Dog of Thieves by Neil S. Plakcy

Author:Neil S. Plakcy
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Mystery, search, fertile crescent, Cozy, artifacts, smuggling, dog, dogs, golden retriever, K9, museum
Publisher: Samwise Books
Published: 2023-04-13T06:00:00+00:00

17: Depression Lifting

The office for Keystone Properties was on the second floor of a retail center in an area that had been farmland when I was growing up. Now it was peppered with gated communities, strip shopping centers, and a few remnants of the old times, like the Lower Bucks Masonic Hall, which had once been all alone, and now was surrounded by white fences and houses.

I let Rochester pee before we climbed the outside stair to the Keystone office, and met Henry in the waiting room. “I hope there’s no problem bringing him in,” I said to the receptionist. “I don’t like to leave him in the car.”

“No, we’re very dog-friendly here,” she said. She twisted a photo on her desk around to show me a photo of her with two labs. “They’re my babies.”

“Very handsome,” I said.

Klaus Brito came out from the back then, and we all shook hands, though he paid no attention to Rochester at all. He was very suave, in a tight-fitting black suit with a blood-red tie and a matching handkerchief in his pocket.

“I was very sorry, and very surprised, to hear about all the problems at River Bend,” he said, when we were all sitting in his office, with Rochester on the floor beside me. “I took a closer look yesterday and realized that Catalina had not been communicating effectively with the rest of the team.”

He made a few apologies and let us know that she was being moved to another property.

“Our real concern is about fiduciary duty,” I said. “Apparently the board of directors signed a contract with Tree-B-Gone without requiring a performance bond. Was it Catalina’s duty to review that contract and suggest that we get a bond?”

He sat back and steepled his fingers—never a good sign. “Well, the Commonwealth law is opaque when it comes to things like that. A property manager who handles sales and leasing must have a valid real estate license. But there’s no requirement for education or training for someone in a position like Catalina’s.”

“Surely there’s a job description from Keystone,” I said.

“Homeowner association management is a new area for Keystone,” he said. “In the past, we’ve been focused on land acquisition and development. But as it gets harder to find buildable property in this area, we’ve expanded.”

“So the bottom line is she didn’t have a job description and she didn’t have any training for her job,” I said. “I’m no attorney, but I believe that means River Bend can sue Keystone for the hundred thousand dollars we’re out.”

“Wait, please. Let’s not talk about lawsuits yet. Keystone may be able to help with the tree removal situation. I can’t promise anything yet, but I’m looking into solutions. We may be able to send one of our yard crews out to remove some of the trees. And we will certainly support you if you take legal action against Tree-B-Gone to recover your money.”

We talked for a while longer, and it was clear that Brito was a savvy negotiator.

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