Yellow Ceramic Mug and Red Silk Scarf in a Red Buick

across from his desk at four o’clock, watching him polish his wire-rimmed glasses with a white linen handkerchief.

He put them back on, his blue eyes magnified behind the thick lenses, and sighed as he looked at a file.

“Clara,” he said, his gravelly baritone quiet and steady. “I ran a search on the county registry database this afternoon.continue reading …