“Hey, guys,” she said to them in the bright but gentle tone Hobo seemed to love. “Everything’s going to be fine. I promise. As soon as I can arrange it, you’ll all be going home.”
Chapter 34
H
obo caught the ball, a high pop-up near the back fence, and did a triumphant trot around the yard before depositing it at Rory’s feet. He plopped down beside it, panting heavily, his tongue lolling out of his mouth. Zeke levitated the ball and sent it arcing into the air again. The dog turned to watch it soar, but made no move to go after it. He looked back at Zeke and Rory with an expression that clearly said, “If you want that ball, you’re going to have to get it yourselves. I’m done.”
“I guess playtime is officially over,” Rory said, laughing. They’d been outside for twenty minutes, and Zeke was still intact and functioning well, a new record for him. He’d likened the progress in his newfound ability to developing a muscle that had never been exercised before. He seemed mighty pleased about it too.
Rory still had mixed feelings about his progress, but since there was no way to force the genie back into the bottle, she knew she’d have to adapt to it. On the other hand, she wasn’t at all ambivalent about the improving relationship between Zeke and Hobo, who were living together in something approaching harmony. She’d watched Zeke’s distaste for the dog soften into acceptance and even subtle gratitude after he helped save Rory’s life. For his part, Hobo seemed to have overcome some of his instinctive fear of the marshal since the poisoning incident. Rory could only assume that the dog had been aware enough to know that Zeke was instrumental in saving him.
The three of them trooped back into the warmth of the kitchen, Zeke eschewing the more direct path through the walls in favor of the mortal route. Rory worried that he was practicing the ways of the living with the intention of passing among them now that he could journey beyond the house. She didn’t question him about it, though, since she wasn’t ready to hear his response.
She shed her coat and gloves, her scarf and hat, draping them over the hooks she’d installed for that purpose in the laundry room. Hobo gave his coat a vigorous shake before ducking under the table, where he lay down with a sigh of pleasure. Having neither clothing to remove nor fur to shake, Zeke had immediately folded himself into his chair at the table, where he waited, noiselessly tapping his foot, while the mortals in the family settled in.
“How was that bunch you went to with Leah?” he asked, having clearly reached the end of his patience.
Rory filled the teakettle with water and set it on the stove to heat. She could hardly blame him for initiating the conversation. In fact, she’d expected him to start pumping her with questions the moment she’d returned.
“I think you mean ‘brunch.’ ” She managed to keep a sober face, since laughing at his expense never ended well.
“Whatever you call it,” he said with a dismissive wave of his hand. “Speakin’ for myself, I can’t see the benefit of combinin’ two meals into one. I remember enjoyin’ food enough to have three squares a day whenever the possibility presented itself.”
Rory took a packet of cocoa mix from the pantry and poured the contents into a mug while she waited for him to circle back to the point.
“Brunch.” His upper lip curled as if the word left a bad taste in his mouth. “It even sounds unnatural. No matter. I’m not interested in what you ate or where you ate it. I just want to hear the latest information from your detective friend.”
The telephone rang before Rory could begin his briefing. Her “hello” was met with a rush of words that were nearly incomprehensible. Tina was in fine form.
“I’m so glad you’re there—I had to stop by on our way home so you could see the fruits of your labor in person—come outside—come outside—I can’t wait for you to meet George and Gracie!”
Rory set the phone down and told Zeke she’d be back in a minute, at which point he folded his arms, adopting a much-put-upon expression. “One minute, I swear.” She headed for the front door without her coat, leaving it as collateral for the promise.
Tina’s car was in the driveway with the window open and a little white, furry head on either side of hers like animated earmuffs. She introduced the pair to Rory, her voice choked with emotion. The return of the dogs was clearly helping to mitigate the shock and devastation she’d suffered over her husband’s arrest for stealing them.
“You have no idea how much it means to have my babies back again.”
Rory realized there was a time when that would have been true, but now that she had Hobo in her life, she understood completely. “It’s wonderful how most of the people who were caught up in the scam were willing to return the stolen dogs without a court fight or some other nastiness,” she said, scratching around the ears of the two Maltese.
