Dust to Dust

case is full of them. You think it’s the same family—Gauthier and Walters?”
    “I don’t know,” said Diane.
    “You know,” said Neva, “sometimes people change their names if they don’t want to be associated with an infamous relative. Imagine how Jeffrey Dahmer’s extended family must feel.”
    “Sometimes they do it because the old name is just too hard to pronounce,” said David. “Or they don’t want to sound foreign.”
    “It’s probably just a weird coincidence,” said Diane, “but I’d like to investigate the possibility.”
    “What you’re thinking is that the Walters family doesn’t want the connection made between them and their Mad Potter relative,” said David. “Assuming the Mad Potter was a Gauthier, and the Walters are really the Gauthiers.”
    “I think it may be a possibility,” said Diane. “The Walters are a prominent family. Gordon Walters, the oncologist in Gainesville, is testing the waters for a run for Congress. He, or his father, Everett Walters, might want to keep the skeletons in the closet.”
    “Who wouldn’t want to keep these skeletons hidden?” said Neva. She shivered and pushed her hair back behind her ears. “I gave the facial reconstruction drawings to Hanks. He’s going to show them around some of the area retirement homes. He doesn’t hold out much hope that anyone will remember them after so long, but there’s always a chance.”
    “You did a good job on the drawings. I hope we get some hits,” said Diane.
    “You know,” said Izzy, “I think we need to have our own Web site where we can post Neva’s reconstructions. A lot of people have computers these days. Who knows? We might get some hits there.”
    Izzy wore jeans and a T-shirt like the rest of her team usually wore. He started out with slacks and button-up shirts. Diane was glad to see that he had adapted well to her team. Not that he should dress like them, but she wanted him to feel a part of the team, to identify with them. Not everyone could.
    “Good idea,” said Diane. “Would you like to do it?”
    Izzy raised a hand as if shoving the idea away from himself. “I’m just learning about computers. But good ol’ David here . . .”
    “I think it’s a good idea too,” said David. “It wouldn’t be hard. The hard part is to make it so people can find it. Your average person doesn’t go surfing for missing persons. But we can give it a try.”
    “Okay, in your spare time, then, go ahead,” said Diane. “Neva, I want you to remember everything you can about the black Escalade you saw. Did it have any stickers on it? Did it have a front plate that identified the dealership? Anything?”
    “I’ve gone over it in my head,” said Neva. “I believe it had a UGA parking sticker on the front window, but I’m not sure. It didn’t have a dealer plate, or any front plate.”
    “Find out if anyone among the Gainesville families we discussed has a car like that,” said Diane.
    “Will do,” said Neva. “I can probably get a list of Cadillac Escalades registered on the UGA campus. You want me to do a little investigating and see if the Tyler guy might be a hiker?”
    “Yes,” said Diane. “But would he wear his good hiking boots except when he was hiking? Jin doesn’t.”
    Neva grinned broadly. “We start judging what perps might do based on Jin’s behavior and no telling what we might come up with,” she said, and they all laughed. “If they’re really comfortable, and I’m guessing they would be, then he might like them in a high-risk situation.”
    Diane nodded and turned to David. “Have you been able to identify any of the fingerprints you found on the objects in the well?”
    “I haven’t run them yet,” he said. “That’s on my schedule for this morning.”
    “Be sure to include the database of people who’ve been bonded,” said Diane.
    David put a hand over his heart. “Have you ever known me not to be thorough?” he said.
    “Never,” said Diane. “I’m just looking for reasons for a judge to grant a warrant.”
    “I hear you,” said David. “We will scour the evidence.”
    Diane’s cell vibrated in her suit pocket. She pulled it out and looked at the display. Detective Hanks.
    “Hi,” said Diane. “What’s up?”
    “You know I told you I was sending someone to retirement homes looking for people who remembered Maybelle Gauthier?”
    “Don’t tell me you found someone who knew her. That’s great,” said Diane.
    “Nope,”