Chihuahua of the Baskervilles (12 page)

Michael spoke. “I think someone is using a recording of Petey’s voice. Last night, the voice told Charlotte to divorce Thomas.”

She stared at him a moment, then sighed and flipped to a new page in her notebook. “All right, tell me about the talking ghost dog.”

*   *   *

Angus looked at his watch: nine thirty at night. “I can’t think of anything else, Officer.” They still stood in the hallway outside Charlotte’s room.

Officer Deloit waved a finger between Michael and Suki. “How about you two? No?” She clipped the notebook to her belt. “Then let’s go back inside.”

Ellen had moved to the chair beside Charlotte’s bed. Both women looked up as the others trooped into the room.

“You’ve been gone a long time,” Charlotte said. “I forgot to ask, was Thomas the only one hit?” She swallowed. “You didn’t find a dog, did you?”

Officer Deloit took out her cell phone and tapped on the keypad. She watched the screen for a moment. “Nope. No dog.” Looking up, she said, “Ms. Froehlich, I’d like you to come to the station with me. Given Ms. Baskerville’s concerns about the death of her husband, we need someone to fill us in on the household, and I don’t want to tire her out.”

Ellen looked startled. “Now?”

“If you don’t mind, that would be best for us.” Officer Deloit’s lips turned up in a brief smile.

Ellen picked up her purse and stood. “Okay.” She turned back toward Charlotte. “I’ll call tomorrow morning and pick you up, all right?”

Charlotte nodded. “Thank you, dear. Feel free to tell the police whatever they want to know.” She waved Ellen out of the room, then sank back into her pillows.

“We should be going,” Angus said.

Charlotte smiled sadly. “I suppose you think I’ve spoiled your article, now that I don’t think this was Petey’s ghost.”

Angus made a dismissive gesture. “
Tripping
magazine encourages informed discussion.”

“I’m sure you do. The thing is, ghosts are good publicity,” Charlotte said, “whereas murder and family troubles are not.” She gave a half smile. “Ladies who buy outfits for their dogs are not big fans of gritty reality.”

“Does that mean you’re still willing to be quoted as believing there’s a ghost?” Angus asked.

“Yes. And after all, the verdict is still out. Perhaps it is a ghost, but not Petey’s ghost.” She reached out to Angus. “Will you do me a favor?”

He stepped forward so she could take his hand. “If I can.”

“Will you tell Cheri that Thomas is dead?” Charlotte Baskerville’s face crumpled, and she covered it with her fingers.

Angus patted her shoulder while she sobbed for a few moments.

Finally Charlotte wiped her cheeks and took several deep breaths. “Cheri hasn’t answered her phone, so she’s probably still out with Jay. She shouldn’t hear news like this over the phone, regardless.” Charlotte shook her head despairingly. “Cheri’s father, my son, also died in a car accident. Cheri and Thomas haven’t been close for a while, but still…”

“It’s bound to be hard on the lass,” Angus said sympathetically. “This isn’t my business, but is her father’s death the reason she lives with you?”

“Sort of. Cheri’s mother remarried last year, and Cheri and her stepfather don’t get along. Cheri started drinking again. I told her she could live with me and help with Petey’s Closet as long as she stayed sober.”

“That was very kind of you,” Angus said, patting her again. “Are you sure it wouldn’t be better for someone closer to Cheri to tell her about Thomas? How long has Bob Hume been a friend of the family’s?”

“Ages. He met Cheri’s father in college. But Bob is not a person you want to hear bad news from,” Charlotte said dismissively. “He has all the emotional warmth of an infomercial. I’d have Ellen tell her, but Cheri and Ellen don’t get along that well. As for Ivan, he may not be back until tomorrow. I think he has a lady friend somewhere.”

“So Cheri may come home to an empty house,” Angus said.

“Exactly.” She looked up at him pleadingly. “Stay there tonight. I’ll leave a message for Ellen that you can use whatever rooms you like. Mine, Thomas’s.” She pressed her lips together and closed her eyes. “The police gave me his keys. They’re in that drawer, if you’ll get them out.”

Angus opened the drawer of the hospital nightstand and took out the bunch of keys. “What about the dogs? If Ellen and Ivan aren’t back, should we do anything special for them?”

“There’s a piece of paper on the refrigerator door that has all their information.” She smiled tremulously at him. “I know this is a lot to ask, but anyone could blurt out the news to Cheri. You know how people are. I don’t want her to hear her grandfather is dead and then go home to find no one around.”

