Pablo Seara had left his vehicle in a reasonable place, though perhaps not the most prudent one: that is, outdoors, right next to his garden. Where any farm animal could pass by and mark it, or simply a fall rainstorm—like the ones that had already begun to occur these days—might sink it further into the muddy ground where it had been parked.

"I keep telling him to put it in the barn; we have plenty of space," his wife had warned when she saw me stop to observe it from the path. "That thing doesn’t even have a roof, and if it starts pouring rain, you'll see what a joke it’ll be to clean it up afterward. But no, it’s better to leave it outside so the neighbors can see it every time they walk by."

I was about to respond, trying to calm her down, saying that despite fully agreeing with her, I’d like to think that Seara had his reasons for wanting to leave his valuable car there, in front of the cow pen, beyond just wanting to show it off to the neighbors.

But it wasn’t necessary to intervene, because the man himself appeared out of nowhere, as if summoned.

"The car’s fine where it is. During the day, it doesn’t block anything, and at night, the dogs can watch over it."

"Don’t the dogs have better things to guard than that wretched car…?"

In fact, it was likely that the dogs were more interested in watching over the herd that Seara kept just a few meters away, but I wasn’t about to burst his bubble. Anyway, as Jimena had told me, it was clear that the mastiffs also reacted to the sound of their master’s vehicle’s engine.

"Excuse me," I cut in, aware that it was pure luck I’d managed to catch Seara here, in one of his many trips between his home and the fields where he spent his days tending to the livestock. "Could I ask you a few questions?"

Seara turned to me, perhaps surprised that I wasn’t a statue of salt and had actually dared to speak to him in the middle of a marital argument. In any case, upon recognizing my uniform, there was no hostility in his tone when he asked:

"About what? Don’t tell me Taboada’s thinking of getting one of these for patrols. I’m not one to judge, but I don’t think it’s wise to drive something so flashy through the hills."

"No, it’s not for him," I confirmed. "I don’t think we could sleep peacefully at the station knowing we have such a vehicle in custody."

As much admiration as it might inspire, word would surely spread, and the car would become the next desired object for local thieves.

And even considering that there wasn’t much crime around these parts, who would deal with the lieutenant in such a scenario? The man already got anxious when someone had to be kept locked up in the cell for more than a day—I couldn’t imagine his mood if he had to safeguard such a valuable object.

"Are you interested in the car for personal use, then?" Seara continued, oblivious to my train of thought.

"Oh no, I don’t drive. Though I’d much rather learn than have to deal with a horse or similar to get around." Dealing with animals wasn’t my strong suit, and Seara laughed heartily at the thought. I let him finish before steering the conversation back to where I wanted it. "No, actually, I came to ask about the night of the twenty-first, to see if you saw Joaquín leave his house that night."

"I did, yes, though very briefly," Seara seemed a bit distracted, as if searching for the right words to describe what he’d witnessed, clearly not expecting this to be the topic of conversation. "I think it was after ten… It was late, but not so late that I’d be in bed. Joaquín left his house and walked toward the main road."

"Wait, wait. Was he alone? Do you have any idea why or…?"

Or with what purpose, because while it was relatively normal to be up at that hour and take another round to the chicken coop to complete some forgotten chore from the day, it wasn’t at all common to try leaving the village in the dead of night.

"Look, this is how it went: I was out here securing the pen because the latch is half-broken, and with strong winds, it swings open every now and then (I should fix it, I know). So, while I was wrestling with the bolt, I saw Joaquín leave his house… And I didn’t think much of it until I saw him pass by my property heading toward the road. That’s when I took the chance, as he greeted me in passing, to ask him where the hell he was going because, look, I’m not a busybody by nature, and the dogs can handle the area around my house. But if someone ventures into the fields at that hour, unarmed, well, you can’t really hold me responsible for what might happen to them. And guess what he told me?"

"Tell me."

"That he was going for a walk!" Seara exclaimed, incredulous, seemingly convinced that his late neighbor had gone mad… or had already been mad, for that matter. "Can you believe it? When I get mad at my wife at that hour and want to take a walk, I stick to the road within the village. The streetlights don’t illuminate much, but they help. I don’t go to the hills to try my luck and risk being attacked by some beast."

