Murder at Broadcast Park

by Bill Evans

  “What now?” asked Barry.

  “I think Detective Reynolds and I need to have a conversation with your sales manager,” Tracy said.

  John’s eyes got big and Barry and Richard noticed. “What’s wrong, John?”

  “Well, he’s going to know that I talked to you.”

  “That’s probably true, but there’s no way around it at this point. We have to talk to him,” Tracy explained.

  “I know, but he’s going to kill me,” John said.

  Barry tried to calm his young reporter. “I’m going to tell Lisa about all this, and she will have to let Pedderman know that you had no choice and that he is not to do anything against you. I told you, I have your back. And John, you can’t talk about this or do any story on this until I approve it. Keep doing your homework. Put your notes together. Do whatever you want, but I need to approve anything and everything before we air anything on this. You understand?”

  Richard and Barry walked to the detective’s car together so they could talk in private. “Look, I don’t know what we’ve got here. It is at least something new to go on. I want to meet with Pedderman today. Can you call him and get him to come down to the television station and we’ll meet there in the conference room?” asked Richard Tracy.

  “First, I need to get ahold of Lisa and tell her what’s going on. She should be the one that calls Pedderman.”

  “Maybe Lisa should be there as well. That way, you guys can assess what you want to do with your sales manager in case this thing blows up.”

  “Good idea,” Barry said. “Let me reach out to Lisa one more time. Once I talk to her, I’m sure she will want to call Pedderman,” Barry said.

  “Okay, you do that while I fill Reynolds in.”

  Barry called Lisa’s cell one more time. This time she picked up.

  “Lisa, it’s Barry.” She didn’t let on, but she had spent the night with Stewart. Her husband was away on a golf trip.

  Barry didn’t waste any time getting to the reason he called. Lisa didn’t interrupt. He told her the police would be at the station that afternoon to interview Pedderman. She hung up looking pale and shocked. In bed next to her was Stewart.

  “What’s going on? You look like someone popped your balloon,” Stewart said.

  “Potential problem at the office involving my sales manager. Sounds like an HR thing. I got to get to the office.”

  18

  LISA AND THE TWO detectives arrived at the same time and walked together into the station. They found Barry, and the four of them walked to Lisa’s office. There wasn’t much in small talk. Barry gave Lisa an overview of what took place earlier that morning with John Rankin and then with Detective Tracy.

  “Lisa, when is David Pedderman due to arrive?” Detective Tracy asked.

  “He’s due here any time. I told him two o’clock.”

  Looking at the detectives, Lisa asked them how they wanted to handle everything. “I think we need to bring Mr. Pedderman into the conference room and lay it all out for him. I think we need to confront him about everything we heard,” Reynolds said.

  “What if he denies all of it? What if he says that John Rankin is a lying son-of-a-bitch and he doesn’t have a clue what he’s talking about?” Barry was throwing out all kinds of different scenarios when Lisa noticed Pedderman walking down the hall toward her office.

  The four got up from their chairs and met the sales manager in the hallway. “Let’s go to the conference room where we have a little more room,” Barry said as he put his hand on Pedderman’s shoulder. He didn’t say anything, but everyone could read his nervous expression.

  “David, the detectives want to talk to you about some things that came to light this morning. It’s got to do with the conversation you had last night with John Rankin,” Lisa said.

  Pedderman’s jaw tightened and his face turned red. He didn’t even say anything. He just sat there looking disgusted by the whole scene his careless conversation caused.

  “Mr. Pedderman, can I call you David?” Detective Reynolds asked.

  Pedderman nodded.

  “Great. David, John Rankin told us that you told him last night at the Firehouse that you had slept with Jesse Anderson, the dead girl. Did you tell him that?”

  Pedderman looked like someone who wanted to be somewhere else, anywhere else. He was starting to feel ill. Maybe he would get some sympathy if he threw up. Too easy, he thought.

