“I swear you’re the last of the gentlemen.” Rarity slipped in, then put on her seat belt as Jonathon closed the door, then came around and got in the driver’s side.
“I hope not. I trained my son better. So where are we going?” he asked when he started the truck and pulled out of the parking lot.
“Let’s see…565 South Pine in Flagstaff. It’s a specialty pet store.” Rarity had written the address down on a slip of paper after deciding to visit Todd.
“Are you getting another pet?”
“Are you kidding? Killer wouldn’t stand for it. That Yorkie rules the house. He should have been named King Fluffy or something royal. It’s his way or you hear about it. I’ve changed his food three times because he decided he didn’t like it after I bought a month’s supply.” Rarity rubbed her face. “I bet Romeo eats everything you put in front of him.”
“And a few things we didn’t.” Jonathon started telling stories about Romeo and how he stole the raw chicken on the counter that Edith was planning on putting in a marinade for the grill. She left the room to answer the doorbell for a delivery and when she came back, the chicken was gone. Jonathon told Romeo stories all the way into Flagstaff.
When they got there, he looked at the sign. “I loved that song. Mostly because I was the one who didn’t like the creepy-crawlies. Edith doesn’t mind them. She dealt with the frog and turtle phase, but then the next pet the kids asked for was warm blooded and fuzzy. Like they should be.”
Rarity smiled, agreeing with Jonathon’s definition of a pet. Then they went into the store. Classic rock played on the overhead speakers, and as they came inside, a young man dressed all in black greeted them.
“Welcome. What can I help you with today? I have to tell you up front, we’re out of feeding mice. The next shipment is supposed to be here on Tuesday.”
Rarity wanted to ask if she and Jonathon looked like snake owners, but then again, she didn’t want to know. “Are you Todd?”
“Nope. I’m Jax. Todd’s in the back with the spiders. Head to the left.”
She followed Jax’s directions and found a young man wearing round glasses and looking like the really tall elf from those Santa movies. He wasn’t Bernard, what was his name? “Todd?”
“Hi, you must be Katie’s friends. She said you might be coming by. Well, she actually told me to wait for you or she would hurt me.” Todd looked at Rarity and then Jonathon. “I take it you’re here for a Brazilian wandering spider. We aren’t allowed to sell those anymore. I can get you a nice tarantula if you want. But it won’t help, you know, down there.”
Rarity blushed. She didn’t have to see her face in the mirror to feel the heat on her skin. “No, we aren’t, I mean, we aren’t together. We just need some information about any venomous spider that could kill someone. How would that work?”
“Sorry, I get asked for the spiders that enhance your sex life a lot. Especially when there’s an age gap. My bad. Anyway, depending on the spider, venom can kill in a second or leave the victim to die a long, painful death.” He listed off several spiders to watch out for and what the effects would look like.
As he talked, Rarity could feel Jonathon’s eyes on her. It was going to be a long, quiet ride home. Unless she explained to him what Todd had been talking about. She broke into Todd’s monologue.
“So, where would someone get enough venom to kill a full-sized man almost instantaneously?”
“Dude, are you looking at murder or assisted suicide? Either way, there are laws against both. I can’t help you kill someone. It just doesn’t feel right.” Todd held his hands out between them and took a step back, running into a cage.
“No, we’re not killing anyone. Someone already died and we’re trying to find out why,” Rarity said, patting down the air in front of her with her hands. The last thing she wanted was for Todd to freak out and let these spiders loose on the floor.
“Oh, well, there are places that milk the venom out of spiders. They shock them. It’s cruel and inhumane, in my opinion.” He tapped the glass in front of a large wolf spider, according to the sign on the glass cage. “Isn’t it, buddy?”
“How do you get this venom? Buying on the black market?” Jonathon stepped into the questioning.
“I, of course, have never done such a thing, but if you ask Jax, he can give you a card and an email address. Send this dude what you need, then he’ll give you a price. When you pick up the venom, you pay the cash. Easy peasy. But don’t tell Jax I told you. He doesn’t think anyone knows about his connections.”
Jonathon took Rarity’s arm. “Thanks for the information, Todd.”
As they walked toward the door, she paused at the empty cashier counter. “We need to talk to Jax.”
“No, we need to get this information to Drew and he’ll have someone come talk to Jax. Having one supplier doesn’t mean he was the killer’s supplier. Let’s let law enforcement take this arm of the investigation from here. You did good finding this possible murder weapon. Take the win.”
As they got into the truck, Jonathon started it, then moved to the next parking lot. They could still see the front door of the store. But, from the angle, Rarity didn’t think Todd or Jax could see their truck unless they stepped outside to look. She turned to Jonathon. “Are you sure we shouldn’t talk to Jax?”
“Positive. This is why I’m part of the group. To keep you all from crossing the line. One person is already dead. Let’s let Flagstaff come over and chat with Jax about his side business.” He turned the radio’s volume down. “Let me call Drew, then we’ll go grab lunch.”
Once the call was made, they settled on a Mexican restaurant, and after ordering, Jonathon pulled out the small notebook he always carried. “You did good with this. What made you think of the spiders?”
“A really bad dream,” Rarity said, sipping her frozen margarita. She wasn’t driving, and being around all those spiders had given her nerves a twinge. She told Jonathon about the dream. “I’ve also heard something about people using the spider bite as, well, you know. So I got to thinking that if Mason and Talia had a spider as a pet, maybe he might think, why not. Especially since from his to-do list, they were back together and she was moving back in.”
“So that’s what Todd thought. That we were together and I needed some help in the bedroom.” Jonathon sipped his coffee. “Honestly, if not for Edith, and your age, you’d be my type, Rarity. You’re strong, independent to a fault, and intelligent. Archer is a lucky man.”
