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Mariko, who was a round-faced young woman with bright red hair, was chewing a piece of gum so vigorously I thought it must have personally insulted her.“She stole my boyfriend. Me and Cody Szulc had been going steady for six weeks—coincidentally the longest relationship of my life—and Angel knew I was crazy about that boy, but still she decided to hook up with him after cheerleader practice. And then she had the gall to pretend nothing happened, when it was Cody himself who told me she’d allowed him to go to second base behind the bleachers. So no, Detective. Angel Church is not my friend, and frankly I don’t care what happens to her.”

“When did this thing with Angel and Cody happen?” asked Odelia, suppressing a smile.

“Two years ago.”

“So you would have been, what, sixteen?”

“Seventeen!” said Mariko, her eyes blazing. Clearly the trauma hadn’t yet healed.

“And you haven’t talked to her since?”

“I told her exactly what I thought of her, and that’s the last time we talked.”

“So you don’t know where Angel could be?”

“No, I don’t. Though actually, yeah. She’s probably with that sleazy boyfriend of hers. Matteo Drews.”

“Matteo Drews?” asked Chase, immediately jotting down the name.

“Yeah, total sleazeball.”

“You know this Matteo, do you?”

“Oh, sure. He used to have the hots for me, but I wouldn’t let a guy like that anywhere near me. Of course Angel isn’t so picky. That slut would let any idiot feel her up.”

“Is that how you would characterize Angel?” asked Odelia. “As a slut?”

“Absolutely. That sneaky slut stole my boyfriend, and she didn’t even have the decency to own up to it, or apologize.”

“And did she steal Matteo from someone, too?” asked Chase, trying to keep track.

Mariko shrugged.“I heard that Carmel had the hots for the guy. Don’t ask me why.”

“That would be Carmel…”

“Carmel Kraft. Angel’s new bestie. The weird thing is that Matteo doesn’t even like girls. Everybody knows he’s into boys. So when Angel and him hooked up it took us all by surprise.”

“Oh, so you all still meet, socially I mean?”

She gave Chase a look as if figuring he wasn’t too smart for a cop. “Hampton Cove is a small town, Detective. So it’s hard not to meet people, even a slut like Angel Church.”

“Were you one of the girls she hung out with last night?”

“Nope. No way. Though I did see them as I left the Cocky Cauldron. I ignored her, of course, and she ignored me. We’re not on speaking terms.”

“Could you give us the names of some of her friends?”

Mariko glanced up at the ceiling.“Carmel Kraft, Amy Ollermann, Beatrice Felag, Jody Huix. Oh, and Bridget Elfman.” She frowned. “Yeah, I think that’s it. Except Carmel’s boyfriend Wesley Trygar was also with them. Total creep, Wesley.”

“She seems to have a strong opinion on things, Max,” Dooley commented.

“Yeah, she’s very outspoken,” I agreed.

“So where can we find some of these people?” asked Odelia.

“Try McDonald’s. Carmel works the evening shift, and so does her boyfriend.”

And so we went from one food emporium to another. And since Odelia and Chase were famished at this point, but wanted to see their investigation through, they decided to skip dinner, and grab a burger instead. It’s those kinds of sacrifices your true detective needs to make.

Frankly Dooley and I were also a little peckish, and a nice burger patty or chicken wing sounded just fine to me.

25

The McDonald’s in Hampton Cove is where our friend Big Mac likes to hang out. His human runs that particular restaurant, and Big Mac enjoys all the perks—and he has the size to prove it.

I was really hoping to run into him, as it had been a while since we met the guy. Also, he might be able to shed some light on this missing person case.

“Do you think Big Mac will be there, Max?” asked Dooley now, clearly thinking along the same lines.

“I hope so,” I said. Talking to witnesses and such is all fine and dandy, but it doesn’t beat the kind of information you can pick up when talking to a fellow feline.

Chase parked his pickup in the McDonald’s parking lot, which is located just beyond the town limits, and he and Odelia got out. On the drive over, Odelia had called her mom to tell her she and Chase wouldn’t be able to make it home for dinner, and asked her if she needed to get her something from McDonald’s. Marge had ordered fries, but when Odelia asked her if she wanted mayonnaise with that, Marge had choked up. Odd.

“What was that about?” asked Chase as they walked up to the entrance, Dooley and me hot on their trail.

“I’m not sure,” Odelia confessed.

The place was pretty busy. It was the dinner hour, after all. And while Odelia went in search of Angel’s friend, and Chase scanned the menu, Dooley and I slipped out the back to look for Big Mac, who likes to hang out near the dumpsters.

As luck would have it, we immediately laid eyes on the voluminous orange cat.

“Hey, buddy,” I said as we snuck up on him from behind.