Goodbye Dolly

'The doll thing, you know. Therapy's helping, but not that much. I'll be by the pool.'

Gretchen picked up the hook, returned it to the toolbox, and slammed it shut. 'I'll get us a beverage. Are you on duty or off? Wine or coffee?'

'It looks like it's going to be a long night. Coffee for me,' he said.

'I can explain,' Gretchen said, taking a sip of old-vine Zinfandel.

'Oh, please do. I can hardly wait.'

'I discovered my knife missing the night before the doll show. The polish was hardly dry, and poof, it was gone.'

Matt snapped his fingers. 'Just like that? Into thin air?'

Gretchen nodded warily. 'Don't you believe me?'

'You've never lied to me before.'

Gretchen searched his face for signs of sarcasm, because she had lied to him in the past. At the time, she felt it was absolutely necessary. Had he known?

His face remained unreadable. He hadn't touched his coffee.

He leaned back in the lounge chair and laced his fingers behind his head. The pool glistened in the mild October night air. Spotlights placed strategically around cacti and shrubs highlighted the desert plants. Camelback Mountain rose against the skyscape, and the moon hung low beside it. Gretchen ran a bare foot over the cool Mexican tile surrounding the swimming pool and took another sip of wine. It could have been a perfect moment.

Matt had a compact, athletic body and a scrappy attitude. Completely the opposite of Steve, who had a good five inches on Gretchen's five eight. She could look directly into Matt's eyes without tilting her head. Steve was blond, fair-skinned, and slim. Matt had dark hair and a perpetual Valley of the Sun tan. Gretchen took a larger gulp of wine and wondered why she was comparing the two men, since one was a cheat and the other was… well… married. Sure, he was in the middle of a divorce, but maybe they'd still work it out. And in any case, divorced men came with a lot of baggage, and Gretchen liked to travel light.

'And you have no idea who might have stolen your knife?'

Gretchen almost drained the glass and shook her head. Was it a lie if she didn't actually say no out loud?

Matt flipped through a notebook and jotted something into it. Gretchen tried to read upside down but failed.

'We're running prints right now. I know it's your knife, but someone else's prints would help your testimony. I really hope yours aren't the only ones that show up.'

Gretchen couldn't agree more.

'Since you're here, I'd like to report a theft,' she said, relating the suspicious mix-up at the auction and the false address Duanne had given when registering.

When she finished, Matt said, 'It sounds harmless to me, a simple mistake.'

'I'm out three hundred dollars.'

'I'll ask around. If I hear anything, I'll let you know.'

Matt leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. He was so close. Gretchen took another big gulp of wine and wondered why she was so nervous.

'What's the story with Steve?' he asked.

'We broke it off before I moved to Phoenix.'

'He doesn't seem to know that.'

'Yes, well…' Gretchen finished the last sip of wine. Where was the bottle? Why was she feeling like a schoolgirl? 'He's persistent.'

'Men can be that way.'

Why was he looking at her like that?

'What about you and your wife?' Gretchen asked.

'My mother must have told you we're divorcing. She wouldn't have passed up a chance to share that news.'

'We never discussed it,' Gretchen lied. 'So, technically, you're a married man.'

'Technically, yes.'

Too bad, she almost said out loud.

They were both quiet for a minute. His body radiated major magnetism. She had to work to resist the pull. Gretchen stood up.

Matt rose beside her.

'I'll let myself out,' he said. 'Stay out of trouble.'

She watched him swing open the patio gate and disappear into the night. What luck! He hadn't arrested her for withholding information. It certainly paid off to personally know the lead detective.

Gretchen thrust her hands into her pockets and suddenly remembered the paper. She pulled it out and unfolded it near a candle glowing on the patio table.

'Wag the Dog' was scribbled across the paper in large, loopy handwriting.

Gretchen slumped. What kind of message was that? She felt cheated.

There are all kinds of nuts in this world, she thought, blowing out the candle and closing up the house for the night.

After knocking and listening at the door, Gretchen entered the spare bedroom. Daisy must have checked out of the guest room while she and Nina were playing hide-andseek with a black Jetta. An occasional meal, a shower, and a real bed for a short nap was all Daisy would partake of before quickly heading back to her life on the street. Gretchen couldn't see the attraction.

She turned off all the phones' ringers before turning on the alarm clock.

13

Gretchen slept fitfully and rose early Sunday morning, hoping a hike up Camelback Mountain would ease the turmoil in her mind. By the time the sun came up at six thirty, she had already reached the footpath leading to the trailhead. Fifteen minutes later she paused to look at the valley below and experienced her usual wonder at the magnificent view of Phoenix. She followed a trail to the right called Bobby's Rock Trail, not nearly as long or as strenuous as Summit Trail, but she didn't have enough time before the doll show for the challenge of Summit.

Red clay dominated the landscape with a scattering of ocotillos, barrel cacti, and palo verdes. Gretchen used her binoculars to zoom in on the birdlife of the Sonoran Desert. She heard the high-pitched trill of a rock wren and searched for the elusive Gila woodpecker that builds its nest hole in saguaro cacti.

An hour later, Gretchen returned to the trailhead and spotted Matt on his way up. She watched him approach and observed the rigidness of his face, the tense jaw, and flashing eyes. All business.

She gave him a tentative smile. 'Hey,' she said. 'You're out early.'

'Looking for you, as usual.' He came to a stop. 'You aren't on your way up, are you? I don't feel like climbing today.'

'Nope. I'm going down.'

'That's probably the best news I'll hear all day.'

'What's up?'

Matt ran his fingers through dark, unruly hair, and Gretchen saw that he hadn't shaved this morning. 'I should apply for a transfer to vice,' he said. 'It would be a cakewalk after this.'

'Let's talk on the way back.' Gretchen started down the path to the street. 'I have to get ready for the doll-'

Ahead, she saw Steve walking at a fast pace up the street headed in her direction.

Great. Just great.

Steve looked up and spotted her. His pace increased. Gretchen rolled her eyes and placed her hands on her