Clapping her hands, Amanda laughed. “Super. That’s perfect. I am now an expert in the black screen of confusion.” She entered the shop’s username and password and the system finished its initialization routine. “I can’t wait until you get this replaced. Do you really want to wait?”
“Well, I’ve been following Burkart’s advice since I inherited Webb’s and he has certainly been right in helping me to establish Webb’s Studio. I think I’ll go over tomorrow and discuss the risks of such a problematic cash register. He doesn’t know how much trouble we’ve been having with it lately.”
“Good idea. I’ll call him for an appointment . . . say, two p.m.?”
“You really are anxious,” said Savannah. “Okay, I’ll be there. Anyway, Jacob and I are here to look at the kiln. Any equipment problems take priority over the PC.”
Jacob spoke, looking down at the top of Suzy’s head. “When I started to unload, that’s when I noticed that some of the plates were strange looking.”
Amanda frowned. “I haven’t even looked in there in days. My stained-glass students keep me hopping. Don’t get me wrong. That’s a good thing. This is one of the smartest classes I’ve had in here. They’re getting twice as much glass work done, which means that our profit in class materials is great.”
“A good problem to have, but you’d better get ready. They’ll be here in”—Savannah looked at her watch—“about ten minutes. Okay, Jacob, let’s figure out what’s wrong with this firing. We don’t have much spare time. We don’t want to miss our big delivery to the Vinoy Hotel this Saturday.”
Savannah walked into the adjacent room followed by Jacob, who still held Suzy. This was where Savannah kept the large kiln she used for creating the glass chargers from cut squares of glass. She lifted the large kiln lid with the assistance of a pulley and counterweight system. The interior was filled to maximum capacity thanks to Jacob’s clever loading skills. He had created a multi-tiered stacking method that tripled the number of chargers that could be fused each night.
The chargers on the left side of the kiln looked perfectly formed and were ready to wash and wrap for delivery. On the right side of the kiln, the chargers were untouched by the heat of the kiln and looked as perfectly flat as when they were loaded. The row in the center was the strangest sight. Each plate was partially slumped on the right-hand side and then appeared to be floating above the ceramic mold on the left.
“I see what you mean, Jacob. There’s definitely something wrong.”
Jacob nodded and kissed Suzy on the top of her head.
“Okay, first things first. Let’s empty it out and clean everything up.”
It took them almost half an hour to unload the kiln of plates, the molds, and all the spacer blocks, stack the good pieces ready for cleanup, then place the bad pieces aside.
“It’s not so bad for the glass, really. These are simple mold forms and we should be able to load them into the kiln again for another firing.” Savannah looked at the open kiln. “The problem has to be with the heat.” She looked at the lid of the kiln and noticed that the heating coils were split into two separate channels. “Jacob, I need to test the theory that there’s a problem with the heating so we don’t try to fix the wrong problem.”
She programmed the kiln to heat to 1500 degrees at a rate of 999 degrees per hour. That number signaled the kiln to heat at its maximum rate. By the time they had washed the perfectly fused chargers and wrapped them in corrugated paper ready for packing, she looked at the kiln’s internal temperature gauge. It registered 600 degrees.
Using the pulley system, Savannah lifted the lid and her fears were confirmed. The left-side coils in the lid were cherry red-hot. The right-side coils were still black, meaning that they were cold. The right-side coils were defective. Lowering the lid, she frowned, then powered off the kiln.
“What’s wrong?” Amanda stood in the doorway. “Have you figured it out?”
“Yep. Bad news. One of the heating coils in the lid is broken. I’ve got to get it fixed right now or we’ll miss our delivery.”
“What are you going to do?”
“I’m going to call the manufacturer. With any luck they’ll have replacement coils in stock.”
Her cell phone rang. The caller ID screen displayed a picture of Joy Williams.
“Hi, Joy!”
“Savannah, Detective Parker just asked me if you had made any progress with your dad’s files. He sounded a little irritated. It is Tuesday, you know.”
