“I’m Irv Rothstein, commander of the Greater Mulwood Neighborhood Watch Patrol. That’s why I was checking up on you. I live across the street.” He jerked his thumb over his shoulder at a tract home with four obvious, poorly constructed room additions that hung on the house like the pockets on his cargo shorts. A placard in the window, shaped like a stop sign, said THIS HOUSE IS PROTECTED BY NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH. “We watch for intruders of all kinds, including coyotes.”

“It’s good that you keep a close eye on your homes. I’m looking for Donna Stokes. Have you seen her around?”

“Not since Wednesday. Her dog started barking early Thursday morning so I went in to check on him,” he said. “It’s not like Donna to leave Captain America in the house all day. The Captain pooped all over the living room, I’m talking big piles, and there wasn’t any water in his bowl.”

Eve’s heart rate quickened. Donna had been gone since Wednesday, the day she was supposed to meet Tanya to show her some rental homes, the same day the family was murdered. That couldn’t possibly be a coincidence. The question was: What did it all mean?

“You have a key to her house?” Eve asked.

“Oh sure, and she has mine, too. We take care of each other’s dogs when we go on vacations or if something comes up that keeps us away from home for too long. We can’t keep our dogs outside because of the coyotes, so they’re house dogs. The problem is, we can’t be away for more than four or five hours or we’re going to have a mess to clean up. We have shag carpet and the stains never go away.”

“Donna didn’t call you to say she’d be away?”

“No, she didn’t and it makes no sense. She even calls if she has an unexpected amorous encounter, if you follow my meaning. Captain America has been over with Martha and me since Thursday. He’s such a sweet dog. Snickerdoodle loves him. She’s a French poodle.”

“Did everything look okay inside Donna’s house?” Eve asked.

“Besides the poop and the pee I had to clean up? Yeah, it was fine, but I’m not a fan of retro furniture. It was dated then and is even more dated now. Classic furniture never gets old. Always buy classic designs. I should know. I’m in the furniture business.”

“Is her car in the garage?”

“Never,” Irv said. “She uses the garage as a storage unit. It’s wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling boxes of God knows what. She always parks in the driveway. That’s the problem with these midcentury houses. All windows and no place to put anything.”