Cynthia expressed concern that Fred's newly acquired knowledge that the bone fragment was human might jeopardize his court-imposed decree. At least Dean had refrained from disclosing the tie to the Dawkinses-Josh, the missing mine manager-nor had he mentioned he knew the name of the Dawkinses' stepmother. Both Dean and his wife felt comfortable with Fred researching the identity of the skeleton as long as Fred remained unaware of any direct connection to the Dawkinses. If the skeleton dated back to the 1960's, as they were now beginning to believe, all the current players-the four Dawkinses, stepmother Jenny Radisson, and even Fitzgerald-would have barely been born, thereby excusing them from any direct culpability. With the exception of deceased Dawkins, Senior owning the property where the skeleton was discovered, Fred should be on safe ground limiting his research to the identity of the elusive bones.
While Dean distrusted the Dawkins, given their mutual animosity toward one another, any collective effort on their part-on any project-seemed questionable, if not impossible. The mock bones had been in storage for a couple of years-since the theater group went bust-in an unmarked trunk. Surely none of the Dawkinses, who lived in California, would have had either access to or knowledge of the trunk-stored skeleton. Nor, for that matter, would have anyone else Dean could think of, Acting Sheriff Fitzgerald included. The question of who was responsible for Josh-the-skeleton coming to his untimely demise was even more obscure. Solving a current murder was difficult enough-a forty-year-old case was near impossible.
"Maybe old Mr. Dawkins caught his foreman cheating and murdered him," Cynthia offered.
"It wouldn't be very smart to leave the body in your own mine property."
"Smart enough. No one found the remains for forty years!"
Dean smiled. "You've got me there. But I thought you were positive it was Fitzgerald who switched the bones."
Cynthia thought about that. "Switching the bones and killing him in the first place are two different acts-forty years apart. Maybe Dawkins' foreman was Fitzgerald's father! Fred said Fitzgerald lived here in Ouray and his father was a miner."
Dean laughed. "Now you're beginning to sound like Fred! Besides, how would Fitzgerald know about the theatrical bones?"
"Good question," Cynthia answered. "I've got another one. Why would whoever switched the bones hide the real ones back in the trunk-in a place where they were sure to be discovered? It was only a matter of time until someone looked in that theater junk. It was a terrible choice for a hiding place."
"On the contrary," Dean answered. "Wouldn't the bones be taken for a stage prop? I presume that's just what Mrs. Worthington's sister thought when she opened her trunk. They were supposed to look real, as were all the theater props. Hide 'em in plain sight, so to speak, a la Edgar Allen Poe."