Page 125 of You'll Be Sorry

“I happen to be a master souper,” Theo informed them.

“I want solid food.”

“Maybe next week.”

Raquel shook her head, but her gaze still softened as she glanced in her husband’s direction.

Mr. Man, who’d clearly heard this argument before, jumped onto the sofa and curled up at Raquel’s feet.

“I see you’re winning the no-dog-on-the-furniture war,” Mandy observed.

“Service canines don’t count.”

“Of course.”

Mandy took a seat in one of the wingbacks, balancing her hat on her knee. “How goes the media battle?”

The press scrutiny had been overwhelming in the beginning, especially once Raquel’s past came to light. Mandy had to assign her officers round-the-clock shifts to patrol the property. No trespassing signs and cease-and-desist orders apparently didn’t apply to true crime bloggers let alone overly zealous…fans? Groupies? Nut jobs?How did one categorize people who overidentified with the crime scene, the victims, and even Raquel herself?

World got weirder all the time.

“New crisis management firm is meriting their retainer,” Theo supplied. “And Mr. Man is earning his kibble.”

“Filet mignon,” Raquel clarified.

“Whatever.”

Mandy nodded. Waited patiently.

“I’m not going to do the book,” Raquel stated abruptly.

Another nod.

“I could. Tell-alls being all the rage, let alone true crime documentaries. Like the writer said, it would be an opportunity to honor my brother and sister, all my brothers and sisters. But no way to tell their story that doesn’t also bring my mom back from the dead. I have no interest in doing that. It’s time for the past to be the past.”

“I can think of an entire town who will agree with you on that one,” Mandy observed.

Raquel and Theo exchanged glances. Theo did the honors: “Have you heard from him?”

No need to define who. William Dixon, aka Detective Samuel Adams. He’d gotten the hell out of Dodge the second the news broke, making a requisite appearance at Major Crimes long enough to tell them what he knew, which was pretty much nothing, then taking an immediate leave of absence.

“It’s a lot to process.” Mandy’s standard line on the subject.

“We offered to let him stay for a bit if he’d like. In case…well, in case it might be helpful.”

“The rest of the extended Dixon clan are going to come in the spring,” Theo spoke up. “They’re thinking of spreading the ashes near the fishing pond. Apparently, that was one of the family’s favorite spots.”

“Maybe by then, it’ll be good timing for William as well.” Mandyregarded the two of them. “And you? Gonna stick around or return to Boston?”

Theo and Raquel exchanged glances.

“In case you haven’t noticed, we got a lotta remodeling left to do.” Theo.

“Plus, a Boston condo isn’t a great place to raise a dog.” Raquel patted the slumbering pooch’s head.

“Not to mention this is a solid hundred miles away from my parents.”

“I swear he reached that conclusion all on his own.”