by SK Wee
“I’ll be all right, Cal. Thanks for asking, though.”
“I don’t know how much of the investigation will become common knowledge but I’ll try to be discreet if possible.”
“Thank you for that also.” I knew Cal would try to keep this news quiet, but I had already prepared myself for the backlash, which would certainly occur. “I appreciate it, but I know rumors have a way of getting around anyway and I’m prepared for that eventuality.” Cal left and it wasn’t but a couple of minutes before Travis’ parents showed up. Even though Marsha would have the final say on all the arrangements, they assured me that Marsha gave full consent for them to proceed. The poor grieving widow was beside herself and with the impending childbirth was unable to make it there.
“I noticed the deputy sheriff leaving earlier, Mr. Purton. Did he have any information about the case?”
“No, he didn’t, Mr. Thorton.” I ushered them into my office where they could be seated comfortably. “He just let me know about when I would expect the remains to be delivered.”
“Well, I saw first-hand what was left of my son and there will not be an open casket. So we won’t need to spend extra money on make-up and such. I doubt if he had any life insurance policy and Marsha certainly doesn’t have any money. If we have to foot the bill, we need to keep it simple.” He sounded cold and unaffected, but I knew from experience that sometimes grieving people used this as a coping mechanism.
“Since it will be closed casket, we could set up a photo gallery at the entryway and toward the front of the room.” I suggested this more for Mrs. Thorton, who seemed absolutely devastated and would need something to keep her occupied until the funeral. “As far as cost, I’m sure we can work something out later. Please don’t worry about that.”
They chose one of the cheaper caskets and vaults, which I was more than willing to give them at cost. In fact, I didn’t want to make a profit off the death of someone I was that close to. It just didn’t feel right to me. If anything, I probably would have donated everything, but I knew that would draw more suspicions.
Later that day, I thought I heard the door open but nobody entered my office so I went out to check the door in case the Thortons hadn’t shut it all the way. When I reached the door, I noticed a manila envelope on the floor and knew instinctively that someone must have placed it there and left without wanting to be seen. When I opened the envelope, there were some very ghastly pictures of Travis taken before he died. I knew without a doubt that he had suffered greatly.
There were four such pictures and then some older ones were added to the bottom of the stack. These were photos taken of Travis and an unknown young man caught in the act of having sex. I believed these pictures came from the murderer and the murderer had something to do with Travis’ previous relationship. I quickly gave Deputy Wagner a call. I wished that I hadn’t even touched the envelope as I may have spoiled any signs of the perpetrator.
Cal returned within minutes of my call. He had been at his office filling out what he called his endless paperwork. He looked through the photos very carefully so he wouldn’t compromise the evidence any further. He checked the porch and the door to see if he could find any more clues.
“Mark, I’m a little concerned about your safety. Whoever left this, obviously knows about your relationship with Travis and may extend their vendetta to you also.” I hadn’t thought about that, but I felt safe in my business and my home was just upstairs. I had installed some security cameras recently, but when I told Cal about them, he wanted to know if they would have evidence from when the photos were left.
He followed me back to where I kept the viewing screens for the camera feeds. I checked the one that should have recorded the delivery. I accessed the recent footage, but the person must have known the camera was there because all we could see was the back of a hoodie and a gloved hand holding the envelope. Cal took a copy of the video with him along with the pictures. He was going to make sure someone would be watching the place as much as possible. They were short-handed at the moment, but he planned to receive some extra help from one of the other agencies.
Chapter Seventeen
Fee
The morning didn’t go well at all. When I arrived at Marsha’s, my mother was still there and so was Karl’s wife, Ruth. I had never really gotten along with Ruth. She was a lot like Karl with her unbending religious views. I truly believed that everyone had a right to their own beliefs, but Ruth made sure I knew of her disapproval for my present lifestyle. I tried to get Marsha alone so I could talk to her, but it seemed like Ruth was there at every turn—protecting Marsha from my bad influence, no doubt.
Finally, I decided it would work better if I discussed the issues with my mother and maybe she could help in some way. Mom had helped me work out my problems with Rich, and she always seemed to know more about what was actually going on than most of the others.
After I told her about what we suspected might be the motive of the murder, she sat in silence for quite a while. I had her cornered in the kitchen while the other two were in Marsha’s bedroom going through her closet.
“Are you sure, Fee?” She looked like she couldn’t believe what said. I had to admit that the story was alarming. “I knew there was something wrong with the marriage, but I would never have come to this conclusion. Marsha could not have known about his tendencies, of this I’m certain. She believes he maybe had a mistress.”
“Well, similar to a mistress. He was having sex outside the marriage . . . it just wasn’t with another woman. Yes, I have spoken to the man that he was seeing and I believe everything he told me, Mother. How should we bring this up? She should be prepared because soon it may become common knowledge.” I had left out the identity of his lover, hoping that Mark would be safe from any backlash.
