Adieu at the Zoo_A Jefferson Zoo Mystery Read online

  “I’ll catch up with Dan when he finishes meeting with Bob,” I said, “and see what I can learn.”

  Her expression turned from curious to suspicious. “Another meeting with Bob. Is something going on I should know about?”

  Chapter 43

  I debated the wisdom of sharing Bob’s Dan talk with Jodie, but the temptation was too great. Besides, I found Bob’s conversation as well as the premise for it, hysterically funny. My head told me the whole matter should offend me, but Bob was in such obvious misery as he carried out his mission, I couldn’t help but feel sorry for him.

  I was reasonably confident Marlene had put him up to it, and despite his patronizing attitude I appreciated his concern for my welfare, misguided as it happened to be.

  “Bob met with me,” I told Jodie, trying to suppress a grin, “to tell me he wants Dan and me to cool it so we don’t give Nate another lame excuse to go after me, as if Nate needed an excuse.”

  “Bob said to cool it? He told you that right up front?”

  “Yeah. I just this minute came from having the talk with him.” I burst out laughing. “I tried to tell him nothing was going on between us, but he didn’t believe me. I’m sure he’s already called down to Security for Dan to come up to his office for the same silly chat.”

  Jodie wore her most outrageous expression. “No! What is the matter with that man?” I could see her bursting at the seams. “Bob needs to go back to management school. Did you put him in his place?”

  “No, because he’s only trying to help. I told him I wondered about Dan’s intentions myself and if he found out to let me know.”

  That left Jodie holding her sides even though she doubted I really said that. “You didn’t really,” she sputtered.

  “I did,” I said, crossing my fingers over my chest and pointing to the ceiling. “Bob was so relieved about getting no grief from me he agreed to share everything.”

  Before Jodie could compose herself I spotted Dan entering my outer office. I smiled and motioned him in. Jodie turned around to see what was going on.

  “This should be good,” she whispered, getting up to leave.

  “Don’t rush off because I’m here,” Dan said, holding open the office door for Jodie as he flashed a smile my way.

  “Nothing to do with you,” Jodie said, unable to resist a parting shot, “but somebody’s got to get some work done around here.”

  “It’s quitting time,” Dan said.

  “Don’t mind her,” I told him. “Come on in and have a seat.”

  Dan closed the door and leaned his hunky frame against it, looking over at me or looking me over I wasn’t sure which. In any case, I wasn’t about to be the one to bring up Bob’s conversation.

  Neither was Dan, apparently, because he finally said, “Are you up for having a bite to eat with me?”

  “I’d love to,” I told him, “but we probably shouldn’t be seen leaving together.” I’d given him an opening and waited for his reaction.

  A broad grin spread across his face.

  “I know Bob’s just looking out for you,” he said, “but he’s gone over the top again. He seems to be functioning in impulsivity mode these days.”

  “I agree. First, I’m a criminal and the next minute I’m a victim. I think working with Nate has resigned him to some kind of permanent state of crazy.”

  “It’s Nate’s forte, and I for one am wondering how much longer old Nate will be with us. I hear rumors Sally Ann is out for his hide.”

  “Not soon enough to suit me.” I hesitated, then plunged ahead with, “What did you say to Bob, if you don’t mind my asking.”

  “Of course I don’t mind. I told him I’d go along with his restrictions at work as long as they didn’t apply to my time outside of work.”

  “What did he say to that?”

  Dan rested his hand on the door handle. “Not much he could say. Just asked me to be careful not to let Nate see us together. So, I suggest we leave separately tonight. I can leave first and you wait a few minutes before following me or the other way around.” He stopped halfway through the door and glanced back. “I used to work for the CIA, you know. I’m good at clandestine ops.”

  “Funny thing,” I replied, going along with his antics, “so am I.”

  “I could tell,” he said, still waiting in the doorway.

  “Want to tell me where we’re meeting or,” I picked up a blank piece of paper from my desk, “would you rather write it in invisible ink?”

