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Bonnie jumped back, covering her body with her arms. “My God, Jake! Is that what I think it is?”
Fred picked up his bone and brought it to her, dropping it at her feet. It didn’t look heavy despite it being longer than him. Bonnie’s eyes bulged and she backed further away.
I reached down and took Fred’s prize, causing her to gasp. “Don’t touch it, Jake. It could be evidence.”
I threw the bone as far as I could while holding Fred’s collar so he wouldn’t chase after it. “It’s a thigh bone from a deer, Bon. I doubt if the cops would be interested.”
She let out a huge sigh and reached for my arm to steady herself. “How do you know that?”
“I don’t think I ever met anyone with hooves. Have you?”
***
BONNIE HADN’T SPOKEN a word since we left the farm. I thought a good lunch might help calm her down and was headed for the catfish restaurant Kelly had taken me to. “Well, Bon, story or not, I think Amanda bought it, hook and sinker.”
She turned to answer. Her color seemed to be coming back after the scare from the leg bone. “Let’s hope Margot agrees. There’s no way on earth I could buy it on my own.” She’d been watching Fred and his new best friend after feeding them. I assume she wanted to make sure Fred didn’t decide the cat’s food looked tastier than his Kibble.
***
“HAVE YOU THOUGHT ABOUT what you’re going to do when you go back to Colorado?” Bonnie asked when I took too long to respond.
“Funny you should ask, Bon. I’ve been thinking of staying on for a bit. It would be a great place to work on my book.”
“Your book? Are you sure it’s not because of a certain deputy?”
We were at the restaurant and just in time. That was a question I didn’t want to answer. “Hope you like Southern-fried catfish,” I said, pulling into a parking space.
The sign above the door read, “Free gas with every meal.”
Bonnie took one look at the sign and laughed. “You can really pick ‘em, Jake.”
I explained the sign referred to a free sample of their fantastic baked beans. “Well, I hope they taste better than this place looks,” she said after we walked in. I’d tried to warn her it didn’t have the ambiance of Denver restaurants, but she must not have believed me.
We were greeted by the same waitress as the last time when I was there with Kelly. This time, Ma had her hair in a bun and was wearing an apron out of the forties. I felt like I’d stepped through a wormhole. Bonnie must have noticed because she held a hand to her mouth as we were seated, presumably so she didn’t laugh at Ma.
Ma handed us some menus before telling us about the specials. “Our special today is all you can eat catfish. The rest are on the chalkboard behind you, ma’am.”
Bonnie recovered enough to find her voice without laughing. “Can I get a Jack Daniels and water before I decide?”
Ma chuckled before answering. “Sorry, ma’am. We don’t serve liquor, but the iced tea is really good.”
“That sounds great,” I said before Bonnie could add her two cents. “Two iced teas it is.”
***
“I’M OLD ENOUGH TO ORDER for myself, Jake,” Bonnie said after Ma went to fetch us our drinks.
“Sorry, Bon. Would you like to change it?”
She put her menu down and looked me in the eyes. Any attempt to act hurt was betrayed by the dimples at the corner of her mouth. I knew it was all she could do to suppress a smile. “No, iced tea is fine. And you can order me the special, Mr. Chauvinist.”
Bonnie’s attitude changed after taking the first bite of the house specialty. “You were right, Jake. I don’t usually care for catfish. It’s always so muddy, but this is so good.”
“And cheap, Bon. I could eat here all week for what a single Denver meal would cost.” It made her laugh.
“I swear, sometimes you can pinch a penny so tight it must hurt. I’m surprised you didn’t take me to your favorite restaurant, you know, the one with the golden arches.”
“Fred’s favorite, not mine. Well, it used to be his favorite until Julie made me promise not to take him there anymore.” I didn’t mention stopping there the day I found about Crammer being murdered.
Bonnie leaned back in her chair and her eyes narrowed. “Were you serious about fixing up the old place if we buy it?”
“That was a cover story, Bon.”
She turned her attention toward the wedding ring she still wore and kept turning it on her finger. “I understand, but if you’re going to stay, it might help pay some bills while you work on your book.” Her tone of voice made it sound more like a plea than a statement.
“I’ve been thinking about that. The housing market’s so hot in Colorado, I’m thinking I must have enough equity in my place to buy something here for cash and still have enough left over to live on until the book’s finished.” I’d been avoiding telling her for fear it might upset her.
“That’d be fantastic, Jake.” She’d stopped playing with the ring and looked over at me smiling. “I’m sure Margot wouldn’t mind if you stayed in the house while you worked on it. And you wouldn’t have to do it full-time, so there’d still be time to work on your book.”
“Are you sure she wants to spend that kind of money? From what I’ve seen so far, it’s a lot of work. I might have to farm some of it out to subcontractors, and that could get expensive.”
“So you’ll do it? Oh, I can’t wait to tell Margot.”
“Whoa, Bon. Don’t you have to buy the place first?”
“I’m sure that won’t be a problem, considering how loaded she is.”
I knew she meant Margot and not Amanda. “What if you get into a bidding war with the neighbor? Is Margot prepared to pay more than it’s worth?”
Bonnie moved closer to the table. “I forgot about him. He sounds dangerous. If he did kill Crammer, he wouldn’t hesitate to go after us, would he?”
“I see no reason for him to go after us, as you say.”
Bonnie squeezed her lips together and rolled her eyes. “If we buy the house, Jake. Sometimes you can be so dense.”
I gave her my biggest grin. “I knew what you meant, Bon. I was just having some fun. But he does sound like the kind who would hang someone with a thin wire and not lose a minute’s sleep, so yes, we better watch our backs if Margot agrees to buy the place.”
“Oh, she’ll buy it all right. You needn’t worry about that.”
“I’m more worried about what she’s going to say about not finding the sword. That was the reason we went there in the first place.” Worry over Margot buying the house was the last on my mind. I had bills due, and I needed her to pay me for the time I’d already invested.
Ma returned to ask how we liked the catfish and refill our iced teas before I could ask why she was so sure Margot would buy the farm. By the time Bonnie and the waitress finished discussing recipes for breading catfish and how to cook them, I’d forgotten all about it.
***
THE MOTEL’S WI-FI WAS working when we got back to the motel, so I spent the rest of the night in my room, searching for more information on Captain Scott’s weapons. I could hear Bonnie arguing with her sister through the thin walls. I didn’t find anything more on the relics, but I knew Bonnie must have finally convinced Margot to put up the money because eventually the shouting subsided and all I heard were a few muffled words now and then.