Chapter Six #2
“But it never occurs to him that if he hadn’t had the affair in the first place, no one could’ve uncovered it.”
“Exactly. Anyway, did you need me for something?”
“Yeah, I wanted to tell you that Pam Tappen died inside that van from a combination of asphyxia and hypothermia.”
“So she was alive when someone left her there to suffocate and freeze to death?”
“Yes.”
“Horrifying.”
“Indeed. I place the time of death around Sunday evening.”
“So if they grabbed her on Friday, that means it took two full days for her to die. Christ have mercy.” Sam thought about that for a second, recalling that Pam’s things had been left in the car. “This was personal. Someone wanted her to suffer.”
“I agree. I was able to get some prints from the duct tape and CSU pulled a bunch from inside the van, but none of them were in the system.”
Sam processed that news as she glanced at the conference room. “According to the family, everyone loved her.”
“Not everyone.”
“What kind of monster does something like this to another human being?”
Lindsey raised an eyebrow. “After all these years on this job, you still have to ask that?”
“I guess I’ve never received a satisfactory answer to the question.”
“And you never will. I’ll send you my full report when I have it.”
“Thanks, Doc.”
Sam took a deep breath and blew it out before returning to the conference room to check on the Tappens.
“We’ve made a list of the people she’s closest to,” Bob said.
“Here’s a question for you. If she was so critical to the conference she was attending, wouldn’t they have reached out to you when she didn’t show up?”
“Not necessarily. She was a sole proprietor. I’m not sure they would’ve known to contact me if she wasn’t there.”
“I’m going to be honest with you, Mr. Tappen. I find it odd that she would take off for a weekend and have absolutely no contact with her husband or three children or not have an emergency contact on file with the organizations she worked for.”
“I know it must sound strange to you, but that’s been our routine for years. She has a very intense job when she’s at the conferences, and we leave her alone to do it.”
“And you never contact her?”
“You did that once when Justin had appendicitis, and she flew home, remember, Dad?” Lucas asked.
“Yes, that was an exception, but for the most part, when she’s working, we carry on without her. It’s only a week or so out of every month, and we’ve been doing it for so long that it’s routine to us.”
“Could I have a minute alone with you, Mr. Tappen?” It would be up to him to decide how many of the details of their mother’s death he would share with his kids.
He glanced at the boys, who got up and left the room.
After the door closed behind them, Sam said, “I’m a mother, Mr. Tappen. I wouldn’t go a single day without talking to my children.”
“With all due respect, Lieutenant, I believe you’re a relatively new mother, so of course it seems strange to you not to talk to your son.”
“In forty years, I’m still going to want to talk to him every day.”
For the first time, Tappen’s expression became angry.
“My wife adored her children, and they adored her. Her company provided a large chunk of our family’s annual income, and we relied upon it, thus we stepped aside and allowed her to do her job when she needed us to.
I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t judge us—or especially her—for the choices we made in the best interests of our family. ”
“Fair enough, and I don’t mean to judge you or her. I’m asking the questions necessary to figure out who’d want to kill her.”
“We have no idea who’d want to kill her,” Tappen said.
“I need to tell you some additional details that you’re going to find difficult to hear.”
“More difficult than hearing she was found murdered?”
“Perhaps, yes.”
He seemed to brace himself.
“She died of asphyxia and hypothermia, which means she was alive when she was bound and gagged, probably on Friday, and left in the van to suffocate and freeze to death. The medical examiner has put the time of death sometime on Sunday evening.” Sam waited a beat to give him a second to process that it took two days for her to die.
“This was personal. Whoever did this wanted her to suffer.”
“We don’t know of anyone who’d want her to suffer like that.
” Bob seemed truly baffled as he fought tears.
“She did so much for others. Our neighbor has been fighting breast cancer for the last two years. Pam made dinner for her family every week since she was diagnosed. She takes that same woman’s kids to practices and picks them up.
She volunteers at a homeless shelter and does fundraising for them.
She’s all about giving of herself to others, especially to our family. ”
“What about through her work? Did she have problems with any clients or colleagues?”
“Not that I know of,” Bob said. “Most of her clients were longtime accounts, except for the one this week. That was a new one.”
Which gave her a thread to pull, Sam thought. “Do you have the name of the organization?”
“I can look it up in her office at home.”
“I’d like to have our people go through her office, computer and phone, if we can locate it, to see if she was having any issues with anyone that you might not have been aware of. We’ve requested a warrant, but I wanted to make you aware of what we’ll need to do.”
“Yes, of course. We’ll do whatever we can to aid in the investigation.”
“We have officers at your home to ensure the crime scene, if there is one, won’t be compromised. We’ve also requested a warrant to examine your phone.”
“Why?”
“It’s routine.”
“I have nothing to hide.”
Bob’s phone chimed with a text. “Amy is in Cambridge and is asking if she can call me before she goes up to Molly’s place.”
“Yes, have her call,” Sam said, getting up to let the boys back into the room.
Over the next ten minutes, she got to listen to Molly answer her door to her tearful Aunt Amy and Uncle Tom. She asked why they were there, and Amy said, “Your dad needs to speak to you.”
