“Best bet would be the Generals Arms,” he said.

  “Is that a bar?”

  “Yeah, not a very nice one, mind you. But it’s where he spends most of his time. Him and some of his seedy friends.”

  “Thanks…”

  “Barry Gibb,” said the cat.

  “Barry Gibb?”

  “Yeah. On account of my great singing voice.” He suddenly puffed himself up and started belting out, “Well, you can tell by the way I use my walk I’m a woman’s man.”

  “Thanks, Barry Gibb,” I said quickly.

  “Hey, it’s all about stayin’ alive, buddy.”

  “Absolutely.”

  “Tell Clarice I said hi, will you?”

  “I will,” I said as we returned to Chase and Odelia, who stood patiently waiting.

  “And tell her not to be a stranger!” Barry Gibb cried after us, and I lifted my paw in response.

  “Nice fellow, Barry Gibb,” said Dooley.

  “Yeah, very nice,” I agreed.

  “Let’s ask him to join cat choir.”

  “Let’s not.” And addressing my human, I said, “Generals Arms. It’s a bar where Edwardo hangs out a lot.”

  Odelia’s smile was something to behold. “Thanks, Max. I owe you one.”

  Chapter 12

  We waited outside while Chase and Odelia walked into the Generals Arms to talk to the bartender. Strange as it may sound, but some of these bars and restaurants have a No Pets Allowed policy. It’s not something I’ll ever be able to understand, though of course it is true that pets usually don’t carry wallets and so don’t make the best customers. And since these places only make money when the patrons pay for their services, I guess there is a certain logic to barring pets from frequenting them.

  “Do you think that the Baker Street Cats will make police work a thing of the past, Max?” asked Dooley as we waited on the sidewalk like the good assistants that we were.

  “I don’t think so, Dooley,” I said.

  “But why, Max? If all the cats in all the cities in all the world are mobilized to hunt criminals, there will be no more crime, and the police will find themselves out of a job.”

  “There’s a lot of stuff the police do that has nothing to do with crime, Dooley,” I said.

  “Like what?”

  “Directing traffic, for instance,” I said after a moment’s reflection. “Or crowd control.”

  “I don’t think Chase will be happy to go from being a detective to directing traffic.”

  “No, well, I don’t think it will ever come to that.”

  Odelia and Chase had come walking out of the bar, both looking relieved.

  “We got him,” said Odelia. “Turns out he was in here with Willie last night, huddling in a corner for a long time, before apparently getting into some kind of fight. They had to break them up, and they were hurling a string of expletives in each other’s direction.”

  “But why?” I asked.

  Odelia shrugged. “The bartender said that Edwardo accused Willie of betraying him, though what exactly the argument was about, he didn’t know. All he knows is that he kicked both men out, and that’s the last time he saw them.”

  “Let’s go,” said Chase curtly, as he tucked his notebook back into his jacket pocket.

  Moments later we were zooming along in the direction of Edwardo’s new place, and when we arrived there, discovered it was actually a deserted old factory.

  “The people who claim that crime doesn’t pay would get a kick out of this,” Chase grunted when he took in the rundown old building, where, according to the markings on the facade, once wheelbarrows had been made.

  “Looks like Willie’s friend has hit hard times,” Odelia remarked.

  We all got out and approached the industrial structure. Entering the place, we found the entrance strewn with plenty of rubble, and as we proceeded deeper into the heart of the factory, it soon became clear that several people had selected it as their home. Mattresses had been placed on the concrete floor, and someone had even started a fire. The fire was out now, fortunately, but if this went on they might as well set fire to the whole building… which frankly speaking might not be such a bad idea, as an old eyesore like this could only have one purpose: to be torn down to make room for new housing.

  As Odelia went in one direction and Chase in another, Dooley and I decided to simply wander around, and let our intuition be our guide. Our intuition has served us well in the past, you see, and I hoped it would serve us well this time. And soon I picked up the scent of food being broiled or boiled, and so naturally we proceeded in that direction.

