Thank you for all of the great reviews. I will try to respond to all of them. Unfortunately I can't respond to the guest reviewers but thank you for your comments!
Return To Me
Chapter 4
Meeting the Locals
Jane took a quick shower and was feeling refreshed and curious to see what Lost Wells looked like by the time Cho knocked on the door a half hour later. Grabbing her shoulder bag, Lisbon followed Cho out while Jane locked up. The drive took all of 5 minutes and then they were at their destination.
Back at the motel, Maisie, the owner of the place, stood and watched the large black SUV pull out of the parking lot and head for town. She knew her guests had a limited choice in food and drink in Lost Wells. With so many police officers buzzing around, and strangers filling her rooms, she resolved to do some good old fashioned baking that evening to at least offer to her guests when she brought coffee 'round to their rooms in the morning. It was the least she could do to make them more at home.
(Lost Wells)
Stepping out of the SUV, Cho, Lisbon and Jane gazed up the street one way, and down the street the other way. The place looked tired, defeated, like the last few residents there had all but given up hope of making a go of things. The basic necessities were taken care of, like the Diner, and schools, but precious few stores remained to offer goods that could be purchased cheaper at the Target or Walmart one town over the county line. It was those giant stores that were killing small towns like Lost Wells now that the last of the local industries were shutting down. A few folks were out walking before suppertime, and kids on bikes raced up the dusty street, unafraid of the little traffic sharing the road with them. The town must have been a great place to live up until 10 or 15 years ago and Jane felt a sadness creep over him knowing that soon this place would just be a memory for all of these good people. They would move on to greener pastures, find jobs or retire somewhere more hospitable and closer to shops and some kind of night life. It was sad.
"So, where do you want to begin?" Cho asked, interrupting Jane's maudlin thoughts.
"If you go that way"Jane indicated, pointing towards the Baptist Church at the end of the street, "and we go this way" he pointed at the shoe shop and garage at the other end, "we can meet in the middle and compare notes. Then it should be time to hit up the Texas Belle for supper."
Cho gazed at his territory and shrugged in agreement. It didn't matter where he started. Chances are the people he'd interview were tired of answering the same old questions by now, the novelty of the missing men replaced by the gruesomely fresh murder.
"OK, see you later." Cho strolled down the street and entered the first business he came upon, while Jane offered Lisbon his arm as if they were strolling to Church on a Sunday morning.
"Lovely evening for a walk my dear" he mused aloud, eliciting a giggle from Teresa.
"Why Rhett Butler, you old charmer you...you do know how to woo a lady!" Lisbon said in her best Scarlett O'Hara voice.
"Why thank you ma'am" Jane smiled, tipping an imaginary hat to her. An older couple walking by stared at him but he didn't care. Fun was to be had at every opportunity when you walked with the woman you loved on your arm. Otherwise why get up in the morning? They stopped at the shoe shop and entered, glad it was still open.
The lone sales clerk jumped up from his chair, thrilled at the idea that someone might actually buy a pair of shoes from him.
"How can I help you? Shoes for the lady today?" he oozed, smiling like a Cheshire cat at Lisbon. "Such delicate feet deserve to be adorned in the latest fashions!"
"Ah...no..not for the lady" Jane said before he was cut off by the excited sales clerk.
"Of course, for you sir!" he said, casting his eyes down and eyeing Jane's scruffy and worn looking brown shoes. "I see you are in need of a new pair of brogues" he gushed, reaching for a pair of fancy brown leather shoes that would have suited Jane's grandfather.
"Sorry, not for me either."
The clerk's face fell as if someone had just kicked his dog. "Well then, how can I be of service today?" he asked, once again looking at the sad pair of shoes on Jane's feet as if they would somehow infect the other shoes in the store. "Shoe polish perhaps sir?"
"I'm Agent Lisbon with the Austin FBI, this is my Consultant Patrick Jane. We were wondering if you have any information that might be relevant to the investigation concerning the disappearance of three men..."
"Or...any information about the man who was killed and dumped in town sometime in the last 12 hours" Jane interjected.