  “How about we go to my place for dinner?” I think he winked, but it was so slight I might have imagined it. In any case, I felt my heart speed up as he added, “I guarantee Nate won’t find us there.”

  I needed to do something about this heart trouble before I died of cardiac arrest. “Or, we could go to my place and finish up the leftovers from last night,” I suggested. “My fridge is overflowing.”

  “An even better idea. I’ll meet you there,” he said, closing the door behind him.

  I breathed a long satisfying sigh as I watched Dan wend his way out of my office. Maybe I’d get my romantic dinner after all. I stood up to leave just as the phone on my desk rang.

  “Sam here.”

  A voice from the vet’s office replied. “Sam, we need you or some member of your staff down here along with several of your tools.”

  “As far as I know, my staff’s gone for the day. What’s the problem and what kind of tools are you looking for?”

  “The giraffe died and we have to cut her up for the crematory. We don’t have any saws that can handle an animal this large, so the vet thought Hort could bring us a couple of chain saws. Can you help with that?”

  “I can,” I said, “as long as I’m not the one doing the cutting.”

  “Hang on a minute.”

  I could hear a discussion going on in the background.

  “Yeah, okay, Sam, but the vet’s asking if you can provide some instruction for him since he’s never used a chain saw before.”

  I sighed. Why now of all times? “Tell your boss I can be there in fifteen or twenty minutes, but I’m not staying for the whole ceremony.”

  “No problem. Thanks, Sam.”

  I hung up and immediately dialed Dan. “Can you stave off hunger for another hour or so?”

  “Sure. What’s up?”

  “I got a call from the vet. The giraffe died and they need help cutting it up for the crematory, and of course they have no surgical tools up to the task, so I have to run a couple of chain saws down to them.”

  “Eeew. They don’t want you doing the job for them, do they?”

  “No, but the vet’s never used a chain saw before so I have to teach him how to run the thing. I hope he doesn’t lop off a finger in the process. Can you believe he’s never used a chain saw?”

  I noticed a short pause on the other end of the line. “I can believe it. I’ve never used one either,” Dan admitted. “Does that disqualify me from having dinner with you?”

  I tried not to laugh. “Not at all. I’ll teach you about chain saws and you can teach me how to cook, how’s that?”

  “Better yet, I’ll cook for you,” Dan said. “Call me when you’re ready for dinner and I’ll head over to your place then.”

  “Sounds good.” I put a call through to Glen hoping he was still at the zoo since he often worked late if he was in the middle of a project, which is the reason he’s one of my best workers. I phoned down to the Hort barn where he hangs out, but no one answered. After a dozen rings I hung up. Just as I thought, everyone had cleared out for the day.

  In desperation I turned to the radio. “This is Sam. Any Hort staff still on site? If so, I need you.”

  The radio crackled and Glen came on the line. “I haven’t left Desert, Sam, what do you need?”

  “I’m glad I caught you. That sick giraffe died and the vet’s office needs help cutting up the remains for the crematory. They want to use our chain saws. Can you handle that for me?”

  “
Sure. I’ll give them a buzz.”

  “Give them a buzz,” I chuckled, “good one.” I heard an appreciative cackle on the other end of the line. “Here’s what you need to know,” I continued. “The vet’s never used a chain saw before so he needs instruction.”

  “No problem. I’ll take care of it for him.”

  “Thanks, Glen, I owe you.”

  “You don’t owe me, Sam. The vet owes Hort on this one. Let’s figure out a way to collect.”

  I signed off still smiling at Glen’s good humor.

  My luck seemed to be changing. I called Dan back and told him I was on my way home and to give me an hour to freshen up before he came over. Maybe Jodie was right. If I wasn’t in love with Dan Saunders before, I certainly seemed to be falling now.

  I hoped the landing would be a soft one. My heart takes a long time to heal.