  “I saw John last night. I honestly don’t remember what we talked about.” Everyone in the room knew he was lying.

  “Well, David, he told us that you were bragging about scoring with Jesse Anderson. Did you say that to him or not?” Detective Reynolds took on a little more investigative tone.

  Pedderman looked at Lisa, knowing his job might now be on the line. “What do you want me to tell you?” He held his hands out as if he was looking for some help.

  Detective Tracy jumped in. “We want you to tell us the truth. Did you tell John Rankin that you slept with Jesse Anderson? And did you call him around two thirty in the morning and tell him to forget about your drunken ramblings?”

  “I don’t know what we talked about last night. I had been drinking quite a bit and I might have been bragging to him about sleeping with the new girl. I honestly don’t remember. As far as calling him early in the morning, I might have done that. I was pretty drunk and don’t remember too much about last night,” Pedderman stated.

  Pedderman tried not to panic. He thought if he sounded confident and was composed it might go a long way trying to convince everyone he was telling the truth. He was selling it hard, but no one in the room was buying it as the truth.

  “Well, let me just ask you the question we all have. Did you sleep with Jesse?” Detective Tracy asked.

  “Yes. Regrettably, I slept with her. We hooked up the very first weekend she was here. She seemed lonely and horny.”

  Lisa and Barry didn’t say a word, but each knew what the other was thinking. This might be the end for their sales manager at the CBS station.

  “No offense, Mr. Pedderman, but why you?” questioned detective Richard Tracy.

  “It was simple. I made myself available and I’m non-threatening to her. I’m married and she liked that I was married because she wasn’t looking for a relationship. She really just wanted sex.”

  Lisa knew exactly what that kind of relationship was about.

  “When was the last time you saw her for sex?” Tracy asked.

  “We got together a couple of times a week. Most of the time we met during the day. Look, she pursued me. I never chased her. I didn’t have to after the first time. She seemed very lonely and she just wanted someone to love her.”

  The detectives thought there could be more to this relationship and that it wasn’t as casual as Pedderman was letting on. They also wondered out loud as to his involvement in her death.

  Detective Reynolds never liked guys like David Pedderman, and this was his chance to nail one. “I think you had a relationship with Jesse Anderson and you were passed off quickly because she was so much younger than you. You fell for her hard because you couldn’t believe this beautiful girl half your age wanted you. She then rejected you and in a fit of jealous rage you killed her. It happens all the time.”

  Tracy, Lisa, and Barry were a little shocked at Reynolds’ aggressive approach.

  “No way, that never happened. We had sex, that was all,” Pedderman insisted.

  “You can see how this looks. Did she threaten to tell your wife? Is that why you killed her?” Lisa and Barry began to feel sorry for their co-worker.

  “I don’t know. Jesse didn’t talk much about anything. She told me once that she was going through a bad breakup and she wasn’t sure how she was going to handle it. That was the extent of the conversation.”

  “She never told you who she broke up with? Would you take a polygraph?”

  “Absolutely, right now. I just ask that we keep it as quiet as possible. It wouldn’t be good fo
r business.”

  “Or your marriage,” blurted Lisa. She was pissed and wanted her sales manager to know it.

  Pedderman looked sad as he looked directly at his boss. He knew there was still one more conversation about all this at some point. He wasn’t looking forward to it.

  “We’ll set up the polygraph at the station for tomorrow. We’ll keep it quiet. Whether you decide to tell someone or not is up to you,” Reynolds said, referring to Pedderman’s wife.

  Before the meeting broke up Pedderman asked, “Do I need an attorney?”

  “I don’t know. Do you?” Reynolds snorted as he got up with his partner and walked out the door.

  Lisa asked Pedderman to stay behind. He knew what was coming.

