Chihuahua of the Baskervilles (23 page)

“There should be a dial at the top,” Angus said. “Turn it away from the snowflake.”

Cheri reached up and twisted. The hum stopped. She shut the door. “Now I can’t see to get in my chair.”

“I’ll push it out for you,” Michael said. The chair’s legs squeaked across the wooden floor.

“Thanks.” Cheri said. “Hey, what’d you put in my seat?”

“I didn’t put anything there,” Michael said. “Hold on.” He leaned back in his chair and managed to open the fridge door with his fingertips.

The resulting light showed Cheri holding up a ratty stuffed toy.

“Wormy!” Charlotte said. “That was Petey’s favorite toy, but he lost it.” She turned to Michael. “Shut off that light!”

Michael closed the fridge door, plunging the room into darkness.

Silence. Finally Ivan grunted. A high, wailing howl sounded faintly.

“Petey?” Charlotte asked.

“It is a message for Cheri,” Ivan said, his voice slow and tired-sounding. “He says he forgives you.”

“What does Petey have to forgive me for?” Cheri demanded. “I never did anything to that dog.”

“Not Petey,” Ivan slurred. “Someone else. He is passing on the message. Also, you must give up your bad habits. Only then will you be able to forgive yourself.”

“I have no idea what he’s talking about,” Cheri said, her voice high and tight.

“Cheri,” Jay said.

“Shut up!” In the dark, they heard her sniffle.

Ivan moaned. “Petey grows tired. Does anyone else have any questions?”

“I have a question,” Angus said. “Something has gone missing from Thomas’s room. Who has it?”

After a pause, they heard one quiet bark.

“He says it is not your concern. Anyone else?”

“Yeah, me,” Suki said. “Was I a Mongol princess in another life?”

“Oh, for—,” Michael began.

“What?” Suki demanded. “That’s the sort of thing you’re supposed to ask.”

Ivan swayed toward Suki. “He says you were the bravest and most fierce of Mongol princesses.”

“I didn’t hear any barking,” Michael said.

“He is fading.” Ivan let out a deep sigh. “He is gone. I will turn on lights.” He pushed back his chair and got up while the others broke into a babble of conversation.

The overhead light came on. Ivan stood next to his chair and rolled his shoulders. “It has been a long time. I forgot how tired it makes me.”

“You did a wonderful job.” Charlotte applauded, followed by the others.

Michael brought his hands together twice and let them fall. “We didn’t learn much, though.”

“It was enough to know Petey still exists, on some level,” Charlotte said. “Also, that I can rely on help from a man from the east.” She smiled up at Ivan.

“I grew up in Nebraska,” Bob offered. “That’s east of here.”

“I think Ivan probably comes from the farthest east,” Charlotte said.

Ivan put a hand on her shoulder. “I will always work to keep you safe, Charlotte, but you know that already.”

Cheri threw the dog toy in the center of the table. “I’m going to bed.” She glared at Michael with pink-rimmed eyes. “Move!”

Michael maneuvered his chair out of the way.

Cheri got up and walked stiffly from the kitchen.

“Poor Cheri,” Charlotte sighed. She picked up the dog toy and held it tenderly. “Maybe what Petey said will help. What do you think, Ivan?”

“Why ask him?” Ellen demanded. “Is he an expert on troubled youth now, in addition to dogs?”

Charlotte looked taken aback. “Okay, then what do you think, Ellen?”

“It doesn’t matter what I think.” Ellen shoved back her chair. “It’s late, and I have to get up early tomorrow.” She left the kitchen.

Bob straightened Ellen’s chair so he could get up. “I should go, too. The race is tomorrow, and I still have a lot of work to get ready. Thank you, Ivan and Charlotte. That was fascinating.” He headed toward the front door.

Jay stood. “Thanks for the invitation, Ivan.”

Ivan nodded. “It is no problem.”

“Take care, Jay.” Charlotte gave him a sympathetic smile. “I hope we’ll still see you.”

He turned away, his neck bent. “Yeah, maybe.”

Ivan leaned down to Charlotte. “I will make sure all the doors and downstairs windows are locked,” he said quietly.

Charlotte turned her face up to his. “I can’t thank you enough, Ivan.”

He nodded solemnly and followed Jay toward the front door.

