The Case of the Eccentric Elkhound Read online

  “Not until a little after two,” she said, accepting my offer of a mug of coffee. “I should have been home by midnight, but I had to wait for Jackson to finish up.”

  I frowned and glanced at Josie. She shrugged and waited to hear more.

  “Wait for Jackson to finish up what?” I said.

  “I imagine it was all the usual police stuff. You know the drill. Make sure he got the situation deescalated, interview all the witnesses. We had a little problem in the bar,” Chef Claire said.

  “Oh, no,” I said, shaking my head. “What happened?”

  “Morrie and that woman came in for dinner,” Chef Claire said. “And after they ate, they went to the bar for an after dinner drink and got into an argument.”

  “What woman are you talking about?” I said.

  “Franny,” Chef Claire said.

  “She didn’t shoot anybody did she?” Josie said.

  “Nah,” Rocco interjected, glancing up. “That’s not Franny’s style.”

  Then he refocused on the quote for the bathroom.

  “You know Franny?” I said.

  “Sure,” Rocco said, tapping his pen on the granite. “Everybody who works, uh, worked for Jimmy knows who Franny is. And she’s right near the top in the workplace safety manual. Item one; always wear your hardhat. Item two; know where Franny is at all times.”

  He smiled and glanced around, obviously waiting for a laugh. Then he shrugged and resumed his work.

  “Inside joke I guess,” he said.

  “What were they arguing about?” I said.

  “Jackson said they were both pretty short on specifics,” Chef Claire said. “But it was probably something about Calducci.”

  “No doubt about that,” Rocco said, not even bothering to look up.

  “Are you going to join the conversation, or are you just going to dabble around the edges?” Josie said.

  Rocco found her response funny, and he laughed hard. Then he put the pen down and placed his elbows on the island.

  “Okay, I’ll play,” he said. “What do you want to know?”

  His direct question caught me by surprise, and I paused to organize my thoughts before responding.

  “Do you know Morrie?”

  “Sure, everybody knows Morrie. I love the guy. It’s just a pity that Jimmy had him in his pocket all those years.”

  “You’re referring to the fact that Calducci was skimming thirty percent off the top of Morrie’s business, right?”

  “Gee, that’s odd,” Rocco said, his eyes narrowing as he glared at me. “I don’t remember saying anything about Calducci skimming off the top of anything.”

  “Forget I mentioned it,” I said.

  “I hope I can,” he said in a soft, low voice that sent chills up my spine.

  “Okay, moving on,” I said, recovering. “How about Franny? Are you willing to talk about her?”

  “Sure, her I’ll talk about,” Rocco said. “What do you want to know?”

  “What was her relationship with Calducci?” I said, sitting down at the island across from him.

  “They were close,” Rocco said. “Basically, they took care of each other.”

  “Took care of each other professionally… or personally?” I said, casually taking a sip of coffee.

  “I imagine it was both,” Rocco said. “But it wasn’t any of my business, so I never really gave it much thought.”

  “But you must have wondered about the nature of their relationship at some point,” I said.

  Rocco chuckled and shook his head.

  “What?” I said, mildly annoyed by his reaction.

  “Lady, you need to stick to dogs because you make a lousy cop,” Rocco said, laughing.

  Josie snorted and sat down next to Rocco. Chef Claire headed for the shower leaving the three of us sitting at the island.

  “What exactly did Franny do for Calducci?” I said.

  “Pretty much anything Jimmy needed to be done,” Rocco said. “Jimmy wasn’t well-liked in a lot of circles, and having Franny around was a pretty solid insurance policy. She traveled everywhere with him, and was always by his side.”

  “Except for the other day when he died,” Josie said.

  “Yeah,” Rocco said, nodding. “I have to admit that I’ve been wondering about that myself.”

  “What did Mrs. Calducci think about Franny and her husband?” I said.

  “Dot?” Rocco whispered. He exhaled and gave us a sad smile. “I doubt if Dot even knew when Franny was in the same room with her. But that’s not surprising since Dot barely knows where she is most of the time these days.”

