Unfortunately they did not condone pets in the office, and therefore had no pet food to dispense either.
ôIÆm still wondering how Eric Blandine died,ö said Dooley as we hopped up onto a nice blue sofa and settled in for the duration. If we couldnÆt eat, at least we could nap.
ôWhat do you mean? He was stabbed and his liver was removed, Dooley. The human body canÆt survive a harsh treatment like that.ö
ôItÆs a liver, Max. CanÆt people survive without a liver?ö
ôNo, they canÆt.ö
ôBut itÆs not a heart, or a pair of lungs. Now if his heart had been removed, or his lungs, I could understand, but a liver? I didnÆt even know humans had livers until this morning.ö
ôWhat do you mean? Of course humans have livers. Just like we have livers.ö
ôAre you sure?ö
ôOf course!ö
ôBut why?ö
ôWhat do you mean, why?ö
ôI mean, what does it do? Why do we need it?ö
ôThe liver helps with digestion, eliminates toxins, synthesizes proteins and hormones. ItÆs a very, very important organ.ö
ôI still think he could have survived a couple of hours without it. Which means he was probably poisoned. And we all know that poison is the murder weapon of choice for the female killer. Which means that Lita Fiol is the person weÆre looking for, Max.ö
ôBut she couldnÆt have done it, Dooley. She was with her boyfriend Tobias.ö
ôSo they did it together. Tobias was lured over to the dark side of duck activism, and so they both decided that Cotton had to die since he was in the duck-harming business.ö
ôTobias knew that Eric Blandine was replacing Cotton Karat. So why kill him?ö
ôTo send a message, of course! DonÆt mess with the ducks! Of course Tobias didnÆt want to kill the real Cotton Karat, since that would mean his stock options would drop in value and also heÆd be out of a job. But this Eric Blandine? No problem. So they decided to sacrifice the poor man as avictim of the cause.ö
ôOh, Dooley,ö I sighed. Looked like my friend didnÆt have all his ducks in a row.
Chapter 14
Before continuing their investigation, Odelia and Chase decided to take stock for a moment, and dropped by OdeliaÆs office. It allowed Dooley and myself to finally enjoy half a bowl of kibble, and a visit to the litter box Odelia has installed in her office. And not a moment too soon, either, for IÆd been wondering how much longer I could tell my bladder to behave!
It transpired that the package that arrived at the Karat Group offices had been hand-delivered sometime during the night or early morning. After a thorough reconstruction had been carried out, it was determined that the package had been found in the Karat Group mailbox by Laurence Grifka, the person in charge of the mailroom, who had personally placed it on a trolley destined for the upper floor.
She remembered so distinctly since it was the only package in the mailbox, since it was already there before the post arrived. Also, it had been tied up with string and looked like something either a child or the Unabomber had dreamed up.
Once the actual post had arrived, and had been sorted, the trolley had started its ascent through the company, until it had finally arrived on the top floor, where Cotton KaratÆs personal secretary Opal Saryusz had taken reception of the package along with the rest of CottonÆs mail, and had placed it on her bossÆs desk. Opal was one of the few people who knew that Cotton wasnÆt actually Cotton, since she knew the real man too well to be so easily deceived.
The last link in the chain had been Tobias, who had opened the package and made the gruesome discovery.
Which meant that we still had no idea who had delivered the package, since there were no CCTV cameras covering the mailbox, and the cameras that covered the parking lot hadnÆt picked up any strange activity last night or in the early part of the morning.
ôOdd that Tobias and the woman who runs the duck group would be dating,ö said Odelia as she tucked into a cheese sandwich Chase had picked up from the deli around the corner. He himself had procured a ham sandwich, defying potential abuse from Gran and Scarlett.
ôI think they make a cute couple,ö said Chase. ôAnd who knows? Maybe theyÆll be able to make the foie gras industry more ethical.ö
HeÆd received Abe CornwallÆs final report, which contained one gruesome detail we hadnÆt yet been made privy to. Apparently whoever killed Eric Blandine had shoved a pipe down the manÆs throat and poured the same mixture of corn and fat down his gullet that they used on the ducks to artificially fatten up their livers to unnatural proportions. The mixture had been found in the manÆs stomach as the last meal he digested.
And the tech people had finished examining EricÆs laptop and phone and had found no trace of a message heÆd received setting up his late-night meeting.
ôIt must be the duck people that did this,ö said Odelia. ôIf not Lita, then someone whoÆs part of her outfit.ö
ôMaybe we should talk to your grandmother. SheÆs already part of this group. She might be able to tell us who are some of the more radical elements.ö
ôAccording to Lita and Tobias she and Scarlett are the radical elements,ö said Odelia with a grin.
ôWhy am I not surprised,ö said the cop.
ôSo whatÆs next?ö
ôWe still have to talk to Ebony,ö said Chase, consulting his notebook. ôAnd I just got confirmation from Tobias that heÆs managed to set up an interview with the man himself. Cotton Karat has carved out five minutes of his busy day for us.ö
ôHeÆs home?ö
ôArriving home later today. The interview will take place at the clinic, though.ö
ôThat was a very short stay. So heÆs fully cured of his sex addiction, then?ö
ôI very much doubt it. But heÆs got a press conference at four.ö
ôThat sounds promising.ö
ôIf youÆre a reporter, sure. As a cop? Not so much. Though it might be interesting to keep a close eye on the room. If the killer thought he murdered Cotton, and now all of a sudden that same Cotton turns up alive and well, that must be a great blow.ö
ôYou think the killer will turn up at the press conference?ö asked Odelia.
ôWouldnÆt you?ö
Odelia nodded thoughtfully.ôWhy donÆt you talk to my uncle? Get a couple of cameras covering the room, and officers spread out to listen in on conversations, look at people texting on their phones. Maybe weÆll pick up on something that way.ö
ôGreat idea, babe,ö said Chase, and took out his own phone. ôConsider it done.ö
ôWe can also spread out, Odelia,ö I suggested. ôWe can ask Harriet and Brutus to join us. If we all cover a part of the room, we might be able to glean something important.ö
ôThanks, Max,ö said Odelia, giving me a pat on the head. ôThat would be great.ö
ôDo you really think the killer will turn up?ö asked Dooley.
ôWho knows?ö I said. ôIf Cotton was the intended victim, the killer might want to take another crack at him. And heÆll definitely want to see for himself if the man is still alive.ö
ôI hope theyÆll protect Cotton from now on,ö said Dooley. ôIf the killer tries again, they have to stop him before another man loses his liver.ö He frowned, then directed himself to our human. ôAre you sure that a person actually needs their liver, Odelia? It doesnÆt sound like something important. I mean, people lose their appendix or even a kidney and it doesnÆt make a difference.ö
ôYes, Dooley,ö said Odelia with a patient smile. ôPeople really do need their liver. ItÆs a vital organ.ö
ôOh. Well, too bad.ö
ôTell that to Eric Blandine,ö I muttered, then devoured another helping of kibble. I had the distinct impression that today was going to be a long day.