Goose in the Pond - Earlene Fowler [100]
“They all sort of look like them,” I said.
“That’s the whole idea,” the young detective said. “We use your description and run it through the sheriff’s computer and see if we get a match. You sure none of them are the guys?”
“Pretty sure,” I said.
He sighed in frustration. “It’s always a long shot, but we have to try.”
I was on my way out when Maggie called to me.
“I forgot,” she said. “Gabe also said to tell you that if you wanted to look through the stuff found with the John Doe body, it’s in the evidence locker. We’ll be tossing it out at the end of the month.”
I glanced at my watch. It was getting close to one o’clock. I didn’t want to stay away from the museum much longer and still I needed to get something to eat. “I’ll look through it real fast, and then you can toss it.”
She handed me a pair of thin rubber gloves. “Better use these,” she said. “You never know.”
The large navy gym bag was full of worthless junk as Gabe had told me. A strong smell of mediciny-mint assaulted me when I unzipped it. A small bottle of Listerine mint-flavored mouthwash had leaked all over the contents. I felt an incredible sadness as I picked through the Datebook Bum’s meager legacy—plastic cups from Mc-Donald’s and Burger King, a few paperback books with the covers ripped off, dozens of pens and stubs of pencils, a worn toothbrush with DR. GARDINER SAYS SMILE on it, a couple of old copies of the Freedom Press, a bar of soap in a plastic holder, two old shirts, and a pair of socks with a hole in one heel. The only thing that really intrigued me was a large Tupperware container of keys. Something in me told me to save those. I set them aside and zipped the gym bag back up. I stripped the rubber gloves off my hands and tossed them in a nearby trash can.
“You can dump it now,” I told Maggie. “It was just junk.”
Maggie shook her head and turned back to her typing. “We have a lot to be thankful for, don’t we?”
I drove through McDonald’s on my way back to the museum. The first thing I did in my office was check for Evangeline and Ash’s files. There they were, right in plain sight where I’d left them. I stuck them quickly back into the file cabinet and locked it, the barn-door analogy not lost on me.
After eating my All-American Big Three lunch of grease, carbohydrates, and sugar, I felt equipped to face the world again. A final, compulsive walk-through the exhibit assured me that everything was ready for the five o’clock opening. I became the first official visitor when a ticket seller attached a green plastic band to my wrist, an easy and inexpensive way to identify who’d paid admission for the three-day festival.
I found D-Daddy under an oak tree at the back of the pasture, sipping a lemonade from one of the concessionaires.
“Looks delicious,” I said.
“I’m their test taster, me,” he said, giving me a wide smile. “I taste the sausage and beignets after this. Make sure they all right for folks.”
“Sounds like a pretty clever scam to me,” I said, laughing. “But a good way to get a free dinner.” I leaned against the tree and gazed out over the field dotted with purple alyssum. “Did anything exciting happen while I was gone?”
“No, ange. Those boys, I’m keeping an eye on them. Don’t you worry, no. D-Daddy make sure they stay far, far apart.”
“Thanks. I’ll keep an eye out, too, and I’ll let Gabe know about it. He’s supposed to be here when I give my opening speech at six. By the way, have you seen Evangeline?” I made my voice light and casual.
“She left an hour or so ago. Had a doctor’s appointment or something. Then some errands. Don’t worry, she’ll be back in time.”
“I’m not worried,” I assured him. “I’d better get back to my office and read my speech over a couple more times. With all these professional storytellers performing, I’m a bit nervous about giving it.”
“You be fine. How can they not love a jolie blonde like you?”
“D-Daddy, if you were a few years younger and I wasn’t married, we’d be in real trouble.”
“Trouble?” He grinned. “You wouldn’t be no trouble at all, chère. No trouble at all.”
I squeezed his