“I’m not sure Mick is available,” said Odelia. “I just saw him at Vena’s.”

  “I called him and he said he was going straight from Vena’s to the location where the victims were found. He’s going to bring his dogs along. I hope you don’t mind?”

  “No, that’s fine. See you there?”

  “Yeah, see you there,” said her uncle, and disconnected.

  After a moment’s silence, I cleared my throat. “So… are we also going?”

  “No,” she said decidedly. “Like I said, you’re not to leave the house, and your curfew starts now.”

  “But you need us,” said Brutus. “You need us to solve the murder!”

  “I’m sure Chase and I will manage,” said Odelia. “We do have some experience solving crimes, you know.”

  This just about put the seal on my gloom: not only wouldn’t we be fed, not only were we being locked up for the night, but now we weren’t even allowed to investigate a murder alongside our human?

  “What about the huskies?” asked Brutus. “Why are they allowed to investigate this case and not us?”

  “Because unlike you, the huskies didn’t eat raw meat,” Odelia pointed out. “And so they haven’t been put on a fast. Now let’s get you guys home, so I can go and join Chase and my uncle.”

  And with those words, she stepped on it so she wouldn’t miss a thing about the new case that had just fallen into her lap.

  Unlike the four of us. We’d miss the whole thing.

  Harriet gave us a look of contrition. “I’m sorry, you guys. This is all my fault. If I hadn’t eaten that bad meat, I wouldn’t have gotten sick, and we wouldn’t have been punished.”

  “This isn’t punishment,” said Odelia. “This is just me being a good pet parent.”

  She was probably right, but it still felt sour.

  Then again, she and Chase did have plenty of experience under their collective belts, so cracking this case would be a cinch for them.

  And who doesn’t like a nice night in?

  We could watch something on TV with Grace and make things as fun as we could.

  Oh, who was I kidding?

  I hate missing out on a new case!

  CHAPTER 5

  Odelia couldn’t help but feel sorry for her cats. Not just because they couldn’t participate in this investigation, but also because they wouldn’t be able to join cat choir that night—their favorite pastime.

  But she couldn’t trust them not to venture outside and find something to eat. And if Harriet wasn’t allowed to eat, she couldn’t allow the others to. That wouldn’t be fair.

  “Being a pet parent isn’t easy sometimes,” she told Chase.

  “Tell me about it,” said her husband. He had a glum look on his face, and when she followed his gaze, she saw what he meant.

  His eyes were focused on Mick Harper and his two huskies, who were listening intently to Uncle Alec as he explained the situation to them.

  “They were at Vena’s,” she told Chase. “I wonder what was wrong with them.”

  “Probably rabies,” said Chase acerbically. “Did I tell you they tried to bite a thief?”

  “Only about a dozen times.”

  “I’m sorry, but it’s been a tough day. Or a tough couple of days.”

  “I’m sure Mick will adjust—and so will his huskies. This is all still very new for them.”

  “I guess,” said Chase, though he didn’t look all that convinced.

  Uncle Alec walked over. “Okay, you better start talking to the staff. Apparently, two of them have gone missing, so there are your first suspects already.”

  “Will do, chief,” said Chase. He jerked his thumb at Mick. “Are you sure we need him?”

  Uncle Alec gave Chase a strange look. “Why wouldn’t we need him? He’s a full-fledged member of the team now.”

  “Of course he is,” said Chase.

  “I’ll inform Charlene,” said Uncle Alec as he clapped Chase on the back. “The Eiderducks were pillars of the community, and she’s been pestering me for details ever since the call came in.”

  “Who made the call?” asked Odelia.

  “The daughter,” said Uncle Alec.

  “I thought she was one of the victims?”

  “She was, but she managed to escape and hide in the stables. When she figured the attack was over, she ventured outside, returned to the house, and called 911.” He shook his head. “Poor girl. She suffered some terrifying wounds. It’s a miracle she survived.”

