I sped through the night, gas pedal to the floor, trying my best to keep up with Hanover Milkbone. He was driving my car. I was driving a stolen limousine and giving it all I had. Sonya Mao sat next to me, staring at the taillights of his vehicle, thinking her own thoughts, which probably centered on her friend Marlene, still her husband's captive, drugged and barely conscious in the back seat of the car we were chasing.

It had been a wild ride. Hanover had taken a tortuous path through the winding roads of the hills, and we had several fur-raising moments and close calls with other vehicles. As luck would have it, we hadn't seen a single cop car, although the APB must have been out for us by now.

Eventually, we passed the city limits and came out onto a long, straight road that would lead past the last of the shallow hills and into the desert. Several times during the chase I had almost closed the gap between us, but he always managed to regain the lead thanks to the maneuverability of my smaller car. Now we had hit a straightaway, and with the limo's bigger engine I figured it was only a matter of time until I caught up with him.

We topped a rise and started down the other side. The incline was just steep enough for me to see some distance ahead to the next rise. Milkbone was tailing a fast-moving passenger bus. The bus had just started up the grade. He swerved to pass it, and was gaining, when a short row of running lights followed by a pair of double headlights appeared over the top of the swell. Milkbone suddenly found himself playing chicken with a tractor trailer. The big truck sounded its air horn, and Milkbone swerved to the left and off the road. The car lurched as it hit the dirt, and for a minute I thought it would roll over, but it stayed upright and continued beside the road, kicking up a huge dust cloud in its wake. Going off the road had slowed him down, and I managed to make up the distance between us, speeding past the tractor trailer and coming up to the back of the bus.

Milkbone cut the wheel and swerved back onto the road, cutting across the oncoming lane to pull in front of the bus. Gunning the engine, I pulled left across the double yellow line. The bus had topped the rise and was starting down, gaining speed. I floored the accelerator on the limo, passing the bus and finally pulling within spitting distance of my own car. Another vehicle appeared ahead, heading towards me. I was gaining on Milkbone, but he began to slow down. There was not enough room between him and the bus for me to pull in behind him. I accelerated, but Milkbone sped up as well, trapping me in the wrong lane.

With the car ahead bearing down on me, I had no choice. I gunned the engine. The hood of the limo inched past the hood of my own car. "Grab something, Sonya," I growled, and cut the wheel to the right. There was a loud crunch of metal on metal as the side of the limo collided with the fender of my jalopy. The bus blared its horn at us and I heard its tires squeal as the driver hit the brakes. I held onto the wheel forcing both vehicles to the right. Milkbone hit the brakes and spun the wheel to the right in an attempt to break away, but his move backfired. His front wheels bit the shoulder of the road and the car went into a spin, skidding clear off the road. With the bus bearing down on me, I yanked the wheel hard and made it off the road just shy of the bus' front bumper, braking and struggling to keep from losing control of the limo. As the bus roared past, I looked in the rearview and saw my car complete the spin and rock up onto two wheels, balance for just a heartbeat, then roll over, first onto its side, and then its roof. Finally, it lay still in a cloud of dust, the front wheels spinning.

I threw the limo into reverse and backed up to near where my car lay. I opened the door and jumped out, gun drawn. Through the windshield, I could see Hanover Milkbone barely moving, lying against the passenger side door. Sonya ran past me, around to the back of the car. She peered through the back window, then pulled the door open. A shaken but alive Marlene Milkbone crawled out, and Sonya helped her to her feet. The two friends looked at each other for a long moment, then embraced.

"I thought I'd never see you again," Sonya said.

"I know," Marlene replied. "I'm sorry, Sonya. I'm so sorry."

Sonya looked over at me. "What do we do now, Sam?"

I holstered my gun. "We wait. It shouldn't take the police too long to find us. Why don't you ladies stay in the limo. I'll stay here with what's left of my car."

"I have a better idea," came a gruff voice. We all turned. Hanover was standing on the other side of the car, a gun pointed at us. It was the gun I'd taken from Georgie. Sonya had used it, but must have put it back under the passenger's seat. "First, I think Mr. Spaniel should drop his weapon. Now, if you please." I unholstered my luger and tossed it into the dirt. "Thank you," he continued. "Now I think we're all going to take a ride together. Ladies, you can lead the way, I'll bring up the rear. And please, let's try not to make this any more complicated. I've had quite enough in the way of surprises."