  “I think I’m hungry, Max,” said my friend.

  “You think you’re hungry or you are hungry?” I asked as I studied our surroundings. The factory might have been deserted, but some of the old machinery had been left in place. I even saw several wheelbarrows piled up in a corner. Odd that a wheelbarrow factory would go bust, I thought. Who doesn’t like a nice shiny wheelbarrow?

  And then we spotted him: a man cooking something on a portable gas stove. When he saw us, he frowned. “Shoo,” he said, and picked up a rock and threw it in our direction!

  “Do you think this is Edwardo, Max?” I asked Dooley.

  “I don’t know, Dooley,” I said, “but if it is, and he did steal four thousand five hundred dollars from his friend, he’s not spending it on a gourmet meal.”

  Suddenly, Chase appeared on the other side of the cavernous space and called out, “Police. Have you seen Edwardo Yuhas, sir?”

  The man cursed under his breath, and immediately got up and started running in our direction.

  Now I know that when a large man runs in your direction the first instinct is to flee, and I must confess I experienced a momentary temptation to do just that, but then I steeled myself to the task, and instead of running away from the danger, actually ran toward it! Though I think the rock-throwing might have had something to do with this as well. And so as my path crossed with that of the man, he sort of tripped over me and fell to the concrete floor. Moments later, Chase was upon him, and held him down.

  “Hey, you can’t do that!” the man cried. “This is police brutality!”

  “Relax, buddy,” said Chase. “I just want to know where I can find Edwardo Yuhas, that’s all—hold on, you’re Edwardo Yuhas, aren’t you?” he said, checking the man’s credentials.

  “And what if I am?” said the man, who had a large head, and an even larger body.

  Odelia, attracted by the noise, now also come running up, and helped Chase to go through the man’s pockets. When she extracted a nice wad of cash from his coat pocket, all crisp new bills, she smiled.

  “Now where does a man with no fixed abode come into such a nice sum of money, Mr. Yuhas?” asked Chase, still holding the man down.

  “I’m not telling you a thing, cop,” said Mr. Yuhas.

  “Did you hurt yourself, Max?” asked Dooley solicitously.

  “No, I’m fine,” I said. I’d survived a run-in with Brutus last night, so running into Mr. Yuhas was starting to feel like my regular shtick.

  “Here’s more,” said Odelia, who’d opened the man’s backpack and now showed us a plastic bag with more money inside.

  “Hey, that’s Rosa’s plastic bag,” I said.

  Odelia showed Edwardo the plastic bag with the money. “I think you have some explaining to do, buddy,” she said.

  “I found that,” said Edwardo. “I found it on the street. So finders keepers, you know.”

  “Of course you did,” said Chase, and hauled the man to his feet, then supplied him with a nice pair of handcuffs, and read him his rights.

  Chapter 13

  The ride to the precinct was an awkward one, for Dooley and I had to share the backseat with this cuffed criminal. Especially the fact that he kept throwing very nasty glances in my direction unnerved me a great deal. I guess he was still upset that I’d tripped him up, and presumably blamed me for his capture.

  Once arrived, I felt relieved when Chase removed the man from the car, and escorted him into the police station, to interrogate him in the proper circumstances, and get his statement down on paper. Signed, sealed and delivered—another crime solved.

  Unfortunately, and in spite of my natural curiosity, cats aren’t allowed into the interview rooms, and so we were dependent on Odelia to supply us with the information as to the conclusion of the interview. And since Odelia isn’t an actual cop, she wasn’t allowed to sit in on the interview either. She was, however, allowed to follow along from the next room, where a one-way mirror offers a very nice view of the interrogation.

  Forced to wait in Chase’s office, Dooley and I made ourselves comfortable on Chase’s small but cozy sofa, and soon curled up into two respective balls and succumbed to a refreshing nap. When Chase and Odelia entered the office, immediately I was wide awake.

  “He confessed,” Odelia announced. “But only for taking the money, not the murder.”