  “The booze, right?” I said.

  “Yeah, and it’s really hard to watch it happen,” he said. “At one time, Dot was an amazing woman.”

  “We heard that she and Calducci had some legendary fights,” I said.

  “You’ve heard a lot,” Rocco said, his eyes narrowing again into a hard glare.

  It had the same effect on me as the first time he’d done it.

  “Look, you both seem like nice people,” Rocco said. “Why on earth are you poking around into this mess?”

  I glanced at Josie, and she nodded at me to go first.

  “I guess you could say it’s kind of a hobby,” I said, immediately hating my answer. “And we’ve got a knack for it.”

  “A hobby? Lady, you might want to consider something a bit safer. Like hang-gliding,” Rocco said. “You got a knack for it.” He found that comment especially funny. When he stopped laughing, he turned serious and waited until he was sure I was paying attention. “You should leave this one to the people who are actually in the life to figure out.”

  “Sure, sure,” I said, nodding. “You mentioned that it’s a mess.”

  Rocco stared at me, then looked at Josie who shrugged.

  “Slow learner,” Josie said, taking a sip of coffee.

  “I can see that,” Rocco said, studying me closely. “It’s a mess because Jimmy’s death opens up a power vacuum that several people are going to want to fill.”

  “That makes sense,” I said, then decided to push the conversation along. “So, who do you think killed Calducci?”

  “Jimmy had a heart attack,” Rocco said. “Who said anything about murder?”

  “Well, Fatal Franny for one,” I said.

  Rocco chuckled and drained the last of his coffee.

  “Yeah, I heard her speech at the funeral. She can be a real drama queen. That was classic Franny.”

  “She sounded pretty serious to me,” I said.

  “Me too,” Josie said.

  “I’m sure she was,” Rocco said. “But whenever you hear Franny mouthing off in public, you don’t have anything to worry about. It’s when you don’t hear her coming up behind you that’s the problem.”

  “So, you don’t think anybody killed Calducci?” I said.

  “No, I didn’t say that,” Rocco said. “I just reminded you that he had a heart attack and then asked a question.”

  For some reason, I decided to continue digging deeper into the big hole I’d somehow managed to create for myself.

  “The question sounded rhetorical to me,” I said.

  Rocco chuckled again and looked at Josie.

  “Tenacious isn’t she?” he said.

  “I guess tenacious is a word for it,” Josie said. “I couldn’t help but notice the scar tissue. Did you used to box professionally?”

  “No, only in prison,” Rocco said. “I guess I was good enough to be called a pro, but you’re pretty much forced to fight for free in there. But if it makes any difference, it was always in self-defense.”

  “Interesting,” Josie said. “If you don’t mind my asking, what were you in for?”

  “Mainly breaking and entering. But that was a long time ago.”

  “B&E? Is that how you met Morrie?” I said.

  Rocco stared at me open-mouthed.

  “Lady, I don’t know where you’re getting all your information, but you
need to stop,” Rocco said. “Trust me. I’m doing you a favor telling you that.”

  “Sure, sure,” I said, nodding. “And I appreciate that, Rocco. Just one more thing. We noticed four guys in our restaurant the day of the funeral who looked like they were definitely in the business. You wouldn’t happen to know who they were, would you?”

  “This conversation is over,” Rocco said, focusing on the piece of paper in front of him.

  We watched him make a few final notes, then he added up a list of numbers and slid the paper across the island. I glanced down at the total, then slid it toward Josie. She studied it, then nodded.

  “That’s a good number, Rocco,” I said. “Very reasonable.”

  “One of us needs to be,” he said.

  “Funny,” I said, scowling.

  “Is it okay if I start in a couple of days?”

  “Sure, that would be great,” I said. “Thanks, Rocco. Maybe we’ll see you around town before then.”

  “Yeah,” he said, getting up from his stool. “Based on this conversation, that wouldn’t surprise me at all.”

  He paused at the kitchen door and turned around.

