Archer took up the explanation, “I don’t really know them; don’t know them much at all. They were new to the business. I mainly talked with Eleanor when I was taking registrations for the merchants, and that was the only contact I had with them before today.”
Tom asked, “You said when they checked in yesterday, everything seemed normal?”
“Yes, absolutely. They were kind of excited to be here, to be getting started in their business. We didn’t talk in depth, but Russell said he and his wife were looking forward to learning about the trade as they went along. He said they were still getting to know not only how it worked, but the actual inventory itself. I wished them luck, told them to find me if they needed any help or had questions, and they went to set up their tent.”
Perri asked Archer, “And there were no problems that came up last night or today between the Calders or between them and a customer? No issues? Or, can you talk about it?”
“I can talk about this, yes. But no, nothing at all.” Archer responded. “Eleanor told one of the responding officers that she hadn’t seen Russell for three hours. She didn’t know where he had gone and couldn’t leave the table to look for him. He had been missing at least that long.”
“Did he just leave the tent without telling her?” Nina questioned.
“Eleanor said he had been talking with customers as normal up until he left. She was dealing with customers too and didn’t specifically pay attention to anyone Russell dealt with, but she didn’t notice any problems. The last customer she remembers seeing was a man, a re-enactor, in Union uniform. She doesn’t know what he was interested in because she didn’t talk to him. She doesn’t believe he made a purchase because her husband didn’t make a deposit in the payment box. They keep it covered with a cloth under the back table, away from the customer side. She would have noticed if he had gone to it. Eleanor says she took payment for an item and when she was finished the man was gone. She then went on to another customer. She vaguely remembers Russell saying he needed to step out for a bit and would be back shortly, but she was busy at the time. He never came back.”
“Tom said it looked like he might have been stabbed, is that right?” Nina ventured.
Archer was uncertain. “I’m not real sure I’m able to say. Yet.”
“That’s cool, Arch, we get it.” Tom put one hand on Archer’s shoulder. “We gonna be able to stay in our tents tonight?”
“We are hoping the camping area will be ok for tonight. If not, do you have somewhere you can go?”
Nina spoke up, “We have a room in Midlothian where he can stay if camp is off limits.”
“Sounds good. I certainly hope we can stay here tonight because if we can’t, it’s going to be a hassle trying to get all these people packed up and moved out, much less them all finding somewhere to stay at the last minute.” Archer sighed deeply. “I need to get back to the gate. We do have to submit the names, addresses, and contact phone number of everyone who is here now, and I should be helping with that. Tom, Nina, I have yours of course, but I need to get Perri’s.”
“No problem.” Perri took the notepad and pen Archer held out to her, wrote down her information, and handed it back.
“Thanks guys. Tom, I’ll get back with you later.” A ring tone emanated from within Archer’s gray uniform and Tom’s eyebrows shot up. He shrugged sheepishly. “Necessary evil right now, I’m afraid. Thread counting is on hold for the time being.” He gave a wan smile, turned, and reached inside his coat.
“If you need help with something, let me know.” Tom called after him. Archer waved his hand as he broke into a trot.
"What is thread counting?" asked Perri.
Tom responded, "It’s jargon for when someone makes a lot of effort to find anything not quite kosher as far as historical authenticity with someone else's clothing, supplies, anything at all. Some people are pickier than others."
“What do we do now?” Nina asked.
Tom thought about it for a minute then said, “I guess, if we can, we should get out of the way. Let me check. If we can leave, let’s go back to the hotel. I’ll shower and change clothes. We may as well eat supper out somewhere; I seriously doubt things will be clear here in the next two to three hours. I’ll check later to see if I can come back for the night.”
They all agreed on the plan. They were allowed to leave since they had already submitted their information. In case the site was to remain closed overnight, Tom collected the items he didn’t want to leave until the next day, and after they were inspected by one of the policeman, the three headed back to Midlothian.
