The Case of the Prescient Poodle Read online

  The Case of the

  Prescient Poodle

  A Thousand Islands Doggy Inn Mystery

  B.R. Snow

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and events are either used fictitiously or are the product of the author’s imagination. All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book, or portions thereof, in any form. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form by any means, whether electronic or mechanical without the express written consent of the author. The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or any other means without the permission of the publisher are illegal and punishable by law.

  Copyright © 2018 B.R. Snow

  ISBN: 978-1-942691-43-3

  Website: www.brsnow.net/

  Twitter: @BernSnow

  Facebook: facebook.com/bernsnow

  Cover Design: Reggie Cullen

  Cover Photo: James R. Miller

  Other Books by B.R. Snow

  The Thousand Islands Doggy Inn Mysteries

  The Case of the Abandoned Aussie

  The Case of the Brokenhearted Bulldog

  The Case of the Caged Cockers

  The Case of the Dapper Dandie Dinmont

  The Case of the Eccentric Elkhound

  The Case of the Faithful Frenchie

  The Case of the Graceful Goldens

  The Case of the Hurricane Hounds

  The Case of the Itinerant Ibizan

  The Case of the Jaded Jack Russell

  The Case of the Klutz King Charles

  The Case of the Lovable Labs

  The Case of the Mellow Maltese

  The Case of the Natty Newfie

  The Case of the Overdue Otterhound

  The Whiskey Run Chronicles

  Episode 1 – The Dry Season Approaches

  Episode 2 – Friends and Enemies

  Episode 3 – Let the Games Begin

  Episode 4 – Enter the Revenuer

  Episode 5 – A Changing Landscape

  Episode 6 – Entrepreneurial Spirits

  Episode 7 – All Hands On Deck

  The Whiskey Run Chronicles – The Complete Volume 1

  The Damaged Posse

  American Midnight

  Larrikin Gene

  Sneaker World

  Summerman

  The Duplicates

  Other Books

  Divorce Hotel

  Either Ore

  To Laurie and Stella

  Chapter 1

  I looked around the windowless white room as I rubbed my tender wrists. Five minutes ago, they’d been secured behind my back by a pair of way too tight handcuffs that had snagged skin and drawn blood. I held both hands up in front of my face to examine the red semicircles then glanced around the room again.

  “This isn’t too bad,” I said.

  “Compared to what?” Josie said, frowning.

  “I don’t know,” I said with a shrug. “This is my first time in jail. But I guess it could be a lot worse. I was worried they were going to put us in one of those disgusting cells with a toilet in the middle of the room.”

  “Give them time,” Josie said. “First comes the questioning, then comes lockup. After that, I’m sure we’ll be making the transition to peeing in public.”

  “Well, aren’t you the eternal optimist,” I said, glancing under the table we were sitting next to.

  “What on earth are you doing?”

  “Just checking for listening devices,” I said, running a hand along the bottom of the table.

  Josie shook her head at me and stretched her legs out and arched her back.

  “Okay, Columbo. Knock yourself out.”

  “Hey, in situations like this, you can’t be too careful,” I said, sitting back in the chair after my search came up empty.

  “How long do you think this is going to last?”

  “The questioning or the sentencing?” I said.

  “The sentencing? Who’s being the eternal optimist now?”

  “It’s a legitimate concern. Do you think we’ve committed a felony?” I said, glancing over at her.

  “Poultry theft? A felony?” she said, shaking her head. “No, it can’t be more than a misdemeanor, right?”

  “I guess it depends on how valuable the birds are,” I said.

  “That would be a pretty fowl reason to go to prison,” Josie deadpanned.

  “Don’t start,” I said, making a face at her.

  “Suzy, I’m sitting in the police station in a windowless room when I could be home snacking in bed and staring out at the ocean. You’re lucky I don’t have my hands around your throat.”

  “So, now this is all my fault,” I said, pouting.

  “Of course, it’s your fault,” she snapped. “It was your idea. And if you hadn’t started mouthing off to that cop, we might not even be here facing the prospect of having to pee in public.”

  “I didn’t like his attitude,” I said, flashing back to my confrontation with the policeman.

  “He’s a cop, Suzy. Not the ice cream man.”

  “Don’t mention food,” I said, shaking my head. “I’m starving.”

  “Yeah, me too,” Josie said. “I wonder how the food is in here.”

  “I’m gonna go with dreadful,” I said. “But maybe Chef Claire will be able to smuggle some stuff in.”

  “For your sake, I sure hope so,” Josie said, grinning. “Because I bet they serve their prisoners a lot of fish.”

  “Don’t even joke about that,” I said, cringing.

  We glanced up when the door opened and gave the man a small wave.

  “Detective Renfro,” I said. “I’m surprised to see you here.”

  “Right back at you,” the detective said, sitting down across from us and tossing a folder on the table. He glanced back and forth at us, shaking his head the entire time. “Let me start by reminding you that you are guests in Cayman and that the privilege can be revoked at any time.”

  “Well, technically, we’re property owners,” I said. “So, that must put us in a different category than your normal tourist, right?”