“Bring up what?” Marsha walked in on us carrying a couple black dresses. “What are you two talking about? If I should know something then just tell me, for goodness sake. I’m a big girl. Is it about Travis? Well, I already know he was seeing someone. I had that figured out months ago.” I hadn’t heard their approach until it was too late. Ruth was standing right behind Marsha, eyes bright with curiosity. There was no way we would be able to tiptoe around the subject.
After looking at my mother, she nodded for me to divulge the information. “Let’s all sit down then, please,” I began. Mom took the dresses and set them aside while we sat down at the table. “It is sort of what you suspected, but not quite. Travis was having an affair, but not with another woman.” I stopped to let that information settle in. Both of them had their mouth’s open in shock. I was a bit surprised Marsha didn’t seem to have any idea that Travis was gay. She had lived with the man for almost three years. You would think she would have noticed something.
“You’re not saying what I think you are. Travis certainly wouldn’t be with a man. No, that would be impossible.” Marsha sounded sure, but I did notice the doubt creep into her eyes. I think she was more prepared for this revelation than she was letting on.
“Travis had a male lover, and it wasn’t his first. Evidently, he had a relationship when he was away at college. We need to get more information about his time there to see if it’s related to his murder.”
“Fee, you sound like you’re in on this investigation.” Ruth sounded suspicious. “Just how do you know all of this?” She looked like she didn’t believe any words that came from my mouth.
“Well, it was purely by accident, I just happened to be in the right place at the right time sort of thing. No, I’m not in on the investigation, but I have spoken with Cal. I needed to tell him what I discovered first, just in case he could find a lead. I volunteered to speak with you because I thought it might be better coming from me than from him. At least you are now somewhat prepared for his questions.”
“Who, Fee? Who was his lover?” Marsha sounded like she didn’t want to hear the answer and I didn’t want to give her the answer. Not in front of Ruth who would go running back
to Karl with that information. But I was afraid the truth would come out eventually no matter who knew about it now. I didn’t want it coming from me though.
“If we could speak privately, Marsha.” My mother didn’t mind at all, but Ruth sputtered angrily until Marsha calmed her with a pat on the shoulder.
“Okay, Fee, let’s go out to the porch.” I still wasn’t comfortable talking about Mark’s confessions, but Marsha had a right to know.
When I told her all I knew about Travis’ affair and what seemed to have transpired after he left Mark’s that night, she sat transfixed staring at nothing. “Marsha, are you going to be all right? There is much more to learn but at least you will be somewhat prepared. Look at me.” I turned her fixed gaze to mine and she seemed to melt into me. She began to sob and I held her tight.
“I . . . I offered him everything,” she cried. “I knew he wasn’t happy, but I thought with the baby coming he would settle in. Instead, he was gone even more often. Sometimes he didn’t come home until it was nearly time to get ready for work. I begged him to stay with me.”
“If it helps at all, I believe that it didn’t have anything to do with love. I think they were just two guys who could drop their façade and be themselves with each other. Travis tried very hard to live the lie, and I believe that Mark did too. They came together in some sort of mutual need and truly didn’t want to hurt anyone in the process.”
“Well, they certainly hurt me.” Marsha cried in frustration. “How am I going to ever show my face in this town again? How would you feel if your husband was so turned off by you that he turned to another man? You know what the scriptures say and so did Travis. He still performed such vile acts against the will of God. There is no redemption for him, no forgiveness.” Marsha dried her tears and went back into the house. I knew the will of God argument would come into play. Sometimes I still tried to come to terms with what the Bible said and what I feel is right in my heart. This was one of these areas. I truly believed that God wants us to be happy, period.
After a few minutes of sitting out on the porch by myself, my mother came outside to join me. She sat next to me on the bench and put her arm around me. It felt so good and I felt like the little girl wanting and needing her love and support. We sat in silence on the bench for a while.
“Is she going to be all right, Mom? I don’t think I can help her, she’s so very different from me and nothing I say or do will help her in any way.”
“I think you’re wrong, my Fee. I think you’re just what she needs. But, I wouldn’t blame you if you chose to leave. Speaking of different, your new man couldn’t be more different than Rich. I can see what the draw is, but he still scares me a bit.”
“Mmm . . . yeah, he still scares me too. I don’t know what would have happened to me if I hadn’t come across him though. He lit the spark that brought me back to the living after Lizzie died. For that alone, I am grateful, and now I have within me even more to be thankful for. I don’t know what will happen between Logan and me, but I do know we’ll both love our child.”
“If you need me for anything, sweetie, don’t ever be afraid to ask. I know your father isn’t quite as flexible as I am. He loves, don’t get me wrong, but sometimes he expects his children to accept everything he says and believes in, on blind faith. I know you have always been one to question some of the more rigid of these precepts.”
“I just believe we should always treat others kindly. Respect them for their own choices and beliefs. I do believe that two men can fall in love and live happily ever after. That goes for two women as well. Who are we to judge? I can’t believe that the God I know and love would forsake them for following their hearts.” Mom squeezed me tight. I don’t know which philosophy she followed, but I do know she had a mother’s love and would love us no matter what we chose to believe.
