Penfield wasn’t surprised she hadn’t, especially if what he thought was true.
“How would the person who killed Ben know that Bobby had blamed his dead brother for the murder? Who did you and Ben tell that to? Was anyone else observing your interrogation?” Penfield asked.
“I’m not sure. My attention was fully on Bobby Tatum. Someone easily could have been listening.”
“I assume you told your supervisor when he asked for a report.”
“Of course.”
“What about Ben? Do you have any way of knowing who he might have talked to?”
“He couldn’t believe Bobby tried to pass off the killer as his brother. He might have repeated that to anyone who would listen. Maybe he started to look at it as a big joke.”
“Even if the guy on the phone was also on that boat, he’d have no way of knowing Bobby would blame a dead relative, not unless someone from the department told him.”
“That would mean they’re working with him,” Emma said.
“Or they are him.”
“So someone I work with has a grudge against both Ben Hall and Bill Tatum? What are the odds of that? I don’t see the connection.”
“Sometimes there isn’t one beyond one death being a distraction for another.”
“You’re implying Ben was the original target?”
“I don’t know. I just can’t figure out another way the guy would know about Jimmy Tatum. Did Charles Ray visit Bobby in jail?” Penfield asked.
“No. He didn’t have any visitors. I checked on that after we found Bobby dead in his cell.”
“Did he make any phone calls?”
“No.”
“He gets charged with murdering his father, and he doesn’t call anyone, not even a lawyer?”
“No one, which is another reason I was convinced he did it. He knew he was guilty and nothing was going to get him out of that mess, nothing but his own death.”
“Which brings up an earlier question: Why bother blaming someone who obviously couldn’t do it?”
Emma still didn’t have an answer, so she said nothing.
“How well do you trust this Sheriff Slater guy?” Penfield asked.
“I don’t think there’s any way he could be behind this. He and Ben were really close.”
“Does he know about the phone call we made?”
“Not yet, but I have to tell him.”
“Tell him about the call, but don’t mention the part where he blamed Jimmy.”
“Do you know what he’ll do to me once he finds out I kept something from him?”
“Yes, but it’s all about the control of information. That’s all you have going for you now.”
It was a depressing notion, Emma thought, but maybe Penfield was right.
Chapter 9
Carrie Tatum
Emma looked at the clock display on her dashboard. It was approaching five o’clock, and the sky was almost completely dark by now. She hated the winters and the lack of sunlight.
It would be another fifteen minutes before she and Penfield would be back to her headquarters. She wondered if the results of Ben’s autopsy would be done by then.
“What about the wife?” Penfield asked.
“Ben’s wife is deceased,” Emma said since her mind was presently on him.
“No. Bobby Tatum’s. I assume he was married.”
Emma told him how she’d been informed by Charles Ray that Bobby and his wife had just separated.
“Have you spoken with her yet?”
“No. I was thinking of doing it tomorrow.”
“Did she stay in their house or did she move out?”
“She stayed. Bobby moved out. That’s why he was staying with his parents.”
Emma hesitated a moment, and then she continued.
“Ben told me he thought she worked as a bank teller. Maybe she’s about to go home around now.”
“Do you have her address?”
“I can call one of the deputies and get them to send it. Are you up for one more?”
“Do you even have to ask?”
Emma called her office and had them text her Bobby Tatum’s home address. It was in the opposite direction of where she was heading, so she made a U-turn at the next stop light and backtracked to Carrie Tatum’s neighborhood. It wasn’t far from Sally’s house.
Emma pulled up to the house, and they saw another ranch, this one with vinyl siding. There was a car in the driveway, which boded well for her being home. Emma parked in the street this time, and she and Penfield walked to the front porch. She had to ring the doorbell twice before Carrie opened the door. She looked around Bobby’s age. She had short blonde hair and hazel eyes. She was short and a little on the heavy side. Emma could see her eyes were red and swollen.
“Mrs. Tatum, I’m Detective Ross. This is Alex Penfield. Could we have a few minutes of your time?”
Carrie nodded, and she held the door open for them. Emma took a quick glance at Penfield, and he gestured for her to go first. Penfield followed Emma inside and shut the door behind them.
Carrie led them through the foyer to a den in the back of the house. All of the window shades had been closed, and the room was in near darkness except for a small lamp on an end table beside a worn burgundy recliner. Carrie sat on the edge of the recliner. Emma and Penfield sat down on a matching sofa off to the side.
“I’m sorry about your loss, Mrs. Tatum,” Emma said.
“Thank you.”
She reached over to a Kleenex box that was on the end table. She pulled a tissue out and wiped the corners of her eyes.
“When was the last time you spoke with Bobby?” Emma asked.
“It’s been about a week. Maybe a little more.”
“How long were you separated?” Penfield asked.
“Almost a year.”
“Has it been that long? I thought it was only a month or so,” Emma said.
“Who told you that?”
“Charles Ray.”
“We kept the separation a secret for a while. We were still living together, but we weren’t in a relationship, not a romantic one, that is.”