“Joy, I’m so sorry I haven’t reported back to you. It’s been a particularly frenzied morning. My large kiln has broken and I’m in danger of missing an important delivery.”
“I know this sounds harsh, but that’s not our problem.” Joy paused a moment. “Oh, wait a minute. This is my problem. If you can’t sort through your dad’s files, then I will have to do it. Please, please, please tell me you’ve found something.”
Savannah laughed. “That was a quick about-face. You must really despise paperwork.”
“You’ve caught me out. Paperwork is my biggest weakness.” Joy also chuckled. “Seriously, what’s the status?”
“Some progress. I have been able to find files that look like they relate to the student records you need, but there’s a huge problem.”
“What’s that?”
“The identifying information about each file is encrypted.” The phone went silent. “Joy? Are you still there?”
“Um, sure. I don’t know what you mean by that. How are the files encrypted?”
“My dad was a US government cryptographer during the Cold War. He not only decoded Russian messages but also created codes for our government to use. He was a talented master at his job.”
“And so . . .”
“Well, it carried over into his personal life. He used to teach me codes and leave messages all over the place for me to find. It was part of his paranoia.”
“So how long will this take?”
“Sorry, Joy, this situation is not easy to predict. I’m going to have Jacob help me. He’s got a real talent for intuitive code breaking, but there’s another serious complication.”
“Which I don’t want to know about, do I?”
“No. You. Don’t.” Savannah shook her head slowly. “But I’m going to tell you anyway. While Edward and I were looking at some older files in my attic, he came across a small wooden box.”
“And . . .”
“It turns out that wooden box contains an authentic German Enigma machine from World War II. In short—a rotary electromechanical enciphering device, which kinda resembles a typewriter. There were a lot of variants of the Enigma machine, but the most common version, and the version my dad has, is the standard Army and Luftwaffe machine. Its main components are a keyboard, a lampboard, a plugboard, and a set of three rotors.”
Joy let the silence grow between them. She finally said, “So . . .”
“I got that from the Internet.”
“It sounds like it. And so . . .”
“I believe the codes that my dad used for all these files were generated by this machine. This complicates the identification of the correct files by a factor of a million. I don’t know how long this will take. It took the British months and months to crack the first codes and they had a large staff. Sorry to be so bleak, but that’s how I see things right now.”
“Okay, I understand,” Joy said in a low voice. “I sincerely wish you were here to tell Detective Parker instead of me.”
As soon as Savannah ended the call, the front door bell jangled. “Hi, luv. I’ll bet you would like some iced tea.”
Savannah smiled. “Does it come with a side of scone?”
“All righty, then!”
“I hate it when you try to use slang. It doesn’t sound right in a British accent.”
“I’ll try to restrain myself.”
“Good.” She punched him in the arm. “Jacob, you might as well go back to the studio. This is going to be a long day. Do yo
u want a scone?”
Jacob shook his head. “No, thank you. I will wait in the back office. Suzy needs water.” He turned and left.
Savannah shrugged her shoulders, then she and Edward followed Jacob back to the tiny office in the rear of the shop. She explained to Edward, “I’ve got to call the kiln manufacturer immediately. I have a broken coil in the lid.”
Edward frowned, then set the small serving tray down on one of the pullout leaves in the oak rolltop desk.
She searched the Internet for the name of the manufacturer who, it turned out, was located near Lakeland, Florida, a mere sixty miles away. She dialed the number.
Her call was answered. “Jen-Ken Kilns, this is Laura Cumby. How can I help you?”
“Hi, I’m Savannah Webb, owner of Webb’s Glass Shop in St. Petersburg, Florida. Do you have replacement coils? I have a broken coil and naturally, I have an important order due on Saturday. Can you help?”
Laura chuckled. “That’s the only time coils ever break, sweetie. They seem to know when you need them the most. Can you give me the model number of your kiln? I’ll see if we have some on hand.”
“Just a second.” Savannah walked through the shop and leaned over the control panel and read the numbers off to Laura.
