Even so, the letter from Illinois kept nagging at him.
Galloway was methodical by nature, a quality that had kept him alive during the war and that served him well as a law enforcement officer.
First he made inquiries in the village, asking the merchants and the locals if they remembered the boy.
Some did: a quiet young man who had gone to live with the Barrow sisters, but no one remembered seeing him after that first autumn.
The general consensus was that he had gone to the city, although no one could say for sure.
The shopkeeper's wife mentioned that she had once asked about him and was told that he had gone to look for work.
It seemed quite plausible.
Galloway decided to go to the Barrow estate in person, ask some questions, and hopefully write back to the worried aunt with definitive information.
The trip lasted almost all day.
Galloway followed the main road south for several miles before turning off onto a narrow path that wound through increasingly dense forest.
The path was in very bad condition, covered with weeds that brushed against the flanks of his horse.
Along the way, he passed by two other farms and stopped at each one to ask the inhabitants if they had seen the boy from Barrow in recent years.
Both families gave the same tight-lipped answer: they stayed out of it and expected others to do the same.
A farmer, standing in his doorway with his rifle clearly visible, made it clear that the sheriff's presence was not welcome and that any business the Barrows carried out was their own affair.
This was the culture Galloway faced: a wall of willful ignorance that protected everyone's secrets by protecting no one's.
Barrow's farm appeared suddenly as Galloway rounded a bend in the path.
The house looked well-preserved, the barn sturdy, and the smoke rising from the chimney formed a thin line against the gray sky.
As he dismounted and tied his horse to a post, the front door opened and the twin sisters came out onto the porch.
They stood side by side, identical in their simple dresses and white aprons, their faces expressionless as they watched him approach.
Galloway introduced himself and explained the reason for his visit: a concerned relative was asking about Thomas.
The sisters exchanged a brief glance, and a silent communication took place between them before one of them spoke.
Thomas had left years ago, she said, restless and eager to find work in the city.
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