Gone and Done It

April 1, 2014
A landscaper uses her psychic powers to solve murders old and new. Baxley Powell is desperate to finish her latest job. Carolina Byrd won't pay her a cent until Mallow Plantation's grounds are completely planted, and Baxley needs the money to keep herself and her daughter, Larissa, afloat, since the Army won't concede that her MIA husband is dead and won't pay death benefits. So the last thing she wants is to unearth an ancient skeleton right where she's supposed to plant a weeping cherry tree. The unfortunate discovery brings her job to a grinding halt as Sheriff Wayne Thompson sends deputies Virg and Ronnie to investigate. Even Bo Seavey, the county's lecherous coroner, can see that the folks Baxley unearthed died a long time ago. But that news just brings Running Wolf and his wife, Gentle Dove, to the site claiming the remains must be part of a First Nation burial site, so Baxley still can't get back to work. Since touching the skull triggered visions of a family of white settlers, Baxley knows the remains aren't Native American--so she sneaks back onto Mallow to try to plant apodocarpus. This time, the body she unearths is much more recent. Her latest find sets off visions of a beautiful young woman named Lisa who sits weeping for her lover, Jay, and the baby born of their illicit affair. Finding the third side to the triangle may help Baxley convince Wayne to hire her as a police consultant. As Baxley moves closer to taking over her father's role as county dreamwalker, her waking life is threatened by a murderer who'd prefer not to be caught. Toussaint takes a break from her Cleopatra Jones series (Dime if I Know, 2013, etc.) for a brisk plunge into the paranormal.

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