There's nowhere to eat in Westport , unless you catch your own lunch
out of the river. There's a really good place here called 119 West Main.
They'll fix you up with a Locomotive and some Kentucky Bacon Pie for
dessert."
"Do what?"
"Trust me. It's good. And you
won't leave there hungry. And when you leave I'll point you in the right direction
to get to Portwood's place. You can't miss it, unless you turn the wrong
way."
"Well, I've been known to
turn the wrong way once or twice."
Herb laughed. We said goodbye and
ended the call. I was getting a little more comfortable using a cell phone.
While I drove I had Lou check to
get Bill Noel's number. He did and I dialed on my hands-free Bluetooth. He
answered after a couple of rings. He admitted to eating breakfast with Portwood
and another author and his wife, but not to poisoning anyone. He was pretty
sure the other author didn't poison Portwood either, but he couldn't vouch for
the guy's wife.
19
Once we got on a straight, wide
road, I felt safe talking to Lou.
"So, what do you think?"
"I think it's nice to see
this part of the state."
"What about the
murderer?"
"I don't think it will be as
nice seeing the murderer."
"Do you think we've already
seen the murderer?"
"I don't know yet. I've
narrowed it down to 'yes' and 'no.'"
"You know, Lou, the prison in
LaGrange said they could use a new inmate."
"Well, if that's what you
want to do, Cy, I'll see that Lightning gets home all right. Don't you worry!
And I promise to write once a week and come and see you once a month."
"I wonder how long they would
give me for murdering a former friend, if the murder was premeditated."
"Probably longer than you
would want to stay. I doubt if the food is as good as what you are used
to."
"So, let's try this again,
and this time I'll be specific. What do you think about the mysterious
volunteer, the $50,000, and the book buying list?"
"Why didn't you say so? I
don't think the mysterious volunteer got the $50,000, and I don't think that
the books on anyone's list that day cost that much."
"Lou, how do you feel about
an Ohio River baptism?"
"You know someone getting
baptized today?"
"Maybe you. I'd even be
willing to provide an anchor so you can get totally drenched."
"I've already been baptized,
and as an adult, too. But without an anchor. I think it took the first time.
And I wouldn't want to go into that river without a boat. It's big, and it
might be muddy. There's no telling who might have drowned in that river."
"So, what you're telling me
is that in your limited wisdom you have no idea who might have done what to
whom?"
"Au contraire, my good
friend. I know to whom it was done. I even know what was done to him. However,
the who did it escapes me at the moment."
"I think a lot of things
escape you at the moment."
"So, you think you know who
did it?"
"No. I'm waiting until I talk
to everyone involved. Then I will decide."
"Well, I doubt if one of
those people involved will be able to help you much. Don't count on Portwood
helping us solve his murder."
"I know where I went wrong
now. I should have asked Heather to come with me today."
"What about Jennifer?"
"I told you before. She's not
in law enforcement. Heather is."
"I bet if you had brought
Heather that Jennifer would be in law enforcement, too."
"And that's the reason I
brought you. No one is jealous of you."
+++
We saved a few minutes by taking
I-64 and bypassing Shelbyville. Eventually we arrived at LaGrange and found the
sheriff's office. Later we would head northwest to Westport . I still thought about dropping
off Lou at the prison in LaGrange so he could try it out and see if he liked
it, but I didn't want to make that trip to unfamiliar territory by myself, so I
planned to let him make the rest of the trip. If he misbehaved at lunch I could
always drop him off before I left for Westport and ask Herb if he wanted to go to Portwood's place with me.
+++
I didn't
out of the river. There's a really good place here called 119 West Main.
They'll fix you up with a Locomotive and some Kentucky Bacon Pie for
dessert."
"Do what?"
"Trust me. It's good. And you
won't leave there hungry. And when you leave I'll point you in the right direction
to get to Portwood's place. You can't miss it, unless you turn the wrong
way."
"Well, I've been known to
turn the wrong way once or twice."
Herb laughed. We said goodbye and
ended the call. I was getting a little more comfortable using a cell phone.
While I drove I had Lou check to
get Bill Noel's number. He did and I dialed on my hands-free Bluetooth. He
answered after a couple of rings. He admitted to eating breakfast with Portwood
and another author and his wife, but not to poisoning anyone. He was pretty
sure the other author didn't poison Portwood either, but he couldn't vouch for
the guy's wife.
19
Once we got on a straight, wide
road, I felt safe talking to Lou.
"So, what do you think?"
"I think it's nice to see
this part of the state."
"What about the
murderer?"
"I don't think it will be as
nice seeing the murderer."
"Do you think we've already
seen the murderer?"
"I don't know yet. I've
narrowed it down to 'yes' and 'no.'"
"You know, Lou, the prison in
LaGrange said they could use a new inmate."
"Well, if that's what you
want to do, Cy, I'll see that Lightning gets home all right. Don't you worry!
And I promise to write once a week and come and see you once a month."
"I wonder how long they would
give me for murdering a former friend, if the murder was premeditated."
"Probably longer than you
would want to stay. I doubt if the food is as good as what you are used
to."
"So, let's try this again,
and this time I'll be specific. What do you think about the mysterious
volunteer, the $50,000, and the book buying list?"
"Why didn't you say so? I
don't think the mysterious volunteer got the $50,000, and I don't think that
the books on anyone's list that day cost that much."
"Lou, how do you feel about
an Ohio River baptism?"
"You know someone getting
baptized today?"
"Maybe you. I'd even be
willing to provide an anchor so you can get totally drenched."
"I've already been baptized,
and as an adult, too. But without an anchor. I think it took the first time.
And I wouldn't want to go into that river without a boat. It's big, and it
might be muddy. There's no telling who might have drowned in that river."
"So, what you're telling me
is that in your limited wisdom you have no idea who might have done what to
whom?"
"Au contraire, my good
friend. I know to whom it was done. I even know what was done to him. However,
the who did it escapes me at the moment."
"I think a lot of things
escape you at the moment."
"So, you think you know who
did it?"
"No. I'm waiting until I talk
to everyone involved. Then I will decide."
"Well, I doubt if one of
those people involved will be able to help you much. Don't count on Portwood
helping us solve his murder."
"I know where I went wrong
now. I should have asked Heather to come with me today."
"What about Jennifer?"
"I told you before. She's not
in law enforcement. Heather is."
"I bet if you had brought
Heather that Jennifer would be in law enforcement, too."
"And that's the reason I
brought you. No one is jealous of you."
+++
We saved a few minutes by taking
I-64 and bypassing Shelbyville. Eventually we arrived at LaGrange and found the
sheriff's office. Later we would head northwest to Westport . I still thought about dropping
off Lou at the prison in LaGrange so he could try it out and see if he liked
it, but I didn't want to make that trip to unfamiliar territory by myself, so I
planned to let him make the rest of the trip. If he misbehaved at lunch I could
always drop him off before I left for Westport and ask Herb if he wanted to go to Portwood's place with me.
+++
I didn't
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