Dog Gone Lies (Pacheco & Chino Mysteries Book 1) by Ted Clifton Read Free Book Online Page B

running for sheriff, you know what he should talk about in meetings and things like that. What I can do is get a list of all of the eligible voters in the county. Then we can figure out how to meet with as many of them as possible and ask for their vote.”
    “How can you get a list of voters?”
    “Couple of ways. One, public information is available as to who’s registered—so we can request that. I think the big thing is that we need to get people to register who haven’t before. That information we’ll have to resource ourselves. I’ve got some computers and modems that are still functional-- if I can hook them up, maybe in a back room at Big Jack’s with access to his phone line—I think you might be amazed at what I can uncover.”
    “I seem to remember that the turn-out for Sierra County elections was incredibly small. I bet the election’s decided by fewer than a couple hundred votes. If we could get some of the non-town county citizens to become active Clayton might win in a landslide.” Ray was getting excited.
    Big Jack was excited, too. He allowed how he’d love to beat that asshole Martinez and his crooked old man. He agreed that his store could be campaign headquarters and Tyee could hook up anything he wanted. Clayton showed up and was impressed with the ideas and plans that Ray, Tyee, and Big Jack had devised. Time was short, so they agreed to meet again on Thursday evening.

Wednesday
    Ray woke up energized. The discussion of the election and the possibility of putting a good guy in office instead of a jerk made his blood flow a little faster. He wasn’t a do-gooder, he was a practical man and thought people should mostly be allowed to do as they saw fit—unless, of course, it harmed other people. People like the Martinez family, who used cronyism to make other people miserable, got Ray fired up.
    Ray let Happy out for his morning business. He was sure that once something was discovered about Ms. Jackson’s disappearance that someone would be along to claim the dog. It had only been a few days, but he had to admit he was going to miss him. He wouldn’t get anywhere worrying about what might happen, though, so he concentrated on what he could do to maybe unravel the mystery of Ms. Jackson. After getting dressed, he decided he would go visit the Hot Springs Inn. He doubted much would come of it, but maybe there would be something he could learn.
    Happy took his now familiar spot in the back of the Jeep and went to sleep. Ray hadn’t been around many dogs, and he was astounded by the number of little naps they took during the day. As he approached the Inn, he recalled a few visits he and his wife had made to enjoy the healing waters. He liked the place a lot and was somewhat surprised that they were not doing better business. There were very few cars in the lot.
    Ray entered and went to the registration desk.
    “Hello sir, may I help you?”
    “Hi. My name is Ray Pacheco—used to be sheriff down in Dona Ana County.”
    “Well sure, sheriff, I remember you. You and your wife have stayed with us a couple times. Nice to see you.”
    “Thanks—we always enjoyed our stays here. I’m no longer sheriff, I retired, so this maybe a little out of line. I was wondering if I could ask you some questions about Ms. Jackson, the lady that disappeared.”
    “It’s great with me. Our sheriff has decided to do nothing, apparently. What can I tell you?”
    “Just tell me what you know about her checking in and if you saw her at all after that.”
    “She was a very nice lady and she had a dog—wait a minute, that’s the same dog with you.”
    “Yes, somehow the dog was let go or something up in a remote area of the lake where I have a cabin. That’s one of the reasons I have an interest in finding Ms. Jackson—returning her dog.” Not completely true, but close enough.
    “My gracious, that sounds ominous. Anyway, she just checked in—nothing abnormal at all. Asked if we could give her a ride in