Double Dog Dare (5 page)

“Why, investigate, of course. That’s what he does these days—that and install security systems.”

I beat down my internal frustration. “Right. And the investigation—any idea what it involved?”

“Not really. Only Lois knows. Although she did tell me she thought you’d be interested in it, once she gave Jeff the go-ahead to let you know.”

“Me?”

“She knows about you, too, of course. Anyway, she’s as frantic as I am to find out what’s happened to him. That’s why we’re both willing to talk to you. Not the police, and not any of Jeff’s employees, in case they’re involved. We don’t know you, but he does, and we understand that he trusts you. So, you call Lois now, and she’ll fill you in—as long as you promise your discretion. And as long as you keep us both informed about what you find out. Okay?”

“I’ll need to know more about it first,” I equivocated. “I mean, if it’s against the law, or if I need to inform the authorities to protect Jeff, or—”

Middle-aged Mother Hubbard laughed. “Jeff did say you were a lawyer, Kendra, and now I can tell that’s true.”

And you
? I wanted to ask.
What do you do for a living now?
But the moment passed before I thought of a tactful way to inquire.

“Just promise you’ll keep things as discreet as you ethically and legally can, will you? And keep me in the loop?”

“I’ll do what I’m able, Irene. Now, can you give me Lois’s phone number?”

THAT EVENING, LEXIE, Odin, and I were piled in my rental car, heading east on the 10 Freeway.

I’d gotten my assistant Rachel’s promise to care for the pet-sitting clients I needed to visit that night, and dropped off all the keys, instructions, and my general gratitude with her.

We were on our way to see Lois Terrone.

She lived in Ontario—California, not Canada—which might have explained why Jeff sometimes flew on business trips from the alternate L.A. airport there, rather than Burbank or LAX. I’d assumed it was economics or convenience or both. Now, I realized he had a different reason.

Why hadn’t he talked more about Lois? Or had my attention been focused elsewhere when he had?

When I’d called Lois, she’d sounded urgently upset, yet eager to talk to me. I didn’t need to mention my pet situation, since she knew about Lexie and assumed I had possession of Odin, too.

Obviously, Jeff and she had been in communication before his disappearance. So why was she such a mystery to me?

Of course there was probably a lot about the guy I’d nervously agreed to move in with that I didn’t know.

Might never know. . . . No, I wasn’t going to do that to myself. Not now. Hopefully, not ever.

I’d done a MapQuest computer search for Lois’s address before departing from Jeff’s. She was located north and west of the Ontario Airport, south of the freeway. Due to these directions, I had no trouble locating her home. Its appearance amazed me. It resembled a fairy-tale cottage, with several pointy parts and a roof that looked thatched, even though the shingles were clearly of the fire-retardant kind, compulsory for Southern California. Its chimney was tall, and its façade a charming golden stucco. The yard was fenced—white pickets, naturally.

I leashed the pups and walked through the front gate of this quaint and cozy setting. And was met by some loud barking from inside.

“Uh-oh,” I said to my charges. “Maybe we’ll leave you in the car for a little while.” But before I could take care of that, the front door opened and a lady several inches shorter than my five-five, wearing dark slacks, a corn-colored shirt, and a long, flowing scarf, was towed outside by the sizable Akita whose collar she held.

Intelligent Lexie cringed. Odin looked ready to attack his larger and belligerent breedmate, whose coat was darker and fuzzier than his. Not a comforting situation.

But then the woman barked, “Ezekiel, sit!” and damned if the territorial and confrontational canine didn’t obey. “Welcome, Kendra,” she continued, “and Lexie. And especially Odin.” She all but crooned the last as she proffered her palm. Odin obediently approached, and although Ezekiel eyed him suspiciously, neither male made as if he was about to attack. Instead, Odin sniffed the human’s hand and started wagging all over, like one big puppy. Which, despite his Akita assertiveness, he was.

The lady knelt and grinned and hugged Odin, then looked up at me. “I’m Lois,” she said. “Let’s all go inside, shall we?”

She seemed to have a slight limp as I followed her, as if one leg might be slightly shorter than the other. She walked fast nevertheless, the length of her scarf trailing after her. Ezekiel, ignoring us, stayed by her side.

