Judd Truesdell closed his eyes and clenched his jaw as he reminded himself that he was a killer. Worse, he was a black U.S. senator who -- like some of the thugs he'd put behind bars during his earlier career -- had hired a man killed. And to top it off, he was on his way to his late adversary's funeral, a matter of not wanting to appear conspicuous by his absence. He dreaded thinking about what might await his arrival back at Lawton Ridge, his old hometown where the trouble all began. The official investigation into Rudy Blaylock's death was just being launched by the Hickory County sheriff's office but Judd knew his days were numbered, especially if the Georgia Bureau of Investigation was called in to assist the resource-limited locals. How the hell had he allowed himself to act so damned irrationally? He was going to leave a trail of dismayed friends and family members in the wake of all this...unfortunately, a guilty man's legacy.