Red Dog Read Online Free

in the dim light was Lew Mandamus. He stooped over one of the boxes, a silver carrier with the name Maggie written in black felt on a strip of masking tape.
    â€œPose for your portrait, Slim,” he said, finger to his lips.
    I froze. Lew returned his attention to the cage. The little metal door was open, and there was a cat inside. Maggie, I guess. Lew had something between his bare fingers. Apiece of meat, something like that. The cat had retreated to the back of the box.
    At first, she wouldn’t move. Or couldn’t. I couldn’t tell which. Lew was talking softly, and the critter was twitching her nose and hissing a little. Growling some in her throat. She tried to get up, but something had been done to her back legs. Lew’s hand inched farther into the box, and the cat growled some more and then came forward just enough to take the treat from Lew’s fingers, and Lew said something gentle to her and closed and latched the box.
    He turned to me and smiled an unhappy smile that reminded me a little of Eun Hee’s frown and said, “We can chat outside, son.”
    We went out and Lew shut and bolted the door behind us and lit a smoke.
    I said, “Rough day?”
    Lew Mandamus was maybe seventy. He was wiry and tall with long arms and a long face and probably the same close-cropped hair he’d worn during his days in army intelligence. For twenty-five years, he’d run the Ballard County Animal Cruelty Task Force, which meager state funding relegated to little more than a couple of desks and a box of paperclips. Everything that happened at Shinshiwas freelance.
    â€œI’ve had better. Good to see you, Slim. We’d started to think the Indians had got you.”
    â€œEun Hee says wolves.”
    â€œShe’s got a dose of that political correctness maybe.”
    â€œWhat’s the story on the deli in there?”
    â€œWould you believe it’s taken me a month to get her to do that? To show that kind of trust? I can’t use gloves with her. Gloves scare her. The first few times she dang near took off a finger.”
    â€œTough life,” I said.
    â€œBelieve it or not, she’s a house cat. Never been wild. Family owned her relocated out west somewhere, but their boy goes to school in the area. One reason or another, they gave the cat to him. Not sure why. Doesn’t matter. What matters is that cats don’t like being moved, even across town to a new house. This cat wanted to show her disapproval of the new situation so she pissed on the kid’s bed.”
    â€œHe beat her.”
    â€œThat he did. Badly. Then he poured gasoline on her and set her on fire.”
    I said, “Say, where is this young fella now?”
    Lew cocked one of his bushy eyebrows.
    â€œ. . . Why?”
    â€œWell, because I’m going to kick his ass until he begs me to stop. Then, when I’m tired of kicking or my leg falls off, I’m going to pay someone to kick it for me. Big fella probably. Somebody with a leg like a redwood.”
    â€œCan’t help you. Much as I’d like to.”
    â€œSomebody like that, probably end up hurting a person.”
    â€œNot fully outside the realm,” Lew said. “Try telling that to the poll-sniffers in our state legislature, though. Way the law is written, the kid basically got let go with a small fine and a pat on the fanny.”
    â€œThat sucks.”
    â€œIt throws sucks off a barstool and steps on its neck, but that’s what it is. At least for now. What brings you this way, Slim? You dropping off?”
    â€œActually, I wanted to talk to you about the Cleaveses.”
    â€œThe who?”
    â€œSheldon and A. Evan Cleaves. They paid me a visit last night, said you’d given them my name.”
    Lew sighed.
    â€œOh, Christ. Those two. They come to you dressed like a father and son mortician team?”
    â€œSo you do know them? I almost thought they’d made it up.”
    â€œI