Trouble at the Kennel Read online

  TROUBLE AT THE KENNEL

  By

  Dianne Harman

  (A Cedar Bay Cozy Mystery - Book 9)

  Copyright © 2015 Dianne Harman

  www.dianneharman.com

  All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book, or portions thereof, in any form without written permission except for the use of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales, is entirely coincidental.

  Website, Interior & Cover design by Vivek Rajan Vivek

  Paperback ISBN: 978-1523406197

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  As always, first and foremost, I thank you, my readers for your support. It’s hard to believe that this is the ninth book in the Cedar Bay Cozy Mystery Series. In addition to this series I have two other cozy mystery series, Liz Lucas and High Desert, with several books in each. I’m putting the final touches on the first book in a new series, the Midwest Series. I’m more surprised than anyone when I realize all this has taken place in under a year and a half. I’ve never had so much fun and without my loyal readers, I wouldn’t be a successful author!

  I’m always asked where I get the ideas for my books. The idea for this book came about when my “granddog” was attacked while he was being boarded at a kennel. That’s fact. The rest is fiction. Fortunately, he healed, but the bite was nasty and required extensive surgery.

  I would be remiss if I didn’t say thank you to the two people who are largely responsible for making my books look good. First there is Vivek, who patiently formats the book for both print and digital, as well as designing wonderfully inventive covers and gives me ongoing marketing advice. And then there is my husband and best friend, Tom. He keeps me out of trouble by mentioning, always very gently, that there’s a little issue with a wrong name or a timeline or whatever. Thanks Vivek! Thanks Tom!

  Almost forgot to thank my dog, Kelly, (named after Kelly of Kelly’s Koffee Shop), for growing up to the point where I can actually trust that when she’s quiet she’s sleeping rather than getting into trouble. My writing definitely improves when I don’t constantly have to get up to check on a dog!!!

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  Table of Contents

  CHAPTER 1

  CHAPTER 2

  CHAPTER 3

  CHAPTER 4

  CHAPTER 5

  CHAPTER 6

  CHAPTER 7

  CHAPTER 8

  CHAPTER 9

  CHAPTER 10

  CHAPTER 11

  CHAPTER 12

  CHAPTER 13

  CHAPTER 14

  CHAPTER 15

  CHAPTER 16

  CHAPTER 17

  CHAPTER 18

  CHAPTER 19

  CHAPTER 20

  CHAPTER 21

  CHAPTER 22

  CHAPTER 23

  CHAPTER 24

  CHAPTER 25

  CHAPTER 26

  CHAPTER 27

  CHAPTER 28

  CHAPTER 29

  Recipes!

  CHAPTER 1

  “Mike, our trip to Cuba was amazing. I’m so glad we went. I still can’t believe I’ve been to Italy and Cuba, and in both places, I got involved solving a murder! I wonder what the chances are of something like that happening. The only down side was that it involved a lot of travel. Kind of a hurry up and wait at all the airports. I can’t seem to sleep on an airplane, and last night was no exception.

  “I know it’s early, but I’d like to go directly to the boarding kennel and pick up the dogs. I really missed Rebel and Lady,” Kelly said, as they began the drive from the Portland airport to their home in Cedar Bay located on the central coast of Oregon.

  “I missed them too,” the burly greying county sheriff said. “We’ll go there first, but you better be ready to get out your checkbook. That place is really pricey. The first time I ever saw it was when we took the dogs there on the way to the airport. Any place that has a video camera so you can watch your dog on your iPhone and has a lake behind the barn that was created just for the dogs has got to be expensive. Don’t think very many people have it as good as the dogs that stay there do.

  “Anyway, back to our trip. When I booked the trip to Italy, I was thinking more of food, wine, cooking, and seeing the sights of Tuscany rather than spending most of my time in an Italian police station helping the chief of police solve a murder. Of course, the Signor who owned the cooking school, did tell us when we left that we were always welcome to come back, and he wouldn’t charge us because he was so grateful to us for having helped catch the person who murdered his wife.”