“That’s definitely one of ours and pretty new as well. It should be covered by warranty. Hang on.” In short order, Laura came back on the line. “You’re in luck, sweetie. We have the coils in stock.”
Savannah looked at her watch. “How long are you open? I need to get this fixed tonight.”
“I can tell you’re in a pickle, sweetie. Have you replaced coils before?”
“Nope. Never.”
“Replacing a coil isn’t rocket science, but there are a million ways of doing it wrong. I can’t take a break now, but I can stay after hours until you get here so I can show you how. I can teach you everything you need to know after five.”
“I’ll be there right on the dot. Thanks,” said Savannah. She ended the call, grabbed the cool glass of iced tea, and chugged more than half of it down. “I’ve got to get to Lakeland to pick up a replacement coil. They’re staying open to give me instructions on how to do it. Meanwhile, Jacob and I can check out the maze for clues.”
“You need to go right now?” asked Edward. “I thought we could look over some of the paperwork you want me to wrangle.”
Savannah pointed to a four-inch stack of neatly piled papers. “All the paperwork is right there. Untouched for at least a month.”
“A month? Savannah, that’s terrible. You could be in deep trouble by now. What on earth is your issue with—” He looked at her huge eyes and the down-turned corners of her lips. “Sorry, I know you asked for my help. I can see why. I’ll dig in and see what needs to happen today. Okay, pet?”
She stood and lightly held his face in her hands to give him a long and hearty kiss. “That’s something I truly admire about you. You just dive in and help.” Savannah grabbed her backpack and keys to the Mini. “Tell Amanda that I’ve gone and she can—what am I saying? She can do everything that needs doing. It is absolutely vital to get those coils replaced tonight. I won’t be back until late. Good luck with the paperwork. Come on, Jacob. Let’s go down to the Dali and do some skulking.” She kissed Edward again and left.
* * *
Jacob stood in front of the low gate to the Dali Museum garden. He held Suzy in his arms and peered slowly from the bottom to the top of the plastic barrier. “People who have dirty hands have been touching this gate.” He pointed to faint smudges on the top of the half-height gate. “Someone has been cleaning it with Windex so frequently that the paint is becoming thin, but it is still dirty.”
“Hi, miss.” Lucas was behind them with his thumbs in his waistband. He smiled so wide, Savannah thought it must make his cheeks ache. “Have you lost something? No, wait. You were at the exhibit reception on Sunday night. Miss Webb, right?”
“Yes, I’m Savannah Webb. You have a good memory. I was a guest on Sunday. I haven’t lost anything, but I am searching the area. I’m assisting Detective Parker with the investigation.” She looked at Jacob. “This is Jacob Underwood. He’s good at noticing details that the rest of us ordinary humans would overlook. So, I thought he should look at the site of the incident and also take a look at the garden area.”
“That’s a great idea. I’ll unlock this gate for you and give you a tour. Anything to help Officer Williams.” He paused. “Oh, and Detective Parker as well, but Officer Williams is very nice.” Lucas looked at Suzy, still cuddled in Jacob’s arms, big brown eyes calm yet alert. “Is that a service dog?”
“Yes,” said Jacob. “It says so on her pack. Her name is Suzy. She warns me if I’m going to have an anxiety attack. I need her with me at all times.” He adjusted her position in his arms and stared directly at Lucas.
Lucas dropped his gaze.
“Very well. We support all service animals.” He pulled a large key ring from his pocket and used a small key to unlock the gate. He opened it and let them through, then locked the gate again. “Normal access to the garden is through the café inside the museum.”
“Yes, I’ve been here many times.” Savannah wished he would go away, but that was probably not going to happen. Officer Williams was right to feel a little creeped out by this guy. Savannah was also concerned that the looming presence might bother Jacob, but he didn’t seem to take any notice. “Jacob, see what you can see. I’ll wait over there at the café tables.”
