remarked Maude, lifting her teacup to me in a small salute. “You resolved the identity of a dead woman, opened a homicide investigation, tracked down the rightful owners of a valuable service dog, found a lost Boy Scout and discovered a bag full of treasure. Nicely done. Nicely done indeed.” “Not to mention cussing out my new neighbor and alienating one of the richest men in the Southeast,” I pointed out. I sat back in my chair and swung my feet up onto the battered hassock in front of it, affecting an attitude of smugness. “Not bad at all.” Maude still likes to take an afternoon tea break, although during the busy time of the year she doesn’t often get to do it. I prefer cocoa, myself, and even though I still had several hours worth of work waiting for me in the kennel, I felt I deserved a celebratory cup. We had a fire going in the fireplace, the dogs were sprawled out in their various favorite places and even Hero had been persuaded to leave his crate and come lie beside my chair.
