This Dog for Hire

Carol Lea Benjamin’s debut mystery novel, This Dog for Hire (1996), is the first in her Rachel Alexander and Dash series. The story follows private detective Rachel Alexander and her pit bull partner, Dashiell, as they investigate the murder of an up-and-coming artist and the disappearance of his beloved dog. Benjamin, a former detective and a renowned dog trainer, has written many works of non-fiction on dog behavior and training in addition to her mystery series. This Dog for Hire won the 1997 Shamus Award for Best First P.I. Novel.

Rachel Alexander is 38, Jewish, divorced, and living with her pitbull, Dashiell, in a small Greenwich Village cottage. She describes herself as “suspicious” and “competitive.” Rachel had worked as a dog trainer before her divorce, then decided to become a private detective, mostly because her sister Lilian disapproved. Lilian thought it was a crazy choice and Rachel wouldn’t dare do something like that. Rachel, who “could never resist a dare,” decided her new career was bashert, or meant to be. Rachel is interested in secrets. She has “to find out what’s under things, the secrets, the motives, the little twists and turns the human mind can take that make something repugnant seem plausible.”

Dashiell, “Dash,” is a pit bull terrier Rachel rescued from some unscrupulous individuals who planned to make money by using him for dog fights. Rachel has trained Dash well; he works as a therapy dog, visiting elderly patients in a nursing home and AIDS patients at a hospice.



Rachel and Dash are hired by Dennis Keaton, a gay man whose close friend, the painter Clifford “Cliff” Cole, was murdered: run over on the Christopher Street Pier. His body was found by a homeless man, Billy Pittsburgh. The police are treating Cliff’s death as an unfortunate instance of gay-bashing, but Dennis disagrees. He knows Cliff wouldn’t have gone to the pier to meet anyone. Cliff’s dog, Magritte, is also missing. A champion basenji, Magritte, a barkless dog, is scheduled to compete in the famous Westminster Dog Show in less than a week. Dennis wants justice for Cliff, and he also wants to find Magritte, who is as much his dog as Cliff’s. Dennis informs Rachel that Cliff had just signed a contract for his first art show at the Cahill Gallery, which would have given his career a boost.

Rachel takes the case and quickly locates Magritte, safe with a taxi driver who had noticed Magritte’s National Dog Registry tattoo and called it in. Rachel returns Magritte to Dennis and starts investigating Cliff’s death. She searches Cliff’s loft, listens to his phone messages, checks his mail and files, and discovers that Cliff had a lot more money than Dennis believed. Cliff’s will leaves all his money to his estranged mother, or in the case she dies first, to his older brother, Peter. Cliff leaves his artwork to his lover, Louie Lane, and leaves Magritte to Dennis.

Rachel and Dash search the Christopher Street Pier and find Magritte’s collar and leash, suggesting that Cliff did go there to meet someone. Rachel tries but fails to locate Billy Pittsburgh. Cliff’s paintings are scheduled to open at the Cahill Gallery, and Dennis is upset that Louis will be profiting from the posthumous sale of Cliff’s art. Rachel and Dash attend the opening. Rachel meets Veronica Cahill, the elegant owner, and Cliff’s lover, the smooth-talking Louis, both of whom Rachel considers suspects. Dennis remembers Cliff mentioning he had found something that needed to be exposed but wouldn’t tell Dennis what it was. At the gallery, Rachel finally encounters another of her suspects, Magritte’s dog handler, Morgan Gilmore.



Rachel researches Gilmore and discovers he has a shady reputation, including a reprimand from the AKC. Rachel finds that Gilmore urged Cliff to put Magritte out to stud, but Cliff didn’t want that for his dog. Without telling Cliff, Gilmore banked Magritte’s sperm and set up breeding deals. For the last two years, he has been quietly pocketing Magritte’s stud fees.

On their visit to the Bailey House, a hospice for AIDS patients, Rachel and Dash find Billy Pittsburgh. He witnessed Cliff’s murder. Billy relates that a man ran out and tied Magritte to the pier, then sat in his car and waited. Cliff arrived, rushing to free Magritte, and the man in the car ran him over. Rachel knows that Magritte was kidnapped to lure Cliff onto the pier, and she finds corroborating evidence on a hidden phone message.

Rachel and Dash attend the Westminster Dog Show to keep an eye on Gilmore and to protect Magritte. Gilmore collapses in the ring while showing Magritte and later dies. Doctors determine that he was poisoned by dog treats laced with cyanide. Rachel realizes that the killer was targeting Magritte. Rachel agrees to watch Magritte temporarily for Dennis. She is followed home from the dog show by a threatening figure.



Rachel discovers a series of Cliff’s videotaped therapy sessions and learns that Cliff was sexually abused by his brother Peter. Cliff found out that Peter was also abusing his own sons. Cliff painted negative and disturbing pictures of Peter and his sons to shame Peter. Knowing the paintings would ruin his family and his career, Peter removed them from Cliff’s loft, not realizing that Cliff kept a record of all his paintings.

When Rachel investigates a light in the empty house across from her cottage, she is attacked by Peter. He wants to kill Magritte, but the dog refuses to come to him. Peter attempts to kill Rachel with more poisoned dog treats. Dash knocks Peter down, guarding him and protecting Rachel while she calls the police.