After Suicides, a Family’s Journey Toward Grace
He grew up the middle of three brothers. By his 25th birthday, he was the only one left. Brett, the youngest, killed himself in December 2005, two months before he turned 20. His depression could appear with a stunning swiftness. On that final night, he talked of forgiveness and the future. And then, like the flipping of a switch, something changed. The oldest, Beau, struggled for years with depression. In the final few months of his life, mounting problems pulled him into a downward spiral. His family tried to help, but nothing could keep him from slipping farther into darkness. Four years after his brother’s death, Beau told his stepfather that Brett, who had shot himself in the head, had done it wrong. Days later, he went up to the attic of his family’s home and shot himself in the chest.
Of Murder and Moving On
More than three decades ago, these murders shook Wyoming’s blue skies and open spirit. He admitted to committing them, testified against a man later given a death sentence and — poof — vanished into prison under an alias. Now, people were saying he had come home. Hard, unanswered questions circled the rumor. So not long after spring broke this year, a knock on his door. No response.
Two Men, Introduced in Gruesome Scene, Search for Answers
It was midday on a bleak and hard highway when bullets cut the air — cool, thin, Wyoming air. The first came through the windshield, into his left eye, stopping millimeters from his brain. If there was pain, he doesn’t remember. It’s the sensation of a falling red curtain he talks about. He slumped right, across the seat. Fumbling, he clutched the radio, screaming to dispatchers, “I’ve been shot! I’ve been shot! Help! Help!” Then it felt like burning iron thrusting again and again through the flesh of his lower back.