From behind, seeing only her long, blond curls, I’d have assumed she was a whole lot younger than she looked head-on.

I’d gotten only a glimpse of her face, but I had a hint of a once-lovely woman with shining green eyes. But age hadn’t been amiable to her, resulting in skin folds and pouches beneath beautifully high cheekbones. If she’d resorted to Botox, surgery, or other artifice, they’d been ineffective.

Her front door led directly into a quaint living room with an overstuffed sofa in an orange print and matching, disorganized chairs on a paler orange braided rag rug resting on a gleaming wood floor. The large chimney I’d noted outside backed an enormous hearth piled high with apparently fake logs. The walls were covered with doggy photos. All appeared to be Akitas, though not every one was Ezekiel. Some had lighter fur and were smaller. Others were darker and larger. One looked like mostly Akita with a blunter face and floppy ears instead of the usual erect and alert ones.

“Please have a seat,” she said. “You can let Lexie’s and Odin’s leashes go. They can roam. Ezekiel’s a good host, I promise.”

Feeling a bit uneasy, I nevertheless obeyed. Akitas often tend to be territorial, although Odin had accepted perky little Lexie as a friend first thing. Maybe it was because she was clearly no threat to his bigger and more assertive alphaness. But could I count on that here, on Ezekiel’s turf?

Amazingly, Ezekiel immediately sat down beside a chair, probably Lois’s favorite, since that was where she lit. But only for a second.

“Now you get comfortable,” she said, standing again. “I’ve got home-baked cookies in the kitchen. Do you prefer coffee, tea, soda, water—?”

“Coffee sounds great,” I said. “If you already have it made, that is. Don’t go to any trouble.”

She grinned, lifting some skin folds and displaying large, white teeth. “Jeff said you were one polite lady, most of the time. And a handful if you got peeved, which he claimed happens a lot. So, I’ll try not to peeve you. I anticipated coffee, and that’s what I want, too. It’s already made.” With that, she exited into the kitchen.

Not Ezekiel, though. He stayed where he was, keeping an eye on Odin, who stood by me as I sat on the sofa, Lexie on my lap. The host Akita might be polite, but he still hounded us like . . . well, a male dog on his home turf.

I studied the other Akita photos. They were cute and soulful and entrancing.

“Do you breed Akitas?” I asked when Lois returned to the room. She put our cups of coffee on the low, roughwood—what else?—coffee table. She’d also juggled a plate of cookies, but after letting me choose one, she set it on the mantel, beyond the reach of the dogs.

Her pouchy face sagged into additional wrinkles as she again took her seat. “I used to,” she said sadly. “But it’s a lot of work, and it was always so hard to sell the pups when I wanted to keep them all. Now I have only one or two at a time. And that’s part of the problem. About Jeff, I mean.”

“Jeff?” My ears felt as if they perked up like a pup’s. “I don’t understand.”

“No, I’m sure you don’t. Not till I explain it to you. But I know what Jeff was up to when he disappeared. And I can’t help suspecting it has a connection with what I asked him to do.”

“What’s that?” I demanded, edging so far forward in my seat that Lexie started wriggling.

“Can you keep a secret?” she asked. “Because if I tell you, and you blab about it . . .”

Her green eyes suddenly grew fierce, and I sensed what she wasn’t saying.

Her small laugh sounded anything but humorous. “I used to say something like ‘I’d have to kill you.’ But that’s not funny. Not now. Not when I don’t know whether my request for help killed Jeff.” And she started to cry.

Chapter Four

I ATTEMPTED TO remain calm while everything inside me churned and reeled. And screamed,
What are you talking about?

I gently placed Lexie on the floor and approached Lois. I knelt beside her chair and slipped an arm around her shoulders.

And waited until she regained enough control to explain.

For only an instant, she leaned her head toward mine until they touched, then sat up straighter. “I’m okay now,” she said. “Thanks, Kendra. Sit down and enjoy your coffee. ”

I complied with the sitting and sipping, but I wasn’t quite ready to enjoy the brew. Sure, it was strong, but I could have gone for something stronger. Harder. Alcoholic.

Even so, I was better off this way with a drink that could help to clear my head with its caffeine, instead of muzzying it.