"And he was unarmed, you say," I reiterated. "Did he at least have something to light his way? And what did you say to him when he told you he was just going for a walk?"

"Obviously, he had a lantern with him. But that doesn’t do much if you come face to face with a wolf three meters away, as I’m sure you understand."

No, it didn’t, but it did establish that when Joaquín left his residence, he did have a light source with him. Whether he lost it along the way, gave it to someone else, or took it to the Ribera (where it might still be lost) remained to be seen.

"I told him it was a terrible idea to leave at that hour, that he should wait until morning," Seara continued. "And he thanked me for the advice, only to immediately ignore the warning and say it was no big deal, that he wouldn’t go far and would be back in less than half an hour. Which, to me, was just an excuse to get me to let him go."

"And did you let him?"

"What else could I do? Tie him to a post?"

"These modern vehicles have lights," I observed, glancing at the car still parked there. "Far more powerful than a simple lantern, I might add. You could have suggested taking him."

"I could have, but the roads around here are in terrible shape. Who’d want to risk a wheel falling into a ditch just because you can’t see where you’re going? Not to mention that the animals aren’t used to seeing these machines moving around the hills. Imagine if a wild boar charged at the hood."

"Some of your neighbors claimed to hear the sound of an engine the night Joaquín died," I opted to exaggerate, speaking in plural in the hope it would persuade him to open up a bit more.

"They must be dreaming about the car. I don’t blame them."

"The dogs were also agitated."

"Fine, maybe I started the engine. But so what? That’s not a crime."

"There’s nothing wrong with it," I confirmed. "What I don’t understand is why there’s a need to hide it."

"Look," Seara sighed, pausing to glance sideways at his wife, who was still watching from the doorway of their house—silent but undoubtedly judging. "Let’s imagine I did offer to take him wherever he wanted to go in the car. Let’s also imagine that this house has a curfew and that, no matter how much one might want to be altruistic and go around doing good deeds, you can’t return to the room past a certain hour. So, what would have happened if Joaquín had said yes, that he accepted the free ride? I’ll tell you: I would’ve taken him nearby. Very nearby, so my wife wouldn’t get mad when I came back."

"How nearby?"

"Do you know the stone cross at the entrance to the Maiobre estate? Well, there."

That spot was, at most, a couple of kilometers from Joaquín’s house, less than halfway to the Ribera.

"I didn’t mention this to the lieutenant when he asked because, what’s the point? People would start talking, regardless of whether Joaquín’s death was just an accident or if I hadn’t gone anywhere near the vineyards that night."

"People can be relentless when it comes to forming their own theories," I agreed, aware that I wasn’t far from doing the same by asking all these questions behind the lieutenant’s and the station’s backs. "So, you left him at the stone cross and went home?"

"Strange, isn’t it? I didn’t even understand what the hell he wanted to do there since there’s nothing but open fields around, and he didn’t explain it either. I suggested waiting for him to bring him back to the village once he was done with whatever he had to do, but he refused… and quite vehemently, I must say."

"Was that usual?"

"For someone as calm as Joaquín always was? Not at all. That’s why I knew he was serious when he said he wanted to be alone. I remember being worried for a moment, but soon enough, the friendly Joaquín I knew came back and reassured me that it was fine, that he was meeting someone there shortly, and as soon as they finished talking, he’d head straight home."

"But you left before anyone else showed up," I concluded, as otherwise, Seara would have started by giving me a name.

"There wasn’t much point in staying when I wasn’t welcome," Seara shrugged. "Besides, I’m not anyone’s mother to have to keep an eye on them to make sure they stick to the curfew and don’t go astray. I’m not even the village night watchman! So don’t bother me with nonsense—I left Joaquín where he asked me to, then went back home. I didn’t hear anything more about him until they found him the next morning."

"No, I didn’t think you did."

I could ask his wife to confirm this, but I didn’t see the need. She’d been listening to the entire conversation and hadn’t intervened once to contradict him. So it was quite likely that Seara was telling the truth.

Turning my gaze back to the vehicle, I decided to try my luck once more and asked:

"May I ask you for a favor?"