Hannah laughed. It amused her every time Lisa referred to cowboy shooting. It sounded as if her partner went out to shoot cowboys, but the only things Lisa and Herb had in their sights were steel targets. Cowboy shooting was a sport with stages that replicated Wild West settings. Everyone wore period clothing and participants were judged on their speed and accuracy using replicas of guns that had been available during the period.

“I know, we don’t actually shoot cowboys,” Lisa correctly interpreted Hannah’s laugh, “but that’s what everyone calls it. When I told Herb that you were bringing Moishe down here and keeping him in a crate so he’d be handy when they needed him for a scene, he figured I’d need earplugs.”

Moishe gave another deafening yowl and both Hannah and Lisa reached up to cover their ears. When the sound stopped, Hannah gave an exasperated sigh. “I don’t suppose you’ve got another pair of those?”

“I was a Girl Scout. I come prepared.” Lisa reached into her apron pocket and handed Hannah a new pair of earplugs. “Just roll them around in your hands for a few seconds to compress them, and then push them in your ears. They’ll expand to fit.”

Hannah did what her partner advised and soon both women were working in relative peace. Moishe’s yowls, although every bit as loud as they’d been before, had faded by the grace of the bright orange barriers to fit into their auditory comfort zone.

Once nine o’clock approached, Hannah went to the cooler to retrieve the cheesecake she’d baked after Ross had left the previous evening. “I’m going to run over to Mr. Lawrence’s trailer to deliver this,” she told Lisa. “Have some coffee and relax. We don’t open for another hour.”

“Do you think he’ll stop yowling soon?” Lisa asked, moving closer so that she could hear Hannah’s answer.

“Your guess is as good as mine. Try turning out the kitchen lights and going in the coffee shop. He’s used to being alone all day and maybe that’ll do it.”

“You think?”

“Not really, but it’s worth a try. And dream up some story about how he’s just rehearsing for a singing career in case the S.P.C.A. drops by.”

As Hannah approached the huge Winnebago, she was impressed. It was a home on wheels in the true sense of the words, and it must have cost a pretty penny to rent it. The only other motor home she’d seen that approximated the size of the one Dean Lawrence was using as an office was at the Road Deals on Wheels Trade Show she’d attended last year with Andrea and Bill. That particular motor home, the featured item at the show, had cost triple the price of a nice two-bedroom home in Lake Eden.