Page 57 of Open Season

“That’s all right; I’m in no hurry,” the mayor said genially. “So who’s the culprit?”

“The name doesn’t strike a bell with me. Dacinda Ann Minor.”

“What?”the mayor said, clearly stunned.

“Dacinda Minor—hey, I’ll bet that’s the librarian. Her name is Minor. Her name isn’t Dacinda, though—”

“Daisy.” Temple sounded as if he were strangling. “Everyone calls her Daisy. My God! She—”

“I guess even librarians can illegally park, huh?”

“Uh—yeah.”

“Want me to call and give her hell? She’s a city employee; she should know better.”

“No, I’ll call,” the mayor quickly said.

“Okay,” said Jack, knowing no such call would be made. “Let me know if I can help you with anything again, Mayor.”

“Sure thing. Thanks.”

As soon as the mayor hung up, Jack ran his finger down the list of city departments and located the library’s number, then punched it in.

“Hillsboro Public Library,” said Daisy’s crisp voice.

“Hi, sweetheart, how are you feeling?”

“Just fine.” Her tone changed, became warmer, more intimate. “And you?”

“A little beat, but I think I can make it through the day. Listen, someone said they saw your car at Dr. Bennett’s office.”

“I don’t think so,” she said. “That quack. He pushes diet pills.”

Jack scribbled Dr. Bennett’s name on a pad so he’d remember to do some checking into the good doctor’s prescription-writing habits.

“I also heard that your name is Dacinda. True or false?”

“You’re hearing a lot of things today. True, as you would know if you ever bothered to look over the list of city employees. I was named after Granny Minor.”

“You’ve never been called Dacinda?”

She gave a ladylike snort. “I should hope not. Mother said they called me Dacey when I was a baby, but within just a month or two they were slurring it into Daisy, so I’ve been Daisy as long as I can remember. Why are you so curious about my name?”

“Just making small talk. It’s been a while since I’ve heard your voice.”

“Oh, at least an hour and a half,” she said.

“Seems like longer. Are you going home for lunch?”

“No, I just talked to Aunt Jo, and she’s found a dog for me. I’m going to see the people at lunch; she already has it arranged.” Regret tinged her tone.

He wondered if she felt half as regretful as he did. But Daisy getting a dog was important, and he’d use the time nosing around, maybe shadowing the mayor for a while and seeing where he went.

“Listen, there are some things I have to check out tonight, but I’ll come by if I can. What time do you usually go to bed?”

“Ten. But you—”

“I’ll call if I can’t make it.”

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