Page 114 of The Killing Plains

A tan-and-white hamster lay curled on a bed of folded newspaper. Except for a smear of dried blood on its nose, it looked asleep.

Colly sat down beside Brenda. “How did this happen?”

Iris pursed her lips. She hadn’t seen it, she said. The children had all told slightly different stories. Minnie’s hamster had been rolling around the den in its little plastic ball. While Iris was in the kitchen with Nadine, Satchel and Logan had gotten into a fight, though neither would tell her what it was about.

“I heard shouts, then a crash and a scream. When I got in here, the ball was smashed and the hamster was dead on the floor. Logan said Satchel got mad and kicked the ball against the fireplace. Minnie was wailing, and Satchel was huddled in the corner with his fingers in his ears, banging his head on the wall. That’s when I called you.” Iris threw up her hands in a gesture of helplessness. “They finally exhausted themselves enough that Nadine and I were able to get them to bed.”

Colly stood. “Where’s Satchel now?”

“In the olive room. But perhaps you shouldn’t—”

Without waiting to hear the rest, Colly headed for the stairs.

The olive room, named for the color of its curtains and bedding, was at the end of the second-floor hall. The door was closed. Colly opened it partway. In the nightlight’s glow, she saw the outline of a small figure on the bed. A shock of white-blond hair glowed against the dark pillowcase.

“Satch, are you awake?”

The figure sniffled but said nothing. Colly crossed the room and sat on the edge of the bed. “Hey, bud, heard you had a rough night.” She stroked his hair. “Want to tell me about it?”

Satchel whimpered and drew himself into a tight ball, hiding his face in the blankets.

“That’s okay. I’ll just sit here with you for a while.”

Colly rubbed his back, humming softly until his breath became slow and even. Thinking he was asleep, she kissed the top of his head and stood to go.

“Logan says you killed Mommy and Grandpa Randy. Uncle Lowell told him.” Satchel’s voice was muffled through the bedclothes.

Colly’s throat tightened. “Is that why you kicked Minnie’s hamster?”

“I didn’t mean to. I was trying to kick Logan.”

Colly sighed and sat down again. She tried to pull the covers away from his face, but he held onto them fiercely. “You can’t kick people, Satch. No matter how mad you are.”

He was quiet for a long time. Finally, he whispered something inaudible.

“I can’t hear you, bud.”

“You didn’t kill them, did you?”

Colly hesitated. “No, sweetie. I didn’t kill them.”

“Then why’d Uncle Lowell say so?”

“Sometimes Uncle Lowell says things without thinking.”

There was another long pause. “When can we go home, Grandma?”

“To the farmhouse?”

“No, to Houston.”

“I thought you liked it here.”

Beneath the blankets, Satchel shook his head. “You’re different here. You seem mad all the time. I wanna go home.”

“Me too, bud. We will as soon as I finish this case.” She rubbed his arm. “Do you still want to stay here tonight? Or would you rather come back to town with me?”

Satchel emerged from the blankets and wiped his eyes with the heels of his hands. “I wanna stay so I can go to the Rodeo tomorrow.”

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