***
Perri, Nina, and Tom returned to the hotel room after having supper at a local Italian restaurant which had been recommended to them by one of Tom’s buddies. Perri flopped down on her bed, “I’m stuffed full. Why did I eat so much bread?”
“Because it was dripping in basil garlic butter and salt,” Nina stated matter-of-factly.
“Yes, it was, and it was worth it.”
Nina patted the bed next to her, “Tom, come here. Got something for you.”
“Oh yeah?” he looked surprised and confused.
“Good grief. I meant I bought something for you.”
Slightly embarrassed, Tom sat on the bed next to Nina. She reached under the pillow of the bed and pulled out the paper-wrapped knife. She handed it to Tom, saying, “This is for you.”
As Tom unwrapped the scabbard, his mouth opened, then he whistled. “Would you look at this? Wow!” He drew the blade from the scabbard. His eyes widened.
“You’ve been wanting one for a long time. I've seen how often you looked these up online, and …” Nina stopped. Tom was holding the blade closely and inspecting it. He was no longer smiling.
“Nina, my gosh, how much did you pay for this?”
“Is that what you say when someone gives you a gift?” Nina’s forehead wrinkled. “It was around the same price as the ones you were looking at online. It was $210 total.”
Tom looked at Nina, “$210? Each, for both, or a down payment?”
“No, total. The two together were $210.” Nina glanced at Perri then back at Tom. “What’s wrong. Don’t you like it? I thought you were wanting one of these…”
“I love it, Nina, that isn’t it.”
“Well, then what is ‘it’?”
“It is wonderful, and the price was, as you said, in the price range I was looking for.” He paused and took another close look. “But Nina, this is real.”
Chapter 9
"What do you mean real?" Now Nina's brow was deeply furrowed and her mouth was slightly open in confusion.
"This isn't a repro, babe, this is the real deal." Tom was gingerly turning the knife over in his hands, looking at it from every angle.
Nina half-smiled and said, "I don't understand. How can it be real? I bought it at one of the sutler's tables, one who sells repro weapons not real ones."
"Really? Today?" Tom examined the leather scabbard again. As he squinted at the crossguard he said, "Which one?"
"Well, I bought it from the table that belonged to the couple, what was their name…the Calders. The man who was killed."
Tom thoughtfully ran his finger over the crossguard then returned the blade to the scabbard and set it gently on the bed behind them. "I see." He looked at the floor, thinking. "Did Russell Calder sell it to you?"
"No, his wife did. Mr. Calder was busy with someone else at the time, a man in a Union uniform. Tom, I’m scared that might have been the guy Archer said was his last customer, and I saw him but I don’t remember what he looked like enough to even describe him. I mainly saw the uniform." Nina waited. After a minute or more, she asked, "You asked if Russell Calder sold me the knife. Why? Does it matter?"
"Probably not. Archer said the Calders were new to the business; I just don't know how new that means. It seems unusual for someone to be a sutler at an event like that if they know so little about the items they are selling, which obviously is the case
here." He picked up the side knife again. "On one hand, I wonder why they started in this business and where they got their inventory. On the other hand, I wonder if the fact that they had something like this prompted them to go into the business. Either way, why are they selling this at replica prices. They can't have known what they had or they wouldn't have been selling it for $210. Unless they thought, or knew, it was stolen and were trying to get rid of it, but why do that at an event like this? And, what else do they have?"
Perri offered, “Maybe they were hiding it in plain sight, selling it at an event.”
“Could be, but it doesn’t seem likely since this is one of the few places with lots of people who are likely to be able to spot it as authentic.”
“Well if $210 is too little for this as a real item, how much should it have cost?” Nina asked Tom.
Tom considered, then answered thoughtfully, “Well, it would depend on a few variables.”
“Like what,” asked Perri.
“Like, did it come with a provenance. That means documentation of when and where it was made, who purchased it, used it, owned it when it was sold. It also would matter how many were made and/or how many of its kind have been recovered. And the maker also matters sometimes, depending on who it was. I see “Memphis” etched into the brass of the crossguard. Part of the left side of the ‘M’ is a little worn off, but it is definitely a Memphis knife.”