  Chapter 44

  I was nearly home when my cell rang again. I pulled over to the side of the road and answered, wondering if I’d have to go back to the zoo and help cut up the giraffe after all, but Jodie’s name appeared on the caller ID. I assumed she was calling to hear about my conversation with Dan.

  “Hey, Jo. Yes, Dan and I are having dinner together tonight.”

  “Great,” she said, “but that’s not why I called.”

  “News about Andy?”

  “I wish. Nothing’s changed. He’s still unconscious, but listen to this. The sheriff brought Tony in for questioning, but got nowhere because Tony lawyered up.”

  “That’s what people do.”

  “Right, but his lawyer’s no public defender working for peanuts. He’s a big-time criminal defense attorney traveling up here from Greensboro.” Jodie paused waiting for my reaction so I obliged her.

  “How’d Tony manage that?”

  “I was hoping you’d ask. First, it’s not Tony’s family paying the bill. Second, guess who is paying the bill?

  I thought I knew. “Mooney Construction,” I said.

  “Good guess, but you’re wrong.”

  “Okay, who?”

  “Are you sitting down?”

  “I’m in my car, pulled off to the side of the road. Is that sufficient?”

  She giggled. “You’re gonna love this one.”

  “Enough already, out with it.”

  “Nelson Farthington the Third.”

  “No!” I was too stunned to say more.

  “Gotcha on that one, didn’t I?”

  “You sure did. What’s the connection, do you know?”

  “Haven’t a clue, but I’m on my way to the hospital to see Andy. Maybe his mother knows something, since Tony’s her nephew.”

  “If you learn any more, give me a call. I’ve got to hang up and get home.” I hesitated, not wanting to sound like the cat that swallowed the canary even though it’s how I felt. “Dan’s waiting.”

  “You go, girl,” Jodie said. “Talk to you later.”

  §

  At home, I jumped in the shower and changed the bandage on my head to a smaller version, since the gash from my car accident was healing nicely. After drying my hair I twisted it up and held it in place with the butterfly clip. My closet resembled a zoo locker, but I managed to find a piece of clothing without a zoo logo.

  I thought about re-running the turquoise blouse, but decided to save it for a real date with Dan. I settled on a black turtleneck and clean jeans. The color black looks good on me. My hair is thick and dark brown, almost black when I wear it in an upsweep, which I’ve done only three times in my life that I can remember. My eyes are hazel—not quite green, not quite brown, and I’m lucky to have good skin so a little blush and lipstick works wonders.

  Dan arrived at my house shortly after I finished working my magic. He’d parked his truck three blocks away. From my front window, I spotted him rounding the corner, ambling down the sidewalk to my front door. How silly, I thought. Because of a dim bulb like Nate Olson, Dan can’t park in front of my house and be open about coming to see me. Nate somehow made my life miserable even when he wasn’t trying. The day the zoo fires him, I thought, will be one of the happiest days of my life.

  Change that thought to happiest next to today. Watching Dan Saunders walk up the steps to my front porch made me as happy as I’d felt in a long time. He looked great and I could see he’d put some thought into what to wear since he’d substituted his uniform for a pair of jeans and a cornflower blue sweater that exactly matched his eyes. I caught myself sighing.

  I opened the door before he had a chance to ring the bell. “I was watching for you,” I said, in explanation as I ushered him in. I closed the door and turned back to Dan who leaned down and kissed me. I kissed him back, quite enthusiastically I thought, which led to a somewhat prolonged exchange of lip locking and mutual endearments in which Dan confessed to being head over heels, that’s the phrase he used, in love with me.

  I hadn’t heard those words for more than ten long years and they sounded pretty good. I realized how much I missed having a man tell me he loved me, especially a man who affected my heart rate the way Dan did. After a few minutes of testing the resilience of my couch, we made a joint decision to head for the kitchen and tackle the leftovers in my fridge.

  Since Dan was the better cook, an understatement to be sure, I was more than happy to let him take the lead. Not that I can’t punch buttons on the microwave, but Dan preferred to use the oven and stovetop. He noticed my clean oven, which was less a testament to my housekeeping abilities than to the fact I’d never used the oven since I moved into the house, which was going on four years.