  “David, I’ve looked the other way when I knew I shouldn’t. You represent this station and this company and you’re becoming an embarrassment. I don’t know what kind of marriage you have with your wife. Maybe she’s okay with how you conduct yourself. The one thing I can’t turn away from is when you involve another employee. You know you open us up to a sexual harassment claim. What do you think would happen to us if it got out that you had an affair with Jesse and that you were now being considered a suspect in her murder?” Lisa’s voice was stern but calm.

  “Lisa, there isn’t going to be any sexual harassment charge. I will pass the polygraph tomorrow because I wasn’t involved in this.”

  “David, you admitted to an affair with an intern. Whether or not it was a ‘relationship’ doesn’t matter. I can’t ignore these circumstances, nor can I put this station at risk. I am suspending you until we are able to figure all this out. You’re not to come to work until I notify you.”

  “Lisa, come on. I know I shouldn’t have had sex with another employee, but it was consensual,” Pedderman begged.

  “Shit, David. She was an employee and you are a manager. That violates about every workplace rule there is, and it shows very poor judgment. You’re not only married, you are a department head, a manager for Christ’s sake. An argument could be made that you held your position over her and offered to help her career for the promise of sex.”

  Pedderman didn’t say anything. He hung his head into his hands trying not to cry.

  In a caring gesture, Lisa put her hand on her sales manager’s arm. “Take your time to compose yourself. Just close the door when you’re ready to leave.” Lisa walked toward the door, stopping before exiting. “David, take care of you.” She didn’t wait for a response and headed down the hall to exit the building. Outside in the parking lot, Barry, Skip, and Richard waited for Lisa. “What happened?” Barry asked.

  “I had to suspend him until we get this figured out,” Lisa said.

  “What’s to figure out? He had sex with a subordinate. He’s a manager and he’s an embarrassment to our station,” Barry said. The irony that Barry was sleeping with his own paid intern wasn’t lost on him.

  ***

  Across town in the private library of Stewart Simpson’s residence sat Dugan and his boss. Dugan had copied notes from what the two men had heard from eavesdropping on the meeting in the conference room. Dugan had secretly placed listening devices in several areas at the station he knew Lisa used for important meetings. Stewart, always in control, didn’t show any real emotion when Pedderman talked about his affair with Jesse. Dugan knew different. Stewart was jealous; he wanted to be the center of everyone’s attention, especially the ladies he literally supported.

  “What do you want me to do?” asked Dugan.

  Stewart walked over to the tray with a pitcher of water and a glass on it. Pouring himself a drink, he laid out his strategy. Dugan already knew what to expect.

  “This isn’t going to be easy to pull off. We already got rid of any evidence that anyone might find, so how are we going to place new evidence for the police to find?”

  “The police will find what we want them to find, especially if it’s the murder weapon,” Simpson huffed.

  19

  PEDDERMAN MADE UP an excuse to leave the house on Sunday afternoon. That was normally a day he truly put aside for his family. Sunday was his atonement for anything he might have done against his vows during the course of the week. This Sunday would be different. He had to clear his name through a polygraph.

  Detectives Tracy and Reynolds spent some time with the person administering the polygraph to make sure he knew what questions they wanted answers for.

  David Pedderman arrived at the police station as scheduled at two in the afternoon. He was sweaty and felt light headed. Detective Tracy met him at the counter in the lobby of the station. They politely shook hands, and then the detective walked through the lobby and down the hall where the polygraph room was set up. Before the two detectives left the room, they made sure Pedderman was clear on waiving his rights to have an attorney present. The way Pedderman viewed his actions, they were unethical but not illegal. He had nothing to fear.

  The detectives joined Lisa Campbell and Barry Burke in an adjoining interview room with a mirrored window. They would watch Pedderman being questioned.

  The test would take almost forty-five minutes. Pedderman wouldn’t know the results until the detectives told him. Outside of showing a certain amount of anxiety, the detectives didn’t see or hear anything in their suspect’s interview that told them he was involved in anything more than the affair they already knew about. The detectives were smart enough to wait for the confirmation of the polygraph results.