The sales clerk clamped his jaw shut. Not all this again! He dropped all pretense of courtesy and revealed his true personality.
"Look, like I told the local police from the next County, and the Feds from Houston, I don't know anything. Those three missing men are strangers to me, and I certainly don't know anything about the poor dead man who was found today. Why would I?" he asked in frustration, all attempts at civility suddenly gone.
Jane glared at him and couldn't resist that challenging statement.
"Why wouldn't you? Aren't you smart enough to kill someone?"
"Of course I'm smart enough...I mean, wait...what? Who me? No, I'm not … I wouldn't …"
"So no, you aren't the killer or yes, you're smart enough to be one?" Jane continued, enjoying this little game.
"Jane!" Lisbon hissed.
"I'm smart enough Sir, but I wouldn't use my talents to plan a murder, if that is what you're insinuating!" the clerk barked, regaining some control of the conversation.
"No insinuation, just checking" Jane smiled at the sweating man. "From your reaction it's obvious you haven't killed anyone lately."
"JANE!"
"No I haven't! I mean, not at all, not just lately...Jesus!" the clerk stammered, totally flummoxed by this line of questioning.
"Get the hell outta my store! Both of you!" the man sputtered, pointing at the door as he walked over to open it.
"Thank you...you've been a big help" Jane smiled as he let Lisbon go through the door first, his hand guiding her by the small of her back.
When he was through the door himself, it slammed behind him and the 'OPEN' sign was reversed to say "CLOSED'.
Lisbon stood staring at Jane.
"Way to win friends. What was all that about?"
"Oh I was just having a bit of fun with him, that's all. He's obviously not guilty of anything more serious than being obsequious. And he didn't like my shoes."
Walking away from Jane, Lisbon called over her shoulder.
"News flash, no one likes your shoes."
Jane stopped dead in his tracks, looking down at his feet.
"Really? I thought they were all the rage…"
"Come on... let's get this done so we can eat at some point. And don't incite a riot at the next business!" Lisbon warned him as she walked ahead.
"You wound me…"Jane mumbled, pausing to wipe the dust off the toe of his shoe. "Don't listen to her, she's mean…"
Down the street, Cho ambled into a store selling spare parts for cars and just about anything else automotive. A fine layer of Texas dust lay over all of the previously shiny metal chrome parts lined up on shelving around the perimeter of the small store. To extent his profit margin, the proprietor of the business also sold vacuum cleaners.
"Good afternoon" Cho began, holding out his FBI badge to identify himself. "Kimball Cho, Austin FBI. Could I ask you a few questions?"
The man behind the counter was at least 60, a bit grizzled but clean, with neatly pressed clothes. He peered at Cho's ID tag with exaggerated concern, then sat back and folded his arms across his chest. He was actually getting used to talking to FBI agents.
"Ask away Agent Cho" he drawled.
"As you probably know, an FBI agent has gone missing after he came to Lost Wells to close up a house here once owned by his grandmother."
"Yup, I heard about that" the man interrupted Cho.
Cho showed a photo of Agent Thomas to the man and asked if he had seen him.
"Yup, I seen 'em. Long time ago. Came into the store just like you and asked me a buncha questions, bought some stuff then left" the man explained.
Cho produced the photos of the other missing men, including the recently acquired photo of Martin Valeriote.
"Did you see any of these men when they passed through town? Either here, or somewhere else in town?"
"Like in church or at the Texas Belle?" the man asked.
"Yes."
"Nope."
Cho sighed in exasperation. This man wasn't exactly a fountain of information. He tried a different tactic.
"If I asked you if anyone comes to mind who might do harm to a stranger passing through town, who would you immediately think of?"
The man behind the counter blew out a long breath, surprised by this new question. It was a doozy and he was temporarily stumped for an answer. Then his face lit up and he had a name.
"You thought of someone sir. Who is it?" asked Cho carefully, not wanting to spook the man if he had a lead.
"I don't like to tell tales outta school, if ya know what I mean...but...every town has someone who just doesn't fit in...kinda rubs everybody the wrong way...ya know what I mean?" he said to Cho.
