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I ATTENDED THE CITY commission meeting to represent the AllBoosters, who were interested in placing a digital sign on city property to publicize events both in town and at the school. When the meeting ended, Rory and I walked out together, and he surprised me by suggesting we go to his office so he could give me some information on the Deline murder.
When we got there, Ryan Zinke was at work at the desk in the corner. He was talking on the phone, and I saw his face change when he realized who was with the chief. A little disapproval, a little irritation.
Zinke ended his call while Rory located the information, a list of people he’d interviewed about the movements of the major players on the night of the murder. I glanced at it, noted nothing new and different, and thanked him anyway.
As we left Rory’s office he said, “Have you met Ms. Stilson, Detective Sergeant Zinke?”
He barely glanced at me. “Yeah. Hi.”
Rory became chatty, which isn’t like him at all. “I suppose you’re getting your snowmobile tuned up for when the snow gets here, Retta.”
“Yes,” I replied, slightly confused. “Gabe checked it out for me and it’s ready to go.”
Rory turned to Zinke. “Retta here is quite the rider. A couple of winters ago she outran a guy who was trying to shoot her and saved the life of an FBI agent.”
Zinke’s gaze moved from Rory to me. “Really.”
“Chief Neuencamp was a large part of it,” I said modestly.
“Yeah, but I wasn’t there when you stopped that guy from tossing two people off the edge of the Allport Pit.”
“You weren’t far behind.” I felt my face warming. I don’t usually blush, but Rory didn’t usually act this way.
“And just a few months ago, Retta escaped a couple of kidnappers and solved a big drug case over by Traverse City.”
Zinke frowned. “You mean the Engel thing? You were in on that?”
“Retta was responsible for the arrest of the guy behind the whole thing. She figured out he was hiding in her vehicle and then helped the police officers on scene apprehend him.”
I felt like I should retreat to Southern Belle mode: flap my fan and say something like “La, Chief Neuencamp, how you do go on!”
But I hadn’t brought along a fan, and I’m not a Southern Belle, at least not yet. I said, “All three of us at the Smart Detective Agency have had to do things we never imagined doing.”
“Well, all three of you are pretty good at it.”
Zinke was looking at me with different eyes. “That was a pretty big case. I’d like to hear more about it sometime.”
“Sure,” I told him. “As soon as we get this Deline thing wrapped up, we’ll find some time to talk.”
Rory walked me to the doors of the city building. “Chief Neuencamp, you did that on purpose.”
He smiled. “Maybe.”
“Why? What difference does it make to you what he thinks of me?”
“First, I got tired of him dismissing anything evidence one of you provided as ‘women’s gossip.’ Second, I’m over fifty too, so I resent people assuming we’re more than half senile. Third, you really did all the things I mentioned. It was instructive for him to hear it.”
“Well, thank you.” After a second I asked, “Why did you pull your ‘help Zinke get a clue’ stunt with me? Why not Barbara?”
Rory snorted a laugh. “I have to work with the guy, now and in the future. I knew you’d be gracious if he changed his tune, but Barb?” He shook his head. “She’d have had him for lunch.”
