"Speed it up, Biscuit," Barbie said the next day as she tapped her foot on the paved walkway outside her-and soon to be my-condo complex. "If we miss the opening scene because of your bladder, there will be no extra bedroom snacks."

I bit my lips, watching the two of them. Biscuit tilted his head at Barbie and then lowered his leg and walked back on the pavers as if he knew exactly what she'd said. NB circled me again, trying to get a better sniff of the air as we waited, and I walked over his leash before it tripped me.

I started ahead again after Barbie finished yelling at her dog. "Tomorrow, we'll have to start earlier."

Barbie took her soap watching seriously, and while I wouldn't admit it, I wanted to see how Nick got caught for cheating. Purely for research, of course. Every soap plot line had a sliver of truth to it. Right? The way they busted him might come in handy for me one day with a client.

If I ever went back to being a PI again.

I held the door open for the dogs and Barbie and then waited as she unlocked her door before letting us in. In Maine I'd completed the hours to become a PI, but they did not have reciprocity in Florida. Which meant I had to get licensed all over again. The thought made me tired. But the idea of getting back into the swing of things and solving Melissa's murder was growing.

"If he doesn't get his act together, I'm going to hire a dog walker," Barbie said, making it sound like a punishment.

Hmm. Maybe I could be the island dog walker rather than a PI. That idea held merit.

I sat on the extra couch beside the larger one. It'd become my go-to spot in Barbie's condo. "How much do they make?"

Barbie shrugged. "There's a girl on the island who does it for everyone. I'm sure she's worth the cost."

The tiny bubble of excitement burst. If they already had someone on the island doing walks, I didn't want to steal her business. With my luck, I'd end up in a bitter rivalry like Larken and Melissa.

I waited until Barbie's favorite soap started, showed the first scene-a woman shopping for groceries while on the phone with her friend-and then went to a commercial before I asked my first question. "How long were Larken and Melissa enemies?"

"Now that is a story for a soap opera." Barbie chuckled, thinking of the memories.

I leaned forward in my seat, the button poking into my leg. "Why?" I asked when she didn't elaborate.

"They used to be business partners." She had one eyebrow tipped higher than the other and shook her head with pursed lips like she couldn't believe it.

That made the two of us. My heart picked up its pace at the news, but the show returned. When I started my next question, Barbie held up her hand to make me wait.

I forced myself to blink and lean back on the cough, giving the television my attention. We started with a pretty redhead in a grocery store. Nick walked into the store, and my anxiety picked up again. Why would they have him in a scene with a woman? It wasn't Reba or Tanya. He grabbed a shopping cart and started down the bread aisle.

Barbie shook her head in disgust as he turned the corner, getting closer and closer to the new woman. "How dare they?"

"They wouldn't," I whispered. Three women? How many people could he cheat with on one show?

Barbie smacked her lips. "They would, but no one cares about character building. Nick can't handle this type of deceit. He's not smart enough. These writers get worse every season."

I stopped myself from asking if she meant the character or the actor playing him.

The soap cut to commercial, and both Barbie and I groaned in frustration. They were going to drag out this scene for the entire episode. I just knew it.

"So Melissa and Larken were business partners?" I asked, to get the conversation flowing again.

Barbie nodded and twisted in her seat toward me, upsetting Biscuit. "Larken started out working for Melissa. Then one day out of the blue, she decided she wanted to set up her own shop. A week later, she had a new real estate company on the island with a fancy name and branding. That girl moves fast. They've been at one another's throats ever since."

"Wow, I wonder if something happened." Was a man involved?

Barbie made a weird grunting sound. "Of course, something happened, but no one knows what. Melissa says Larken's head is too big to fit through most doors, and she thought she could do better on her own."

I gave NB two quick pets and willed another commercial to buy me more time. "And Larken? What's she saying?"

"Larken says Melissa is a huge know-it-all and horrible to work with."

The television started the recap, and I tried to get another question out, but Barbie shushed me. The scene started at a doctor's office with one of the staff having a discussion with a coworker. I wasn't up on their drama, so I let my thoughts wander while it played out.

Barbie waved her hand at me as the show cut back to the scene with Nick in the grocery store. As expected, he turned a corner and his cart bumped into the mystery woman. She gave a startled shout and Barbie rolled her eyes. "Great, she's going to be an over actor. I give her a month before she's replaced. This isn't a tele nova."

The two chatted. Nick laid on his charm, and she gave him googly eyes. Barbie had a point about overacting. She was going to be annoying if we had to watch too many scenes with her in them.

We finished the show with those two still in the store, and I gathered NB and his leash, ready to head back to our room at the resort. It would be a lot easier when we were actual neighbors.

"Hey, Barbie," I asked, stopping at her door. "Who do you think is telling the truth between Melissa and Larken for why they no longer work together?"

"I imagine it's like most things." Barbie grinned. "They're probably both a little right."

I let her comment ruminate as I walked NB back to our room. Broadrick must have been at work since I didn't see him on the street or in the room. I dropped NB off and paced the hallway, deciding on my next move.

Larken appeared genuine every time I'd talked to her. I hated to believe she might have killed Melissa, but I wouldn't be a good PI if I didn't take the comments about her seriously. Finding Melissa's body in the closet visibly upset her. Most people would find it upsetting, though. Dead bodies had a way of doing that to people.

Still, I had to do more checking up on Larken if I wanted to sort out this murder. She had an office on the far side of the island on the first floor of a condo's club house. To maximize space, they seemed to stick small offices in the most random of places. I left NB in the room and headed toward Larken's office by way of the beach so it didn't appear like I was on a mission. Even if I was.

I made it to her building quickly. The island held so many things and people on it, but somehow it felt smaller than Pelican Bay. Or all the walking was getting me in better shape? I tapped Larken's sign as I walked past. Rather than head in the front door, I circled around the side, wanting to see into her building before making my presence known. Broadrick and I had stopped there when we first arrived on the island to sign paperwork for her, but I didn't give the place a thorough check.

The red brick wall scratched my elbow as I turned a corner too tightly. "Damn it."

If Broadrick asked about that, I'd have to lie. I hated lying to him. I would, but I hated to do it. He always seemed to catch me, eventually. I hurried past the large window in the main part of her office space and crept up on a smaller one behind her desk. The smaller one gave me a bigger chance of not being caught as a peeping Tom.

I turned my head at just the right angle to see inside the window and immediately jumped back when a head with bright blue eyes met my gaze.

Busted.

"Double damn it."

The person watching me took a step away from the window as I did, too. "Vonnie," Larken mouthed through the glass.

This is what I got for not wearing a disguise.