My friend shrugged his shoulders and said, "I don't know, I guess because it's the major source of income for the County."

This confounded her even more, and she said, "Such things should not be considered appropriate to display on the side of water towers and billboards and such. But then, Americans are, in general, crudely uncivilized!" She left in a huff, and greatly offended.

"Later my friend learned what the word 'f.a.n.n.y' meant in England."

"Yes," the Professor said. "It is a crude reference to the female v.a.g.i.n.a."

"Right. So this British woman left thinking that the major source of income for Chilton County was not peaches, but prost.i.tution!"

There was a roar of laughter, as Travis realized that he had more listeners than he was aware of. Isabel found it particularly funny. He would not have told such a thing in mixed company, if he knew so many were listening. This was yet another sign that he had too much to drink. "Folks, I think I have reached my limit, and I have a busy day planned for tomorrow, so I must go."

They begged him to stay longer, but he insisted he had to go. A couple others were leaving as well, so they offered to accompany him to his hotel, saying that the streets of London could sometimes be dangerous after dark.

When he got to his room, he found his mother asleep, and Drew back from his walk, but still awake.

"Are you all right, Dad?"

"I'm fine tonight. Tomorrow may be a different story." He staggered to the bathroom to get ready for bed.

He didn't see the hand-written message his Mom had left for him beside the phone.

28.

After stopping for ice cream, Miranda dropped Lennie off at his home. The big empty house loomed on the hill as Lennie got out of the car, thanking her for the ride to the doctor.

"Don't forget your medicine, Lennie."

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot."

"Be sure and take them just like I told you. The directions are on each bottle."

"I will. Thanks Miranda."

As she backed up to leave, she watched him go into his empty house. She could relate to his loneliness, because since she won the Lottery, she seemed to be just as lonely. She didn't see how Lennie could stand it, the loneliness, and now the burden of knowing that he had cancer, and that he didn't have long to live. If he wasn't so simple minded, he probably couldn't stand it. It made her shudder to think of what he had told her over his banana split. 'Miranda, you are the bestist friend I've got in the whole wide world!' And the sad part was, he was right. She was not just his best friend, she was also his only friend. It was enough to make her eyes water. He was, without a doubt, the most sincere man she had ever met. If he wasn't such a simpleton, and wasn't dying, she would probably want to marry him! Yes, she was that desperate to find someone she could trust.

But as she pulled out of his driveway, she remembered that she had more pressing problems. Namely, what to do with the remaining parts of her last attempt at love. She could have kicked herself for not making sure that all the parts were in place before the pool cement was poured. Travis had been right, it was the perfect solution to what to do with the body, because no one would ever find him there. But now she had to deal with her mistake. As usual, when she really needed Travis around to advise her, he was gone off to who-knows-where! She had to devise some plan to dispose of the remaining two parts of the Judge. But that shouldn't be so hard, should it?

It was disturbing that Lennie knew so much about what she had done. True, he didn't know where most of the body was hidden, but he knew about the Judge being in her freezer. It was dangerous to have such knowledge in the head of someone so nave and stupid. Under police questioning, he was sure to crack and tell what he knew, or at least let something slip that would point a finger back toward her. He was so darn helpful, that he was dangerous.

Incredibly, he had offered to help her, by taking the blame for the Judge's death! Was that stupid, or what? What could he possibly use as a reason for killing the Judge? Lennie wouldn't hurt a fly! It was absurd that he thought he could help her out of this mess, by confessing to killing the Judge himself. Stupid, stupid Lennie!

Listen to her! Who was she calling stupid? Stupid was the whole situation she found herself in, and it wasn't anyone's fault but her own. Travis told her it was stupid. Even Lennie told her it was stupid! And then Lennie had the laughable thought that he could help her out of this mess, by telling the police that he killed the Judge? Why would she, even for a moment, consider such a thing?

Hmm. Why not? Lennie was right. What could they do to him? He was dying anyway. He really does like me, and he wants to help me. He is willing to do anything for me, so why not let him? No, she felt horrible for just thinking such a thing. Travis was right. It's my mess, so I have to clean it up!

She turned down her driveway and saw the contractors trucks gathered there, and men hauling tools out of her back yard. It looked like they were finished. The contractor smiled as he came out to meet her.

"Ms. Monroe, I am proud to inform you that your pool is installed two days under the agreed upon deadline! The landscapers are finishing up now, but they will be finished by sundown."

"Is it filled with water?"

"No, we need to let it cure out a couple of days before we fill it with water."

"Then it won't be finished for two more days, which is still meeting our deadline, but minus the bonus!"

The smile faded from the contractor's face.

"What would happen, if you filled it with water now?" she asked.

"The weight and pressure of the water could cause stress cracks in the cement. And stress cracks could cause us to have to dig the whole thing up and start over."

