Friday, December 11

It had been a long week. With no other clues to help the POstables find 'A. Car', Oliver had told Shane to start the search for cottages or hotels near all the lakes in Michigan and Wyoming that had a guest the past summer with the first initial 'A' and the first three letters of the surname 'Car'. Despite Shane's diligent search parameters, each day had ended with 'No results'.

Friday morning began as usual. Oliver stopped for coffee, picked up Shane at her home, and drove to the post office. They arrived in the DLO ahead of Rita and Norman. The first thing Oliver looked at was that long, cardboard box that still lay at the end of the work table, a sober reminder that they had not located a grandfather who sent a Christmas gift to a boy named Andy.

Norman and Rita came into a silent DLO, each carrying a bin of letters. Shane stood by her desk, sipping a cup of coffee and watching Oliver.

Oliver sat at his desk, holding the letter in one hand and the magnifying glass in the other.

"Good morning, Oliver," Rita and Norman said in unison.

Oliver jumped slightly, dropped the letter, and looked up. "Good morning. Did you have a pleasant evening?"

"Yes, we did," Rita said.

Norman put the bin on the table and walked over to Oliver's desk. "Anything?" he asked Oliver.

Oliver sighed and laid the magnifier on top of the letter. "Nothing."

"I still have quite a few lakes to search," Shane said.

"That is true," Oliver said.

Shane sat at her desk and typed rapidly. "Done," she said a few minutes later. She reached into her purse for her laptop, brought it to the table, and took a stack of letters from a bin. "Let's get started."

Shane took a quick look at her computer at noon. Quite a few searches had already yielded 'No result', but data still scrolled down the screen. "Nothing yet," she said.

Oliver opened his mouth.

"Let's eat. I'm hungry," Shane said quickly before Oliver could speak.

"Me, too," Rita said.

Oliver stood up. "Very well."

"How are things going with the pageant?" Shane asked Norman as soon as they were seated.

"Good," Norman said. "I'm helping the kids with their lines, and Rita is sewing the costumes. Dad volunteered to build the stable. He asked Joe to help him. They're both meeting us at the home tonight to discuss the project with Drew."

"I hope Dad didn't forget our appointment this evening," Oliver said to Shane.

"I'll check," Shane said, reaching for her cell. She typed a message and received an immediate response. "He didn't," Shane said. "He's meeting Bill as soon as we're finished."

"What are you doing?" Rita asked.

"Something special for Oliver's Christmas tree," Shane said. "Don't worry. I'll show you when they're finished."

" We do need to leave a little early today," Oliver said. "I hope that won't be inconvenient."

"Of course not," Rita said. "Norman and I can handle things."

Oliver nodded. "It's time to get back to work," he said.

Oliver was restless. He would sit at his desk for a while, get up, pace, walk over to Shane's computer and return to his chair. He sighed longer each time he checked the results. Shane couldn't wait for the day to end so she could get his mind on something else.

The clock finally read 4:00 p.m. Shane closed her laptop and checked her computer. Data still scrolled.

Oliver brought Shane her coat and looked at the screen.

"It's almost finished," Shane said. "Rita will call us if we get a match. If we don't leave now, we'll be late."

Oliver put on his coat and picked up his briefcase.

"Talk to you later," Shane said to Rita, squeezing Rita's hand as she walked by.