"Wait—you visited the place?" Bo asked. "What'd you do, mosey in and ask if they'd seen your dog?"
"No, of course not. I'm not that dense—I didn't want to give my mission away."
Bo's eyebrows raised. "Your mission?"
"Yes, it's my mission to find my dog," I said huffily.
A small smile cracked Bo's lips. "Of course it is. I get it, sis, I do. But what if someone stole him to sell him? I mean, those Danes can bring in a hefty price. Maybe they're trying to get him on the black market."
"Trust me, I thought of that." I shoved my wayward bangs out of my eyes. "I've scoured the internet, but there aren't any dogs fitting Coal's description or matching his photo for sale."
"Could be on the Dark Web," he said spookily.
"No, I refuse to believe that. It has something to do with that tag, I'm sure of it. I'll show it to you after work. It says 'Amber 457301.' Does that mean anything, you think?"
"Sounds like a girl's name," Bo said. "I'd have to give some thought as to what might use six digits like that."
"Well, think about it. Come to my place after work and we'll eat and figure out the plan. I'm signed up for a class at Ivy Hill tonight—not that awful drumming class I tried to do before. You could tag along and maybe one of us could snoop around?" I clasped my hands together. "Pretty please?"
Bo leaned against the metal shelving. "All right. I'll do it, but only for you, because I know what this dog means to you." His voice cracked a little, and he didn't have to say what we both knew—that besides him, Coal was all I had right now.
As I followed Bo out of the back room, I couldn't stop smiling. My big bro was on the case with me, and he would never let me down.
Bo fixed a meal of chicken and dumplings that would've made Aunt Athaleen proud. I wished I'd spent more time in her kitchen, but instead I'd always migrated outdoors, exploring things with my dogs and daydreaming my life away.
As we ate, I caught Bo up on everything I'd heard, backing all the way up to Isabella's first conversation with her friend at Barks & Beans.
"I mean, it's possible the center director, Alice, is involved," I said, munching on a bite of salad. "Isabella said Alice and Gerard had some tiffs, and it sounds like their relationship was strained, but Isabella didn't think Alice would be stalking Gerard. Oh, yeah—and Isabella said Alice had some expensive rhino horn on her desk, so I guess she's doing okay for money."
My brother chewed his dumpling, waiting for me to wrap things up. In the silence, I felt an acute awareness that Coal wasn't pressed against my leg or sitting nearby, politely watching me eat. I hoped someone was feeding him well.
I tried to swallow my sadness and continued, my voice unsteady. "Oh, and unless I miss my guess, I think Isabella was having an affair with Gerard. She said she'd been over at his house for Christmas parties, but the way she lit up when she talked about the place, it was obvious she'd been there other times. Plus, she seems to be personally grieving about Gerard's death—she's even getting therapy sessions at Ivy Hill for it."
"I think I'm getting the picture," Bo said. "And you said you heard the dog barking upstairs at the center, right? How about this—we both attend the thriving class, then I'll slip out and check around upstairs. I'll be careful around that Doctor Schneider's office, in case he's counseling people."
"Sounds good." I took a sip of sweet tea. "Be careful, though. Gerard was obviously murdered, and the killer could easily be one of the employees at the center."
"Of course." Bo patted at his beltline, where I knew his handgun was securely holstered under his shirt.
"Just don't get too crazy with exercises if they're doing those, or someone might see that gun," I said.
"I might wear an ankle holster tonight," he said.
"We'll be ready for whatever," I said. "Now, let's go find my dog."
8
The Thrive at Life class met in the annexed part of Ivy Hill, so it could prove tricky for Bo to sneak back into the main section and check for Coal. The annex was connected by a greenhouse-style hallway that was chock full of warm-weather plants. I was particularly taken with an orange orchid that glowed like a flame of color in an otherwise green room.
We arrived in the classroom early because Bo arrived everywhere early. I think he felt it gave him an advantage over others, being the first to get the lay of the land and familiarize himself with a new setting.
A woman with short maroon hair and cat-eye glasses was arranging chairs in a circle. She wore dress pants and a blouse, so I figured that despite my yoga-pant garb, we wouldn't be doing exercise in this class. Bo jumped in to help the woman while I opened the door for an older couple who had just arrived. The couple had obviously been fighting with one another, since they were still scrapping around and didn't even thank me.
"Please, have seats in the circle," the maroon-haired woman said. "I have handouts to give you once everyone arrives, but for now, I'll just introduce myself. I'm Alice Stevenson, the director of the center."
I struggled to hide my surprise. Here was one of my prime persons of interest in Gerard's death, which meant she could also be involved in Coal's dognapping.
After I sat down, Alice came over to shake my hand. "Welcome. And you are?"
"Macy Hatfield—that's my brother Bo who helped you with the chairs. We run the new Barks & Beans Cafe in town." I watched her face carefully to see if she'd recognize my name—which she would if she'd snuck into my house to steal my dog.
Her green eyes didn't flinch and her face remained placid. "How lovely to meet you! I've heard a lot about that cafe. Tell me, do you have éclairs? I'm a sucker for a homemade éclair."
I smiled. "I'm sure our baker, Charity, could add some to the menu. She's always on the lookout for new customer favorites."
"Please do! I'll have to drop by sometime. I'm not much of a dog person, but I think it's wonderful what you're doing for the shelter dogs." As more class members arrived, she darted a glance toward them, then looked back at me. "Please excuse me; I'd better introduce myself to the others."
As the perky Alice walked away in her eco-friendly shoes, I had to wonder if she'd dropped that dog comment on purpose, perhaps to throw me from guessing she might've stolen my dog. It seemed unlikely, given that it sounded like Alice and Gerard weren't tight, so he wouldn't have been likely to mention the metal tag on Coal's collar to her.
Still, I considered everyone in this place a suspect in Coal's dognapping until I could start ruling them out.
Bo settled in next to me on the chair I'd saved for him, which was closest to the door. "Find out anything?" he whispered.
"Not sure," I said. "Alice seems genuine enough—she said she doesn't like dogs."
Bo rubbed his beard. "Could be a smokescreen."
"I agree."