“Acase.”
“Uh-huh.”
“I can’t really share the details with a civilian. Youunderstand.”
“Right. Because that gnome head is evidence and therefore needs to be kept on your night stand instead of the evidencelocker.”
Crap. He was starting to get the hang of the procedures I shouldn’t bebreaking.
He raised an eyebrow. “Yes?”
“It’snot—”
My phone rang from under my pillow and I pulled it out, answering without even glancing at the screen. “Officer JeanReed.”
“There’s been a kidnapping,” Bertie said far too calmly for someone reporting akidnapping.
“Who? Have you called the station? Myra’s on duty. Does she know? Does Delaneyknow?”
“They don’t know because I don’t care to involve them in thissituation.”
I scowled at the ceiling while Hogan’s hand rubbed a slow circle on my stomach. “Bertie, everyone in town follows the law. Report it to the officer on duty. Now. This is someone’s life you’re putting atrisk.”
“Not someone. Something. Or rather, somefowl.”
“I’m hanging up. Call the station. I’ll be theresoon.”
“It’s thepenguin.”
I waited while my brain zagged from emergency mode to annoyed. “What?”
“Mrs. Yates’s penguin has beenkidnapped.”
I sighed and dropped my hand over my eyes. “Still something you should call the stationabout.”
“No, I don’t think it is. This isn’t a…normalhijacking.”
“That penguin gets stolen at least twice a month. It’s prettynormal.”
“Not thistime.”
I didn’t want to ask, because I really was off duty, and there really were other police officers who could track down our famous roaming penguin. “Why is it different thistime?”
There was a hushing sound, almost as if Bertie had cupped her hand over her phone. “If I tell you this, it must be off the record. I will deny saying any word ofit.”
Okay, this just got interesting. “All right. Noted. Off the record. We’re just a couple citizens of Ordinary, shooting the breeze. But be careful, Bertie. If this is serious, if this puts someone’s life in danger, then all bets areoff.”
“I understand. It is possible I have some knowledge of previous penguinkidnappings.”
I moved my hand away from my eyes and stared at Hogan who was frowning at me. I mouthedoh, my,god.
He mouthed,what?
“Are you telling me you have something to do with all those penguin thefts,Bertie?”
Hogan’s smile was wide and his eyes sparkled. Yeah, it was amazing to think that the rule-following, event ball-busting Bertie was involved in what we’d suspected was just high schoolshenanigans.
“The penguin is wonderful advertisement for Ordinary. Someone needed to contact the…person or persons involved in creatively relocating the statue. To assure that the penguin, which is private property, not be damaged ordegraded.”
