1 PAWsible Suspects Read Online Free

going to need a little more help here to solve this. The police mentioned Ida Jenkins. Who is that – a sister?”
    “Younger sister. There were three girls in the family: Ida, Ruby, and Phyllis. Ruby never married, but both of the other two married. Ida got a divorce and changed her name back within a few years of getting married. Phyllis stayed married and had children. I want to say like two or three. Phyllis passed a few years ago, but Ruby always kept tabs on the girls.” This was the type of information I needed. My mother could be my partner-in-crime when needed. Usually “needed” was anything having to do with me finding a woman to settle down with or paying my own bills. Both admirable goals that I was failing at the moment.
    “So any ideas on what could have happened?”
    “I’ve known Ruby since we worked together nearly twenty years ago. It was a different set of dogs then, but the same behavior. She kept a constant eye on those pets. She would never leave her dogs with no one to take care of them – ever. Either something has happened to one of the dogs, and she couldn’t leave it, or something has happened to her and the other dog got out. That’s all it could be.”
    “So no enemies or people who would want her dead?”
    My mother made a noise best described as a raspberry. “She was a retired school nurse, not James freaking Bond. Of course she didn’t have any enemies.”
    “And the family was fine?” I was running out of options quickly here. It looked like I’d have to do some leg work to make this happen.
    “The family was family. They weren’t great, but they weren’t killing each other either. Ida didn’t care for dogs, so they didn’t get on too well. Phyllis’ kids mainly wanted a hand-out, so Ruby tolerated them in small doses, but little more. It doesn’t take much mooching for it to get old.”
    “Any suggestions then?”
    My mother gave me one of those sighs of exasperation that I’d thrived on growing up. “I told you. Dog hurt or she’s hurt. No way would that little puppy have been left there unfed and not cared for.” She said her goodbyes before I could ask any other inane questions, which just showed how stuck I was on the case.
     
    I opted to visit the sister first. The police would have information on the blood stain soon, and I’d already tried the neighbor. So all that was left was the family.
    I found only one Ida Jenkins in the phone look-up app and then mapped her address and directions. I love technology. I also loved old-fashioned names that made locating people easier.
    Ida’s home was in Crossgates, only ten minutes from her sister’s place and that meant a fifteen-minute drive for me to get there. I was putting more miles on my car than I usually did in a week, which is to say that I don’t get out all that much. I found a place on the street and knocked on the door to the house.
    If Ruby’s neighborhood had reminded me of the post-war era, Crossgates reminded me of the 1980s. There were rows of identical bi-levels and tri-levels on the street as far as the eye could see.
    There were no pets at Ida’s house, which made me wonder. I find that usually pet ownership seems to be somewhat genetic. If the parents have pets, the kids end up with pets too. For Ruby to be such a big dog person, it seemed odd that Ida would have none at her house, especially given that she was going to be taking custody of a Scottish terrier or two in the very near future.
    I was just about to leave when a small woman opened the door and peered out at me. “What do you want?” she asked.
    “I’m a friend of your sister Ruby. I was hoping you had a minute or two to talk?”
    She sighed deeply and pushed the door open. “I’m guessing that you’re here about her disappearance?”
    I nodded. “I was at her house earlier today, and I noticed a few things that I wanted to talk to you about. If that’s okay?”
    “Are you the police?” she asked, staring at me. From