by Lissa Pelzer
Caffey scratched at his scalp, but slowly it came to him. He leaned in from his chair and pressed his hands together.
‘Janine,’ he said. ‘You seem to know all about the Snells and their problem with guns, but seriously, everyone around here has heard that story, so it’s nothing special.’
‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’
Caffey held up his hand. ‘I know that you and Chad were seeing each other, but you and Simon, I’m not so sure.’
The girl’s eyes shifted away.
‘See, there are some little things that don’t add up. The gun…’ He had printed off a photo to use in a situation such as this. ‘See this gun? Simon didn’t own this gun. The Snells don’t keep guns at the trailer park. They’re not allowed.’
Her big blue eyes flashed upwards under her lashes.
‘Not only that, it’s a girl’s gun.’ He shrugged. ‘I mean, sure the company North American Arms market this type of pug gun as something any dude can carry, but seriously, no dude does, especially not a guy like Simon Snell. If he was going to keep a gun in the trailer, it would be going to be a real gun.’
She blinked.
‘So, the gun you used, whose gun is it?’
‘I guess it was mine.’
‘I’m guessing it was yours, too,’ Caffey said.
Caffey felt Tanner bristling behind his back. Was he happy for him or jealous he didn’t work this angle out first?
‘But I never had a license for it.’
Tanner came back to the table. ‘That’s not a big deal right now.’
‘I mean,’ she said. ‘Simon bought it for me, but I never took it away with me. He gave it to me for my birthday and then I left it in his car. The next time I ever touched it was when he put it in my hand.’
Caffey leaned back in his seat. So she was sticking to the suicide story. They would bring her around. It was only a matter of time.
Up until about a year ago, the gun had been registered to a little old lady in Orlando. Some kid had stolen it during a break in. They got the kid, but the gun had already been passed along. Janine Kenny could have bought it from some street kid in Boise or Chad Purcell could have given it to her the very night Simon Snell was shot.
‘When exactly did he give this gun to you?’
‘My birthday,’ she repeated.
Tanner muttered, ‘July, this July?’
‘Do you know where he got it?’ Caffey asked.
She shook her head. ‘I’m guessing from a pawn shop.’
'But you don't know?'
She shook her head and turned to Caffey. ‘He gave me that gun as a birthday gift because he didn’t want to get caught carrying a gun around. He wanted me to have it, so I could be...his bodyguard.’
Tanner laughed. ‘You think bodyguards carry pug guns?’
She looked down, embarrassed. It was pretty clear the girl didn’t know anything about guns.
‘Why don’t you tell me what happened when he gave you the gun. What did he say?’
‘We were at a restaurant, up on the terrace overlooking the ocean.’
‘The ocean?’ Tanner asked. The girl kept her eyes still. There was no creative process going on here. Whatever story she was telling them, had actually happened somewhere, to someone.
‘Down in South Beach...’ She looked at them both. ‘Miami.’
‘Thanks,’ Tanner put in and Caffey waved him down.
‘He just put it on the table, slid it over and said I should carry it around.’
‘You were with the Snells down in Florida?’ Caffey asked. ‘What was the name of the restaurant?’
‘Cozumel’s,’ she said back without blinking. ‘If you go there on your birthday, you get a slice of key-lime pie for free. They stick a sparkler in the top and everything.’ And she smiled politely, as if she was giving them a vacation pointer.
Bryan
Detective Tanner came back into the room and Bryan stood up sharply. It had been about half an hour since the last time.
‘Janine,’ he blurted out. ‘According to your records, she ever been down to Florida?
‘According to my records, no.’
‘Thanks.’
The detective looked pleased with his answer, but stopped on his way out and rested his hand on the doorframe. ‘According to your records?’
‘Right.’
And then a twinkle of light flared in his eye. ‘So in your opinion, Janine has been down to Florida?’
Bryan pulled at the little bracelet around his wrist. He didn’t want to offer up info unless he had to, but he didn’t want to get into a position where he’d be lying in court either. ‘Okay, we had a conversation once that led me to believe, she had been down there, to Miami, I mean, to South Beach, in particular.’
‘Please, elaborate,’ Tanner said.
And he did.
Chad
This time, when they called him into the interview room, something had changed. Tanner turned on the machine, but really had only one question for him. Had he seen Janine Kenny shoot Simon Snell? This was it. It was either him or her.
He knew she had. No one else could have, but he thought of that guy Ryan saying he had seen him shoot Snell, and he didn’t want to be like him.
‘She shot him, and then she took my truck.’
‘She took your truck? Why did she take your truck?’
‘She didn’t have a car.’
‘Why didn’t she take Simon’s Camaro?’
‘No idea.’
‘Okay – why did you two go to Simon Snell’s trailer in the first place?’
Now Chad felt his eyes roll into the back of his head. He had gone to sell pills, but so far that had never come up. Ryan hadn’t mentioned it, no one had and that was a good thing. And what else could he tell them, that Simon was trying to rip him off and he took her over there knowing she had a gun because he wanted her to wave it at Simon Snell?
‘We were just going over to see Simon,’ he said. ‘Just to say hi.’