  As he walked away, he took out his phone to call his wife, Mayor Charlene Butterwick. Whenever a tragedy like this one occurred, she insisted on being kept in the loop. A double homicide like this caused quite a stir in the local community and made a lot of people feel scared that they might be next. So it was crucial that they get to the bottom of what had happened as soon as possible.

  “Do you want to take a look at the crime scene?” asked Chase. “I have to warn you, though. It’s not a pretty sight.”

  “I’d better take a look,” said Odelia. Even though she wasn’t exactly looking forward to it, it was imperative that she familiarize herself with all the details—and that included knowing exactly what had happened to the victims.

  It wasn’t the most pleasant part of the job, but it was one she couldn’t afford to skip just because she didn’t like it.

  The house where the Eiderducks had lived was quite impressive. It was one of those sizable mansions that made up the Billionaire Mile in Hampton Cove and stood out for the simple reason that it had been painted entirely pink—pink walls, pink roof, even the window shutters had been painted pink.

  “It’s called the Pink House,” Chase explained. “You can probably see why.”

  “It’s a nice color,” said Odelia, who had always been partial to pink. “Maybe an idea for our own place?”

  He gave her a grin. “I don’t mind, but I’m sure the neighbors would have something to say about it.”

  “I don’t see why. It brings a lot of life and color to the street. And then if Mom and Dad paint their house orange or purple, it’ll liven things up even more.”

  Once inside, the décor wasn’t all that different from the outside: every room had been painted a different color, but all were vivid and bright. There was the yellow room, the red room, the green room, and on and on. The Eiderducks had been found in the blue room, which was probably apt, as it was the most depressing room in the house.

  “Oh, dear,” said Odelia as she took in the scene. Both Bramwell and Reyna Eiderduck were seated on the sofa, as if they’d been interrupted while watching something on television. Except for the fact that they’d both been tied up, and there was blood everywhere. Whoever had killed them had really gone to town on the poor couple.

  Abe Cornwall, the county coroner, rose from his position on the floor, where he had been inspecting a bloodied butcher’s knife. With a groan of exertion, he straightened.

  “Well, they’re both quite dead,” he announced. “Lost a lot of blood, too, by the looks of things.”

  “Was that the cause of death?” asked Odelia.

  “No, that was the fact that their throats were cut,” said the coroner as he removed his plastic gloves. He glanced down at the couple with professional interest. “Whoever did this really went above and beyond,” he said. “They must have suffered dozens of stab wounds—most of them non-lethal—until the killer delivered the coup de grâce. Nasty business. Very nasty.”

  At that moment, there was a commotion at the entrance to the room, and loud voices alerted them to someone trying to get in—and being prevented by the officer standing guard.

  Both Odelia and Chase hurried over and saw that Mick Harper was the one kicking up a fuss, with his two huskies by his side.

  “He won’t let me in!” the newly minted police officer cried. “Says I’m not authorized!”

  “It’s fine, Randal,” said Chase. “Mick is part of the team now.”

  “He didn’t show me any ID,” said the officer apologetically. “And also, he insisted on bringing his dogs. No pets allowed at the crime scene, right?”

  “Odelia’s cats are traipsing all over crime scenes all the time!” Mick cried, pointing a finger in Odelia’s direction. “So why can’t my huskies do the same?”

  The officer held up his hands. “Not my call. If you want your dogs to have access to the crime scene, you’ll have to take it up with the boss.”

  “Best to leave the dogs outside,” Chase advised.

  “But what about Odelia’s cats?” Mick insisted.

  “That’s different,” said Chase curtly. He didn’t say why—and that clearly didn’t sit well with Mick.

  As he stormed into the room, his face resembling a thundercloud, he said, “I don’t like it when double standards are applied. If Odelia’s cats are allowed access to the investigation, my dogs should be granted the same privilege.”

  “Like Randal said, take it up with the boss,” said Chase. “And why did you refuse to show him your badge?”

  Mick shrugged. “I didn’t think it was necessary. He knows who I am—so why show him my badge? It seems silly.”

