Trouble at the Kennel (Cedar Bay Cozy Mystery #9)(13)
“I don’t blame you. Matter of fact, I saw where a big dog show is being held out at the fairgrounds. It starts today and goes through the weekend. You might want to check it out. Are you thinking of showing her?”
“I have no idea. This is all completely new to me, but I have to admit I’m kind of fascinated. I saw an ad in the paper for the show and thought I might go after work this afternoon.”
“As many times as Mary was in here and as close as she was to you, it’s kind of strange she never said anything to you about her wanting a dog to show.”
“I thought the same thing and mentioned that to her daughter, Noelle, and the only thing we could figure out is that her mother probably wanted to keep it quiet so she wouldn’t be hounded by people coming to the kennel and talking about it. It’s one thing to be Jane Q. Public and think about buying a dog to eventually show, but it’s quite another when you’re the owner of a well-known kennel. I’m sure she knew a lot of people in the dog breeding world, many of whom would love for her to buy their puppy. It would give them bragging rights. At least that was our supposition.”
Just then the door to the coffee shop opened, and Mike walked in with Skyy nestled in his arms. “Hi, sweetheart. Thought I’d pop in and see how your morning’s going. When I got here you were busy, and I saw Skyy in the storeroom. I thought I’d save you the trouble of having to take her outside. I’ll put her back.”
“Mike, Kelly, who is this? A new addition to your dog family?” Doc, a longtime customer and friend of Kelly’s and Mike’s asked as he strode over to them. Kelly had been instrumental in helping Doc resume his medical practice after he’d been unfairly found liable for damages for the death of a young female patient of his. He’d even been the best man at Kelly and Mike’s wedding.
“Well, she’s kind of collateral damage after the murder of Mary Barnes at the Doggie Love Kennel, so yeah, we have her for a little while,” Mike said.
Doc reached out and petted Skyy who promptly thanked him with enthusiastic puppy kisses. “If I were a betting man, I’d bet on the puppy. Don’t see that one leaving the Reynolds home anytime soon,” he said winking. “What’s her name?”
“Doc, her name is Skyy. She’s named for a vodka brand. The breeder had a policy that every dog he sold had to be registered with the American Kennel Club with the name of a vodka brand somewhere in the registered name.”
“That’s a first, but the name Skyy is cute. By the way, Mike, what’s the latest word on the murder and letting all those dogs out? Anything you can say publically?”
Mike ruefully said, “There’s nothing I can say privately or publicly. At the moment I have absolutely nothing to go on. I spent the morning looking over Mary Barnes’ financial records, and I didn’t find anything of interest in them. Matter of fact, the kennel was doing quite nicely. I guess Mary justified the high prices she charged by having the artificial lake, the computer streaming, and the top of the line individual kennels for each dog. This afternoon I’m going to spend some time with the manager. I’m hoping she can tell me something.”
“Mike, why don’t you sit down and order something. I’ll put Skyy back in the storeroom,” Kelly said as she took the puppy from Mike and started to walk away. Skyy began whimpering, and Kelly turned back to Mike, “Did you hear that? I think you have a new friend.”
“Give her back to me. It’s okay, girl. I’m right here.” Skyy became perfectly quiet as Mike scratched her ears. Roxie, Doc, and Kelly all looked at Mike and grinned.
“Temporary, you say, Sheriff? Sure,” Doc said as he walked over to his favorite stool at the counter and ordered his usual luncheon special.
CHAPTER 11
At three o’clock that afternoon, the usual closing time for Kelly’s Koffee Shop, Kelly locked the door and walked to her minivan with Skyy’s kennel in one hand and her leash with Skyy attached to it in the other hand. Lady trotted next to her, but Skyy felt it was her personal calling in life to stop and sniff everything she came across.
Good grief , Kelly thought. This is taking twice as long as usual. Think I better take them both home before I go out to the dog show. Mike mentioned he’d probably have to work late, so I have a little time.
Thirty minutes later she parked her minivan in the county fair parking lot. She was amazed at how many people were attending the dog show on a Friday afternoon. Kelly had never been to a dog show before and was really looking forward to it. She paid the entrance fee, stopped at a stand where a free newspaper about the dog show was being given away, and walked into the big hall. Several show rings had been set up and there were grandstands in front of each so people could sit and watch while the dogs were being shown.
Kelly walked over to a group of people that were looking at the dogs in the ring in front of them. “Excuse me,” she said to a man who looked like he knew what he was doing. “This is my first dog show. Are there different rings for different breeds?”
“Yes. Go back to the entrance and pick up a schedule that tells what time each breed is going to be shown and on which day. Today’s shows are pretty much for puppies and dogs that need to get some points towards their championships. Tomorrow and Sunday are the big days. Saturday is the competition for the Winner’s Dog and Winner’s Bitch. Sunday is the grand finale. That’s when the best dogs compete for Best of Breed. It’s a pretty big deal. If a male wins, his stud fee can be increased, and if a female wins the puppies in her litter become pricier.”