EDENVILLE

Double Whammy

By @lyttlejoe
Inspector Fellow knelt accidentally in a mud patch by the bridge rubble and studied his find - two identical cannonballs except one was rubber. He slipped them into a plastic evidence bag and handed them to Breem who fell over from the weight as his one arm was in a protective cast from his fight with Dobbs.
"Get those to the Doc right away," Fellow said, stepping over Breem. Something wasn't right about this whole business. Two balls in the same place was more than a coincidence and he didn't believe in those.

"Inspector!" Sid cried, pedalling to halt in front of the officer. "I must shpeak to you about ze river!"
"You mean the bridge, Mr . . .?"
"Schvinn. Nein, ze river! I am ze town . . . gondolier. Und zere is somesing strange going on mit ze river."
"Explain."
Sid went on to do just that telling the inspector about the boat that visits behind the church every month loaded with barrels and leaves empty."
"And just how do you come to know this?"
"I practice gondoling up zere vere ze water is calmer."
"Thank you, Mr. Schwinn, I'll look into it."

Fellow went on to the Mayor's office only to find he was at the hotel practising for Thursday's Hawaiian night.
"Surely there is something I can do- something I can help you with Inspector." Beulah said, leaning in an awkward pose against her desk while pulling her hair ribbon loose. "I can take you if you don't know the way."
"I can see it from here, Miss . . .?"
"Un-derwo-o-d."
"Yes, well thank you."
"Any time . . . Inspector . . ."

The Tiki Bar was rocking with a Don Ho eight track from Corky's private collection and Mayor Maynot, in a lei and his grass skirt (freshly pressed) was demonstrating his practise moves. Reverend Smidge sucked on an Oahu Sunset through an umbrella straw, his shoulders dipping side to side with the music.

Admiral Tanker saw the Inspector come in and guided him to the bar.
"A glass of the rum for the Inspector, Twilla my dear."
"Actually I'm on du--"
Take a swig 'o that, Inspector, put ice in yer galoshes. So, did my expertise avail you of the necessary details needed to identify any cannonballs you find?"
"As a matter of fact I found cannonballs." The music stopped, the Mayor stumbled dizzily to a chair and everyone else leaned close. "Two . . . identical cannonballs - twins you might say."
Millie screamed. Twilla fainted. Reverend Smidge sucked his cheeks inside out and the Admiral hooted aloud.
"I should have said one was rubber . . ." Ernest Fellow smiled sheepishly.