That first police report had been filed by Deputy Austin Parker.

He had been one of the very first officers to reach the scene that stormy night, and he had called me from the station himself to gently break the horrific news.

He assured me that the extreme weather had made the mountain pass completely treacherous and that Brandon must have been driving far too fast for the wet conditions.

Austin had held my shaking hands at the funeral when I could barely stand on my own two feet.

He was the one who came over to fix our broken wooden gate after a heavy winter storm swept through town.