Mystery on the Bayou

                                                                                         Chapter 4

                                                                          The Man with the Tattoo

     Once outside the hardware store Jessie and Esther looked around for the man with the tattoo.  Essie spotted him two blocks away at a yard sale.  "There he is!"  Essie said, pulling on Jessie's dress and pointing up the street.  "I see him child," she said, pulling Esther between two vehicles parked at the curb.

     "What do we do now?"  Essie asked Jessie.  "For now, just poked your head around the corner of the car and watch him."  "Okay," Esther said, peeking around the back of the S.U.V. she and Jessie were hiding behind.  While Essie was keeping watch, Jessie was on her cell trying to get a hold of Sheriff Mathews.

     As the phone was ringing, Jessie quickly asked, "Is he still there?"  "Yeah Grandma," Essie said,  "If he starts to leave let me know," "I will," Essie promised.  The sheriff's Deputy Clark Cruise answered the phone after several rings.  "Sheriff's Department," he said in a cheerful voice.  "Clark.  This is Jessie Duvall."  "Hey Mrs. Duvall.  What can I do for you today?"  "You can tell me where Frank is," Jessie said in a hurried voice.

     "He had to go up to New Orleans to testify at some trial.  He won't be back until sometime tomorrow."  "Oh darn," Jessie said in frustration.  "What's up?  Maybe I can help," Deputy Clark said eagerly.  "Grandma!  He's on the move!"  Essie said in a frantic tone.  "Clark.  The guy....the suspect in the murder is...." Which way is he going Essie?"  Jessie asked her.  "Moving up the street," Esther said.

     "He's moving up Main street.  We're across from Roy's hardware store.  Gotta go," and Jessie ended the call.  "Okay.  We're gonna move real slow and follow him," Jessie said.  Oh wow!" Essie said excitedly.  "You walk a little behind me," Jessie cautioned her.  So they started off up the street.  "Is the sheriff on his way?"  Essie asked.  "The sheriff isn't there today.  I told his deputy Clark where we were," Jessie told her.

     "I hope he doesn't come in with his siren going or the suspect is gonna take off, running like a jack rabbit," Essie said in a worried voice.  "He won't," Jessie said.  But she wasn't so sure herself.  The two of them continued to watch the man ahead of them.  There were several garage and yard sales up ahead.  Jessie was hoping the guy would stop at a couple more before Deputy Clark arrived.

     They were in luck, for the man did stop a few houses up from where he'd been before and started digging through the many used items on the tables.  Jessie and Esther stopped at another yard sale a couple of houses down from him and begin looking over the things for sale, while keeping an eye on their suspect.

     Meanwhile, back at the Sheriff's Department, Deputy Clark Cruise was anxiously waiting for the other deputy to get back from a nearby restaurant.  After a few minutes Deputy Mike Snow came strolling in.  He was a big man with crew cut blond hair, brown eyes and a nose that looked like it had been broken a couple of times.

     "Mike.  I just got a call.  Gotta go.  Hold the fort," Clark said, rushing out the door.  "I'll keep your food warm," Mike called after him, waving a paper bag in his beefy hand.  Clark hadn't heard him, he and his cruiser were already taking off down the street.  He had to detour to side streets because Main was closed off because of the carnival in town.

     He finally ended up one street over from Main and only two houses down, from where Jessie and Esther were pretending to rummage through items on a yard sale table.  Deputy Clark quickly pulled a sweater out of his trunk and put it on.  He took off his sheriff's hat and put it in the trunk, along with his gun belt.