Free Biggie and the Quincy Ghost by Nancy Bell

room the sheriff was in. A large lady with big blond hair pointed down the hall. “Room one-oh-seven,” she said.
    Biggie tapped on the door of the room, then pushed it open and stuck her head in. Deputy Wiggs was sitting in a chair next to the bed. The sheriff was propped up in bed wearing a pair of red-and-white striped pajamas that didn’t quite close over his big belly. His dinner tray still sat on the nightstand next to the bed. It had a small bowl half full of red Jell-O and another of what looked like plain boiled rice.
    The sheriff saw me looking. “I know,” he said, looking sad. “Pitiful, ain’t it?”
    I nodded. “Is that all they gave you for supper?”
    “Yup. Wiggs, get up and give Miss Biggie your chair—and get that tray out of here. I cain’t stand to look at it any more.”
    After the deputy picked up the tray and left the room, Biggie plopped down in his chair. I went over to the dresser and stood leaning against it.
    “So,” Biggie said, “I understand you’ve had surgery.”
    “Yes, ma’am. Emergency appendectomy. My wife rushed me to the hospital at midnight last night. They had me on the operating table by one.”

    “My,” Biggie said. “You seem to have made a fast recovery.”
    The sheriff winced as he reached for a water glass with a bent straw in it. “No’m. Recovery’s gonna take some time. You see, my appendix had ruptured and I have peritonitis. They’re keeping me in here for another few days, then I have to take it easy for six weeks. That’s why I asked you to drop by.”
    “I’m not sure I understand,” Biggie said.
    Just at that moment, Deputy Wiggs came back into the room carrying his tape recorder. He drug up a straight chair and set the recorder on his knees.
    “Put that away, Wiggs,” Sheriff Dugger said. “This is off the record.” He took a folded sheet of paper out of his pajama pocket and looked at it, frowning. “Mrs. Weatherford, I’ve been told you’re acquainted with Ranger Red Upchurch.”
    “We’ve met on several occasions,” Biggie said blushing a little. I think Biggie is sweet on the ranger.
    “The ranger was my first boss when we were both with the D.P.S.,” he said. “I would trust that man with my life. Red Upchurch says you’re the smartest woman he’s ever met and if I’ve got any sense at all, I’ll get down on my knees and beg you to help on this case.”
    Biggie nodded. “The ranger and I have worked on one or two cases together.”
    “Yes, ma’am, that’s what he said. Well, here’s the deal. Since I’m going to be laid up for a while, I’m asking for your help, and it may be a godsend.”
    “How’s that?”

    “Well, it’s like this, I’m not from here, doncha know. I come from over in Flower Mound. Know where that is?”
    Biggie nodded. “Not too far from here.”
    “Ma‘am, it might as well be Timbuktu as far as these folks are concerned. If your great grandpappy didn’t grow up in this town, you’re a foreigner. Only reason I got elected sheriff is because it’s a job no local would have on a bet. Mostly, what I do is control tourists and the transients staying in the motels out along Highway 20.” He licked his lips. “Now then, one of their own has done got themselves killed. That’s the first problem I got. Not only that, it’s a pretty good bet one of their own did the killin’. Follow my drift?”
    “They’re not going to tell you diddley.”
    “Gawd damn! Upchurch was right. You are fast on the uptake.”
    “So, what do you want me to do?”
    “Keep your eyes and ears open. Report back to me. Mrs. Weatherford, I don’t have to brief you very much. Red Upchurch says I should just give you your head.”
    “What do you know so far?” Biggie asked.
    The sheriff nodded to Wiggs who took a little notebook out of his pocket and began to talk. “Hmm, let’s see. ’Course we had to go out and notify the girl’s family. They took it pretty hard, but when we tried to question them about