  “I think if I keep leaning on him he’ll confess to the murder as well,” Chase said as he took a seat behind his desk and opened his laptop, presumably to start typing up a report.

  It’s not enough that cops catch the criminals, you see, they also have to write all kinds of reports when they do, and sometimes the paperwork associated with an arrest takes them more time than to actually make the arrest in the first place.

  “So he admitted that he was in on the blackmail?” I asked.

  “Not the blackmail,” said Odelia as she took a seat in front of her husband’s desk and addressed us. “He didn’t know about the blackmail. He did confess that he and Willie had a nice business going for a while: Willie would be hired as a handyman, stake out the place, and Edwardo would break in and take the stuff Willie had selected. But lately they’d fallen out, over some money that Edwardo said Willie owed him. So when Willie didn’t answer his phone, he paid him a visit and found his former partner dead on the floor.”

  “He didn’t kill him?”

  “That’s what he says. He says he found him dead, then decided to search the place, like any good friend would. And that’s when he found the plastic bag with the blackmail money and took it.”

  “I don’t believe a word the guy says,” said Chase. “I think the part about them falling out is true. And so when Edwardo dropped by last night, they got into yet another fight, only this time he hit his ex-partner over the head, grabbed the money and ran.”

  “So where is Willie’s phone?”

  Chase shrugged.

  “He didn’t have it?” I asked.

  “Edwardo claims he didn’t find Willie’s phone,” said Odelia.

  “He probably took it and dumped it,” said Chase, “to hide his connection with the guy.”

  “So where does that leave us?” I asked.

  “That leaves us with a job well done,” said Odelia, smiling and giving me a pat on the head. “Hats off to you, Max, for helping us catch the guy.”

  “So you think he did it?” asked Dooley. “He’s the killer?”

  “Yeah, I think that’s pretty much a foregone conclusion. A falling-out amongst thieves, and one thief deciding to kill the other one and take the money.”

  “Rosa will be happy,” I said.

  “Yeah, not only does she get her money back,” said Odelia, leaning back and rubbing her eyes, “but her blackmailer has effectively been put out of business.”

  “Unless Edwardo decides to take over from his partner,” I said.

  “I doubt it. Frankly I think he wasn’t lying about that part. He really didn’t seem to have a clue about the blackmail stuff Willie was into.”

  “No, he seemed completely oblivious,” Chase confirmed. “And now if you’ll excuse me,” he said, cracking his knuckles, “I have a report to write.”

  “What do you think happened to Willie’s phone?” I asked as we walked out.

  “Like Chase said, Edwardo probably took it and dumped it.”

  “So case closed?” asked Dooley.

  Odelia smiled. “Yes, honey. Case closed. And an extra treat for you guys tonight.”

  “Yay,” said Dooley.

  We returned to Odelia’s office, where she, too, had some writing to do. While Chase slaved away over his report, she promptly settled in and started writing up an article about the murder of a handyman, and the arrest of his criminal associate. Meanwhile, Dooley and I settled down in the cozy little nook in her office she’s reserved for us, and would have continued enjoying our much-deserved naptime, if not suddenly Odelia’s phone had rung and the moment she saw who it was, put it on speaker.

  “Odelia,” said a voice that sounded familiar. “It’s Rosa Bond. The most terrible thing has happened. My son has gone missing!”

  Chapter 14

  When we arrived at the house where the Bond family lives, I was pleasantly surprised to find it to be a nice big house in an affluent part of town. After the squalor we’d been confronted with all morning, it made for a nice change of pace.

  The house wasn’t just big, it also sported two garage ports, and the big Tesla parked in front of one indicated these people didn’t stint for money.

  The front door opened, and an anxious-looking Rosa greeted us and ushered us in.

  “I don’t know where he is,” she said, not bothering with preliminaries. “I called the school about the upcoming summer bash, and they asked how Todd was doing. Turns out he called in sick yesterday.”

