Page 123 of Taken Away

“Oh honey.” A faint smile appeared. “Poor Walter.”

“What about him?”

“That man was sweet on Anne since high school.”

Mary Lou sighed. “Anne used that. Walter was always there. Always helping. Always showing up. But he wasn't Harold.”

“He took it hard when she left?” Burke asked.

“I think so.” Mary Lou nodded. “Walter’s the kind of man who loves quietly.”

Burke looked down at his notes.

Anne.

Mabel.

Harold.

Walter.

Thirty years of history. Thirty years of wounds. And somewhere in the middle of it, a dead woman.

Mary Lou looked at him. “Be careful with Aubrey.”

Burke glanced up. “Why?”

“Because everybody in this town is going to hand her their version of what happened.” Mary Lou folded her hands. “Anne’s version. Mabel’s version. Walter’s version. That poor girl inherited a lot more than a winery.”

Burke rose. “Thank you, Mary Lou.”

She nodded, then looked down at her coffee. “I still can’t believe somebody killed Mabel.”

For a moment neither spoke.

Then Burke headed for the door.

The bell jingled behind him.

As he stepped onto Main Street, he couldn’t shake the feeling that whatever had happened to Mabel Blackwood hadn’t started with a will. It had started decades earlier.

THIRTY

Jackson County Sheriff’s Office

Sheriff Burke Scott

Burke sat at the head of the conference table while the deputies worked through the growing list of suspects.

The whiteboard behind him looked worse than it had that morning. More names. More arrows. No answers.

Scout sat to his right. Luke and Sara occupied the opposite side of the table. Baker flipped through a folder near the end.

Burke rubbed a hand across his face. “All right. What’ve we got?”

Luke opened his notebook. “Red Stephens.”

A few people exchanged looks.