Page 31 of Truth is the Ultimate Weapon

Nash tossed the image on the table, “Look closer, this was during branding and look who’s in the background.”

“Tommy.” Coy sighed.

“I-I can’t even believe I’m about to say this.” Charlotte continued, “But… we may have found Steele’s partner. Given the position he held for so many years as Border Chief, it’s not all that far-fetched. He worked the cartel cases, took down drug mules, you name it. I remember the stories. He had access and knowledge of the operations.”

“He was in some of those pictures on Steele’s office wall,” Kenzie said, “And he behaved oddly at his ranch when it was broken into.”

“Not to mention all of the extra security everywhere.” Coy shared his thoughts with the group as they collectively pieced together a new theory. “And you’re right, Charlotte. His position granted him access to all sorts of things.”

“I think we all sort of suspected something was off that night at his ranch when he didn’t seem that off put by a stranger in the house, breaking out of his den window.” Charlotte said, “He is clearly involved in something, right? I mean, why keep all these secrets, like this picture and being here during branding, if he didn’t have anything to hide.”

“Do you think he knew about Tommy?” Nash asked. “Do you think he knew… what happened to him?”

Charlotte shrugged and shook her head in frustration. “Your guess is as good as mine. I didn’t grow up here, always away at boarding school, so I don’t have memories of those days like y’all do. I wish I did, though. Wish I… could help.”

“Maybe this is why you went to boarding school,” Nash suggested, “To keep you away from all the shit happening around here. Protect you from it all. And it certainly would explain why he wasn’t a fan of me dating you if he knew what happened that night.”

“I’m sorry, darlin’.” Nash offered comfort by gently gripping her hand in his.

“Don’t be sorry. If he’s guilty of anything, well, it was his own doing, and he deserves whatever’s coming to him. I’m just sorry that he may be responsible for…” Charlotte's emotions overwhelmed her, causing her to choke on her words as tears flowed freely down her cheeks, rendering her unable to finish her thought.

Devyn raised a stack of documents she had extracted from the folder handed to her by Charlotte. “You found these in Mama’s things too? They look like invoices for… pharmaceuticals?”

Charlotte swiftly brushed away her tears, grateful for the distraction and the shift in conversation. “Um, yes. I, uh, found those in that random folder, and the picture was in it, too, oddly. I wasn’t sure if you were looking for anything like that or if it meant anything. The top one says it’s for morphine, which was used during hospice for Delilah. I didn’t want to dig if those were private and related to her final days.”

“Yeah,” Devyn went on, “The top one is morphine. So are the next few, but these… these are different.”

Frowning with concern, Charlotte was uncertain about what Devyn had just discovered. She took the documents from Devyn to review them herself, determined to understand the situation. “Oh my gosh. These are for…”

She flipped through the pages rapidly, scanning each one multiple times as if unable to believe the contents she was reading. She shook her head in disbelief. “These… these are large amounts of insulin, various heart medications, and some of these…”

“Charlotte?” Coy asked.

“I-I don’t even want to say it. What if…”

“What if what, Charlotte?” Coy pressed again, hoping to coax her into sharing her thoughts, his own concern growing as her evident worry began to infect the group.

She closed her eyes, inhaling deeply as she sought to collect her thoughts and quell the nagging anxiety that accompanied the realization she had stumbled upon a crucial clue—one they may not have wanted to find but needed.

“These are the kinds of drugs you would use to advance someone’s life to the final stages if you know what I mean. If someone is already ill, these would… end their lives. The others, well, they just don’t have much place in common medical practice and they’re often used just the same. To end a life, and they’re hard to trace as they are undetectable in some cases unless you’re looking for it specifically, and some just leave the body so quickly that they don’t come up in a basic tox report either.”

“Are you saying…”

“I’m saying your mother had no need for these unless it’s to do harm,” Charlotte said. “To commit murder.”

“Murder?” Devyn was stunned, “There’s just no way. She would never.”

“But she did,” Nash said, pinching the bridge of his nose. “That’s why I’m here… Tommy, remember?”

“She didn’t kill him.” Devyn defended.

“No, but she was an accessory if you want to get technical. They all were.” Coy confirmed. “We need to find out where those are from and who bought them. See if we can line up the cost on those receipts with her bank account records. Anything. We need anything that will prove she wasn’t a part of this scheme and taking lives.”

“That could be tough on a couple of these,” Rip said, sorting through the receipts. “They’re old. Handwritten and faded.”

“Wait, let me see that.” Devyn reached for the documents and scanned them once more then handed each to Coy and Kenzie. “Do you see what I see? Look at the dates.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Coy shook his head in disbelief as he struggled to comprehend the gravity of the situation unfolding before them. His mind raced, grappling with the implications of what they had just discovered, and he couldn't shake the sense of unease settling in the pit of his stomach.

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