Chapter 28
Carter Residence
Vera could see right away that Helen Carter was not happy to see them. Catching an interviewee off guard was always preferable since there was no time to plan answers. But the one being asked the questions rarely appreciated this tactic.
Carter had known she would be questioned again. She just hadn’t known the exact date and time.
At the moment she was in the kitchen preparing a pot of fresh coffee.
Vera waited in the living room with Bent.
They’d settled on the sofa to wait for Carter’s return.
Vera imagined Carter had wanted out of the room in order to warn her tenants, Martinez and Hernandez, that they would be summoned soon.
This second round of interviews wasn’t so much about learning new information, although that would be nice.
Today was about responses. It had been pretty clear during the initial interview that Helen Carter, Jose Martinez, and Renata Hernandez did not want to talk about the murders.
By now that reluctance would have expanded into fear.
On the drive over, Vera had called Bent with the news about the property appraisal.
He had agreed with her conclusion that Erwin’s apparent surprise at finding the appraisal was a tick mark in the not-guilty column.
He’d also been surprised that she’d found a possible burner phone in her place and turned it over.
There was no doubt it was the one used for communications between Alicia and Seth Parson that the brother had mentioned.
The question was, Did Erwin have it all along, or had someone actually planted it to make it seem as if she had?
“Sorry to make you wait.” Carter breezed into the room, carrying a tray laden with a shiny silver coffee pot and lovely delicate china cups seated in saucers.
She placed the tray on the coffee table and prepared to pour. She looked to Vera. “Cream or sugar?”
“Black is fine.”
When she turned to Bent, he passed on the coffee altogether.
Carter then offered a small plate loaded with scones. Had everyone decided to bake this morning?
“They look delicious, but no thanks.” Vera wanted to get on with what they’d come here to do.
Carter set the plate aside and took a seat. “Renata and Jose are on their way up. I let them know you were here.”
Of course she did.
“Tell us again,” Bent said, kicking off the questions, “when did Renata and Jose move onto your property?”
“About three months ago. They had lived in the ranch manager’s apartment in the barn until then. Alicia didn’t feel comfortable with anyone else living on the property.”
Vera had seen that barn. It was huge. Heated and cooled. Not your typical horse barn, for sure. The apartment was even nicer. Definitely not a hardship to live there.
“Maybe it was a newlywed thing,” Vera suggested. “Alicia may have felt she and her new husband needed their privacy.”
“No,” Carter countered, “it was a bitch thing.”
Well all right then.
“Were Jose and Renata upset with this change?” Bent glanced out the large south-facing window, where Vera had already spotted the couple walking toward the house. He slipped his phone from his pocket as his attention settled back on Carter.
“At first.” Carter settled her delicate cup back into its saucer and placed both on the coffee table. “But when I invited them here, it was all okay.”
“Did there appear to be any hard feelings?” Vera asked. Most anyone would feel slighted by being kicked out of their home for such a seemingly selfish reason.
“Mostly they were worried and afraid, as anyone in their position would be.”
“What position is that?” Bent no doubt understood what she meant, but he wanted her to say as much.
“They don’t have their proper papers yet.
” Helen glanced back at the kitchen, where the screen door had just whined, announcing the couple’s entrance into the house.
“Thomas was working on taking care of that. I’ll check in with his attorney and ensure the ball hasn’t been dropped, given what’s happened. ”
“I’ve been wondering,” Vera ventured, “with such an elaborate barn and outbuildings, why no animals?” Seemed a good lead-in to throw out a couple of questions about the first wife.
Carter took a breath. “There used to be horses as well as goats. Mostly horses. Lena loved horses. She was a dressage champion, you know.” Carter looked away a moment. “After she died, Thomas couldn’t bear to look at them. He sold them all. The goats too.”
Understandable, given the circumstances. “Previously,” Vera said, “you stated that you were home all weekend. Catching up around the house. Is there anyone who can vouch for your whereabouts?”
Carter didn’t look surprised by the question.
She’d given it once already in the initial interview.
Her answer came without hesitation. “Renata and Jose. We were all here all weekend. Cutting grass. Doing some repairs. We don’t get extended days off often.
I can make you a list of all we accomplished, if you like. ”
Renata and Jose stepped into the room, both looking to Carter for instructions.
“Come on in. Have a seat. Coffee?” Carter glanced from one to the other. Both declined the coffee and claimed the two remaining chairs in the fairly large conversation area.
