Blake’s arm slid away from Paradise, and he turned toward the walk. “I’ll take you.”
She hugged herself in spite of the warm sun touching her arms. They’d all hoped their troubles were over, but they weren’t that lucky.
Chapter 3
Why did Greene have to be so unpleasant? Blake couldn’t figure out why the man walked around with a chip on his shoulder the size of their rhino. Not everyone was a criminal like the detective assumed.
Blake stopped at the enclosure and opened the gate with his key. The stench of a big cat mixed with blood blew toward him on the wind. “I came in to see if Raj had been fed. I could tell Ivy hadn’t gotten to all the animals.” Her body was still in the corner of the field where he’d found her, and he averted his gaze.
Greene stepped into the outer perimeter. “Was that a usual occurrence?”
“She’s only worked for us a couple of weeks, but she was very reliable. Showed up on time, was pleasant.”Was. A sad word he didn’t like to say. The three letters wrapped up a world of lost opportunities and a life cut too short.
Greene’s eyes narrowed. “Did you know her outside of work?”
“Never met her until she was hired. Ivy’s grandmother was a friend of Mom’s.”
Greene nodded and turned to survey the space. “Walk me through your actions.”
Blake bit back a groan and showed the detective every step he took until he finally led him to where Raj still roamed on the other side of the shelter door. The tiger chuffed, then roared, and Greene flinched before he stepped back. “It wasn’t until I had Raj secured that I was able to check Ivy’s status. She had no pulse.”
“You touched the body?”
“Of course. Any paramedic would do the same. If there was any hope of saving her, I would take it.”
“Uh-huh.” Despite the agreeable word, Greene’s raised brow conveyed his skepticism. Several vehicles pulled into the lot, and he gestured. “Forensic techs are here. I want to take a look first.” He didn’t wait for Blake to take him to Ivy’s body but moved past him. “Stay here. I don’t want any interference in my investigation.”
What did the guy think Blake would do? Pick her up, move things around? Greene needed to get a clue. Blake thrust his hands in the pockets of his jeans and hung back to catch two people in light blue uniforms approaching from the forensic van. He lifted a hand in greeting as Nora Craft and a man he didn’t recognize approached. “Glad you’re here, Nora.”
She poked her glasses up on her nose and glanced toward the enclosure. A frown creased her forehead, and Blake pressed his lips together to avoid agreeing with her obvious disdain. “I think he’ll be done shortly.”
“Once he establishes his dominance like a cat marking his territory,” she muttered.
Blake had always liked the forensic tech. She was in her thirties with brown hair and brown eyes and had a no-nonsense manner. She’d circumvented working with Greene several times and caredmore about getting to the truth than following the detective’s orders.
Greene turned as if he’d sensed her discontent and moved toward them. “The body is all yours, Craft. I saw no sign of any foul play, but the autopsy will tell us for sure.” He didn’t wait for a reply and brushed past them. “I’m going to talk to Jenna to find out what she knows about the victim.”
Blake fell into step behind him. “I don’t think she knows much.”
“We’ll see. I won’t need your help with this.”
Blake swallowed back the retort hovering on his lips and reversed direction toward the capybara enclosure. It was easy to find the boys—all he had to do was follow the sound of giggles. Those guys loved capybaras, and there was nothing cuter than the pups.
He grinned when he heard Isaac regurgitating everything he knew about capybaras to Paradise—which was extensive even though he was only five. His brothers were on the grass inside the capybara enclosure beside Paradise, and they all held pups. Another two babies snuggled closer to their mom, who looked on.
“They’re the largest rodent in the world,” Isaac said.
She listened intently as if she’d never heard any of this. “Is that anything like the Rodents of Unusual Size mentioned inThe Princess Bride?”
Isaac petted the little pup on his lap. “I think those are bigger. People used to think they were water pigs, but I don’t think they look like pigs, do you?”
“Only a little bit.”
“Not atall,” Levi put in. The pup he held squirreled under his arm. “They look more like beavers. Or guinea pigs, only cuter.” He petted the back end of the pup he held, which was all he could reach with the capybara trying to wiggle under his arm.
Paradise examined the pup she held. “You’ve taken good care of them.”
“I want to be a capybara keeper when I grow up,” Isaac announced.
