“I’ll give him a call as soon as I get back home.”
“How’d you even find them?” Adrian asked.
“Lulu technically found them. She must’ve heard them clucking and ran off to investigate while I was telling Maegan how hot Josh Gates was.”
“Huh? The guy fromExpedition Unknown?”
“I mean, he would be hot if I was into dudes,” I said. “You know humor, smarts, and adventure.”
“He has a nice smile too.”
“Yeah, that’s what we were discussing when Lulu ran off.”
“That’s a good girl,” Adrian said. “Uncle Adrian is bringing her extra treats.”
“I’ll let you know what Lyric says.”
“Thanks, partner.”
I scooped Lulu up and jogged back to the house, taking her straight upstairs to our bathroom to check for injuries or dirt.
“You were gone a long time,” Maegan said, making a beeline for her precious dog. “Where’d my girl go, and why is she so filthy?”
“Lulu solved the case of the missing chickens.”
“You did?” Maegan asked her. “That’s my good girl.” Lulu wagged her nub for a tail and barked happily.
“Well, we know where they are, but not who placed them there or why.”
“What are you going to do now?” she asked.
I repeated the conversation I had with Adrian, and she nodded. “I haven’t seen a coyote or fox around here in years, but that’s not to say there aren’t any. That’s your biggest threat to the safety of the birds while you set up your sting.”
“What about Henery Hawk?”
Maegan snorted. “I think you’re safe from him too. The person who took the chickens would’ve hurt them already if that had been their goal. They’re trying to make a point or something.”
“A political point? Like an animal rights activist?”
She shrugged. “Makes as much sense as anything else.”
“Know of anyone who fits the description?”
Maegan tilted her head to the side. “No one comes to mind.”
“Okay,” I said, kissing her freckled nose. “Are you okay to clean Lulu up while I call Lyric?”
“Yeah,” she said. “Expedition Unknownis a rerun tonight anyway.”
I expected Lyric to say he’d be over in the morning, but he sounded eager to set up a few trail cameras equipped with night vision rather than wait until the morning. “There’s a better chance of me getting spotted in the morning than there is right now. I’m used to walking around places in the dark.”
“It’s fine with me if you want to come over now.” I sent a text to Adrian, letting him know that Operation Chicken Snatcher was underway.
Lyric and Memphis arrived exactly twelve minutes later, both wearing headlamps like miners use down in coal mines. Lyric had his ever-present bag of gear while Memphis carried a ladder. I didn’t have anything quite as savvy and resorted to using my phone again, but it got the job done.
Lyric carefully surveyed the area to determine the best place to install the trail cameras and ended up setting up two adjacent to each other. One camera picked up the front and right side of the coop while the other picked up the back and left side.
“We’ll catch those fuckers now,” Adrian said, entering the small clearing and scaring the shit out of me. “What? You thought I’d let you have all the fun without me?” He slapped my back hard enough to rattle my lungs then counted the chickens.
