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Delia groaned.

“I knew I should have followed him. I’d gone down into the basement to catch some quick shut-eye; the rest of you were up in the hall. Lyman was sneaking round the back of the mansion, and I bet he woke something up or let something lose he ought not to.”

"That sounds suspicious," Hannah remarked, "makes me want to investigate now."

She went over events in her mind again wondering if there was anything strange she may have missed.

Faye frowned. She remembered Dr. Lyman disappearing rather abruptly, but she hadn't tracked where he'd gone. "I think Anthony, the violinist, was talking to Dr. Lyman, the last time I saw him. Well, last time before this started. I think Anthony is back at the hostel."

She turned to Delia and asked cautiously, "What's so important about the basement?" She'd never been down, but she'd heard stories floating around town. Granted, some of them she was pretty sure were just that, but she also knew not to take anything for granted in Ditto Town.

"Well, the basement proper is where the archives are kept," Delia replied. "But...if you really go into the basement, you can find a lot of strange things. Some of it is sensible, but some of it, well, there's a reason why it's not open to the public. There's some stuff down there that isn't easily explained. The mansion is built on the ruins of probably dozens of civilizations."

"It is?" Hannah was listening to the two talk and that stood out to her, "the things you learn when you move to a new town," she mused softly.

"Anything else occur that was off or strange?" she asked curiously, this town seemed to get better by the minute.

"Darling, everything is off and strange in Ditto Town," Delia said. "Although, I must admit I wasn't really paying attention during the presentation, except to notice the preponderance of gingers in attendance."

Hannah looked thoughtful for a moment, "I am beginning to figure that out." She then looks to her own hair, "guess I would have been one of those gingers."

At the Thamer Boarding House

Norah was up before the sun, warming her stove and plotting breakfast. A pleasant sizzle came from her skillet as the bacon started cooking. Fetching wood from the pile out back, she caught sight of one of her guests heading back up the street.

She clicked her tongue. Already up and making mischief, it looked like. She hoped he'd have sense enough to show up for breakfast.

Fortunately for Anthony Lively, Norah missed spotting the sheet dangling from his window. She might have had a few harsh words for someone who felt the need to sneak out of her house instead of using the door like civilized folk.

Leaving the Jail

"Well, come, we can't do much about it right now. Perhaps we should reconvene with everyone over breakfast? Maybe we can figure out what happened...maybe there was a clue in his lecture I missed, or we just need to grill Anthony and see if something happened there."

By the Tavern

Just moments after Anthony escaped with his violin, he found himself swimming upstream against a horde of children, all headed for the tavern.

"Alright, now, Jephthah, no fighting today," Grace said hurriedly, adjusting her oldest's collar with one hand, "unless they really deserve it, and this time you better be able to explain why they deserved it."

"Yes ma'am," he said, grabbing his sister's hand and swinging his lunch pail. He tolerated a quick kiss from Grace, but lost Bernadette's hand as she threw hers around her mother's neck and planted a sloppy kiss on her cheek.

"Off you pop!" Grace said, giving them a push toward the door. She watched until they disappeared inside with the rest of the children, then turned to Anthony.

"You're an early riser," she smiled, adjusting the basket she was carrying. "Headed back to Norah's for some breakfast, now that you've gotten your walk in?"

Leaving the Jail

Hannah nodded and smiled in her agreement, "that, I think would be the best option we have been wanting breakfast anyway and I know I think better after a good meal to start the day."

By the Tavern

"Yes ma'am," Anthony said, in answer to Grace's question about breakfast. She looked like she was in a good mood--well, anyway, she was smiling--so hopefully she wasn't planning on whipping out a gun and ventilating his boots. "I hear tell Miz Norah makes a mean chicken and waffle breakfast."

He cleared his throat and didn't look over at the place where he'd last seen the insurance agent. A good detective never relied on a single source. "And iffin you don't mind... maybe you can explain what happened last night? My head is still spinning, and I don't think this walk helped."

By the Tavern

Grace pursed her lips.

"Well, most of the time people have a reason for turning up somewhere," she said. "They don't just drop out of the sky unexpectedly."

By the Tavern

Anthony agreed with Grace's assessment. It wasn't particularly helpful in this case, because as far as he knew, there was no reason to have dropped out of the sky unexpectedly. People didn't usually attend a lecture, get ready to go home, and then poof into another time and place.

"This is the first time you've had visitors drop in with travel amnesia? You don't have a... barrier of some sort that causes disorientation?"

By the Tavern

"I've seen my fair share of weird, but usually amnesia results from drunkenness, range accidents, or a well-deserved conk on the head," Grace chuckled. "If I could put a disorientation fence up, I would have done it in a hot second, and keep those fastidious resort buzzards from coming around."

By the Tavern

"What's wrong with a resort?" asked Anthony. "Aren't they good for business and all that?"