We started to walk back towards the limo. I was thinking of my next move, and not coming up with much, when I heard the sound of a car coming down the road from behind us. Hanover heard it too. "No sudden moves," he called out, "and if they stop, I'll do all the talking. We wouldn't want to put anyone else at risk, would we?" The car did seem to be slowing down, but I was still a bit surprised when I heard it's tires crunching in the gravel as it pulled off the road. Then I realized the reason: I hadn't seen any light as the car approached. Its headlights must have been off. I glanced back. Hanover had hidden the gun inside his jacket, but he still held it pointed in our direction. He was himself looking over his shoulder at the approaching car. It slowed to a halt and the passenger door opened. The stars overhead provided only a dim light, and no light went on inside the car, but I could make out that the figure who stepped out was very large and wolf-shaped.

"Mr. Milkbone," came a familiar voice, "my associate and I have eagerly been seeking a meeting with you over a matter of some importance." The driver's side door opened and a second wolf shape, more massive than the first, appeared. Milkbone began to turn towards them. "Just a moment," called the wolf, "if you would be so kind to put both of your hands where we can see them, this conversation can continue."

Milkbone withdrew the gun, and pointed it directly at me. "I know who you are," he called back. "If you come any closer I swear I'll kill them all."

The two wolves looked at each other. The bigger one shrugged. The first one turned back to us and called out. "That would be an unfortunate occurrence, but it is of no concern to us. If you feel you must kill them, kill them. We will wait."

There was a long pause. Nobody moved. Then Milkbone looked back at me. I stared down the barrel of his gun, right into his eyes. "I tried to tell you, Hanover," I said quietly. "At least in prison you'd have had a fighting chance."

The big dog threw back his head and howled, then began to swing his gun arm around towards the gangsters. Two shots rang out. Sonya and I hit the dirt, Sonya pulling Marlene down with her. Milkbone's gun went flying and he crumbled to the ground. I went to make a leap for the gun, but a surprisingly strong paw on my arm held me back. I looked back into the smoking eyes of Sonya Mao. "We have to go, Sam," was all she said.

I glanced back. Milkbone was huddled on the ground on his knees, sobbing and cradling his wounded arm. The two wolves shut the doors to their car and began to walk towards him. I got up and helped the two women to their feet. Then I turned around started walking back towards the limousine. Sonya and Marlene fell into step beside me. Marlene began to glance back nervously, but Sonya took her firmly by the arm and urged her onwards. We all climbed into the limo and drove off, without another look back.

"Where to now?" I asked once we were back on the road.

"Head north." The sound of Marlene's voice was just as electrifying as when I'd first heard it, although it sounded a bit deeper and raspier now, probably due to the after-effects of the drugs. "We're going towards the mountains."

I drove in silence for a while, until we'd passed the last of the hills and were finally on the flat floor of the desert. Then I pulled the car over to the side and cut the engine. Pocketing the keys, I turned around to face the two felines in the back seat.

"Sorry, Mrs. Milkbone," I began, "but I'm a private eye, not a chauffeur. Before we head for the hills, there's one part to this investigation that needs wrapping up. The nature of your involvement in this." She looked astonished for a moment, then that trademark composure returned.

"Of course. I'm sorry, Mr. Spaniel. I've put you through quite a bit of trouble - I at least owe you an explanation." She glanced over at her friend. "You too, Sonya." We both looked at her expectantly. She heaved a heavy sigh, turned to gaze out the window, and started her tale.

"Hanover lost interest in me about six months after our marriage. I suppose I had been just one more of his takeovers, a beautiful wife from a respected family, and having concluded the deal, he moved on to other things. At first, I thought the problem was with me. I tried everything I could think of to please him, to interest him, to show him that I wanted to be a good wife. I showed interest in his business, gave him gifts he'd shown interest in, put extra effort into arranging our home... He didn't care about any of it." She dropped her head. "I... I even thought the problem might be sex. I consulted with doctors, even a university professor, about things I might be able to do. But every time I made an overture to Hanover, he'd treat me like I'd gone crazy. Finally, I decided that there must just be something wrong with me, and resigned myself to a loveless marriage with Hanover."

