Authors: Ernest Hill
“Jack, what is this all about?” she asked. As she spoke,
she was looking directly at Captain Jack; she never looked at Tyrone.
“Where’s Buddy?” Captain Jack inquired about her husband, then lowered his hand.
“At Mike’s,” she said, then waited.
“Well, I guess there’s no easy way to say this,” Captain Jack said. “So, I’ll just be blunt. We need to see Amy’s diary. “
“Diary,” Mrs. Talbert said. “Jack … Amy didn’t have a diary. “
Shocked, Tyrone looked at her. A voice sounded in him. No diary. His jowls dropped, and just as panic was poised to invade his consciousness, he heard the soft, contradicting sound of Terri’s timid voice call from the opposite side of the room.
“Mrs. Talbert … she did.”
Startled, Mrs. Talbert whirled and looked. She had not noticed Terri when she first entered.
“What are you doing here?” Mrs. Talbert asked.
For a brief moment, Mrs. Talbert paused, observing Terri, and when Terri did not speak, Mrs. Talbert said in an assured tone, “She did not.”
“But she did,” Terri said in a low, timid voice. “She did have a diary. “
“Why are you doing this?” Mrs. Talbert said. She looked at Terri with pained eyes. “I thought you were Amy’s friend …” She turned to the chief. “Harland, there is no diary.”
“You sure?” he said.
“I’m positive.”
“It’s in her closet,” Terri said with downcast eyes.
“What?”
“That’s where she kept it,” Terri said, still looking at the floor. “It’s in a shoe box … in the closet … near the back.”
Mrs. Talbert stared at her, transfixed. Shock had rendered her silent. Then when her mind had fully processed what she had heard, she simply shook her head in disagreement.
“Harland, I want that diary,” Captain Jack said.
“Susan,” the chief called to Mrs. Talbert softly, then waited.
But she remained quiet, zombielike.
“Susan,” the chief called to her again.
The sound of his voice broke her trance and she looked at him with dazed eyes. But still she did not speak.
“Well,” the chief said. “What about it? … Is it possible?”
“I don’t know,” she mumbled in a low, dry, distant voice.
The chief frowned, then looked at her with skeptical eyes.
“What do you mean … You don’t know?”
“I had her things packed up a couple of years ago,” Mrs. Talbert said, then paused. Her voice began to shake. “I couldn’t bear to look at them anymore.”
“Where are they?” Captain Jack asked. “Where did you put them?”
“I don’t know,” Mrs. Talbert said.
“What do you mean, you don’t know?” Captain Jack snapped, his voice stern.
“Jack!” the chief shouted. “What’s gotten into you?”
“I need that diary,” Captain Jack said.
There was silence.
“Susan,” the chief said, his rough voice suddenly becoming soft, compassionate. “Do you still have her things?”
“I don’t know,” she said. “Maybe.” Her hands began
to tremble. “I gave some of her things away … put the others in the attic.”
“Could the diary be in the attic?” the chief asked.
“I don’t know,” she said. “I gave most of her clothes to the Goodwill.”
Tyrone felt his heart sink. Oh, why was this happening. Why?
“Harland—” Captain Jack tried to say something, but the chief cut him off.
“Jack, please!” The chief’s voice was stern.
“I don’t want nobody rummaging through Amy’s things,” Mrs. Talbert said through teary eyes. “I won’t stand for that … I won’t.”
“Harland, I need that diary,” Captain Jack said for the second time.
Mrs. Talbert began to sob heavily, and Terri moved close to her and put her arms about her shoulders, trying to comfort her. They had been standing the entire time, but now that Mrs. Talbert looked faint, the chief got her a chair. She sat down. A minute passed before the chief spoke again.
“Susan.” He kneeled before her and gently took her by the hands. “I’m sorry that I have to put you through this,” he said. “I know this is difficult … But I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask you a few more questions. You up to it?”
She nodded.
The chief started to say something else, then paused. “Can I get you some water or anything?”
She nodded, and the chief motioned to the officer standing behind the counter. On cue, the officer removed a paper cup from the canister and drew some water from the large cooler. When the cup was full, he handed it to Mrs. Talbert; she took a sip, then handed it back.
“Can you continue?” the chief asked.
She nodded again but did not speak.
“Do you know Benny Jones?” Captain Jack asked, approaching her chair. The chief whirled and looked at him with angry eyes.
“Benny!” Mrs. Talbert said. “What does Benny have to do with this?”