  “Shut it,” Josie whispered.

  “Absolutely,” Detective Renfro said, nodding. “You are definitely in a different category from normal.”

  “Funny,” I said, frowning at him. “I was expecting to be questioned by the cops that arrested us. Why did they call you in?”

  “I drew the short straw,” he said, studying the contents of the folder.

  “You’re on fire tonight, Detective,” I said, then a thought popped. “Should we read anything into the fact that you’re working on the Jensen case and also questioning us?”

  “You should not,” he said, glancing up before sitting back in his chair to study what I assumed was the arrest report. “This is an impressive list of charges.”

  “You should be giving us a medal,” I said.

  “Let’s see,” Detective Renfro said, ignoring me as he read the report. “Burglary.” He glanced up and smiled at us. “You can get up to fourteen years for that.”

  “What?” Josie said.

  “Fourteen years?” I said, giving him a wide-eyed stare.

  “Oh, good,” he said. “Now I have your attention. Let’s see. Illegal trespassing, theft, possession of stolen property. Well done, you hit the trifecta with that one.”

  “Possession of stolen property?” I said. “Who stole it?”

  “You did,” he said.

  “That’s not fair,” I said. “You’re double-dipping.”

  “Oh, you caught that?” he said, flashing a quick smi
le. “Verbal assault. What did you say to Officer Jones?”

  “I don’t remember,” I said, staring off at the wall.

  “Maybe your memory is better,” the detective said, turning to my partner in crime.

  “Oh, I’m not comfortable using that sort of language,” Josie said.

  “Fair enough,” he said, nodding. “A couple of public nuisance charges, a possible drunk and disorderly.”

  “Drunk and disorderly?” I said, frowning. “What are you talking about? I haven’t had a drink all night.”

  “I’m sure they threw that one in just because they couldn’t believe any sober person would do what you did.”

  “We want a lawyer,” I said.

  “You need a lawyer,” the detective said, again reading from the document. “Oh, and this one is always one of my personal favorites. Assaulting a police officer. Nice touch.”

  “I was handcuffed,” I said. “How the heck could I have assaulted him?”

  “You bit him.”

  “He was getting handsy,” I said.

  “Please stop talking, Suzy,” Josie said, placing a hand on my arm.

  “So, when can we get out of here?” I said.

  “If you’re lucky, sometime before you get through your childbearing years,” the detective said, closing the folder and placing his elbows on the table.

  “You’re just trying to scare us,” I whispered.

  “How am I doing?” Detective Renfro said.

  “You certainly got my attention,” Josie said.

  “Okay,” Detective Renfro said as he glanced at his watch then removed a notebook from his shirt pocket. He flipped to a fresh page and jotted down a note. Then he glanced back and forth at us with an evil grin I so wanted to knock off his face. “Who wants to go first?”

  “She does,” Josie said, pointing at me. “It was all her idea.”

  “Thanks for throwing me under the bus,” I said, glaring at her.

  “Suzy, you’re lucky I’m not driving the bus.”

  Chapter 2

  Four days earlier

  I stretched my legs out in front of me on the padded seat and draped my arms over the metal railing that ran across the bow of Captain Jack’s charter boat that was drifting and gently rocking from a light breeze out of the west. I gazed out at the water where turquoise met cobalt blue and yawned as the motion of the boat, combined with the two Mimosas I’d put away over the past hour, tempted me into an early afternoon nap. I glanced at the stern where the love of my life was chatting and fishing with my friends Rooster and Rocco and my mom’s boyfriend, Paulie. Max caught my eye, gave me a big smile and a wave I returned, then I looked back out at the water with a contented smile.

  “Penny for your thoughts,” Josie said as she refreshed my Mimosa then leaned back against the railing and wiggled her freshly painted toenails.

  “I was just sitting here thinking about how good my life is and wondering why I’ve been so lucky,” I said. “You know, if I were somehow able to see into the future, I don’t think I’d want to look. I’d be afraid it could only go downhill from here.”

  “Wow,” she said, taking a sip of her Mimosa. “That’s gotta be worth a dollar.”

  “Yeah, I know,” I said, laughing. “Deep, huh?”

  “So, prescient abilities don’t interest you?”

  “Oh, good word,” I said, grinning. “Much more erudite than psychic. No, I’m happy just waiting for things to unfold. What about you? Any interest in knowing what your future holds?”

  “Since I do my best to limit my focus to the short-term horizon, my prescient abilities are actually well-honed. I know exactly what my future holds.”

  “Lunch and another Mimosa?”

  “Nothing gets past you.”

  “What are we talking about?” my mother said, sliding onto the padded seat next to me.

  “We were just discussing the ability to predict the future,” I said, making room for her.

  “Interesting,” my mother said. “What did you come up with?”

  “We haven’t gotten past lunch,” Josie said.

  My mother nodded then gazed off into the distance.

  “I’m seeing a June wedding followed by my first grandchild sometime the following spring.”

  “That’s not a prediction, Mom,” I said, laughing. “That’s wishful thinking.”