That was a long time to live with someone after a break-up, Penfield thought. He also found it hard to believe Charles Ray hadn’t known. Either Bobby had done a good job of keeping his personal life private, or Charles Ray had lied to Emma.
“How were you getting along?” Penfield asked.
“Fine, I guess. We were still speaking. We still wanted the best for each other.”
“Charles Ray said Bobby and his father had been fighting. Do you know anything about that?” Emma asked.
“Bobby and his father didn’t get along, but that wasn’t anything new.”
“Why were they fighting?” Penfield asked.
“It just seemed to be over anything and everything. Bobby and I met in middle school. He was even fighting with his father back then.”
“When did you hear Bobby had been arrested?” Emma asked.
“Buddy called me from the marina. He told me what happened.”
“What did he say, exactly?” Penfield asked.
“He said they’d found the boat, and Bill was dead.”
“Did he say whether he thought Bobby had done it?” Penfield asked.
“I guess it doesn’t really matter now, does it?”
“It does matter. If Bobby didn’t do it, then the real killer needs to be caught,” Emma said.
“Buddy never mentioned anyone else. He just said Bobby had been arrested. I got the impression that he thought he did it.”
“Were you surprised to hear he might have killed his father?” Penfield asked.
“I was, and I wasn’t. I didn’t think it would ever come to that, but the more I thought about it yesterday, the less shocked I was.”
“Did you ever hear Bobby threaten his father?” Emma asked.
“He would complain to me about his father and the way he was treating him, but he never said he wanted
to physically hurt him.”
“Charles Ray implied they were fighting over Bobby’s failed marriage to you. Did Bobby ever mention anything like that?” Emma asked.
“Charles Ray doesn’t know what he’s talking about. He never has. It’s amazing he can be part of that family and not see what’s going on.”
“What do you mean?” Penfield asked.
“What does it matter now?”
“The more we can learn about Bobby, the more likely we are to solve this case,” Emma said.
“Don’t you get it? There is no case to solve. Bobby did it. He finally snapped. Who else could it have been?”
Emma glanced at Penfield. He didn’t notice her looking at him because he was busy studying Carrie Tatum. Emma turned back to Carrie.
“What about money problems? Was Bobby stressed about that?” Emma asked.
“Money was always a stress. I told him he needed to find something new, but it’s all he’d ever done. How do you make someone change?”
“Mrs. Tatum, when did Bobby’s parents find out you and he had separated? Was it a year ago when it first happened, or was it when Bobby moved out of your house?” Penfield asked.
“I don’t remember the exact day, but it was a couple of weeks before he left here. We tried to make it work, as far as us living together. We were more roommates than anything else. Then I started dating this guy at work. Bobby knew about it from the start. I didn’t try to hide it from him.”
“You’re implying he was okay with it?” Penfield asked.
“It wasn’t so much that, but we both knew it was going to happen sooner or later. I think he accepted it. He said he was happy for me, but it was weird. We’d been together for so long.”
“Why didn’t you file for divorce months ago?” Emma asked.
“Bobby didn’t want his parents to know we’d separated, but I just couldn’t keep up the lies anymore.”
Carrie looked down at her feet, and Penfield suddenly realized what was really behind Bobby’s fights with his father.
“What else were you and Bobby keeping from them?” Penfield asked.
“I don’t want Bobby’s name destroyed any more than it already has.”
“Please, Mrs. Tatum, tell us what was really happening between you,” Emma said.
“I’m sorry. I just can’t.”
“Bill Tatum was a hard man, wasn’t he?” Penfield asked.
Carrie’s eyes filled with tears. She looked up at Penfield.
“He just wouldn’t stop. How many times was Bobby supposed to listen to his father tell him he wasn’t a man?”
“How long did you know that about Bobby?” Penfield asked.
“I think I always knew it, but he always denied it.”
“Then your marriage breaks apart, and Bobby’s father blamed it on that,” Penfield guessed.
Carrie nodded.
“He knew Bobby was gay. He said such terrible things to him. I told Bobby not to move in with them. I knew he was desperate for a place to stay, and he didn’t have the money.”
“Did Charles Ray know?” Penfield asked.
“I don’t see how he couldn’t. I’m sure his father told him. Bobby hated what he was. I tried to tell him it was okay, but I wasn’t surprised when I heard he’d killed himself, especially after what he did to my father-in-law. I knew Bobby would never be able to face his mother. He loved her more than anyone, even me. I didn’t think he’d ever be able to look her in the eye.”
“You said you met Bobby in middle school. Did you know his brother Jimmy?” Penfield asked.
“I heard rumors about Jimmy, but I never saw him.”
“He wasn’t in your school?” Emma asked.
“No. They kept him out once he started to change.”
“Did Bobby talk about him?” Penfield asked.
“A little, especially after he died. He was really upset, and he kept telling me he’d wished he’d treated him better.”
“How did he treat him?” Emma asked.