  When the polygraph test was over, Pedderman was taken to a holding room while the detectives talked to the examiner. The time seemed to pass so slowly; finally the door opened and in walked Tracy and Reynolds.

  “Did I pass?” David Pedderman asked.

  “David, the polygraph was inconclusive.” Reynolds almost took pleasure in telling his suspect the news.

  “What the fuck are you talking about? I had to have passed. I didn’t do anything.” Pedderman was all but screaming his last words.

  “Look, this sometimes happens. But the test didn’t clear you. Are you sure you don’t have something you want to tell us?” Reynolds asked.

  “I didn’t have anything to do with Jesse dying. Sex, yes. Murder, no.” Pedderman wiped his brow. He was sweating more now than when he was first being wired for the polygraph. “What happens now?”

  “You’re free to go,” and after a small pause, “for now,” Reynolds said. “Don’t leave the area and make sure you keep yourself available to us in case we have any further questions.” The two detectives left the room, leaving Pedderman to consider his situation.

  The examiner left the station and headed home. He made his usual stop at the Starbucks where he always stopped for his large latte. Once he had his coffee, he took a few minutes to sit in his normal corner seat. An older gentleman next to him got up to leave as the examiner sat down. There was a paper the elder left on table. The examiner quickly opened it up to find an envelope that he placed in the inside right pocket of his coat. He would deposit the contents of the envelope in his bank.

  ***

  Anna Pedderman was waiting for her husband when he arrived home. She’d taken the kids to her parents so she could finally have the heart-to-heart that she had threatened for years. David walked in the door leading from the garage. It was obvious to his wife that he was very distraught, and if history taught her anything with her husband, he would not want to talk about it. This afternoon she promised herself it would be different.

  David Pedderman entered through the kitchen to see his wife sitting at the table. He knew he was in for another rough time. For a moment he thought he might be better off back in the lie detector room. “Sit down, David.” Anna’s voice was soft and yet had a very harsh tone to it. He didn’t argue and, in fact, didn’t say anything.

  “Talk to me, David. You have to let me in. Something is going on and I can’t sit outside anymore. Talk to me.”

  David wiped his hand through his hair. “Everything will be alright. I’m just
having a tough time at work.” Pedderman had always kept distance between Anna and his work. This was something he did partly because of his extracurricular activities as well as wanting to have privacy in his business life. Something all his own. He was starting to think how much easier this situation would be if only he had shared his work life with his wife.

  “Bullshit. What is going on? What happened at work?” David could tell that this conversation was going to be different and Anna was not going to let him off the hook this time. He thought she knew about some of his affairs, but he didn’t know for sure. She never pushed him about his whereabouts when he was out late at night. Anna was first a good mother to their three children and that, above anything else, was the most important part of her life. She had all but given up on her spouse being a good husband. In her mind he was only the financial support for her kids. Oh, she still loved him, but she also resented him for how he treated and cheated on her. She knew.

  It might have been the stress of the past couple of weeks, or maybe it was the lie detector test, or maybe it was simply the years of lying to the one person who truly loved him. Whatever pushed him over, Pedderman was ready to be honest with his wife for the first time in ten years. He was ready to tell her everything, hoping that she would somehow understand.

  For the next three hours, Pedderman poured out his heart, a heart that Anna never knew existed in her husband. He confessed to his multiple affairs. He cried and asked for forgiveness. He told her about Jesse Anderson and what happened over the past four weeks. David didn’t leave out any details about anything. It was as if once he started he couldn’t shut it off. He even told his wife about what the police had accused him of and about the lie detector test. He hesitated for a moment about whether or not he should tell her about his suspension from work, but there was no turning back now. His wife was either going to stay with him or leave him after this conversation. He decided he was better off putting it all on the table. Anna just sat there and took it all in. She was too numb to feel anything. Her heart had been broken so many times that she wasn’t capable of a reaction of any kind.