Coming to the slow awareness that the Cab driver was sitting there watching us I wisecracked, “Ok I have had dessert, we should probably go find som... dinner”. I opened her door for her closed it and went around to sit behind the driver. “Where to.”, “What’s your pleasure sweet lady?”.Grinning in reply, “I’ll show you latter, but first why don’t we have a drink first and decide what we want to munch on besides each other.” She gave a address to the cabbie and we found ourselves at the entrance. She splat some blood on the wall and ran." You nod encouragingly. Her ideas had more than once ended up being the truth up to the most obscure detail. You appreciated having her around more than you had expected roughly five years ago.You had been in the detective business for over 20 years when one day you found yourself at a loss on an important case. Your brain felt tired and couldn't make the connections it used to. As you sat at a bar in downtown London, a woman had come up to you. "Good. ’ ‘She will if I tell her to.’ Mister Franklin and I talked for another half hour. Topaz stood quietly and did not speak or make any kind of expression for the entire time. Before leaving, he stood in front of the small girl and spoke quite clearly and emphatically. ‘Mister Trent is your new master. You will do everything that he asks you to do without question. Do you understand me?’ ‘Yes.’ It was the first and only word out of her mouth. As he left, I noticed a small bag sitting by the front. The bear corpse lies at the base of a large oak tree; one of the brothers has carved into the bark of the oak, an Appalachian thing. “Under this here tree JJ killed a bear.” Loaded onto the ATV they remark, “That has to be the largest black bear we seen in a while.” A week later I get a phone call asking if I like to have the bear skin I agree to take it although there is a charge for having it prepared.Summer again passes too quickly, too soon as August and football practice. September and we.