Sara got glasses down from the cabinet.

“Have a seat,” he said.

He poured tea, set the pitcher on the table, sat across from her.

“You hear from Laura?” she said.

He shook his head. “She’s got her own life. She doesn’t like coming back here unless she has to. Too many bad memories.”

“Sorry to hear that.”

“Another year and she’ll take the bar. I thought she might get out here for Thanksgiving, but she says she’s got too much going on. She’s seeing a fellow, too, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they end up getting married.”

“You must be proud of her.”

“I got pretty lucky, is the way I look at it. The Good Lord watches over drunks and fools, I guess, especially if they’re fathers. She didn’t have an easy time of it, growing up here. Between my issues and her mother getting sick…”

“Sounds like you did a pretty good job of it anyway.”

“I don’t know. Maybe she got where she is in spite of, rather than because of. That would be my bet. Only reason I kept this house after Lin died was I thought Laura might want it someday. Doesn’t seem too likely now, though.”

Sara drank her tea. It tasted of honey and mint.

“I was up at the Starlite today,” she said.

“Just for lunch, I hope.”

“I saw that woman.”

He sipped the tea.

“I went out there,” she said. “Maybe I shouldn’t have.”

“And?”

“She thinks her husband was murdered. That Billy shot him without provocation.”

He looked at his glass, swirled his tea. “She would, though, wouldn’t she?”

“I guess.”

“What else she say?”

“That I might not be sorry now about what happened, but I would be.”

He frowned. “She say how-or why?”

“No.”

“Did you take that as a threat?” he said.

“I wasn’t sure how to take it.”

“Well, she hasn’t gotten a lawyer yet, far as I know. All her inquiries have been on her own. That bothers me, though, her bracing you like that.”

“She didn’t come to me. I went to her.”

“Either way, it bothers me.”

“She showed me a picture of her little boy. He’s three.”

“I know. I saw it. What’s on your mind, Sara? I mean exactly?”

She looked past him, out the kitchen window. The sun hung dark and red over the tree line.

“I met Elwood the other night,” she said. “At Tiger’s. Unusual to see him there.”

“Sam likes a beer every once in a while.”

“That’s what he told me, but I got the impression he was keeping an eye on Billy.”

“That might be the case.”

“Then you don’t buy his story? Our story?”

He put the glass down. “I told you I had some concerns,” he said, “but not much more to go on than that.”

“More than you let on, though.”

He crossed his arms. “Nothing I’m about to say leaves this house. You know that, Sara, right?”

She nodded. Here it comes.

“Turns out Elwood had his own concerns, after the fact,” he said. “He and Boone did the interview, but Boone wrote it, wanted to. Sam let him.”

“And?”

“On paper, it all matches up. And everything that happened after you got there was strictly by the book, no worries there. Sam’s like a dog with a bone, though. Once he gets to chewing on something, he won’t let it be.”

“You told me it was a clean shoot, that’s what they decided.”

“There’s not a single piece of evidence that says otherwise.”

“Except Elwood’s gut? And yours?”

“Sam came to me, told me he was ruling it in policy. Boone and the state attorney’s office agreed. Then this Simone James set us both to thinking.”

“You’d believe her over one of your own deputies?”

“Not at all. That’s not what I’m saying.”

“Maybe she didn’t know what Willis was down here for.”

“That’s possible. Likely even. But let me make this clear, Sara. None of what Sam and I discussed is on paper, anywhere, and this department never has and never will be in the practice of airing its dirty laundry in public or to other agencies.”

“Meaning what?”

“I signed off on the papers this morning. Flynn’s free and clear. No charges of any kind. If there’s a legal issue, a suit, that’s something else, but as far as this department, this county, and the State of Florida are concerned, that shooting was one hundred percent justified.”

“But you’ve asked Elwood to keep his eyes open.”

“I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t. And if it turns out there was more to that shooting than Flynn told us, I’m going to make sure he leaves this department with the kind of recommendation that’ll keep him from getting another law enforcement job his entire life.”

“You sound like you’re already convinced something’s wrong.”

“Not at all,” he said. “I just want you to know where we stand, and that all of this is in-house at the moment-you, me, and Sam Elwood. For the immediate future, that’s how it’s going to stay.”

“I understand.”

“How much do you know about Flynn’s girlfriend?”

“Lee-Anne? Not much. She used to dance at the Sugar Shack out on Seventeen before they closed it down. That’s how she and Billy met. He couldn’t stay away from that place.”

“I can see how you two wouldn’t exactly be friends.”

“She doesn’t bother me.”

“Brings into question his judgment, though, doesn’t it?”

“It’s none of my business anymore what he does,” she said.

“Sam ran her through the computer, just for the hell of it. Turns out she had a couple minor arrests in Orlando back in the nineties-possession, shoplifting. Nothing much. But she did show up as a person of interest in a pending case. Seems that a couple days before the shooting, she went down to the West Palm area. That’s where she was when it happened.”

“I knew that. Billy told me.”

“Sam’s got a friend at the Palm Beach County SO, so he chased it down. She showed up during a surveillance down there. They ran the car tag, got her name.”

“What kind of surveillance?”

“Narcotics case. Haitian gang. They’re taking up where the Jamaicans left off, moving a lot of weed, coke. Got a big old house down there near Belle Glade, apparently all they do is party. Task force is working it-PBSO, FDLE, DEA. No arrests yet, but they’re building a case.”

“They sure it was her?”

“For the record, no, but the car was hers, St. Charles County plates and all. Sam got on the horn to Orlando PD. They found an old booking photo, faxed it down to West Palm.”

“Sam’s been busy.”

“He has. An FDLE agent looked at the photo, was pretty sure it was her. White woman hanging out with all those gangstas couldn’t help but catch their attention. She hasn’t been back, though, as far as they know.”

“What was she doing there?”

“Who knows? Just partying, maybe. She popped up on their radar, but they can’t tie her to anything else. Maybe she just likes Haitians. You say Flynn knew she was down there?”

“Yes.”

“He know who she was with, what she was doing?”

“He said she was with friends.”

“I guess she was.”

A breeze moved through the house, bringing with it the smell of cane smoke. The chimes on the front porch rang softly.

“I don’t know,” she said. “I don’t know about any of this.”

“You don’t need to worry on it. But you asked, so I needed to tell you.”

But there’s more you’re not telling me. And you’re not telling me because you’re not sure you can trust me.

“I should get going. Thanks for the tea.”

They walked together back through the house and onto the front porch.

“I appreciate what you’re going through,” he said, “and I know none of this makes it any easier. You’ve got enough on your hands as it is.”

“I’ll be okay.”

“I know you will.”

They walked toward the Blazer. To the west, the sun was slipping behind the trees in a dirty haze of smoke. She got her keys out.

“Been a while since I’ve been out here,” she said. “I forgot how peaceful it is, quiet.”