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surrounded by giant oaks and maples. A white brick wall encircled the grounds: emerald-green lawn and well-tended flower beds of blue hydrangeas and lots of snowball bushes. They pulled up beside a splashing, three-tier marble fountain with the Greek goddess Diana in the center, holding an urn overflowing with water. The house itself was Gone with the Wind -ish and built in the pillared, Greek Revival style. It had long galleries both upstairs and down, white brick chimneys, and a porte cochere on the east side. White spindle rockers and lacy wrought-iron tables sat on the galleries, and red geraniums, marigolds, and purple alyssum spilled out of big clay pots everywhere. Huge spidery green ferns hung in white pots at intervals along the upper gallery.
    Will Brannock killed the engine and turned to her. “I need to talk to Phil. That’s him over there with Chief Mullins.”
    Julia followed his pointing finger and saw two men standing together under one of the twin silver-leaf maple trees shading the front porch. “Let me get Jasper secured away from the scene, and I’ll go talk to the chief.”
    Opening the passenger door and stepping down from the Hummer, she stood back and let Jasper leap to the ground, then led him by the leash deeper into the side yard. There was a small cluster of tulip poplars, replete with a white lattice arbor and bench, that would give him shade from the glaring sun. Luckily, an ornamental goldfish pond was nearby, in case Jasper got thirsty. The day was very hot. Now, just after midday, it was probably already nearing ninety degrees, and she knew from experience that it might take the forensic techs a long time to sweep the scene.
    The victim was an important man, well-known, well connected, and a federal judge, to boot. Law enforcement would have to pull out all the stops in this investigation. She wondered if the news media of Chattanooga were the same kind of barracudas she’d had to deal with at the Nashville Police Department. If so, the very second the networks got wind of this sensational crime, they’d be all over the place with their satellite trucks and TV vans, and would cause the investigators a ton of grief and complications.
    Stooping to stroke Jasper’s back for a moment, she watched the bloodhound lie down, his brown eyes questioning her, wanting to go to work. He was no stranger to crime scenes. He was ready to sniff out the villain. He loved his job as much as she loved hers. She stood, looked around, and watched Will Brannock approach the man he’d identified as Phil Hayes, who was dressed in a white dress shirt, yellow tie, and tan suit. Brannock had pulled on a black TBI cap. He towered over his boss, who had immediately started an animated conversation with Will.
    Farther down the yard, at the end of the back porch, she could see Chief Mullins with some of his uniformed officers. She took a brush from her bag, brushed off her clothes thoroughly to rid herself of any trace of Jasper’s hair, and then headed at a swift clip toward her new chief. Excitement was burgeoning inside her. It had been awhile since she’d been on a homicide case like this one, and she hoped the Chattanooga PD would get to play an integral role in the investigation.
    When Chief Mullins saw her approaching, he walked over to meet her. He was a handsome older gentleman with ebony skin and white hair, an all-around super-nice guy. J.D. had told her he was easygoing and even-tempered, with a keen intelligence that saw through any kind of deceit. She had liked him immediately when she’d come over from Nashville for the initial interview. He also happened to be the father of her new partner, Tamara Lovelady, which might or might not end up being a sticky situation. She had met Tam briefly, and had gotten good vibes from her, too. Petite and curvaceous, Tam was a lovely lady with caramel skin and coffee-colored brown eyes and a ready, friendly smile. J.D. had assured Julia that even though Tam was