  “I just gave you some good advice. Do yourself a favor and try to take it.”

  He waved goodbye and let himself out. Josie collected our coffee mugs and put them in the dishwasher.

  “What do you think?” I said.

  “About what?”

  “Should we put Rocco on the suspect list?”

  “Didn’t you already do that?” Josie said.

  “No, I’m not sure about him yet,” I said, frowning. “I’m torn.”

  “Well, let’s hope it remains just a tear and we don’t get ripped in half.”

  “You worry too much,” I said.

  “Yeah, I’m the problem here,” Josie said, glancing at her watch. “I have a couple of exams and a minor surgery to take care of this morning. What time do you want to take the dogs out on the River?”

  “How about three o’clock?”

  “That works,” Josie said. “Maybe we’ll get lucky and not run into Howard and Franny.”

  “Aren’t you curious?” I said.

  “I was,” Josie said. “But this one is starting to make me nervous, Suzy.”

  Chapter 13

  We were on the boat just after three and on our way to the Lake of the Isles. Since it was mid-week, it was quiet when we arrived. Captain and Chloe jumped in for a swim, while Josie and I snacked and laughed while we watched their antics. Thirty minutes later they had tired themselves out, and we helped them climb back into the boat, doing our best to stay dry while they shook, then toweled them off. Both dogs were soon stretched out on the cushioned seats sound asleep.

  I steered the boat toward Lover’s Cove, a secluded area attached to Wellesley Island that was aptly named. The cove was quite small and easy to miss if you weren’t paying attention. It contained several rocky outcrops dotted with cedar and pine trees that provided additional privacy to boaters looking to get away from it all and, more importantly for many of young people who came here, not be seen. Once inside the cove, a sense of tranquility always seemed to surround me, and it was easy to forget that this small inlet was still part of the mighty St. Lawrence that stretched over 700 miles.

  I slowed the boat as we entered and I glanced over the side into the clear, shallow water. Chloe and Captain both woke and glanced around, apparently anticipating another opportunity to take a swim.

  “It doesn’t look like anybody else is here,” Josie said. “But you were right, if I wanted some privacy, this would be the place to find it.”

  “That’s right,” I said. “You’ve never been here before.”

  “I haven’t needed this kind of privacy in quite a while,” Josie said, laughing.

  “Tell me about it,” I said, slowly inching the boat forward until I was sure there wasn’t a boat tucked behind the first outcrop.

  “If we do happen to bump into Howard and Franny, how do we explain us being here?” she said. “After all, the place is called Lover’s Cove.”

  “Way ahead of you,” I said, not taking my eyes off the shallow water we were idling through. “We came here so the dogs could swim in a safe, quiet spot.”

  “That should work,” Josie said, nodding. “But what exactly are you hoping to find out?”

  “I’m not really sure,” I said, navigating away from a shoal near another of the outcrops.

  “Well done, Sherlock,” she said. “We came all the way out here, and you’re not sure why?”

  “I’d just like to get an idea why Franny agreed to go out with Howard in the first place,” I said. “I still think it’s because she wants to find out if Howard knows more about who robbed his pharmacy than he’s letting on.”

  “And if he does, you think that Franny might have to do something about Howard?” Josie said.

  “It has to be a possibility, right? If she’s connected to Calducci’s murder, and if Howard can identify the person who broke into his place, it probably wouldn’t take much for the cops to connect the dots back to Franny.”

  “And you expect to be able to get a feel for what’s going on just by watching the two of them interact with each other?” Josie said.

  “Maybe.”

  “Or perhaps Franny will tip her hand in some way?” Josie said, a smile starting to form on her face.

  “Maybe,” I said, casually shrugging.

  “You couldn’t think of anything else to do, could you?” Josie said, laughing.

  “Nope,” I said.

  “Unbelievable,” she said. “Silly me. Here I thought you actually had a plan.”

  “I’m hoping a plan will emerge at some point,” I said, catching a glimpse of something just ahead of us and pointing. “There it is.”

