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handlebars of her walker went flaccid while her eyes rolled up into the back of her head. Seeing her knees crumple, Manny Ruiz leaped forward. He caught the unconscious woman before she could fall to the ground. He lifted her waist-high as easily as he had carried the dead dogs.
    “Where to, Sheriff Brady?” he asked.
    “To the Blazer,” Joanna said. “Put her in the backseat. Jeannine, quick. Bring some water.”
    Edith was out cold for only a matter of seconds, but the momentary fainting spell seemed to last forever—long enough for Joanna to wonder if the woman had suffered a heart attack or stroke. But by the time Manny Ruiz deposited Edith in the Blazer the stricken woman had regained consciousness and was struggling to sit up. Impatiently she pushed aside Jeannine’s proffered bottle of water.
    “I have to see her,” Edith sputtered, struggling to clamber back out of the vehicle. “I have to see Carol. Take me to her.”
    “That’s not possible at this time,” Joanna said. “It’s a crime scene, Mrs. Mossman. Other than the investigators, no one’s allowed inside until they and Dr. Winfield finish their on-site work.”
    “You mean there’s a doctor in there with her?” Edith demanded. “Maybe he can help her. Maybe she’ll be all right then.”
    Joanna shook her head. “He’s not that kind of doctor, Mrs. Mossman. Doc Winfield is the Cochise County Medical Examiner. It might be best if you went home and waited for them to finish up inside. At that point, we will need a family member to make a positive identification, but there’s no sense in your waiting around here. It could take hours.”
    “I don’t care how long it takes,” Edith announced. “I’ll wait. I can do the identification here, can’t I?”
    “Yes, I suppose you can. But as I told you, there’s no telling how long this will take.”
    “Can you have someone take me back to Sierra Vista afterward?”
    Joanna nodded. “I suppose so, but…”
    “Call that cabdriver over here, then,” Edith said. “I’ll pay the man off and send him on his way. It’s already cost me a fortune.”
    The cabdriver was reluctant to leave his cab in answer to Edith Mossman’s summons. His frame of mind wasn’t greatly improved by the size of the tip she placed in his hand as she dismissed him. “You said your dispatcher wanted you back, didn’t you?” Edith inquired.
    “Right.”
    “So get going then,” Edith told him. Shaking his head, the cabbie stalked off.
    “Do you need anything else at this time, Sheriff Brady?” Manny Ruiz asked. “It’s hot. We should take care of these animals as soon as possible.”
    “Did Doc Winfield say he wanted to run any further tests on them?”
    “No, ma’am. It had to be more than a hundred and twenty degrees in there when I found them. He’s sure the heat is what killed them.”
    “You and Jeannine go ahead then, Manny,” Joanna said.
    “Thanks for all your help.”
    Nodding, Manny walked away. Meanwhile, Edith Mossman had listened to this entire exchange with avid interest. “Is that what killed Carol too, then?” she asked. “The heat?”
    “No,” Joanna said. “The information I have says she was shot.”
    Edith took this news in silence. Moments later, the two Animal Control trucks drove away, taking their tragic loads with them. About the same time Lucky stirred restlessly inside Joanna’s shirt.
    “What’s that?” Edith asked, catching sight of the movement.
    Guiltily, Joanna removed the squirming puppy and placed him on the ground. He waddled around sleepily for a little while before peeing. After that, he curled up again on a clump of grass and went right back to sleep.
    “One of Carol’s?”
    Joanna nodded. “He’s too young to go to the pound. I decided to take him home with me instead, but of course, if you’d like to have him…”
    “Oh, no,” Edith said. “Not me. I’m far too old for a puppy. I’ve always been more of a cat person than a dog person, but