Sonya was looking at her with sadness in her eyes. "Why didn't you ever tell me any of this?" she asked softly.

"I was too embarrassed, too afraid," Marlene replied. "Hanover seemed like the perfect husband in so many ways, I thought the problem must have been mine. He kept calling me crazy and needy and saying I had a dependent personality and wasn't a fit companion for a man like him. I was miserable all the time. I felt too awful to tell anyone about what was happening, even you. And I guess I kept telling myself that things were really fine, or that they would get better soon. Maybe I even believed it a little."

"Mrs. Milkbone," I interjected softly, "I can see this is hard for you, but I was hoping you could shed some light on more recent events."

"Yes, Mr. Spaniel - I'm coming to that. I just wanted to explain what things were like and why I did what I did." She looked over at Sonya. "I had an affair, Sonya. I've been having an affair for years. I'm in love with Carl Ironwood."

Sonya started with recognition. "Carl Ironwood? Our old riding instructor from school?" I suddenly remembered the picture on Sonya's desk of the two of them sitting on a horse.

"Yes," Marlene continued, "After I gave up trying to recapture Hanover's affection, I did a number of things to distract my mind and occupy my time. At one point, I decided to refresh my riding skills, so I contacted Carl. He owns his own ranch now up in the mountains. I went there for a week-long riding workshop, then followed it up with several others. He was so easy to be with - so much fun, so warm and genuine, compassionate - not at all like Hanover. I'd always been attracted to him, but I was just a girl when we took riding with him."

She sighed. "Hanover found out, of course. It was just after he'd had some trouble with a strike at one of his factories. He didn't tell me everything about what happened, but he told me that the strikers had connections with the mafia, and that now the mob was after him. He told me that he knew about Carl. He said he had a plan to take care of the mafia, and that he needed me to help him. He said if I went along I'd be free and I could be with Carl, but if I didn't he'd see that Carl was ruined; that he'd lose his ranch and everything he'd built. Carl's ranch means everything to him, and Hanover knows so many people and has so many connections. I'd seen him ruin people before. I knew he could do it."

She looked over at me. "That's where you came in, Mr. Spaniel. Hanover said his plan involved faking an attempt on both our lives. I was afraid - he said it would be safe, but it sounded dangerous. And I knew Hanover was scared and that he didn't love me any more. I feared that after he'd faked the attempt to kill me he'd decide that I was a liability, and the deception would become a reality. So I agreed to go along with the plan on one condition - that I could hire someone myself to investigate the 'crime'. I thought that would keep him honest - if he knew someone outside of his control would be asking questions. I figured I'd pay you to investigate the attempt on his life, then simply have you drop the case after the plan was completed."

"So what happened that night after you left my office," I asked.

"I drove to a pre-arranged spot to meet Lou Furo. He took my car and I went with George to a small house we own in the northern part of the state. I stayed there for the first night. I think they wanted to try and keep what had happened from me. I didn't find out about the accident until Sunday afternoon. I returned to town immediately, and went to see Hanover. We fought, and I told him that I couldn't go through with it. He begged me to reconsider, to sleep on it. I spent the night with my door locked, but in the morning I was as resolute as ever." She paused, then said, "I guess my biggest mistake was stopping to eat breakfast."

"Breakfast?" Sonya said.

"Yes. Hanover must have known I'd reached the end of my rope. I'd finished my meal and was in my room getting dressed, when I began to feel drowsy. Even though I was nearly ready to go, I felt so sleepy that I had to lie down. I guess there had been drugs in the food or something I drank. The next thing I knew, it was night time, and I was in a car with Sonya trying to rouse me. I don't think I really came around fully until Hanover drove off the road."

"So you didn't know anything about how your husband planned to fake your death, or his plan to blow up the funeral home?" I asked.

Her big green eyes got even bigger. "He blew up a funeral home?!"