  “It may seem silly to you,” said Chase, “but it’s protocol. And in this department, we follow protocol.” He didn’t add ‘Is that understood?’ but the message was clear.

  Mick looked as if he was about to protest, but in the end, he must have realized he wasn’t doing himself any favors—so he shut up.

  Abe studied the former hockey star. “I don’t believe we’ve met. Abe Cornwall. I’m the guy they call whenever they find a dead body, which seems like all the time. And you are?”

  “Mick Harper,” said Mick, as he shook the coroner’s hand. “I’m new to the force.”

  “Welcome, welcome,” said Abe warmly. “We can always use an extra pair of hands. With the way people keep murdering each other in this town, there’s never a shortage of cases to solve.” He jerked his thumb in the direction of the dead couple on the couch. “I’ll get them on my slab and see if I can’t add more detail to what I’ve just told you.”

  “Have you examined the other victim?” asked Odelia. “The daughter who survived the attack?”

  “I gave her a cursory examination,” said Abe. “I’m sure they’ll do a more thorough work-up at the hospital.”

  “Similar knife wounds?” asked Chase.

  “Yes, she seems to have sustained the same type of injuries,” said Abe. “Presumably administered with the same weapon. Though in her case, she was lucky to escape before the killer got bored with toying with his victims and put an end to their suffering.”

  Mick had been staring at the victims, wide-eyed and looking sufficiently impressed. “My God,” he said, turning a little white around the nostrils. “You see this kind of thing on television, but it’s quite different in real life, isn’t it?”

  “Yeah, this is real. On TV it’s just actors playing make-believe,” said Abe with a chuckle. As Mick ventured further into the room to take a closer look at the victims, Abe lowered his voice. “Are you sure he’s up to the task? He looks more like a Boy Scout than a cop.”

  “He passed the police academy,” said Chase. “So he should be good to go.”

  “Nothing beats experience, though,” said Abe, giving Mick a skeptical look. Then he shrugged. “I guess Alec knows what he’s doing.” He gave Chase a pat on the shoulder. “I’ll get my report to you ASAP, detective. And in the meantime, stay thirsty, my friend.”

  The two huskies, despite being denied access to the room, hovered near the entrance, looking just as incensed as their owner at being barred.

  “Maybe Mick can talk to his dogs the same way I can talk to the cats?” Odelia suggested. “Maybe that’s why he wants them to have access to the scene?”

  “I doubt it,” said Chase. “If he could talk to those dogs, I’d have noticed by now.”

  “You didn’t notice that I could talk to cats for the longest time,” she reminded him playfully.

  “I noticed soon enough,” he said. “And besides—your cats have successfully solved many cases. These dogs, on the other hand, have only caused this police department grief.”

  Mick had returned from his inspection of the crime scene, a look of awe on his face.

  “Wow,” he said. “I mean, just wow. Just when you think you’ve seen it all, you come across something like this.”

  “So what do you think?” asked Chase.

  “I mean…” The newly minted police officer shook his head. “Whoever did this is one sick puppy—that’s what I think. Did you see the blood?”

  “I saw the blood,” said Chase dryly.

  “There’s a lot of it,” Mick remarked.

  “That’s because the victims sustained a lot of cuts.”

  “Yeah, well, like I said—we’re dealing with one sick puppy here, Chase.” He gave the detective a look of expectation. “So what do we do now?”

  “Now we start interviewing witnesses,” said Chase. “And since there are plenty of them, I propose we split up. Odelia and I will talk to the staff, while you go talk to the neighbors.”

  “I’ll do that,” said Mick, starting to walk away. Then he turned on his heel. “What do I ask them, exactly?”

  “Ask if they’ve seen any suspicious activity over the past couple of days and weeks.”

  “Suspicious activity? Like what?”

  “Suspicious vehicles.”

  “What makes a vehicle suspicious?”

