“I don’t know what her real name is. She’s an old hillbilly who sits on her porch with a shotgun. Sometimes she aims it at passing cars if she doesn’t like your looks.”

“Is this another story you heard or something you’ve actually experienced?”

“It was a rumor going around town, and I figured it had to be bullshit because it’s such a caricature, right? Then I went up there to visit Felice—I don’t know how she stands it—and I saw Grambo on her porch. I never believed in the evil eye until that old crone looked at me.”

She illustrated the baleful gesture by pulling down her lower eyelid with her index finger.

“Grambo sounds like someone else I should meet.”

Bibi threw her hands in the air. “It’s like everything I say to persuade you to leave has the opposite effect.”

“You never answered my question about how well you know Burch.”

“My friend Felice lives up there, like I said. I don’t know why she stays in that shithole, but I guess it’s because she’s worried about her dad. He has a gambling problem. Anyway, she introduced me to Arlo at the bar where he works. So he’s not a stranger exactly, but we’re barely acquaintances. I couldn’t even tell you which trailer is his.”

“But Felice would know?”

“You’re seriously going up there alone to confront those people.” She added an eye roll for effect. “I know you’ve got a gun and all, but the deputies who get called to the hill won’t even go without a backup. It’s always two cop cars, at least. Every weekend, I see them race by the house with their lights flashing.”

“Lucky for me it’s not nighttime.”

“Yeah, but it’s December, and it’s going to get dark faster than you think. I wouldn’t get caught up there after nightfall if I were you.”

“It wouldn’t be the first time someone slashed my tires.”

“There are worse fates.” She took a step toward her Mini, then turned. “How long have you been a game warden?”

“Eight years since I entered the academy.”

“You must have made lots of enemies in that time.”

It was the exact same thing Rivard had said to me. The coincidence was uncanny, but that’s the nature of coincidences. We never notice the millions of times they don’t occur.

“I’ve encountered some dangerous people. The worst of them are off the board.”

“But the ones who aren’t—don’t you worry that they’ll come looking for you?”

“If you’re asking do I spend my life looking over my shoulder, the answer is no.”

She reached for the door handle. “Maybe you should.”