Karl Bennington’s Five Oaks Small Animal Veterinary Hospital was in the north end of town, tucked away behind the Almond Tree Motel and Café. Mary had made the drive many times and drove it now on autopilot. Her conversation with Alma had shaken her more than she liked to admit.
The children sat in the backseats, faces still encased in smiles. They had had a wonderful time, placed cans with unbridled enthusiasm and took over from adults who no longer wanted to bend down. Now they sipped chocolate milk and argued over who laid out the most cans and who was going to pick the game they were going to play with Sampson. Mary ignored them. Her thoughts were consumed with Alma and the grudge she’d carried against Cliff all these years. She’d blamed him not only for the monetary loss she suffered when he spayed her prize bitch, but for the mental anguish she’d suffered and the loss of interest she’d had in rebuilding her kennels. Alma had let her hurt fester until it was like a boil under her skin. If she was younger, stronger, and a man, Mary would have considered her a suspect, but it made her realize how deep a hurt like that could go and how long it sometimes took to heal. Who else was out there, holding onto a grudge against poor old Cliff? He’d made some pretty awful ‘mistakes’ during those years when he’d systematically drowned his career in alcohol. In the process, he’d inflicted pain on a lot more people than himself. She hoped Dan found out who murdered him quickly. This was reopening old wounds she had hoped were closed for good. Alma’s weren’t. She wondered who else had an open wound.
She swung into Karl’s parking lot. There was only one car other than Karl’s SUV with the dog crate in the back. The office closed at noon and reopened at two, so their timing should be great.
‘Don’t you dare open the car doors until I’m parked and say you can.’ She didn’t care how empty the parking lot was, she didn’t want the kids running across it. True to her expectations, the office door opened and a woman Mary didn’t know walked out with a cat carrier. She barely glanced at Mary, who had pulled in beside her, but took a good look at the kids before she opened the back door and set the carrier on the seat. The cat yowled.
The woman walked around and got in the driver’s seat. When she was clear of the parking lot, Mary spoke. ‘Now you can …’ That was as far as she got. Both children shed their seat belts, had doors opened and were at the front door before Mary had the keys out of the ignition. They didn’t have to open the door. Karl did that for them.
‘Perfect timing. Sampson’s in the puppy pen, waiting for you.’
Karl’s bald head shone pink in the sunlight, the little freckles on it almost glowing through the few thin strands of hair. He smiled as he pushed the door open wider. ‘Pat’s inside. She’s got sandwiches made and some apple slices. You two hungry?’
Mary started to follow the children into the building but Karl stopped her. ‘Wait. I need to talk to you.’
She turned to face him, surprised the smile was gone. The look on his face was serious. No. Worried. Karl never looked like that unless he was worried about one of the animals. Mostly, he looked mildly pleased with life, which, Mary was sure, was how he felt. But he didn’t look pleased right now.
‘What’s the matter?’
‘Do you know where Dan is? I have … something happened … I think he needs to know.’
‘I have no idea where he is. What is it you think he needs to know?’
Karl looked at her for what Mary felt was a long time. ‘I don’t know if this is important or not, but …’ He stopped, evidently mulling something over in his mind, trying to decide. His expression changed. ‘Come into the office. I want to show you something.’
It was with more curiosity than dread that Mary followed him. The office smelled faintly of dog. That wasn’t surprising. There were two dog beds in one corner, both currently empty. Bookshelves were crammed with veterinary books. Framed diplomas filled the space between two of them, along with pictures of dogs, cats and one horse. Mary looked twice at that one. Karl made no secret of the fact that he only took small animals as patients. A large glass tank held— No, she wasn’t going to look. She didn’t like reptiles and was sure they didn’t like her. Instead, she took the only chair in front of Karl’s freestanding-and-totally-loaded-with-papers desk.
‘Well?’
Karl pulled out his desk chair and sank into it. He looked as if he was having a hard time finding a place to begin. ‘A few weeks ago, Cliff came by to see me.’
That surprised Mary. Karl and Cliff had never been friends. Karl had been openly critical of Cliff’s actions in the years before he lost his license. Cliff knew it and resented it. They’d never argued that Mary knew about, and she was sure she would have known if they had, but there was a coolness – no, more like a winter frost between them. ‘What did he want?’
‘He wanted a favor.’
‘Really.’ Now, that was a surprise. ‘What kind?’
‘He wanted me to send a DNA sample to the American Kennel Club to verify parenthood.’
‘To do what? Parenthood? For a dog?’
Karl smiled his mildly amused smile, but there was worry underneath it. ‘Most purebred dogs that are registered sires have their DNA on file with the AKC. It’s required for most breeds, especially if the dog sires more than a couple of litters a year. Keeps things honest. If someone buys a purebred puppy and suspects the sire on the papers isn’t the real one, they can request the puppy’s DNA be checked. There are other reasons – verifying the identity of a dog when it’s sold, things like that. Anyway, Cliff asked me if I’d send in his sample.’
