Chihuahua of the Baskervilles Read Online Free PDF Page A

right?”
    Angus beamed at her. “We are. Have you had any paranormal experiences?”
    She nodded. “We had a poltergeist when I was little.”
    Michael raised his notebook. “Was that in this house?”
    “No.” Cheri’s gaze traveled to Suki, who stood slightly behind the others. “Oh, my God. Where did you get that jacket?”
    Suki adjusted the turned-up sleeves of her leather jacket, which was lined in wine-colored satin. “Paris, I think. Or Amsterdam. That whole trip is kind of a blur.”
    Ellen patted Cheri on the shoulder. “You’ll get a chance to talk to them later. They’ll be interviewing everyone.”
    Cheri’s full mouth twisted slightly. “Sorry. Didn’t know I was hogging them.”
    “I didn’t mean—,” Ellen began.
    “Don’t worry about it.” Cheri turned, coming chest to chest with Ivan before going inside.
    Ellen turned back to the others. “If you’ll come this way, please?”
    She led them upstairs and waved a hand at the doors on either side of the hallway. “These are mostly staff bedrooms, so please don’t go into those rooms.” She pushed open the second door on the left. “This is my bathroom, but guests can use it, too.”
    “How many of you live here?” Michael asked.
    “In addition to Charlotte and Thomas? Me, Ivan, and Cheri.”
    “How long have you been here?”
    “And have you ever seen a ghost?” Angus added, giving Michael a pointed look.
    “I’ve worked with Charlotte for seven years—almost since the beginning of the business. And I’ve never seen a ghost.” Ellen walked to the second-to-last door on the left, which was open. “Here’s the upstairs parlor. You can use this room to work in. I hope it has enough outlets.”
    They entered a pretty room decorated with Victorian antiques. Upholstery and drapes in shades of rose and pastel blue gave it a feminine look.
    Angus pointed to a door between two bookcases. “I assume we should keep that closed?”
    Ellen nodded. “That door leads to Charlotte’s bedroom, and she usually keeps it locked. This room is really part of her suite, but she lets anyone use it.” She edged toward the hall. “Do you want me to send Ivan up for an interview?”
    “Thank you, but I think we’ll bring some equipment up first,” Angus said. “We’ll find him.”
    “All right. I’ll be in the workshop if you need me.”
    They went down to Angus’s car and were unloading the rest of Suki’s equipment when the tinny sound of a cell phone made Angus reach for his pocket.
    “Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’ is your ring tone?” Michael snorted.
    Angus looked at the screen. “It’s Pendergast.” He flipped open the phone. “Len? We’re all here, so I’m going to put you on speaker.” He walked away from the Baskerville house, gesturing for the others to follow him.
    “How’s it going?” Pendergast asked.
    “It’s certainly an interesting household.” Angus reached the sidewalk on the other side of the narrow, quiet street.
    “Interesting is right,” Len said. “And how ’bout that town? They say you can’t take a midnight piss in Manitou without running into a ghost.”
    Michael pulled his notebook from his pocket and leaned toward the phone. “Who says that?”
    “I do, but it’s good, don’t you think? Use it in the article.”
    “Len…” Angus dropped his voice and held the phone closer to his mouth. “You didn’t mention the fox in the henhouse.”
    “They have hens?”
    “Thomas Baskerville. I thought he was going to kick us out, and he doesn’t seem happy about his wife’s business.”
    “Oh. Right. My wife is a little worried about Charlotte, if you want to know the truth. Apparently Thomas is making noises about having the old girl put away.”
    “Charlotte seemed smart as a whip to me,” Angus said. “What possible grounds could he have for saying she’s incapable?”
    “On the grounds of seeing a ghost and dressing up dogs.”
    Angus shook his head. “He’s got an uphill