Beverly Barton - Silent Killer

They entered Mike Birkett’s office, she and Ruth Ann flanking Missy. The girl’s face went chalk white as soon as she saw Agent Morgan.

“Come on in, Missy.” Cam Hendrix stepped forward and pulled out a chair for his client. “Have a seat right here.” He glanced at Cathy and Ruth Ann. “Y’all sit on either side of her. I’ll stand.”

Jack, Mike, Derek Lawrence and two people Cathy had never seen before crowded into the small office, but all of them stood along the back wall, doing their best not to bring attention to themselves. Thankfully, Missy seemed oblivious to their presence.

“Miss Hovater, I intend to do this as quickly as possible,” Agent Morgan said. “I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask you about Saturday night and what you know about your father’s death.”

“About his murder,” Missy said.

“Yes, about his murder,” Morgan agreed. “Can you tell me exactly what happened that night? And please take your time.”

“Where do I start?” Missy placed her hands on the table, one hand folded over the other.

“Start wherever you’d like.”

She swallowed hard. “He came to my room, the way he always did. And he-we had sex.”

“Are you saying that your father raped you, that he forced you to have sex with him?” Cam Hendrix injected the question into the cross-examination process.

“Yes,” Missy replied.

“And this wasn’t the first time, was it?” Cam asked.

“No, my father had been raping me since I was twelve.”

“Miss Hovater, after your father left your room, what happened then?” Agent Morgan asked.

“Nothing. I just lay there for a long time.”

“Did you know when your father went outside?”

“I heard the doorbell ring.”

“What time was that?”

“I don’t know. I didn’t look at the clock.”

“When you heard the doorbell ring, what did you do?” Agent Morgan pulled out a chair and sat across from Missy. “Did you leave your room? Did you…?”

“No, not at first.” Missy eased her hands up and off the table. “But then I heard someone screaming.” She brought her clasped hands close to her body and held them over her midsection, just below her breasts. “I got out of bed and listened. I called for my father, but he didn’t answer.”

“What did you do then?”

“I put on my gown.”

“You changed out of your…?”

“I was still naked.”

Looking downright uncomfortable, Agent Morgan continued, “After you put on your gown, what did you do then?”

“I followed the sound of the screams and realized they were coming from outside. I went out onto the porch, and that’s when I saw him.”

“Saw who?”

“My father. He was on fire,” Missy said, her voice eerily calm. “I stood there and watched while he burned.”

“You didn’t cry out for help? You didn’t rush back into the house to call 911?”

“Isn’t it obvious that Missy was in shock?” Cam Hendrix said. “She could hardly have been expected to act in a rational manner.”

“Yes, certainly. It’s a reasonable assumption,” Agent Morgan agreed. He focused directly on Missy. “Did you see anyone else?”

“Someone else? Where?”

“Did you see who doused your father with gasoline and set him on fire?”

“No, I-I didn’t see anyone else. I don’t remember seeing anybody except Daddy. He kept screaming and screaming, and then he didn’t move anymore and he stopped screaming. I wasn’t sure he was dead, but I hoped he was.”

Silence. The tense atmosphere in the room pulsed with life. No one said a word.

“Is that all for today?” Cam Hendrix asked, breaking the unnatural quiet. “Missy was just released from the hospital this morning, and as you can tell, she’s already exhausted.”

What everyone could plainly see was that Missy Hovater was sitting there staring off into space, an unnerving smile curving the corners of her mouth and a peaceful expression on her pretty face.

A ripple of uncertainty crept up Cathy’s spine.

“Yes, that’s all for now,” Agent Morgan said. “We can postpone further questioning until Miss Hovater is feeling better. Of course, you know the routine, Counselor. She’s not to leave town, et cetera, et cetera.”

“Missy will be staying with my family,” Ruth Ann said. “My husband and I are hoping to work out something with social services so that we can become her foster parents.”

Mike Birkett opened the door for Ruth Ann, who, with her arm around the girl’s shoulders, led Missy out of the office. Cathy followed them. As she passed Jack, he reached out and gently grasped Cathy’s arm. She looked at him, questioning his actions.

“We need to talk,” he told her. “Can you wait for me outside, or do you need to leave with Mrs. Harper and Missy?”

“I came in my car,” she told him. “I planned to go from here to Treasures. I’ll wait for you.”

Cathy helped Ruth Ann get Missy situated in the front seat of her Volvo before turning to Cam Hendrix. “Do you think they believed her?”

“Yes, I think they believe she didn’t set her father on fire, but they also believe that she intentionally did nothing to help him and that she’s glad he’s dead.”

“Can they charge her with a crime?” Ruth Ann asked.

He patted Ruth Ann on the back. “They could, but I don’t think they will. It’s my job to make sure they don’t, so stop worrying. You just take good care of Missy and leave the rest to me.”

Heaving a sigh, Ruth Ann shook his hand and then got in the car and drove away.

Cam Hendrix turned to Cathy. “The Harpers are taking on quite a responsibility by bringing Missy into their home. She’s going to need a great deal of therapy as well as TLC. I’ve known cases like hers before, and sometimes these young girls never recover.”

“If anyone can help Missy, John Earl and Ruth Ann Harper can.”

“May I give you a lift somewhere, Ms. Cantrell?”

“No, thank you. I have my car.”

Jack came out of the building and stood there watching her with Missy’s lawyer. He called out to her, “Ready to go get that cup of coffee, honey?” He stressed the one-word endearment.

Cathy smiled. She knew what he was doing. He was warning off Cam Hendrix, letting him know that she wasn’t available. “Be there in a minute,” she told Jack.

“Boyfriend?” Cam asked.

“Yes.”

“Lucky man.”

“He thinks so.”

Cam laughed. “Smart man.”

As soon as Cam walked off, heading toward his Mercedes in the adjacent parking lot, Cathy turned toward Jack and smiled. He came up to her, looked past her into the parking lot and grunted.

“I don’t trust lawyers,” he said. “And smooth-talking, rich, handsome guys like that are bad news for lonely widows.”

Cathy laughed. “Then I’m safe from him. I’m not a lonely widow.”

Jack slid his arm around her waist and pulled her to his side. “You certainly aren’t, and I intend to make sure you stay that way.”

She looked up at him. “What did you need to see me about?”

He frowned. “Seth.”

“Seth?”

“He came to see me yesterday afternoon.”

“About you and me or about Missy?”

“About Missy. He’s got a crush on her, but I figure you already know that, don’t you?”

She nodded.

“He’s very worried about her, and he wanted to ask me to do whatever I could to help her. He knows I’m on the task force and thought I could use my influence with Mike and the others to get them to handle her with kid gloves.”

“Oh, Jack. I had no idea he’d come to you and ask you to intervene. I’m sure he wasn’t intentionally asking for any special favors for Missy.”