A nurse came into the room. “Mrs. Baskerville, you need to get some rest.” He looked at the monitor with Charlotte’s vital signs. “I’m going to bring you something to help you sleep, and then you’ll be done with visitors for the night.”

Eleven

Angus drove them back to the Baskerville house.

Traffic lights made red and green reflections on the wet asphalt, but the snow had stopped. The tires hissed on the pavement, and Angus put the wipers on intermittent when they got behind another car.

Michael shifted in the backseat. “I’m surprised you told the police about the glow paint, Angus.” His tone was bitter.

“I wasn’t going to withhold what might be evidence,” Angus said primly.

“You withheld it from us.”

“Temporarily.”

“
Temporarily
can mean anything.
Temporarily
could mean years.”

Angus sighed. “Well, now you know, so in this case
temporarily
meant only a day.”

After a moment, Michael said, “Still, the paint suggests that this is a hoax and Ellen is the most likely candidate. I mean, really, did it seem like a ghost to you? It wasn’t particularly frightening.”

Angus lifted one shoulder. “There are as many descriptions of ghosts as there are people who see them. I’ve often wondered if the same ghost looks different to different people. And there are a lot of reasons Ellen might have glow paint. She is a costume designer, after all.” He turned onto Manitou Avenue. The streets were quiet aside from people leaving the few restaurants that were still open.

“What we saw tonight didn’t match how Charlotte described the first ghost,” Suki said.

“In what way?” Angus asked. “It glowed, and it looked like a Chihuahua.”

“Yeah, but it didn’t float like a bubble on the air. It ran like a bat out of hell.”

Angus nodded. “Perhaps Charlotte is right, and it was a different ghost.”

Michael groaned. “And I suppose it locked Petey in some astral basement while it led Thomas Baskerville to his death.”

They drove past the arcade. A young couple in hooded sweatshirts stood under the snack bar’s awning, looking cold.

“That could be why the ghost put in another appearance,” Angus said thoughtfully. “Thomas came to heel, and Charlotte decided to give him another chance. But Petey still wanted her to divorce him.”

“
Someone
certainly did,” Michael said. “Let’s talk about why Ellen might want Charlotte to divorce her husband. She might worry that Thomas would convince Charlotte to switch to dog food. Then Ellen wouldn’t be needed.”

“Charlotte didn’t seem like she was going to change businesses,” Angus said.

“Okay … Ellen might worry that Charlotte would die and leave the business to Thomas instead of her.”

Angus turned left on Ruxton Avenue. “I think anyone who lives in that house would want to see Charlotte give Thomas the boot. He was like a big, black cloud.”

“I don’t imagine that bothered Ivan much,” Michael said. “He seems hard as nails.”

“Ivan spends a lot of time away from the house,” Suki pointed out. “Maybe to get away from Thomas. And don’t forget Cheri. She’s young, has a drinking problem, and wound up with her grandmother. There must be a lot of stress there.”

“Hoaxing is often a young person’s game,” Michael agreed. “They get a kick out of fooling authority figures. She wouldn’t want to kill her own grandfather, though, would she?”

“I sincerely hope not,” Angus said. “If this was a hoax, I think divorce was the goal, and Thomas’s death was an accident.” He parked on the street in front of the Baskerville house.

All three of them looked toward the side street where Thomas Baskerville’s body had lain. A few dead leaves fell, to shine wetly against the pavement. Only the silver Corolla stood in the driveway, but a few lights burned inside the house. They got out and closed the car doors.

Michael stuck his hands in his coat pockets. “Who’s going to tell Cheri?”

“I’ll tell her if you want,” Suki offered.

“
I’ll
tell her,” Angus said.

“I think that’s best,” Michael agreed. “You have that comforting thing going on.” He looked up at the house as they approached. “Both the father and the son died the same way. It’s like the Baskerville men are cursed.” He shook his head. “I can’t believe I just said that.”

The door was unlocked. They had barely stepped inside when steps sounded along the upstairs hallway.

Cheri clattered downstairs in high-heeled boots, stopping on the last stair. “Oh, it’s you.” Her eyes were red-rimmed, her face blotchy.

Angus took off his coat. “I see you’ve heard. I’m so sorry, Cheri. Charlotte’s been trying to call you.”