“I don’t know the difference in a Memphis knife and a side knife.” Nina was shaking her head slowly.
“It is a side knife, just like you thought. It’s a bit more than an average soldier’s knife though. Memphis was a company that made swords, knives, and even knockoff Colt revolvers that were used by the Confederate Army in the Civil War. I’ve researched them a little in the past since I’ve been wanting to buy one and have been learning about the kinds of knives out there. The company was started in 1861 by Thomas Leech and operated in Memphis, Tennessee as Thomas Leech & Company for a while, along with Charles Rigdon. In 1862, when the danger of the city being captured by the Union Army got to be a bit much, it was moved to Mississippi and sometimes operated under the name Leech & Rigdon, but mostly Memphis Novelty Works or just plain Novelty Works. This blade was made by that company, whether in Memphis or elsewhere, I don’t know. I don’t see any etching on the blade or other signs to date it closely, but I’m not an expert on these. I’m sure someone will be able to date it.”
The three sat in silence. Finally, Perri piped up, “I think you ought to call Archer Vaughn and let him know, or at least report it to the police."
"Ahhh, no." Nina groaned.
"What?" asked Tom, turning quickly to Nina.
"Does that mean they might take this away from you? I'm sorry, I don't mean to diminish the seriousness of Mr. Calder for getting himself killed on the day I found this for you, but darn it, I just bought it. I was glad to find it and surprise you with it!"
"I'm surprised, that's for sure." Tom saw the disappointment on Nina's face. He put one large hand on Nina’s shoulder. "No, I didn't mean to be flippant about it. Nina, this is a fantastic present, I love it. Don't worry about the knife though, we'll work this out. They may have to take it for a while, or for good, I don't know, but if they do we’ll get another one. Let me call Archer and find out."
Nina tilted her head back, looked at the ceiling, and sighed, "Ooo-kay." Then she flopped backward onto the bed.
Tom fished around in a duffle for his phone. When he found it, he lifted it up, nodded to Perri and Nina and stepped outside the motel room, quietly closing the door.
Perri looked at Nina, somewhat wide-eyed. “What do you think? Sounds like you got quite the deal on the knife and sheath. I hope you get to keep it, but if it is real, the chances aren’t good.”
“Oh, good grief. I’m the last person that would have known what it was. The people selling it couldn’t have known either. Why do that?”
“Maybe they did know and wanted to get rid of it. Maybe Tom’s right and it is stolen.” Perri was quiet for a moment, then grinned and said, “Wait until I talk to Nick and tell him you’re purchasing hot weapons from a fence. Maybe you can pick one up for him too.”
“Gee, thanks.”
“He’ll be quite impressed you’ve become a stolen arms dealer.”
Nina’s face crumpled into a sad little knot.
Perri smiled, “I’m sorry, I’m just trying to lighten things up. Even if it is stolen, you couldn’t know that. And Tom is reporting it. You don’t have anything to worry about, other than maybe losing it.” They sat in silence for a while. “If they have to confiscate it, I wonder if you get your money back?”
“My luck, probably not.” Nina stood up and tossed the bag the gift had been in across the room. “So much for my big surprise.”
“Oh, it was a surprise.”
Finally, the tension broke and they both laughed. “Yeah, you’re right.” Nina said. “I am curious to see what Tom finds out.”
***
Tom came back through the door as he ended his call. Nina asked, “Well? What did he say?”
He replied, “He does want me to bring the item in.” Nina drooped. “But we figured that, Nina.” She nodded. “We don’t know what the circumstances are. It could be that it isn’t stolen, that it just got mixed up in the other inventory.”
“Is that what Archer said, that maybe it was a mistake?” Perri asked.
Before Tom could answer, Nina said, “Even if it is a mistake, we won’t be able to keep it, we’d have to make up the difference in cost. I don’t know how much this kind of antique would go for, but we…”
“Let’s don’t worry about that right now. We’ll find out when we find out. Right now, the priority is on finding out who killed Mr. Calder, and why.”
