“She seemed scared, frustrated, and confused. After I explained everything to her, she decided she needed some space. Of course, it didn’t last long because on their court date, she was sitting next to him in his defense ready to drop the charges and basically told me to leave her alone. The very next day, they found her body. I’m afraid that is all the information I have. I was hoping maybe you could be of more help to us. Did you speak with Pam on a regular basis?”
Wiping her nose with the tissue and crumbling it up in her fist, she tossed her hair out of her face and took a breath. “Pam and I were always pretty close. She and Brandon have always had a strange relationship. I always wondered what she saw in him. He was a journalist trying to make a career for himself and she wanted nothing more than to be a mother.
“They had toyed with the idea for a while, but he wouldn’t budge. Over the past few years we grew more distant. I mean we both have lives we’re trying to live. I talked to her a while back and she was tired of waiting for him to really settle down and start a family. She told me she had met someone else.” She rolled her eyes. “I tried to talk some sense into her but she was on another plain. Last week, the last time I talked with her, she and Brandon had reached their boiling point, she told him about her affair. That’s what set him off. And rightfully so! I told her she was playing with fire but she wouldn’t listen to me. And now she’s dead,” she said bluntly as she patted under her eyes with the tissue.
The only word Elizabeth heard was ‘affair’. “So, Pam was having an affair? Do you know how long it had been going on for?”
Breathing in deeply and then releasing she said, “Gosh I don’t know. Six months or so? The icing on the cake was she had just found out she was pregnant. When she called me, she informed me I was going to be an aunt.” Janet stopped herself from choking up. “I was excited for her. She told me everything was going to work out and she was going to finally live the life she really wanted. Funny thing is, I don’t think she even knew who the father was. At least she didn’t divulge that information to me.”
Trying to hide the surprised look on her face, she pried further. “Janet, do you think Brandon could have done this? I hate to say it, but to me it sounds like he had a pretty decent motive.”
“Honestly, I don’t know what to think anymore. I never thought my brother-in-law would put his work before my sister let alone do anything like this. I never thought my sister would cheat on her husband. I certainly never thought I would get a phone call telling me my sister turned up dead in Lake Erie. I haven’t had a real heart to heart with Pam in years. All I know is she was in a weird place for a while and all I could do was be there for her whenever she called me.”
Shaking her head, Elizabeth said, “I cannot tell you how sorry I am, Janet.” She paused a moment. “You understand I am going to share all this with the investigating officer?”
Janet swallowed the reality hard, her throat making a noise before she answered. “I understand. Like I said, I wanted to speak with you rather than the police on this matter. I appreciate you taking the time to talk with me.”
“Of course. I will be here throughout this entire process, Janet. However, I’m afraid once I share this with Detective Martinez, he will want to speak with you personally.”
She closed her eyes for a moment and nodded. “I’m aware of that as well. Do they have any idea what happened? I have only talked with my parents since returning home. I mean I saw Brandon long enough for him to let me in the house and to offer my assistance. He was extremely quiet. I can only imagine what he is going through right now. I tried to be receptive to him but he was so – distant.” She shook her head as if trying to shake off a bad feeling. “I don’t want to make any assumptions, but I don’t know. It’s such a crazy, tragic situation and I’m entirely too close to it to make any judgments.”
Surprised by her logical reasoning and willingness to give her brother-in-law the benefit of the doubt, Elizabeth advised, “I’m afraid I haven’t heard anything yet. They are still investigating at this point. The one thing I can tell you is I will keep you as informed as I can. Can I ask you one more thing, Janet?”
“Of course, anything.”
Elizabeth readied her pen on her notebook and asked, “Do you have any idea who Pam was having an affair with?”
Walking into the bureau, Shawn grabbed a stack of papers from the fax machine, flipped through them, and lightly tossed them on Martinez’s desk. “All yours, my man. Looks like you’re gonna have a busy day.” He winked.
He smirked. “Yeah, no kidding. Thanks, Johnson.”
Sitting down in his chair as if it was a recliner in his living room, he asked, “Any break in your homicide yet?”
Shaking his head and taking a break from his paperwork, he sighed. “Nope. I talked with her parents and coworkers on Friday. Everyone had the same thing to say about her; nice girl with no enemies and didn’t really have much
