raley

It was an investigation he never got to complete. Because on one calamitous night, Raley's world was shattered.

But Raley never forgot the bleakness with which Delno had looked at him that morning.

He uncapped one of the jars and passed it to Raley, who sniffed the contents, then shook his head and passed it back.

Touching the bloated, flyblown, limp body with the pink, hairless tail and horrible stench was the last thing Raley intended to do.

A curl of faded red paint flaked off when the wood frame slapped closed behind Raley as he stepped into the one-room cabin.

The area surrounding the cabin was also littered with junk that was never utilized so far as Raley could tell.

They never again referred to anything Raley had told him that night.

Shortly after Raley had moved into the vicinity, the two had come upon each other in the woods.

His visitor turned and walked down the steps. Raley called after him, "What's your name? "

Raley wasn't aware that anyone lived within miles of the cabin he'd recently purchased.

Raley's heart hitched, automatically thinking disaster.

Raley came to suspect that his hillbilly accent and vocabulary were affected.

Firefighter Raley Gannon, Jay's lifelong friend, was off-duty that day.

The old man was there, holding a chipped ceramic bowl containing a heap of some raw animal flesh that Raley couldn't identify.

Raley was coming in, the old man going out. They nodded to each other.

Joyce Raley Teel The grocery-store heiress and manager was listed at $1 billion last year.

Raley pulled open the rusty screen door, its hinges squealing.