"Yes, I'm familiar with the type" Cho answered, his pen and notepad at the ready. "Do you have a name sir?"
"Well I do."
Cho waited. And waited.
"The name sir?"
The man stood up and reached under the counter for a small white bag of candy and popped one into his mouth, chewing noisily while he watched Cho try to contain his impatience. Giving him a break, he broke into a smile and relented.
"Ah hell...I'm just havin' some fun with ya! It's me! I never did fit in with all the prissy folks here! I just show up, sell them what they need and then leave all them buggers alone! Ha ha you thought I was going to name someone else, didn't ya?" he laughed.
Cho put away his notepad and pocketed his pencil. He waited until the man behind the counter stopped guffawing and became serious again, such was Cho's glacial stare.
"Lives are at stake and you're jerking my chain. You really want to go down that road sir?" came Cho's icy reply.
"Ah...sorry about that...couldn't resist. So many damned cops around here lately I just wanted to have a bit of fun…" the man explained, uncomfortable under Cho's unrelenting scrutiny.
"Sir, a man is dead and three others are missing. When you're done playing games, give me a call if you recall anything that seems out of place or strange. The sooner we get everyone's cooperation, we'll leave Lost Wells and stop bothering you with all of these questions" Cho lectured him while handing him a business card.
"Yes sir, of course. Sorry...I meant no disrespect" the older man mumbled, thoroughly chastised.
Cho left the store and proceeded to the next business, already fed up with the task of eliciting information from people who were tired of being questioned. By the time he had been in and out of each business on his side of the downtown core, he doubled back to meet up with Jane and Lisbon.
"Any luck Cho?" Lisbon asked when they found each other.
"No. How'd it go for you?"
Before Lisbon could answer Jane piped up.
"Great!" he answered brightly.
"That depends on your definition of great Jane!" Lisbon barked.
Cho smirked as they walked towards the Texas Belle diner.
"What did he do this time?" he asked, eyeing Jane.
"Well half the town is in love with him and the other half of the town wants to tar and feather him, so I guess it was a wash. We got no new information to work with. The good people of Lost Wells are tired of dealing with Feds" Lisbon explained.
"I thought it went very well" Jane interjected. "We asked all the right questions and for the most part, people were truthful. I don't think anyone here took our men or killed anyone...except maybe for that shoe salesman…"
"Jane!"
"Relax Lisbon. The man was an officious dictator with a stick up his..."
"He was just doing his job. You just didn't like it that he thought your shoes were sadly in need of improvement" Lisbon reminded him.
"Let me guess, he tried to sell you new shoes?" Cho snorted as they arrived at the diner.
"Big mistake" Lisbon mumbled as she peered in the front window. .
"You two are like cats in a bag…" Cho observed as he held open the door to the Texas Belle.
The diner was a blast from the past, at least 60 years old with a lot of the original fixtures still in use. Large globe lights more commonly used in old school rooms hung from the ceiling casting light on booths arranged up both sides of the restaurant's walls. The floor space in the middle was taken up with random tables and chairs, mismatched but still cozy looking in the checkerboard linoleum way that old diners seemed to manage so well. Cheery red and white plastic table cloths draped the tables and paper placemats sat on the booth tables alongside the prerequisite ketchup, mustard and vinegar bottles. Greasy menus sat on the tables but the locals all knew what to order from long experience. An aluminum banded counter ran across the back of the diner with stools lined up in front to hold anyone who didn't manage to get a table on busy nights. A few teenagers were sitting at the counter drinking Cokes and eating french fries, dousing their stomachs with a chemical soup sure to speed up the next round of pimples and anxiety. The three agents stood looking for a booth or table but all were full. The discovery of a dead body in town had raised the level of speculation and gossip amongst the locals to a new level of hysteria and to get their thrills, everyone in town it seemed had descended on the Texas Belle to spew out their version of the latest news.
Sighing in resignation, Cho headed towards the counter at the back of the room while Lisbon and Jane followed behind. Conversation stopped at the tables they passed as the patrons recognized new strangers in their midst. Assuming these strangers were cops or Feds they gave them the once over before whispering behind their hands once again.