This sent an electric shock through her brain. "We certainly don't want that," Miranda said.

"No Ma-am, we don't want that. It wouldn't be ready for your pool party on Sat.u.r.day."

"So all I have to do to insure that the cement will cure properly, and not crack, is to wait two more days before I fill it?"

"Yes Ma-am."

"Okay, I can live with that. Give me your bill, and I will write you a check."

"Yes Ma-am, just one moment."

As she went into the house to get her checkbook, she breathed a sigh of relief, that the job was finished. But even before she got her checkbook, she had to go to the back porch to be sure Leon was still in the freezer. She raised the lid, saw a frozen ear, covered it back up with a bag of English peas, and went to get her checkbook. She wrote the check for the agreed upon price, plus two days bonus, and the deal was finished. They loaded their tools and left Miranda to admire her new pool.

She walked around back to take a look at it, but there were no flaws, it was perfect. No one would ever know that it concealed the body of Judge Leon Rosewood. She was almost home free. All she had to do was get rid of the last two pieces, and it would be like he was never here. What should she do with them? Why not let Lennie decide what to do with them, since he was so eager to help. With just a little smile, and a turning of her female charm, she could get Lennie to do anything for her, she was sure of it. She just had to make sure that he understood what he was to do and say, should the police find him in possession of the parts. He must not even hint that she had anything to do with the Judge's death. She would coach him to say that he accidentally killed the Judge. And then he was scared, and so he tried to hide the body, but it wouldn't fit anywhere, so he cut him up into small pieces, and disposed of the pieces in the river, where the fish could eat him, and no one would ever find the pieces. It sounded plausible, if she could get Lennie to stick to the story without deviating from it, or adding to it.

But there was the problem. When the police begin asking their questions, it was sure to rattle Lennie. The questions of 'how', 'why', 'when' and 'where' were going to sound a lot different coming from the police than from her coaching. He was going to slip up and say the wrong thing at the wrong time, and then the police were going to be knocking on her door. And she knew that if the pressure was on her, she would crack open like a rotten egg!

No, she couldn't let Lennie help her, because it was sure to backfire. He already knew too much as it was. If only he would oblige her by dying of cancer in the next day or two, then he couldn't mess things up running his mouth. Dead men told no tales. Arg! That sounded so pirate-like! And it was an awful thought to have about Lennie, but it was the truth. If he carried the parts to his house, then he died, the police would be left trying to piece together what happened without Lennie's explanation to clog up the works. They would have to piece it together with nothing but physical forensic evidence, and hopefully there would be nothing there to point to her. It was all so confusing, trying to decide what she should do, and what the consequences would be, if something didn't go as planned.

She went and got a lawn chair, and took it out beside the new pool. She sat down and looked forlornly into the empty pool, as though she thought she might see some dark reflection of her soul, as she considered her options. Should she include Lennie in her planning, or not? If he did not know anything already, then the answer would be no. But even the things he was privy to didn't seem a good enough reason to get him involved any deeper. He was going to mess it all up, she was sure of it.

So what should she do? Where could she dispose of those other body parts? She had noticed an old hand-dug well out beside Lennie's house. He told her that his grandfather had dug the well a long time ago, but it was dry now, and was half-full of trash and junk. She had looked down into it, but could not see the bottom without a flashlight. She had the thought to drop the remaining parts into that well, without Lennie knowing about it of course, and see if anyone finds them. She could put the parts into a garbage bag with other animal parts, like pork chops, and chicken, and so it would all rot together, and would probably never be found.

But when would Lennie not be home, so she could throw it in there without being seen? That was the problem, because Lennie was always at home, unless he was gone to town with her. Hmm. That could work. She could visualize a plausible scenario. She could offer to take him to town to eat lunch one day, a chance he would jump at. When he gets in the car, and she backs up to go, she notices that his shirt is a little dirty. (His shirts were always dirty.) "No, Lennie! That shirt is too dirty. Go back and change it, and put on some deodorant too!" Of course, he would do just as she asked, and as soon as he went into the house, she could jump out, pop the trunk, and throw the bag of parts into the well. She would be back in the car waiting by the time he changed his shirt. It was too easy. It had to work. She would get the parts bagged up, and call him tomorrow.

29.

"Our top story tonight, on the Channel 9 News At 6:00, is a deadly residential fire near Laurel Grove. We reported the fire earlier, but now we are told that firefighters have apparently found a body in the charred ruins of the house on rural route 3 near Laurel Grove. The body was badly burned, so identification will be difficult. Speculation is that it is the body of the only resident of the house, but his ident.i.ty is presently being withheld. The body was reportedly found in the kitchen area of the house. More details will be released when investigators have examined the scene. Cause of the fire is still under investigation, but arson is not being ruled out. A neighbor reported seeing a vehicle leave the house only minutes before it burst into flames, but was unable to identify a make or model of the vehicle."

