I’ll just call information.”
Josie got Max’s number then called.
“Busy signal,” she said, handing me the phone. “But it just went to voicemail.”
I took the phone from her and left a message for Max explaining what had happened and where we were. I ended the call and handed her phone back.
“I guess we just wait here, right?” Josie said, yawning.
“Why don’t we just go back to the loft and get my phone now?” I said. “It would only take a few minutes.”
“Why not?” Josie said, shrugging as she made another call.
“Who are you calling?” I said, turning the car around.
“You,” she said, holding her phone to her ear.
“Hello, this is Suzy,” I said, grinning at her.
“Funny,” Josie said, then ended the call. “It went straight to voicemail. Your phone must be off.”
“Thomas would have Naylor’s cell number, right?” I said, making a right.
“Good thinking,” Josie said, making the call. “Hey, Thomas. It’s Josie. Good, thanks. Yeah, today’s shoot was a lot of fun. Look, Suzy thinks she left her phone at John’s place and wants to give him a call. Yeah, I need his number.” Josie jotted the number down. “Thanks. You sound out of breath. You’re at the gym? In this weather? Okay, have fun with that. We’ll see you tomorrow.” She ended the call, then entered John’s number. “Who the heck would go to the gym in the middle of a snowstorm?”
“You’re asking me?” I said, glancing over as I put my turn signal on.
“Yeah, I forgot who I was talking to,” she said, the phone to her ear. “Naylor’s phone must be turned off.” She lowered the phone and stared out the window. “Did you get a number from his assistant?”
“Melinda? No,” I said. “It’s okay. We’re almost there. I’ll just pull into the parking garage and run up and get it.”
I spotted John’s building and slowed down then drove up the ramp that led to guest parking. I hopped out and glanced into the back where the dogs were beginning to stir.
“No, Chloe. Stay.” I glanced at Josie and Chef Claire. “I’ll be right back,” I said, closing the door and heading for the elevator that led to the lobby.
I checked in with security then headed for the elevators. One of the doors opened immediately, and I punched the five and leaned against the back of the elevator as the door closed and began its ascent. The door opened, and I headed down the hall doing my best lumber. I was sure it wasn’t anything like the workout Thomas must be going through at the gym, but it certainly got my heart pumping.
I decided to count it.
I came to a stop outside the door and took a second to catch my breath. I knocked on the door and was surprised when the door slid open a few inches. My neurons flared as I gently pushed the door and poked my head inside.
“John?”
I waited for a response then called out again. Hearing nothing, I stepped inside and closed the door behind me. I took small steps as I moved fo
rward scanning the loft, my eyes slowly moving left to right then back the other way. I paused near the kitchen area and scanned the counter for my phone. I listened closely for sounds that might indicate the presence of someone else. Hearing nothing, I continued toward the back of the loft where we’d done the photo shoot. I glanced around and noticed that the lights and the rug we’d used had been removed and that the drapes had been raised. I glanced out the windows at the snow that continued to fall.
“John? Hello. Is anybody here?”
I looked around for signs of a wall phone, but the closest I came was an intercom on a wall near the kitchen. I noticed an identical intercom near the front door. Thinking that perhaps John had found my phone and had put it in his office for safekeeping, I walked toward the office area that, like the bedroom, was cordoned off from the rest of the loft by an elaborate set of Japanese screens. There was nothing on the glass desktop, and it was sparkling clean. I sat down in the chair behind the desk and began opening various drawers. After finding all four empty, I sat back in the chair and felt the hairs on the back of my neck begin to tingle as a sense of dread descended over me. A busy man like Naylor certainly must have had at least some paper files or documents in his office, but there was nothing. I also noticed the lack of camera equipment and the laptop he’d used earlier during the shoot.
I stood up to continue my search and headed for the bedroom. I made my way into the large space and noticed John’s assistant, Melinda, fully clothed and sound asleep on the large bed that dominated the room. I was about to wake her up, then I jumped back. I stared down at her and recognized the vacant stare immediately.
“Oh, no,” I whispered as I headed for the bed. I leaned over for a closer look, then stood up and shook my head as tears welled in my eyes. I started to reach for her wrist to check for a pulse, then stopped when I noticed a white powder on the pillow underneath her head. I took a step back and started to sob. A look of surprise was fixed on the young woman’s face, and I backed out of the bedroom, my eyes darting back and forth as the thought that whoever had killed the young woman might still be in the loft popped into my head. I made my way to the intercom near the kitchen, grabbed a knife from its butcher block holder and stood with my back to the wall glancing around the loft. I pressed the intercom button.
