“I don’t know, Dooley, but it certainly warrants looking into.”
“If they did kill Mr. Morro, do you think the judge will be very lenient with them? They did what the police couldn’t do, after alclass="underline" find justice for Poppy.”
“It’s not up to ordinary citizens to go out and kill people, Dooley. What if Jona Morro had nothing to do with Poppy’s death? Then the wrong person was killed today.”
“But what if it was him?”
“Then they should have told Odelia what kind of evidence they had, and she could have done something about it.”
“Poor Odelia,” said Dooley, as he studied our human. “Maybe we should tell her to stay home and rest. She is pregnant, after all. It’s not good for the baby, Max. She’s putting herself at risk.”
“I think you’ll find that it’s very hard for anyone to stop Odelia from doing exactly what she wants to do, Dooley. Not even us.”
“Maybe Chase can talk to her? He is the baby’s dad, after all. He should look after its health, and the health of its mother.”
“I’m sure Odelia is fine,” I said reassuringly. “And besides, Chase is with her. He’ll watch out for her. And when he’s not around, we are also there, Dooley. We can protect her.”
A dangerous glint had come into Dooley’s eyes. “This will be our mission from now on, Max. We’ll protect Odelia and her baby with tooth and claw!”
“Um, okay,” I said. “Though maybe less of the tooth and claw for now. A calm and soothing environment is also important for an expecting mother.”
“Then she shouldn’t go out and investigate murders, Max!”
And we were right back where we started. These circular arguments were a given with Dooley. Tough to convince him of anything. He kept returning to his original statement, no matter what I said. In that sense he was almost as stubborn as Odelia. Then again, we were her cats, after all. So maybe we took after her? Or did she take after us?
Chapter 8
We were back at the Careen place, only this time Dominic had joined his wife on the big couch, and son Rick stood behind it, as if reluctant to take a seat, lest he had to do a runner.
“It’s a simple question, Mr. Careen,” said Chase, who had taken the lead. “Did you or didn’t you blame Jona Morro for the death of your daughter?”
Dominic’s face spelled storm, but his wife did her best to be the peacekeeper. “Like I told Odelia this morning, we don’t know which of the five friends killed Poppy. All we know is that one of them must be responsible.”
“I knew it was Morro,” said Rick suddenly.
His mother turned to him.“Rick!”
“It’s all right, Mom. He’s dead now. And good riddance, as far as I’m concerned.”
“Why did you think it was Jona Morro?” asked Odelia.
“I asked around, and Morro used to visit the same club where I like to hang out a lot. He used to boast about his speed racing record. His family own a race car team, you see, and when he was young Jona wanted to become a race car driver. And he was pretty good, too. Said he loved racing, but what he loved even more was street racing. So one night he was boasting, and someone asked him why he’d stopped street racing, if he loved it so much. He said there had been an incident, and someone was killed, so his dad made him stop. From that moment he was only allowed to race on the track anymore, not the street.” He shrugged. “It told me all I needed to know. He’s the one who killed Poppy, all right.”
“We can’t be sure, Rick,” said his mom. “He was just boasting.”
“I don’t think so. He was telling the truth.”
“Why didn’t you report this?” asked Chase.
“It would have been my word against his, wouldn’t it? And that slippery bastard would have walked. Again.”
“So you decided to take the law into your own hands, is that what you’re saying?”
“Of course not. Though I have to say I’m not going to shed any tears over the guy.”
“Rick, please,” said his mom.
“No, Mom, I’m serious. I’m glad he’s dead. He got exactly what he deserved.”
“Where were you this morning between nine and ten?” asked Chase.
“You know where I was,” said Dominic curtly. “In the woods. Your wife saw me there.”
“My wife talked to you around ten-thirty,” said Chase. “So where were you before then?”
“Not at the mall, if that’s what you’re implying,” said the man, getting up. His weather-beaten face had taken on a darker shade of puce. Dominic Careen definitely had a temper.
“We were in the woods,” said Rick. “My dad and me both.”
“Can anyone confirm that?”
“I can confirm that my dad was there. And he can confirm that I was there. Isn’t that enough?”
Chase grimaced.“Hardly. Two men knocked out Omar Wissinski this morning, emptied the safe, and killed Jona Morro by dropping a car on top of him. You can see how this raises a number of questions. Especially since it’s not so easy to bring that car down. It requires a lot of physical strength, and a knowledgeof how to work the steel cables that kept the car suspended. You’re both foresters. You’re well-equipped to handle such a job. Well-equipped, with the required know-how and experience plus motivation.”
“Well, we didn’t do it,” said Dominic.
“I suggest you don’t leave town, Mr. Careen,” said Chase, getting up. “And that goes for you, too, Rick.” And after fixing both men with a steely look, he left the room, leaving the three surviving members of the Careen family slightly reeling, I could tell.
But Chase was absolutely right, of course. This job had father and son Careen’s signature written all over it. Kristina wanted Odelia to bring Poppy’s killer to justice, but her husband and son had beaten her to it: they’d meted out that justice personally.
“So what do you think?” asked Odelia once we were back in the car. We could see the Careens glancing at us through the window and they did not look happy.
“It’s them,” said Chase. “It has to be. Who else would do such a thing? Any ordinary robber would have simply tied up both men and emptied that safe. They wouldn’t have gone to the trouble of killing Jona Morro, and most definitely not by dumping his own car on top of him. No, it has to be them.”
“You could always apply for a warrant and search the house,” Odelia suggested. “If it was them they must have stashed the contents of that safe somewhere in the house.”
“No, they’re much too clever for that. They probably got it somewhere in those woods. There must be hundreds of places where they could put that loot. Probably buried next to some tree. And when they figure the time is right, they’ll start spending that money.”
“I don’t know, Chase. Killing Jona Morro is one thing, but stealing the money?”
“Why not? They must have figured that Morro owed them. For the life he took.”
“It’s possible,” she conceded. “So what are you going to do now?”
“Now I keep a close eye on them. At some point they have to dig up the loot. And when they do, I’ll nab them.”
“You’re going to put surveillance on them?”
“Oh, you bet I am.”
“Honestly, Chase, don’t you think the Careens have suffered enough? After all, Morro did kill their little girl. If he died by their hand, maybe they had a point?”
He turned to her with a frown.“Babe, no one should be allowed to take the law into their own hands. That way lies anarchy and chaos.”
She sighed.“I guess you’re right.” She placed a surreptitious hand on her belly. Immediately Chase glanced down, a look of alarm on his face.
“Are you all right?”
“Oh, sure,” she said with a grin. “Just force of habit, I guess.”
“Maybe you shouldn’t be involved in my cases from now on.”
“Chase!” she said.
“At least until after the baby is born.”
“God, babe, not you, too. My mom has been on my case, and so has my dad and Gran. And I’m going to tell you what I told them: if you expect me to stay home from now on until after the birth, you’re crazy. I’m a working woman, and I’m going to keep on working for as long as I can. And there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that!” she emphasized when Chase tried to interrupt her.