Chapter 7It had been years since I’d seen Ben Whitaker personally and I wasn’t sure the years had been kind to him. I remembered a tall, muscular, gruff man who ran the police department like a military establishment. But that was through a teen’s eyes.
He’d lost Jolly’s mother, so that might have had something to do with it. But he was much kinder to me than I remembered and seemed to have a great time playing Santa for the parade.
He had the bald head and bushy white beard. Even the padding. Just needed the suit. He didn’t seem as tall or muscular as he once was, perhaps having shrunk a bit, and also stooped over. But he seemed to do well in the assisted living facility in Middlebury. It was one of those very nice places where seniors had their own room, laundry facilities, and a dinin