Still holding Suzy, Jacob nodded and stood silent for some long minutes. He scanned the garden methodically from the extreme left to the extreme right side of the outdoor space. It was as if time didn’t exist and he was recording a 3-D scan of the landscape.
Lucas looked at Jacob and at the receding back of Savannah. He followed Savannah and after she sat in one of the white wire chairs, he leaned over to whisper, “What’s he doing?”
She got a whiff of his cologne and wondered why on earth he felt the need to douse himself in the stuff. She put her finger in front of her lips. “I don’t know exactly,” she whispered, “but I have learned to give him all the time and quiet he needs. I’m going to sit here while he works.” She pulled an e-reader from her small black backpack.
Lucas stood looking from Savannah to Jacob.
“He’s going to be quite a long time,” said Savannah.
Jacob walked over to the left side of the garden and scanned the hedge and the large, stacked, volcanic boulders that bordered that side of the garden. It appeared that he was boring holes into the boulders with his gaze.
Lucas watched Jacob minutely examine the grass in front of the first boulder for a long five minutes.
The growing heat and lack of drama finally got to Lucas. “Check in with me before you go.” He appeared on the verge of melting into a puddle. “Please?”
Savannah turned to look at Lucas. “Just one thing. Could you find a bowl of water for Suzy? She will be thirsty when Jacob finishes.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Lucas ducked into the café and returned in a few minutes with a dish and three bottles of water. He silently placed two bottles on the table, poured half of the last bottle into the bowl, and set the bottle next to Savannah. He gave her a broad smile.
Savannah nodded her thanks and returned to her e-reader. As a Florida native, she knew that as long as she stayed under the shade of the umbrella, a cool breeze would find her.
Lucas stood for a few moments, looking at her, then looking at Jacob, then returning to the relief of the air-conditioned museum.
Savannah envied his comfort, but she knew that the only way to escape him was to stay in the heat. It worked. Not the kindest approach to avoidance, but certainly effective.
It was nearly an hour later when Jacob returned. He was still carrying a panting Suzy who wiggled to be let down and slurped up the water in the dish on the ground beside Savannah. When she finished that, Jacob took the remaining half bottle and poured it into the dish.
After Suzy drank a little more, Jacob took his bottle of water and downed most of it. “It’s hot,” he said.
Savannah smiled. “Understatement of the year.” She stowed her e-reader and looked at Jacob. “Did you find anything?”
“Yes. Lots of information. Some of it could help our investigation.”
“Do you want to tell me about what you’ve found in the cool of the café or do you want to go back to Webb’s Glass Shop?”
“Let’s go back to Webb’s Studio.”
“Good plan, but I don’t think we’ll be able to get out the locked gate. Let’s walk through the café and out the front as quickly as we can. I don’t want to talk to Lucas.”
“Me neither. He is very curious.”
They got into her Mini and while waiting for the air conditioner to overcome the stifling heat, she texted Edward and Amanda that she was on her way back to Webb’s Studio with Jacob.
* * *
After settling down in their preferred seats, Savannah spoke. “Jacob has spent the last hour scouring the garden area of the Dali Museum. Tell us what you found, please.”
Jacob scratched the top of Suzy’s head and looked at the center of the conference table. “I found traces of many kinds. The museum visitors stand to take pictures of the giant mustache sculpture and the melting green bench installation, and finally, they tie their plastic wristbands to one of the strands of the wishing tree. Then they leave.”
He paused for a minute, then pulled Suzy into his lap. “Then I found traces of people who are regularly sleeping in the garden. Most of these overnight visitors are using the part of the garden called the maze. It’s easy to get into the maze from the street side and it’s far away from the cameras.”
Edward frowned. “What do you mean by regularly?”
“I mean, every night there are at least two or three overnight sleepers in the garden. Most of them have little areas back in the maze or near one of the big boulders. One of them regularly uses the green bench. That appears to be the favorite, of course. It’s off the ground and the most comfortable. Whoever uses it puts a backpack in the same spot every night and that has made an indention in the gravel in the shape of the bottom of a pack.”
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