1
HOLT
The farther Holt drove from Sandpiper Shores, the more the town seemed to tighten around his ribs anyway.
It was a strange thing, leaving a place and still feeling it on you, like salt that wouldn’t rinse off. The roads opened into long stretches of scrub pine and low palmettos, the morning light turning everything pale and honest, and yet Holt’s thoughts stayed fixed on one quiet sentence that had changed the shape of his day.
It was Victoria.
He had said it to June in the car, and the moment the word left his mouth, he regretted how final it sounded. Not because he doubted Harvey’s claim, but because a name could become a verdict too easily. Holt had learned that truth was rarely a clean, straight road. It was more like an inlet. It curved, disappeared, reappeared, and the current shifted when you were not paying attention.
June sat in the passenger seat, staring out the windshield as if the road might present an answer if she watched long enough.
Holt glanced at her for a moment and then returned his gaze to the lane ahead. June’s quiet did not feel empty. It felt full, as if she were sorting facts and emotions into separate piles, refusing to let one contaminate the other.
After a few minutes, June spoke. “How sure was Harvey?” June asked softly.
Holt kept his voice calm. “Harvey was sure enough to tell me without hesitation,” Holt said.
June’s eyes shifted toward him. “Did he tell you how he found out?” June frowned as she contemplated the thought.
Holt nodded once. “He did.” He glanced at June then back to the road. “Harvey said he overheard Clive telling Sienna last night in Gainesville while they were all out at dinner. Harvey had stepped away from the table, and when he came back, he’d overheard Clive telling Sienna that Victoria had been driving the car.”
June’s mouth parted slightly, then closed again. “So Clive didn’t tell Harvey directly?”
“No,” Holt said. “Harvey says it was not intended for him to hear.”
June’s gaze went back to the road. “That makes it feel more believable,” June said.
Holt glanced at her again. “Why?” Holt asked.
June shrugged lightly, but Holt saw the tension still held in her shoulders. “Because people are careful when they’re performing,” June said. “They are not careful when they think they’re speaking privately.”
Holt couldn’t argue with that. June had spent years in courtrooms listening to people perform sincerity, a performance so polished it could fool anyone who wanted to be fooled. Holt had spent years in interview rooms watching people do the same thing, only with higher stakes and worse consequences.
June turned toward him. “Does Harvey believe that Victoria hit a tree?” June asked.
Holt’s jaw tightened. “No, like myself and Tom, Harvey doesn’t for one minute believe Clive’s story. He says it doesn’t match what he observed.”
June frowned. “But the damage could still be from hitting a tree,” June said, cautious, trying to be fair.
“I guess it could be,” Holt admitted. “The photographs show front-end impact consistent with a hard collision. Harvey said that the front of the car had also been cleaned before Clive brought it in.” He gave his head a small shake. “Clive’s excuse was that there was a lot of bark and branches on the front of it, and he needed to see the damage so he’d cleaned it.”
June’s voice sharpened slightly. “That’s convenient.”
Holt’s expression tightened. “Harvey thought so as well, and then after hearing what he did from Clive last night, he’s convinced Clive is covering for his mother.”
June’s eyes narrowed, and her tone shifted as her voice dropped slightly with concern. “Holt, you do know that if Clive made a false statement to support an insurance claim, that is serious.”
Holt glanced at her. “I’m aware of that, yes,” Holt said.
June’s eyes held his. “And if someone provided documentation knowing it supported a false claim, as Harvey did, that canpull them into it,” June said. “People think insurance is just paperwork, but it’s not. It’s a sworn version of events in its own way.”
Holt felt something tighten in his chest as he realized that, too. While Harvey had not known at the time of making the assessment for the insurance claim, he still had his suspicions, and now with the evidence he’d heard… Holt ran a hand through his hair before glancing over at June. Harvey and his uncle had worked hard to clean up the reputation Harvey’s father had left behind. They didn’t need another black mark against them. One that wasn’t even their fault. Holt would try to protect Harvey if the claim were true.
“I know,” Holt said. “And that is another reason I need as clean a timeline as possible.”
“If Harvey already submitted his assessment,” June said, “and then he learns later that the driver was not who he thought, he could get dragged into questions.” She, too, had come to the same conclusion Holt had. This would not look good for Harvey’s already fragile family reputation.
