Chow Down (A Melanie Travis Mystery)

placed his hand between her shoulder blades and was pushing her forward, out in front of the cameras.
    Live TV, I thought. You had to love it.

27
    “W hat have we here?” Darren said smoothly, “It looks as if there’s one more dog to add to our lineup.”
    When the camera shifted to pick up Lisa and Yoda, the pet expert glared daggers at the producer, who ignored his fit of pique and pointed to his watch. Good thing Darren had recovered quickly; I had a feeling the rest of us looked like we were in shock.
    Simone’s hands, resting on the back of the bench near my shoulder, had tightened their grip until her knuckles turned white.
    Dorothy was shaking her head. “No way,” she muttered. “No way . . .”
    I just stared, listening while Darren introduced our late arrival. Lisa’s posture was stiff and her smile looked strained. The cameraman pulled in for a close-up shot of Yoda, then simply stayed there. At least the Yorkie, with her topknot tied up with a jaunty blue bow, looked cute.
    Darren had rearranged his copy before the segment started and now with the unexpected addition, he found himself running short of time. He showcased the Yorkie briefly, threw in a quick wrap-up, then cued Darlene and Rob. A minute later the show cut to commercial. Our first television appearance was history.
    As soon as the lights dimmed and the cameras focused elsewhere, Lisa strode off the set and into the wings. Doug immediately went hurrying after her.
    Simone looked as though she wanted to follow, then thought better of it. Instead she went the other way; I watched as she thanked the cohosts and the producer for their help with our appearance.
    A technician slipped in behind me and unhooked my microphone. When that was done, I stood up and stretched, then gave Faith a pat. I was happy our part was over; and happier still that we hadn’t acquitted ourselves too badly.
    Bill, looking bemused, was gazing in the direction that Lisa and Doug had disappeared. “ What is going on around here?” he asked.
    “Beats me,” said Ben. He yanked off his own mic and handed it back. “Lisa certainly stole our thunder, showing up at the last moment like that, didn’t she?”
    She had indeed. It wasn’t hard to imagine that our earlier contributions would have been all but eclipsed by the adorable image of the little Yorkie that had stayed onscreen throughout the last sixty seconds of the piece.
    “She can’t do that,” Dorothy said firmly. “I’m going to file a protest.”
    “Can’t do what?” I asked.
    “She can’t just drop out of the contest and then drop back in again. It ought to be against the rules.”
    “Technically, I don’t think she ever dropped out. And thanks to her eleventh-hour arrival today, Yoda hasn’t missed any of our appearances.”
    “We’ll just see about that,” said Dorothy.
    She started to stalk away but Chris materialized from somewhere behind the cameras and grabbed her. Arm around her shoulder, he herded the older woman toward the exit door.
    Lisa and Doug hadn’t returned. And by now Simone and Cindy had disappeared as well. It was time for us to leave.
    Preappearance, we’d had people with us every minute, telling us where to go and what to do. Now suddenly everyone had lost interest in us. The staff and the producers were moving on to upcoming topics, and we were on our own.
    Bill and Allison found a spot in the wings from which to watch the remainder of the show. Ginger lay down quietly at their feet. Ben took Brando and went hurrying back to the green room. I wondered if he was looking to smooth things over with Cindy. Faith and I rode the elevator down to the ground floor by ourselves.
    I figured we’d go get our car, drive home to Connecticut, and that would be that. But of course, in my life, nothing is ever that simple. Come to think of it, I’d probably be disappointed if it was.
    Instead Faith and I exited the building and ran right into Lisa, Doug, Simone, and Cindy. The four of them, plus Yoda, were standing in a tight little cluster in the middle of the sidewalk. All of them looked angry, and it sounded as though they were all trying to talk at once.
    I could only catch snatches of what was being said. Doug and Cindy were berating Lisa. She was attacking them right back. Simone was placing blame on anyone and everyone.
    Smokers, gathered in the shade of the building, were listening in avidly. Even jaded New Yorkers didn’t get to see a live show this entertaining