More Harry Hogan stories!
Harry was just pouring a mug of coffee for himself when the office door opened and Silas walked in. Taking another mug from the rack, he filled that one too and handed it to Silas as he sat down. “Good morning, Silas. To what do I owe the pleasure?”
“Remember back when we investigated that ‘Restless Spirit’ story at the lighthouse?”
Harry nodded. “The light you saw just offshore, which disappeared as it got closer. We never did find the source of that light, did we?”
Silas shook his head. “No, but I have a theory… might be a dead end… but still might be worth looking into.”
“Okay, tell me your theory.” Harry knew Silas was cautious about what he said. He would not say anything unless he had given it a lot of thought first.
“I’m as familiar as anyone around here with the coastline in that area, probably more so than most people.”
“That’s not surprising, considering all the time you’ve spent out there.”
“Ever since I was a boy,” Silas said. “I’ve been fascinated from the time I first heard the story behind its construction. I heard the stories from my grandfather and the old light keepers who were still around at the time. The more I heard, the more I wanted to know.” He paused to sip his coffee.
“A couple of days ago, I got to thinking about the light that I – and others before me – had seen, and the things we learned while trying to explain it. And then, I remembered something else, something that – to the best of my knowledge – has never been investigated.”
“Okay, you’ve got my attention. What is it?” Harry asked. “Are you talking about the possibility of poaching?”
Silas shook his head slowly. “Poaching lobsters in that cave would never amount to more tha a few illegal meals for someone. But, something else could be more lucrative. Bingo and I were talking last week, when a new resident joined us. Ben Williams grew up here, moved away after high school and came back when he was looking for a retirement home.”
Harry wondered where this was leading. “Silas, what’s this all about?”
“Well… Ben asked if there was any smuggling being done around here now, like in the old days.”
“Smuggling what? When? How long ago was it?”
“You haven’t heard about it?”
Harry sighed. “Silas, you forget that I didn’t grow up here. I didn’t hear the old stories that you heard. I was with the police force, married, with a young family, when I came here. I barely had time to eat and sleep in those days, and no time for anything else.”
Silas nodded. “Right. You just seem so much a part of this town that I sometimes forget. Anyway, long before my time, there was smuggling around here, mostly illegal liquor I think, possibly rum from Jamaica. So, I got to wondering… maybe that’s what the cave was used for.”
