Hell with the Lid Blown Off

Some secrets can comeback from the grave.In the summer of 1916, a big twister brings destruction tothe land around Boynton, Oklahoma. Alafair Tucker's family and neighbors arenot spared the ruin and grief spread by the storm. But no one is going to mournfor Jubal Beldon, who made it his business to know the ugly secrets of everyonein town. It doesn't matter if Jubal's insinuations are true or not. In a smalltown like Boynton, rumor is as damaging as fact.But as Mr. Lee, the undertaker, does his grim duty for thestorm victims, he discovers that even in death Jubal isn't going to leave hisneighbors in peace. He was already dead when the tornado carried his body tothe middle of a fallow field. Had he died in an accident, or had he beenmurdered by someone whose secret he had threatened to expose? There are dozensof people who would have been happy to do the deed, including members ofJubal's own family.As Sheriff Scott Tucker and his deputy Trenton Calder investigate the circumstances surrounding Jubal's demise, it begins to look like theprime suspect may be someone very dear to the widow Beckie MacKenzie, thebeloved music teacher and mentor of Alafair's daughter Ruth. Ruth fears thatthe secrets exposed by the investigation are going to cause more damage to herfriend's life than did the tornado. Alafair has her own suspicions about how JubalBeldon came to die, and the reason may hit very close to home.