  “Never underestimate the power of dreams, darling,” she said, patting my hand as she continued to scan the open water. “Not to mention prayer. I must say that having the board meeting out here was a wonderful idea.”

  “It sure beats a stuffy conference room,” Josie said, then perked up when she saw Chef Claire and Abby Vandenburgh, the CEO of Wags, our dog toy company, approach carrying appetizer trays.

  Chef Claire and Abby placed the trays in front of us then sat down. Both were wearing swimsuits and floppy hats and sunglasses. I glanced around and realized we looked more like a group of beachgoers than we did the board of directors for a dog toy company that had taken off like a rocket since its official launch late last year.

  “This is much better than having the meeting in Ottawa,” Abby said, building a nosh plate. “It was minus eighteen when I flew out yesterday.”

  “Celsius or Fahrenheit?” Chef Claire said, raising an eyebrow.

  “Does it matter?” Josie said.

  “No, not really,” Chef Claire said, laughing as she dipped an eggroll into a garlic plum sauce.

  “Are we ready to get started?” Abby said, reaching into her bag and passing out copies of a thick, bound document.

  “I believe we are,” I said. “The monthly meeting of the Wags’ board of directors is now in session. And I’d like to perform my first and last official duty of the day by turning the meeting over to our magnificent, and rapidly turning pink, CEO.”

  “Good job,” Josie said, raising her Mimosa in a toast. “To the Chairwoman.”

  “To the Chairwoman,” the others said as they completed the toast.

  “We probably should have started earlier,” Abby said as she poked her shoulder with a finger to test for signs of sunburn. “How many of those have you had?”

  “Just enough to make it through the meeting,” I said, taking a sip.

  “But you better hurry,” Josie said, refreshing our drinks.

  “Good idea,” Abby said. “I only have three things I need to go over with you, so this shouldn’t take too long. Let’s go through the financials first.”

  “Yuk,” I said, frowning.

  “She’s such an inspirational leader,” Josie said, glancing over at Chef Claire.

  “Shut it.”

  “On page three, you’ll see the summary financial statement,” Abby said. “I think you’ll like what you see.”

  “We’ve hit our annual revenue target already?” my mother said, glancing up from her document.

  “We have,” Abby said, beaming. “And if our projections are right, we’re going to more than triple them by the end of the year.”

  “Wow,” Chef Claire said. “We’ve definitely got a hit on our hands.”

  “We can’t keep up with the demand,” Abby said. “That’s why I’m recommending we expand our manufacturing capacity as soon as possible. There’s a proposal for that starting on page seven.”

  “A million-six,” I said, studying the page. “What have we got left on our initial credit line?”

  “A little over two,” Abby said. “I thought we’d use a million of that and fund the rest out of our cash reserves.”

  I glanced around and was met with silence. I waited for several seconds, then shook my head.

  “I think this is the part where you guys are supposed to ask questions.”

  “Is what’s for lunch an appropriate question?” Josie said, glancing over at Chef Claire.

  “Probably not,” she said. “But the guest of honor is a shrimp and lobster salad on a fresh baguette.”

  “Is that the one with the dill remoulade?” Josie s
aid.

  “That’s the one,” Chef Claire said.

  “Are you done?” I said, frowning at Josie.

  “Yes, all my questions have been answered,” she said.

  “Sorry,” I said to Abby with a shrug. “They probably didn’t prepare you for a board of directors like this one at Wharton.”

  “Hey, I thought it was a great question,” Abby said. “And an even better answer. It sounds fantastic.”

  “I think it’s going to be a good one,” Chef Claire said, yawning.

  “Okay, I suggest you take a few days to review the expansion plan and let me know your thoughts before I fly back home. And the only other thing on the agenda is to give you an update on the tests we’ve been running with Chef Claire’s granola and jerky.”

  “And?” Chef Claire said.

  “Off the charts,” Abby said. “The dogs go nuts over them. In fact, I included some space to produce them in the expansion plan. Victor wants to get them into his stores as soon as possible.”

  Victor Rollins was the CEO of Middleton Enterprises, the largest pet store franchise in North America that was the exclusive retail distributor of Wags’ product line.

  “He wants to discuss it with us while he’s down here,” Abby said.

  “When does he get in?” I said.

  “Today. In fact, he should have landed by now,” Abby said, then smiled as she looked off into the distance.

  I caught the look in her eyes and glanced over at Josie and Chef Claire who were also studying Abby’s expression. Josie took a sip of her Mimosa then leaned forward.

  “Is there something you’d like to tell us, Abby?” Josie said.

  “What do you mean?” Abby said, turning coy.

  “Come on, spill,” Josie said, laughing. “I’d recognize that look anywhere.”

  “Well, I imagine you’re going to figure it out as soon as he gets here,” Abby said, leaning back against the bow railing. “Victor and I have started seeing each other.”

  “Good for you,” I said. “How long have you two been dating?”

  “We started right after Thanksgiving,” Abby said. “And we haven’t stopped since. Not that we have a lot of time together with everything going on with both companies.”