“Do you know him?” Captain Jack said sternly.
“Of course,” she said. “He works for the Petersons.”
“And Amy worked for them, too, right?” Captain Jack fired a follow-up question.
“That’s right,” she said. “Why?”
“Did Benny ever pick her up?” Captain Jack wanted to know.
“Excuse me?” she said.
“Did Benny Jones ever pick Amy up and take her to work?” Captain Jack repeated the question.
“A few times,” she said. “Why?”
Captain Jack paused. “He said he didn’t know her.”
“That’s hard for me to believe,” Mrs. Talbert said.
“Well, he said it,” Captain Jack told her.
“I can’t imagine for the life of me why Benny would say such a thing,” she said, becoming frazzled.
“Well, why don’t we ask him?” Captain Jack said. He turned toward the chief. The chief looked at him, then slowly turned toward the officer.
“Go get him,” the chief barked out an order.
The officer rose and disappeared through the side door. When he returned, he was flanked by Rooster. As Rooster entered the room, Tyrone could see that the uncertainty of the situation was beginning to take its toll. Initially, Rooster had looked nervous; but as soon as he saw Terri and Mrs. Talbert, his face dropped, and he looked terrified.
“Mr. Jones, we have a problem,” Captain Jack said.
“You see those two women over there?” Captain Jack gestured toward Terri and Mrs. Talbert.
Rooster lifted his head and took a quick look, then dropped his gaze again.
“Well, they just told us that you did know Amy Talbert. Mrs. Talbert even said that you picked Amy up, at their house, on a number of occasions. Now tell me … Is she lying, too?”
“Benny,” Mrs. Talbert called to him before he had a chance to answer. “What’s going on here? What’s this all about?”
“It was you, wasn’t it?” Captain Jack said. “You picked Amy Talbert up that day, didn’t you?”
Rooster looked at him with large, fearful eyes, then shook his head no.
“Harland,” Captain Jack said, still gazing at Rooster. “Please tell Mr. Jones the penalty for giving a false statement to a police officer.”
“He answered your question, Jack,” the chief said. “Just because you don’t like his answer don’t mean he’s lying.”
“All right,” Captain Jack said. “I’ll tell him.” He paused and looked at Rooster. “Five years,” he said. “Five years in the state penitentiary.”
There was silence.
“He did it, Harland,” Captain Jack said. “Not my client.”
“You have no evidence of that,” the chief said.
“Admit it! “ Captain Jack told Rooster. “Admit it or I’ll have you thrown under the jail. I mean it … I will.”
Mrs. Talbert began to cry.
“What’s this all about?” she said, her voice trembling.
“Susan,” the chief called to her softly. “Did you see this boy pick Amy up the day she was killed?”
“No,” Mrs. Talbert said, shaking her head. “I didn’t.”
“She may not have seen it,” Captain Jack said. “But
he picked her up, all right … He picked her up and dropped her off at the Petersons’.”
“Harland, what’s this all about?” Mrs. Talbert asked again.
“Well, somehow or another, Jack and Mr. Stokes here come up with the crazy idea that this boy, Benny, picked Amy up at the store that day … and dropped her off at the Petersons’ house …just before she was killed.”
“No,” Mrs. Talbert said. “He couldn’t have.”
“Yes, Mrs. Talbert,” Captain Jack said. “I know this may be difficult for you to hear right now … But it’s true. He did it … not my client.”
“No,” she said again. “He didn’t … It’s not possible.”
“It is … and he did …,” Captain Jack said. “They saw him.”
“They couldn’t have seen him,” she said. “Not at the Petersons’.”
“Why not?” the chief asked.
“They weren’t home.”
The chief paused, stunned. “Are you sure?”
Mrs. Talbert nodded. “I’m sure.”
Tyrone dropped his head and closed his eyes…. No, this was not happening.
“Do you know where they were?” he heard the chief ask.
He opened his eyes and saw Mrs. Talbert nod.
“At Miss Gertrude’s house,” he heard her say.
“Are you sure?” the chief asked, excited.
“Yes, Harland,” Mrs. Talbert said. “I’m sure.”
There was a brief pause; then Captain Jack spoke.
“Who is Miss Gertrude?” he asked. He had not heard her name before. He looked at the chief for an answer.
“Carol Peterson’s mother,” the chief told him.
A long moment passed. Then the chief resumed his interrogation.
“Do you know what time they made it back?” he asked Mrs. Talbert.
