A Watery Death (A Missing Pieces Mystery Book 7) by Joyce Lavene, Jim Lavene Page B

wind-tossed around her interesting face, almost ran right into me. Or I almost ran right into her. I wasn’t exactly looking where I was going.
    “I’m so sorry.” I smiled my perfect mayor’s smile and stuck my hand out in her direction. “I’m Mayor Dae O’Donnell. You don’t look familiar to me. Welcome to Duck.”
    “Thank you so much, Mayor O’Donnell.” She shook my hand in a distracted manner. “I’m Tess Horner. Dr. Tess Horner. I’m looking for the gambling ship where the man was found dead. Do you know where that is?”
    “Of course. You’re very close. Would you like some lunch before you go? It’s free here today.”
    “No. Not right now, thanks. I’m very excited to be in Duck after receiving a call from a colleague who’s here on vacation. Perhaps you know something about what happened on the ship?”
    I studied her carefully. She didn’t look like a reporter, and she’d added “Dr.” to her name when she introduced herself. But why would she be interested in Captain Lucky’s death?
    “That’s not far from here. I’m afraid the ship isn’t open right now due to the investigation. Maybe you’d like to try your hand at some deep sea fishing or surfing until the police are finished.”
    “I should have explained who I am.” Dr. Tess Horner smiled and pushed her hair back from her face. “I’m a marine biologist from the University of Minnesota. I’ve come all this way because my colleague feels sure your captain was killed by an aquatic human.”
    My eyes felt as though they were bulging out as I stared at her. “You mean a merman?” My voice could barely squeak out the words.
    “I suppose you could say that.” She smiled. “It is my fervent hope that we can find proof that the seafolk had a part in your captain’s murder.”
     

Chapter Ten
     
    I glanced back toward the kitchen. Kevin was probably still in the dining room. I wanted to introduce her to him and smile broadly as she explained her mission.
    Instead I told her that I knew a lot about what she was looking for and invited her to Missing Pieces for tea. Tess was happy to accompany me since I had firsthand experience with an aquatic human. We stopped and picked up sandwich bagels at the coffee shop on the way.
    “So you have actually encountered a male of the species,” Tess said when she was seated on my burgundy brocade sofa. “How marvelous! What did he look like? I have a thousand questions for you.”
    I explained the entire thread of events as best I could over lunch. Shoppers came and went, probably not getting the kind of attention I would normally have given them because I was so caught up in the idea that I had really met a merman.
    “And he spoke English?” She typed notes into her tablet as we talked.
    “He said he was familiar with humans and the way we lived.” I shrugged. “I don’t think that was accurate. Most people wouldn’t even believe he existed.” I sighed, thinking about my heated debate with Kevin.
    “I’m afraid that’s very true, Dae.” Tess shook her head. “I’ve traveled around the world following accounts of humans or humanoid creatures that live in the sea and in fresh water. I have never been able to prove their existence.”
    “I’ve read plenty of stories about them. We should go to the Duck Historical Museum later. There have been hundreds of mermaid sightings off the coast of the Outer Banks. Always men reporting beautiful mermaids, of course.” I smiled at her. “Maybe that’s what makes them so hard to believe.”
    “Perhaps. But you have to remember that men have spent more time in related activities that brought them to the sea than women. Everything is subjective. I’d love to go to the museum and take a look at what’s there. Many things that we used to think were nothing but mythology and folklore are actually true.”
    “Yes. And Captain Lucky did give me the coral horn that he said was used to call the seafolk. Maybe he was involved with one