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“Oh, come on, Dad! You’re being ridiculous!” Frasier called to his father’s retreating back. He got a dismissive hand flap in reply, followed by the slamming of his father’s bedroom door. For a guy with a bad hip Martin could sure move fast when he wanted to.Before Frasier could dwell on it, the sound of a key in the front door caught his attention. It swung open and Niles staggered in, quickly closing the door behind him and sagging against it.“What the hell happened to you?” Frasier asked.Niles looked positively bedraggled and his suit was ruined. The trousers were dirty and torn, the expensive Italian leather shoes stained. But Niles looked otherwise well, so Frasier couldn’t resist a little dig at his expense.“Is Maris dieting again?”Niles didn’t rise to the bait. Instead he shrugged out of his overcoat and walked past the sofa to hang it on the hook in the hall.“I’m going to write a very strongly worded letter to Animal Control.” He moved across the room and poured himself a glass of Sherry. “We have leash laws in this city, and yet I was practically mauled to death by a vicious yellow cur. No collar, no tags. Where are all the dog catchers?”“Sit down, for goodness sake. Let me look at that leg.” Dog bites could be a very serious matter. What if it had been rabid?Niles waved him off. “The mangy thing didn’t break the skin. But this suit is going to have to be put out of its misery. I’ve already put in a call to Gilles.”“Dare I ask about the shoes?”“They’ll need the incinerator,” Niles said with a wince. “You don’t want to know why, believe me.”Frasier grimaced. “And you’re walking all over my clean floors with them?” He herded his brother, Sherry and all, back to the front door.“Well, you can’t expect me to go around bare-footed like some kind of aboriginal,” Niles protested.“I will loan you a pair of shoes.”Frasier headed for his room but he didn’t get far before the front door opened again, ushering in Daphne and Eddie.“Oh, hello Dr. Crane!” she said to Niles before looking over at Frasier. “Dr. Crane, Eddie’s made a new a friend. He was very insistent about following us home.”A small, filthy yellow dog ran through Daphne’s legs and into the apartment, which in turn made Niles scream and lock himself in the powder room. Eddie gave chase and the cacophony of barking brought Martin out of his bedroom.“What’s going on out there?” he shouted over the noise.Frasier dropped down on the sofa and put his head in his hands. “Just another day in paradise,” he grumbled.