Tomato Basil Murder: Book 7 in The Darling Deli Series (10 page)

She smiled back at David, who squeezed her hand once before leaning back so the waitress could put their food on the table between them.

***

“This is it,” Moira said as they pulled into the driveway belonging to the stone house. She was surprised to find that she felt a bit nervous showing it to David. She wondered if he would like it as much as she did.

“I love the property,” he said, getting out of the car and looking around at the tall trees that surrounded them on all sides. “I bet it’s going to be beautiful in winter, too. You’ll be able to see the stars perfectly, without any streetlights dulling the view.”

“I bet you’re right,” she said, standing next to him and staring up at the evening sky. “Once the leaves fall, I’ll have a clear view to the sky.” She mentally corrected herself.
Stop talking like you’re going to buy the place. You don’t have the money for it—this is just looking for fun.

A second car pulled up the driveway. Moira recognized her real estate agent’s vehicle and walked over to greet her.

“Thanks for agreeing to meet me again,” she said, shaking the other woman’s hand. “Sorry to have you drive all the way out here so late in the day.”

“No problem; I live pretty close by, and I’m always happy to help.”

David introduced himself, and then Madeline led them inside, switching on the lights as she went. The house was just like Moira remembered it, and she felt an ache in her heart. Oh, how she wanted to live here.

“I can see why you like it so much,” David said as they walked through the house together. “They kitchen looks like it would be great for cooking. Lots of counter space, a gas stove… it’s almost three times bigger than the kitchen in your apartment.”

“It also has an amazing yard for Maverick,” she said. “And a spare bedroom for when Candice wants to stay the night. I would even have room to garden… though whether I would have time is another matter.”

“I think it’s perfect for you.” He smiled over at her. “And hey, you’d be even closer to Lake Marion.”

“But farther from the deli,” she pointed out. “Though not by much.”

“That’s true. Even though it’s only a few miles farther away, you’ll have to deal with worse conditions in winter than you’re used to. I bet it takes them a while to plow all the way out here.”

“Ugh, you’re right. It isn’t on one of the main roads, so it will be the last priority. If we get another blizzard like we did this past winter, I might be stuck out here for days.” She paused, considering. “That wouldn’t necessarily be so bad, unless the power went out too.”

“At least you’d have a fireplace,” he pointed out. “You wouldn’t freeze to death.”

“True.” She chuckled, envisioning herself venturing into dark and snowy woods and attempting to chop down a tree. “Though I definitely need some pointers before I trust myself with an axe.”

They left a few minutes later, waving goodbye to Madeline as they drove down the driveway. Night had fallen while they were inside, and Moira was glad that it was still summer; all that talk of winter and of snow had made her cold.

When they reached her apartment, she said her goodbyes to David and made her way inside. Maverick greeted her at the door, his tail wagging a thousand miles an hour as he danced around her. Laughing at his antics, she clipped his leash on and took him outside for a short walk before bed.

While Maverick sniffed, searching for the best possible blade of grass on which to do his business, she checked her phone for messages from the deli. There was nothing, which must mean that everything had gone well.
Maybe once we get Allison trained, I can finally start taking a few days off every week,
she thought.

A wet chewing sound drew her attention away from her phone, and she glanced down to see Maverick swallow something. He put his nose to the ground to search for more of whatever it was. Moira tugged the leash back and shone her phone’s flashlight at the ground, wondering what he had found that was so tasty.

She saw half of a hot dog and sighed. Her upstairs neighbors had kids that were always throwing things off the balcony; it looked like one of them had decided to send part of their dinner flying. She just hoped that it wouldn’t give Maverick indigestion. He didn’t do very well with some types of people food.

“Come on, buddy, let’s go in,” she said. “You don’t need to be eating stuff off the ground.”

A few hours later she woke up to the distinctive sound of a dog vomiting.
Oh, great,
she thought as she rolled out of bed. She should have known that the hot dog wouldn’t sit well with him.