Cal pulled up next to the curb in front of the house and motioned me over. He probably wanted to know how much I told Marsha. I walked over to talk to him and my mother went back inside the house.
When Cal told me about the pictures that Mark received, I knew that we weren’t wrong. “Cal it’s got to have something to do with his past. If we can find out who he had a relationship with we would find the killer!”
“Slow down, Nancy Drew! For one thing, sending out those photos tells me they are still bent on vengeance. They are not done yet. I have someone outside of the funeral home to watch, and I think we should get someone to watch over here as well. Logan has offered his services and it seems his partner, Nessa, is in the thick of things. She had already tapped into the college database and has the team rosters along with Travis’ class schedules.”
“So the FBI is involved or is she doing this on her own?”
“No, she has it all sanctioned. The gruesome murder and ties across state lines make it FBI jurisdiction. I still have the lead, though. I think that was more because of Logan’s recommendation than anyone thinking I was the best man for the job. Now, I do need to question Marsha. I don’t mind if you’re there for support but no one else.”
“I’ll send Mom and Ruth out for something. Come on, let’s get this over with.” Cal followed me in, and I immediately went to my mother and asked if she could find something to do with Ruth for a while. She had been worried about finding time to run back home for some things, so she asked Ruth to take her.
Marsha was sitting in the living room, and we sat down and joined her. She immediately looked up at Cal. “More bad news? What else could you want?” She sounded bitter, though I knew she was trying to deal with everything that had been thrown at her the last couple of days.
“Marsha, we are still trying to piece together everything that happened the other evening. I know Fee has told you what she learned, but there is another incident that occurred earlier at the funeral home. Mark received photos of Travis as he was tortured and some older photos of Travis with another man. I need to know if he ever discussed his time at college with you. Anything at all that you can recall could be very important to the case.”
“As far as I’m concerned, Travis got what he deserved. God punished his wickedness, his sinfulness. He should have made better choices.”
“Marsha! You’re talking about the father of your baby! God didn’t cause this torture! A murderer did.” She was beginning to make me angry with all her talk of retribution. “God loved Travis as much as anyone else. We need to find who did this. Now think, Marsha, think about all he ever mentioned about his college days. Names or events, anything we can check on.” Marsha seemed a little bit remorseful. At least she seemed to be trying to remember things.
“He didn’t talk too much about it. I asked many times thinking about how proud he should have been to get a football scholarship and playing for Michigan State’s football team, but he would always try to change the subject like he was embarrassed by the notoriety of it. He did pack away some mementos from college. He kept them in a trunk in the garage. He always made sure it was locked up, but I don’t know where he kept the key.”
“That might prove to be important.” Cal seemed to perk up when Marsha brought up the trunk. “I found some keys when we searched through his locker at work. Does it have a padlock?” He pulled a baggy out of his jacket and there were three keys inside of it. “I’ve got a padlock key here, can you show me the trunk?”
“Sure.” I followed close behind Marsha. I knew she was in pain and I truly hoped she knew that I was there for her, no matter what. Cal had no problem getting the trunk open but cautioned us not to touch anything. We sat and watched while he picked through the contents.
“There are some letters here that he never opened. They were sent in care of the Feed Mill with Travis’ name on the envelope and are postmarked in the last year. There is no return address on them but the stamps were canceled in Detroit. Strange that he wouldn’t even read them and they were definitely sent after he left the school.”
“I’ve seen him open the trunk once in awhile, but I’ve never s
een those letters. Shouldn’t we read them? It may be important.”
“I think it’s more important to get them to the crime lab to check for prints. After they test for those, they will check the contents. In fact, I would like to send this whole trunk to the lab as evidence. Marsha, have you ever noticed any mail being sent directly to the house? Anything suspicious at all?”
“Today I got something, but I didn’t feel like opening it, though. It’s a large envelope that I set on the counter in the kitchen. But prior to that, I don’t ever remember anything.”
“I wonder if the envelope contains the same photos that Mark received?” I was already up and moving toward the kitchen.
“Fee, don’t touch the envelope in case we can get some clues from it. I’m going to make some calls so they can pick up this trunk and we can send the envelope along with that.” As much as I didn’t want to view the sort of pictures Cal described, I was still curious if it was indeed the same as what Mark received. When I got to the kitchen, I used a spatula to move the thing around. There was no return address or postage—the envelope did not come through the postal service. Someone had personally put the piece inside Marsha’s mailbox.
It took Cal a couple of minutes to come back inside from the garage. When he did, he wore a puzzled frown. “What now Cal?” I asked him.
“I just spoke with the sheriff. Mr. Thorton received an envelope at the Feed Mill this afternoon. His secretary opened and saw the photographs and nearly fainted. It also had a little note inside. He wants me to open this one and check for any correspondence inside. There will be someone over here shortly to pick up the trunk, but he wanted me to check this in case there is a threat of some sort. I’m not sure what was inside the other one.” Cal carefully opened one end of the envelope and removed the contents. Marsha was standing right beside Cal. “Marsha, you probably don’t want to see these photos.”