Janie, who had decided not to join the neo-cons after all once she saw them being batted around by those big flukes and tentacles, scuffed along the shore for awhile, skipping pebbles across the inlet. Twice she heard noises from deep in the woods behind her. Once she heard a muffled cry, but since there were folkies everywhere and from all over, she just figured some young couple had slipped away into the woods for a private little interlude.

    Finally she put her unhappy thoughts behind her and headed back to the boardwalk, just as the Gypsy band began moving among the crowd, drawing all who came near into their revelry. As she drew near, a small group waved her over to join them in a sing-a-round.
She eagerly joined the group. Looking around to see who was in the circle, she happened to notice the tall 'fancy man' from the steamboat--Deverot? Devilrote? Whatever--emerge from the woods into the clearing behind them.

    "Wonder what he's been up to?" she thought. She noticed a small scratch on the side of his face-it looked like he may have tangled with a briar. His hat was slightly askew and had a few small leaves clinging to it.

    She turned away and joined the group on the chorus of an old Riley Puckett song.