Louise shrugged and then nodded. “I had someone request plans for buildings in town maybe in February or March. I brought out a few of the books of plans, and he spent hours with them. He said he was an architect and was being asked to submit plans for a home to be built, and he wanted it to fit in with the others around it. I knew that was a lie because there isn’t space for building, but it was none of my business.”
“Let me ask you a question. Was this guy really tall?” Marty asked, and Louise gasped.
Her eyes got huge. “How did you know? He towered over me, and I was kind of nervous around him. I got him what he wanted and then stayed away, hoping he would leave.”
Grant strode into the reading room with Dexter, and all attention shifted to him, not that Marty could blame anyone, because damn, he was sexy as all hell. “What did you find?” Grant asked, all business.
“These books contain the plans for where Bobby and Cameron were left, and Louise said that in February or March, a tall man who she found intimidating requested these books as well. Is there any way to narrow down the date?” Marty asked.
Louise seemed to think. “I don’t know. I remember him, and I made a note in the front pocket of the name he gave me.” She turned to the cover and pulled out a tag. “Benny Dogood.”
Marty groaned. “Well, that’s fake.”
“How do you know?”
“Because Benjamin Franklin wrote the Silence Dogood letters in the seventeen twenties, and they were published by his brother’s paper. So this is most likely a reference to that.” He turned to Grant. “Was there someone who signed in under that name?” He was really cooking at the moment.
“I can check,” Sharon said left them for a few minutes, returning with a piece of paper. “These are the dates that Benny signed in.” She handed the paper to Grant. “So that means….”
“That someone was doing research and using a fake name to do it. We also have the dates that this person was here.” Grant hesitated. “Is there any sort of video surveillance here in the building?”
“No… well, yes, come to think of it. We have cameras on the gallery space, because sometimes there are items in here of significant value and our insurance company requires it.”
“Do any of them cover the hallway?”
Sharon nodded. “I believe so. There is one out in the hall that records into the galleries, as well as others inside those rooms.”
“How far back do you keep any recordings?” Marty asked. They were asking about two to three months ago. There was a lot of space needed to save video feeds, and he really didn’t think they would keep them that long.
“It depends. We only have so much space, and the system will purge the old feeds when space is needed for newer files. I can check and see what we have.” She left them alone, and Marty shared a smile with Grant.
“You check on the video with Sharon. I have to get to the school. I promised Cameron I’d be there to watch him run his races, and he’s still scared from yesterday.” He started gathering his things as Sharon returned.
“The earlier dates are gone, but we have the video from the last time Benny came in. I have the system burning it onto a CD. It will take a little while, but if you leave me your number, I can call you when it’s done, and you can pick it up. We’re open until four.”
“Thank you. And if Benny returns, please say nothing to him and don’t try to take any action, but call right away,” Grant told her. “You have been a huge help, all of you.” He flashed them one of his million-watt smiles, and Marty knew exactly what he was doing. “I’ll stop back in a few hours.” They left the building.
“Where are you heading?” Marty asked as Grant paused outside on the sidewalk.
“To the school. I think a police presence there is going to deter anyone who might be watching, and I want to see Cameron race too. I’ll meet you there.” He turned to the north as Marty went south and drove across town to the school. He had to park adistance away before meeting Grant, who of course parked right in front of the building.
Marty waited for Grant to join him. “I’m going to walk the perimeter of the building, but then I’ll meet you out in the observation area in a few minutes,” Grant said.
“Okay. Find this bastard,” Marty told him, and then went around to the back where the parents were gathering at the fence line. He couldn’t help looking around for a tall man, but didn’t see anyone in the crowd of maybe fifty people who had come to watch. The kids were all in groups by class, with six stations set up and each grade getting their turn.
Cameron saw him and waved. Marty waved back, and then his group was led to where they were running races. The kids all lined up, and when the teacher said go, they ran from one end of the field toward the other. Marty found himself shouting for Cameron to go, just like the other parents, and he saw Cameron zoom across the field out ahead of the other kids.
“They take the top five kids by grade and have them race for the ribbon against the top kids from the other first grade class,” the parent next to him explained. “That class already ran, so now it’s the race-off.”
“Awesome. Is your child in any of the races?” Marty asked.
“Yeah. He’s over there in third grade. They’re at the high jump. He doesn’t stand a chance, but….” She shrugged. “He’s still small for his age.”
“I always was too. But I grew up smart,” Marty said.
She smirked. “From your lips to god’s ears.” She turned back to the field. “They’re getting the final ten lined up.”
Marty’s attention was so glued to the field, he barely noticed that Grant had joined them until Dexter pressed up against his leg. “Cameron is running in the final race.” He jumped up when they started the race.