‘Why didn’t he do it?’ Mary tried to absorb all of this. She’d never heard of DNA testing for dogs, or for any animal, but then she knew next to nothing about dog breeding or showing. Why would Cliff want a dog’s DNA tested? He no longer had anything to do with dogs of any kind, or did he? He’d been, when he was a young and eager vet, the doctor of choice for all the purebred breeders in this part of California; at least that was what she was told. No longer. So, what would he want with this test? Why didn’t he send it in himself? The last two questions she asked aloud.
‘He said,’ Karl’s words came out slowly, ‘that he didn’t think the AKC would let him send in a request because he lost his license and wasn’t practicing anymore.’
‘Is that true?’
‘I think he just didn’t want anyone to know what he was doing.’
‘Why? Do you think it could have something to do with why he was killed?’
‘Mary, I have no idea. I don’t know what Cliff was after, who the dog was, anything. He didn’t tell me and, honestly, I didn’t ask. Just told him sure, I’d do it. A few days later he brought the sample, had all the paperwork filled out, gave me a check made out to me and asked me to send mine in with the package and to please call him when the results came back. They came back yesterday.’
Of all the odd things. ‘Did you call him?’
Karl shook his head. ‘Didn’t have a chance. It was a busy day and we wanted to end early so we could see the posada. Besides, I was the vet on call for the extravaganza.’
Mary nodded. She knew that. She’d arranged it. ‘You never talked to him?’
‘No.’
‘Have you looked at the results?’
‘I didn’t yesterday. It was Cliff’s test and his business. I had no intention of opening it. However—’
‘You opened it today?’
Karl nodded.
‘For heaven’s sake, Karl, do you know the dog? Or the owners? Don’t sit there, looking mysterious. Tell me what’s bothering you about this.’
Karl took a deep breath and let it out slowly. ‘Do you remember last year when the Blisses’ poodle got stolen?’
‘The little black dog Naomi took everywhere? Yes, I do. They looked all over and finally concluded someone who visited the winery took him. Why?’
‘That dog was a finished champion and was much in demand as a sire for poodles that size.’
‘What does that have to do with— No. It isn’t.’
‘It is. Only, there’s been no trace of that dog for almost a year. He can’t be shown, and if whoever took him tried to stand him at stud …’ Karl smiled at the puzzled look on Mary’s face and explained, ‘Used him to breed to other dogs, especially poodles … He’s hidden someplace around here. He must be and somehow Cliff found him. I think he wanted the DNA test to make sure he was right.’
Mary sat stunned. Had Cliff stumbled onto something that got him killed? But, what? The puppy. Could he somehow … ‘Sampson. The puppy. Is he a poodle?’
There was no longer even a trace of a smile on Karl’s face. ‘I think Sampson may be a very cute cockapoo.’
‘A what?’ Mary sat up straight and stared at Karl. Maybe she hadn’t heard him right.
Karl smiled faintly. ‘I can see you don’t keep up with the latest “designer” dogs. A cockapoo has one parent who’s a poodle and the other a cocker spaniel. They’re becoming pretty popular. At least with everybody but those who don’t believe in mixing purebred bloodlines.’
Mary tried to make sense of that but couldn’t. However, it wasn’t what she wanted to know. ‘You think Sampson is a cockapoo? Is that what you said?’
‘It’s hard to tell with a puppy Sampson’s age, but he sure looks like one to me.’
A picture swam into Mary’s mind. Black puppies, black and white puppies. ‘Evan has puppies in his shop. Black and white furry puppies. Is it possible Sampson is one of those?’
‘The world is full of black and white furry puppies. If you’re asking me if Sampson could be related to Evan’s puppies, I couldn’t begin to tell you. I don’t know where Evan gets his puppies and have no idea where Sampson came from. All I can tell you is he’s cute and appears healthy. However, I’ve started him on his shots. Just in case.’
Mary tried to hide her smile. Just like Karl, always thinking about the animals first. ‘What are you going to do with him?’
Karl sighed. ‘Hold onto him for a while, I guess. At least until Dan’s satisfied he’s not evidence of something. Then I suppose we’ll try to find him a home.’
‘Karl, do you think either of those dogs, the Blisses’ poodle or Sampson, have something to do with Cliff’s murder?’
Karl leaned forward on his desk. Mary had never seen him look so troubled.
‘I have no idea. It seems too much of a coincidence for there not to be a connection, but I can’t think what. I’ll tell Dan about this test as soon as I find him and then bow out.’ He looked directly at her. ‘I think we need to keep this to ourselves. That sample is from Naomi’s dog, but it doesn’t tell us where the dog is or who has him, and it certainly doesn’t tell us why Cliff was killed or by whom. Let Dan sort this out. All right?’
Mary nodded but slowly, and without conviction.
He got up and headed toward the door. ‘I need to get back to work. It’s after two and I have patients in the waiting room.’
Mary nodded again and followed him out the door. She needed to pry the kids away from Sampson, and she wanted another look at the puppy. Why, she had no idea. He could be part Beagle for all she knew, but she’d promised Dan she’d find out what she could. She wasn’t going to do that by looking at him, though. There had to be another way.