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“She’ll be able to help Odelia find Addie Dexter,” said Dooley. “Gran knows everyone in town, and people trust her.”

“Mh,” I said. Gran’s face spelled storm, her lips moving wordlessly as she stared daggers in our direction. Whatever was bothering her, it seemed big.

But then Odelia and Mr. Dexter said their goodbyes for now, and Odelia even gave the stricken billionaire a warm hug, and so I soon forgot all about Gran’s strange behavior. We had a clear mission: find Addie Dexter and bring her home to her dad. And by golly I was going to do my darndest to make it happen.

We passed out of the bar and soon were going down to the parking garage in that same elevator.

“Well?” asked Odelia. “What do you think?”

“I think she’s a juggler,” said Dooley, firmly sticking to his theory. “But Max thinks she was murdered.”

“I don’t think she was murdered,” I protested. “All I said was that either she disappeared voluntarily, or else she came to some kind of harm, in which case we need to find out what happened.”

“I’m not sure I’m the right person for the job,” Odelia confessed. “I didn’t tell Mr. Dexter, of course, but if the police can’t find this girl, what chance do I have?”

“In other words: Mr. Dexter gave you a mission impossible,” I said.

“More or less,” she said thoughtfully.

“Did he promise you a new car if you find his daughter?” asked Dooley.

“No, he did not,” said Odelia with a laugh. “Though there is a reward.”

“Reward money? How much?” asked Dooley.

“Fifty thousand. The man is desperate, I could tell.”

“Poor man,” said Dooley. “He probably won’t be happy to know that his daughter wants to be a juggler, but he still needs to be told.”

“Let’s not jump to conclusions,” Odelia suggested as we climbed back into her car. “Let’s take this one step at a time, and approach the problem methodically.”

“In other words, you want us to start talking to potential witnesses,” I said.

“Yes, please, Max,” said Odelia. “And in the meantime I’ll go and have a little chat with my uncle.”

“You think your uncle kidnapped Addie?” Dooley asked.

“No, Dooley, but as the chief of police he will know about Addie Dexter’s disappearance, and possible leads that have been pursued.” She shrugged as she started the car. “No sense in going over the same territory twice.”

CHAPTER 9

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Vesta Muffin had been savoring a cup of hot chocolate with plenty of cream on top and some colorful sprinkles. It was a daily ritual she enjoyed with her best friend Scarlett Canyon. Both women were seated in the outside dining area of the Star Hotel, when she happened to see her granddaughter Odelia in earnest conversation with that billionaire guy. That Edward Dexter. He of the cars and the satellites and the rocket ships.

“Hey, isn’t that Odelia?” said Scarlett, who had noticed the same thing.

“Mh,” said Vesta, not well pleased. “I wonder what she’s up to.”

“Probably interviewing the guy for the paper,” Scarlett suggested, as she took a sip from her frappuccino, then took a nibble from her chocolate chip cookie.

“I hope so. I wouldn’t like to be the one having to tell her husband that his wife was caught cheating on him with a billionaire.”

“Oh, dear,” said Scarlett. “And they just had a baby, too.”

“It happens,” said Vesta with a sigh of disapproval. “It’s a hormonal thing, or so I’ve been told. So soon after giving birth a woman’s body is a raging cauldron of hormones, and it’s at times like these, when they’re so very vulnerable, that these billionaire playboys will strike.”

She narrowed her eyes at the couple, and saw to her surprise that Odelia seemed to be leaning in, as if to comfort the billionaire, who was holding his head in his hands, clearly in the grip of some powerful emotion.

Her expression hardened.“Not on my watch,” she growled. She was a firm believer in live and let live, and for a person to chart their own course through life, but not when the wellbeing of her great-granddaughter was at stake.

“Such a pity,” said Scarlett, gently tut-tutting even as she studied the big chunk of cherry cream cake she’d placed on her fork, preparatory to unloading its rich flavor onto her tongue and let her taste buds have at it. “And here I thought they were such a devoted couple, Odelia and Chase.”

“That’s what I thought,” Vesta said as she weighed her options. She’d already taken out her phone and was snapping a couple of shots of the lovebirds, and shot a short video for good measure. She hadn’t yet formulated a plan of campaign, but at least she’d have visual evidence of Odelia’s affair with the billionaire.

“On the other hand, it must be nice to have a billionaire in the family,” Scarlett said. “I mean, I like Chase, don’t get me wrong, but a cop’s salary doesn’t exactly stretch very far, when you get right down to it. And I’ve always wanted one of those electric cars.”

Vesta shot her friend a not-so-friendly look.

“What? What did I say?”

“I don’t believe this,” said Vesta, shaking her head.

“It doesn’t have to be a big one. A small one will do.”