Rugged Defender

“You still trying to get that thing running?” he said as he got out of his truck and approached the rancher.

Dawson wiped his right hand on his canvas pants and extended it. They shook hands both smiling at each other. “I swear that tractor is going to be the end of me,” he said, glancing toward the barn. “I know I should get rid of it but we’re like old friends.” His gaze came back to Justin. “Speaking of old friends...”

Justin took a breath and let it out before he said. “I needed to come back and take care of a few things.”

Dawson nodded. “You need a place to stay?”

“I’d appreciate it. I could stay at the hotel in town but—”

“No reason to. You know you’re welcome here. I have a guest room in the house.”

“I’d prefer the bunkhouse if you don’t mind.”

Dawson seemed to study him for a moment. “I was just headed up to the main house. If my mother heard you were staying here and she didn’t get to see you, she’d skin me alive.”

Justin laughed and shook his head. “Worse, she’d skin me alive.”

“Why don’t we hop into my pickup?” his friend suggested. “I want to hear all about where you’ve been and what you’ve been doing.”

“Wish it was worth telling. Let’s just say I’ve been on the run, but I’m back.”

“To stay?” Dawson asked.

“Hard to say.”

Dawson slapped him on the shoulder as they neared his truck. “Well, I hope you’re home for good. How long have you been in town?”

“Just got in earlier.”

“Well, then you haven’t heard. Annabelle Clementine and I are engaged.”

“No kidding,” Justin said. “Congratulations. I’m glad to hear that. I always thought you and Annabelle belonged together. I heard her sister Chloe’s here for the holidays.”

* * *

SHERIFF MCCALL CRAWFORD motioned Chloe into her office. “You look so serious, maybe you’d better close the door.”

She smiled as she closed the door and took the chair the sheriff offered her. “I’m here about the Drew Calhoun shooting.”

McCall nodded. “What about it?”

“I’d like to see the file.” The sheriff raised a brow. “It happened five years ago and was ruled an accident. I wouldn’t think you’d have a problem with my seeing it.”

“I have to ask why you’re interested,” McCall said. “As a reporter?”

“I’m currently not a reporter for a newspaper,” she said, but feeling like whatever had pushed her into that career would always be with her. Curiosity. The kind that killed cats. “I’m taking some time off to consider my options.”

“What exactly are you looking for then with Drew Calhoun’s death?” the sheriff asked.

“Answers.”

McCall said nothing for a few moments. “Is there anyone who might want to get you involved in his death?”

She thought of Justin. “Not that I know of.”

“So why get involved?”

“It’s what I do. I’m an investigative reporter. Maybe it is the years of doing this for a living, but I feel there might be more to the story.”

“There isn’t. I investigated Drew Calhoun’s death. It was an accident.”

Chloe studied her for a moment. She’d heard good things about McCall. “Then there shouldn’t be a problem with looking into the case.”

“I would be happy to tell you anything you’d like to know.” McCall leaned back in her chair. “Ask away.”

“I understand Bert Calhoun believes his son Justin fired the fatal shot. Was there gunshot residue on Justin’s hands and clothing?”

“Some.”

Chloe blinked. She hadn’t been expecting that.

The sheriff continued. “Why don’t I tell you exactly what’s in the report? Drew was found by his brother, Justin, in a cabin on the property. The gun belonged to Drew. Justin said he heard two gunshots and went to investigate.”

“Two shots?”

“One bullet caught Drew in the heart, the other lodged in the wall by the door, which he was facing. Both were from the same gun, the one Justin said he found his brother holding in his lap.”

“So how did Justin—”

“Drew was still alive, according to his brother, and trying to fire the gun a third time. Justin rushed to him and took the gun away from him and called for help. But before the ambulance and EMTs could get there, Drew died.”

Chloe sat back. “So why did I hear Bert Calhoun thinks Justin killed his brother?”

The sheriff shook her head. “I’ve found grieving parents especially have trouble accepting their child’s death. They don’t want to face it. They tell me that their son knew guns, had since he was a boy. That he wouldn’t have been stupid enough to shoot himself.” She shrugged. “The truth is accidents happen all the time. People get careless.”

“Was there any sign of a struggle?” Chloe asked.

McCall glanced away and Chloe knew she’d hit on something. “Apparently Drew had a run-in with someone earlier that night. He’d been drinking, according to the blood alcohol level hours later. He had a split lip, a cut over one eye. The eye was nearly swollen shut, which could also explain why he was careless with the gun. He had lacerations on his arms and jaw.”

“Lacerations?”

The sheriff met her gaze. “Scratches.”

“Like from fingernails?”

“The coroner said that was definitely an option,” she said noncommittally.

“Do you have any idea who he tangled with that night?” Chloe asked.