The Geographer's Library

The Geographer’ s Library
shark tagine . . . what else, what else? Grilled fish with chermoula, and the
Jadid martini. Gin with a dash of grappa and a lime peel on the rocks.”
“Sure, but, Anton, has anybody other than you ever ordered the Jadid
martini?” she asked.
“The great and manifold deficiencies in other people’s taste, my dear, are
hardly my responsibility. All I can do is present a superior invention to the
public. I can’t force it on them.” She walked away laughing, and the smile
erased about ten years from her face.
“So, tell me about your story now,” the professor said, dabbing soup from
the corners of his mouth. The man probably could have found a way to
spelunk elegantly. “Tell me what happens in this ‘real world’ we professors
keep hearing so much about. I’m quite curious to know what you’ve discovered
about Jaan.”
“Well, unfortunately, not too much. I still don’t know how he died, and
the coroner performing the autopsy was hit by a car two days ago.”
“My God. What happened? Is he all right?”
“No. It killed him. Hit-and-run. Driver didn’t even stop.”
“How awful.”
“I know. He hadn’t quite finished yet, but he did say that there was something
odd about the body. The only person who seemed to know Jaan at all is
Hannah, who—”
“Who is Hannah?”
“Sorry. She’s a music teacher, a neighbor of his.”
“Whom you also know well enough to refer to by her first name in conversation.”
“Yeah, well ...I do,I guess. She’s unusual.”
“Unusual enough to make you stammer and blush. Go on.”
“Your nephew confirmed what you told me, that Jaan was arrested twice,
both times for firing a gun.”
“That reminds me, this story piqued Joseph’s interest. He ran into a bit of
trouble this fall, and he’s been kept firmly at his desk for the past several weeks.
Your little problem has finally given him a bit of much-needed stimulation.”
“What sort of trouble?”
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