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CHAPTER 27

IT WAS 6 p.m. by the time I picked up three orders of yat gaw mein on my way home to Lake Street. I rang the doorbell of our “ever-lovin’” nanny, friend, and across-the-hall neighbor, Mrs. Gloria Rose. She buzzed me in and, as always, welcomed me with a hug. She took the bag of dinner and whispered, “Julie’s been crying about Martha, Lindsay. Quite a bit.”

My little girl ran across Mrs. Rose’s living room and grabbed me around the waist. I picked her up and took her to Gloria’s blue sofa with a sweeping view of the street and held her while she cried into my shoulder.

Her cries went in and out of words. I felt my own tears welling up, but I forced them down as I tried to comfort her.

“Jules, Martha is warm and safe.”

“You don’t know.”

“Yes, I do. Because I’ve been to the doctor’s office before and saw the room for sleep-over pets.”

“You didn’t see her.”

Julie was looking up at me with her blue eyes, her dark curls a tangled mess, tears trickling down her cheeks. Martha was a huge part of my life, but in many ways she was now closest to Julie. She played with Julie, slept next to her, and had been her friend since before Julie was old enough to understand what a dog, or a friend, was.

I said, “Julie, Dr. Clayton is a very good veterinarian. I know she will care for Martha like she’s her very own. The office is probably closed now, but Dad may have spoken to her earlier. If not, I’ll call the nurse later.”

I hadn’t heard from Joe all day and had been too busy—and too shocked about Warren Jacobi’s murder—to reach out to him myself. I knew he was working late tonight. We’d have to catch up on news later.

Julie broke down crying, and I hugged and rocked her, and Mrs. Rose brought over my phone from where I’d left it on the counter. I called Dr. Clayton’s number and listened intently as it rang. I hung up and tried again.

“They’re not near the phone, Julie. I bet it’s feeding time. I’ll call back in a little while, okay?”

I grabbed a tissue and wiped Julie’s face until we were in shape to go to the table, where Gloria had laid out dinner. We slurped down the noodle soup and read our fortunes, all of which were off point.

Mine: “You will see something amazing today.” Thank you, person in the fortune cookie factory.

Julie’s: “Everyone is the architect of his own fortune.”

She asked me, “What does that mean?”

I knew but couldn’t explain to a sad little girl. I said, “I don’t know, honey. I’ll try the vet again.”

I pressed the buttons until a phone recording asked me to leave my name and number. I left them and clicked off.

Mrs. Rose spoke to Julie for me.

“The nurse is working, darling. She’s feeding all the dogs and cats and changing litter boxes and giving medicine. I know how hard this is, but we’ll hear from the doctor as soon as—”

A ring-back call from the vet’s number interrupted Gloria’s explanation.

“Mrs. Molinari? Hi, this is Margaret, one of Dr. Clayton’s vet techs. I just checked in on Martha. She seems the same as when I came on shift. I’ll call the doctor if there’s any change, and yes, I’m sure she’ll call you in the morning.”

Julie and I went to our place by seven. It sure felt empty without Martha’s barking and tail wagging. I called Joe but only got his voicemail. “I’m not in. Please leave your number …”

I put Julie to bed and read her to sleep. Just as I snuck out, closing her door behind me, a text came in from Conklin: Alvarez and I are at Julio’s. No one recognizes Jacobi’s picture. It’s just “Nope,” “Nah,” “Never saw him in my life.” That goes for the bartender, too.

I texted back, Thanks. You two sign out. See you tomorrow.

I fell asleep in my chair, and when I awoke some hours later, Joe was in his pajama pants, turning off the TV and the lights. He took me to bed and asked me, “How are you doing, Linds?”

I put my arms around him and cried while telling him about Jacobi. He tried to soothe me like I had comforted Julie earlier, but I was too pent up with sadness over Jacobi and fear of the inevitable with my old dog.

“Sleep, Lindsay. I’ve got you.”

Feeling like a little kid, I turned my fears over to Joe and cried some more. When I woke up, it was morning, and he was still holding me in his arms.