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"Hhtly interested

"And she reeked of sadness It just consumed her"

Cookie looked up at last "Do you knohy?"

"No, she took off before I could talk to her" I scooped enough coffee grinds into the filter to give it the taste and texture of unrefinedto figure out you’re stealing his coffee He was a detective for over twenty years"

"See this?" I asked, showing her ht around this baby So don’t sweat it, chiquita"

"Don’t expectbell sounded as the front door opened "Can I help you?" Cookie asked as I walked into the reception area for a look-see

"Yes, I need to talk to Charley Davidson" A nice-looking ht hair and pale blue eyes walked up He wore a white doctor’s lab coat with a sky blue shirt and navy tie and had an expensive briefcase in one hand With my super-sleuth powers of deduction, I decided he could be the very doctor Garrett had told me about

"I’ and he was really there to sell e hiot your na wife, his innards were oddly panic-free His emotions were in turmoil, just not the kind of tur wife A ht of debauchery, but not awife Still, his hair was ue and worry, so he fit all the grieving-husband criteria at first glance

"Please, come in" I showed him into my office "The coffee’ll be ready in a minute, or I can offer you a bottled water," I said after he sat down

"No, nothing for me, but thank you very much"

"Not at all" I sat behindin Can you tell lanced around at the artwork covering s that my friend Pari had done Tere very old school detective--the detectives feuns to go along with their sultry gazes And the one right behindblood froh of an abstract to , an inside joke between Pari and ht up there with paper cuts and stubbed toes

"Absolutely," he said after taking a deep breath "My wife has beenfor a little over a week"

"I’ out a notepad and pen from my desk "Can you explain what happened?"

"Of course" His expression turned mournful "My as out late with soht and she wasn’t ho notes

He raised his eyes and thought back "Last Friday night So, I woke up Saturdayand she still wasn’t home"