‘Right, because you’re a buddy of his?’
‘Not especially, but Janine knows him.’
‘Is that a euphemism?’
Chad didn’t know what that word meant. ‘I guess so,’ he said.
‘Do you know Janine, in that sense?’ Tanner asked.
Chad shrugged. ‘Sure!’
Caffey
‘So after you shot Simon, what did you do?’
Janine took a breath and pressed her hands between her knees. The mini skirt she was wearing was too short and Caffey looked away sharply.
‘I got in Chad’s truck and drove off,’ she said.
‘You didn’t call an ambulance or the cops?’
‘I wasn’t thinking straight.’
‘You still had the gun?’
‘Yeah, but it was empty.’
‘You didn’t think to dispose of it?’
The girl shook her head. Her cropped black hair rubbed against her cheek like a wig. ‘I wasn’t thinking straight,’ she said again. ‘I guess, I was thinking that it was Simon’s gun and he’d be pissed if I threw it away.’
Caffey nodded. It was a classic abused-female narrative. It also went some way to explaining why she didn’t take his Camaro.
‘And then you pulled over and parked up and waited for Chad?’ Tanner asked.
She shook her head. ‘I wasn’t thinking of Chad at all. I was just driving, just running...but I started shaking. I couldn’t drive anymore. I got in the back of the truck and wrapped myself up in the blanket Chad keeps back there.’ She paused. ‘Sometimes we...sit back there.’
Caffey could imagine it, a couple of teenagers, one of them living at his mom’s, the other in her boyfriend’s trailers. The back of that truck must have seen some action.
‘I was dead tired,’ she said. ‘I didn’t hear Chad pull up. I didn’t even wake up when he started driving.’
Caffey knew the rest. During the collision with Officer Randal, the gun must hav
e flown out of the back, the same time as she did.
‘Chad told us that you shot Simon, stole Simon’s money and then stole his truck. What do you make of that?’
A twitch ran across her face. ‘What money?’
‘That’s what I’m asking you. Where’s the money.’
‘I didn’t steal any money, so I can’t tell you where it is.’
‘Why would Chad Purcell tell us you robbed Simon Snell when you didn’t?’
She let out a big sigh, the kind of sound that was a little too close to sarcastic, and then appeared to reel herself back in. She lowered her chin. ‘I guess it’s safer than saying we were seeing each other... Then he’s just a witness to something, a robbery, right. Otherwise, he’s gone to see his girlfriend’s ex-boyfriend and that sounds kind of suspicious, like what’s the word, premeditated?’ She circled her hand around in the air as she spoke. ’And you know, he didn’t see what happened and he still thought I had amnesia, so I guess he knew I wouldn’t get sent to jail for it… He’s pretty smart like that!’
And the way she said it was like she was proud of him. Caffey put his hands over his eyes. She was actually impressed by his attempts to exploit her condition.
Chad
He got called back in again about twenty minutes later and Caffey lowered himself down into the chair as if he had hemorrhoids.
‘You said, Janine Kenny robbed Snell before she shot him. That’s what you said.’
‘Yeah.’
‘So where’s the money?’
‘I don’t know.’
‘Do you want to know what she says?’
Chad felt his mouth drying out. He hadn’t thought that they would interview her. Something stirred inside him, guilt, regret, and fear even.
‘She’s sick!’ he spluttered. ‘I thought that’s why you couldn’t ask her about the accident.’
‘Well, surprise. She got better and she says you two were in a relationship and went around to Snell’s trailer to let him know. That’s what she says.’
A nervous laugh exploded from his chest. ‘So wait, what... Is she okay now?’
‘You seem relieved.’
Chad shook his head. ‘Not especially.’
Tanner was rubbing his fingers across his lips.
‘She says, Snell knocked you out.’
‘He did!’
‘And then she shot him.’
Chad couldn’t quite believe what he was hearing. ‘She did,’ he said slowly, not knowing if he should be agreeing or disagreeing to defend her, now that she was recovered.
‘You sure?’
‘Totally.’
‘Because recently, someone said the same about you.’ Tanner spun his pen around his fingers.
But Caffey leaned in. ‘How do you know she shot Simon?’
‘Because when I woke up, he was shot and I hadn’t done it.’
And Caffey sighed. ‘So you didn’t actually see her shoot him?’ He shook his head. ‘Okay, what about the money? You said there had been money on the table. And now that was gone.’
Chad put his hand to his head. ‘Yeah. Simon threw down some cash and when I came round… I don’t remember it being there.’
‘Because it wasn’t.’ Tanner took out a photo of the inside of the trailer.
Chad had already seen the one of Simon Snell’s body. It hadn’t shocked him. He had seen the real thing. And this photo was just of the pool table. A couple of markers, set up like playing cards balanced end-to-end showed where blood had landed.
‘See any cash there?’
‘No. But there’s blood.’
‘Oh sure. There’s blood.’
‘So maybe Simon pocketed his cash again before she shot him.’
Caffey’s hand hovered for a moment in the air. It was some kind of sign to Tanner. And Tanner saw it.
