Sniffing Out Murder (Mina's Adventures Book 7) Read online

  A yes she couldn’t give. It wasn’t about Leo—Buddy had to be part of the deal. You can’t have a strange dog when you live and work in a high-end B&B for cats.

  And just like that Tom saved the day.

  “Leo, you and your dog can stay with me. I have a big house with a nice fenced yard. I used to have a dog.” He stopped to blow his nose again. “And Simon can stay with us too until he is eighteen at least. What do you say?”

  Surprisingly enough, instead of giving a cheerful yes, Leo looked at Detective De Fiore, seeking approval? Mister I’m-so-tough had a hard time hiding his emotions, and Mina didn’t dare open her mouth, too busy fending off her own tears.

  ELEVEN

  DE FIORE STARED AT the only living room wall deprived of artwork. They hadn’t exchanged a word since Tom loaded Leo and Buddy into his truck, and after promising a small detour to pick up dog food, headed home to his large place with the fenced yard.

  Millie had walked back to her small place, her eyes red rimmed from the suppressed crying and the exposure to bright light.

  The mood was anything but pleasant. Why? She had no way of knowing a kid was squatting in Kalinda’s house. She hadn’t set foot in there since the woman left weeks ago. But De Fiore should have known. He checked out the place often, and he was a detective after all. Apparently he didn’t detect squat until—until what?

  “De Fiore, how did you catch Leo? How long had he been hiding there?”

  “He wasn’t there the other day when I stopped by to check on the landscape.”

  “That was the same day Buddy was spotted wondering around the train tracks in San Clemente. Yes, that fits. Leo said he ran away to go looking for his dog. Poor kid. We need to find his brother, let him know what’s going on.”

  “Tom is going to try to locate him. I’ll call Kalinda and ask her how to get in touch with the construction crew. He’s obviously traveling with them.” He glanced at Mina, his voice slightly mellower than his attitude. “How do you do it?”

  “Do what?”

  “Turn something as uncomplicated as transferring a rescued dog from one shelter to another into a possible murder investigation and a big hot mess that touches many lives here and abroad?”

  “Oh, wait, wait. What are you talking about? I get the murder investigation, and you can thank me later. But hot mess? Here and abroad? Seriously?”

  He kept staring at that same wall. Avoiding her eyes. Why?

  “The phone.” He slipped his hand inside his jacket and pulled out a phone from the breast pocket. Diego’s phone.

  “You found it. You found it. Oh, thank you, thank you…” She leapt from her chair to grab the phone. The detective moved it out of her reach. “No, I didn’t find it. It’s the other way around, and I can’t let you have it. Sorry. Gave my word.”

  “Come on, De Fiore, stop with the games. I’ve been searching for it. It’s very special. It’s the one I lost yesterday when I was chasing Buddy. I fell, hit my head, and it must have slipped out of my jeans pocket. Where was it?”

  De Fiore shook his head, and there was not a trace of a smile when he said, “That’s how I found Leo. He had the phone.” He paused and then spoke in a slow and staccato pattern. “He-was using it. Your boyfriend’s super special, high-tech, state-of-the-art phone was being used in random efforts to reach—friends? Family? Except that’s not what the phone is programmed to do.”

  He kept it at a certain distance from himself, as if afraid the device would cause him bodily harm. How ridiculous was that? Probably trying to give her a guilt trip. She who thrived on eternal guilt.

  “This cell has now been disabled and will be picked up at my office tomorrow and properly disposed of, after being dissected and carefully analyzed of course. If you don’t get the dozen of nefarious consequences that may have been set in motion by the kid’s actions, I suggest you ask Diego to explain it to you.” He sighed. “All the calls originated from Kalinda’s house.”

  It all sounded preposterous, right off some B spy movie, which in turn made the whole thing even more plausible.

  “Is he mad at me?” she asked, troubled by De Fiore’s accusations.

