“Oh!” Sam penciled it in. “Are you a fan of crosswords?”
“I am. Do them all the time.” Bunny tapped the side of her head. “Keeps the brain active.”
“I agree.” Sam looked up, and their gazes met.
Bunny got the strange feeling that something important was happening. Then Hailey came with their muffins, and they got busy cutting them open and putting butter on. Bunny was amused to discover that Sam used an overabundance of butter, just like she did.
Sam cleared his throat. “Shall we get to the business at hand? Do you have any ideas of how to proceed with our little…” Sam glanced around and then lowered his voice. “Investigation.”
Bunny frowned at the people at the next table. Were they eavesdropping? She leaned forward and lowered her voice. “Maybe we should come up with a code word. We don’t need people overhearing us and assuming we’re stalking someone or anything.”
“Good idea. It could be risky”—Sam tapped the word on his crossword—“if people overhear us. In the police force, sometimes we’d make a code name for the suspect. What if we refer to our suspect as ‘the dogcatcher?’ People will think we are simply referring to the actual dogcatcher.”
Bunny wasn’t sure if Lobster Bay even had a dogcatcher, but she supposed it would work. No one would be interested in conversations about a dogcatcher. “Sounds good.”
“So, what do you think our next steps should be?” Sam asked.
Bunny sat up a bit straighter. With his investigating experience, Sam was sure to have ideas on what to do next, but Bunny was proud he was asking her opinion.
“Well, I’ve gotten most of my ideas so far from the mystery book we’re reading for the book club. This month’s book isDeath on the Cliffs, which coincidentally involves a mysterious death in a seaside town just like this. Anyway, the protagonist in this book gets most of the clues by following the suspect… er, dogcatcher… around, interviewing people about suspicious events. And she also breaks into his place. I’m not sure we should do that, though.” Bunny pinched off the top of her muffin. “But you have real-life experience, so your ideas are probably much better.”
“Not at all,” Sam said. “I think you’ve got a great start. That’s basically how I would do it. But I think we’ve already followed Mr., er… the dogcatcher… and we don’t want to overdo it. Otherwise, he might notice.”
Bunny pressed her lips together. “True. So, what do you suggest we do next?”
“Well, on the job, I used to do a lot of research into the background of someone we were looking into. I don’t have access to the databases anymore. I probably wouldn’t even know how to use them now.” Sam laughed, and Bunny joined him.
Technology certainly had changed a lot, as Bunny had learned when she was shown a new program for digital painting a few weeks ago. The program was neat, but she wondered if she’d have the patience to use it. She was sure she could figure it out if she devoted the time to it, but why bother? She much preferred using paintbrushes and real paper.
Sam continued, “I think we can get some information just using the internet. Social media is so revealing these days.”
“That’s a great idea.” Bunny wondered where they would do this. Of course, she had a computer at home, but it didn’t seem right to invite Sam over. He seemed nice enough, but she barely knew the man. What if he was really some weirdo who gained access to ladies’ homes by pretending to work with them? She’d read a book where that happened. “We could meet at the library and use the computers there.”
“That’s a wonderful idea,” Sam said. “I suppose maybe we should exchange phone numbers just in case one of us can’t make it.”
“Yes, that would be a good idea. Plus, we can message each other if one of us gets an idea or finds a clue.” Bunny pulled out her phone, and they exchanged numbers. “I prefer texting. How about you?”
“Me too. I’m not much of a phone talker.”
“Well, this sounds like a good plan.” Bunny looked regretfully at the empty muffin cup on her plate. She’d already had two cups of coffee and didn’t want a third, yet she felt reluctant to leave. She did have that painting to work on at home, though.
“What time would you like to meet at the library?” Sam was looking at his empty plate too.
“How about three thirty?” That would give Bunny time to get her thoughts together, figure out what to search, and finish her painting.
“Sounds good.”
Hailey brought the bill, and Sam insisted on paying.
“I wouldn’t dream of letting you pay. You’re helping me out,” Bunny said.
“Not at all. I’m looking forward to doing something useful, so, in a way, you’re helpingmeout.” Sam pulled out his wallet.
“Oh well, since you put it that way. I’ll get the next one, then,” Bunny said.
“That sounds like a deal.”
Bunny left Sandcastles with Sam’s words ringing in her head. He was glad to be doing something useful. That was exactly how she felt about it. And if they stopped Mr. Smith from doing something horrible, that would be an added bonus.
