Lilly Echosby and her toy poodle Aggie find a fresh start in Chattanooga, Tennessee, spoiled by the scent of murder . . .   Having solved the shooting death of her cheating husband, Lilly's left behind the drama of Lighthouse Dunes, Indiana, to start over in the hometown of her best friend, Scarlett "Dixie" Jefferson. As she gets settled in her new rented house, Lilly gives Aggie, short for Agatha Christie, her own fresh start by enrolling her in the Eastern Tennessee Dog Club, where Dixie is a trainer.   But drama seems to hound Lilly like a persistent stray. Her cranky new neighbor appears unfamiliar with Southern hospitality and complains that Aggie barks too much and digs up his prized tulips. But what the poodle actually unearths is the buried body of a mysterious man who claimed ownership of the lost golden retriever Lilly recently rescued. Now it's up to Lilly and Dixie to try to muzzle another murderer . . . V. M. Burns was born and raised in South Bend, Indiana. She currently resides in Tennessee with her two poodles, Coco and Kenzie. Valerie is a member of Mystery Writers of America and a lifetime member of Sisters in Crime. Readers can visit her website at www.vmburns.com. The Puppy Who Knew Too Much By V.M. Burns KENSINGTON PUBLISHING CORP. Copyright © 2019 V.M. Burns All rights reserved. ISBN: 978-1-5161-0791-9 CHAPTER 1 "I'm sorry I'm late." I flopped down in the seat across from Dixie. " That dog." I shook my head. "Remind me why I ever thought having a dog was a good idea?" "Uh oh." Dixie chuckled. "What did Aggie do now?" A waiter hovered near our table, and I shoved my coffee cup in his direction. He got the hint and filled the cup and discreetly backed away from the table. "What did she do?" I took a sip of coffee and held up a hand and ticked off my grievances one at a time. "She chewed a hole in almost every pair of socks I own. Ripped her dog bed to shreds so there was nothing but foam all over the floor. She climbed up on the bed and left a deposit on my pillow, and I just spent fifteen minutes chasing her around the hotel room trying to get my underwear out of her mouth." Dixie's eyes grew large, and the corners of her mouth twitched. "Don't you dare laugh," I threatened, but it didn't do any good. Dixie wasn't able to hold back the laughter. She guffawed and laughed so long and hard that people at nearby tables turned to stare and started to laugh too. After a few seconds, even I was laughing. When I finally pulled myself together, I wiped tears out of my eyes. "This isn't funny. I can't believe I'm laughing." "If you don't laugh, you'll cry." Dixie wiped her eyes with a napkin. "It's funny." "No, it isn't." I leaned forward. "Seriously, I'm at my wits' end. She was such a good dog in Lighthouse Dunes. Now that we've moved to Chattanooga, she's become the devil's spawn and is intent on getting us tossed out of the hotel." I'd recently relocated from Lighthouse Dunes, Indiana, to sunny Chattanooga, Tennessee, and was living in an extended-stay hotel that accepted pets. "I told you, you're welcome to stay with us. Beau and I have plenty of room, and we'd love to have you." Scarlett Jefferson — Dixie, to her friends — had been my best friend in college. She was a Southern belle who was close to six feet tall. She was thin, with big hair and a big heart to match. She and her husband, Beau, were willing to let us stay with them, but I'd been through a lot. Three months ago, I thought the fact that my husband was leaving me for a younger woman after twenty-five years of marriage was the worst thing that could happen to me. It probably was the worst thing until Albert was murdered and the police arrested me as the most likely suspect. Eventually I was cleared, but I was still working through my feelings and wasn't prepared to drag all of my emotional baggage into my friend's home. I shook my head to clear the bad memories away. "I appreciate you both so much." I sighed. "But I don't want to be a bother." Dixie was about to interrupt, and I held up a hand to stop her. "I know what you're going to say, but I've still got a lot of things to work through, and I think it would be best if I don't drown your poor husband in all of my crazy drama at one time. Besides, I'm hoping we find a rental and can settle down." I sighed again. "Who knew it would take so long to find a reasonable rental in a good neighborhood that would allow pets?" "Well, you know you always have a place with us," Dixie said. I knew Dixie was sincere in her invitation, but I was still adjusting to life alone without Albert. In addition to moving six hundred miles from Indiana to Chattanooga, I had adopted a rescue, a toy poodle. I named her after my favorite mystery writer, Agatha Christie, Aggie, for short. I had had a lot of change in a relatively short period of time. I nodded. "Thank you." "Regardless of where you stay, you need to get Aggie trained. She's bored in that hotel room all day, which i