Free A Shot in the Bark (A Dog Park Mystery) by Carol Ann Newsome Page B

one's self from drowning when the feet are held up like this. I held her feet up for five minutes, just to be sure, then carefully repositioned her legs with bent knees, to look like she had been sitting in the bath, passed out, then just slid under. I scattered her clothes around as if she'd dropped them on the floor in a drugged stupor. On the way out the door, I dropped a few more pills on the table, picked up my report and left. I was never there.
    Universally disliked as she was, I saw distress but not grief at work. Our new supervisor lacked her flash and drive. He also lacked her temper and demands. Though I did not find him engaging, he was workable and not out to prove anything. I was not the only person who appreciated his willingness to trust in staff competence and the lack of eleventh hour revisions.
    It was ruled an accidental death. All evidence suggested she was alone when she died and no one looked any further.
    Lia was saddened but not destroyed by Luthor's death. She would converse, even laugh at a joke. But then she would go flat. Would grief cause her to dive into her work or leave her enervated and listless? She had a project to finish, a gorgeous serenity garden. If Luthor's death had a negative impact on her work, would it be any worse than the negative impact he was having while he was alive?

Chapter 9
     
     
Sunday, May 15
     
     
    Peter felt like a heel. The birds were chirping, the early morning temperature was pleasant. Viola was enthusiastically tugging her lead as they passed through the gate to the park. And her foster-dad was using her to have a reason to spend time here so he could figure out what was going on with the morning crowd. He was using Viola to get closer to everyone, but especially to Lia. If there had not been a murder, he'd be using Viola to get closer to Lia anyway. Because there was a case, he was keeping secrets from her. Everyone who hung out at this patch of the forest was to some extent a person of interest and he had to be careful.
    The motive had him stymied. It could be a jealous lover, but Luthor struck him as a man who believed in self-preservation. So far his investigation revealed a man who kept his women apart. Peter was sure Morrisey's killer had a connection to the park. Since Lia was here daily, he couldn't imagine Morrisey inviting trouble by allowing one of his girlfriends to cross paths with Lia, especially not here.
    It could be the money. If only he could figure out where it came from and what it was for. Or the money could have nothing to do with it. It could be a big, fat, sexy red herring. The initial search had missed it. Could someone have planted it later to distract him? Who would have 25K to throw away like that? And how would they know he'd find it?
    The four big motives for murder were money, sex, revenge, and power. Occasionally someone killed to protect their ass, but it hadn't happened on his watch. Sex or money seemed the likely motive for offing Morrisey. Maybe a CYA if the money was for blackmail. He wouldn't count revenge out, though it was last on his list. Morrisey seemed the kind of guy who avoided trouble. He might indulge in a little discrete blackmail if the victim were unlikely to retaliate. He was not a guy who tugged on Superman's cape.
    Peter's musings were interrupted by a golden body slam. Honey careened off his legs as Viola chased her around him, wrapping his legs with her leash. Peter, still reeling from the hit, toppled. He looked up to see Lia's jade eyes laughing down at him, her hand extended to help him up. He took her hand, not for the assist, but for the opportunity to touch her. Her hand was long and graceful, strong and soft. He felt a jolt when they connected. Her eyes briefly flashed wariness, and he wondered if she had felt the connection as well.
    "And that, Detective, is why we remove leashes inside the corral before we enter the park."
    "Oh, is that the reason?"
    "One of them."
    "Will the others prevent me