Obviously understanding that his mistress was upset, Ezekiel took my place near her and laid his head on her lap. She hugged him, then started stroking him as she looked at me with my two canine charges poised protectively on the floor at my sides.

“Sorry for coming apart like that,” she said soggily. Now her face wasn’t only pouchy, it was splotchy as well. Good thing she didn’t have a mirror on her picture-laden living room walls. “Do you know much about my relationship with Jeff and his family?”

I shook my head. “No, sorry to say I don’t.”

“Well, I go back a long way with Irene, his mom. Years ago, we danced in the same clubs together. Not the most refined of establishments, you understand.”

“Jeff did tell me a little about how Irene helped their family when he was a kid,” I admitted. Lois wasn’t exactly my image of an exotic dancer, not even one who’d reached middle age. She was still somewhat slim, but I couldn’t visualize her in skimpy clothing and sexy poses.

Had Jeff’s mom aged as ungracefully? Now I was really curious to meet her in person.

“I know what you’re thinking.” This time, her laugh reflected some humor. “You can’t quite imagine me back then, can you? Well, I can, every time I look in the mirror, believe it or not. Anyway, Irene’s now a dance instructor. Did you know that?”

Aha! I shook my head, glad for this update and insight.

“Me, when I started getting a touch of arthritis, I went back to school. Became a paralegal. I can see that surprises and maybe even impresses you. I know you’re a lawyer, so I’m sure you’ve your own opinion of paralegals. A little different from exotic dancers, eh?”

“Sure are,” I agreed.

“Way back then, when Jeff figured out what his mom really did for a living, she called and cried on my shoulder. But she was damned proud of his ingenuity. And his discretion. He promised never to tell his dad, who thought Irene was a waitress at an upscale restaurant in downtown Chicago.” She waved a curved finger at me when I started to suggest he could have known the truth. At least Jeff had told me his dad had wondered about it. “He never mentioned it to her if he suspected otherwise. Anyway, I was already living in the L.A. area when Jeff got out of the army, received a degree in criminal justice, and joined the LAPD. I liked the area out here better than L.A. proper, so we didn’t see each other as much as I’d have liked, but I was still sort of his second mom. I knew when he got into a fight and wound up leaving the force in shame. I also knew he’d be a great P.I. on his own—lots of spunk and creativity in that one. And the security system angle—well, that just added to how special he is.”

Though I enjoyed hearing about Jeff and their relationship, this conversation wasn’t getting me where I wanted to go.

“So you recently requested that he do something for you?” I prompted.

“Patience, my dear. I’ll get to that.” For a moment, Lois stared into space. Or maybe she was regarding one of the photos on her wall. “The thing was, I fell in love.”

“Tell me about him,” I said. Had her lover disappeared, so she’d sent Jeff after him?

“Not him. Her.”

I must have appeared surprised. Not that I’ve anything against same-sex relationships, but I hadn’t anticipated it with this former exotic dancer.

She laughed. “Not a person. A dog—mostly Akita.”

“Oh,” I said, as if I suddenly understood. But I didn’t. Not really.

She sipped her coffee, then rose to retrieve the plate of cookies. I’d eaten the first but hadn’t exactly tasted it. A sugar cookie, I thought. I accepted a second. This time, I savored a bite. Yep, definitely sugar. A great-tasting cookie. I watched as all three dogs stared and started to beg. “Mine,” I informed them.

“Just a sec.” Lois disappeared toward her kitchen and returned with dog biscuits in her hand. “Okay if I give them a treat?”

“Sure.” But I was feeling more than a little impatient. Where was her story heading? She’d fallen for a dog. That involved Jeff how?

She soon sat down and explained. Sorta. “So I became a paralegal. And when I moved here, I also got religion. I joined a local church and became really active. A pillar of the community. On the board and many committees. Lots of good friends, and people I could talk to. But that wasn’t all. Like I said, I used to breed Akitas, but it got to be a bit much. And then, one of my bitches got loose while in season and was knocked up by a neighbor’s dog. I wasn’t exactly excited—until the litter was born. They all were adorable—and the cutest and smartest of all was Flisa.” She gestured toward the picture on the wall of the pup with the floppy ears. “I found the others good homes, but why wouldn’t I keep the best for myself?”

An obviously rhetorical question, so I didn’t attempt a response.