Cho sat at the stool the farthest away from the teenagers and indicated the spots next to him for Lisbon and Jane to take. The woman behind the counter spotted them and put three glasses of cold water in front of them before pulling a well chewed pencil from behind her ear to take their orders.
"What'll it be sugar?" she asked Teresa. Lisbon hadn't seen a menu yet so was at a loss for words.
Pointing up at a chalkboard, the waitress rambled off the specials for the night while Jane perused a menu he found on the countertop.
"Uh...I'll have a cheeseburger with onion rings and a large coffee please" Lisbon said in a rush, feeling pressured to make a decision.
"Ok sugar, and you?" the waitress asked Cho without looking up at him.
"I'll have a cold sweet tea, fried chicken with a side of home fries and corn" he said decisively, more hungry that he had expected.
"Good choice" the waitress said as she wrote down his order. Then she shuffled off to stand in front of Jane.
"What'll it be honey?" she asked without looking at him.
"Carol...is it?" Jane said, reading her name on the yellow plastic name tag the waitress wore. The woman finally looked up and saw Jane waiting patiently for her full attention.
"Ah...yes, it's Carol...what would you like tonight sugar?" she said a tad more softly than she had a moment before.
"Well everything looks wonderful on the menu and I am hard pressed to make a choice. What do you recommend Carol?" Jane asked the older woman. She was so used to being invisible that she was momentarily taken aback by this stranger's attention.
"Oh, ah...well, if it was up to me, I'd avoid the meat loaf...not so moist if you ask me...but the chicken pot pie is wonderful. Our cook makes excellent pastry. And the soup is also very good, especially the minestrone" she smiled.
Jane looked at the menu again for a moment then slammed it shut, handing it back to the astonished woman.
"Since you would know best, I will place my trust in you Carol. I'll have the soup and the chicken pie with a side tossed salad, along with a cup of hot tea" Jane said, smiling his thanks to the waitress as she scribbled down his order.
"I'll be right back with that sir" she smiled, then hustled away.
Turning to Cho and Lisbon, Jane saw them both staring at him.
"What?"
"Making new friends again Jane?" Lisbon smirked while Cho just shook his head.
"Lisbon, the way to get what you want from the townsfolk is to go to the source of all knowledge" Jane explained.
"That would be the hairdresser Jane" Lisbon correctly advised him.
Jane stopped for a moment to think about this and had to agree.
"OK, yes, they know everything, but after that, you make nice with the local wait staff at the only restaurant in town. If they don't know it, it isn't worth knowing" he said with certainty.
"So you plan on grilling Carol for the name of the kidnapper and murderer?" Cho said, swinging around in his seat to view the crowded room. "Because she knows of course…"
Jane swivelled around in his seat to gaze at the crowd as well, reading them from his stool like they were telegraphing their thoughts to him.
"She knows a lot, more than she realizes. She has watched the people in this town grow up, go to school, graduate, get married, get divorced, cheat and lie and scam each other. What she knows could fill a book, but she doesn't realize that one of these folks could be our perp. So, we get her to open up."
Lisbon watched Carol fly around the busy restaurant and knew she wouldn't have a moment to spare for Jane to work his magic with her, not today anyway.
"She's too busy tonight Jane. Good idea but wrong day."
"You're right of course but she will remember me tomorrow when I come back after breakfast when things slow down. I'll see what she has to say then."
Cho had to admit there was a point to Jane's approach that just might work, so he didn't shoot down his method. Charm could be weaponized after all.
In a surprisingly short time all three of them had a hot dinner placed in front of them, and Maisie Lyons was correct, the food was surprisingly good. It was home cooked, not out of a freezer or microwave oven and so the next little while passed quietly while supper was enjoyed in silence.
Gradually the restaurant crowd thinned out and Jane, Lisbon and Cho returned to their car for the short trip back to their motel. Carol watched them leave and hoped to see that nice man again. Then she turned back to washing down another sticky tabletop.