She stumbled over to the light and switched it on. She glanced over to where Maverick slept on his dog bed, expecting to see the dog gazing at her with shame on his face as he always did after vomiting up something that didn’t agree with him. Instead, she found him lying on his side, breathing heavily, his body visibly shaking. Next to his head was a puddle of foamy vomit, tinged pink with blood.

Moira rushed down the highway, disregarding the speed limit and taking her eyes off the road frequently to glance at the rearview mirror to make sure her dog was still breathing. The closest emergency vet was nearly an hour away, and all she could do was hope that Maverick would make it until they got there.

Her mind was racing as she drove. She didn’t have a clue what could be wrong with him, unless the hot dog had gone bad somehow. Her poor boy was obviously suffering. He had barely been able to stagger out of the apartment, and she had had to help him into the car. His nose was dry and hot, and when she checked his gums, they were pale. She reached into the backseat several times to give his belly reassuring pats. She had no doubt that he needed a vet, and urgently, to survive. When she pulled into the emergency vet’s parking lot just under an hour later, she had to run inside and ask one of the assistants to help her carry him in, because he couldn’t walk. Maverick barely lifted his head as the young man scooped him up. Moira hovered beside them doing her best to comfort the distraught dog.

“Do you have any idea what happened?” the vet asked once they made it into the examination room.

“No,” Moira admitted. “He ate half a hot dog off the ground earlier, but this seems worse than simple indigestion.”

“It is,” the vet said grimly. “I’ll have to run some tests, but from his symptoms, I think he must have ingested poison of some kind. Is it okay if I take him into the back?”

Moira nodded, then collapsed on the vinyl seat in the exam room. She wished she could stay with Maverick and hoped that he wasn’t scared. Taking a few deep breaths in an effort to calm herself, she picked up her phone. Even though they wouldn’t be able to help, David and Candice deserved to know what was happening.

The wait seemed to take hours, but in reality the vet returned in less than twenty minutes. Grimly, he told her the prognosis.

“It appears that your dog ate some sort of poison,” he said. “We’ll have to start treatment immediately, and even then we won’t be able to guarantee that he’ll make it.”

“Please, do whatever you can to save him,” she begged. “Whatever it takes.” The vet nodded.

“We may need to use this room for someone else, but you’re free to make yourself comfortable in the waiting room,” he told her. “I’ll send someone out as soon as there’s a change in his condition.”

She settled down in one of the padded chairs in the corner of the waiting room, thankful that it appeared to be a slow night at the clinic. Only one other woman was there. She kept glancing nervously from the clock to the door that led to the back of the clinic. Moira could understand how she felt. Waiting for news about Maverick was hard.

“What kind of animal do you have?” the woman asked after a few minutes.

“I have a dog. A German shepherd,” she told her, glad for the break in the silence. “How about you?”

“I’ve got an Irish Wolfhound. She’s in surgery.” The woman wrung her hands nervously. “This isn’t exactly how I planned to spend my Thursday night.”

“Me either.” Moira sighed. “I keep racking my brain, wondering how this could have happened. Somehow Maverick got a hold of poison, but I’ve never used the stuff in my life.”

“I saw a story on the Internet the other day about people putting thing like rat poison and ground glass in pieces of meat or cheese and leaving them in dog parks,” the other woman said. “Just terrible people who want to hurt animals.”

Moira froze, her thoughts snapping back to the hot dog. Was it possible it had been poisoned?

“Do you know if they’ll be able to do anything to help him?” she asked the woman.

“It depends on how much he ate, and how long ago he ate it,” the woman said gently. “I know the vet who’s on call tonight, and I’m sure he’ll do everything he can to help your dog.”

“You must come here a lot, then,” Moira said, trying to distract herself from thoughts of Maverick. Worrying wouldn’t do any good. She had to calm down and think straight if she wanted to be of any help to her dog.

