Page 43 of Beneath Still Waters

“So, you don’t know them personally?” Ferd asked.

“Not really. I’ve seen them. I don’t think I even know their names.”

Duke glanced all around the small area. “What kind of questions were they asking?”

“About Bailey and how well I knew him. Of course I knew him well. He was married to Monica. He was practically my son-in-law.” His voice cracked.

“Need a drink?” Ferd stood and headed toward the alcove where a single burner stove was the closest thing to a kitchen gadget she could find.

“In the cooler.” He pointed to a green metal box on the floor.

She flipped the lock and opened the lid. Inside sat a plethora of the same craft beer, some popular cheap brand and two bottles of water. She picked up one bottle of water.

“Not that. Anything but that. I keep those here for Monica when she wants to go out on the lake.”

She lifted out a can. “Are you sure? If you have a head injury, it’s probably not the best thing.”Or ever the best thing.

He stood up, wobbling on his feet, took it out of her hand and sat back down. “Yes. I’m sure.”

Ferd sat back down. “You said they jumped you. All they wanted to know about was Bailey? What did they say?”

He winced as he cracked open the can. “Mainly if I ever worked with him. They seemed to think he was a professional fisherman. He wasn’t. Nobody ever really knew Bailey.”

Duke took a seat near Carl. “What makes you say that? Seems like he presented a different side of himself to everyone who knew him.”

“Exactly. No one knew exactly who he was. Not even Monica, and she was married to the man. Be who you are. Don’t make up a personality for one person and another for another. It’s fake. I’ll be the first to admit I didn’t like the guy, but I couldn't tell them what I didn't know. Seemed like those guys were trying to beat a confession out of me. One I won’t give.”

“I’m glad we stopped by when we did.” Duke’s gaze zeroed in on a bank of drawers in the kitchen area. “Have you ever been given a key to Bailey’s apartment?”

Carl stopped for a moment and his mouth hung open. Then he found his words, “No. I have no reason to go into his apartment. I know where he lives, but I’ve never been there.”

“Would you be willing to give us your fingerprints, to completely eliminate you as a suspect?” Ferd asked as she reached for her bag with the equipment to do it inside.

“No. I don’t do things like that. The government doesn’t need my prints or anything like that. What if they start tracking me for no reason? Nope. I decline.” He took a long drink and threw the can across the room, bouncing it off the rim of the garbage where it landed a foot away.

“I’ll get that before we leave. Don’t worry about standing up to get it.” She held up a hand. And if she just happened to grab that can on their way out, he didn’t need to know she’d sampled his trash.

“Thanks.” He swayed and his eyes blinked oddly. “I need to lie down a while.” He curled up on his side on the bench. “Hope that’s all you needed.”

“Yes, thank you.” Duke stood and headed for the door.

Ferd picked up the can, then lowered it into the receptacle to make it look like she’d quietly thrown it away, then hid it swiftly in her coat as she headed out the door.

THIRTY-FIVE

“Ihope he’s okay.” Ferd grabbed a plastic zip-top bag from Duke’s backseat, put the can inside, then labeled it.

“He’ll be fine. I can send someone over there later today to check on him.”

“A friend? Who?” She tucked the bag by her feet.

“He’s a firefighter, but also the head EMT. I trust him. He’s a good guy.”

She laid her head back against the seat rest. “I’m running out of days.”

“That’s okay. You can always come back after you talk to your boss.” Duke backed out of the parking spot, then headed toward Kevin and Heath’s farm. Maybe they wouldn’t get to Kelly today.

“You think they’ll be out there after trying to ransack a guy’s house?” She avoided his statement. There was a very real possibility she wouldn’t be able to return.