Early the next afternoon, Mrs. Jones came to the office to pay her bill. “I think I am just as excited over this as Samuel was.”
“You sound excited.” Bertie replied.
“I’ll give you details another time but, in a nutshell… the original name seems to have been Jonesboro. They are said to have owned a rather large plantation with many slaves. Our ancestor, Alfred Jones, is thought to have left after a disagreement with the family over what he considered unfair treatment of the slaves. He apparently came to Canada, shortened his name to Jones, and had no further contact with them. My husband and I are going to Louisiana on vacation, to see what we can learn about it.”
“Wow. That’s quite a story. Have you told Professor Hynes about this?”
Irene laughed. “He was thrilled, wants to borrow the journals, and wants to know what I find down there, so he can add it to Samuel’s biography for the University.”
“That’s nice. I’m glad it all worked out.”
“Me too, and I wanted to pay your bill before we leave. Thank you so much for your help.”
“When are you leaving?”
“Tomorrow.” She walked towards the door, paused, and looked back. “This is beyond finding skeletons in the closet. I’ll tell you all about it when I get back.”
“I’ll look forward to it. Enjoy your trip.”
Harry’s truck pulled up behind Bertie’s battered jeep as Mrs. Walker was leaving. He waited a minute, reversed, and then pulled into his usual spot. Getting out of the truck, he walked into the office and laid Dorie’s ‘payment’ on the desk.
Bertie looked at the rock, and then looked up at Harry. “Did you solve the mystery?”
“I did, and that’s my payment.” He saw the puzzled look on her face. “I told her I don’t charge family and she gave me this.”
Bertie picked it up and examined the painting of a fisherman standing at the edge of a pond, holding up a rod with a fish dangling from the end of the line. “Beautiful work indeed,” she said. “Where are you going to put it?”
He took the rock, stepped outside, and placed it on the bridge beside the door. “Her work deserves to be seen and admired. How did things work out for you?”
“Terrific. I’ll tell you later.” She frowned. “How come you’re back today? I thought you might spend another day or two with Moe and the kids.”
He shrugged his shoulders and grinned. “Tomorrow is Saturday and the forecast is promising a great day for fishing.” Then he chuckled. “The kids have some sort of school debate thing going on. They’ll be tied up most of the weekend. Lock up when you leave.”
For a minute, Bertie was puzzled. Then she laughed and shook her head. I should have known, she thought. He came back because the kids were tied up and fishing was the next best thing.
