"I'm just wondering what you can tell me about his last visit. I'm assuming he and Alfie Toth came to the area to see you that spring."
"That's right," she said. As though to distract herself, she began to screw lids on the pickle jars, stowing mustard and mayonnaise back in the refrigerator. "I hope you don't think this is disrespectful, but my father was a loser and we all knew that. Truthfully, I was happiest when he was in jail. He always seemed to cause trouble."
"Was he a problem on this visit?"
"Of course. Mostly chasing women. Like any woman here was that hard up," she said.
"From what little I know, I never pictured him as a ladies' man."
"He wasn't, but he'd just gotten out of jail and he was itching to get laid. He'd be at Tiny's at four, the minute the doors opened. Once he started drinking, he'd hit on anyone who crossed his path. He thought he was irresistible and he'd be angry and combative when his ham-handed flirtations didn't net him what he wanted."
"Anybody in particular?"
Margaret shrugged. "A waitress at the Rainbow and one at Tiny's. Alice, the one with red hair."
"I know her," I said.
"That's all he talked about, how horny he was. Poontang, he called it. I was embarrassed. I mean, what kind of talk is that coming from your dad? He couldn't have been more obnoxious. He got in fights. He borrowed money. He dinged the truck. People around here won't tolerate behavior like that. It drove Hatch insane so, of course, the two of us were fighting. Hatch wanted them out of here and I can't say I blamed him. What are you going to do though, your own dad? I could hardly ask him to leave. He'd been here less than a week."
"So what finally happened?"
"We sent him and Alfie off on a fishing trip. Anything to get them out from underfoot for a couple of days. Hatch lent 'em a couple of fishing rods he never did get back. He was p.o.'d about that. Anyway, I don't know what happened, but something must have gone wrong. Next morning, Alfie showed up and said they'd decided to take off and he'd come for their things."
"Where was your father?"
"Alfie told us Daddy was waiting for him and he had to get a move on or Pinkie'd be furious with him. I didn't think anything about it. I mean, it did sound like him. He was always trying to get Alfie to fetch and carry for him."
"Did Tom know all this?"
"I told him in March when Daddy's remains turned up. Once the body was identified, Tom notified me and I passed the news on to the rest of the family. Before that, as far as I knew, Dad was fine."
"Didn't it strike you as odd that no one in the family ever heard from him once he supposedly left here?"
"Why should it? Bad news travels fast. We always figured if something happened to him, someone would be in touch. Police or a hospital. He always carried ID. Besides, we heard from Alfie now and then. I guess the two of them split up, or that's the impression he gave."
"Why did he call?"
Margaret shrugged. "Beats me. Just to see how we were doing is what he said."
"Did he ever ask about your dad?"
"Well, yes, but it wasn't like he really wanted to get in touch. You know how it is. How's your dad?…
What do you hear from him?… And that sort of thing."
"So he was wondering if Pinkie ever showed up again. Is that it?"
"I guess. Finally, he stopped calling and we lost touch with him."
"Maybe he realized Pinkie wasn't ever going to put in an appearance."
"That's what Tom said. He thought Daddy might have been murdered the very day Alfie left, though there was never any way to prove it. One thing they found was a gas receipt he'd tucked in his pocket. That was dated the day before. Him and Alfie filled up the tank on their way to the lake. You think Alfie knew something?"
"Almost certainly," I said.
"Maybe the two of them quarreled."
"It's always possible," I said. "Judging from his behavior, he was either trying to create the impression that Pinkie was alive, or he really wasn't sure himself.
The last time you saw him… when he stopped by to pick up their belongings… did he seem okay to you?"
"Like what?"
"He wasn't nervous or in a hurry?"
"He was in a hurry for sure, but no more than he'd be with Daddy waiting."
"Any signs he'd been in a scuffle?"