  His answer left no doubts. “You’ll have to ask him yourself. There are lots of rumors floating around with the passing of the Gran Dame. And none are good.” What did he know about Diego’s deceased boss? “I need to get going. You behave kid, and let me do my job. Look at me, Mina. I mean it. You need to lie low. It was suggested that you go about your usual routine but avoid at all cost going anywhere near Kalinda’s place. Got that?” He paused, waiting for her answer. “I was asked to relay the message to you. And I promise I’ll keep you informed regarding the Cordero case." He shook his head. "What am I saying? What case? See what I mean? Your disease is contagious. Didn’t even get to say hi to Aria. I’m leaving; don’t get up. Sit and stew on that promise you just made.”

  Mina sat until she heard the front door close. What promise? He did all the talking. She never agreed to anything. She headed upstairs to let the cats out of the bedroom.

  Couldn’t make it to the top. The wave of painful reality hit her all at once, without warning. Her hands grasped the banister, to slow her crumpling on the steps. She blinked back the treacherous tears free-falling on her cheeks. Certainly the misunderstanding could be corrected. Diego would never cut her out of his life over a silly accident she had no control over. He wasn’t that kind of man; they had years of history together.

  She would explain to him. Explain what? How she may have put lives in danger to chase a runaway dog? It wasn’t so black and white, everything happened so fast. If only she could talk to him.

  Suddenly the truth became clear. Kalinda was somewhere in Texas isolated from the outside world. Gino, according to Margo, was happily floating down the Adriatic in a luxurious yacht, surrounded by women, and Diego—Oh, Diego.

  She sat, resting her head on her knees folded against her chest. She ran out of tears while the sky faded from blue to slate. The phone no longer rang, and the furious scratching and meowing of her cats had subsided.

  Only the guilt remained—guilty for everything, past, present and future.

  “Mina, dear, where are you?” Millie’s voice came from the door between the garage and the kitchen. “Why is it so dark in here?”

  “I’m here. Got caught up in one of my guilty crises, haven’t even fed the poor cats.” She stood and had trouble moving. One of her legs had gone to sleep.

  Suddenly the bright chandelier over the stairs came on, Millie, of course.

  “You poor thing, what can I do to help?” Mina noticed that Millie had brought Zeus along. “Hope you don’t mind; he was restless. I think he misses his two friends. He’ll be okay once we are back in business and he can play with the guests.”

  Mina nodded and forced herself to go let her poor hungry cats out. Aria rushed down to greet Zeus, but Houdini took his sweet time and made it clear that he wasn’t happy being locked up. He walked past her, tail in the air, ignoring her presence. His displeasure was so blatant she couldn’t help but smile and grabbed him and carried him downstairs in spite of his mild attempts at resisting.

  She sat at the kitchen table next to Millie, and they watched the three cats devour their smelly food.

  Mina’s stomach growled.

  "I bet you haven’t eaten a thing all day,” Millie said.

  Mina shrugged.

  As usual Millie took charge. She went back to her place and returned with cheese and bread. Ten minutes later they both had grilled cheese sandwiches and some Pinot Grigio, the one thing Mina always kept stocked. Having someone to talk to helped. Plus, Millie needed to be put up to date with so much. And of course Leo and Tom became center focus until Mina told the background events that lead to De Fiore finding the kid and Buddy in Kalinda’s house.

  She avoided the subject of the telephone, too painful. It was almost ten by the time Millie collected Zeus and they headed back to their place. “Mina, I mean
t to tell you, we have baby birds in that old nest. First time since I’ve been living here. I’m not sure, but I counted at least three babies. Keep an eye on Houdini—doesn’t matter how well fed a cat is, it’s their nature.”

  “You know what? I’m not sure how he does it, but I’m convinced he sneaks out when I’m not around. Do you think he could get to the nest?”

  Millie nodded. “It would be too bad. Have you considered putting a small collar on him? You know, with a bell, so that mommy bird, maybe even rabbits could hear him coming and have a better chance to run or fly away?”

  “Millie that’s a terrific idea. I’ll get one tomorrow on my way to the shelter. Good idea.” She looked at Houdini who was busy grooming himself on the living room couch.

