that?”
Angie rolled her eyes upward. “Beer and pot, maybe. But I couldn’t swear to it, because he never did any of that stuff around me. He was not a serious substance abuser, regardless of what my mother says.”
“Tell me about that night,” Laurie said. “From the beginning.”
“Greg and I went to a movie. We saw On Golden Pond , with Katharine Hepburn and Henry Fonda, which I thought was terrific. Jane Fonda was also in it. After the movie, we went to Pizza Hut to get something to eat. Then we drove around for a while, eventually ending up somewhere in the boondocks. We had been parked maybe twenty minutes when we saw the smoke. I remember telling Greg that it looked pretty serious, that maybe we should check it out.”
“What time of night was it?”
“I’d say close to eleven. Maybe a little after.”
“What happened next?”
“We drove to the barn.”
“How long did it take you to get there?”
“Ten or fifteen minutes.”
“Was it raining when you arrived at the barn?” Laurie asked, scribbling in her notepad.
“No. But it had been raining cats and dogs an hour earlier. I remember being worried that Greg’s car might get stuck in the mud and we’d have to call someone to come pull us out. That would have been beyond embarrassing.”
“Describe the barn when you guys got there.”
“One end was badly damaged, but the other end, the one closest to where Greg parked the car, wasn’t damaged at all. I guess the rain put out the fire before it spread to that part of the barn. It was in the undamaged section that we saw the bodies.”
“Tell me about that.”
“Greg told me to stay in the car, but I said no way I’m staying in the car, not in this darkness. It was really creepy. The dampness, the flickering flames, the smoke. Oh, the smoke was so thick you could slice it with a knife. Just a real boogie-man, Stephen King kind of night.”
“So you and Greg went into the barn?”
“Yeah, unfortunately we did. That’s when . . . I took one look, turned around, and got the hell out of there.”
“Back to the car?”
“You bet. And locked all the doors.”
“How long were you in the barn?”
“Ten seconds.”
“What do you remember about the victims?”
“Not much, really. Only that their hands and feet were tied, and their eyes were open.”
“Was there much blood?”
“If there was I didn’t notice it,” Angie answered.
“Did you see a gun?”
“No.”
“Anything else about the victims—or the scene—that caught your attention?”
“No. But like I said, Detective, I didn’t stick around long enough to take notes.”
“Greg said he remained in the barn for maybe a minute before he returned to the car.”
“That’s not accurate. Greg was in that barn for a good ten minutes before he came out.”
“You’re sure?”
“Absolutely. I was petrified sitting in the car alone. In the darkness, with two dead guys thirty feet away? Are you kidding me? Those ten minutes felt like three hours. I let him have it good when he did get in the car. For making me sit out there alone for so long.”
“Did he say anything?” Laurie asked. “Give a reason why he stayed in the barn that long?”
“Not that I recall. He was just hell-bent on getting to a phone and calling the police.”
“Did you see any blood on him?”
“On Greg? No. Why do you ask?”
“I’m wondering if he touched or moved the bodies.”
Angie shook her head. “I doubt if he did that. That would be stupid on his part, and Greg wasn’t stupid.”
Maybe not but he is a liar . Laurie thought for a while, and then said, “Did you mention to the detectives who interviewed you that Greg spent that much time in the barn?”
“I never spoke to a detective.”
“You never spoke with a Detective Bolton or Detective Matthews?”
“The only person I spoke to had on a uniform. The detectives talked with Greg.”
Laurie started to ask Angie if she remembered the officer’s name,
Angie rolled her eyes upward. “Beer and pot, maybe. But I couldn’t swear to it, because he never did any of that stuff around me. He was not a serious substance abuser, regardless of what my mother says.”
“Tell me about that night,” Laurie said. “From the beginning.”
“Greg and I went to a movie. We saw On Golden Pond , with Katharine Hepburn and Henry Fonda, which I thought was terrific. Jane Fonda was also in it. After the movie, we went to Pizza Hut to get something to eat. Then we drove around for a while, eventually ending up somewhere in the boondocks. We had been parked maybe twenty minutes when we saw the smoke. I remember telling Greg that it looked pretty serious, that maybe we should check it out.”
“What time of night was it?”
“I’d say close to eleven. Maybe a little after.”
“What happened next?”
“We drove to the barn.”
“How long did it take you to get there?”
“Ten or fifteen minutes.”
“Was it raining when you arrived at the barn?” Laurie asked, scribbling in her notepad.
“No. But it had been raining cats and dogs an hour earlier. I remember being worried that Greg’s car might get stuck in the mud and we’d have to call someone to come pull us out. That would have been beyond embarrassing.”
“Describe the barn when you guys got there.”
“One end was badly damaged, but the other end, the one closest to where Greg parked the car, wasn’t damaged at all. I guess the rain put out the fire before it spread to that part of the barn. It was in the undamaged section that we saw the bodies.”
“Tell me about that.”
“Greg told me to stay in the car, but I said no way I’m staying in the car, not in this darkness. It was really creepy. The dampness, the flickering flames, the smoke. Oh, the smoke was so thick you could slice it with a knife. Just a real boogie-man, Stephen King kind of night.”
“So you and Greg went into the barn?”
“Yeah, unfortunately we did. That’s when . . . I took one look, turned around, and got the hell out of there.”
“Back to the car?”
“You bet. And locked all the doors.”
“How long were you in the barn?”
“Ten seconds.”
“What do you remember about the victims?”
“Not much, really. Only that their hands and feet were tied, and their eyes were open.”
“Was there much blood?”
“If there was I didn’t notice it,” Angie answered.
“Did you see a gun?”
“No.”
“Anything else about the victims—or the scene—that caught your attention?”
“No. But like I said, Detective, I didn’t stick around long enough to take notes.”
“Greg said he remained in the barn for maybe a minute before he returned to the car.”
“That’s not accurate. Greg was in that barn for a good ten minutes before he came out.”
“You’re sure?”
“Absolutely. I was petrified sitting in the car alone. In the darkness, with two dead guys thirty feet away? Are you kidding me? Those ten minutes felt like three hours. I let him have it good when he did get in the car. For making me sit out there alone for so long.”
“Did he say anything?” Laurie asked. “Give a reason why he stayed in the barn that long?”
“Not that I recall. He was just hell-bent on getting to a phone and calling the police.”
“Did you see any blood on him?”
“On Greg? No. Why do you ask?”
“I’m wondering if he touched or moved the bodies.”
Angie shook her head. “I doubt if he did that. That would be stupid on his part, and Greg wasn’t stupid.”
Maybe not but he is a liar . Laurie thought for a while, and then said, “Did you mention to the detectives who interviewed you that Greg spent that much time in the barn?”
“I never spoke to a detective.”
“You never spoke with a Detective Bolton or Detective Matthews?”
“The only person I spoke to had on a uniform. The detectives talked with Greg.”
Laurie started to ask Angie if she remembered the officer’s name,
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