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“Shucks, I reckon,” sheOr when I strike out”

“You never strike out,” I said By the time the door wha

MY OFFICE phone rang an hour later Miranda had dug deep into her bag of Google tricks without finding any trace of Trinity Crematorium She’d also tried AnyWhocom and MapQuest, she said, in a vain effort to track down an address or phone number “And I’, Georgia, doesn’t have an online database of property-tax records” She’d hit a stone ith the records clerk in the county courthouse but finally hit pay dirt by calling the post office and pretending to be a UPS driver in need of help finding the Littlejohn house “And,” she announced triuot a phone number”

“Miranda,” I said, “you are a Jedi ery”

But if I thought aveor announcee, so I hung up After collecting hts, I called back, ready to say who I was and siain I was taken by surprise “Hello,” said a flat, guarded male voice

“Oh, hello,” I said “Is this Delbert Littlejohn?”

There was a pause “He’s not available right now Who’s this?”

“My naist at the University of Tennessee I’ve been asked to take a look at some cremains that came from your cre-”

The line went dead I hit redial, and I got the ot the machine This time I left my name and number I called once more, and this time the line was busy-or the phone was off the hook

My next call was to Burt DeVriess I told Burt about Miranda’s near-fruitless research and ery,” I said in conclusion I liked the way it sounded; I could see why Miranda had grinned as she’d said it

“You’re right,” he said, “sounds like this place is screwing people over”

Daht, how’d he know that?

“You willing to keep digging, Doc? Or duggering, or whatever?”

“Keep digging how, Burt?”

“Hell, I don’t know, Doc-you’re the one who’s the forensic genius Maybe go down there, poke around some, see what you stir up?”

I considered the request I could ia, not knowing if I’d fare any better in person than I’d fared on the phone…or I could sit around Knoxville waiting for the phone to ring with news about the search for Garland Hamilton

“I’ll go dugger around,” I said

“Might be a good idea to take somebody with you,” he said

“I hadn’t thought of that,” I said, “but Miranda ”

“I was thinking maybe somebody who could watch your back,” he said

“You’re thinking it erous?”

“You never know,” he said, “seeing as how it sery and all”

ART DIDN’T hesitate when I asked if he’d be willing to accoo?”

“Whenever you can,” I said “I was supposed to be testifying this week at Garland Haement seems to have been postponed for now And UT doesn’t start fall classes for another couple weeks How short a leash are you on with this Internet assignment?”

“If we left early in the et back by late afternoon, I can probably swing it,” he said “The chat roo up till around three or four, and they stay pretty lively till bedtime Tiffany needs to be in school all day anyhow-that’s where innocent little fourteen-year-olds are supposed to be between eight and three-thirty Unless it’s the weekend, and then they’re sleeping late”