“Yes, well, people do love pirates.”
“Thank God!” Dirk shrugged and said, “I make my living by running a pirate ship that we take out for tourists every day. We do birthday parties and other occasions, too.” He produced a card from his wallet to hand the newcomer. “Abby’s worked on her over the years. Go figure—she made a great pirate and now she’s a federal agent.”
“Well, who ever said there weren’t a few pirates among the feds?” Malachi Gordon asked lightly.
That was very amusing to her grandfather’s friends; they all laughed. Glancing around, Abby saw that Roger and Paul were about to leave and she excused herself to say goodbye to them. She’d try to catch the fed on his own soon.
Roger and Paul were old friends and both hugged her warmly. She walked out front with them. “Hey, your freebie newspapers were delivered,” Roger said, picking up the bundle to open them and lay them on top of the stand. As he did, she noticed the headline.
Body of College Student Found in River
A third murder? she wondered, itching to pick up the paper and find out what was going on.
Or...a fourth? Had Gus been murdered by the same person who’d killed three people found in or near the river?
Was her mind going haywire because she was a new graduate from the academy who’d just taken classes taught by a premier behavioral specialist? Was she looking for a mystery where none existed?
But...Savannah’s murder rate for the past few years had been low for a city of its size. Any large city battled violent crime and Savannah had seen its share. But this...
“Hey, you’ll be heading back to Virginia,” Roger reminded her. He took her by the shoulders, his eyes meeting hers. “You have to worry about you right now, Ms. Anderson.”
“What are you going to do?” Paul asked her. “You’ve inherited the Dragonslayer. You wouldn’t close down the tavern, would you?”
“No, no, of course not,” she said. “Don’t worry.”
“That’s going to be tough—you being an absentee owner,” Paul pointed out.
“Macy has it down pat,” Abby said. “We have great bartenders, cooks and waitstaff. I’m sure it’s all going to work out. That’s been the least of...” Her voice trailed off. She didn’t want to say worries. “That’s...well, not what I’ve worried about,” she said.
“Yeah, sorry, kid. So sorry,” Roger murmured. “I know how much you loved Gus.”
“We really loved him, too, you know?” Paul said.
She nodded. “Of course. I know.”
Abby went back inside. One of their newest waitresses—a girl named Julie whom Abby had just met—was cleaning up in the dining rooms. The staff who’d been there the longest hadn’t really worked that day, other than stepping in to help get a few things loaded into the bus carts. They’d come as mourners.
She looked around; there was no sign of Malachi Gordon.
“Everyone’s left?” she asked Julie.
“There are a few of us still tidying up in the kitchen. It’s back to full service tomorrow, or so I was told,” Julie said. She hesitated. She was young and sweet, a student at the design school. “I mean, I’m sorry—that’s your call now. But, um, that’s what I was told.”
“Yes, we’re back to regular hours, Julie. Thanks.” Abby smiled. “And thanks for getting everything picked up.”
“Yeah, a real sad thing about Gus. He was so good to all of us.”
“That’s great to hear, even though it’s something I know—that Gus was great to work for,” Abby said.
She turned and went back to the front. Sullivan was behind the bar. Macy was collecting glasses that had been left at the tall bar tables.
Aldous, Dirk and Bootsie remained on their bar stools.
“What happened to your new friend?” she asked him. “The man from the bureau?”
Dirk frowned. “I don’t know. Maybe he took off. He wasn’t actually a friend of yours, right? Just a rep from the government?”
“I’d thought he’d speak with me again before he left,” Abby said. “But...I guess not.”
Bootsie stood, his peg leg wobbling. “Listen, Abby, we know today’s been hard on you. Now, the boys and I, we can hang around here as long as you like. Or, better still, we can take you off somewhere else and give you a break from this place.”
She shook her head. “No, thanks. It’s okay. To be honest, I’m looking forward to some time alone.”
“Alone?” Bootsie said, surprised.
“Do you want us to walk you to your parents’ house?” Dirk asked her. “I mean, do you really want to stay here right now? You have that beautiful house on the square....”