Dean could barely wait for Cynthia to finish her conversation before he tossed out his inspiration concerning the skeleton. When he'd finished, he asked Fred, "How many of those trunks were sold in total?"
"Let's see," Fred answered, counting on his fingers. "In addition to the five we bought, there were five or six-maybe seven more. A dozen in all, I'd guess."
"Do you know who bought them?"
"Some of 'em. Mrs. Worthington bought one. So did her sister who was visiting, and the old guy who owns the gift store on the block with the Post Office. Mrs. Worthington will remember who else. There's not many folks in town she doesn't know." He picked up the telephone. "Keep your fingers crossed it was a local and not one of the tourists passing through."
The Wolfman showed up in Mrs. Worthington's trunk and two of her friends, the gift shop owner included, reported a mummy and an assortment of armor. If Fred's calculations were correct-they agreed with Mrs. Worthington's recollections-four trunks remained unaccounted for. The number fell to three when a dinnertime caller remembered someone opening their purchase in the parking lot. It was something grotesque, but definitely not a skeleton.
"What about Mrs. Worthington's relative? Didn't you say she bought a trunk, too?" Cynthia asked.
Fred explained that the New York sister was staying in her motor home at a local campground. However, the woman and her husband were leaving to continue a summer-long trip westward. They'd delayed in Ouray just long enough to attend the auction and planned to leave immediately afterward for their next stop, the Grand Canyon. While Bird Song waited, Mrs. Worthington, prompted by Fred's phone call, went to the campground to see if she might catch the couple left before they left.
Over dessert, the Bird Song Three received the report. The sister was long gone, but campground neighbors recounted she'd opened the trunk before departing.
"Did they see what was in it?" Fred asked, crossing his fingers.
"Yes," came the answer. "It was a skeleton, but it wasn't any good. The skull was cracked and broken."