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.Bert nodded.“He used to come see her most every day.She taught him how to play.”“Who is she?”“She’s a true Southern belle.Must be close to a hundred.Lived in an antebellum home downtown, not far from the Margaret Mitchell house.Used to tell some of the best stories.” He pointed to the picture beside her bed.“That’s her husband, Colonel Hampton.He died some twenty years ago now, but she keeps that picture and—”As he was talking her left hand would move the chess pieces while her right hand came up just above her gown and began searching her neck for something that wasn’t there.“Oh.there she goes again.She’s looking for it now.”Mandy whispered, “Looking for what?”Sketch had yet to move.When Mrs.Hampton’s hand began searching her neck, he pulled on one of the drawers of his chess set and dug his fingers into the back of it.He pulled out a piece of tissue paper and began unrolling it.Mandy and I stepped close enough to see.Sensing us over his shoulder, he looked up at us.“It’s okay,” I said, “go ahead.”Sketch unrolled the tissue and spread it out across his hand.Bert eyed the chain lying across the kid’s palm and said, “That.”Sketch picked up a long silver necklace.Held it up with two hands and offered to slip it over the lady’s head.She saw it, eyed the diamond at the bottom, and leaned forward.He slipped it over her hair net and hung it gently around her neck where the diamond fell between her lonely fingers.He slid his sketch pad from beneath the chess set and quickly wrote, MRS.HAMPTON, I’M SORRY ABOUT YOUR DIAMOND.I DIDN’T TAKE IT.I KNOW YOU’VE BEEN MISSING IT.SORRY I DIDN’T GET IT BACK SOONER.He laid the note on her lap and turned it around so she could read it.The nurse slipped between us and said, “Child, she can’t really read anymore.” She held the note and read it quietly to Mrs.Hampton, who was looking out the window, her fingers reading the facets of her diamond.“Shook this place up pretty good when that thing got stolen.We all had to take lie-detector tests.Then Sonya didn’t show up for work, and that’s about when everybody started pointing fingers at every-body else.”Mandy and I looked at him in amazement.He liked knowing something we didn’t, so he didn’t mind talking.“Yeah, reporters, news crews.Lots of people.” Bert pointed.“The Colonel gave her that diamond after he returned from his North African campaign.He was shot down over there.”Buddy and Mrs.Hampton sat in silence, understanding each other perfectly.Unc stepped up to the bed and said, “Buddy, let’s let this sweet lady get some sleep.We’ll come back tomorrow.Okay?”Mandy pulled Bert aside.“Don’t you have some sort of policy where you encourage family members to remove a resident’s jewelry when they come here?”Bert nodded.“We do, and we tried with Mrs.Hampton.Only we ran into two problems—she didn’t have any kin, and even if she did, she wouldn’t willingly take that necklace off.”I opened my wallet, pulled out Sketch’s torn page, and walked around to the corner table and the picture of the colonel.I tried to open the Bible to the fifth chapter of Matthew, but it wasn’t there.I spread the binding, found the tattered edge, and placed the single page up against it.It fit perfectly.Sketch nodded and slipped off the bed, but she didn’t let go of his hand.He gently patted her with his other, and she let go.We walked out into the hall, where Unc talked with Bert.Sketch tugged on my pant leg and pointed to his sketch pad.His note read, AM I GOING TO JAIL NOW?I showed it to Mandy, who knelt down and shook her head, “No, Buddy.you’re not going to jail.” She ran her fingers gently across his head.“If anything, we ought to give you a medal.”Because I figured Red was never going to believe this, I put us up in two adjoining rooms at the Ritz Carlton on Peachtree.Mandy in one, the three of us in the other.Four if you count Bones.Sketch wouldn’t hear of him sleeping in the car, so we smuggled him up the back stairs, bathed him, and ordered room service.Unc watched the cat lap up the milk and whispered over his shoulder, “This could get expensive.”We slept late and then gorged on the brunch buffet
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