“What are you talking about?” Cheri’s hand moved restlessly on the wooden banister. “Where
is
everyone?”

Angus paused in the act of hanging his coat on the bronze rack. “Why have you been crying, Cheri?”

She sat down on a step. “Not that it’s any of your business, but Jay and I broke up tonight. I turned my cell off so he couldn’t call me.”

“Oh, Lord.” Angus came over and squatted in front of Cheri. “I’m sorry to add to your troubles, but I have very bad news. Your grandfather was hit by a car and did not survive. Charlotte is in the hospital—”

“Grandpa and Grandma?” Cheri’s voice sounded very childlike. Tears spilled from her eyes.

Angus raised a reassuring hand. “Charlotte should recover completely. They think it was just shock. But I’m so sorry about your grandfather.”

Cheri bent and hid her face against her knees.

Angus rested his hand on the back of her head for a moment. “Charlotte has asked us to stay the night here. I’m not sure when Ellen will be back.” He got to his feet.

Cheri looked up at him and gulped down a sob. “Will you take me to the hospital to see Grandma?”

“I would, but the doctors have given her a sedative and said she can’t have any more visitors tonight. Ellen hopes to bring her home tomorrow morning. Is there anything else we can do for you?”

“Nooo,” Cheri said, collapsing forward again.

Someone knocked on the front door.

“I’ll get it.” Michael went to the door and opened it.

Bob Hume walked inside immediately. “Did Charlotte have a heart attack? Is she going to be okay?” He saw Cheri and stopped. “I’m sorry about your grandfather.”

Cheri covered the back of her bent head with her arms. “Thanks,” she said, her voice breaking.

Bob raised his eyebrows at Angus and mouthed,
Charlotte?

“Charlotte’s in the hospital, recovering,” Angus said.

Bob nodded. “Good. I don’t know what everyone would do without her.”

Cheri looked up. Her eyes were almost swelled shut. “But she’ll be gone someday!”

Bob looked uncomfortable. “You have other people. There’s Ellen, and Jay…”

“Jay and Cheri broke up tonight,” Suki offered.

Someone knocked on the door.

“Oh, God,” Cheri moaned. “Who is it
now
?”

While Michael opened the door a second time, Bob patted Cheri’s shoulder awkwardly.

A uniformed policeman stood outside, notebook in hand. “I’m looking for Angus MacGregor.”

Angus raised a hand. “That’s me.”

“Officer Boyd. May I come in?”

Angus looked back at Cheri. “It’s not actually my house.”

Cheri stood and gripped the banister. “What is it? Is it my grandmother?”

“Are you Cheri Baskerville?” He took out a notepad. “Where were you around seven thirty this evening?”

Cheri began to cry in earnest, arms wrapped around herself. “I can’t believe you would ask me that! I was out with Jay Metcalf!”

“Do you have his phone number?”

Cheri collapsed, sobbing, against Bob Hume. “I can’t take this right now!”

Bob raised his arms and held her, a little tentatively.

“We can look him up,” Officer Boyd said. “That’s M-E-T,
calf
like the cow?”

“That’s right,” Bob answered. He patted Cheri’s back. “Cheri, why don’t you come over to my house? I’ll make you some açaí-berry tea. Warm beverages are very good for stress.”

She nodded, head still against his shoulder.

“She’ll be right next door if you need her,” Bob said. “Come on, Cheri. You don’t even have to wait for anything to boil. I have an on-demand hot-water heater. I don’t know why everyone doesn’t have one.”

Officer Boyd stood aside to let them out, then closed the door and put his hands on his hips. “I’m supposed to look at some glow paint?”

“Right,” Angus said, nodding. “It’s very faint, but I’ll see if I can find it for you.” He pointed to a switch on the foyer wall. “Michael, could you turn that light off? It’ll need to be pretty dark.”

The upstairs hall light was still on. Angus led the way to the second floor and switched on the light in Ellen’s bathroom. “We’ll give the paint a moment to charge while I turn off the hall light. Just a sec.” When he returned, he pointed to the threshold. “Watch this area.” He switched off the bathroom light.

They stood in the darkness.

“I don’t see anything,” Officer Boyd said.

“I think I do,” Suki said. “Turn the light back on, Angus.”

When he had, she squatted and put her finger on the crack between two boards. “It’s right about here. You might have to get down close to see it.”

Officer Boyd knelt, and Michael squatted next to him.

Angus switched off the light.