  Well aware of her resistance to checking the messages, there was still one more painful chore before going to bed—she had to see who'd called. Part of her prayed for a call from Diego—the other part dreaded finding one.

  Linda had called just to check in, and Tom sounded elated, announcing they’d made contact with Leo’s brother, Simon. She could hear Buddy barking in the background. A playful bark at that. And Margo. Again and again. Three messages, all lengthy, all unhappy. All about not knowing when Gino would be back. Might as well bite the bullet and call her back, but first she needed to wash her face, brush her teeth, and get into comfy clothes.

  Thirty minutes later, in the quiet of her bedroom, with her heart somersaulting in her chest, she hoped against all logic that Margo may have news to share of Diego or Gino or both. She dialed the number, listened to the hollow ringing of the phone. Over and over. Margo never picked up, and the voice mail never kicked in. Perhaps she was mad as hell, and having recognized the number she had decided to serve Mina a generous helping of her own medicine.

  TWELVE

  THE LUNCH. LEO and Simon didn’t believe their mother’s death had been an accident because she hadn’t fixed their school lunch. The kind of detail no one else would have known about. The kind of small, personal details that are the cornerstones of any solid relationship. Was she thinking about the Corderos or herself? The thought of the two orphans going through all those adversities to be able to stay together remained with her.

  Pure love. Mina could learn a thing or two. When was the last time she'd changed her schedule to fit Diego’s time off? She was always too busy, too self-important to let someone else take charge, so she could spend some quality time with the man she called the love of her life. She couldn’t remember ever having called him. Even if more than once he had encouraged her to do so. “Bella, why didn’t you call me?” He had reminded her so often he was but a phone call away. Was.

  Stop, it Mina.

  On this Saturday morning the traffic on Crown Valley moved at a pleasant pace. All that would change once beach season arrived, but for now she could drive in what she called her mindless style, meaning she could let her feelings rage, getting all the anxieties and regrets out of her system before arriving at the office.

  Not that it helped much. Linda and Leigh would see it in her eyes the minute she said hello. The three of them had gone through good and bad times and had always supported each other regardless of who, why, or when. On the plus side, she would finally get to meet the latest group of furry friends Leigh had rescued from the E-list.

  When she parked her LTD, she noticed Roger’s SUV in the staff assigned space. He must be there in his official role of veterinarian. Good, maybe some of the dogs with a clean bill of health could be groomed and pictures posted on social media. That part was Sky’s assignment.

  Mina gathered her stack of files, the top one had a Post-it, Houdini’s bell scribbled on it. Good thing she did that last night; she wouldn’t have remembered otherwise. Too many odds and ends twirling in her head. And Margo never did return her call.

  That wasn’t like her at all. She usually would get very angry, lash out, and then hug you and say how sorry she was. Thank God for the shelter. Going there always cheered Mina up, and it had nothing to do with being the boss.

  The front door of the FFF was propped open because Roger was standing there saying goodbye to Linda. Such a happy couple. In spite of the iffy beginning, they had settled into a loving, committed relationship, or so it appeared. Mina waited patiently until Linda must have noticed her because Roger moved to the side, apologizing.

  “Oh, I didn’t see you, sorry. You could have coughed or tap-danced, or simply said hi and…”

  “Nah, I enjoyed the back view,” she chided and had to laugh when Roger, who towered over her, blushed. She heard Linda chuckling and knew all was good.

  The barking was deafening, which was pretty normal after one of Roger’s professional calls. Some of the dogs were frightened, others defensive, especially the newcomers not used to being manhandled. Linda gave Mina the tour. One of the female dogs was pregnant. Ouch. That meant extra bills and a litter of puppies that would need homes. They would probably start a betting pool regarding what mix the puppies would be. The mother appeared to be part Lab and part… who knew?

  “She’s so young,” Linda said. “Has to be her first litter.”

  “And her last,” Mina added. And for no apparent reason the thought of her future with Diego flashed in her mind’s eye. A future without children.

  “What’s wrong?” Linda glanced at her. “You look so sad all of a sudden.”

