Dan took it up and stared at it. “Where’d you get this?”
“In Sherman Clancy’s Bentley.”
“I wonder what it was doing there.”
“I wonder, too.”
The tone of his voice made his father glance up.
He said sternly, “Why don’t you just say what you’re thinkin’, son, instead of beatin’ around the bush like you always do?”
“What happened to the Barksdales?”
“I told you I didn’t know.”
“And not to beat around the bush, I don’t believe you.”
“So you’re sayin’ I’m lyin’?”
“Whatever you want to call it,” said Robie evenly.
Dan rose and said menacingly, “You want to take this outside, boy?”
“I’m not a boy.”
“And he’s a little beat up for hand-to-hand combat, Dan,” pointed out Reel. “And the fact that he’s been nearly killed a few times trying to help you should count a little in his favor, don’t you think?”
Dan blinked at her, his face changed color, and he abruptly sat back down and stared at the tabletop.
“The Barksdales?” prompted Robie.
His father growled, “That was over twenty years ago. What does it matter?”
“Because it might be connected to what’s going on now.”
Dan shot him a glance. “How do you figure that?”
“The photo was in Clancy’s possession. Clancy was a blackmailer. I can’t think of another reason why he would have that photo. As far as I knew he didn’t even know the Barksdales. They were from far different classes of people.”
“That’s true. And those classes generally don’t mix in Mississippi.”
“But they might have mixed. We were told that Nelson Wendell used a shack on Sherman Clancy’s farm to have his little get-togethers with the kids. It was how C
lancy got on to what Wendell was really doing and then started his blackmailing.”
Dan looked disgusted. “What scum. He should have gone to the cops.”
“He was after dollars, not doing the right thing,” commented Reel.
Robie added, “Pete said his father thought the shack was being used by Wendell for liaisons with women. He probably would have blackmailed him either way. But the kid thing was far worse than having mistresses. But let’s get back to the Barksdales.”
Dan said, “So you think he was blackmailin’ them, too?”
“Did he have a way to?”
“How would I know that? I was a humble Cantrell lawyer back then. Just like Clancy, I didn’t rub elbows with the likes of the Barksdales. I told you that!”
“But I dated Laura. In fact I wanted to run off with Laura.”
Father and son stared across the table at each other while Reel glanced between them.
“So that was what happened,” said Dan accusingly. “Thanks for finally gettin’ around to tellin’ me.”
“No, it didn’t happen, because Laura decided to stay. So I went alone.”
Dan eyed him fiercely. “And why did you do that? You had a damn college scholarship to play football at Ole Miss. Sure you were a little undersized for quarterback but you had grit. And you would’ve gotten an education, made something of yourself.”
“I did make something of myself.”
“But not here,” said his father. “You had to run off to do it. Cut me and your mother right out.”
“She was already gone, Dad. Long gone by then. You saw to that.”
Reel rose. They both glanced at her.
“I think what’s about to come should be between you two men only. I’ll be waiting outside, Robie, when you’re done.” She paused and looked in turn at each of them. “Do I have to check for weapons?”
She wasn’t entirely joking.
“We’ll be fine,” said Robie.
She walked out after giving him a meaningful glance.
Robie turned back to his father.
“I had to get out of Cantrell.”
“Why?”
Chapter
64
HOW’D IT GO?” asked Reel.
She and Robie were out on the rear porch of the Willows.
“I’m not talking about it,” snapped Robie. His heart was racing, his