A Finder's Fee by Jim Lavene, Joyce Page B

claim.
    “Sure.” Chris bent his head to kiss Jamie good-bye. “I think I can do lunch if you don’t mind waiting until one or so.”
    “That’s fine. Let me know later.” She squeezed his hand.
    I was so happy for them. Chris had been here for a few years guiding Duck’s growth and coming up with grants and ideas for wonderful projects like the new town hall and the expanded boardwalk.
    Jamie had moved here to help her brother, Phil, save the coffee shop and had expanded the bookstore to include book clubs and other ingenious ideas. We would’ve lost our coffee shop and bookstore without her.
    I walked with Chris up the stairs to the boardwalk that overlooked the Currituck Sound. A dozen businesses, including mine, Trudy’s and Shayla’s, were located here. Town hall was also in the small, cramped space.
    That was one of the reasons everyone who worked at town hall was excited about the new building. We were all looking forward to larger spaces and a bigger meeting room for events. There would also be room for the Duck Police Department. That would get them out of the fire station farther down Duck Road.
    I hated that I’d been instrumental in creating another setback to that progress. And now, besides finding a way to give Kevin five thousand dollars, I had something else to worry about.
    I didn’t know anyone who had the kind of money Chris was talking about to pay for election ads. I wasn’t even sure it was legal to have someone else pay for them. That’s why my advertising had consisted of computer-generated eight-by-ten-inch posters all over town.
    I probably needed to go to the election board for answers, but it seemed kind of late. The damage had been done. I had no idea what people were going to think about seeing my campaign ad on the water tower. I was pretty sure it wouldn’t be good.
    Duck town clerk Nancy Boidyn was at her desk when Chris and I arrived at town hall. Nancy wasn’t from Duck, but she was like Kevin—it was as though she’d always been there. She appreciated the summers, even though she hated storms. She was one of my favorite people.
    “Dae! It’s good to see you. What kind of trouble have you been into?”
    Since I knew that she’d already heard, I didn’t bother with much explanation. “You know me—always poking around where I shouldn’t be.”
    Her eyes widened dramatically as she put her arm around my shoulders. I smiled at the pink bunny slippers she wore in the office and her slick, short new haircut that made her dark eyes seem so dramatic. Chris went back into his closet-sized office to look for the information.
    “Sweetie, I’m so sorry about the fine. You know I didn’t want to send it out, but I didn’t have any choice. Councilman Wilson is breathing down my neck on this. Chris’s too. He called a press conference for later today. I don’t know who he thinks is interested enough to come. I don’t think
Mayor looks for artifact without permit
is much of a news story.”
    “I expected as much. It doesn’t matter. People who plan to vote for me know me. I don’t think this will change their minds. It might throw a few undecided votes to Mad Dog, but that’s all.”
    Chris came out of his office with a business card in hand. “This is the man who bought the advertising for the water tower. Whoever he is, he must have deep pockets. Maybe he can loan you the money for Kevin’s fine.”
    I looked at the card with a growing sense of foreboding. I wished I were wearing gloves to touch it. Sometimes my gift of sight could be a hazard. “Thanks. I appreciate it.”
    I took the card from him. It was plain black letters on a white background.
Carlton Hughes.
Nothing fancy. Then the vision of its owner took over.

Chapter 5

    “D ae?” Nancy had a worried frown on her pretty face. “Are you okay?”
    I always get a little shaky when I have a vision from something or someone I’ve touched. In this case, it was appropriate to be unnerved by what I saw.
    The