  “I’d happily go back there, plus we did get to spend some time in Florence, and I loved that part of the trip. As far as I’m concerned Mike, it really was kind of like the honeymoon we never got to take right after we were married.”

  “I agree and you have to admit that Cuba was amazing. The setting was kind of like something you’d read about but never expected to see. Even though I got caught up in helping to solve the murder, I did love the fly fishing. That was pretty spectacular.”

  “Mike, the one thing I regret is that we couldn’t bring Cayo, the stray cat that kind of adopted me, back with us. After all, he’s probably responsible for saving my life. I got pretty attached to that little guy. I know it’s probably for the best, but…”

  She was interrupted by Mike who said in a no-nonsense tone of voice, “That was simply out of the question. Two dogs are enough. We are not starting a zoo and that’s final.”

  “All right. I know that tone of voice.”

  As they drove down the highway towards Cedar Bay, they spent time reminiscing about recent events and how good it would be to get home. “I know you’re not going to like this, but if I could have, I also would have brought Caesar home with me from Italy. I think he would have thoroughly enjoyed living with all of us, but I know that big dog will have a good home with Dominico and his two boys. Hope his wife likes big dogs.”

  “Kelly, I’m serious. Two dogs are plenty. Lady’s a very well behaved dog, actually her name fits her perfectly, and there is no doubt in my mind that Rebel is an old soul. Nothing upsets that dog, but we’ve peaked on animals. I can’t imagine what we’d do with another one. Don’t forget, as Beaver County Sheriff, I have to keep the county safe, and you have to keep making people happy by feeding them the comfort food you serve them at Kelly’s Koffee Shop. With all the time our jobs require we just wouldn’t have time to care for a third dog or a cat. Nope, two dogs are definitely enough for us.”

  They were about twenty minutes from the kennel when Mike’s cell phone rang. Although drivers in Oregon can’t legally talk on a cell phone while operating a vehicle, there’s an exemption for law enforcement personnel, and Mike took advantage of it. “This is Sheriff Reynolds.”

  He listened and then said, “I’ll be there in about fifteen minutes.”

  “Oh, Mike, not business. I thought we were going to the kennel.”

  “We are, Kelly,” Mike said grimly. “That was one of my deputies. He’s there right now. Your friend, Mary Barnes, the owner of the kennel, has been murdered. Her daughter’s on her way there right now. Kelly, there’s something else I need to tell you. Whoever did it opened the gates on the dog kennels and released all of the dogs. Mary had two people who stayed at the kennel at night, and they’ve been able to round up several of the dogs and fortunately Lady was one of them. She’s all right,
however, Rebel hasn’t been found, so keep your eyes peeled. Maybe we’ll see him on the way there.”

  “Oh, no, no! Not Rebel. He knows not to go in the street, but he doesn’t know this area at all, and he’s probably confused. Mike, we have to find him.”

  “Kelly, I have to investigate Mary’s murder. If we can’t find him on the way there, you take the car and start looking for him.”

  “I just had a horrible thought. The kennel’s only about a mile from the freeway. I hope none of the dogs went in that direction.”

  “So do I, sweetheart, so do I.” Even though Mike was driving his own car rather than his official patrol car, he justified his high rate of speed as part of getting to the scene of a crime. In a few short minutes they pulled up to the Doggie Love Kennel and saw the blue and red flashing lights of several sheriffs’ cars. Mike and Kelly jumped out of their car and ran up to a deputy who was standing nearby.

  “Any sign of Rebel, Ralph?”

  “’Fraid not, Mike. Noelle, Mary’s daughter, called several people to help look for the dogs, and I called the county animal shelter as well as putting a couple of our deputies on it.”

  “How many dogs do they think are missing? I know the kennel was the biggest one in the county.”

