The Victim's Wife Read online

  I shook my head. “Not quite. I like what you’re turning up, and we need to keep you focused without getting distracted. Were you able to find anything that connected Penny to Frank’s murder?”

  “I was coming to that next. She did enter Meridian Solutions that morning and was there for several hours. She didn’t leave until after Frank’s supposed time of death. It’s all on camera and indisputable. I got it from the security footage you gave to me.”

  I had made a judgment call on that one and given it to Winston because I knew that I didn’t have time to go through the fifty hours of video footage the prosecution had disclosed, so I paid him to do it instead.

  I nodded. “And we can confirm that Vivian and Ronald were there as well?”

  “Vivian was there but left for lunch before the body was discovered. Ronald was gone.”

  My eyebrows rose. “Are you certain that Ronald was not there when Frank was killed?”

  I had wondered if there was a way to connect him to all this, but if he wasn’t even there....

  “Positive.” Winston hesitated. “I can show you exactly when on the security footage he left and when he came back. Frank died while he was gone; it’s not even a question.”

  I wished I had time to review the security footage as well.

  “What else do you have for me?”

  “Have you peeked at Penny’s social media?”

  I nodded. “She makes it public.”

  “Okay, just wanted to make sure you knew about that. I suppose I don’t need to go over some of the things I found in there unless you would like to?”

  I shook my head. “Distressing and alarming doesn’t begin to cover it. She’s going to be our prime suspect in the trial if we can find some evidence against her.”

  And if I can convince Mason to go along with it.

  “Did you know that she used to be a member of a cult?”

  “Tell me more about that.” Winston probably recognized that I had not answered his question, but he didn’t comment on it.

  “They believed the end of the world was coming in 2025. It was some crazy stuff, really insane. I guess she got out after the leader died. The cult is still going, from what I understand, and the leader has now been deified.”

  I nodded. “This was in Texas, right?” I had done some poking around of my own and discovered a cult that seemed to fit the time period. Penny had claimed she had come to her senses and left before the leader had been murdered. If what Winston told me was true, it appeared that was not accurate.

  A broad smile crossed Winston’s face. “So you do know about it.”

  “Pretend I don’t, keep talking.”

  “The leader had his followers sign over their property to him, regardless of what that was. Cars, real estate, you name it, they gave it. The cult wasn’t doing anything egregious initially, but then members started turning up dead in places outside the compound. It was strange stuff. Members of the cult refused to cooperate with the police, and so for the most part, these murders went unsolved.

  “It went that way for about five years until the leader himself was killed. According to the newspaper articles I’ve gathered, he was murdered by a jealous member of his own cult. At the time of his death, he had managed to amass a fortune of over forty million dollars.” Winston cleared his throat. “Perhaps I shouldn’t use the word amass. Stole is more appropriate.”

  I let out a low whistle. “And that wasn’t enough for him. He had to go killing people too?”

  Winston nodded.

  “Tell me more about Penny’s involvement. You said she left after he died? Do you have any idea how long Penny was involved?”

  “I only know about it from a Google search; her name came up attached to some newspaper articles about the cult. She’s a native of Texas, so that was in my search string as well. There’s many articles about the cult. She’s only referenced in a couple. As far as I know, she was never charged with anything, and it appears she left the cult shortly after the leader was killed.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Quite sure. After he was murdered, the police finally got inside the compound. Witnesses came out in droves to testify against his murderer. Penny was one of those who testified against the woman who killed their revered leader.”

  “Can you send me everything else you have on the cult? I’ll take a look at it.” I leaned back in my chair. “What else do you have for me?”

  “Not much. I just have to say that it really looks like Mason did this. If he was provoked or there was a conspiracy, it’s well covered.”

  41

  I was still at my office working through the material Winston had left me, despite the fact that it was now close to eight in the evening. I had spoken with Mason briefly and brought up the possibility of doing a plea bargain, bringing it up as a serious possibility for the first time. He had said he would think about it.

  I had not brought up the issue of representing Penny, and he had not asked me about it either. I think he knew what I was gonna do and was slowly coming to terms with the fact that it would not be a good idea for me to represent both of them.

  I would give him another night to chew on it before I spoke with Penny. Tomorrow wasn’t going to be a fun day.

  I was just opening the articles on my computer that Winston had sent about the cult when there was a knock on my door. I looked up and saw Barbara.

  My heart skipped a beat. She was beautiful.

  “I hope you don’t mind,” she said with an uncertain look, “I thought I’d just drop in and say hello. I kept Ellie from notifying you. I hope that’s okay too.” Her blonde hair was pulled back in a ponytail. She wore a black dress that was my favorite.

  “Ellie is still out there?” I shook my head and muttered something. “I told her to go home three hours ago.”

  “She likes to work when you work. Makes her feel like she’s going above and beyond in her job.” Barbara gave me a reserved smile as I came around and embraced her, leading her back to my desk, where I sat on the front, and she sat in one of the guest chairs. “I don’t mind you stopping by at all. The truth is, I could use a break. Sorry, I’ve been working late the last couple weeks. How are you doing?”

