Page 78 of Death on Gallows Path

Zoley and Pammy had left the impression that was the only place they went to college.

“That came later. There’s no sense saying precisely where in Georgia they started college—”

“Because her grandson’s starting there in the fall and she’s suddenly a big fan,” Linda said. “No smudges allowed on the school’s reputation.”

“The specific school is not pertinent to what Clara and Sheila have asked.” Carol looked around with challenge.

Not getting oral argument — though Linda threw her a teasingly skeptical look — she continued.

“It’s a dismaying story, as a matter of fact. They were freshmen there when a horrible rumor spread about another freshman girl. Pammy was doing extremely well in her business classes, a real star, and Zoley . . . well, she was doing okay. The woman who ran the B&B where we stayed learned all about that from a neighbor of hers.”

“Forget their grades. Tell Clara and Sheila what the rumor was,” Linda said.

Carol’s mouth twisted with distaste, reminding me of Willow Yost. “The rumor was that this freshman girl was working in adult films. There was absolutely no truth in it. But the rumor went viral. You know what they say about lies going around the world before the truth can get a start. That poor, poor girl. Thankfully, her family and friends supported her. They got experts to investigate and discovered the origin of the rumor.”

She left a pause.

We all knew the answer. Clara gave her the satisfaction of saying, “Pammy and Zoley?”

Carol nodded. “Or Zoley and Pammy. They couldn’t tell which. Not from the original message, not from messages that came from different accounts and kept the fires stoked any time it looked like the furor might die down.

“It was the end of the school year. They were allowed to leave the school without official action. That opened the way for them to transfer to UK.”

“What about Damon Swindell? Or Bryon Georger?” I asked.

Carol frowned. “What about them?”

“Were they involved?”

“Oh.” That obviously never occurred to her. “The woman in Georgia didn’t mention boys being involved. Only the two girls.” She looked at Linda. “Unless you’ve heard something different?”

Linda shook her head. “Don’t know any more about the business in Georgia than what you’ve said. And what I’ve heard was the two couples met at UK.”

“But you do know about Damon Swindell, right? I mean when he was younger.”

I faded out because she was shaking her head. “He wasn’t one of those kids who was widely known. Not in sports or anything else I heard of. His people have been in the county a long time, but don’t mix much.” She brightened. “You know who you should talk to? Urban Parham. He knows all that history.”

Clara’s sound of stifled amusement did not tempt me to comment on the suggestion, instead, asking, “Was this incident that happened at the Georgia school known at the University of Kentucky?”

“Not that I’m aware of,” Carol said. “I learned of this only because we visited there when my grandson was considering schools. The lovely woman who ran the B&B told me after we’d formed a connection. I’m sure she doesn’t tell other people about it. In fact, she said that to me. We got talking about the pressures on students these days.”

Got talking my eye. Grandma Carol dug around to know about her grandchild’s surroundings.

“And the woman said that’s the one scandal in all the years she’d been there. When she started talking . . . well, Zoley and Pammy are not the most common names. Also, the dates lined up with their years at UK.”

“Smart to put that together,” Clara said.

The older woman partially suppressed a satisfied smile. “If you want, I can find my notes. You can contact the woman from the B&B.”

“That would be terrific,” Clara said.

* * * *

In the van after prying the dogs out of nirvana, I said, “If you want to follow up with the B&B woman, that’s your call, but I don’t see how this advances us any, do you?”

“No,” she agreed, more cheerfully than I felt. “I thought it was interesting, but with Damon and Bryon not yet in the picture it feels like a dead end. I will see if that woman will talk to me, to tie a bow on it, but . . .”

I sighed. “We need to talk to Pammy and Zoley again.”