  Of course he couldn’t resist commenting. “Mighty clean oven,” He stuck his head in and looked all around before sliding in a cookie sheet of foil-covered leftovers. “Looks like it’s never been used.”

  I could see him trying to hide a grin.

  “I’m not much of a baker,” I confessed.

  He closed the oven door and kissed me again, but I could feel his chest heaving and knew he was stifling a laugh.

  I decided to defend myself. “I don’t have much time for cooking and even if I did, it’s no fun cooking for one.”

  “I agree,” he said. “Two good reasons why you need me in your life.”

  I could feel tears forming and I quickly brushed them away. “I’d like to have you in my life,” I said.

  “Great. Now that we have that settled, how about setting the table while I finish up in here.”

  I heard echoes of my former husband, also a good cook, who often shooed me out of the kitchen with an order to make myself useful by setting the table. Déjà vu all over again, as some famous baseball player once said.

  It was a curious feeling—new and familiar at the same time.

  Chapter 45

  Over dinner, my conversation with Dan turned to the zoo, of course.

  “Jodie called me on my way home,” I told him. “She said Tony Pope’s hired a big-time lawyer from Greensboro, one of the best criminal defense attorneys around.”

  Dan looked surprised. “That’s interesting. The sheriff never mentioned a lawyer.”

  “There’s more,” I said, trying not to slurp my seafood bisque. “Guess who’s footing the bill?”

  “Mooney Construction, I’d guess, since Ray Glover was there.”

  “That was my guess, too. I don’t know why Glover tagged along, except to protect Mooney Construction’s interests, maybe, but they’re not footing the bill.”

  “Who is?”

  “Nelson Farthington.”

  “Re-ally?” Dan dragged out the word.

  “Really. Jodie hasn’t a clue how that came about. However, she’s on her way to the hospital right now, intending to pry as much information as she can from Andy’s mother. She and Tony Pope’s mother are sisters, by the way.”

  “So, we have another mystery on our hands. What prompted Nelson Farthington to take an interest in defending Tony Pope, I wonder?”

  “The same Tony Pope who might have murdered Jac
k Dubois,” I said, “but I have a theory about why.”

  “Which is?”

  “That Nelson Farthington is in the black market plant business. I think maybe he’s the one running it, and if not him, his father. Everything points to him. The Farthington property adjoins the conservation tract, and the Farthingtons have known Jack Dubois and Tony since they were kids.

  “Maybe Nelson lured the cousins into business with him. Nelson Two is a major collector of rare species of plants, and the other night when I had dinner with him, he tried to convince me to give him the names of illegal plant traders.”

  “Jodie told me you had dinner with him.”

  “Fundraiser stuff,” I said, shrugging it off. “And now he’s paying Tony Pope’s legal defense fees. Over a murder?”

  Dan gave a quick shake of his head. “Maybe a murder, maybe not, according to the sheriff. Jack Dubois apparently died in a car crash.”

  “How’d the sheriff arrive at that conclusion?”

  “The coroner found windshield glass embedded in Jack’s head. Determined COD, cause of death, to be consistent with head injuries suffered hitting a car windshield. He said the other injuries were consistent with a car accident as well, one in which the victim was not restrained by a seat belt.”

  “But didn’t the sheriff bring Tony in for questioning?”

  “He wants to know who dumped the body in the Wetlands and why. A car accident doesn’t eliminate murder. If you or Jodie had died in that accident the other night, I’d definitely call it murder. Thanks to Jodie’s driving skills, you’re still here,” he paused and winked at me, “and looking good.”

  “If a battered head and bruised face can pass for looking good with you, then I’d have to wonder when you last saw an eye doctor.” I instinctively tucked the wispy ends of my hair behind my ears, my mind still reeling over this latest news because it made no sense. I had the same questions as the sheriff—who moved Jack’s body and why?