Book excerpt: Single mother-farmer Ruth Willmarth discovers her neighbor, Lucien, and his part-Indian wife Belle, bloody, beaten, and robbed of their life savings. When Belle dies, Ruth faces barn burnings and the disappearance of her son—as she and would-be lover Colm Hanna, who serves as Realtor, town mortician, and part-time cop, track the killer's muddy trail to put an end to this mad season. Mystery by Nancy Means Wright; originally published by St. Martin’s Press