Charlotte put her hand to her chest and blew out a breath. “What an amazing man. I couldn’t believe when I felt that touch on my ankle. It was
exactly
the way Petey used to nose me when he wanted to be picked up. And then to have Wormy appear out of nowhere!”

“Very impressive,” Angus agreed. “I had Michael record the sound, so we can include a transcript of the most exciting parts.”

“We should also put the dog sounds online,” Michael added. “People love that kind of cr … um, stuff.”

Charlotte clasped her hands. “You’ll stay tonight, won’t you? Tomorrow is the big race.”

Angus nodded. “We can stay for that, but then we’ll have to be going. I can’t thank you enough for your hospitality.”

She shook her head. “I should be thanking you. It’s been a little frightening at times, but I have the feeling that things are going to settle down now.”

“Why?” Michael asked.

She smiled. “Because Petey would have told me if I should be worried. Anyway, I’ll see you all in the morning.”

“That reminds me,” Suki said. “What do you like on your waffles?”

*   *   *

Angus and his crew decided to shop for waffle supplies that night, so they could discuss the séance away from the house.

Charlotte gave them directions to a twenty-four-hour grocery store, about ten minutes away.

Once they were on the road, Michael blew out his breath in an irritated huff. “I guess there’s nothing like a completely bogus display of otherworldly tripe to lay all your fears to rest. A little ventriloquism and Petey says whatever Ivan wants.”

“You don’t believe I was a Mongol princess?” Suki asked.

“Or that the ghost of Petey touched Charlotte Baskerville on the ankle and put his missing toy on Cheri’s chair?” Angus asked.

“Please,” Michael scoffed from the backseat. “Why do you think Ivan took his shoes off? I’m sure he got rid of at least one sock, too, so his clammy toe could pass as Petey’s nose and also so he could toss that dog toy into Cheri’s chair.”

“How could he know Cheri would be the one to turn the refrigerator thermostat?” Angus asked. “For that matter, how could he count on the refrigerator starting up?”

“He didn’t have to know any of that. He just had to be prepared to take advantage of a distraction, like a phone call, or the wind. And he would have had something to say for whoever got up from their chair. If no one got up, he could have left the toy at Charlotte’s foot and poked her ankle like Petey.”

“And the fact that it was Petey’s
favorite
toy?” Angus asked.

Michael made a derisive noise. “Every toy is a dog’s favorite at some point. That particular one might not even have belonged to Petey. Ivan could have bought a new one and roughed it up when he got the idea for the séance.”

Angus stared out the car window. “It would be a lot of trouble to go through, but on the other hand, Ivan certainly made an impression on Charlotte tonight. I wouldn’t be surprised if she changes her mind and helps his TV career.”

“Ellen and Cheri definitely seem to think there was a shift in power,” Suki said. “Did you notice how pissed they both were? And what did Ivan mean by that business of forgiving Cheri?”

“That was just a safe, vague thing to say,” Michael said. “Everyone has something that needs forgiving.”

“Especially alcoholics,” Angus said.

“And who was forgiving her?” Suki went on. “He left that up in the air.”

Michael thought for a moment. “The most
logical
assumption, and I use that word reluctantly, is that if it isn’t Petey, it’s someone else who’s dead. Thomas, for example.”

Angus nodded. “Maybe Ivan thinks Cheri was behind the ghost dog that Thomas followed into the street.”

“Or maybe Cheri brought the spider to the wake, and he’s talking about that,” Suki said.

Angus sighed heavily. “It’s horrible to think that a young woman would want to scare her own grandmother to death.”

When they reached the store, the parking lot was almost empty.

“I assume there’s some kind of mix for waffles,” Angus said, as the store’s sliding doors whooshed open and they walked into the glare of fluorescent lights.

“We used Bisquick when I was a kid.” Michael flagged down a passing employee. “Excuse me, where’s the baking aisle?”

The man pointed. “Four aisles that way.”

“I’m kind of glad I volunteered us to make waffles,” Suki said, as she and Angus followed Michael. “Charlotte’s pretty cool. Of course, there’s always the possibility that she’s the one behind all this.”

Michael turned and looked over his shoulder. “How do you figure that?”

“She could have done it for the publicity.”

Michael snorted. “She should have researched the magazine a little more, then.”

Angus frowned. “Mark my word, the local papers will get wind of our article, or it could get picked up on the wire—from there she could wind up on a talk show.”

“Or maybe it’s not for publicity,” Suki said. “Maybe she’s crazy and wants the attention.”

