Chapter 50

Wednesday, December 16, 1964

I had to talk to Eli, but we couldn't work out a time until late afternoon today. The upside was that the dreaded Trudy was not there, so I just knocked on his door.

"Just a minute," I heard from inside. And it was about a minute before he opened the door for me. "Come in. Coffee?"

"Only if it's made."

"It is," And he served me his best in a Dixie cup. "What's up?"

I filled him in on my progress, or lack thereof, and my theories.

"Got the whole family involved," he said. "That does sound like progress."

"I suppose it is," I said. "But I've got a strong feeling tht Father Fox's death has to do with his background rather than the suspicion that he was molesting boys."

I had forgotten he wasn't at the wake, and I had never filled him in on his peculiar background.

"Oh my," he said, after I had made up for lost time. "Who knows whether that played a role in his death, but it's definitely an angle worth exploring. What do you need from me?"

"Know any Nazi hunters?"

He laughed. "None in my back pocket, but I might know someone who knows someone ..."

"Who knows someone," I said, continuing the sentence.

"Definitely that," he said. "What do you need exactly."

"As much as we can get on his German background. He must have gone back to Germany with his mother around 1935."

"Got a name for her."

"Not yet, but I will. We'd like anything we can get on him, particularly his military service. His outfit. Where they went. Et cetera."

"Give me a few days to find someone who can help," he said.

"Time is of the essence." 

"Why? Dave Johnson is not going anywhere."

I stared at him. "That's why time is of the essence." 

He looked back at me and smiled. "Good point."