Nobody Can Say It's You

19

"There's not much else, I'm afraid," Bill said. "I know that must have been a shock to you both, having a man fall dead at your feet like that. And the fact that he had a blood-stained knife in his hands must have sent you right over the edge."

"Well, Bill, to be honest, it all happened so fast. I really didn't have much time to think about anything," Hadley said. "I'm glad no one else was hurt. But I gotta admit it. It was scary. A hooded goblin chased by armed lawmen down Main Street in broad daylight is not something we see every day in our sleepy little hamlet."

"It's a mystery why the old man was running from us," Bill said. "Button Dudley is the last person I'd ever think would dress up for a Halloween festival, let alone attend one. That old coot was running like the devil was chasing after his soul."

"I know," Hadley said. "He only hit town about once or twice a year. He was always happy to stay up in the hills."

"His costume, if you could call it that," Bill said, "was just rags."

"Umm," said Hadley.

"He did have something interesting draped around his neck," Bill said.

"What was that?" Hadley said.

"A string of spices," Bill said.

"What kind of spices?" Hadley asked.

"Star anise," Bill said.

"That's something the old ones use in conjure bags," Hadley said. "They'll put a pod in the bag and wear it to ward off the evil eye."

"I know, but Button had a whole mess of them," said Bill.

"That must have been where I got mine," Hadley said. "He bumped into me. Later, I found one on my jacket."

"You're lucky that's all Button gave you," Bill said. "He just came out of nowhere. We couldn't catch him. There were too many people standing around to do anything but give chase. If he hadn't dropped dead, I think he would have run clear out of town and escaped."

"But he did drop dead," said Hadley.

"And, thankfully, no one else was injured."

Bill peered into the bag. He pulled out a big hunk of cake and began devouring it.

"Lou Edna came to see me this morning, Bill. She was all upset. I'm really worried about her."

"Lou Edna's brain is fried from sniffing all that hairspray down at the beauty salon, Hadley," said Bill. "But what is it?"

"She came busting down my door at the crack of dawn. I was up, thanks to Onus. She saw the light on. She had this wild story about going out for a night on the town, ladies' night, with Ora Lavelle at Sadie's."

"Now, that's one joint I'd just as soon as not go in," said Bill. "We get a call every once in a while when Sadie's senior citizens get too rowdy. Throwin' their false teeth at each other or shootin' stale peanuts with their trusses. You be surprised at how fast one of them rubbery peanuts can pop a glass. A truss in the right hands is a deadly weapon."

"Get outta here," said Hadley. "And thanks a million for putting that picture in my brain."

"Anytime," Bill said. "But back to Sadie's. I'm always afraid I'll pick up something I can't get rid of with a shot down at the health department."

"Not my cup of tea, either," said Hadley, "but Sadie's a nice enough woman."

"Yeah," said Bill. "She runs a pretty straight joint. If you like your beer watered down and warm and your pretzels soggy."