A Tidings of Magpies

3. Days went by without any word from The Parents and no further clues to solve The Secret of the Puzzling Picnic Basket. We had three more cottages filled with families and the restaurant and bar were getting a decent amount of business from the neighboring native Bon Secourians and the RV park down the road. Bridge and I might be able to make enough money to pay for our tuition AND books by the time the fall session of school started. It had been an especially long week. I was looking forward to being off duty and sleeping in tomorrow morning. Maybe some shopping up at the outlet mall in Foley. I was wondering the exact time the Shoe Warehouse opened when Chandra's voice filled the air. "You could call the police." I snorted a mouthful of beer back into the bottle, onto my Tshirt and laughed. "I think if the words drunk and walking aren't involved our Sheriff Taylor won't be interested." Yes, we have our own Sheriff Taylor here in Bon Secour. Christoph...

2. Bridget leaned over the faded and stained oak bar and asked the back of the bartender again, "Oh,come on, Chandra. You haven't seen anybody carrying this picnic basket around? Some mysterious stranger wandering by?" He stopped stocking the glasses to turn all 5 feet 6 inches of swarthy head and belly around to look at her and the picnic basket in question, both sitting next to a half eaten plate of pizza rolls and watery glass of soda floating in a pool of its own sweat. "I haven't seen anybody but the regulars, you two run-abouts, and the couple in room 12 from Corbin, Kentucky--your piece of country," as he pointed a crooked finger in my direction. "This place has been dead. And, if there were any fingerprints on that card you've worn them down to a nub now." Bridget dropped the business card she'd been turning over and over in her hand like it was a lit match. "Look, why don't you just call your mum and dad?" Chandra as...

"A-tisket a-tasket A green and yellow basket I wrote a letter to my love And on the way I dropped it" Is that how it went? The song kept repeating in my head while I walked across the burning stretch of sand past the line of empty lounge chairs to check out the large picnic basket that had been left sitting out all day. Well, at least since earlier this morning when we'd gone for a run. I guess it could have been there all night. Looks like a nice one--saw it in the Crate and Barrel catalogue when I was searching frantically for a Father’s day gift last summer. As I remember, they were pricey…can’t imagine why someone would leave it here. It’s not like it’s a small thing you would forget about once you're finished eating. Bridget told me not to come down here to check it out. She’s standing back on the boardwalk with her cell phone talking to one of her connected-at-the-ears sorority sisters from Ohio State and shouting down to me, "What is it? What is it?" ...