The Travelling Man by Matt Drabble Page B

a “cop” feel about the guy, he didn’t for a second believe his story. But at least he knew where the man was going to be if he needed to get his hands on him.
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    Cassie pulled into the parking lot at the station and tried to still the pounding in her head. She had trucked all over town all afternoon trying to piece together Davey Mackie’s last known movements but was coming up short. His watering hole was The Oasis Bar but Mal Reynolds, the owner, had called Davey conspicuous by his absence. Cassie didn’t know what she found more surprising: the fact that Davey hadn’t been in the bar for several consecutive nights, or that Mal knew the phrase “conspicuous by his absence”.
    Granton was a small town and most of its residents rarely ventured beyond her borders. She found it hard to believe that there was a corner in town where Davey could hide without being seen.
    It had been over 5 years since there had been a suspicious death and over 10 since there had been a confirmed murder. Her mind naturally wasn’t full of possible crime, only a missing person. But she still couldn’t shake Susie Mackie’s deep assurance that something had happened to her husband. Cassie instinctively knew that Susie was right; she would know if something had happened to Ellie.
    “Night, Boss,” Kevin said as he heaved himself out of the car.
    “Yeah, night, Kev,” she responded distractedly.
    “What do you think happened to old Davey?” he said, pausing in the early evening setting sun.
    “I don’t know,” she replied, shaking her head. “Maybe he left town, maybe he’s sleeping one off somewhere, maybe Susie finally lost her temper.”
    “You really think that she could have…, you know.”
    “No, not really,” Cassie sighed. “Somehow I just can’t picture that woman wielding a killing blow.”
    “So what do we do now?”
    “We keep checking. We’ll monitor the hospitals, keep asking about town and if he doesn’t show up in a day or two then maybe I’ll just take a look in Susie’s back garden to see if she’s got any freshly dug holes.”
    Her deputy left her with morbid thoughts as he headed over towards his waiting car. Cassie guessed that he was on his way to the gym to work out some of his frustrations. She wished that her own were that easy to get rid of.
    She headed into the station to check on the rest of the day’s business. She found Jeanne waiting for her before heading home.
    “Any news?” the radio operator asked.
    “Nope, not yet,” Cassie replied wishing that she had better news. “Anything happening around here?”
    “Same old, same old,” Jeanne shrugged. “Linda Jarvis is complaining about Mrs. Fiorentino’s boarders making too much noise again. Glenn Jordan wants the rest of the Town Council to let him add more parking bays outside of the diner and he thought that you might put in a good word. And Cora Cohen says that there is a new guy in town, some kind of scientist or something, supposed to be pretty cute though.”
    Cassie sighed, wishing that Jeanne would stop trying to marry her off. “Maybe you ought to take a run at him then, Jeanne,” she said, meaning to gently tease but her tired voice sounded a little terse. “Oh shit. I’m sorry Jeanne, I didn’t mean to snap.”
    “That’s okay,” Jeanne smiled warmly. “But I won’t stop trying.”
    “Home!” Cassie said, pointing towards the door but with affection in her voice.
    “Yes, Ma’am,” Jeanne replied as she left with a grin.
      Cassie went into her office. The room was small and she spent precious little time in it. The décor hadn’t been altered since her father had been Sheriff and the office radiated him. He had been a big man about town and she often took comfort from the sense of him that still lingered. It was silly, she knew, but she always kept the doors shut to prevent any of his essence escaping.
    She leaned back in the chair and put her boots up on the desk. The seat was well worn