I didn’t want to be right about DiMarco either. “Does the PD have much on DiMarco?”
“Rumor is that Internal Affairs had a file on DiMarco for a long time, but I don’t think DiMarco is your man. I think he’s more the inciter of violence rather than the perpetrator. DiMarco is too smart to get his hands dirty like that. He doesn’t want to do the hard yards, but I think he’s pulling the strings.” He paused for a moment, and drew a long breath. He took a sip of his beer before he turned back to me. “I think that DiMarco has taught other people how to perform these murders and incited them to do so. I can’t see him killing these lawyers himself. It’s too much of a risk. I see him either paying someone, or manipulating someone into doing the work for him.”
“You’re saying he’s teaching people how to commit acts of murder and mask them as suicide?”
“I’m saying that some of his supporters are almost cult-like.” He sipped his drink again. “They could’ve done anything for him. If he says ‘jump,’ then his supporters say, ‘how many lawyers do you want me to kill.’ And building on that theory, I looked into his followers. Who was the most dedicated? Who was the most cult-like? Who could be a candidate?”
“And?”
He took another long sip of his Miller Lite and looked around the bar again. There were no listening ears around. “And there was one name that stood out. There was one name that was the most dedicated to DiMarco and his cause.”
I waited, but he didn’t continue. “Are you going to tell me?”
“I’m building the suspense.” He smiled, and then he waited a few more moments. “The person who made the most comments, and had the most aggression, was Jenny Carpenter.”
“Damn it,” I groaned.
“Jenny Carpenter commented on just about every post that Jonathon DiMarco is associated with. She’s the victim of Waltz’s last case. It was a clear case. There was evidence, there was a witness, and there was video footage that placed David Chesterfield at the scene. This should’ve been an easy case for the courts. But Chesterfield hired Anthony Waltz, and Waltz had just about every piece of evidence thrown out because rules weren’t followed during the warrant searches.”
“I know Jenny Carpenter. She’s on my list, but the theory doesn’t work. There’s a major hole in it.” I shook my head. “The theory works for Anthony Waltz’s murder, perhaps she was so incensed that she took him out, but it doesn’t explain why the other lawyers were killed—Clarke Hudson and Jeffery Stone. Why would she kill the other lawyers before she lost her court case?”
“Because this has happened before.”
“What?” I turned to him. “When?”
“When she was a child, ten years old, she was assaulted by her gymnastics coach. And guess what? The guy gets a good lawyer and walks away scot-free. Not enough evidence to convict the coach, the court is told. It’s he said-she said. The coach is still teaching, rumors are still abounding about his behavior, and Jenny had no justice for what happened to her.”
“That poor woman,” I replied. “This happened to her as a ten-year-old kid, and then fifteen years later the same thing happens? That’s heartbreaking. No wonder she looks so broken.”
“If she’s a serial killer, Jack, then I wouldn’t be feeling sorry for her.”
I paused for a long moment while the bartender wiped the counter in front of us. It was a token effort, no amount of wiping the bar would wash away the stickiness—a high powered hose would be needed for that—but the bartender wanted to give the appearance of doing the work. Once he’d finished and stepped away, I turned back to Williams. “That’s a strong motive for Jenny Carpenter. What are you going to do next?”
“Nothing.”
“Nothing? Are you kidding? After what you’ve just told me, you’re not going to do anything?”
“I can’t do anything, Jack. You know that. My hands are tied. My career is on the line if I start to pressure a guy like DiMarco.” Williams finished his Miller Lite. “If DiMarco has encouraged Jenny Carpenter to commit these crimes, then I need proof. Give me some proof and then maybe, just maybe, I can reopen Waltz’s case and start the investigation before another lawyer dies.”
“So, you’re going to leave the responsibility of finding a killer to me? You’re going to walk away from what you’re paid to do?”
“Yes, Jack. That’s the way it works. And you’d better work quickly. Killers like this are known to escalate the speed of which they do it.” He stood. “And they’re known to target anyone that tries to stop them.”
Chapter 18
Robbie McAdams was waiting for me in the foyer of the Five-Five Apartment building. He’d managed to transfer the video footage from head office and he called to let us know that he could now access it. Dressed in an oversized waterproof coat with the collar up, he was leaning against the wall, earphones in, staring at the glow on his phone screen. His head was nodding slightly, in agreement to whatever he was watching.
“What are you watching, Robbie?” I asked as I approached him.
He raised his head and took out one earphone. “Something on YouTube.”
“Something about comics?”
“No,” he shook his head, and I waited for him to continue. There was an uncomfortable silence for a moment. “I love listening to empowering videos. My life… well, a lot of my life hasn’t been easy, so I find someone that has been through the same sort of thing that I’ve been through and I get inspired by their stories.
