Brookstone Square in mid December is bustling with shoppers picking up Christmas gifts. A fresh blanket of snow helps to decorate for the season as people sip on hot coffee drinks and carry packages filled with books and and other gifts for under their trees.
Laura stops in the bakery to grab a dozen fresh baked donuts and a loaf of Italian bread for dinner. She thinks about grabbing a coffee for the ride home but changes her mind when she sees Sonny walking into the pub across the square. She pulls her hood up against the wind and and heads that way. She steps into the pub already filling up for happy hour at 3:00 and spots Sonny. She makes her way over to a stool right next to him. his eyes light up and he smiles in greeting as she sits next to him. All eyes are on them looking for a juicy bit of gossip to bite on and spread around, Laura orders a drink and sets her shopping bags on the stool next to her.
Sonny-What are you up to today?
Laura- Just picking up a few things for dinner,how about you? Wait let me guess you were out at the lake checking the ice thickness. as she laughs.
Sonny- grins big and says-Yep, only 2' so far but it's shaping up to be a good year.
The onlookers already bored turn to back to their own drinks and conversations. The jukebox played loud enough for people needed to speak up loud enough for the bartender to pick up every conversation is he wanted to. Right now he wasn't much interested except in the ice thickness. he was off at six and now he was saved a trip out to the lake to check it himself. He continued to serve drinks and monitor the room without paying to much attention to any one person, at least not conspicuously. Drunk Linda and Chicken Linda sat at the end of the bar together and made for an odd pairing, drunk Linda must be looking for information on someone the bartender thought to himself. He kept the beer and shots flowing her way as usual.
Fox was the day time bartender and knew way to much about everyone in the bar. Generally he stayed out of the slander machine that was The Dipper Pub but wasn't apposed to hearing what was going on for his own informational purposes. Today he just wanted his relief to get there so he could sit down and watch while he drank beer until he was ready to pass out and go home. It had been a long day.
Sonny and Laura continued talking and Laura jokingly asked him if he heard any voices today when he was out at Whisper Lake. He grinned his dark brown eyes sparkling and said
"Think what you want legends get to be legends for a reason, but no I didn't hear anything today. Laura grinned back and sipped her drink. Fox came over with refills and they ordered some Southwest Spuds to munch on with their drinks. Sonny pointed to a table in the corner with an elderly man sitting alone and drinking beer faster than any normal bartender could keep up with. Sonny said " see that guy at the corner table? Laura looked and said "yes who is he?"
Sonny said " I'm not sure what his name is but he's lived here a long time. He'll talk up a storm once he's finished his second bucket of beer and starts adding shots of bourbon which should start pretty soon here from the looks of the bottles collecting on his table. He lives right on Whisper Lake,South side somewhere. He drinks a lot and I mean a lot but he's also seen a lot. That might be the next person you want to talk to about your case. I would ease into it though he's not gonna give up the gravy in the first conversation. Go make friends, maybe don't bring up that your a PI unless he asks but be up front if he asks. He of course already knows but you"ll want him to warm up to you. I think he can help with what you need. Laura smiled as she listened and planned out her approach.
Their Spuds came and they ate as they talked. Sonny told Laura that the old guy was a drunk but he was no fool and was actually pretty interesting to talk to. Laura pulled a note pad out of her bag and made some notes as they ate. Fox the bartender took note of this and tuned his ears in to their conversation a little more than he had been. This was something he may have a use for at some time, not just the regular gossip the went through the bar.
