Truth be told, we didn’t get many tourists or out-of-towners any time of year, unless you counted people stopping for a tank of gas on their way to greener pastures. Generally someplace closer to one of the lakes that drew people to this part of the world in the first place. And I seriously doubted those people would know how to find the dilapidated town park or be interested in going there in the middle of a snowstorm. Land might not be ready to assume anything, but I sure as hell was. My daughter and Izzy had been killed by someone local, someone whose face they probably recognized. Something ached deep down in my gut, and I wasn’t sure if my daughter knowing the person who’d taken her life made Junie’s last moments better or worse.

“All right,” Land said, leaning back in his chair, hands steepled on the table in front of him. “What about people hanging around the girls? Notice anyone driving by your houses? Maybe the same face showing up when you were out?” He looked from me to Zach and then Jenny. “Nothing like that?”

“This town has less than a thousand people,” I pointed out. “I see a lot of the same people over and over.” I flicked a hand toward Zach and Jenny. “They probably do, too.” I knew my attitude wasn’t helping, wasn’t doing the hunt for Junie’s killer any favors. But I didn’t know how to sit across from Land and act like we were anything less than adversaries. Our roles had been written in stone a long time ago.

Land sighed. “All right, then. What about Jimmy Ray? You seen him lately?”

I stared at Land, our gazes locked. “No,” I said, voice even. “I haven’t seen him.” I paused. “Have you?”

Land’s brow furrowed. “Now, listen—”

“Who’s Jimmy Ray?” Zach asked. “Did he have something do to with this?” This question, more than anything else he could have said, cemented Zach’s status as an outsider. It didn’t matter that he’d lived in Barren Springs for more than a decade, volunteered with the fire department, and had married Jenny Sable. If you were born in this town, if you really belonged, you knew everyone else. Simple as that.

“He’s just a local loser,” Jenny said, nose stuffy. “Jimmy Ray Fulton. You’d know him if you saw him. He’s got the truck with the loud muffler you always complain about.”

“Jimmy Ray’s her ex,” Land said, hooking his thumb at me without bothering to glance my way. “Runs a meth operation her mama’s a part of.”

“Ex-boyfriend, not husband,” Cal supplied, as if that distinction was going to make a damn bit of difference to the Logans.

“Meth?” Zach said, like he’d never heard the word before. “Did he say meth?” His eyes skated around the room looking for an answer.

“Yeah,” I said. “Meth. You know, this part of the world’s little cottage industry. Or at least it used to be. I’ve heard Jimmy Ray’s branching out into heroin these days. Going after the serious money. That what you hear, too, Sheriff?” I swung my gaze to Land. From the corner of my eye I could see Cal staring at me, could imagine the look on his face. Who is this smart-mouth woman? Where has she been hiding all these years? I thought she was gone for good. I, for one, was relieved she’d made a reappearance. The Junie’s-mom version of me wasn’t going to make it through this. But maybe the old, hard-edged Eve Taggert had a shot at surviving.