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kept tasting.
Trey looked up at Andrew, who stood a few feet away. "Why did you do this?"
Andrew looked at him oddly. "Because I didn't want to see her killed."
Alex knew what Trey thought. "This neither the time nor the place, Trey."
"Stay out of this, Alex."
Alex heard several sharp intakes. Her name couldn't be that outrageous. "Please think
about this. Those horses were running at a good clip. There is no way he could have saved
me if he was responsible for this."
"Sweetheart, he could have hired someone." Trey never took his eyes off of Andrew.
"He could have done all this just to throw me off because he knows we're getting close."
Alex looked at the ground for a minute. Man, talk about paranoid. When her head came
up, she wished she had been paying attention.
Trey launched himself at Andrew. Punching him hard in the stomach. "If you so much as
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think about my wife, I'll find out about it. I don't want you near her." He punched him in
the face. "Do you understand?"
"What the hell is wrong with you?" shouted Alex. She heard some more sharp intakes of
breath. She ignored the people around them as she grabbed one of Trey's arms.
"No, Miss Alexandra," interrupted Andrew, wiping blood from the corner of his mouth
as he stood up. "Trey and I have something to work out. It is long overdue."
She placed her hand on her hips. "Not in the middle of the street like two thugs."
"You're right. We should handle this like gentlemen. How about it Trey?"
Trey slugged him again. "I'm not letting you out of my sight. You want to have this out,
then let's do it, here, now."
Andrew shrugged out of his coat. "All right. If that's the way you want to do this." He
held his fists up in front of his face. "I want to know what I did that was so terrible anyway,
to cause you to hate me so."
Trey's eyes narrowed to slits. "You know why."
"Humor me." Andrew circled around Trey.
Trey fought the inner trembling that shook his body to the core. How could this man not
know? Was he that callused? He moved with Andrew. "Son-of-a-bitch!"
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He threw another punch, which connected with the side of Andrew's head.
"Trey, stop this now," demanded Alex.
"You killed my parents and don't even remember?" asked Trey.
The whole congregation sucked in their breath. Alex thought it was like a bad old movie.
"I did what?" Andrew dropped his hands.
Trey punched him in the nose. "My parents. You killed them."
"What are you talking about?" Andrew continued to fight. He swung, hitting Trey in the
eye.
Elizabeth stepped out into the road and took Alex's hand. Gently she pulled her back to
the edge pf the crowd.
"Trey," said Andrew. "I didn't kill your parents."
"I have seen the evidence."
"What evidence?" Andrew dodged a blow from Trey.
"The head of your cane," said Trey as he tried to plant another blow.
Alex looked down at the cane at her feet. She bent at the knees and stooped down to pick
it up. Turning it over slowly. This was the same head she found near the burnt barn. Was
Trey right?
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"My cane?" Andrew landed another punch. This time to Trey's midsection, knocking the
air out of him. "The head of that stupid thing is not special made. You can buy two or three
of them yourself if you were to go to New Orleans."
Trey's brow furrowed. "It's not your family crest?"
"No." Andrew stopped for a few seconds. "I just buy them from the same store that my
father did. It's the only pattern they sell. If it weren't for that piece of shrapnel in my foot, I
wouldn't even need the blasted thing, but there are some days I can't put any weight on the
foot, thus the cane."
"That cane was found near my parents bodies," snapped Trey. He swung and connected
with Andrew's jaw.
"Then Alex...Alexandra, found another one near the barn that you burned down on my
land a couple months ago. Shall I go on?"
Andrew paused. He dropped his hands. "No. Come on. Finish me off. I'm sure it will
make you feel better."
Trey got a feral gleam in his eyes. Alex prayed he wouldn't make a fool of himself. She
thought he would hit Andrew again, but he also lowered his arms. A sigh of relief escaped
her.
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"Do not come near my home, or my wife. If you do, I will kill you," said Trey, as he
placed a protective arm around Alex. With quiet dignity he escorted his wife away.
Andrew watched them leave. Anger etched on his face.
As Trey and Alex walked toward there carriage Alex asked. "Why didn't you tell me
about the cane? I asked you about the evidence and you just kept it to yourself. Why?"
"Because I know how much you want to believe that Andrew is innocent. He's not,
Alexandra." Trey shook his hand out before flexing his fingers. His knuckles were swollen,
and starting to turn purple already.
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