Dark Harbor (Stone Barrington 12)

The man snatched it away from him and read it carefully, keeping his aim with the gun. “Your first name is Stone?”

“Dick was my first cousin.”

“And you’re a retired cop?”

“Yes, and you seem to be, too.”

“Not exactly.”

“I’m Dick’s executor. I’m up here to settle his estate.”

The man lowered the gun but didn’t put it away. “Okay,” he said. “You ought to be more careful whose driveway you drive down.”

“I’m sorry about that. I didn’t know it was a driveway; there was no sign or mailbox. I was just exploring.”

The man put the gun in his belt and held out a hand. “I’m Ed Rawls,” he said. He took a remote control from his pocket and pressed a button. The log ahead of Stone swung slowly out of his way. “Explore your way down to the end of the drive, and I’ll buy you a cup of coffee,” he said, then he turned and disappeared into the trees.

The gate behind him was still closed, so Stone got into the car and drove another fifty yards before the drive ended at a sharp turn into a clearing. Stone noticed a large convex mirror mounted on a tree at the turn. Ed Rawls was a very careful man.

He got out of the car and approached a small, handsome, shingled cottage. As he stepped onto the porch, Ed Rawls opened the front door.

“Come on in,” Rawls said. “The coffee is already on.”

Stone stepped into a large room paneled in old pine, with a field-stone fireplace to his right. Two walls were covered in pictures, oils and watercolors of Maine and European scenes and landscapes. Rawls disappeared and came back with a coffee pot and two mugs on a tray.

“Have a seat,” he said. “You take cream or milk?”

“Black is fine.” Stone sat down in a leather chair.

“Good. I don’t have any cream or milk.” He poured them both a mug of coffee, handed one to Stone and sat down himself. “So you’re a retired cop? I wouldn’t have thought there was a cop in Dick’s family.”

“I’m from the black sheep branch,” Stone said. “Since I retired I practice law in New York.”

“You look pretty young to be retired.”

“A bullet in the knee retired me.”

Rawls nodded. “So you’re Dick’s executor? Why, is Caleb dead, too?”

“No.”

Rawls stared at him for a moment, then decided not to pursue that line of questioning. “You gonna be on Islesboro long?”

“As long as it takes.”

“As long as it takes to what?”

“To find out who murdered Dick and his family.”

Rawls looked at him carefully. “And why do you think he was murdered?”

Stone shrugged. “I’ve seen a lot of homicides and quite a few suicides, and I know the difference.” Stone sipped his coffee. “And what are you retired from, Mr. Rawls?”

“You call me Ed and I’ll call you Stone, all right?”

“All right.”

“I’m retired from the State Department,” Rawls said. “Dick and I used to work together.”