5

AFTER THE COPS LEFT and Max went back to her place, I called Greenleaf and told her I wasn’t opening the office that day. I wasn’t going to tell her why, especially since she didn’t keep me in the loop as far as telling me that Max worked for the agency, but the old woman pressed me until she had the whole story.

“Your father never closed the office on a normal working day.”

Finding a body getting eaten by fish didn’t qualify as a normal day, but I did my best to hold my tongue. I certainly wouldn’t get into a back and forth with an elderly woman.

“I’ll pay you for the day.”

“You think it’s the money? If I was worried about making money, I’d be working at McDonalds.”

“Is there a McDonalds on Ava Island?”

“No. And lucky for you there isn’t.” The phone went dead.

I wasn’t surprised when Greenleaf wheeled her Schwinn around back and parked it in the iron bike rack. I was down on the dock looking at the spot where I’d found the body.

Greenleaf was quiet as she came on to the dock.

“Is that where you found him?”

“Yeah.”

She stood next to me looking at the water. “It’s too bad. Do they know who he is?”

“I don’t think they found any identification on him. He was in swim trunks. Did you ever see a young guy around here with blond dreadlocks?”

She rubbed her chin as if she were trying to think of something.

“There are a lot of young people on the island but they mostly hang out down in the village or at the beach. Around here the people are older and you hardly ever see them.” She looked out at the mouth of the river and the Atlantic beyond. “Maybe he fell off a boat.”

I looked up river. “Or jumped off the bridge.”

“Either way, not much of a welcome for you on your first day on the island.”

“It might be an omen. You know, I think you’re right about opening up today.” I might as well get started on cleaning up business. I’d get to L.A. that much quicker.

Greenleaf sighed. “Whatever you say.”

As if she didn’t intend to open in the first place. Why else would she be here?

I followed her up the dock. As I stepped off, a glint of light caught my eye as Greenleaf’s shoe kicked something. I saw it roll under a bush with large red and green leaves. I picked up a small stick and probed under the plant. I found what I was looking for and used the stick to pick up what turned out to be a circular piece of brass.

“What’s that?” Greenleaf eyed the ring when I held it up to get a better look.

“Too big for someone’s finger.” I made it spin on the stick.

“It’s nothing. Let’s get to work.” She started walking up toward the house.

“Everything is something.” Whether it was significant or not was another story. I set the ring on the patio table and asked Greenleaf to go in the house for a baggie. I used my phone to take a couple of pictures of where it was when Greenleaf kicked it. When she returned with the bag I dropped it in. “I think I should show this to Johnson.”

“I thought we were going to get some work done today.”

“I went over the files before I went to bed. I prioritized the cases I want to wrap up. There’s a list on the coffee table starting with the back-injury guy who likes to jet ski. Check it over and see what you think.”

There was an awkward silence and I was about to ask her why she didn’t tell me Max worked for the agency. We both started to talk at once. I deferred to her.

“There’s something else you should know. Max works for the agency.”

I fidgeted. “She’s the senior investigator.”

“You know then. I was going to tell you, but you were talking about closing the agency and I couldn’t get a word in edgewise.”

“I still intend to close it after I clean up my father’s cases.”

Greenleaf scoffed. “Max has cases to close, too. Look, I know it’s a little awkward. She moved here after she quit her job. She was a TV reporter in Atlanta. Investigative stuff, but the industry has a glass ceiling thicker than a bowl of two-day old oatmeal. Big Al was having trouble keeping up, so he hired her. It was a perfect fit for both of them.”

“So, now I’m the owner, but she outranks me?”

“You can’t handle that?” There was a downward turn of her mouth.

“I didn’t say that. I’m going to see Johnson. I should be back soon.”