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RILEY HAD SPENT A FRUITLESS day searching the archive’s files for information about other autopsies performed by Doctor Cole. And she’d not been able to find any further information about Chase. She settled into her reading nook with a sigh, curling her feet under her.
Dear Jack,
I have been useless at finding information to help you solve your case. I’m working with disorganized files, and I worry that time is running out for you to discover where Chase is. I’m also worried that I might make a mess of things at work if my boss discovers that I’ve been so focused on a single case. I’m an archivist with limited knowledge about criminals.
I guess what I’m trying to say is that I don’t know if I can help you. I don’t know what to look for. And I don’t know where to look for it.
Feeling lost,
Riley
After she prepared her dinner, Riley found a reply.
Dear Riley,
I admire you for so freely sharing your concerns with me. Detective work is gathering information and piecing it together. I suspect you’re more skilled at it than you realize. And I understand your frustration with the files. I will explore the constabulary’s files tomorrow, though I fear that what little is there is rather more disorganized than the files you are searching. For reasons that are unclear to me, our chief constable is not fond of detailed documentation, so I expect there will be limited paperwork to sift through. This is a benefit for me, but not for you. I’ve been trying to convince my colleagues of the advantages of keeping better files but have had little success thus far.
Despite the gulf that separates us, I am in the unique position of having a researcher available to me. I’m confident you can help me and hope you regain your confidence to do so.
As you suggest, time may be short for Chase. I spoke with his colleagues today. His supervisor and good friend, Stanley Rupert, spoke fondly of him, yet his colleagues were less forthcoming with their praise. Interestingly, I have discovered that Mrs. Chase was formerly employed by Rupert as a maid.
Another item of note: in his short time in the city Chase had made considerable progress toward opening a clothing store with Walter Huntington. Neither man had shared with the women in their lives just how far they had developed this venture.
So I too feel at a loss, but will resume my investigation tomorrow. I hope you will reconsider and continue looking into the cases of Huntington and Chase, but I will respect your decision should you choose not to.
Take care,
Jack
After reading the note, Riley released her jaw. Jack wanted her to help him rather than solve the case herself. She pushed her back into the chair. Gathering and organizing data is an archivist’s role, and something she was good at. If the museum’s archive had produced nothing, perhaps another source would. What about the medical society? A quick internet search confirmed the society had been established before Chase and Huntington disappeared. Surely it had records about former members.
What’s the worst that could happen? If she failed, the case would remain unsolved. She dashed off a quick note to say she’d still help and drifted to sleep thinking of Detective Jack Winston as her partner in what was likely the strangest detective pair ever.