Summary

As the police wait for forensic results from the crime scene, Edwin begins selling his feathers online and even mets a customer in person, full of lies when needed about the how he came to be in possession of his wares. At the same time, many buyers do not ask questions about the origins of the feathers, preferring not to know the answers. As the police investigation continues unsuccessfully, the Tring curators know that the birds have likely been broken up and separated from their identifying tags, and are "no longer of scientific value" because the tags are essential for accurate scientific study (119). The author questions why no one searched online for sales of these bird species, as doing so would have turned up hits on eBay and ClassicFlytying.com, particularly if they had cross-referenced those hits with the list of people who...