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Butch’s wife was too young to have a house like this; it had to belong to the old couple she’d met before. “Nice place.”
Dean laughed. “You think so?”
“You don’t?”
“I guess. I quit seeing it ages ago. It’s just…home.”
“How long have you lived here?”
“My whole life.”
She’d already guessed as much. “Your parents owned it before Butch?”
“They still own it. The house and the salvage yard. But when they retired, they turned everything over to Paris’s husband. He runs it, and they live downstairs in their own apartment. Butch said a smaller place would be easier for them to take care of so they can travel. They can head out whenever they want, but they never go anywhere.”
“Why not?”
“If you ask them, they’ll say they don’t want to leave me. I’ve heard it a thousand times. My mother says she keeps me ‘grounded.’”
Apparently, Francesca had been right about the house. She’d also been right about Dean. He wasn’t quite normal. “I see. Well, it’s nice that Butch could take over. Your parents must really like him,” she said, just to see how he’d react.
He leaned close, as if he was about to confide a great secret. “It’s Champ they’re crazy about. It’s Champ we’re all crazy about.”
The name threw Francesca. “That’s a…dog?”
“No. The boy!” he said with a laugh. “The dog’s name is Demon.”
“Nice names on both counts.” She wondered if he could tell she was being sarcastic, but he didn’t seem to notice.
“Butch chose both.”
“I suppose Champ is better than Rover.”
“I’d rather have a cat than a dog,” Dean volunteered. “But Butch is allergic to cats. He shot the Persian I grew up with the day he moved in.”
It wasn’t difficult to understand why he’d be unhappy with Butch’s actions. “I hope you had a say in that decision.”
“Me?” He shook his head. “I don’t have a say in any decision.”
“Why not?”
He studied her. “You can’t tell?”
“I wouldn’t have asked if I could.”
“I’ve got mental problems.”
Strange, he didn’t mind admitting that. “Meaning…”
“Sometimes I can’t think straight.” He tapped his head. “But it’s okay because the pills keep me on track. I’m fine as long as I take my pills.”
Which would explain his detached behavior when she’d seen him before. He’d been doped up.
“Anyway, Princess was getting old,” he said. “It was time to put her down.”
“Most people take their pets to a vet.”
“Butch is his own vet. He’s his own doctor, too. But you don’t really care about that. What you want to find out is how I feel about what he did to my cat, because you know you’d feel like shit if you were me.” He cocked his head as if seeing her from a whole new angle. “I like you. You’re smart.”