  “Doing okay,” she said, glancing up at me but avoiding further eye contact. “Is it okay if we go out to dinner, or have you already eaten?”

  I glanced at my watch as I realized that I was hungry. I had been so focused on reviewing the new materials in Mason’s case that I had not even noticed.

  I looked at the files on my computer and decided they could wait.

  “Sure, just let me lock up my computer and pack up a few things.”

  Five minutes later, we were heading out the door after I had stopped to tell Ellie to go home.

  “I have a couple more things to finish before I head out,” she had said, glancing up and shaking her head. “You’re working me like a dog!” She said this last part with a chuckle to show Barbara she was joking.

  I locked my briefcase in the car and gave Barbara a smile, which she returned with a thin grin before sharply turning away.

  We went to a little mom-and-pop Italian shop known as Olivia’s, which was just a short walk from my office. It seemed ominous that she had agreed right away instead of pushing for Applebee’s.

  As we walked, I took her hand. I was surprised when she glanced over at me, squeezed it, and then released it.

  “I’m not sure I’m in the mood for that,” she said as if she had a lot on her mind right now. Judging by her lack of return physical affection, I assumed that I had something to do with it. I had known this moment was coming but had hoped that I still had several more weeks before it came to a head.

  When she first walked into my office, the thought had crossed my mind that something was wrong, and now I was sure of it.

  “Is everything okay?” I asked, wondering if it was the right move to be direct about it.

  “Everything’s fine.”

&nbs
p; Everything was obviously not fine, but she was determined to tell me about it on her timetable.

  We proceeded in silence, me glancing over at her occasionally.

  She looked my way only once.

  After we got to the restaurant and were seated in our booth, I once again tried to put my hand on top of hers. She let it say for a moment, and then she moved her hands to her lap.

  “I think we need to talk,” Barbara said at last.

  “What would you like to talk about?” I asked as cheerfully as I could, knowing the answer but figuring she had planned how she wanted this conversation to go, so I was playing along.

  “Us.”

  I felt a sinking in my chest, but at the same time, part of me wondered if maybe this wasn’t for the best.

  It seemed like she was about to break up with me. I had been experiencing cold feet ever since we started talking about marriage, so I was beginning to think that perhaps it was the right time for us to both go our separate ways.

  “I see I have left you speechless,” Barbara said, a wry smile creeping across her face. “That almost never happens to Mitch Turner.”

  “You just took me off guard, is all. I’ve just been thinking too much about work to try to analyze where I think this is going.”

  A disappointed look crossed Barbara’s face. “I understand your job is important, Mitch, really I get that. I’m not trying to take anything away from you. I just want to have an idea if we have a long-term potential here or...” She trailed off.

  “Or if you should move on?” I asked, holding her gaze.

  She nodded as she looked away.

  “No offense, Mitch, I like you and all, and I would even venture to say that it goes beyond that. We’ve been having fun together, but if we are not going to be together for the long term, I don’t want to waste my time.” She looked back at me. “Remember my friend Jane?”

  I sighed. I felt bad for Jane. She had been in a long-term relationship with somebody for over ten years before he had finally told her that he didn’t have any interest in her and apparently never had.

  “That’s not us,” I said, leaning forward and cupping my hand over hers. “I’m not playing with you. The feelings I have for you are real. The way I feel is real.”

  “If it’s so real, why haven’t you taken even a moment to think about where you want it to go?” Barbara was pushing back in her chair now. “I’m not feeling hungry anymore. Are you?”

  That was not exactly fair. I had thought about it. I had just not arrived at any conclusions. I should have chosen my words more carefully.

  I looked at a waiter who had started to head our way. “No, let’s get out of here.”

  As we passed by the waiter, I slipped him a twenty-dollar bill and mouthed the word, “Sorry.”

  We walked back to my office in silence. When Barbara saw my car, she suggested we take a drive. We drove for almost twenty minutes before Barbara finally spoke up. “I’m concerned that you haven’t taken the time to think about us. It makes me feel like this is probably not the right relationship for you.”

  Her voice was cold.

  “I don’t think it’s accurate to say I have not thought about us,” I said. The next logical thing to say would be that I had not arrived at any conclusions, but it didn’t seem like it would be a good idea to emphasize that right now. “Work has been taking lots of my time. I’ve been very distracted.” I glanced over at her. “I am sorry about that.”

  “You’re a criminal defense attorney. You’re always going to have a lot on your mind. There’s never going to be a time when you don’t! If you can’t find time to have a relationship with me—”

  “That’s not fair. I spend lots of time with you. I answer all your phone calls—”

  “But you can’t bother to figure out where we’re at.” Barbara gave me a long glance. “I need somebody who is going to make me their highest priority. If I can’t get that from you, I’m going to find somebody else.” She took a deep breath, and it was clear she was saying something she had rehearsed in her head many times. “Mitch, we’ve been doing this for two years now. It’s time for you to make a long-term commitment.”