‘But again, you didn’t actually see her shoot Snell. You didn’t see her take the cash.’
‘No.’ Chad looked down at the table. He wanted to shut up now. He wanted them to shut up too. He had used her. He had taken her around there to wave her gun at Snell. She had shot him. She had admitted to it all and he felt terrible.
‘I don’t know. Maybe Ryan took it. I just assumed she must have.’
Caffey
The case was a mess. Essentially, they had two people under arrest for the same crime. One of them had confessed and the other had been arraigned. The chief was not impressed.
As Purcell had pleaded innocent and Kenny had confessed - twice, Purcell was released. Kenny, whose level of mens rea in the case was doubtful, whose trial would likely violate due process, was released to her caseworker and returned to her mental institution until the inquest.
The prosecution did not deem the case exactly watertight, either.
Her story matched the evidence and Purcell’s testimony matched her story. Ryan Bukowski’s testimony was considered unreliable. Questions were asked as to why he identified Purcell and not Kenny as the shooter. Tanner theorized, and in his opinion, it was a fair assumption, that Bukowski had spent time with Kenny in Snell’s presence and didn’t want to point his finger at her when Purcell, the usurper, could get the rap.
Then there was the issue of the money. Questions were raised as to whether Bukowski had pocketed this himself and told the responding officers that it had been stolen or whether Kenny had taken it. Either was possible, but the money hadn’t been a specific amount, and it was unclear where Snell had got it from and some things were best left alone.
They say a team is only as strong as the weakest link. However, an investigation is more like a length of rope. When a case is true, each strand strengths the next. Sometimes a strand may break, but the rope doesn’t break as long as there are still enough good, strong strands to take the weight of the case. But in this case, each little string broke, one after the other and it was heartbreaking, like watching an ice sculpture melting at the end of a wedding reception.
It was decided that the inquest would be immediate. That was how they had dealt with his father’s death and his uncle’s. Just get it out of the way, another shot Snell on the pile.
Lilly
By the time they got out of the sheriff’s department, the sun had gone down already. Bryan wrapped his coat around her shoulders as if she’d just been plucked out of the ocean, and she kind of felt like she had.
‘We’ll just have to wait and see what happens,’ he said. ‘But for now, let’s get you home.’
She nodded and kept her head down as they walked towards the car.
‘I wanted to ask you,’ she said. ‘There was something strange going on last night, at the unit.’
He kept his eyes on the road. ‘What do you mean?’
‘There was a woman lurking around in the bushes.’
‘That was just Susan,’ he said quietly.
Lilly had already known it was Davis, but the confirmation felt like someone was pouring cold water over her back.
‘Well, she scares me,’ she said.
‘I bet… Look, I’ll take care of her. She’s no one to be scared of. You just put her out of your head and concentrate on getting well again.’
‘So she won’t come back?’ Lilly pressed for good measure.
‘No!’
‘Did she mention me?’
‘You? No. Why would she?’ His eyes darted back in the mirror. ‘Maybe she just looks like someone you think you know. She’s not here for you. Just try and forget about her.’
‘Do you promise? Because I think I have a memory of her, from the home. I think she may have been someone who came to see us, but not a nice someone.’
The car’s speed dropped slightly.
‘What do you mean?’ Bryan said between clenched teeth.
‘Just like, she was always there, but everyone was creeped out by her.’ She almost smiled, thinking, that really was the truth about Davis. But it was best not to say too much more, let him imagine the worst.
All day, while those co
ps had been asking her their stupid questions, Lilly had kept half her mind on Davis. It had been easy to feed Tanner and Caffey back the information Lauren had been pouring in her head all summer. All those stories of the Snells and their craziness came in useful in the end. Being able to speak of Miami with any authority was just the bow on top of the present, but Davis – she wasn’t so easily led. How she had tracked her down was unthinkable.
Lilly shook her head. ‘I know you’re not dumb. I know you wouldn’t fall for some excuse she cooks up to come and see me.’
‘Excuse? What kind of excuse?’
‘You know like she might say she’s from the home, or she’s an aunt, or an old teacher or...’ She looked out of the window. ‘Or that she’s a cop.’
Now Bryan gripped the wheel so tight that his knuckles began to blanch.
‘She will not get to see you,’ he said firmly. ‘I absolutely promise you that.’
Lily was satisfied with this for now and burrowed down into her seat to think of the bigger picture. Either way, eventually, Davis would get access if she wanted it, which meant Lilly still needed to get out of here as quickly as possible. It didn’t really matter that she would be considered in the inquest, as Tanner had called it, because she didn’t need to appear. They were going to decide what the truth was, on their own, as guys often did.
And she didn’t give a shit that they intended to interview Simon Snell’s friends and relatives again to try to confirm her side of the story. She had already covered that angle too.
‘They’ll deny it,’ she’d told Tanner and Caffey. ‘They hated me. They’ll hate me even more once they find out about Chad. And I bet they would like it more if he was a murder victim instead of suicide...’
Caffey had rubbed his cheek as she spoke and she heard the bristles growl. ‘Probably,’ he had said from a faraway place.