“Sadly, yes. I rescue dogs, and sometimes they’re in pretty bad condition,” the woman said. “My name is Tamara, by the way. Tamara Hodges.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” Moira said, reaching over to shake the other woman’s hand. “I’m Moira Darling.”

“Nice to meet you too, Moira.” Tamara sighed, her eyes darting towards the clock again. “Sorry, I just can’t help wondering what’s taking so long.”

“What sort of surgery is your dog having?” the deli owner asked.

“She swallowed a big piece of one of her toys, and instead of passing through, it formed a blockage. The poor girl was miserable, and couldn’t eat or drink. I had to bring her in,” the other woman said. “I know she’s in good hands, but I can’t stop worrying about her.”

“I hope she pulls through okay,” Moira said. “It would be wonderful if both of us left here with happy, healthy dogs.”

They fell silent after a few more minutes, both of them lost in their own thoughts. It was late, and her busy day was catching up with her. Moira yawned and felt herself slipping farther and farther into sleep. When the door on the far side of the room finally opened, she snapped awake with a start. The vet tech walked through leading the tallest dog that Moira had ever seen.

The wolfhound had wiry grey hair and soft brown eyes, and her belly was shaved. She stumbled next to the vet, but her eyes lit up when she saw her owner. Moira smiled as she watched the reunion. It was obvious that Tamara loved her dog, and the feeling was returned.

After she settled the bill, Tamara turned back to Moira. “Here,” she said, wiping happy tears out of her eyes. “This is my number. If you ever want to get together for coffee to talk about dogs—or anything—feel free to give me a call. Not every pet owner would rush out in the middle of the night to take their animal to an emergency vet, and we responsible owners have to stick together.”

“Thanks,” Moira said with a smile as she took the other woman’s business card and offered her own in return. “I’m glad your girl is okay.”

“I hope everything turns out well for you and your pooch too.” Tamara waved a quick goodbye, then guided her still woozy dog out the door, leaving Moira alone in the waiting room.

It wasn’t much longer before the vet came back and beckoned her over. He looked tired, but his face wasn’t as grim as before. He gave her a reassuring smile as she approached.

“Well, we’re out of the woods. Maverick is still a little bit out of it, and may have some lasting effects from the poison for a few days, but he should be all right.”

“Oh my goodness, thank you so much.” She felt as if a huge weight had been taken off her chest. She might not have had the dog long, but he had quickly become a huge part of her life. She couldn’t even imagine what it would be like to come home and not hear his nails clicking on the floor as he rushed to greet her.

“Come on in the back, and you can sit with him until he’s feeling good enough to walk. Then I’ll help you load him back into your car, and hopefully all of us can get some sleep before sunrise,” the vet said.

Less than two hours later she was pulling into the apartment complex, exhausted but glad that the emergency had been averted. The vet bill had been hefty, but every penny was worth it. She glanced into the rearview mirror and was glad to see Maverick resting, but focusing on her and wagging his tail.

“Come on, boy, let’s get inside,” she said, shutting off her engine. She helped the wobbly dog out of the car and led him inside, plumping his dog bed and stroking his head before going back outside armed with a flashlight.

It only took her a few minutes to find what she was looking for: the other half of the hot dog. She picked it up and tore it in half, not surprised to see a dull green powder inside. Feeling sick to her stomach, she spent a few more minutes looking around for any other hot dog pieces, then brought what she had inside and put it in a plastic baggie. After washing her hands thoroughly, she sat on the couch and stared at the evidence. Someone had poisoned Maverick. The only question left was why.

Early morning sunlight streamed through the windows in Moira’s kitchen, and her coffee maker gurgled away. The horror of the night before was almost surreal, and she would have imagined it was a dream if the poisoned hot dog hadn’t still been waiting for her in its little baggie. Today would be busy, but the first thing she needed to do was arrange for someone to keep Maverick company while she was gone during the day.