Toni Stevens is being questioned by Police Chief Nolan Quinn . . .

“Brandon and I were going to trim trees. We never got that far. Brandon had just left, and I was
in the house with Mom and Davy when the explosion sounded. I ran outside. I didn’t know if it
came from near Brandon—” she let out a pent-up sigh, “or Miguel.”

Don’t think about the close call. Not after Ernie.

“I called out to them both while I was running,” [Toni] continued. “I could see smoke rising
above the trees, in this direction. About forty or fifty yards into the evergreens, Brandon called
out to me. He appeared maybe fifteen yards ahead of me. We both ran toward the smoke.”

“What did you see when you got there?”

“Miguel was laying on the ground, unconscious. The weed-whacker lay across his abdomen. He
looked . . . he was unconscious and burned and . . .”

The vision of Miguel’s burned body replayed in her memory. She shuddered and fought to
control tears. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. It’s tough when someone gets hurt like that. I think it always feels worse if it’s
intentional.”

“You think someone did this on purpose? To him, or me, or the farm?”