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used to,” she said sadly. “But it’s a lot of work, and it was always so hard to sell the pups when I wanted to keep them all. Now I have only one or two at a time. And that’s part of the problem. About Jeff, I mean.”
    “Jeff?” My ears felt as if they perked up like a pup’s. “I don’t understand.”
    “No, I’m sure you don’t. Not till I explain it to you. But I know what Jeff was up to when he disappeared. And I can’t help suspecting it has a connection with what I asked him to do.”
    “What’s that?” I demanded, edging so far forward in my seat that Lexie started wriggling.
    “Can you keep a secret?” she asked. “Because if I tell you, and you blab about it . . .”
    Her green eyes suddenly grew fierce, and I sensed what she wasn’t saying.
    Her small laugh sounded anything but humorous. “I used to say something like ‘I’d have to kill you.’ But that’s not funny. Not now. Not when I don’t know whether my request for help killed Jeff.” And she started to cry.

Chapter Four
    I ATTEMPTED TO remain calm while everything inside me churned and reeled. And screamed, What are you talking about?
    I gently placed Lexie on the floor and approached Lois. I knelt beside her chair and slipped an arm around her shoulders.
    And waited until she regained enough control to explain.
    For only an instant, she leaned her head toward mine until they touched, then sat up straighter. “I’m okay now,” she said. “Thanks, Kendra. Sit down and enjoy your coffee. ”
    I complied with the sitting and sipping, but I wasn’t quite ready to enjoy the brew. Sure, it was strong, but I could have gone for something stronger. Harder. Alcoholic.
    Even so, I was better off this way with a drink that could help to clear my head with its caffeine, instead of muzzying it.
    Obviously understanding that his mistress was upset, Ezekiel took my place near her and laid his head on her lap. She hugged him, then started stroking him as she looked at me with my two canine charges poised protectively on the floor at my sides.
    “Sorry for coming apart like that,” she said soggily. Now her face wasn’t only pouchy, it was splotchy as well. Good thing she didn’t have a mirror on her picture-laden living room walls. “Do you know much about my relationship with Jeff and his family?”
    I shook my head. “No, sorry to say I don’t.”
    “Well, I go back a long way with Irene, his mom. Years ago, we danced in the same clubs together. Not the most refined of establishments, you understand.”
    “Jeff did tell me a little about how Irene helped their family when he was a kid,” I admitted. Lois wasn’t exactly my image of an exotic dancer, not even one who’d reached middle age. She was still somewhat slim, but I couldn’t visualize her in skimpy clothing and sexy poses.
    Had Jeff’s mom aged as ungracefully? Now I was really curious to meet her in person.
    “I know what you’re thinking.” This time, her laugh reflected some humor. “You can’t quite imagine me back then, can you? Well, I can, every time I look in the mirror, believe it or not. Anyway, Irene’s now a dance instructor. Did you know that?”
    Aha! I shook my head, glad for this update and insight.
    “Me, when I started getting a touch of arthritis, I went back to school. Became a paralegal. I can see that surprises and maybe even impresses you. I know you’re a lawyer, so I’m sure you’ve your own opinion of paralegals. A little different from exotic dancers, eh?”
    “Sure are,” I agreed.
    “Way back then, when Jeff figured out what his mom really did for a living, she called and cried on my shoulder. But she was damned proud of his ingenuity. And his discretion. He promised never to tell his dad, who thought Irene was a waitress at an upscale restaurant in downtown Chicago.” She waved a curved finger at me when I started to suggest he could have known the truth. At least Jeff had told me his dad had wondered about it. “He