57aacbcd9598439b495cce0c68035a7c

“Yeah, that makes two of us,” she said, returning her gaze to the moon, which for some reason she’d developed a fascination with. “Look, I’m not your mother. If you have some issue with Diego you’ll just have to handle it. You’re big cats. You don’t need me.”

“But Clarice!” Dooley cried. “He’s just kicked us out of cat choir!”

“Who cares about cat choir? Cats can’t sing. Everybody knows that.”

“We can sing just fine,” I said, feeling hurt. This was the second time in a single night that my singing abilities had been questioned and I wasn’t sure I liked it.

“Look, I took care of Diego once. I’m not doing it again. I’ve got no beef with that cat. So if you want to get rid of him you’re just going to have to cat up and do it yourselves.”

Just then, there was a commotion on the upstairs balcony, and to my great surprise I suddenly saw Odelia and Chase briefly appear, before returning indoors.

“Hey! What’s Odelia doing here?” I asked.

“Oh, some idiot left a knife on Charlie’s pillow,” said Clarice dismissively. “And now the whole house is in the throes of some great pandemonium. It’s one of the reasons I’m thinking about splitting. I can’t even think with all the noise and the drama.”

“Who put the knife there?” asked Dooley.

“One of the security guards,” said Clarice. “Luca something. He must have thought it was some big joke. But Charlie isn’t laughing, and neither am I, for that matter.”

“I’ll bet this Luca is real sorry now, huh?” asked Brutus.

“Nobody knows it was him,” said Clarice. “One of the cats told me. She saw Luca put the knife on Charlie’s pillow and then stalk off again. I would have told Charlie but unlike your human Charlie doesn’t understand us. Which is weird for a self-proclaimed cat lover.”

I slowly raised my eyes to the balcony. I had to tell Odelia. She probably didn’t have a clue about this Luca character placing the knife on Charlie’s pillow. It was a great scoop.

“Thanks, Clarice,” I said, and started towards the house.

“Hey! Where are you going?” asked Brutus.

“I have to talk to Odelia!” I called back.

“What about Diego?!”

“I’m sorry! Duty calls!”

“Cats,” I heard Clarice mutter. “Can’t live with them—can’t kill them.”

Chapter 15

Odelia rubbed her eyes. Sucking down three cups of coffee in a row that a friendly housekeeper had brought her wasn’t helping. They’d interviewed most of the household staff and all of the security personnel, and so far they had nothing. Bupkis. Nada.

No one had seen anything—no one knew anything. And Dieber was getting more and more antsy with every passing minute. Every few seconds he stuck his head in and asked if they’d found his killer yet. She would have liked to point out that in order for there to be a killer in the house he would have had to be killed first, but bit her tongue.

“This is getting us nowhere,” she told Chase when they’d interviewed an actual butler. The man had been hired to welcome the guests in case Charlie threw one of his parties, but since the incident the security team had taken over and introduced a more stringent vetting procedure and the man was essentially out of work. The fact that he was still on staff indicated Charlie either had way too much money to burn or was a true philanthropist. Odelia suspected the former.

“Someone must have seen something,” Chase insisted.

She decided she needed a break, and went in search of a bathroom. They’d conducted their interviews in one of the guest bedrooms, but the one they’d picked didn’t have an en-suite bathroom. And she’d just walked out of the facility, after having splashed some water on her face, when none other than Max came trotting up the white marble staircase, visibly out of breath, and yelling excitedly, “Odelia! I know! I know who did it!”

She crouched down, checked if no one was around, and asked,“What are you doing here?”

“Long story—no time,” he said between gasps. “The guy who planted the knife is called Luca and he’s a security guard. One of the cats saw him and told Clarice and Clarice told us, and now I’m telling you.” He took a deep breath. “Luca. Knife. He’s the killer, Odelia!”

She smiled and rubbed him behind the ear.“You did good, Max. I think you just might have solved the case.”

He gave her a pleading look.“So now can I stay? You’re not going to sell me to the pound?”

She groaned. This Diego was doing a real number on her cats.“I told you already, Max. I’m never going to sell you to anyone. You’re my cat and that’ll never change.”

She thought he actually smiled at this, though it was hard to be sure with all the hair.

“Thanks. Oh, and say hi to Chase from me.”

“For obvious reasons I won’t,” she said with a grin, getting up. “Oh, and if you want a treat, the cat food is laid out in the kitchen pantry. It’s being replenished twenty-four-seven, so I’m sure you’ll find what you need.”

“Thanks, Odelia,” he said a little breathlessly, and gave her a look of such adulation she had to laugh.