As the news anchor moved on to another story, Janice sat horrified in front of the TV, having heard that 'arson was not being ruled out', and that 'a witness reported seeing a vehicle leaving the scene just prior to the house bursting into flames.' She knew that vehicle was her blue Blazer, with her driving it! It was just a matter of time before the police would be knocking on her door. She turned to Rebecca, who had been watching the news with her, and said in a sickly way, "I need to talk to your father."

"But he's in England."

"I know, but I have to talk to him!" Desperate to confide in someone, she broke down in tears, and told Rebecca the whole thing, about taking Penelope to her dad's house, and what happened afterwards. Rebecca was shocked.

"Mom! That makes you an accessory to the crime!"

"I know, but all I was doing was trying to help Penelope! I didn't know something like this was going to happen!" Then, in anger, she burst out, "Every time I try to help that woman, it turns out badly! Your father is going to kill me, because he told me not to try to help her any more. But I did, and now this happens! He is going to literally kill me!"

"No he won't. I have only known him a short time, but I know him better than that."

"What should I do, Rebecca? Should I call the police, and tell them what I know, or what? Should I just wait and see if they find me out?"

"I would think that honesty is always the best policy. But you are right. You probably should talk to Dad. Do you know how to contact him in England?"

"Yes, I have a number for the Hotel in London, if he's still there. But it will be an expensive call."

"I don't think Dad will mind the cost. Get the number, and we will call him." As she went to get the number, Rebecca calculated the time zone difference. "It's a little after 11pm in London, so he should be in his room, but probably not asleep yet."

"Here, you punch in the number. My hands are shaking too badly."

"I'll try." She punched in the international code for England, then the number for the Royal National Hotel-South. The switchboard operator at the hotel asked for a room number, but they didn't know it. "The guest name is Travis Lee."

"One moment." She rang the room number, and while it rang, she handed the phone to Janice. On the third ring, a sleepy woman answered.

"h.e.l.lo?"

"Mrs. Lee?"

"Yes?"

"This is Janice. Did I wake you up?"

"No, I had to get up to answer the phone anyway. Is there something wrong at home?"

Not wanting to worry her, she lied, "No, not at all. I just wanted to talk to Travis. Is he there?"

"No, I don't guess he is back yet. He went to a bar earlier."

"Is Drew there?"

"No, he went out too."

"Both of them went out to a bar?"

"No, Drew went out on the town with the girls."

"Girls? What girls?"

"The girls on this trip with us. They just went out for a little fun."

Janice was visibly shaken. "Let me get this straight, Mrs. Lee. Travis went out to a bar, by himself, and my oldest son, who is only 16, went out bar hopping with a group of wild college girls?"

"It sounds a lot worse when you say it."

"I thought Travis was going to be watching Drew, to keep him out of trouble? And I thought you were going to be watching Travis, to keep him out of trouble?"

"I'm sorry, Janice, but I had a long day, and I was bone tired when I got back to the hotel! But at least I know where they went. We are having a great time though."

"Oh yeah! It sounds like Travis and Drew are having a ball!"

"I'm sorry you think I have let you down, Janice, but it's not as bad as it sounds. Is there anything you want me to tell Travis?"

"Yes! Tell him to call home immediately, no matter what time he gets in! I will be waiting by the phone!"

"I'll leave a note beside the phone, in case I'm asleep when he gets back in."

"Thank you." She hung up without even saying good bye. Rebecca was almost afraid to ask.

"So he wasn't in his room, huh? Is there something wrong?"

"Wrong? What could possibly be wrong? I could be facing homicide and arson charges, and I call my husband, to get advice, and find out that he is gone out to a bar somewhere, and that my oldest son is gone bar-hopping with a group of college girls! No, what could possibly be wrong?"

"But you left word for him to call you back, so he should be in soon."

"Yes, unless he gets drunk, and carried home with some British floozy! I'm sorry. You didn't hear me say that. But when your Dad gets drunk, he could wake up anywhere, and it's never his fault!"

"Does he get drunk often?"

"No, very seldom, in fact. But I just hate not knowing what's going on! I called him up to get advice, and to get rea.s.surance and comfort, and what do I get instead? Worries stacked on top worries! I would have been better off not to call him!"

"I'm sorry I suggested it. So what are you going to do now?"

"I'm going to sit right here and wait on that phone to ring, if it takes all night!"

"So you are not going to call the police and tell what you know?"

"That's right. I don't want Travis to say later that I should have talked to him first. Where are the boys?"

"In the garage working on their play costumes."

"Go tell them that their supper is getting cold!"