  I let out a long sigh, which apparently, was the wrong thing to do.

  She growled.

  “What’s wrong with that?” She turned on me, thrusting a finger into my face. “I’m not asking anything unreasonable, am I?”

  Like I was gonna disagree with that when she is already so angry.

  “It’s fair to ask, I suppose.”

  “Then why sigh at me like that? You make me feel like I’m exasperating you. I’m not asking for anything unreasonable. I’m just asking to know where we’re at. I just want to know if we have long-term potential. That’s it.”

  “That’s not what I meant with the sigh—”

  “Then what did you mean?”

  “It’s just that I’m so tired. I’ve had a lot going on—”

  She cut me off. “You keep saying that, but if I was your priority, you would have figured this out by now. I think I know now exactly where I stand.”

  She was getting worked up. I wasn’t exactly sure what to do next.

  What have I done to push this normally calm woman into such a state? I wondered, fearing that I had caused irreparable harm to our relationship. The last time we had met, she had broached this topic but had not dwelled on it. I had thought that I still had plenty of time to think about it. I was wrong about that too.

  “Maybe it was a mistake to leave the restaurant,” she said. “I am starving. I skipped lunch and I’m afraid I’m taking it out on you.”

  That was more like the woman I knew. I let out a quiet sigh.

  And where are we exactly? I wondered, thinking back to my meeting with Cindy and finding everything so confusing. Barbara’s correct that she has a right to know. It is a fair question. I just don’t have an answer for her yet.

  A part of me feared I might not ever have an answer that she was gonna like

  “I might have a candy bar or something in my briefcase,” I said, remembering the time I’d taken several from Mason’s office.

  Barbara opened my briefcase, found a Snickers candy bar and ate it. “There’s another. Do you want it?”

  I shook my head. I was not feeling hungry anymore.

  “That’s a little better,” she said as I focused on the road, trying to decide if I was ready to make a commitment. The last thing I wanted to do was tell her I was ready and then come back and tell her that I had made a mistake.

  I like things where they are right now. Why can’t we just stay here? I wondered. Even as the thought crossed my mind, I recognized that that was no longer possible. She was at a place where we either had to commit to something more, or she was going to move on. I opened my mouth, intent on convincing her that we needed to give ourselves more time before we made this type of decision, but then I recognized that it had already been long enough from her perspective. I was never going to prevail upon her, and I wasn’t sure that I wanted to either.

  The feelings I had for Cindy came back to me, but I pushed them away. I was not going to open that can of crazy again.

  We drove in silence for five minutes, and then it was ten. It was a full twenty minutes before either one of us spoke. I glanced over at Barbara. “How you doing over there?”

  “I’m not as hungry.”

  I wasn’t sure if she meant that as a joke or not, but I laughed and noticed that she chuckled as well, though it seemed forced.

  The sugar rush seemed to help her mood, and we changed the topic of conversation to other things. I continued to drive, racking my brain, trying to decide. I had met Cindy for lunch and it had once again left me on edge. This made me feel like perhaps this relationship wasn’t the right relationship for me. I would never go back to Cindy, not in a million years, but if I had this much confusion over an ex-girlfriend I didn’t even like, perhaps that was saying something about my present relationship with Barba
ra.

  Maybe Barbara understood something that I did not.

  “I don’t think I can wait anymore,” Barbara interjected. “You need to decide.”

  “All I need is a few—” I meant to say a couple more days to think it over but never got there.

  “The last thing I want to hear from you is that you need more time!” Barbara practically yelled.

  I glanced over, surprised because it had come out of nowhere. Our conversation had been pleasant a moment before. It was like a switch had been flipped.

  “If you’re going to demand an answer right now—”

  “I do demand an answer right now!”

  “Then I’m afraid we’re going to have to call it off.” The words left my mouth before I had a chance to think them through and I realized I could never recall them.

  42

  When my alarm buzzed the next morning, I slammed down the snooze button and rolled over in bed, trying to remember the events of the night before.

  My dreams had been filled with Barbara, Cindy, Penny, Mason, Vivian, and others. None of them had made any sense. When I awoke, I was certain that the experience with Barbara from the previous night had just been a bad dream. It wasn’t until I’d been awake for several minutes that it slowly dawned on me that we had broken up.

  The events of the night before were hazy.

  The way that Barbara had screamed and yelled at me... It was like she had been a completely different person.

  I had tried to drop her off at her apartment, turning to head in that direction, but she had insisted I pull over. She had got out right there, without even checking the neighborhood.

  “See you never!” Barbara had said as she slammed the door, stalking off into the darkness. I had glanced at the map on my car console, afraid we were in a bad neighborhood. I was relieved to see that we were just a few blocks away from a local police station. If nothing else, she was as safe as I could make her.

  I had watched as she disappeared into the darkness before pulling back onto the road.