Dockside Cafe Part 14 (Blogophilia 48.13)

 I bring the binoculars up to my eyes, not sure what I was looking for. The slips looked like a kid put all the 1’s in the alphabet kit set side by side. Outside of a couple of big houseboats, everything else was small craft. Holidayland was a weekend retreat for city folks wanting to get their fish on.

It was a cold dark night, but the flask is keeping me warm. I’ll have the zings in the morning for sure, but that didn’t matter. Make a wish, count to three. Isn’t that what Willy Wonka used to say? Maybe you’ll win the golden ticket. Maybe not.

The call had been confusing. I asked for the woman I’d talked to earlier about the boat but was told she was no longer was working there. The guy who did answer claimed to be the owner, but the name he gave didn’t match what I had on file. In the background, I could hear a girl’s voice telling him to get back to bed. When I asked if he had any information on Herrington he hung up. All I knew was the Sunset docked here and something was missing from the case.

The sound of boat tethers could be heard over the wind. A movement near the front of the office catches my eye. A young girl with pink hair ran down one of the gangways. She slipped into a speedboat, hiding below the gunwales out of sight. A man came out of the shadows, stopping in from of the office and looked, then walked slowly down the gangway toward the slips, looking into each boat. I couldn’t tell from the distance, but it looked like he had a gun in his hand.

Was it part of my case or not? I was too far away to recognize either one. I decided to sit tight and see if anything happens.

I wasn’t the only one waiting. As the man came to the slip where the girl was hiding, the strobe lights lit up. Hall and Forsyth County and some unmarked cars had joined the party. The man took one look and lay flat on the gangway. Two deputies cuffed him up and drug him back towards one of the cruisers. While they were going through the search process another deputy helped the girl out of her hiding place and took her in the opposite direction.

I wait until the man was safely in the back of a car to slip down closer to the action. I wanted to hear what it was all the fuss was about. Ray Williams was off to the side talking to a Forsyth deputy, I guess to arrange for transport. He didn’t need to know I was here and started back up to the car when I overhear the girl in the boat was Delores’ kid.

Really?

The news didn’t stop me from getting out of the cold. I take another slug from the flask as I settle into the seat. I’ve had enough craziness for the night. Just as I start the car, I hear the knock on the window.

It’s Williams.

He’s got some more questions.

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Topic-David Schrader

Pic-Dahlia Ramone

Pic Guesses: Pink (in blog) witch, redhead, trouble