Free Scat by Carl Hiaasen Page B

Humvee, he didn't make it."
     
    Nick felt his head start to spin. "Was he your friend?"
    "Like a brother."
    Nick lowered his eyes. It was almost unbearable to think how close his father had come to dying.
    When he looked up again, Capt. Gregory Waters was fast asleep.
     
    After visiting Duane Scrod Sr., who was not especially help, ful, Detective Jason Marshall picked up Dr. Dressier at the Truman School, and together they went to the residence of Bunny Starch. The headmaster had requested to come along, which was fine with the detective.
    Walking up the creaking steps of the old house, Dr. Dressier exclaimed, "The rat's gone!"
    "The what?" the detective said.
    "She put a stuffed rat on that rocking chair," Dr. Dressier said. "She named it after one of her former students."
    Jason Marshall looked doubtful.
    "I'm serious," said Dr. Dressier.
    The detective knocked on Mrs. Starch's door. Nobody answered. He pressed the doorbell, but it was out of order. They walked around to the other side of the house and; rapped on the back door. Still no response.
    "Guess I'll come back tomorrow," Jason Marshall said.
    Dr. Dressier was disappointed. "Can't you just break in-What if she's ill or she had an accident or . . . something else happened?"
    "I can't go inside a house without a search warrant," the detective explained, "and a judge won't give me a warrant unless there's cause to believe a crime's been committed. There's no evidence of that, Dr. Dressier."
    Frustrated, the headmaster trailed Jason Marshall back to his unmarked police car.
    "That letter I got about a 'family emergency,' I just don't buy it," Dr. Dressier said. "The woman has no family that I can locate anywhere."
    The detective leaned against the fender of his car and took out a pack of chewing gum. He offered a piece to Dr. Dressier, who said no thanks.
    "Libby's told me all the crazy stories about Mrs. Starch," Jason Marshall said. "Kids love to talk, and normally I wouldn't pay much attention. But now you're telling me she kept a stuffed rat on the porch-this isn't the most normal person in the world, would you agree?"
    Dr. Dressier nodded. "She's a bit quirky, for sure."
    "Maybe she just freaked out after the fire on the field trip," the detective speculated. "That had to be a scary experience-eventually she finds her way out of the woods and rushes to our house with Libby's asthma inhaler. Then she drives home, looks in the mirror, and says, 'Geez, I could have died out there! I really need some time off.'"
    Dr. Dressier was skeptical. "Not Bunny Starch," he said. "Imagine spending the night all alone in the Big Cypress while it's burning," Jason Marshall said. "I don't care how tough you are, it definitely would shake you up."
     
    "Anything's possible, I suppose."
    "Just a theory." The detective took out his cell phone. "What's the number at this house?"
    By now the headmaster knew it by heart: "555-2346," he said.
    Jason Marshall dialed and waited. Mrs. Starch's phone rang only twice before an answering machine picked up.
    "There's a message," the detective whispered to Dr. Dressier.

"What does it say?"
    Jason Marshall touched the Redial button and handed the cell phone to Dr. Dressier. The headmaster listened intently to the recorded greeting on the other end:
     
    Hello, people. I'll be away from school indefinitely because of an unexpected family matter. You may leave a message at the tone, though it might be a while before I have time to reply. Please accept my apologies in advance. Now here's the beep!
     
    "Is that her voice?" the detective asked.
    "Sure sounds like it," Dr. Dressier said.
    "First the letter, now the voice message on her phone-I've got to be honest-there's nothing more the sheriff's of' fice can do. The woman is obviously alive and well," said Jason Marshall.
    "Then why no phone calls?"
    "Maybe she doesn't feel like answering questions about a 'family emergency' that doesn't really exist. Like I said, she probably just needed a break,