I clamped my lips shut. I wasn’t going to extoll Vena’s virtues just yet. First she needed to let me go from this prison I was confined in.
“I don’t understand why we have to stay in a cage, though,” said the Pekinese, echoing my thoughts exactly.
“It’s to make sure we don’t get into any trouble,” said the gerbil.
“Yeah,” I said, “last time I was in here I wasn’t in a cage, though.”
“She must have installed a new regime,” said the gerbil. “There must have been a prison break or some kind of revolt or something, and she must have decided to go all maximum-security penitentiary from now on. My name is Harlan, by the way.”
“Max,” I said.
“Minna,” said the Pekinese.
“You know, if it wasn’t for the cage, and the fact that I feel like someone just sat on me and then pulled me limb from limb across a rack, I’d actually be enjoying this little chat we’re having,” said Harlan, gesturing from himself to me and Minna. “Cozy, I mean.”
“Yeah, me too,” said Minna. “And if only my owner would hurry up and pick me up, I’d feel a lot better, too.”
“It’s only one night,” said Harlan, who was a regular FAQ on all things Vena.
“So we have to spend the night in this cage?” asked Minna.
“Yep. But don’t you worry about a thing. We’ll pass the time by shooting the breeze and getting to know each other. I’ll start. I was born thirteen months ago in a small town across the Canadian border. You may have heard of it, but then again you may not. Coaticook is the name of this small and picturesque little town. Only nine thousand souls, and oh, about twenty thousand gerbils I guess, and for a long time I had no idea what to be in life, or how to apply my very many talents in a meaningful way…”
Oh, boy, I thought as I shared a look of concern with Minna.
This could very well be a very, very long night.
Chapter 6
Bertie had parked his car by the side of the road and had been idly wandering around. He needed to have a think. It was one thing to hear these stories about men walking in on their wives and finding them in bed with other men, but it was quite another to actually live through the experience yourself. He distinctly remembered having laughed his head off when Colin Firth walked in on his wife in bed with his best friend inLove Actually. Lenora had laughed heartily, too, and then when Colin had moved to Portugal to work on his novel only to find love with his cleaning lady, it had warmed the cockles of his heart, vivid evidence that being betrayed in love wasn’t the end of the world. In fact it could very well be the beginning of something new and wonderful—and possibly even better than what you had—provided you moved to Portugal, of course.
He didn’t feel like moving to Portugal, though. Besides, he couldn’t write a novel if his life depended on it. As an insurance broker writing novels was not in his job description.
And his mood had turned as black as the sky overhead, when he realized he was in unknown territory. He knew Hampton Cove, of course, but this was a part of town he was unacquainted with. It appeared to be a street dotted with only a couple of houses, the light from the streetlamps falling on patches of wilderness and fallow land in between. Perhaps he could move here? It would be a damn sight easier than Portugal, and he wouldn’t even have to learn the language. And maybe he would find love again with a local beauty who wouldn’t betray him the moment his back was turned. Of course Lenora had always been way out of his league. He’d known it and she had known it, too. But instead of simply coming out and telling him that she was ready to move on…
He had instinctively stopped in front of a large house that looked run down. Like one of those houses you always see in horror movies. The kind of places that are haunted and where only murder and mayhem await the lonely traveler who dares to enter.
And he’d just shaken his head at so much neglect and cursed the homeowner who had allowed what must have been a gorgeous place to fall into disrepair, when he sensed someone standing right behind him. And he’d turned his head to see if his instinct was correct when a powerful blow hit his head. The ground moved up to him with such speed it socked him in the face, and then he was out for the count. His last thought was that Hank the traveling Berghoff salesman must have followed him here and was going to dismember him and bury him in the woods so Lenora could take the house where she and hunky Hank could now both live happily ever after…
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Gran was in a lousy mood. First off, she hadn’t received the snazzy smartphone she’d been hoping to lay her hands on—that nifty foldable gadget that would allow her to watch her favorite shows wherever and whenever—even waiting at the checkout counter, or helping out her daughter at the library, or at the senior center when bingo night proved particularly tedious. And now her favorite avenue of escape had been blocked off and she had the impression her granddaughter had done it on purpose.
“What do you mean my room is being turned into an office-slash-gym?” she demanded.
She was standing in front of her granddaughter and her granddaughter’s equally devious boyfriend, both giving her sheepish looks. Behind them, the bedroom that once had had her name written all over it was now empty with a plastic sheet on the floor and a first coat of paint on the ceiling. They’d even removed her favorite wallpaper—the one she’d bought andpaid for herself. Little flowers and harmonicas in a theme of pink and gold leaf. That wallpaper had cost her a pretty penny but considering she considered this room her home away from home, and her private refuge, it had been well worth it.
“Yeah, we just figured with Chase moving in we needed to make a few changes,” said Odelia.
“I’ve always had a home gym,” said Chase. “And a home office. It’s convenient.”
“But you go to the gym!” Gran cried, shaking her fists. “Why do you need a home gym when you have a gym membership?!”
“It’s for those moments in between,” he said. “When I don’t have time to head out, and just want to put in a quick session at home.”
“And why do you need an office when you have a perfectly nice office at the police station?!” she added, her sense of aggrievement matching her feeling of bereavement. She’d wanted to show Tex she didn’t need his stinkin’ house and the stinkin’ room and board he kindly offered her in exchange for part of her meager pension and the equally meager paycheck he awarded her. That she could always find refuge at Odelia’s. Only now her grandchild had gone and planted a dagger in her back—just like that!
“I like to work on my cases at home from time to time,” Chase said lamely.
“What cop works on his damn cases at home?!” she demanded. “Alec never works on his cases at home. He doesn’t even work on his cases at the office if he can help it!”
“Well, Chase is a different kind of cop, Gran,” said Odelia. “He likes to work from home from time to time, just like me, and when he’s home he likes to put in a session on the stationary bike from time to time. Besides, I’ll use our new home gym, too.”
“And of course you’re welcome to use the equipment, Gran,” said Chase.
“That’s Mrs. Muffin to you, sonny boy!” she said, wagging a finger in the man’s face. She threw up her arms. “So what am I supposed to do now? I already told Tex I was moving out!” She gestured to her bags, which she’d placed on the floor.
“Can’t you make friends with Dad?” asked Odelia. “I’m sure that whatever the problem is, you’ll be able to work it out if only you—”
“Kiss and make up? No way,” said Gran with a slashing motion of her arm. “I’m way too easy on that man as it is. Because of me he pays a lot less in taxes, and I’m sure he gets all kinds of other benefits, too. And what do I get in return? Nothing! Nada! Bupkis!”