“Um, okay…”
After Amy handed the phone to Molly, she said, “Dad? What’s wrong?”
Listening to Bob tell his daughter that her mother had been found murdered was yet another horrific moment in a day full of them. Molly’s anguished screams brought everyone in the conference room to tears, including Sam.
“Who could’ve done this?” she asked between sobs.
“We don’t know, honey,” Bob said, “but Lieutenant Holland is helping us to figure that out.”
“I want to come home,” Molly said, choking on a sob.
“Yes, of course.”
“We’ll drive her,” Amy said. “We’ll leave tonight.”
After they ended the call with Amy and Molly, Sam asked for Bob’s phone, which she turned over to IT detectives for a thorough examination after he’d signed a release form permitting the investigation.
When she returned to the conference room, she continued the questioning of Bob and his sons.
“Have any of you noticed anything out of place or unusual in the house this week?” She’d wondered if Pam had been abducted at home or somewhere else.
“Not that I can think of,” Bob said.
“Me either,” Lucas said as Justin shook his head.
“We’re going to put you up in a hotel while Crime Scene processes your home,” Sam said.
“Why is that necessary?” Bob asked. “She hasn’t been there in four days.”
“A crime could’ve occurred there, and you might not realize it.”
He wanted to argue with her, and she couldn’t blame him. In addition to the shock of his wife’s murder, now he was being barred from his own home.
“We’ll move as quickly as we can to get you back in your home as soon as possible.”
Bob seemed to understand that there was no point in arguing.
Sam got up to arrange for a hotel. She went to speak to Lieutenant Haggerty, who was standing outside her office, overseeing the detectives sifting for evidence among the wreckage.
“Nothing yet,” he said when he saw her coming.
“I was going to ask for your help with something else. I have a possible crime scene at the M Street home of Bob and Pam Tappen.”
“Possible?”
“I’m not sure if anything happened there, and if it did, it would’ve been as long as four days ago.”
He winced. “So if there is a crime scene, it’s thoroughly compromised.”
“Yes.”
“Sure, that sounds fun. We can get there in the morning.”
“Thanks. I’m putting the family up at a hotel in the meantime.” She returned to Dominguez’s cubicle to use the phone to call the Patrol commander. “I could use the assistance of one of your people. I’m in the Homicide pit.”
“I’ll send someone to you.”
“Thanks.”
Sam was still watching the detectives working in her office when Officer Charles came into the pit.
She was delighted to see the officer who’d done such an amazing job handling the details of her father’s police funeral.
The young, Black officer was going to be a star within the department, and Sam was looking forward to watching that happen.
“Fancy meeting you here on a Monday night.”
Her pretty face lit up with a big smile. “I picked up an extra shift.”
“Have you heard that I’m trying to poach you from the chief?” Sam asked.
“I did hear a rumor to that effect, and I’d be honored to help you with anything you need.”
“Do you have time to help me? I understand the chief keeps you pretty busy.”
“I have the time, and I’d love to work with you and learn from you.”
Sam gave her a side-eyed look. “Have you been taking suck-up advice from Detective Cruz by any chance?”
Officer Charles laughed. “I haven’t, but I’ll keep in mind that he’s got some expertise in that area.”
“He’s the master when it comes to sucking up.”
“Lieutenant Dawkins said you needed help with something tonight?”
“I do, and I’m thrilled she sent you.” Sam used her chin to gesture toward the conference room. “Pam Tappen was found murdered in her minivan earlier tonight.”
“I heard about that. She’d been there a few days?”
Sam nodded. “I’ve got Bob Tappen and his sons, Justin and Lucas here. His daughter, Molly, is on the way from the Boston area with close family friends. We need to get them set up in a hotel for at least a day or two while Crime Scene goes through their house.”
“I can take care of that for you.”
“Make sure they have whatever they need. The disruption is only making a difficult time worse for them.”
“Will do.”
“Thank you, and touch base with me again soon.”
“I’ll do that, too.”
Sam took Officer Charles into the conference room to introduce her to the Tappens. “You’ll be in very good hands with her,” Sam told them. “I’ll check in with you in the morning and will keep you posted of any developments.”
“Thank you,” Bob said.
With the Tappens in the capable hands of Officer Charles, Sam called Dani Carlucci. “Anything new?”
“Not yet. Still talking to the neighbors, but so far, no one saw anything suspicious over the last few days.”
“We’re working with a time line that could go back as far as Friday. It’s going to be tough to find anyone who remembers anything from that far back.”
“I’ll keep trying.”
“Request backup if you feel you need it.”
“I’m good.”
“Before I let you go, what’re you hearing from Gigi?”
“An occasional text. She’s feeling better, dying to get back to work and sick of sitting around at home.”
“She’s got a few more weeks to go before she’ll be cleared to return.”
“I’m afraid she’ll go mad before then.”
“I’d feel the same way. I’m going to head home and start fresh in the morning with the company Pam was due to support at their event this past weekend. Shoot me a text if anything pops.”
“Will do.”