  “They estimate around thirty. They were able to find a number of them, and they’ve been placed in secure kennels. I’ve cordoned off the murder scene area, but I’ve been waiting for you. Thought you would want to oversee the investigation.”

  Mike turned to Kelly and handed her the car keys. “Start looking for Rebel and any other dogs that look like they may be strays or appear to be confused. Keep your phone next to you. If he’s brought in, I’ll call you.”

  Kelly ran back to their car, unsure where she should start looking. Her main concern was the freeway, so she began driving the roads that led to it. She drove back and forth on various different roads, trying to set up a grid type of search pattern. The thought crossed her mind that some of the dogs might have just taken off and were running through the nearby brush or residential yards and might make it to the freeway. She resigned herself to the fact that she couldn’t do anything about it.

  Fifteen minutes later she saw a beagle running alongside the road. She pulled in front of him, got out of the car, and began saying, “Kennel, boy, kennel.” The beagle stopped and looked at her. She chided herself for not thinking to bring any dog treats, something she always had in her minivan. She opened the back door of the car and said, “Kennel, boy, kennel.” The beagle jumped in the car, and she quickly closed the door behind him. She said a silent prayer of thanks to whoever had taught the beagle the “kennel” command, the one she always used for Lady and Rebel.

  A half hour later she’d found three other dogs, but no Rebel. She drove back to the kennel, went through the gate, and yelled to Ralph, “Here are four of the missing dogs. Have someone kennel them. Tell Mike I haven’t found Rebel yet. I’m going back out.” She put the car in reverse and left the kennel, slowly driving up and down nearby streets. When she neared a school, she slowed down and thought she saw some movement in the bushes next to the school. She stopped the car and looked out the window. There, lying down under a bush, she could just make out the fawn colored coat of a dog who was panting heavily. She opened the back door and began to slowly walk towards the dog, her heart thudding. “Rebel, Rebel, come,” she said, hoping against hope it was Rebel. Suddenly the big dog came running out of the bushes towards Kelly, almost knocking her down.

  “Easy, Rebel easy. Let’s go for a ride. Kennel, boy, kennel. We’ll get Lady and go home. No matter what the facts of the murder are, Mike is going to be one happy man when he sees you.”

  A few minutes later Kelly drove through the gate of the Doggie Love Kennel, and Mike strode towards the car with a big grin on his face when he saw Rebel sitting in the back seat. He opened the door and gave the big dog a hug. “Rebel, I’ve never been so glad to see a dog in my life. Come on. You look like you could use some water.” He walked Rebel over to the big tub of water Mary always kept filled for the dogs.

  He turned to Kelly. “Why don’t you take Lady and Rebel and go home? I’ll get a ride with Ralph when we finish here. There are still about twenty dogs missing. Mary’s daughter just got here, and I need to spend some time with her and see if she has any thoughts on why this happened.”

  “Okay, see you at home.” Kelly put Rebel back in the car and walked into the kennel area, found Lady, and took her out to the car. On the drive home Kelly thought about why anyone would want to kill Mary Barnes, one of the sweetest, most loving women she’d ever met.

  And to deliberately release dogs from a kennel? All of them would be unfamiliar with the surrounding area. What kind of a sick person does something like that? Talk about cruelty to animals. I know I’ve promised Mike several times I’d never get involved in another one of his cases, especially a murder investigation, but this one’s personal. If it hadn’t been for me, Rebel would probably be a statistic – just one more dog that was killed on a freeway. Thank heavens I found him.

  CHAPTER 2

  Susan Yates stood at her window and listened to the constant yelping and barking coming from the Doggie Love Kennel next door. Even though the kennel was situated on three acres of land, she could still hear the dogs, and she hated it.

  Darned dogs have it better than I do, she thought. I can barely make ends meet as it is with the small amount of money I get from the state for being disabled. Lucky my parents died and willed me this piece of property, or I’d be homeless. Be nice if my back didn’t hurt so much, and I could clean up the yard, but I’m the only one who lives here, and I don’t care. I suppose it really doesn’t matter, considering no one ever comes out here anyway.

