After our shower, we only went downstairs long enough for Lulu to do her business and grab ice cream to take back upstairs with us.
“One big bowl to share or two individual bowls tonight?” she asked.
“Depends what kind of ice cream you’re planning to eat,” I said, keeping an eye on Lulu as she sniffed at least fifty percent of the yard while looking for the perfect spot to pee. I started humming theBatmantheme song because she looked like she was wearing a bat mask. It seemed to make her happy, and she finally squatted down to pee.
“I’m thinking strawberry cheesecake tonight. How about you?”
“I’m kind of in the mood for chunky monkey.”
“Two bowls it is,” Freckles said.
“Great, now I think she wants to poop.”
“Better out there than in here.”
“True, but our show is starting in a few minutes.”
“Elijah, is there something you want to tell me about your obsession withExpedition Unknown?”
“Like?” I asked, turning to face her.
“It sounds like you have a little bit of a crush on Josh Gates. Should I be jealous?”
I snorted. “Look, if I were into dudes, he’d be the kind of guy I’d pick. He’s intelligent, has a thirst for adventure, a wonderful sense of humor, and a great smile. What else would anyone want in a guy?”
“Okay, now I’m crushing on him too,” she said as if I didn’t already know about her crush on the host.
I turned back to check on Lulu in the back yard and noticed she was gone. Fuck! I regretted that we hadn’t put up a fence yet. “Freckles, your little darling has taken off through the woods surrounding the property again.”
“You want me to go with you?” she asked, not sounding alarmed because this wasn’t the first time Lulu got bold enough to dart off the second one of us wasn’t looking. I’d find her easy enough with the flashlight on my phone.
“Nah, you go on up and start our show. Lulu and I will be there in a few minutes.”
“I’ll put your bowl of ice cream back in the freezer so it doesn’t start melting,” she said.
“Lulu,” I called when I stepped outside. “Here, girl.” I didn’t bother whispering because we didn’t have any neighbors to overhear us since trees surrounded us on all sides. Anthony planned the layout of his property very well; although, I’m sure he’d be surprised to realize how much his town grew.
I headed in the direction the little dog normally took but didn’t find her sniffing the ground where I usually did. “Lulu?” I asked, starting to worry a bit. How far could she have run in the amount of time it took me to tick off Josh’s attributes?
I stopped when I heard a foreign sound. It wasn’t tree branches snapping as someone else walked through the woods or leaves rustling in the wind. It was a sound that didn’t belong—chickens clucking.
I stood still so I could determine the direction the sounds came from, turned off my flashlight, and followed them as stealthily as I could. I had a feeling it was the chickens that drew Lulu out of the yard this time. Chickens that had no business being in the woods to begin with. I had a suspicion I knew whose chickens they were but no idea how they got there or who put them there. I wanted to call out for Lulu but didn’t want to give myself away in case the chicken thieves were around.
There was a gap in the trees above allowing a sliver of moon to illuminate the ground, and I saw Lulu standing by a makeshift chicken coop wagging her tail at the new friends she’d found. I cautiously scoured the area and determined it was just the chickens, Lulu, and me out here. I dialed Adrian who answered on the second ring.
“Everything okay, partner?”
“I solved the case of the missing chickens,” I said proudly. “Well, I found the chickens at least.” Lulu barked as if to say she was the one who found the chickens.
“Where?” Adrian asked. I heard rustling in the background and suspected he was putting on clothes to rush out of the house.
“In the woods behind my house,” I answered. “Do you think we should get the chickens and return them or set another stakeout for when the culprits come back?”
“Man, that’s a tough call. I don’t want the chickens to get harmed.”
“They appear to be okay. This coop is a real DIYer, but the chickens don’t appear to be distressed. There’s food, water, and shelter from the elements here.”
“You think you can get Lyric out there early in the morning to set something up like he did at my house?”
