Shadows at the Spring Show by Lea Wait

streets, and his hairline had receded, but his senses and brain were still alert. Maggie noted a copy of The House of Seven Gables on the corner of his desk next to a pile of well-worn notebooks. Stivali had been auditing some courses recently, including one of Maggie’s. She’d enjoyed having him in her front row.
    One wall of his office was covered by a white board listing schedules for the college guards who reported to him. Some of the guards were also retired cops; some had been MPs; some had little experience but were looking for a quiet second or even third job.
    Al put down his coffee cup as Maggie walked in. “Professor Summer! Glad you stopped by. Can I offer you some coffee? It’s strong.”
    “No, thanks, Al. And call me Maggie. Professor sounds so formal.”
    “Then, Maggie.” Al smiled as Maggie sat down. “I think we’ve exchanged enough notes to have a good idea of what you’re looking for.” He got up and pointed at the dates May 12 through May 15 on his white board.
    “You’ve got suppliers coming in Thursday and Friday morning, and then the antiques people are arriving around four o’clock Friday afternoon. They’ll do their thing and be out by ten. You’ll have people in the gym Saturday morning starting around eight and going until six in the evening, and then again Sunday, from nine until six. That cover it?”
    “Pretty much. There will be some people working later Sunday night, after the dealers have packed up, to pile up tables and chairs. Monday morning the rental people will pick up their tables, and the company that put the pads on the floors will be back to take them up. If all goes smoothly, everything should be back to normal by noon on Monday.”
    Al had returned to his desk and was making a couple of notes. “There shouldn’t be any problems. I’ve got a couple of guys who can work overtime that weekend. The new semester doesn’t begin until June, so we usually operate with a skeleton crew at this time of year. But we can pull people in.”
    “Two things I’d like your help on. The first is parking. I’m going to ask the dealers to move their vans and trucks into the dorm parking lot during the show so there’ll be lots of space for customers to park by the gym. I’d really appreciate your guys keeping an eye out for any dealers who don’t move. You tell me license plate numbers and I’ll find the owner of the vehicle. All dealer vehicles should have placards stuck on their windshields. And I know you always check for unauthorized cars in the handicapped areas, but I’d like special attention paid there during the show. I don’t want any potential customers to leave because there aren’t enough handicapped parking spaces. Antiques shows tend to have older visitors than most events here on campus.”
    “No problem, Maggie,” Al said, making another note. “Wehave temporary handicapped designation signs. Shall we increase the number of handicapped spaces by the gym?”
    “That would be great! Three or four more spaces should be plenty. And make sure at least two are wide enough for vans with wheelchair lifts. There’s one space there already, but I’m going to reserve it for one of the dealers. There should be at least one other for customers.” Gussie wouldn’t ask for any special privileges, but there was no reason someone using an electric wheelchair should have to maneuver her chair all the way from the dorm parking lot. So far as she knew, none of the other dealers doing this show were disabled. If someone was, she’d make adjustments.
    “Okay, parking. What else do you need our help with?”
    “Friday and Saturday nights the dealers are going to be leaving their antiques in the gym. I know the college has insurance, and most of the dealers do, and Our World Our Children took out a separate policy to cover this show. But none of us want to test those policies. There will be valuable inventory items in the gyms. They’re even priced, so someone who