Gunns & Roses(50)
“Eli and Linley?” Ian squinted at her, puzzled. “Who are they?”
Peggy answered, “They’re two cute teenagers in a budding romance.” Her eyes flickered between the mayor and Annie. “Em and I first saw them in one of the kilt accessory tents, which Linley’s parents own. Then they showed up at the harpers’ building … but we couldn’t stay long enough to see what happened between them.” She drew in a breath and let it out in an exaggerated sigh to her daughter’s delight.
Wally turned to his wife. “Are these kids a part of any families who might be involved in the mystery?”
She shrugged. “We never heard any last names. We’re not exactly in the Victorian age anymore, you know. Kids don’t address each other as Miss This or Mister That.”
“Peggy, do you remember the name on the vendor’s tent?” asked Alice.
“It was a punny one, so yeah, I remember it,” answered Peggy. “It’s called Dress to Kilt.” She paused. “I’m trying to remember if there were any signs inside the tent about the owners or any permanent shop they run but … .” She raised her hands and then let them drop in helplessness.
“We do know Eli’s aunt is one of the harpists,” said Annie, sending a compassionate glance to Peggy.
“And possibly the leader, as she was the one who introduced McKenna when she sang that one song with them,” Peggy added. “It never occurred to me the kids or the harpist might be connected to the mystery, so I never tried to find out her name.”
The two men stood silent for a time, taking in the new information. Then Ian asked, “Did you try to talk to McKenna? Or did she run off again when she saw you?” A mighty cheering rose up from the spectators watching the event behind them.
“We tried really hard to be inconspicuous,” Annie told the men. “After what happened at the food tent—once we knew her name—we figured the best thing to do was just to watch.”
Peggy finished the tale. “But she did glide right out of the tent as soon as she finished the song—no sticking around until the end of the set. Can’t figure out if she’s socially inept, a diva, or one of those whackadoo creative folks.”
“We may never figure out the reasons behind her behavior, but we’re certainly going to try,” Alice declared. “That will be considerably easier since we now have her name.”
“Sure, we might be able to find her address,” Wally said, “but that doesn’t mean she’ll ever answer the phone or letter or email or whatever else we use.”
“I agree that attempting direct contact might not be the most effective method,” Ian said. “Using some messenger she likely knows, or at least would be less likely to shun might work better.”
Annie thought about Ian’s suggestion. “Sounds like a good idea to me, but how do we know who she actually knows? There were those two burly guys stationed at the exit of the dining tent where she was singing at noon, but I can’t see them playing currier.”
“How about Eli’s aunt, for a start?” said Peggy.
“It must have been either Mr. MacTavish or the woman at Kilt and Caboodle who tipped off McKenna and the falconer,” Alice reminded them. “If we leave a message with either of them, do you think there’s any chance it will go anywhere but in the trash?”
The group grew quiet, each one thinking over the situation, and Emily’s attention went back to the birds and their nest.
Ian shrugged. “I don’t see that we have any choice but to try it. McKenna may never get it, but then again she might. All we’re wasting is a bit of paper and time. That’s a minimal investment from my point of view.”
The rest of the adults agreed with the mayor’s idea, and Annie pulled out her notebook and pen to write the note.
“OK, so I’ll write something like: ‘Dear Ms. Rose, I have come into possession of a sealskin sporran and silver bagpipe ferrules engraved with a hawk and rose design. I believe they may belong to someone from either the Gunn or Rose family, and I want to return them to their rightful owner. If you know who that may be, please forward my contact information to the appropriate person or people. My address is —’”
Ian held up a hand. “Annie, I don’t want you to give your home address or number and open yourself up to the possibility of harm. Please let me be the contact at Town Hall.” He glanced around the group for their reactions to his plea. Annie paused in her writing to gauge the response of her friends.
“I second the motion!” Alice said, immediately giving her approval to the idea, while Wally and Peggy both nodded with enthusiasm.