“Lieutenant Argil! We weren’t expecting you back so soon.” The security officer at the booth lifted the barrier for them to enter, “Go right ahead, sir. I’ll call up to Mr. Albrecht and-”

     “That’s alright, son, we’re just goin’ to drop in.” Argil assured the officer, parking his car by the curb in front of the confectionary, “C’mon, Diana. Make sure you put the visor back up.”

     Stepping out of the old vehicle, they made their way into the factory and across the same catwalk Diana had crossed before. Argil stepped up and pounded on Albrecht’s door.

     “Who is it?”

     “Lieutenant Argil!”

     “Come in!”

     Stepping into the office, Argil took the lead, walking right up to the desk and allowing Diana a better chance to observe and poke around. Argil’s specialty wasn’t exactly subtlety, but Diana had to admit that wasn’t always a bad thing.

     “Mr. Albrecht, you’re gonna answer every question I ask, or I’m gonna come back here with a warrant, capiche?”

     “Uh, well, certainly, but… Lieutenant, whatever is the matter?”

     “What’s the matter? What’s the matter?! I’ll tell you what’s the matter!” Argil slapped the photos of the shooting scene onto the desk, “One of your security guards turned out to be a hitman, and very nearly took the life of the detective here!” Argil tapped the photo of the hitman’s face, “One Daniel Bartley, look familiar?!”

     The words had hardly passed through Argil’s lips before Albrecht had gone to pieces, rambling and stuttering out an excuse.

     “W-W-W-Well that just can’t be! Are you sure you aren’t mistaken?!”

     “Clear as day! Did you send him after her?!”

     “I-I-I would never, sir! And I assure you, sir, that I hadn’t a singular idea he was a hitman! I would never hire such an unsavory type!”

     “I’m gonna need more than your word, Mr. Albrecht!”

     “Then you’ll have more than my word! Here, his employee file!” Albrecht opened a filing cabinet and pulled out a manilla folder, shoving it into Argil’s hands, “Bartley- as you call him -was known to me as Chups! Outstanding record, and not a hint of any criminal leanings!”

     “What do you think, Diana? Hm?” Argil passed the file to Diana, raising his eyebrows.

     “I think Mr. Albrecht is telling the truth, but someone here isn’t.” Flipping through the file, Diana scanned the paper with her finger until she found his references for his application. Only one person was listed, “Does the name ‘Dirk Amancio’ mean anything to you?”

     The lieutenant sighed heavily, pinching the bridge of his nose, “I wish it didn’t. He’s been connected to all sorts of stuff, but we can’t pin him for anything. If he’s involved in this case, then we ought to pay him a little visit.”

     “If he’s connected to this murder, it would do better to get an arrest warrant and take him in for questioning.”

     “I’m not sure such a distant connection would get me a warrant.”

     “But a connection to an attempted murder would.”

     “Y’know, I think you’re right. It won’t take more than a day; I’ll call you when we’ve got Amancio in custody.” Argil nodded, “In the meantime, let’s get you home. Oh, and Mr. Albrecht, don’t go anywhere.”

     “W-Wouldn’t dream of it.”

     The drive home was similarly swift, though Argil and Diana stopped for lunch on the way, and by midafternoon Diana was back outside her apartment.

     “I’ll be sending an officer over to keep an eye on you.”

     “Argil, really, I don-”

     “There have been two attempts made against your life so far and we’ve got no reason to suggest others won’t follow.” Argil shook his head, refusing to hear a word of it, “If you lived with someone or had someone to watch your back, maybe, but-”

     “Well, what about him?” Diana asked, stepping over to the open window and scratching the Saint Bernard’s chin, “If I take him in, just for a while, as a guard dog, will you let me do my job without a police escort watching me every minute?”

     “…fine. But only while you’re at home, while you’re on the job I want an officer with you at all times.” Argil pointed to Diana, opening the door to let the big guy out, “I’ve got some stuff in the trunk, I’ll bring them up for you.”

     Argil retrieved a huge bag of dog food, a big bed and two dog bowls from his trunk, carrying them up to Diana’s apartment on the fifth floor. The dog was very well behaved for his part, staying calm as Diana kept a hand on his collar and brought him up with them.

     “Where should I leave these?”

     “Oh, just drop them by the door, I’ll set things up.” Diana let the dog loose to get used to his surroundings.

     “Right, uh…” Argil set the items down, taking a dragon-shaped chew toy out of his pocket to set next to them, “…sorry I don’t have much for toys, but this’ll help keep him chewin’ on the furniture.”

     “Thank you, Argil.” Diana tapped her head in a little salute, “You stay safe, now.”

     “Same to you, Diana.” Argil nods, shutting the door behind him.

     Sighing, Diana looked down at her new furry companion. He was sniffing all around the apartment, his tail wagging. He didn’t seem to be very high-energy, and seemed happy enough, so she set up his bed next to her armchair and the food bowls by the bathroom door. Once he had finished with the main room, he wandered into the bathroom to investigate, and settled down on the moss-like shag carpet to rest.

     “Guess we need a name for you, huh?” Diana sat down on the edge of the tub, looking at her new friend, “Something cute…” She ran her foot across the shag carpet, and an idea crossed her mind.

     “How about Mossie?” The big dog's tail wagged excitedly at his new name, “You like that, huh? Mossie it is.”