Nina replied, “Yes, I understand. I’m sorry. I don’t mean to be insensitive.”
“Archer didn’t go into detail, but he did say that the Eleanor and Russell Calder have only been in this business for a few weeks; this was one of their first events. Apparently, Eleanor’s brother, a guy named Felix Tyndall ran a home business selling reproductions online. He died unexpectedly last month, heart attack or something. Eleanor is his next of kin and after they cleaned out his apartment, they decided to sell the inventory at events like this rather than strictly online. Apparently, Russell had an interest in the Civil War, he just didn’t have a lot of knowledge about the merchandise.”
“This knife and scabbard were part of that inventory?” asked Perri.
“Yes. I feel bad for Mrs. Calder.” Tom lifted the knife. “Her husband was just killed, and now that this has turned up. They want to go through all the inventory to see what else might be in there. That isn’t as bad as the fact that they want to know who she has sold items to. Being new not only to this business, but to any business, they weren’t keeping records detailed enough for that. There’s no reason to. Who does at an event like this? If someone buys an item and pays for it with cash, that’s it, you don’t get their name and address unless you have some kind of mailing list going.”
“With them being novices to this business, I doubt they even have the accounting part worked out. Sounds like they are total novices.” Nina pondered.
“Yep, I’d say so. Well, I need to take this in to the State Police station and turn it in. Do you two want to go?”
“May as well,” Perri looked questioningly at Nina.
“Yeah, guess so.” Nina picked up her purse. “Oh, what about tonight, do you need to stay here in the room, Tom, or are they letting you camp?”
“I forgot to tell you, yes, we can go back to the camp, we just have to stay out of the wooded area. They’ll have people there all night, but it shouldn’t affect our schedule too much for tomorrow.”
“That’s good, at least you get to finish up your event.” Perri shouldered her purse and she and Nina walked out ahead of Tom, who closed the door, rattled the handle and pushed on the door for his normal safety check bef
ore heading for the Explorer.
Chapter 10
The three of them retraced the same route back through Midlothian toward Richmond they had just driven to return to the hotel after supper. Tom turned into the Virginia State Police station and followed the road around an area of grass and trees, then parked in the lot. The main doors were located in a rotunda-like extension of the building. They walked past a row of rectangular concrete flower boxes and a row of bollards placed in front of the entrance and in through the double doors. Tom stepped up to the desk and asked for Archer Vaughn. The desk sergeant made a quick phone call and said, “He’ll be up in a minute. You can wait over there,” he gestured to a bank of chairs against the wall.
They strolled over to the seating but none of them felt compelled to sit down to wait. Perri read the service award plaques on the wall, Nina and Tom talked quietly. Archer appeared within a few minutes, dressed in his gray and black work uniform. “Hi guys, thanks for coming in. Let’s go back this way.” He gestured with his head back down the hallway.
Perri, Nina, and Tom followed him to an office. “Sorry I don’t have enough chairs for everyone.”
“Not a problem, Archer.” Tom waited for Nina and Perri to sit in the two available seats, then said, “I certainly didn’t expect to get to see your office while we were in Virginia.”
“I didn’t expect to be seeing my office this weekend either. But, unfortunately, here I am.” Archer smiled. His fair complexion a bit reddened by the sunshine of a day spent on the field. “You brought the knife with you?”
Tom handed Archer the paper-wrapped weapon. “That’s it. Nina gave it to me as a surprise after we got back from eating supper tonight. I’ve been looking for a reproduction of this type for some time. Nina had her eye out for one and found this at the event. She bought it from the Calders’ table.”
Archer removed the newspaper and gave the blade and scabbard a cursory exam. “What a beauty. Looks real alright.” He sat both items on his desktop and retrieved a plastic evidence bag from a desk drawer. “What in the heck was this doing in an inventory of reproduction…junk?” He pursed his lips and furrowed his forehead.
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