Cat’s Paw by Bill Pronzini
"Cat's Paw" is my first experience with the new Audible channels, which are free for members. It's one of the selections available on the mystery channel. I wasn't sure how it was going to work, but you click on the channel and it gives you a list of available titles and how long the selections are. I was on my lunch hour, taking the dog for a walk, so 40-ish minutes was perfect for me. I will definitely be seeing what other stories are available on the various channels.
"Cat's Paw" won the Shamus Award in 1984 for "Best Private Eye Short Story." The mystery itself was good. I've never read any in Pronzini's "Nameless Detective" series, but that didn't affect my enjoyment of this short story. The zoo makes for an interesting setting and Pronzini is wonderful with descriptions. What starts for our nameless detectives as a job investigating rare animal thefts turns into discovering who is a killer. It's...