“Or maybe it was all a clever way to get rid of Thomas,” Michael said.

Angus turned down the aisle marked
BAKING
. “I don’t see how Charlotte could have worked that hoax on her own.”

“You have to think outside the box,” Michael said. “We don’t absolutely know that Charlotte and the people in the car didn’t know each other. Or maybe Thomas didn’t actually slip in the road. He could have been shot by Ivan, who was hiding in a tree, in cahoots with Charlotte.”

“And a car just happened to run Thomas down moments after he was shot?” Angus asked.

Michael shrugged. “It’s not as though cars never come down that road. Ivan could have been up in his tree, giving the ghost dog instructions to run around the yard until the right moment.”

“Assuming such a ludicrous thing happened,” Angus said, “and the coroner didn’t notice a bullet hole in Thomas, why would the pranks continue? Why put a spider in the coffin?”

“How about this,” Suki chimed in. “Charlotte gets rid of Thomas, then decides to scare her slacker granddaughter away so she can live in peace with her Russian lover.”

“Does that mean Ellen is the next to go?” Angus asked.

“Nah,” Suki said. “Someone has to answer the door and bring the drinks.”

Angus pointed to a shelf. “Waffle mixes.”

“I hope there’s one without trans fats,” Michael said, picking up a box and checking the ingredients. “This one looks okay.” He pointed farther down the shelf. “And a bottle of maple syrup. Charlotte might not have any.” He chose a bottle and started walking.

“The exit is this way, Michael,” Suki said.

“But whipped cream and frozen strawberries are this way,” Michael said.

“Oh, for crying out loud,” Angus said. “You’ll be wanting chocolate sprinkles next.”

Michael turned uncertainly. “Those would be back in Baking.”

Angus gave Michael a little push. “No sprinkles for you. Get your berries and cream and let’s go.”

“
No sprinkles for you
would make an excellent T-shirt slogan,” Suki said.

Twenty-one

The next morning, Ellen came down in her robe at seven thirty and found the staff of
Tripping
making waffles. Pouring a mug of coffee, she said, “I thought you people would have left by now.”

“We still have the coffin race to cover,” Angus said.

“Hmph.” She went back upstairs.

Ivan came down a little later, looking dressy in charcoal slacks and a silky shirt the color of blood.

“Going to the casino today?” Angus asked, as he gathered silverware from a drawer.

“No. Today is coffin race.” Ivan pulled out a chair and slouched elegantly, legs straight out and crossed at the ankles. “People will make videos, and you never know who will see it or if I will be interviewed.” He pointed at Angus. “You will send me copy of your magazine article.”

“I’ll be glad to.” Angus took a stack of plates from the cupboard and began to set the table. “Your séance was very impressive last night.”

“Ivan has many talents.”

“What do you think the spirits meant about Cheri being forgiven?”

Ivan shrugged. “It could be many things. She has been worse recently, getting angry and not doing chores. If Ivan had his way, Cheri would straighten up and fly right on.” He made a scooting gesture with his hand.

At the sound of the front door opening, Ivan sat up straight.

Angus looked down the hall and saw Charlotte with Lila on a leash and Chum in a shallow purse. Both of them wore little coats. “I hope you’re hungry,” he called to her.

She gave him a little wave. “I saved myself. All I’ve had is coffee.”

Ivan got up and went to join Charlotte.

Angus watched as he murmured something to her, put a hand on her arm, then picked up Chum in his carrier and headed upstairs.

Michael put the butter and syrup on the table and followed Angus’s gaze with his own. “Looks like he’s got her on the hook and is reeling her in,” he muttered.

“It does,” Angus said. “I have to wonder, was he behind the ghost from the beginning?”

“Make her afraid and then save the day?” Michael said. “Possibly.”

Charlotte came to join them, Lila trotting beside her. “This looks very nice. Thank you.”

“It’s the least we can do for all your hospitality.” Angus pulled out a chair for her. “How are you feeling this morning?”

“Wonderful. Luckily, angina doesn’t have much in the way of lingering symptoms.” Charlotte sat and patted her lap for Lila, who jumped up immediately. “I can’t tell you how relieved I feel this morning. It’s as if there was a thunderstorm looming, and that séance cleared the air.”

Ellen clattered down the stairs and came into the kitchen, dressed this time.

“Good morning, Ellen,” Charlotte said cheerfully.