  “When it’s not supposed to be there. Ask about suspicious people hanging around the neighborhood. And ask them about the Eiderducks—what kind of people they were, their standing in the community, if anyone had any beef with them—that sort of thing.”

  “Great,” said Mick, displaying a happy smile. “I’ll go do that right now, Chase.”

  Once again, he walked off, a spring in his step.

  “He does seem enthusiastic,” said Odelia.

  “They should have taught him all that stuff in police academy,” Chase said.

  “Did he get good grades?”

  “He was fine. Which is why I don’t understand how ignorant he seems to be at times.”

  “It’s the difference between theory and reality, babe,” said Odelia. “Just give him time. He’ll get the hang of it soon enough.”

  “I hope so,” said Chase, as he stared after the disappearing form of the former hockey star. “Alec has asked me to keep an eye on him. To be Mick’s mentor. But at this rate, I’m starting to feel he’s given me an impossible assignment.”

  CHAPTER 6

  To my recollection, we hadn’t actually been locked inside the house in a long time. And now that we were, I felt distinctly uncomfortable—especially since we weren’t allowed to have any food either.

  Before she left, Odelia had removed our bowls and had encouraged us once again to “drink water” in lieu of our usual intake of delicious kibble, which pretty much summed up what the rest of the night would consist of.

  “I didn’t know that water was a food group, Max,” said Dooley.

  “It isn’t,” I said gloomily.

  “Odelia seems to think it is. Every time we asked for food, she told us to ‘drink water,’ so she must believe water is food.”

  “Well, it isn’t,” I repeated. “And anyone who tells you differently is lying, Dooley. He’s lying, I’m telling you!”

  Dooley seemed taken aback by my outburst, but I simply couldn’t help myself. Whenever I’m deprived of one of my favorite activities in life—namely, eating—I get a little cranky.

  And when I looked over at Harriet and Brutus, I got the feeling they were feeling the exact same way. Brutus had his eyes tightly shut in an effort to sleep, and conversely, Harriet had hers wide open.

  I gave up staring at the place where our bowls had been—I guess deep down I was still hoping that, through some kind of miracle, they would suddenly appear again, but so far they hadn’t—and joined our friends in the living area.

  “Brutus, you’re not fooling anyone,” I said. “I know you’re not sleeping, so you might as well open your eyes.”

  A deep, long breath escaped his lungs as he opened his eyes. “I figured that if only I could get to sleep, by the time I woke up this nightmare would be over, and I’d be able to have breakfast. Only problem is: I can’t get to sleep because I’m so hungry!”

  “I’m so hungry that my eyes are stuck,” said Harriet. “See? I just can’t close them!”

  “My stomach is making funny noises,” said Dooley. “Is that normal, you think? Maybe Odelia should take me to see Vena?”

  “Your stomach is telling you that it hasn’t been fed,” I explained, “and as long as you don’t eat, it will keep making those noises.”

  “How about you, Max?” asked Brutus. “How are you holding up?”

  “I’m not,” I said. “I’m not holding up at all. If I don’t get something to eat soon, I swear I’m this close to going on a killing spree and taking out everything—and everyone—in sight.”

  “But you can’t, Max,” said Dooley, aghast. “You can’t become a murderer! They’ll lock you up in jail and we’ll never see you again!”

  “There are visiting times in jail,” Brutus pointed out. “So you’ll still be able to talk to Max. Though if he’s as crazed as he says he is, he might be locked up with the most egregious offenders, and you’ll only be allowed to talk to him from behind a slab of reinforced glass.”

  “They don’t lock cats up in prison, silly,” said Harriet. She cut a quick glance at Dooley and swallowed her words when she realized how they might affect our youngest friend. “Well, it’s not a prospect we should dwell on,” she finished primly.

  “Maybe we have to find something to eat before Max snaps,” Brutus said. “We don’t want him to go on that killing spree and slay the three of us in the process, now do we?”

  “There’s kibble in the pantry,” said Harriet. “But Odelia has placed it high up, so we wouldn’t be able to reach it.”