“Dog people.” Tina smiled. “It’s just a pity they were out all that money. I felt so bad for the family that had George and Gracie that I gave them their money back out of my own—hey, I didn’t realize you had company—I didn’t mean to interrupt anything—I was just so excited and grateful. . . .”
“Company?” Rory repeated, taken by surprise.
“Well, if it’s not company, then a thief broke into your house during the two minutes we’ve been talking.” Tina laughed. “I could swear I saw someone at your living room window.” She was looking past Rory at the house as if trying to confirm the sighting.
“Oh, you probably saw my aunt,” Rory said, recovering quickly. “She drops by whenever she’s in the neighborhood. I don’t think of her as company.”
“Well, I’ll let you get back to your aunt—I’ve got to get these guys home anyway—thanks sooo much for your help. Backseat,” she instructed the dogs, who withdrew from the window and hopped into the rear of the car by way of the center console.
When Rory returned to the kitchen, Zeke was in his chair looking as innocent as a schoolboy accused of shooting spitballs behind the teacher’s back. But since the kettle she’d put up was whistling hysterically, she took a moment to pour the water into her mug and grab a spoon, before turning to him.
“Tina saw you,” she said evenly. She was determined not to make too much of it, since they’d been doing so well together. With her hot cocoa in hand she sat down at the table. “You’re going to have to be more careful.”
“I was curious,” Zeke replied without apology.
“The next time your curiosity gets the better of you, there’s always the invisibility option.”
“Fair enough,” he allowed. “From what I could see, Tina seems to be copin’ just fine.”
“She’s having her ups and downs. One day she’s ready to divorce Joe and the next she’s talking about marriage counseling down the road. Of course a lot depends on how his trial goes and what kind of time he might be facing. Anyway, she’s coming to understand that she helped push him over the edge—a lesson that shouldn’t be ignored,” she added wryly.
“Speakin’ of which, how much longer are you gonna make me wait for that update you’ve been promisin’?” Zeke asked, turning her insinuation to his advantage.
“I’m sorry—you have been patient.” She took a quick sip of her cocoa. “Okay—according to the ME’s report there was no physical evidence to support Larry’s claim that he killed Brenda in self-defense—especially since the only prints on the knife were his. It’s Leah’s theory that Brenda wore rubber gloves when she washed the knife and left it on the drain board to dry. When Larry grabbed it, he assumed her prints would be on it too and that they would provide enough reasonable doubt to acquit him.”
“I imagine that was one unhappy fella when Leah told him the only prints were his,” Zeke said with a smile.
“Wait, there’s more. When Larry realized he was being charged with murder as well as with a long list of other charges from the dognappings, he knew he wasn’t going to walk away a free man anytime soon. Leah said that was when the floodgates burst open. Once Larry started talking, not even his lawyer could get him to shut up. He gave them a blow by blow of every one of his exploits, bragging as if they were accomplishments. He seemed particularly pleased to tell Leah that he’d had half a dozen mistresses during the course of his marriage.”
“If he was as generous with them as Brenda claims he was with her, it’s not hard to see how money would eventually become an issue. There’s just so much you can hide from a spouse.”
“Well, he did say the dognapping ring was his idea. No big surprise there. He may be a sociopath, but he’s lightyears ahead of the other two in the brains department.”
“How did he know them anyway?”
“At the dog shows Marti was always dragging him to. Joe was there whenever Tina was showing one of her dogs, and Eddie haunted—oops, sorry—went to the shows to drum up business.”
“Between the three of them they’ve gotta know where hundreds of dogs live.”
“Exactly,” Rory said. The cocoa had cooled enough for her to drink a couple of mouthfuls. “Joe serviced oil burners all over western Suffolk County. Eddie had a fairly extensive list of customers too. The men added to their files by canvassing dog parks in their spare time. And when they needed puppies, they stole them from pet stores or breeders, who made it easy for them by advertising their inventory.”
Zeke shook his head. “So what was Joe’s story?”
Rory shrugged. “It’s complicated. Leah says he broke down sobbing as soon as they started questioning him. From what they could piece together, he’d been feeling like a kept man, if you know what that means.”
Zeke nodded. “I get the drift.”
