I Shall Not Want by Debbie Viguié Read Free Book Online Page A

underneath.
    “Clarice, are you there, girl? Come out. Here, Clarice.”
    Cindy held her breath. Several seconds passed, Joseph’s shoulders began to droop, and then she heard a scratching sound coming from the dirt below the shed. A moment later Clarice emerged, limping. Her coat was matted and dirty, and when the flashlight hit her head Cindy gasped. The dog’s muzzle and throat were covered in blood.
    Joseph collapsed to his knees and wrapped his arms around Clarice. Cindy shouted, “Over here, we found the mother!”
    As the officers descended, Clarice jerked and looked like she was trying to struggle out of Joseph’s arms. He made soft noises to calm her.
    “Any sign of the puppies?” Mark asked.
    “No, but she’s hurt,” Cindy said, picking up the flashlight Joseph had dropped and playing it over the dog.
    “I can’t find any cuts on her face or neck,” Joseph said. “Shine the light here.”
    Cindy obediently shined the light right at Clarice’s muzzle. Joseph opened her mouth. Her tongue and teeth were also coated with blood. Joseph stared for what seemed an eternity. “I don’t think there are any injuries inside her mouth either,” he said at last.
    “What does that mean?” Vince asked.
    “It means that she bit the guy who stole her puppies,” Mark said. “That’s DNA evidence all over her.” He turned to Vince, “Call in forensics.” He turned his attention back to Joseph. “The dog is now evidence.”
    “Clarice isn’t evidence. She’s a dog, my dog,” Joseph hissed at Mark.
    “Be that as it may, she’s also our first break in this case.”
    “Why don’t we get her inside where the light is better?” Cindy suggested.
    Joseph clipped the dog leash onto the poodle’s collar, and she followed him back to the house.
    They stopped inside the foyer. Cindy and Mark sat on the stairs while Joseph sat on the floor next to his dog and examined her carefully.
    “So, if we are looking at a rival breeder,” Mark asked, “why take the puppies when they could have taken Clarice? They’ll have to wait to be able to breed the puppies.”
    “These puppies aren’t just special because Clarice is their mother. Their father is an international champion. With himit’s not about the money, although the stud fee is astronomical, but selectivity. His owner will only allow him to breed with females who are also champions. That makes these puppies especially unique.”
    “Aren’t all of the dogs registered?” asked Cindy. “I mean, if they want them for their pedigrees, then it’s kind of pointless to steal them, because they’ll never be able to admit who the parents are without being discovered.”
    “The breeder could be looking for perfect show dogs. He can doctor their pedigrees and make some good money off winning shows. Once his dogs have a few wins, people will be lining up to pay stud fees, never dreaming the animals were stolen.”
    “Okay, so it’s possible a rival breeder wanted the puppies badly enough to kill for them,” Mark said. “But why just take the one yesterday? Why not take them all?”
    “Maybe the killer thought he’d have plenty of time to grab the others and was only worried about the one he knew Joseph planned to give away,” Cindy suggested.
    “Ah, so when Joseph gave away a different puppy from the same litter, the killer had to get that one as well and then probably realized he couldn’t waste any more time and take the chance of Joseph giving away or selling another puppy.”
    “It would make sense,” Joseph said.
    Vince arrived. Reluctantly, Joseph handed Vince Clarice’s leash.
    “We’ll take really good care of her, have her checked out by a vet and everything. You’ll have her back in a day or so,” Vince promised.
    Cindy stared at Clarice’s collar as the dog reluctantly followed Vince out of the house. On Clarice the sparkly red collar seemed fitting; she was the queen of Joseph’s household.From everything Cindy had noticed, the dog