“Thanks.” Karen waved her hand at the room. “Sorry about the mess. I just can’t seem to do as much as I used to.”
“We understand,” Jen said, thinking that carbon dating would likely show that quite a bit of the filth predated Karen’s pregnancy. Regardless, Larry Kaufmann didn’t have a big belly, but maybe he was one of those men who believed that housework was women’s work.
“What can we do for you people?”
The nervous tic under Larry’s right eye made it obvious he was praying that the litter box would out-stink the marijuana. He kept glancing around the room, probably trying to spot any drugs or paraphernalia that he might have left in plain sight. Jen could see that he was stoned and getting more paranoid by the minute.
Jen glanced at her watch.
“You work second shift, is that right, Mr. Kaufmann? I don’t want to hold you up if you were getting ready to go in.”
She hoped Kaufmann didn’t make it a habit to report to work stoned on a job requiring blowtorches.
“I’m off tonight.”
“Did you work last night?”
“No. I was off. Listen, what’s this about?”
Jen bowed her head for a moment and then looked up. Notifying someone of a tragedy was the least favorite part of her job.
“We have some bad news,” she said and told him.
Larry Kaufmann cried. He stared at them as the news sank in, then dropped to his knees in the middle of the worn carpet and bawled like a baby. His being stoned had something to do with it, Jen knew, but still the grief seemed genuine.
Karen struggled up from the couch and went to Larry. He clung to her, sobbing into her bulging belly. Jen felt tears stinging her eyes and looked away, focusing on two roaches chasing each other up the wall above the couch. Will was looking at his feet, studying the tips of his shoes with profound seriousness.
Finally Larry’s sobs subsided. He stood and helped Karen back to the couch before turning to them.
“I’m sorry, but I just wasn’t ready for that. There’s no mistake?”
“I’m afraid not,” Jen said.
“Who would do something like that?”
“I’ll be honest with you,” Jen said. “At this point, we have no idea. That’s why we wanted to talk to you. We don’t know much about Victoria’s life, who her friends were, her enemies, that sort of thing.”
“Do you think it was someone she knew?”
“We doubt it, but we have to check everything.”
“Wait…” Larry’s eyes grew wide. “Those other murders that have been in the news—was this the same guy?”
“Oh, God!” Karen’s face showed the fear that a lot of women in the area had been feeling, especially after the second killing. Murders weren’t an everyday thing in the city, but they weren’t unheard of either. The difference was most occurred as a result of a robbery gone wrong, a domestic disturbance, or a fight that got out of hand. Most did not involve young women getting their throats cut in their own beds.
“We don’t know yet,” Jen lied. “As I said, we need to check everything.”
Larry nodded and wiped his eyes with his hand.
“I suppose you want to know where I was, right?”
“I’m sorry we have to ask, but we do.”
“It’s okay. Me and Karen had some friends over last night. Jeff Smith and the girl he lives with, Kim Sizemore. They live over on Trenton Street. I don’t know the address, but I can give you their phone number.”
“How late did they stay?” Jen said, as she jotted the number on her notepad.
“They got here about seven, and we cooked out. Then we sat around and watched TV and talked, you know? I guess they left about two-thirty or three, right?”
He looked at Karen, who nodded.
“Were you both here after that?”
“Yeah, we went to bed right after they left.”
“Do you have any objections to Agent Anderson stepping outside and confirming your whereabouts with your friends?”
It didn’t matter if he had objections or not, but Jen wanted to see his reaction when he realized she wanted to talk to his friends before he had a chance to tell them what to say.
“No. No objections. Go ahead and call them.”
Jen could detect no trace of nervousness. She had no doubt he’d told them the truth and his friends would confirm that, but she nodded at Will. He took the piece of paper with the names and phone number of Larry Kaufmann’s alibi and stepped into the hall.
Jen noted Will was letting her run the show. After the way he’d been making notes at the crime scene, she’d expected him to try to take over. In fact, she had expected it just on the basis of his being a fed. She wouldn’t have let him do it, but she’d expected him to try. Maybe he did have more going for him than just looks and sex appeal.
“When was the last time you saw Victoria?”
“When we went for the divorce. That was about a month and a half ago. Vicki and me had some bad fights right after the split-up, but that was all over. Everything was cool between us.”
“Do you know who her friends were or what she had been doing with her time?
“Not for sure. Vicki’s best friend was always Sandy Norton from work. That’s the only friend I know about.”
“Do you know who she might have been dating?”
“Not really. It’s not the kind of thing you talk to your ex-old lady about, you know? I did see her with some dude about a month ago in a car over by Westgate Mall. It was a red Corvette—a new one, I remember that—and I think he had brown hair and a beard. Other than that, I can’t tell you much.”
Will came back into the room and nodded at Jen.
“Mr. Smith confirmed what Mr. Kaufmann told us.” He smiled a sympathetic smile at Larry. “I’m sorry
