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We’d arrived back in town, and Chase parked in front of a shoe store called Blemish& Sons. If the window display was anything to go on, they mainly dealt in expensive shoes.

As we stepped into the store, the little bell by the door jangled merrily. An old-fashioned device, but then the store had apparently been in business for a long time.

A man walked up to us, rubbing his hands with anticipatory glee and immediately darting a glance down to Chase and Odelia’s feet. He appeared to be in his late fifties and looked slim and trim with bland features and a neatly combed but thinning mane.

“What can I do for you folks?” he asked. But when Chase flashed his badge, the gleeful hand-rubbing stopped and the smile vanished. No shoes would be sold today, he knew.

“Garwen Blemish?”

The man’s head bobbed up and down nervously.

“I hope you can answer a few questions if you don’t mind,” said Chase.

“Of course,” said Garwen, a look of suspicion having crept into his eyes.

“Do you know this person?” asked Chase, and held out his phone.

The man hesitated, glanced up at Chase, saw the implacable look there, and relented.“Dotty,” he said finally. “Dotty Berg. Yes, I dated her a couple of times in the recent past. I read about what happened. Terrible news. She was just the sweetest soul imaginable. Though I saw that in the newspaper they referred to her as Dotty Ludkin.”

“She called herself Dotty Berg when dealing with clients,” said Chase, causing the other man to slightly wince.

“I honestly didn’t see myself as a client,” he said. “Okay, so I paid her some expense money, but we had such a great time together that it didn’t feel like she was a girl for hire.”

“Did you drop by her apartment?”

“Oh, sure. Very neat and clean it was. She was very proud of the place. Even though she didn’t own it, she was hoping to raise enough money to buy her own place very soon.”

Chase gestured to the shoes on display.“You offered her a generous discount?”

“Yes. Yes, I did. We all need shoes, don’t we?” he quipped, then faltered and swallowed. “Look, can you please not mention any of this to anyone? Especially my boy. He doesn’t need to know that his old man has to pay for female companionship. And my customers don’t need to find out either. It would only serve to damage my reputation and in my line of work a reputation is everything, isn’t it? What is it they say? Takes a lifetime to build and seconds to destroy? Well, I can’t afford that, to be honest. And neither can Gavin.”

“Gavin is your son?”

He nodded.“So can we keep my name out of the papers, please?”

“I don’t see why not,” said Chase. “Providing you’re not involved in what happened.”

“Oh, but I’m not, I swear. I mean, I liked Dotty a lot. Like I said, we got along great.”

“How did you communicate with her?” asked Odelia.

“They used some kind of app,” said Garwen. “She showed me how to install it.”

“Dotty?”

“No, the other one. Calista. It’s a simple messaging app. She said it’s very private.”

“Can you show us?” asked Chase.

“Sure thing,” said the shoe salesman, and took out his phone. He swiped it to life and showed Chase how the app worked. “See? It’s just like Whatsapp and Messenger and Telegram and all those other apps. Only this one can’t be hacked. Or so she told me.”

“Swiffr,” Chase murmured as he studied the man’s phone. “I see that you contacted Dotty last month?”

“Yeah. Last time I saw her. She said she was going to be busy and suggested I go with one of her colleagues. Tosha or Sosha or something. I met her once but we didn’t click. Not like Dotty. So I told her I’d wait until she was available.” He gave them a sheepish look. “I know what you’re thinking. Old fool fell in love with a prostitute. But it wasn’t like that. You see, a widower like me, of a certain age, doesn’t have an easy time finding someone new. I tried dating, but that didn’t work. So finally a friend suggested Calista. I talked to her once and based on the interview she set me up with Dotty. And I have to tell you that she was like an angel sent from heaven. Okay, so I paid to be with her, but when you date a person you also pay: dinner, movie, presents… At least with Dotty I didn’t have to play games or pretend to be someone I’m not just to make a goodimpression. She just made everything so easy, you know. No complications.” He sighed. “Can’t believe she’s gone.”

“One last question, Mr. Blemish,” said Chase. “Where were you two nights ago?”

“Home in bed. And before you ask: yes, I was alone and no one can vouch for me.”

Just then, the door of the shop opened and a blond-haired young man entered.

“Well, happy to help, officer,” Garwen immediately said, his voice taking on a different, more energetic tone. He pressed Chase’s hand. “And I hope you find the hoodlum.”

It was a clear indication that the interview was over. And as we walked out, I noticed the similarity between Garwen and the new arrival. No doubt the Son in Blemish& Sons.

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