"No," I said, "we sort of got in the way of that plan. But he did fake your death. What did he tell you he was going to do?"

"Why... he said he was going to make it look like the mafia had attempted to kill me. He said there'd be a car bomb like the one that went off in our bedroom. I was supposed to be on the run. Hanover would claim he didn't know where I was, and Sonya was supposed to back up the story. I had insisted on speaking to you, Mr. Spaniel - that's why I showed up when I did, on a Friday night. It was the only time I could see you that wouldn't disrupt the timing of Hanover's plan. Then, after the police had become involved with the attempted murder and possible kidnapping, I was to reappear with the story that I'd seen the car explode and fled in terror. Hanover said after that, he'd send me away wherever I wanted to go, and that he'd grant me a divorce after all the dust had settled."

I looked at her for a long time. So there it was. She was involved, but conveniently innocent of being implicated in any real mayhem. Was she telling the truth? Or was she covering her tawny tail now that her hubby's plans had gone down in flames? She'd lied to me from the moment we'd met. She'd played the scene in my office like a pro. Of course, if her story now was true, the one she'd told me then may have been a fiction, but her emotions would have been for real. I wasn't sure what to think. I didn't know her at all.

Then I looked over at Sonya. Her face was full of compassion for what her friend had been through. I did know Sonya. And I remembered the sadness that I had sensed in Marlene Milkbone from the very start - the sadness that had haunted me as I'd learned about her life. I turned around in my seat, fished the keys out of my pocket, and started the engine. "Sam Spaniel, chauffeur, back on duty," I said. "Where to, Miz Milkbone?"

I heard her sit back and let out a long sigh. "Just north, for now," she said, "and please, call me Marlene."

We drove through the night and reached the ranch just after sun up. Carl, a tall palomino in faded blue jeans, was coming out of his pumphouse carrying a bucket of water as we pulled to a stop. Marlene stepped out of the limo, and as he caught sight of her, he dropped the bucket, his mouth agape. She ran to where he stood, and as they embraced, he picked her up and spun her around, holding her tightly.

We all had a hearty, farm-fresh breakfast, and after some teary good-byes between the two women, Sonya and I were headed back down the highway towards the big city.

"So what will you do now, Sam?" Sonya asked me. She was curled up in the front seat, her head against my right haunch, her back paws against the passenger's door.

"Well, I guess I'll have to return this piece of machinery. Then I guess I'll have to find myself another ride. The check Marlene wrote me should take care of that with no trouble, though."

Sonya smiled and stretched languidly. "And a good bit more besides, I should think. Do you suppose she'll take over the business?"

"You know her better than I do," I said. "But I wouldn't be surprised if she gets a little bored with country living after a while. She strikes me as the city type. And somehow I doubt Hanover will be showing up for work this morning - or any other morning." I stared out at the passing road. "Still," I said, "maybe she'll settle down and raise a litter of kittens - er, a herd of foals - um, well, anyway, she IS a woman. Women aren't really cut out for the business world."

Sonya reached one front paw up languidly and placed it on my leg next to her head. She pushed gently and extended her claws just enough to make me yelp.

"Careful Sam," she said, "I'm rather fond of the business world, I do quite well in it, and as you may remember, I'm a woman."

Well, what could I say to that? Besides, she hadn't removed her claws yet. "Gee, you're right Sonya. I guess I'd just about forgotten. Maybe you could think of something to help refresh my memory?"

She pulled her paw away slowly and turned those big eyes of hers up to me. She was silent for a moment, her expression unreadable. Then she said, "Exit twelve is about thirty miles from here. Five miles off the exit, there's a little country inn on the right." She put her head back down, closed her eyes, snuggled a little closer and began to purr. "Wake me when we get there. We'll make sure you won't ever forget again."

I watched the road ahead stretch underneath the cloudless sky. The day was already warm, and it looked like it was going to get a lot warmer. All my thoughts of what awaited me in the big city, and of what had gone before, drifted away like the morning fog in the heat of the sun. My eyes strayed from the empty road, wandered lazily over the soft curves of the feline sleeping next to me, and finally came to rest on the odometer. Thirty-four miles and counting...