“He and his brothers would make fun of him. I think they were just scared to see what was happening to him. They didn’t understand, but I don’t think Bobby ever forgave himself.”
“What about recently? Did he ever bring up Jimmy?” Penfield asked.
“No. He hadn’t spoken about Jimmy for years. The last time I remember him saying something was on the tenth anniversary of Jimmy’s death. We went to visit his grave, but his parents stopped us. They told us to leave.”
“How did they even know you were there?” Emma asked.
“Do you even know where Jimmy is buried?”
Emma shook her head.
“His parents’ property is much larger than it looks from the front. It goes back a few acres. They have a family cemetery in the back. That’s where Jimmy is buried.”
“So you went on the property to pay your respects, and his parents kicked you off?” Penfield asked.
“They wouldn’t let us see him. Bobby argued with them and tried to walk around them, but his father kept blocking him. I thought they were going to end up in a fight. Bobby was so upset. He said it was bad enough that Jimmy wasn’t buried with the family.”
“I don’t understand,” Emma said.
“I snuck back there a few months later to see what he was talking about. They buried Jimmy almost two hundred yards away from the rest of the family. He’s all alone. I barely found his headstone. It was all overgrown with weeds.”
Emma turned to Penfield.
“Do you have any other questions?” she asked.
Penfield shook his head.
“Thank you for your time, Mrs. Tatum, and I’m truly sorry about your loss,” Emma said.
“Do you know when they’ll release Bobby’s body to me?”
“I’m not sure. It should be a few days. I’ll get back to you and let you know as soon as I can.”
They all stood, and Carrie led them back to the front door. Emma thanked her again, and she and Penfield walked back to her car. They climbed inside, but Emma made no move to start the car.
“So Bobby has even more of a motive to kill his father,” she said.
“If you believe his ex, and I do. Everything she said rings true.”
“What about her comments on Jimmy? If Bobby was so guilty about how he treated his brother, why was he so quick to blame him?”
“Maybe he just reverted to some childhood reaction. You know, blame the younger brother for your behavior.”
“I’m not sure. It has to be more than that. None of this explains who might have killed Ben, either.”
Emma started the car, and they drove off into the night.
Chapter 10
Partners
Penfield laid down on the bed and stared at the ceiling. He’d lost track of the time, but he knew he was exhausted and ready for sleep. He hadn’t intended on conducting two interviews this day, and he assumed Emma had only agreed to let him participate because she was overwhelmed by the death of her partner. He hadn’t lost his partner to death, but he still thought he understood what she was going through. A partner was an extension of yourself. You had to trust them with your life. There was no other way a relationship like that could thrive otherwise. Losing them, however it happened, was like a piece of you had been torn from your flesh.
He wasn’t sure which was worse: the loss from death or a deep betrayal of the faith he’d placed in his former partner. He hadn’t spoken to her in years, but he still thought of her every day. He’d see her in his dreams, too. He hadn’t loved her, at least not in the way a husband loves a wife, but he didn’t think he’d ever be able to get past her.
His phone vibrated on the nightstand beside him. He looked at the display and saw Emma’s name.
“Hello,” he said.
“Thank you for helping me today.”
“No problem.”
“I can’t stop thinking of Ben. I still see him on that sofa every time I close my eyes.”
“It w
ill fade in time,” he said, but he knew that wasn’t the truth.
“Why did you come out to that marina this morning? I know what you said about that guy calling you, but what did you hope would happen by seeing the boat?”
It was a question Penfield had still been asking himself.
“I’m not sure. I didn’t know what to do when I saw that photo in the news. I thought it might somehow be clearer if I saw it in person.”
“What are you going to do now?”
“It’s your case. Hopefully you’ll let me know what’s going on. That’s all I can ask,” Penfield said.
“I’ve been thinking more about what we were talking about after we met with Charles Ray. I think you’re right. It’s someone on the inside who killed Ben. It has to be.”
“I’m sorry you have to face this.”
“I got the information on that phone number we called at my desk. You were right. It’s a burner phone.”
“Did you find where it was purchased?”
“A convenience store in Toano. I already called them. They have a security system, and they’re good to let us review the footage.”
He caught the use of the word “us,” but he decided not to press it.
“When are you going up there?”
“I’m talking to the doctor who did Ben’s autopsy in the morning. I was hoping you could go to Toano for me.”
“I’ll do it first thing tomorrow. Just text me the address.”
“My department doesn’t know they still have the video. I told them it was already deleted.”
“Understood,” Penfield said.
“Thanks, and I’ll talk to you in the morning.”
Penfield said goodbye and ended the call.
Her call had surprised him at first, but in hindsight he should have expected it. She didn’t know who she could trust, but maybe she could trust him enough to move forward with a loose partnership of sorts.
Chapter 11
Buddy Butler
Nine, November.
Emma had called the doctor the previous night and asked if she could get the results by phone versus making the long drive to the pathologist’s office. She didn’t think she’d be able to take seeing Ben’s mutilated body again.
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