Chapter 23

Shelby met us at my house after the Gate House gathering, and the three of us were sitting in the living room, staring at the fire in the fireplace.

“Did you eat, Shelby?” Lady Anthea asked.

“Yes, Jeffery surprised me at Buckingham’s and took me to the Crooked Hammock.”

“That was nice of him,” I said. “Crooked Hammock is a brewpub,” I told Lady Anthea.

“I doubt the food was as elegant as what you had, but we love the burgers and the beers. And yours was free,” Shelby said.

“Oh, having to listen to Howard Fourie boast about his son felt like we were paying dearly for every bite,” Lady Anthea said with a groan.

“I was outside, but I heard him say something about UNESCO. What was that about?” I asked.

“It seems David is currently vice president of the South African Commission for UNESCO and, if his father is to be believed, is in line to be the next president of the organization.”

“Not head of all of UNESCO, right?” I asked.

“Oh, no, just the South African Commission, and at his age, that would be remarkable,” Lady Anthea said.

I told Shelby what I had learned about Wags’s title and what Valerie Westlake had said about Captain Sandy’s plans to use Smoochie for breeding, and my suspicion that he wanted to do the same with Wags.

“Can Chief Turner arrest Sandy Westlake just on principle?” Shelby asked.

“We know he didn’t kill Billy B.,” Lady Anthea said.

“Yeah, I can alibi him,” I said. “Unfortunately.”

“Let’s look at this from the beginning,” Lady Anthea said.

“I guess the beginning would be Billy B. stealing the dog food from Buckingham’s and from Raw-k & Roll,” Shelby said.

“Who needs a lot of dog food?” I asked. Then I answered my own question. “Someone with puppies! Shelby, when you inventoried our supply, you said only puppy food had been taken.”

“Or let’s back up, wouldn’t the beginning be when someone, I think it’s Sandy Westlake, put Wags on the Harbor of Refuge Lighthouse?” Shelby asked. “Remember, the boat pilot had already phoned in what he had seen to the authorities when Billy B. was driving out of Buckingham’s.”

We did a little more serious fireplace staring, then Lady Anthea said, “Sue, you really don’t believe Rick’s father could have killed his partner?”

“That might be the only thing he’s innocent of, but I don’t think he’s a murderer. This is what I want to know, if Martin Ziegler drove his car away, how did Billy B.’s killer get away, or even get here to kill him? The police have interviewed all the neighbors and the only suspicious car anyone saw was that thing Martin has.”