“I know. I’m going to give her a call in a little while.”
He nodded. “I like the judge’s idea of attending his basketball game. Maybe we should grab Pauley and Oliver and make an event out of it.”
“I’d like that,” I said. “I’ll double-check with Pauley because he isn’t really into basketball and crowds sometimes bother him, but I’m sure Oliver would love to make a night of it.”
I made a mental note to make sure I sat between Oliver and Violet. Their flirting was cute, but again, the small age gap included one person being a minor. However, I had other things to worry about with Violet.
Clark’s phone rang, and he glanced at it. “I have to get this.”
“All right. I’ll talk to you later.” I stood and left, noting the empty conference room before walking toward my office. Pauley’s door was shut, so I knocked.
“Enter,” he said regally.
I opened it and poked my head in. “Hey, P, how’s it going?”
He looked up, his hair perfectly brushed, and his blue and white shirt expertly ironed. “It is going excellent. I am organized. You are organized. That means Clark is organized. The entire office is organized. You need to recheck your calendar.”
I smiled. “Thank you for your help.”
“You’re very welcome. Shut my door.”
I closed it before continuing on to my office. I didn’t know how I’d ended up lucky enough to have Pauley working for us, but he brightened my day.
Hunger pangs hit me, and I paused, turning into the kitchen and hoping for a decent sandwich. Clark had found our colorful refrigerator and table at an ice cream store’s going-out-of-business sale, so they were green and cheerful, even in the dismal winter.
Holding my breath, I opened the old-fashioned fridge to see a nicely labeled turkey sandwich. Thank goodness. I grabbed it and a sparkling water before heading back to my office. Hanging up my coat, I walked around to sit in my chair and kicked off my shoes, scrunching my feet in the little rug I’d placed beneath my desk and unwrapping the sandwich before hitting speed dial on my phone.
“Hello,” Thelma Mullen answered cheerfully.
I grinned instantly. “Hi, I don’t want to bother you on vacation, but I have a couple of questions if you don’t mind.”
“Good,” she chirped. “I’m so excited to talk to you. How are you? Are you missing us? We can come back if you need us for a case.”
“No,” I said quickly. “You and Georgiana deserve a vacation.”
The two elderly women had pretty much adopted me during an earlier case and had even helped in other cases. However, I knew they’d be trying to track down the Cupid robbers if they were in town, considering they’d started their own detective agency with my grandmother not long ago. It greatly relieved me that they were currently in Cabo at a senior’s retreat.
“Are you getting a lot of sun?” I asked.
“So much, and Georgiana met a man. I think he’s okay, but she likes him a lot, so that’s nice.”
She and Georgiana lived together in the Sunnyside Retirement Community.
“What can we help you with, dear?” she asked.
I took a deep breath. “I was wondering if you know anything about Lenny Kristoff?”
“Yes, I know Lenny. He’s a member of the Elks in town. Nice guy. Probably a couple of weeks away from a heart attack, though. He really does need to join our fitness club. He seems like a decent person.”
Yeah, he could lose some weight. “What do you know about him?”
“Hmm,” she murmured. “He’s been dating Camille Rulegson, who lives a block over from us. She’s a lovely widow from, get this, Vancouver. She’s foreign.”
“Vancouver?” I repeated. “You mean she’s from Canada?”
“Yes. She moved here a while back and is a retired…what was it?” Thelma ticked her tongue for several seconds. “You know, I think she worked with trees. I don’t know, maybe as a landscaper or an arborist or something. Anyway, her garden is just gorgeous, Anna. You really should see it in the spring.”
I made a mental note to see the garden in the spring because I needed to plant flowers around Aiden’s cabin and it’d be nice to get new ideas. “Any chance Lenny is part of a robbery gang?”
