like, it isn't Albert!” He banged the table so hard with his fist that the reconstruction tottered and would have fallen if John hadn't caught it.
Gideon looked at him with surprise. Histrionics were Callie's department, not Nellie's. Nellie could be a little touchy on occasion, but in all the time Gideon had known him, this was the first time he'd ever heard him use profanity, the first time he'd heard him shout in anger at anyone. It was true that Nellie had been closer than any of the others to Jasper, so that today's unsettling events would have had to be deeply disturbing to him, but all the same—
Leland swallowed, his naked eyes blinking. “Excuse me, Dr. Hobert,” he said stiffly, “but I beg to differ. And there's something else too...” He quailed momentarily under Nellie's ferocious scowl, but then drew himself up, darted his tongue at each corner of his mustache, and continued. “Don't you think it's high time this—this absurd secret we've all been keeping so religiously—'
'No, God damn you, I don't!” The arteries at Nellie's temples were bulging, something else Gideon hadn't seen before. As if aware of them, Nellie massaged them, one hand on each side, and blew out a long breath.
'Leland, I'm truly sorry. I don't have any call yelling at you or anyone else. Look, everyone, it's easy enough to settle this. I'll go over to the ME's office and get Albert's file right now. Everything's in there, and I'm sure it'll refresh our memories. We did a good job, you'll see; a careful, professional job. Our identification of Albert is incontrovertible.'
'This is pretty incontrovertible too,” Les said, pointing at the reconstruction. “Now that I look at it, it even has that nasty smirk we all remember so well.'
Nellie summoned up a frail smile. “You'll see,” he said again. “Just wait here, I'll be right back. It's just over on Greenwood Avenue.'
'I don't think we can,” Miranda said. “Harlow's odontology round table comes on at three back at the lodge, and most of us are on it.'
'Odontology round table?” Callie echoed with a laugh. “At a time like this, we're supposed to worry about an odontology round table?'
'I think so, yes,” Miranda said simply. “A lot of the people here have paid their own way. I think we owe them the best we can give them.'
'Miranda's right,” Nellie said. “You all go on back to the lodge. I'll see you there later. I've got my own car.'
'I think I'll go along to the ME with you,” John said, his first words in a while. “I'd like to see that file too.'
There was a fractional pause. “Well, I'm bringing it back.'
'I know,” John said pleasantly, “but I need to talk to Dr. Tilton anyway. Come on, I'll give you a ride.'
Nellie began to say something, then changed his mind. “Thank you, John.'
As Nellie bustled to the door, John spoke to Gideon. “Meet you back here.” He leaned closer. “Probably be a good idea if you didn't leave anybody alone with that skull.'
Gideon nodded. “You better believe it.'
[Back to Table of Contents]
CHAPTER 14
* * * *
'What secret?” Miranda asked when she was sure the door had clicked closed behind Nellie and John.
'Yes—” Gideon chimed in, and caught himself. In the second that Miranda's face had been turned toward the door he had caught a furtive, flickering play of glances between the others. Of caution? Guilt? Concealment? What was going on here? What did they all know that he and Miranda—and John—didn't? Why had Nellie jumped all over Leland about it? What was the connection to Jasper?
Gideon was suddenly struck with the odd, unwelcome feeling that he didn't know any of these people very well; hardly at all, in fact. He'd been associating with them off and on for years, but how much of what he thought about them was real and how much had he constructed to fit his notions of what they ought to be like? Affable, laid-back Les with his DR BONES Porsche; droll, dry, harmless Leland —
'Forget it, Miranda,” Callie said, “you don't want to know.'
'Me not want to know a secret? Somebody's kidding. Gideon, are you in on this?'
He shook his head.
'Good, at least I don't feel so left out. Now is anybody going to spill the beans or not?'
'Ah, what the hell—” Les began amiably.
Leland cut him off. “Why don't you ask the great Dr. Hobert,” he said curtly to Miranda, “since he's the one who seems to feel so passionately about it.'
For a moment Les looked as if he were going to continue anyway, but he shrugged and let it pass. In Les's view, Gideon knew—or thought he knew—there wasn't very much that was worth hassling about.
'All right,” Miranda said, unoffended, “I'll ask Nellie. Well, if we're going to have a chance to get a bite before the round table, we'd better get going. Leland and Callie are driving with me, Gideon. There's room for you if you want.'
'No, thanks, I'll find my own way. If I'm a few minutes late, tell Harlow to get started without me.'
'Begin without the Skeleton Detective?” Leland said. “Somehow it hardly seems worth the doing.” With the return of his horn rims, he hadn't taken long to become the old Leland again.
