listed the investigators’ names but others hadn’t—and I might be able to get copies of the police reports for the rest. The Hensen County Sheriff’s Department had earned a reputation for being corrupt, but not all of the deputies were cut from the same cloth. Some of them were good people who’d felt powerless to change things…but had hung on because they feared the situation would get worse if they left. Marco was a perfect example.
“I think I found something else worth mentioning,” I said. “A family of five that died in a house explosion. It only happened about twelve years ago, so I think it’s a different case than the one you told me about before.”
Her face paled. “There seems to be a lot of gas explosions around these parts.”
“So I noticed. There was another one too, five years ago, but thankfully the family wasn’t home.”
“Could have been a warnin’,” she said.
I’d like to think Bart didn’t kill everyone on his revenge list. “Do you know anything about a man named Ted Butcher?”
Her lips pursed. “The name sounds familiar.”
“He crashed his car into a tree about a week after the explosion that killed the family.”
“There are a lot of car crashes around here—winding roads and careless drivers.”
“But Ted Butcher had two overdoses after that. The last one was two years ago.”
“You think he killed that family and couldn’t live with the guilt?” she asked.
“It’s a theory.”
She was silent for a moment, her eyes far off, then she shook her head. “I don’t know him. I don’t even know of any Butchers in the area.”
“Honestly, there a good chance it’s nothing.” Hank and Bingham were proof enough that drug use was alive and well in the area. He could be an addict who’d crashed his car while he was high. Nevertheless, I wanted to talk to him. It was worth a try.
“Have you heard any more from Emily Drummond?” Thelma asked.
I gave her a tight smile and shook my head. “Not since our tea party in March.” I grimaced. “What do you think will happen to her after Bart’s gone?”
She chuckled. “I like your confidence.”
“Someone has to stop him. It might as well be me. I can’t let him do this to anyone else.” I cocked my head. “Do you know anything about the Palmer family? I take it he owned Jim Palmer Insurance.”
“Yes, but his father owned it. He was Jim, Sr.”
“So the murdered man was a junior.”
“Yes.”
“Any idea what could have instigated Jim, Jr. to go to Bart for a favor in the first place?”
“It might not have been Jim, Jr. who went,” she said with a knowing look. “It may have been his father.”
“Or his wife?”
“Possibly,” she said with a sigh.
I held up my hand as her previous statement sank in. “Wait. You’re saying Bart holds the next generation responsible for the sins of their fathers?”
“And mothers too. A debt must be repaid regardless of who took it out.”
“That’s medieval.”
“It’s archaic.” She grasped my hand. “It’s time to end his reign. He’s hurt far too many people, many of them innocent bystanders.” She squeezed my hand tighter, and her eyes pleaded with me. “But you can’t do this alone.”
“I have Marco,” I said. “Since he’s in the sheriff’s department, he can help me in ways other people can’t.”
“Still, he has his own job to do,” she said evenly. “You need someone with you. Like when you were lookin’ for Lula.”
“There is no one else. And Marco only got involved with looking for Lula because he was bored out of his mind while he was on medical leave.”
“I’m sure that’s what you thought at the time,” she said with a wink. She’d obviously been comparing notes with Gladys and Roberta.
I decided to ignore her insinuation. “I’ll be careful, and if I feel like things are getting scary or out of control, I’ll tell Marco.”
“Good, because he won’t let anything happen to you.”
“I know,” I said simply.
Her expression softened. “That boy loves you. When are you goin’ to give him a chance?”
I groaned, but I couldn’t help smiling. “Not you too, Miss Thelma.”
“Even Greta’s got a boyfriend. You’ve been single far too long.”
I rolled my eyes. “There are other things in life besides having a boyfriend.”
“Maybe so,” she said with a wink. “But they sure do make life a lot more fun.”
“Now I know you’ve been spending too much time with Gladys and Roberta.”
“Seriously, though,” she said, turning somber, “about this case—you need to do this quietly. You can’t