  She looked out at the rusted washer and dryer sitting next to the driveway and the abandoned car with broken-out windows. Various other items of junk were scattered helter-skelter around the property. Inside the house was more of the same, only worse. She couldn’t bring herself to throw anything out, and over the years she’d become a hoarder. Trash and clutter were everywhere. The house was small, almost a dot on the two acres of property that were covered with weeds and dry dirt. There were a few trees here and there. An old rusted chain link fence on three sides of the property separated her from her neighbors. The Doggie Love Kennel had replaced the fencing between its property and hers with a shiny new chain link fence, so none of the dogs could get loose from the kennel through the many holes in Susan’s fence.

  While she looked out the window, she thought back to how she’d gotten to this place in her life. She remembered when she’d been happily married to Jerry Yates. They’d lived in Cedar Bay in a house that overlooked the water. She’d loved the house with its tubs and baskets that she filled with brightly colored plants. As soon as the plants started to lose their blooms, she replaced them with fresh ones, so there was always plenty of color on the steps leading up to the house and on the patio.

  Things started to take a turn for the worse when Jerry lost his job. The sawmill where he’d been employed for many years had closed, and he couldn’t find any work. He became despondent and started drinking heavily. One morning she woke up and found a note from him, “Susan, I’m sorry. Goodbye. You deserve better than this. Since most of the lumber that comes into the United States comes from Canada, I’ve decided to go up there and see if I can find work. I’ll call for you when I find a job.”

  She turned away from the window and sat down, wondering if he was still alive. She’d never heard from him, and shortly after he’d left, she’d fallen over a box someone had inadvertently left in the hallway of the medical building where she’d worked as a receptionist. Het back was injured in the fall. Several operations later her back was no better, and her bank account was depleted. Although she’d been given a personal injury settlement by the insurance company who insured the medical building, it all went to pay for the unsuccessful surgeries. Her parents died in an automobile accide
nt about that time and left their house to her. She couldn’t afford to stay in the house she and Jerry had owned, and she let it revert to the bank which had put a lien on it for nonpayment of the mortgage. She’d moved to her parents’ home and spent much of her time thinking about the past and how her life was seemingly over.

  Mary Barnes, the owner of Doggie Love Kennel had been to see her several times, telling Susan she’d like to buy her property so she could expand her kennel. Susan had nowhere else to go, so each time she’d told Mary no.

  She spent many an hour looking out the window towards the barn that had been converted into a kennel with heated and air conditioned rooms for the dogs as well as the artificial lake Mary had a contractor dig, so the dogs could play in the water. Each time she saw Mary and her employees walk out to the kennel to feed the dogs she got angry.

  Those dogs have it better than I do. It’s not fair. I get hurt and can’t work, and my husband loses his job and leaves me, but the dogs get to play in a man-made lake and have plenty of heat and air conditioning. I couldn’t even afford to heat this little house last winter, because I didn’t have the money. I wonder what would happen if someone released the dogs from their kennels and opened the main kennel gate. Might serve Mary right for being so high and mighty. Maybe she’d never be able to recover from the bad publicity, and she’d have to close the kennel. Then I wouldn’t have to listen to the dogs yap all day and night.

  She smiled as the beginnings of a plan flitted into her mind, a mind that had become demented over the years from the events that had worn her down to who she was now, a very angry woman.

  CHAPTER 3

  Jack Powell sat at his desk deep in thought as he idly let his three dogs lick his hand that was dangling next to his leg. He looked down at Nick, Sheila, and Joe, his beloved pit bulls, and once again became furious. He still couldn’t believe Mary Barnes had called to tell him she would no longer let his organization, the Pit Bull Sanctuary, rent a portion of her property at the Doggie Love Kennel. She told him the pit bull rescue dogs that were there would have to be off of her property within twenty-four hours, and it was all because of one little unfortunate incident.