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couldn’t do; tired of his stay and flew away.
    An approaching car caught her eye, and she stared toward the street. A sheriff’s cruiser slowed; the officer stared at the mailbox lettering and drove the cruiser into the yard. A slight man stepped from the cruiser, settled a big-brimmed Stetson atop his head, and studied his image in the side mirror. Jewel would have mocked him as looking like a piss-ant under a collard leaf. The officer squinted into the bright sunlight, and Jodie wondered just what evil he expected to find lurking in the yard. He carried a package clamped beneath his arm.
    He walked onto the front stoop directly below Jodie’s perch and knocked on the door. He removed his hat and stood, twirling the Stetson like a windmill caught in a storm, until Aunt Pearl opened the door.
    â€œMorning, ma’am. I’m Officer Howard Shuler from Montgomery County.” He cleared his throat. “And, ma’am, if you’re Pearl Taylor, you’re the very person I was sent to find.”
    Although his tone made it sound as though Aunt Pearl had won some kind of prize, dread had begun to drain the sap from Jodie’s legs. She leaned as far as she dared to learn his reason for coming. She worried that whatever brought him to Aunt Pearl’s door couldn’t be good. Jewel had warned that the law never came bearing good news to folks like them. But Jodie thought her aunt was different.
    Aunt Pearl’s pale face contorted with alarm, and she answered, “Yes, officer, I’m Pearl Taylor.”
    â€œMa’am, do you … what I mean is, did you have a sister named Jewel Taylor?”
    Aunt Pearl clutched her hand to her throat and spoke so softly Jodie couldn’t hear. What had the deputy come to say about Jewel? Her grip slipped and she felt she’d fall before she caught herself up.
    â€œIn that case, ma’am, I’m sorry, but I bring you bad news.” He cleared his throat a second time. “There was a terrible wreck, first of the month, on the Birmingham highway. A semi loaded with hogs was struck by a made-over school bus. A bunch of them hogs died. But that’s not really the worst part.” The officer put a hand to the back of his neck and rubbed as if he might spare himself whatever else he’d come to say.
    Aunt Pearl uttered a mournful sound, followed by words Jodie couldn’t make out. She gulped air and clung fiercely to the tree. The officer was wrong. He’d made a big mistake. Taylor was a common name. He had the wrong Jewel Taylor.
    â€œOh, no ma’am. For some reason, your sister was riding with a load of band types.” He paused as if making space for Jewel’s deliverance. “The men were drunk as river cooters. Likely never knew what hit them.” A faint smile played at the corners of his mouth and he lifted a quick hand, rubbing it away.
    He may have intended sparing her aunt the birds of a feather, but it was too late. Still, Jodie believed he was wrong. Drunk or sober, Randy was a good driver. He’d never killed as much as a raccoon or even an armadillo. Maybe he wasn’t much of a picker, stole stuff, and drank too much, but when Jewel came back for her, she’d need Randy as her friend. If Aunt Pearl’s God would only make the policeman a liar, she’d promise to give up stealing, even against road hunger.
    Aunt Pearl stumbled back against the door frame, and the officer reached to steady her, speaking quietly. “We found a note in your sister’s purse, naming you her next of kin. Took some time to track you down. Ma’am, the chief sent me to find out what you want done.” He studied the porch boards between his worn boots.
    â€œOh, no ma’am. You’re not gonna want to see her.”
    The door opened wider and the officer disappeared inside. Jodie’s eyes burned like fire ant bites as she scampered down the rope ladder. Her feet touching shaky ground, she