“Not until late.”
“How late?”
“About eight or nine that night.”
“You sure about that?” the chief asked.
“I’m sure,” she said.
“How sure?” the chief wanted to know.
“Positive,” Mrs. Talbert said.
“How can you be?” the chief asked, hoping to end this once and for all.
“That night … When Amy didn’t come home, I called Carol and asked if they had seen her.” Mrs. Talbert paused and exhaled, hard. Terri rubbed her back consolingly.
“And what time was that?” the chief asked, guiding her.
“About ten,” she said. “Just before the news came on.”
“And what did she say?”
“She said they hadn’t.” Mrs. Talbert’s voice broke. She paused, remembering, then quickly composed herself. “She said they had been at her mama’s all day … and that they didn’t get home ‘til late on account it was Miss Gertrude’s birthday.”
“They gave Miss Gertrude a party?” the chief asked, filling in the gaps.
She nodded.
“Then what?” the chief asked, encouraging her to continue.
“Well, after the party was over, she and Paul stayed up there and helped clean up.”
“If Paul and her were up there,” the chief said, “where were the children?”
“With them,” she said.
“Did Amy have a key to their house?” the chief asked.
“No,” she said.
“Did they have a maid or anybody else staying with them?” the chief asked, continuing to chip away at the heart of their story with a renewed enthusiasm until what had once looked promising to Tyrone now looked dim.
Concerned, Tyrone tilted his head and looked at the clock. Yes, they were running out of time. Anxiety swept him, and inside himself, he felt swirling an array of emotions the combination of which made his tension rise. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, and when again he opened them, he was besieged by a rage, the intensity of which he had seldom felt before. Suddenly, he wanted to kill them all. The chief, the officers, Mrs. Talbert, his lawyer. Yes, he wanted to lunge forward and rip the pistol from the chief’s holster, and squeeze the trigger until he had done to them that which they were about to do to his son. Inside his head, his incensed mind told him to move, but practicality made him hold still. Mrs. Talbert shook her head, and the chief asked his next question.
“How long have you known this boy?” the chief said, looking at Benny.
“Few years,” she said.
“He ever give you any trouble?”
“Not a bit.”
“He ever give your daughter any trouble?”
“No,” she said. “Not at all.”
“He ever get out his place with her?”
“No!” she said.
“Do you think this boy would hurt your daughter?”
“Of course not,” she said. “I know he wouldn’t.”
“Mrs. Talbert,” Captain Jack interrupted. “You didn’t know that your daughter kept a diary, did you?”
“No,” she said.
“So, it stands to reason that she kept secrets from you, doesn’t it?” Captain Jack said.
“I don’t know,” Mrs. Talbert said.
“Now, Benny and Amy spent a lot of time together, didn’t they?”
“Jack, I won’t stand for this.”
“Perhaps there was more to their relationship than you know.”
“Jack! Now that’s enough.” Mrs. Talbert began to cry. “Amy wasn’t like that,” she said. “She wasn’t like that at all.”
“I’m sure that Amy was a nice person,” Captain Jack said. “But I’m also sure that she kept secrets. And I believe one of those secrets got her killed. That’s why we need that diary.” He paused and looked at Rooster. “I’m sorry, but I don’t have as much confidence in him as you seem to have.”
“Jack,” the chief said. “That’s it …We’re through here.”
“Ah, come on, Harland,” Captain Jack said. “Open your eyes and look at what’s sitting right in front of you.”
“My eyes are open, Jack. And believe me, I see.” He paused and looked at Tyrone. “And, Jack, you want to know what I see? … What I see is a situation that borders on the ridiculous. Them two there dragged him in here with a busted lip. Then Charlie says he saw him, but he don’t know what time. And, of course, Irene says she knows the time, but she didn’t see him …just his truck. And you, Jack … You threatened him until you got him so intimidated he’ll confess to just about anything. Naw, Jack, there’s nothing wrong with my eyes, but maybe there’s something wrong with your ears. Mrs. Talbert just told you that the Petersons were not
home the day Charlie claims he saw Amy go into their house. It didn’t happen, Jack. Now, that’s it … Marcus Stokes killed Amy Talbert. That’s what the evidence shows … and that’s what I know … case closed.”
“You did it,” Captain Jack said to Rooster. “I don’t know how. But you did it. Didn’t you?”
“No,” Rooster said.
“Then, why did you lie?” Captain Jack said. “Why did you say you didn’t know Amy Talbert?”