in front of the gate, effectively preventing any more vehicles from coming or going. Two men climbed out of one of the cars and gazed at the chaos unfolding before them. Most likely they were the much anticipated “homicide people” I’d been waiting for. Detective Obermeyer got out of the other car, spotted me sitting on the porch, and waved.
Obermeyer’s presence didn’t go unnoticed by Andy, who watched him like a cat tracking a meadow vole as he walked across the yard toward my porch.
“Heard the call on the radio and recognized the address,” Obermeyer said, then leaned against the porch post and crossed his arms. “You just can’t get enough of us, I guess.”
“Guess not,” I said.
“So, what’s up?”
“One of the grape pickers found a body in my cave.”
“You have a cave?”
“Yeah. My buzzards live in it.”
He let out a short laugh, which surprised me.
The two homicide guys flagged down a uniformed flunky who had apparently been assigned to keep an eye on me. He nodded briefly in my direction then pointed them toward the cave.
Obermeyer cleared his throat. “Any idea who the body belongs to?”
“I’m pretty sure the buzzards think it belongs to them.”
“You mean there really are buzzards in the cave?”
“Yes. Animal Control is up there right now trying to round them up so your guys can get inside.”
He shook his head. “Never a dull moment around here, it seems.”
“I don’t suppose you’ll be involved in the investigation unless that body is clutching a bunch of marijuana.”
Another laugh. Maybe Detective Obermeyer was growing a sense of humor after all. “I’ll take a walk up there and see if I can find out what’s going on. I see the coroner’s here already.”
“Yeah, he was one of the first to arrive.”
Alone again, I pushed the swing back and forth a couple times and watched the big draft horses inspect their new surroundings. I was about to go toss them more hay since they were twice as big as “normal” horses, when a pizza delivery truck showed up and honked its horn.
“Pizza’s here!” one of the truckers hollered.
Andy pulled out his wallet and paid the delivery man, then took a tower of pizza boxes from him and headed for the buckboard. Someone turned on a truck radio to country music and the party began.
Somewhere in the distance, I heard people shouting and screeching. Minutes later, the two animal control officers limped toward their van with the crate between them. They looked like they’d been through a tornado. Her ponytail was shifted to one side of her head, and both their uniforms were covered in dirt and, what I assumed was buzzard poop.
“Someone move those cars!” the woman shouted. She was not in a good mood anymore.
When the body was finally removed from the cave, the homicide people came to see me. Detective Obermeyer listened in on their questions, and Andy hovered within snooping distance, munching on a slice of pizza.
The detectives towered over me, looking at their notes. The younger of the two peered above his notebook at me. “Do you own a gun?”
I shook my head. “No.” It was an automatic response.
Andy raised an eyebrow at me.
“Oh, wait. Yes, I just bought a shotgun,” I said.
The older detective smiled. “Slipped your mind?”
“Yes, as a matter of fact. A lot has happened since I picked it up today.”
I explained, again, about my mysterious visitor ten days earlier and why I’d purchased the gun. No one asked the obvious question, so I volunteered. “Could a family of vultures eat a body in ten days?”
The coroner wandered into the conversation just in time to fill me in. “The body is actually quite intact considering the conditions it’s been exposed to. Decomposition is significant, and there is tissue missing, but we should be able to identify her with dental records.”
“Her?” I
Obermeyer’s presence didn’t go unnoticed by Andy, who watched him like a cat tracking a meadow vole as he walked across the yard toward my porch.
“Heard the call on the radio and recognized the address,” Obermeyer said, then leaned against the porch post and crossed his arms. “You just can’t get enough of us, I guess.”
“Guess not,” I said.
“So, what’s up?”
“One of the grape pickers found a body in my cave.”
“You have a cave?”
“Yeah. My buzzards live in it.”
He let out a short laugh, which surprised me.
The two homicide guys flagged down a uniformed flunky who had apparently been assigned to keep an eye on me. He nodded briefly in my direction then pointed them toward the cave.
Obermeyer cleared his throat. “Any idea who the body belongs to?”
“I’m pretty sure the buzzards think it belongs to them.”
“You mean there really are buzzards in the cave?”
“Yes. Animal Control is up there right now trying to round them up so your guys can get inside.”
He shook his head. “Never a dull moment around here, it seems.”
“I don’t suppose you’ll be involved in the investigation unless that body is clutching a bunch of marijuana.”
Another laugh. Maybe Detective Obermeyer was growing a sense of humor after all. “I’ll take a walk up there and see if I can find out what’s going on. I see the coroner’s here already.”
“Yeah, he was one of the first to arrive.”
Alone again, I pushed the swing back and forth a couple times and watched the big draft horses inspect their new surroundings. I was about to go toss them more hay since they were twice as big as “normal” horses, when a pizza delivery truck showed up and honked its horn.
“Pizza’s here!” one of the truckers hollered.
Andy pulled out his wallet and paid the delivery man, then took a tower of pizza boxes from him and headed for the buckboard. Someone turned on a truck radio to country music and the party began.
Somewhere in the distance, I heard people shouting and screeching. Minutes later, the two animal control officers limped toward their van with the crate between them. They looked like they’d been through a tornado. Her ponytail was shifted to one side of her head, and both their uniforms were covered in dirt and, what I assumed was buzzard poop.
“Someone move those cars!” the woman shouted. She was not in a good mood anymore.
When the body was finally removed from the cave, the homicide people came to see me. Detective Obermeyer listened in on their questions, and Andy hovered within snooping distance, munching on a slice of pizza.
The detectives towered over me, looking at their notes. The younger of the two peered above his notebook at me. “Do you own a gun?”
I shook my head. “No.” It was an automatic response.
Andy raised an eyebrow at me.
“Oh, wait. Yes, I just bought a shotgun,” I said.
The older detective smiled. “Slipped your mind?”
“Yes, as a matter of fact. A lot has happened since I picked it up today.”
I explained, again, about my mysterious visitor ten days earlier and why I’d purchased the gun. No one asked the obvious question, so I volunteered. “Could a family of vultures eat a body in ten days?”
The coroner wandered into the conversation just in time to fill me in. “The body is actually quite intact considering the conditions it’s been exposed to. Decomposition is significant, and there is tissue missing, but we should be able to identify her with dental records.”
“Her?” I
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