  The bow of Howard’s runabout was poking out from behind one of the outcrops.

  “Remember, Suzy,” Josie said. “No sneaking up on them.”

  “Absolutely not,” I said. “We’ll let Captain and Chloe handle it.”

  I picked up a tennis ball, whistled, and then tossed the ball in the general direction of Howard’s boat. Both dogs jumped off the transom and made a beeline for the ball. Their barking alone would have been enough to wake the dead, and it would certainly get the attention of Howard and Franny. But we didn’t hear any sounds coming from the boat. I leaned over the side, eventually managed to extract the tennis ball from Captain’s mouth, and threw it again. This time, it landed right next to Howard’s boat, and Captain actually bumped against it while he battled Chloe for possession. The boat rocked, but we still didn’t hear anything.

  “Where the heck are they?” I said, staring at Howard’s boat.

  “I guess they could have gone for a walk,” Josie said. “If they didn’t mind getting their feet wet walking to shore.”

  “Yeah,” I said, frowning. “It’s possible. But it seems odd they’d leave the comfort of the boat to walk through that stand of trees. It’s pretty thick back there.”

  “Maybe Franny wanted even more privacy before she, well, you know,” Josie said.

  “No, there were too many people who knew they were going out on the boat,” I said. “And remember what Rocco said, if she were going to shoot somebody, they’d never hear her coming.”

  “Maybe Howard got a little too hands-on with her,” Josie said. “After all, this is Howard we’re talking about.”

  “I can see that happening,” I said. “But if he did, wouldn’t Franny have popped him before he could even get off the boat?”

  “Yeah, probably,” Josie said. “She does seem to have a bit of a quick temper.”

  “Well, let’s check it out,” I said, inching the boat forward until we were alongside Howard’s.

  Josie tied them together, and we glanced around Howard’s empty boat. A picnic basket and a cooler sat on the floor near the stern. A couple of blankets, still folded neatly, were stacked on one of the cushioned seats. I stepped onto Howard’s
boat and ran my hand over the outboard motor.

  “The engine’s cold,” I said, continuing to look around. “And the keys are in the ignition.”

  “What do you think?” Josie said.

  “I think your theory about them taking a walk is all we’ve got to work with at the moment,” I said, climbing back onto our boat and sitting down to remove my shoes.

  “You’re going to go barefoot?” Josie said, frowning.

  “Only until we reach shore,” I said. “I hate walking in wet, squishy sneakers.”

  “Good thinking,” Josie said, removing her running shoes. “How cold do you think the water is?”

  “Cold enough to get your attention,” I said, glancing over the side. “But it’s only about a hundred feet to shore.”

  “That sounds like a long way,” she said.

  “Not really,” I said, sliding into the water holding my shoes in one hand and a towel in the other. “It’ll only seem like a long way. Ooh, now that’s cold.”

  Josie followed me into the water, gasped, then whistled at the dogs who continued to swim and wrestle with each other over the tennis ball. Captain and Chloe spotted us in the water and made a beeline for us. We waded toward shore, shoes in hand, and, gradually, the water got even shallower until it barely reached our calves. I stepped onto shore, sat down on a stretch of rock and dried my feet. I tossed the towel to Josie, put my sneakers back on, then unsuccessfully tried to duck the spray Captain and Chloe’s shakes produced.

  “You just had to stand next to me and do that, didn’t you?” I said.

  Chloe barked once and stared at me, waiting to hear what was next on our agenda. I stood and looked around trying to remember the area from my younger days.

  “It doesn’t look like a place for a quiet walk in the woods,” Josie said, glancing around. “It’s even thicker than it looks from the boat.”

  “If I remember correctly, I think it opens up a bit once you get through this section,” I said, starting to make my way through the cedar and pines.

  “At least it smells good,” Josie said, pushing branches away from her face.

  “Just try not to get any pine tar in your hair,” I said. “It’s a total pain to get out.”

  “Remind me again why I’m out here in the forest when I could be home relaxing?” she said over the sound of snapping tree branches as she pushed forward.