“Tina managed all their finances, and since the bulk of the money came from her trust fund, Joe didn’t think he had the right to argue about it. So whenever he needed or wanted anything, he had to ask her for the money. He was very clear about how generous Tina always was with him, but the arrangement seems to have whittled away at his self-respect over the years. He’d started to resent her for it. So when Dog’s World got a buyer for a couple of Maltese, Larry suggested they take two of Tina’s dogs. When Leah asked Joe why he agreed to it, he just shook his head. She thinks maybe it gave him back a sense of control. But later, when he saw how much Tina was suffering over the loss, he told Larry he wanted out. Larry threatened to spill it all to Tina if he left. So Joe was stuck. Leah said she almost felt bad for the guy.”
“I’m willin’ to bet that Eddie didn’t do any sobbin’ or confessin’,” Zeke said.
“You’re right—Eddie’s definitely not the crying type. But he’s also not as smart as he thinks he is. When he and Joe were arguing at the warehouse, he slipped and admitted to nearly killing Hobo.”
“If you’d like, I can pay Eddie a little visit and scare him out of whatever wits he possesses,” Zeke offered, the prospect making his eyes twinkle with mischief.
Rory was sorely tempted by the offer, but she knew it was bound to make her life more difficult. “We can’t risk another episode of ‘Wyatt Earp Returns,’ ” she said. “Especially since my name is linked with this case too.”
“Folks’ll just think you have yourself a secret weapon.”
“You’re only a ‘secret’ weapon if you remain a secret,” Rory pointed out. She kept her tone light, but she could feel them sliding headlong toward the brink of the autonomy debate.
The divide between them on the issue was so deep that she wasn’t sure they’d find a way to span it. She figured Zeke had come to the same conclusion, which was why he’d recently invested in good behavior.
“I’m not a child,” he said bluntly, “and I don’t need your permission to leave the house.” And there it was, front and center.
“So that’s the reason you’ve been trying to stay on my good side since you returned from your rehab or whatever it was?” Rory asked point-blank. “You thought you’d cajole me into your way of thinking?”
“I did spend some time mullin’ over the situation while I was away.”
“Is that why you’ve been working on your relationship with Hobo too?” She wanted the truth, even if it disappointed her.
“I take strong exception to that, Aurora,” Zeke said, his face tightening like a fist. “I’ve developed a genuine affection for the mutt. And I’ll have you know that I don’t pretend to feelings I don’t have, for animals or for people.”
Rory was more relieved to hear him say that than she would have expected to be. “In that case I owe you an apology.”
“Well, I suppose you do. But that ain’t all that needs settlin’ between us. I don’t understand why you’re so damned opposed to my leavin’ my confinement here.”
“I know you think you can pass for the living, but it won’t work,” Rory said, trying to sound as understanding and reasonable as she could. “You may have mastered the ability to appear intact, but there are a hundred ways reality can trip you up. What if someone sees you suddenly appear out of the ether—or disappear, for that matter? What if someone bumps into you and sends all your molecules flying? What if—”
“What if someone claims they’ve seen a UFO? The world doesn’t end. No one locks them up and throws away the key.”
“But if sightings of you always occur when I’m around—in no time at all I’ll be the Medium and the Ghost Whisperer all rolled into one, the target of every photographer, journalist and anyone else who wants to see a ghost for himself. I’m a private investigator, Zeke. It would be pretty hard for me to conduct investigations with an entourage like that following me around.” All right, that was a little heavy on the hyperbole, but she needed the marshal to consider the wider ramifications of following his bliss.
Zeke winked out of his chair and reappeared a second later near the sink, so overwrought that he’d apparently forgotten he’d been practicing to act like the living. “So why in tarnation have you been helpin’ me practice? Was it just to shut me up while you kept hopin’ I’d never get the hang of it?”
“That’s not fair,” Rory said, the accusation ruffling her feathers although there was more than a grain of truth to it.
“If you had your way, I’d stay cooped up in this house, except for the occasional sortie to rescue you.” His expression was growing blacker by the moment.
“Don’t go there,” Rory warned him. “It may have been helpful to know that Joe was coming up behind me with that wrench, but I would have heard him myself in a matter of seconds. And we both know it was unlikely he would have used it on me anyway. So you’ve never actually rescued me. More to the point,” she went on before he could rebut her claim, “you’re not meant to be in this world anymore.” That was cruel even if it was the truth, and she realized it just as the words left her mouth.