  Wearing her feelings on her face, as usual. Better change subject. “Did you hear about Buddy?”

  “Tom called, said the dog was with him? Are we giving up on locating the kids?”

  “Oh, no, no. Buddy and Leo, one of the two Cordero brothers, are staying with Tom until the high school kid, Simon, gets back in town—tomorrow I guess. I’m giving you the shortened version.” She set the pile of paperwork she'd brought from home on the desk and again noticed the Post-it note. “Shoot, almost forgot again.”

  “Forgot what?”

  Mina removed the sticker and showed it to Linda. “Need to get a collar with a bell for Houdini. We have birds.” She shook her head.

  “He still manages to sneak out, doesn’t he?” Linda laughed. “We have about half a dozen left in the cats' room.”

  “Half a dozen what?”

  “Those collars with the bells. All donated. Owners don’t like them because of the noise when the cats hop around the house, especially at night. Cats don’t like them, well, for obvious reasons, and so we have a variety of them. Go take a look and see if you find one that works.”

  “I’ll do that, and then I need to forget paperwork and do manual labor. I must.”

  “Manual labor? Like shoveling manure?” Linda laughed so hard at the thought that Leigh stuck her head out of the office door to see what all the commotion was about, and just then some prospects looking to adopt a medium-sized male dog showed up. The couple had already filled out and turned in their application online. Linda rushed to greet them. Show time.

  The free-roaming cat room had that ever present smell of ammonia mixed with various odors cats can’t help produce. Mina only noticed when she’d been absent from the room for a while. She went around petting the oldest ones, playing with the kittens, then cleaned the litter boxes, and was ready to refill the water dishes when one of the old cats seems to choke. It had happened before; the vet hadn’t seemed too concerned.

  “We need to find you a nice home, huh baby?” She cradled the cat until it breathed normal gain. And she remembered the collar. Sure enough, they were held together by a rubber band on the same shelf as the treats. Mina picked a black one with a very small silver bell. Might as well put it in her purse before she forgot.

  The couple wanting a dog were in the back room. Linda had brought out Clyde, a Chow mix that everyone loved. He had some formal obedience training and could even perform tricks. Mina didn’t want to distract the dog during the meet-and-greet encounter, so important for everyone involved. She sneaked back into the cat room and then walked out into the fenced yard where a
few dogs were playing.

  Might as well scoop the poop, she decided. Not an easy task with three young dogs full of energy banding together to attack her ankles. Too bad she’d left her phone in her purse; she could have taken a few funny pics.

  The yard could use some grass, which should be the next project, way too much dust with the dogs running around like that. Time to come up with some fund-raiser gimmick. Next meeting.

  Twenty minutes later she felt it was safe to go back inside. Certainly the couple should know by now if Clyde was the one or not. She guessed right. Linda, the couple, and the lucky dog had moved into the small conference room where the final adoption papers would be signed.

  “Hey, Mina, how about some Chinese for lunch? Sky can pick it up on her way here,” Leigh said.

  “Okay by me. How about Linda?”

  “I’ll order the usual; she can eat when she’s done. Okay to use cash from the drawer to pay back Sky?”

  “Sure. We need to call a meeting this coming week, gather our volunteers see if we can come up with some good idea for fund raising. What do you think?”

  “We were just talking about that. With Mother’s day coming soon, maybe mugs or T-shirts?”

  Mina nodded. “Depends on the cost. Too bad Kalinda’s not around. She always had such fun ideas.”

  “When will she be back?”

  “No clue,” Mina said, and suddenly she missed Diego more than ever. She walked back to her office, no need to mope around the shelter.

  “Your phone was ringing,” Leigh shouted.

  Two missed calls—Margo and De Fiore. A little voice in her head told her neither one would be bearer of good news, so which one to call back first? She sat, took a long breath, and prepared herself for Margo’s outburst.

  It never came. Her former roommate spoke in such a calm tone Mina wondered if she was on some sedative. “Haven’t heard from you in so long, I was concerned,” Margo said.