Page 23 of Family Ties and Alibis

“Ditch the dog,” Snitch squawked.

Elvira jabbed her finger at her mischievous parrot. “Be nice. Rambo will only be here for a few days.”

Snitch lowered her head, giving Elvira an annoyed side-eye.

Dernice laughed out loud. “That look.”

“She’s pouting.” Leaving her popcorn bowl on the stand, Elvira ran to the fridge, grabbed a frozen grape and fed it to her.

“Rambo reeks.”

“He does not. You’re just jealous.”

The bird promptly repeated the insulting phrases about their houseguest before turning her back to them.

“She’ll get over it after Rambo goes home,” her sister predicted. “Now, if Pete’s parrot, Gunner, was here, it would be a completely different story.”

“Snitch would be falling all over herself.”

The commercials ended, and the opening scene began to play.

“Okay. Dig in.”

Rambo stuck his head in the popcorn bowl, happily munching on his treat while Elvira grabbed a handful and shoved it into her mouth. “Do you want some popcorn?” she mumbled.

“No, thanks.” Dernice checked the clock. “Luigi should be calling soon. Have you heard from Carlita?”

“Once. She wanted to know how Rambo was doing. I told her he’s doing fine and that we’ve been feeding and checking on Grayvie, Mercedes’ cat, twice a day.”

“Speaking of which, thanks for the reminder. I’ll run next door and check on him.”

Elvira muttered a reply, fully engrossed in the action scene. Rambo promptly polished off his snack and hungrily eyed hers.

“Sorry, bud. You can’t have butter or salt, otherwise I would share.”

Pup and partner sat quietly watching action scene after action scene. Not long before the emotional ending, bombs detonated, bad guys got taken down, and Rambo, the human hero, saved the day.

The credits rolled, and Elvira started clapping. “Man, I love Sylvester Stallone. He’s hot.” She grabbed the empty popcorn bowls and carried them into the kitchen with Rambo trailing behind.

Through the window, she noticed a package sitting on the step, the special delivery she’d been waiting for. “Our repair kit finally made it.”

Elvira snatched the package from the stoop and tore it open. Sitting inside was a masonry kit along with a small arsenal of tools. She carefully removed the toolbox and set it on the counter. “This, my friend, is going to repair the crack in my downstairs wall. I’ll have it looking like I never chipped away at it in no time.”

Rambo slid his paws onto the floor and cocked his ear.

Using her cell phone, she tracked down the YouTube video she’d bookmarked, the one giving step-by-step instructions on how to repair cracks and restore her building’s structural integrity.

“Might as well get started.” Elvira replayed the video, paying close attention to the first step…clearing out the loose debris.

She swapped out her clothes for an old pair of jeans and a T-shirt and carried the repair kit to the basement. Elvira unfolded a blue tarp she found sitting on the step. “This will come in handy.”

Rambo sniffed the tarp and flopped down on the cement, watching her rearrange the tools.

“According to the video, we gotta clear out the old stuff before we can start fixing the crack.” She picked up a metal brush and wedged it into the opening. Moving it back and forth, particles of dust, debris, and cement fell out.

“Crud. This crack is bigger than I thought.” Elvira set the smaller brush aside and picked up a larger one. Inserting it into the crack, she wiggled it up and down, removing even more clumps of loose concrete. To her horror, the pile grew to the point she decided she had better stop.

She rocked back on her heels and stared at the gaping fracture. “Is it my imagination, or does it seem like the more I brush, the bigger the crack is getting?”