“It’s all over for the Darcys,” Decker said. “Want to know what happened?”

“None of my business,” Byron said.

“You’re sure about that?” Decker said.

Byron didn’t answer.

“You know I had coffee with Annette last week,” Decker said. “She told me you owned a twenty-gauge shotgun. A Browning, I think she said.”

Decker could see the beekeeper tense. But he remained silent.

“Mind if I take a look at it?” Decker asked.

Byron didn’t speak for a long time. Eventually, he said, “Go ahead. Darlene knows where I keep it.”

“Thanks,” Decker said. “Just one more thing. Annette told me you don’t like handguns, that handguns were for shooting people and not animals.”

Byron didn’t answer.

“That true?” Decker asked.

“Yes.”

“Yet your wife used to talk about pistol-whipping Linda—”

“Darlene had nothing to do with them murders!” Byron blurted out. Then he turned red-faced.

“Oh, I don’t think for a moment she did,” Decker said. “But it just got me thinking. That’s a strange expression for a lady to use if she doesn’t have a pistol. Now, nothing is registered to any Howards, but maybe, just maybe, you have an unregistered handgun around your place….”

“Get off my property!” Byron screamed out.

“No, Byron, I don’t want to,” Decker said. “Now why don’t you and I go into your house and take a look around?”

Byron didn’t budge, but his hands dropped to his sides, his gaze sweeping over his feet.

“Byron?” Decker said.

“I kin give you my Browning,” Byron hesitated, then said, “But I ain’t got no pistol.”

“Where is it?” Decker asked.

“I don’t know.”

“Would Darlene know where it was?” Decker asked.

“Darlene?” Byron jerked his head up. “I told you she don’t know nothing about it.”

“About what?”

Byron shook his head.

“What did you do with the gun, Byron?”

Suddenly, the old, leathery face crumpled. His lower lip began to tremble, his eyes dammed back pools of water.

“What’d you do with it?” Decker repeated.

“I gave it to Linda,” Byron choked out. “She came to me about two weeks ago. Said…said that she was breaking it off with Luke.” He heaved a deep sigh. “I was happy…Lord forgive me, but I was happy. Then…” Tears streamed down his face. “Then she asked if she could borrow Darlene’s gun. I asked what she needed a gun for, and she told me she was afraid of Luke. I offered to come down with her when she told him it was over, but she said no…. Mule-headed woman, she said no.”

“So you gave her the gun,” Decker said.

“I didn’t think nothing would happen.”

“She asked you for the gun,” Decker said. “You didn’t think she might shoot Luke with it?”

“I didn’t think she meant nothin’ bad.” His voice sounded like the bleat of a lamb.