Fifty Shades of Greyhound (The Pampered Pets Mystery Series) by Sparkle Abbey Page A

recommended letting her check on everyone.
    “Don’t try to settle her down.” I patted Katy’s head as I talked, but Bailey soon nosed in as well, sliding her head under my hand. “Let her go room to room and do her thing. She’ll settle herself once she’s verified everyone is accounted for.”
    I tossed a ball and Bailey bounded after it, ready to play.
    I was so glad Brandi had called. I’d had a great time with her and her two dogs.
    Leaving my card with Brandi, I asked her to keep in touch and to let me know how Katy did with the new approach to her anxious behavior. Also, I’d had a thought: Dogbert would love her two dogs. We might just make plans to stop by for a play date.
    Next, I headed to Ruby Point where Davis Pinter, the retired newspaper tycoon, was on the docket. We’d worked together before and Huntley had very few problems. However, they were going to be traveling and Davis had some questions. He was also a great dog owner and took daily walks with Huntley. Cavaliers are super companion dogs and perfect for a retiree like Davis.
    The prize-winning newsman routinely called me for consultations. Partly, I believed, because he was bored. The excitement of the newsroom was a thing of the past, and Davis hadn’t really taken to the slower pace of retirement.
    Both clients, human and dog, were in the backyard when I arrived. Davis had set out a pitcher of lemonade on the patio table and offered me a glass. Never one to refuse a refreshment, I accepted.
    “Have a seat, Caro.” He pulled out a chair and poured drinks for us both.
    Davis’s home was one of the nicer homes in Ruby Point, but the patio was my favorite part. A flagstone path led from the house to a small oasis of green hedges and colorful flowerbeds. Like most of the homes in the gated community, he had a swimming pool in the back, but his was made from natural rocks and the water babbled across them, sounding like a mountain stream if you sat quietly.
    “Thanks, Davis.” I slid into the comfortable seat in the shade and slipped my sunglasses off. “How are you doing? I haven’t seen you since the Greyhound event. You look good.”
    Older but far from elderly, Davis had salt-and-pepper hair that gave him a distinguished look, and the man was always sharply dressed. Less formal than the last time I’d seen him, but he wore still-creased tan chinos and a boldly-striped shirt that looked freshly pressed.
    “I’m doing fine. That was quite the deal. I was clear across the room, so they questioned me and sent me on my way rather quickly.” He took a sip of his lemonade and smiled down at Huntley who had joined us. “What about you, Caro? You were right near the guy, weren’t you?”
    “I was.” I explained about thinking the man had been having a panic attack, only to find he’d been stabbed.
    “Good grief.” He leaned forward to scratch Huntley’s head. “That had to be unsettling.”
    “It was a little surreal,” I admitted.
    “What’s the story?” Davis’s brow furrowed. “Have you heard anything on the case?”
    “Not a thing. Eugene Perry, one of the catering workers and the twin brother of Verdi, our receptionist at the office, is a ‘person of interest,’ at least according to Detective Malone.”
    “Why is that?”
    Though Davis was retired from the newsroom, I don’t think the curiosity that made him good at digging for a story had gone into retirement.
    “Mainly because he disappeared that night and hasn’t been heard from since.”
    “Hmm.” He wrinkled his forehead. “Doesn’t mean he’s guilty, but it doesn’t look good, does it? What does his sister say?”
    “She says he had some trouble when he was younger. Computer hacking. Went to jail, but he’s cleaned up his act. She hasn’t heard from him or been able to locate him.”
    I didn’t mention our trip to the computer store.
    Or run-in with the FBI.
    Or the costumes.
    “Who was the guy that was stabbed?”
    “That’s the odd thing. New