Vera’s cell vibrated in her pocket. She tugged it out. A text from Bent.
Go outside w/ Renata.
Vera put her phone away and stood. “Renata, why don’t you and I go out onto the porch?”
Carter looked surprised at the request but didn’t question it. She wanted to, though. Vera could see it in her eyes.
As Vera and a visibly reluctant Renata started for the door, Bent asked, “Jose, did you have any reason to suspect your position with Mr. Wilton was in jeopardy? Did the two of you have any disagreements?”
Renata glanced back as they exited the door, and Vera closed it behind them. “Let’s sit.” She gestured to the rocking chairs. Folks in the South liked their rocking chairs. There were a couple on Vera’s porch too.
Renata glanced at the door. The poor woman looked terrified.
“Don’t worry,” Vera urged. “I just have a couple of questions. The sheriff will ask the same questions of Jose and Helen.”
Renata nodded but still appeared immensely nervous.
Vera opened the notes app on her phone. “Can you tell me the things you and Jose and Helen did around here over the weekend?”
She hesitated a long moment, tucked a stray hair behind her ear. “We clean everything up.” She nodded emphatically. “Miss Helen likes her home to be well maintained.”
So not only did these two pay rent, but they also did work around the place as well. Vera supposed the three had worked out some sort of negotiation.
“What kind of cleanup?” Vera tried to think how to get more specific with the question without feeding her answers. “In the yard or in the house?”
“Yes. Yes.” More nodding. “We cut grass. Pull weeds. Pick up sticks and . . . trashes.”
Vera listed each item in her notes. “Anything else?”
Renata pointed to the railing at an unpainted section of spindles. “Repair bad wood. We work hard. Much work. All of us very tired after working for Mr. Wilton. Time off is good to catch up here.”
Vera waited for her to go on. Frankly what she’d said so far didn’t sound like enough work to keep three people busy over a long weekend. The Carter property wasn’t that large.
As if she suddenly understood, Renata pointed in the direction of the little cottage they occupied. “Paint in our house. New floor in bathroom.”
Okay, so they were getting somewhere now.
“Anything else that you recall?”
“Cleaning.” She laughed a little. “We never have time to clean our house.”
They would definitely have plenty of time now. At least until they found new employment. Then again, with ten million dollars each, they might not want to go back to work for anyone else. They could start their own businesses.
“Did you or Jose go anywhere? Did you leave the house at all?”
“Hardware store. Nowhere else.”
Since there was only one hardware store in this town, Vera was reminded once more of that damned receipt. She forced the thought away.
Moving on, she asked, “Did you see or talk to Mr. Wilton or his wife at all over the weekend?”
Big side to side swing of her head. “No. Just home working.”
“Do you like Mrs. Wilton?” Vera sent her a pointed look. “She’s your boss now.”
Renata pursed her lips for a long moment. “She not nice woman. She make me clean same thing over and over.” She patted her chest. “I know clean. No need for her to tell me.”
So she didn’t like her.
“Was Mr. Wilton nice to you and Jose?”
A smile appeared. “He was. Very much.” The smile faded. “But he changed after Alicia came.”
This was new. “How did he change?”
“Not friendly. Too busy to even say hello. Not care about the property so much.” She shook her head again, her expression sad. “Not happy. I could see it.”
“Do you have any idea what made him unhappy?”
“She make him unhappy.” Renata glanced around as if fearing someone might eavesdrop. “Cheater. Thief. She came for his money.” Her lips trembled, and emotion glistened in her eyes. “She make bad man out of him. Ruin all things.”
“Did Jose have some idea of how to fix this or take care of the problem?”
“We . . .” Renata appeared to recognize the trap before going on. “No way to fix. We just live with it.”
“What about Lena Wilton, the first wife? Was she nice?”
Renata smiled. “Oh very nice. An angel.”
“Was she cheating on Mr. Wilton?”
Her smile faded, replaced by a frown. “No way.”
“Are you sure?” Vera pressed.
The other woman hesitated . . . blinked. “I very sure.”
“Why did Mr. Wilton sell all the horses and goats?”
“Oh he hate them.” She blinked again, her expression startled. “I mean, after wife die he can’t stand to look at them.”
The reactions just kept coming. None of these questions should have startled her or had her struggling for an answer. Clearly, she was holding back.
“Did you know Alicia is pregnant?”