“You never know. This law book is growing by the second since you walked into town,” he said, holding the thick red publication.
“Is the General Store still open?”
“Yup, but maybe not for long.”
“Why’s that?”
“Not many shoppers these days.”
That was weird. I was about to ask why, but the phone rang and Mav was instantly wrapped up in police business. I strode out of the station, steering clear of Remi on my way. Bea blew me a kiss like the sweetheart she was, but I didn’t dare stop for a chat. I didn’t want to give Remi a reason to toss me back in a cell.
Luckily, my walk back in the direction of the diner was less entertaining than when I was taken to the station. Everyone seemed to have forgotten about me and the stunt Remi pulled. Even Colt was nowhere in sight.
Mav was right about the store not being open for much longer. The minute I walked in and saw the empty shop, I knew something was wrong. The weekends were always the busiest for grocery shopping.
Old man Callahan sat behind the counter, staring outside, looking like he had the weight of the world on his shoulders. Not that I was surprised. Ever since his son’s accident, John just hadn’t been the same.
After grabbing nearly everything I could, I headed to the front to check out. “How’s it going, John?”
His face was clouded with confusion as he stared at me. “Ryder?”
Grinning, I started unloading my supplies. “I’m surprised you remember me.”
“It’s not hard to remember the kid who was marched into the police station after going on a crime spree.”
Rolling my eyes, I started bagging as he scanned. “It was hardly a spree. It was two things.”
“Still, quite the excursion for someone from around here.”
“So, how’s the town? Still seems the same.”
He nodded, but his face turned solemn. “Yeah, still the same.”
“Am I missing something? I know I’ve been gone a while, but things couldn’t have changed that much.”
He heaved a sigh, his hands trembling slightly as he continued to scan my items. “I guess you didn’t hear about…”
“About what?”
“You’ll hear sooner or later. In fact, pretty soon, you won’t even come in here. You’ll boycott just like everyone else.”
“That seems a little harsh. Why would they do that?”
His eyes slowly drifted up to meet mine. “Because I helped my brother conceal a murder.”
My brain automatically switched to the legal workings of how he still had a shop, let alone wasn’t in prison. That should carry at least a three-year prison term, along with a hefty fine.
“When did this happen?”
“Twenty-five years ago,” he said, his voice gruff and defeated.
“But who?—”
“The little girl. Dakota Walker,” he confessed quietly.
“The girl who went missing during the snowstorm,” I surmised, trying to remember the details of the case, though there weren’t many. “She was found six months after she disappeared up at the falls.”
He nodded, continuing to scan. “My sister-in-law…she wasn’t okay. She…She murdered that little girl.”
