The Forsaken

“I told them.”

“Told who?”

“I told people you’d never touch those Born Losers when they came back,” he said. “And it won’t bother you a lick to see Chains LeDoux flogging his pecker out on the town square. You’ll get in with them thicker than thieves.”

Qui

Ringold stood, too, and Stagg stood between them, his nose and lacquered teeth inches from Qui

Qui

“Your goddamn daddy rode with them sonsabitches,” Stagg said. “He was a full-on member of the Born Losers when they hung that man high from that tree out on Jericho Road. That’s why you won’t touch it. It’s too goddamn close.”

Qui

Stagg walked out of the office. But Ringold hovered there, hands loose and easy at his side, tilting his head to the side and giving a wry smile, before following behind Joh

There was snow two weeks later, not much of it, maybe a dusting of an inch, ice over the bridges and some slick spots on the paved roads. Qui

“Merry Christmas.”

“It’s almost February,” Qui

“Happy Valentine’s Day, then,” she said, “if you’re into hair samples, dental prints, three shell casings, and an old pair of combat boots . . .”

“Holy shit.”

“Yes, sir,” Lillie said. “I only had to put in five written requests and call the state office about fifteen times before they replied. But here it is, delivered to the SO today, signature only.”

“I wonder why the local DA didn’t look for it.”

“Because they didn’t know,” Lillie said. “I got passed around to every son of a bitch in the attorney general’s office until I found the archive. And then I had to call the archive with a creative list of search criteria. This all was filed in 1979 when the evidence was sent for safekeeping. The case was just ID’d as an unidentified body. There was no murder case or corresponding paperwork from your uncle.”

“We knew that.”

“But here we go . . .”

“Now what?”

“I’m going to drive it over to Batesville in the morning,” Lillie said. “With a lot of sweet talk and my charming personality, we should get some DNA results back in a year or two.”

“You shitting me?”

“We got one lab for this region,” Lillie said. “A year is being generous.”

“What kind of shells?”

“Twenty-two long.”

“And the boots?”

“Boots,” she said. “Black boots.”

She handed Qui

Qui

“If he wanted to keep it quiet,” Qui

“He didn’t investigate,” Lillie said. “But I guess he figured this fella’s life was worth the price of a stamp.”

Qui

“Any word from Miss Jean?” Lillie asked.

The heater ran fast and hard in his truck. “Nope,” Qui

“Sounds like Jean.”

“And since that talk, she’s gone to half a box of wine a night.”

“Hit that nerve.”

“Guess so.”

“But you believe Stagg?”

“I’d never take Stagg at his word,” Qui

“Between raising hell and making movies, he was riding with a gang?”

“Club,” Qui

“Chains LeDoux?” Lillie said. “You see his sheet?”

Qui

“What’d J.T. say about the lynching?”

“At first, he pretended not to know,” Qui

“He was with them?”

“He said some of the club didn’t go,” Qui

“Would you admit it?”

Qui

“And Hank Stillwell?”

“Says he tried to stop it,” Qui

“But Blanton didn’t want to get involved?”

“That’s what he said,” Qui

“Blanton,” Lillie said. “Jesus H.”

“And Jason Colson, too.”

Lillie shook her head, her face half shadowed in the dim light by the pumps. “Did your dad really date Adrie

“And Suza

Lillie raised her eyebrows.

“Maybe at the same time.”

“Must’ve been hard for your mom,” Lillie said. “Having a wanderer like that around.”

“Fu

“What happened?”

“He left,” Qui

“Birthday cards?”

“For a while.”

“Calls?”

“Almost never.”

“Why?”

Qui

“Go relieve that sitter for Rose,” Qui

“Roger that.”

Lillie reached for the door handle and started to get out. She pushed a bunch of her long curly hair behind her ear. She was strong and hard-edged, but could be tender and loving, too. She just didn’t show that side to people she didn’t trust. “You know all the talk about the DA wanting this thing for political points is Grade A bullshit.”

Qui

“Joh