“Her name came up in a murder investigation yesterday.”
Thick brows rose. “Elizabeth Templeton’s name came up?”
“She goes by her middle name, Greer, now. We found a picture of her and our victim nailed to a tree by the body. The picture was taken about twelve years ago.”
“That would have been right around the time of the accident.”
“Correct. The picture was taken at Shady Grove Estates. A camp for troubled teens.”
He opened a thick, dog-eared file. “I heard Elizabeth had been sent away after she tried to kill herself. Hell of a burden to know you drove the car that killed your brother and his girlfriend.”
“Tell me about the accident. The Internet articles gave bare facts.”
He reached for a pair of wire-rimmed glasses in his coat pocket. “Her family spent a lot of money keeping the story as quiet as possible. Of course when you’ve a couple of fatalities, it’s impossible to keep it completely silent no matter how much money you spend.”
“Can you give me a recap of the accident?”
He slipped on his glasses and glanced at the file. “When you called I had the file sent up from archives. I’d forgotten more details than I thought. It was a horrific accident.” He flipped through a couple of pages. “It was Jeffrey Templeton’s twenty-first birthday and the family was celebrating at the Austin Country Club. According to friends it was a big party, and the liquor had flowed. Elizabeth, rather, Greer, was fifteen.”
“How’d those three end up leaving?”
“Witnesses said the brother had been drinking heavily and was sick. He had an early morning appointment, so Greer had offered to take him home away from prying eyes. The girlfriend was also drunk but insisted on riding shotgun in the car because Greer was so young. According to Greer while she was driving a dark stretch of road, a car appeared out of nowhere. She said the car switched into her lane and was headed straight toward her. She said she beeped the horn, but the other driver didn’t budge. At the last second, Greer veered, went off the road, and hit a tree. Jeff and Sydney were thrown from the car. Greer had on her seat belt.”
“Was Greer drinking?”
“At the scene the responding officer could not run a Breathalyzer on Greer because she was so badly injured. He did report her saying she’d not been drinking. Her blood tested negative at the hospital. I saw her several days after the accident. She was recovering from surgery to repair a badly broken leg. By then, the family had lawyered up and a representative from her attorney’s firm was with her. Her parents were not at the hospital. They were at their son’s funeral. Elizabeth was still so injured she couldn’t leave the hospital for the funeral.”
“They wouldn’t delay it for her?”
“They refused.”
“You ever talk to the parents?”
“Sure. A couple of times. Their focus was on losing Jeffrey not Elizabeth.” He leaned back in his chair. “Jeffrey was the favored son. Smart, athletic, and handsome. He had the world on a string. Family had high hopes for him. And then in an instant he was gone. Her mother could barely speak Elizabeth’s name.”
Bragg was silent for a moment, wondering how he’d have handled the weight of such grief. He hoped like hell he wouldn’t have condemned the surviving child. “She goes by Greer now.”
“Right.”
He leaned back in his chair. “Greer was torn up about the accident. Knowing she killed her brother had broken her. I think she wanted to talk to me about Jeff because her parents refused. But with the lawyer there it was hard for her to finish a sentence without being cautioned.”
“How badly was she hurt? You mentioned her leg.”
“Her left femur was broken and her left wrist. Shattering glass cut her arms, she was pinned in the wreckage for several hours before rescue crews could cut her free.”
“Greer said there was another driver.”
He flipped through more pages. “No evidence of another driver. There were no skid marks on either side of the road so if there had been a second driver we found no evidence of it.”
“And the other family sued?”
“They did. The Templetons’ insurance company settled out of court for millions.”
Bragg studied more pictures detailing the tangled metal of the black BMW convertible. It was a miracle she’d escaped the mangled metal alive.
He came to an image featuring Greer being pulled from the car. Blood splashed her white blouse and caked her hair. Her left arm was in a splint and the EMTs were securing her leg. Her gaze was wide-eyed and vacant. Shock, he supposed.
Howell’s chair squeaked as he leaned back in his chair. “You said Elizabeth . . . Greer’s name came up in another investigation. Who was killed?”
Bragg closed the file. “Rory Edwards. He was at Shady Grove Estates with Greer. He was hung from a tree not five miles from her place.”
“Where’s she been all this time? She vanished after the trial and her suicide attempt.”
“Working at Bonneville Vineyards since. Her aunt took her in after the accident.”
“Thirty miles west of Austin?” He shook his head. “I always figured she’s moved as far away from Austin as she could get. My wife was out there for a tour. An older woman ran the place.”
“Her aunt. She passed about six months ago.”
He pulled off his glasses and cleaned the lenses. “I’m glad someone looked after the kid. She was damn near like the walking dead when I saw her last. What’s she like these days?”
“Attractive. Hair’s not blond anymore but natural brown. She’s guarded and not fond of law enforcement.”
“She associates cops with the accident.” Howell shook his head. “Nobody should have allowed Greer behind the wheel of that car. She was fifteen and too young to be driving the back roads unsupervised.”
“You mean the trio didn’t just slip away?”
“Nope. Mother told Greer to drive Jeffrey home, but after the accident Mom put all the blame on her fifteen-year-old.”
Greer’s accident file in hand, Bragg arrived at the Rangers’ Austin office minutes after two. He’d grabbed a burger on the fly and ate it in his car on the drive across town. Once he hit the office it would be nonstop. In addition to the Edwards murder, he had a bank robbery weeks from trial, a request for evidence for a kidnapping case, and subpoena requests to write in a drug case.
He dropped Greer’s file on his desk and instead of sitting, headed straight to Winchester’s office. He found the Ranger leaning back in his chair, the phone pressed to his ear. Winchester beckoned Bragg inside. Bragg took the seat in front of the desk and sat back, balancing his hat on his finger.
“That’s right the name is Edwards. Keep your ear to the ground. Any word comes up about him, I want to know about it.” He nodded. “Good. Talk to you soon.”
“What did you find out?”
Winchester hung up. “Rory Edwards’s been busy the last decade.”
Bragg sat back. “Was it like his brother said?”
Winchester’s seat creaked as he leaned forward. “And then some. The guy’s record is as clean as it was because his brother was always intervening. And like big brother said, he stopped intervening when their mother died last year. If Rory had lived, he’d have been facing serious jail time for fraud and breaking and entering. There’s also a possession charge out there.”
“A drug addict stealing to feed his habit.”
“From all I’ve read that’s exactly what he is. No amount of help was enough to keep this guy out of trouble until last year. He landed in a state rehab program and cleaned up. By all accounts he stayed out of trouble.”
Bragg shook his head. “Can’t say I feel sorry for the guy. The world was at his feet, and he found a way to screw up his life.”
“He isn’t the first to be controlled by addiction and won’t be the last. You talk to Greer Templeton?”
The muscles circling the back of his neck tightened. “I did. She admits Edwards called her days ago but she did not return the call. She’s a hard one to read. But I know she’s holding back. The question is why.”