  “Sick?” asked Odelia as we were led into a spacious living room. The humans took their seats on the beige leather couches while Dooley and I found the fluffy carpet very agreeable.

  “He didn’t go to school this morning either,” said Rosa. She had dark circles under her eyes, and it was clear this whole blackmail business had taken its toll. Coming upon that dreadful episode, her son’s disappearance had hit her hard. “He handed in a doctor’s note yesterday. Must have been a fake. Todd is very handy with the computer.”

  “So he didn’t go to school yesterday or today?” asked Odelia.

  Rosa nodded nervously. “And when he came home last night he was distracted and irritated. He snapped at me, and at his sister, and when I told him to apologize, he ignored me and went straight up to his room.”

  “Did he leave here this morning?”

  “He did. He left at the usual time.”

  “And you have no idea where he could be.”

  Rosa hesitated, then said, “I think it must have something to do with his dad.”

  “You mean your husband?”

  “No, his real dad. Lately he’s been asking me a lot of questions about Clive. I’ve tried to ignore them, since I don’t think it’s fair to Tilton, but Todd insisted. Started rehashing that whole dreadful business.”

  “So what are you saying? That he’s gone looking for his real dad?”

  Rosa bit her lip and nodded. “That’s what I’m afraid of. He talked about this years ago, when he was old enough to understand what happened, about finding his dad and asking him why he did what he did. But then the last couple of years he seemed to have accepted that his dad left us and I thought he’d dropped it. Only now it all started again.”

  “Remind me again how old Todd is?”

  “Sixteen.” She threw up her hands. “It could be his age. Boys his age need a father figure, maybe? I don’t know, Odelia. I’m grasping at straws here.”

  “Did you try his phone?”

  “Of course. He’s not picking up.”

  “Maybe he’s staying with a friend?”

  “I’ve called all of the people I know, but they haven’t seen him either.”

  “Did Todd talk to your husband? Maybe he told him what his plans are?”

  “Oh, no. Todd and my husband are barely on speaking terms these days. Even though he respects Tilton, he has never accepted him as his dad.”

  “And how about his sister?”

  Rosa automatically glanced up at the ceiling. “Todd and Aisha are very close. If he’s confided in anyone, it would be her. But I’ve already asked her, and she says he didn’t tell her what he was up to.”

  “Maybe I can talk to her?” Odelia suggested.

  “Will you?” said Rosa, an anxious look in her eyes. “It’s possible that she’ll tell you more than she would me. She’s fifteen, and she seems to have entered her rebellious phase. So now all of a sudden I’m the enemy.”

  “I’ll give it a shot,” said Odelia, and gave the woman a reassuring smile. “I’m sure Todd is fine. And I also think it’s normal for a boy his age to wonder about his dad, and to want to go and look for him.”

  “But if he went down to Mexico…” said Rosa, and let her voice trail away. But the look of terror in her eyes spoke volumes. A boy of sixteen, alone in Mexico, looking for his dad, might run into all kinds of trouble.

  “I’ll talk to Aisha first, shall I? Maybe she knows something she’s not telling you.”

  Rosa nodded, and got up. “Aisha!” she called out along the staircase. “Can you come down a minute, honey?”

  “I’m busy, Mom!” the girl yelled back.

  “It’s important!” Rosa said, raising her voice, and giving Odelia an apologetic little smile. Teenagers, that smile seemed to say.

  “Oh, fine!” the girl’s voice came, full of exasperation, and then we heard footsteps stomping down the stairs, and moments later a teenage girl appeared. She looked younger than her age, and was dressed in stylishly ripped jeans and a T-shirt announcing that she thought Bruno Mars was way cool, and giving Odelia a curious look. Then she saw Dooley and me, and she actually smiled. “Oh, nice!” she said, and immediately crouched down to give us both cuddles. In response, we started purring up a storm.

  Obviously this was not a girl who was worried about her brother, so I felt that Odelia’s mission might prove successful.

  “This is Odelia Kingsley, sweetie,” said Rosa. “I’ve asked her to look for Todd.”