could have come from her being held down and force-fed the berries.”
“I’ll try to match those seeds to the bushes close by.” Peggy glanced at her. “What if we decide she wasn’t force-fed the berries? That still leaves the problem of how she got out here.”
“We’ll file the car information with the detective on the case.” Mai shrugged, then stood up slowly, her gaze focused on something in the mud. “Do you see that?”
Peggy looked where Mai pointed. Something gleamed dully in the spotty sunshine. “It looks like metal, but I should warn you, we found lots of bits and pieces of things out here. They have a whole miniwarehouse full of them. Still . . .”
“And maybe it’s nothing.”
Peggy took off her shoes and rolled up her pants legs. “But it’s close to where we found the body. We have to check it out.”
“We don’t have to do it right now.” Mai winced as Peggy stuck her feet in the mud. “We could call a hazmat crew and let them get in there.”
“Those little currents of water running through the mud could be a problem,” Peggy explained, to keep her mind from wondering what was touching her feet and legs where she couldn’t see them. “If we don’t grab this now, it could be gone. We’d never find it at the bottom of the mud.”
“Is that safe?” Mai asked. “I hope you don’t step on something and cut yourself. Dr. Ramsey would kill me if we have to file an OSHA form.”
“Thanks for your concern.”
“You know what I mean. Just hurry and get out of there. You’re making me super nervous, and I’m feeling a little queasy just watching you.”
Peggy reached forward and snatched up the gleaming bit of metal. “Got it!” She wiped away some of the mud and looked at her treasure. It was a ring. Hard to tell when it was made. Was it modern enough to be Lois’s or one of the other ladies’? Or was it something that belonged to one of the villagers who were long gone?
Not wanting to be in the mud one moment more than she had to be, Peggy held the ring tightly in her hand and waded back to the shore. She let Mai take a look at it as she did what she could to clean up. “What do you think?”
Mai took out an evidence bag. “I think it bears further study.” She looked at Peggy. “Now how are we going to get you back to town without having the inside of the van cleaned?”
AFTER A QUICK SHOWER AND a change of clothes, Peggy met Sam, Keeley, and Jasper Wheeler at the Potting Shed. She and Sam had hired Jasper over the summer, before the drought had set in, to work with Sam creating landscape water features. At the time, water features were the hot ticket. As the land dried up, so did landscape ponds and fountains. Mecklenburg County and the counties surrounding it had passed resolutions to do without anything that required extra water.
Peggy had regretted laying off Jasper. He was a nice young man, and they had all worked well together creating the water feature in the shop. But she had to keep the Potting Shed going. She’d also laid off her part-time weekend assistants, Dawn and Brenda.
Now she smiled and waved when she saw the three young people waiting for her on the wrought iron benches in Brevard Court. “Hello, Jasper! It’s good to see you again. How’s Christie?”
“She’s fine,” he replied with a ready smile. “She’s back in school. Still hanging out with those extreme pollution fighters, but she learned a lot from working with you.”
“I’m glad. I’d hoped she wouldn’t be angry about everything that happened.”
He shrugged. “She’s not the kind of person to hold a grudge. Besides, she doesn’t blame you for any of it. She blames Sam.”
“Me?” Sam jumped a little. “Why me?”
“Because she thinks you were responsible for ratting out the group to the police.” Jasper laughed. “Cheer up, Sam. She still wants to go out with you. Who can understand the way a sister’s mind works?”
“Hey!” Keeley shoved
“I’ll try to match those seeds to the bushes close by.” Peggy glanced at her. “What if we decide she wasn’t force-fed the berries? That still leaves the problem of how she got out here.”
“We’ll file the car information with the detective on the case.” Mai shrugged, then stood up slowly, her gaze focused on something in the mud. “Do you see that?”
Peggy looked where Mai pointed. Something gleamed dully in the spotty sunshine. “It looks like metal, but I should warn you, we found lots of bits and pieces of things out here. They have a whole miniwarehouse full of them. Still . . .”
“And maybe it’s nothing.”
Peggy took off her shoes and rolled up her pants legs. “But it’s close to where we found the body. We have to check it out.”
“We don’t have to do it right now.” Mai winced as Peggy stuck her feet in the mud. “We could call a hazmat crew and let them get in there.”
“Those little currents of water running through the mud could be a problem,” Peggy explained, to keep her mind from wondering what was touching her feet and legs where she couldn’t see them. “If we don’t grab this now, it could be gone. We’d never find it at the bottom of the mud.”
“Is that safe?” Mai asked. “I hope you don’t step on something and cut yourself. Dr. Ramsey would kill me if we have to file an OSHA form.”
“Thanks for your concern.”
“You know what I mean. Just hurry and get out of there. You’re making me super nervous, and I’m feeling a little queasy just watching you.”
Peggy reached forward and snatched up the gleaming bit of metal. “Got it!” She wiped away some of the mud and looked at her treasure. It was a ring. Hard to tell when it was made. Was it modern enough to be Lois’s or one of the other ladies’? Or was it something that belonged to one of the villagers who were long gone?
Not wanting to be in the mud one moment more than she had to be, Peggy held the ring tightly in her hand and waded back to the shore. She let Mai take a look at it as she did what she could to clean up. “What do you think?”
Mai took out an evidence bag. “I think it bears further study.” She looked at Peggy. “Now how are we going to get you back to town without having the inside of the van cleaned?”
AFTER A QUICK SHOWER AND a change of clothes, Peggy met Sam, Keeley, and Jasper Wheeler at the Potting Shed. She and Sam had hired Jasper over the summer, before the drought had set in, to work with Sam creating landscape water features. At the time, water features were the hot ticket. As the land dried up, so did landscape ponds and fountains. Mecklenburg County and the counties surrounding it had passed resolutions to do without anything that required extra water.
Peggy had regretted laying off Jasper. He was a nice young man, and they had all worked well together creating the water feature in the shop. But she had to keep the Potting Shed going. She’d also laid off her part-time weekend assistants, Dawn and Brenda.
Now she smiled and waved when she saw the three young people waiting for her on the wrought iron benches in Brevard Court. “Hello, Jasper! It’s good to see you again. How’s Christie?”
“She’s fine,” he replied with a ready smile. “She’s back in school. Still hanging out with those extreme pollution fighters, but she learned a lot from working with you.”
“I’m glad. I’d hoped she wouldn’t be angry about everything that happened.”
He shrugged. “She’s not the kind of person to hold a grudge. Besides, she doesn’t blame you for any of it. She blames Sam.”
“Me?” Sam jumped a little. “Why me?”
“Because she thinks you were responsible for ratting out the group to the police.” Jasper laughed. “Cheer up, Sam. She still wants to go out with you. Who can understand the way a sister’s mind works?”
“Hey!” Keeley shoved
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