was it?” Skye guessed.
“No. In December of that year I got a phone call from her. Luckily, none of you were home. She said she’d decided to have the baby after all and she wanted me to pay child support.”
“Oh, my God!” Stunned, Skye sagged in her chair.
“That certainly was my reaction too.” Vince smiled grimly. “I’ve been sending her money every month since that phone call.”
“Was it a boy or a girl?”
“A boy. Wade. She only let me see the baby once. Probably to convince me to pay up. But twice a year I’d get pictures and copies of his report cards. I never knew where she was. The money went to a post office box in Chicago, and she met me at Louis Joliet Mall.”
“Did you know she was Mrs. Gumtree?” Skye reached into her tote and found her notebook.
“I’ve never seen the TV show, and I didn’t look closely at the posters until this morning. Even then I’m not sure I would have recognized her. The makeup was remarkable.”
“This must have had something to do with you needing money?”
“Yeah, she called a week ago and said she wanted to send Wade to private school, and I needed to send her twenty-five hundred dollars by September fifth.” He went back to folding towels.
“Have you sent it?”
“No. Since I’ve been going out with Abby I’ve started to think about a lot of things. I told Honey I wasn’t sending any more money until after she agreed to regular visits. She threatened to talk to Mom and Dad, which is what she did every time I balked at giving her more money. But I stood firm this time.”
“You paid all these years just because she threatened to tell Mom and Dad?” Skye asked incredulously.
“That was part of it. They’ve never been very proud of me, and I thought this would make them think even less of me. Mostly, though, it just seemed like the right thing to do. If I had fathered a child, I should support it. Honey’s explanation of why I shouldn’t see him seemed logical. Why confuse the kid with a parent who wasn’t going to be around?”
“What made you change your mind?”
He shrugged. “I’m not sure. Maybe because he was turning sixteen. I don’t know. All I wanted was to see him. I told her I wouldn’t even mention I was his father.”
“She refused?” Skye was sure she already knew the answer.
“After calling me everything but a gentleman, she hung up. There was a message on my answering machine the next day saying she would talk to me Sunday.”
“Sunday was the day she was killed. I wonder if she planned to talk to you in person,” Skye speculated. “How much of this do the police know?”
“Only about the styling shears and that we dated in high school. They didn’t mention a child at all, but I told Loretta the whole story.”
“Good. Who else knows?”
“No one.” Vince looked uncomfortable.
“Tell me the kinds of questions the police asked.”
“Where was I when the murder was committed? When did I last see Honey? Things like that.”
“Nothing about money or the child. Interesting.” Skye jotted down a note on her pad. “Where were you when she was killed?”
“Home, alone, getting ready to pick up Abby for the parade.”
“Did anyone come to the door or call you on the telephone?”
“No. I picked up Abby about twelve-thirty. Since we were going to watch the parade from the roof of the salon, and it wasn’t supposed to start until one, we didn’t need to get here early in order to get a good spot.” The sound of the front door opening distracted Vince momentarily.
“From the questions the coroner was asking me,” Skye said, “they seem to think she was killed shortly before I found her, which would be around eleven-thirty. Plenty of time for you to stab her, go home, shower, and pick up Abby looking fresh and clean.”
“Whoa, I thought you said you believed me.”
Skye snapped her notebook closed and tucked it back into her tote before standing. “I do, but it’s obvious that the
“No. In December of that year I got a phone call from her. Luckily, none of you were home. She said she’d decided to have the baby after all and she wanted me to pay child support.”
“Oh, my God!” Stunned, Skye sagged in her chair.
“That certainly was my reaction too.” Vince smiled grimly. “I’ve been sending her money every month since that phone call.”
“Was it a boy or a girl?”
“A boy. Wade. She only let me see the baby once. Probably to convince me to pay up. But twice a year I’d get pictures and copies of his report cards. I never knew where she was. The money went to a post office box in Chicago, and she met me at Louis Joliet Mall.”
“Did you know she was Mrs. Gumtree?” Skye reached into her tote and found her notebook.
“I’ve never seen the TV show, and I didn’t look closely at the posters until this morning. Even then I’m not sure I would have recognized her. The makeup was remarkable.”
“This must have had something to do with you needing money?”
“Yeah, she called a week ago and said she wanted to send Wade to private school, and I needed to send her twenty-five hundred dollars by September fifth.” He went back to folding towels.
“Have you sent it?”
“No. Since I’ve been going out with Abby I’ve started to think about a lot of things. I told Honey I wasn’t sending any more money until after she agreed to regular visits. She threatened to talk to Mom and Dad, which is what she did every time I balked at giving her more money. But I stood firm this time.”
“You paid all these years just because she threatened to tell Mom and Dad?” Skye asked incredulously.
“That was part of it. They’ve never been very proud of me, and I thought this would make them think even less of me. Mostly, though, it just seemed like the right thing to do. If I had fathered a child, I should support it. Honey’s explanation of why I shouldn’t see him seemed logical. Why confuse the kid with a parent who wasn’t going to be around?”
“What made you change your mind?”
He shrugged. “I’m not sure. Maybe because he was turning sixteen. I don’t know. All I wanted was to see him. I told her I wouldn’t even mention I was his father.”
“She refused?” Skye was sure she already knew the answer.
“After calling me everything but a gentleman, she hung up. There was a message on my answering machine the next day saying she would talk to me Sunday.”
“Sunday was the day she was killed. I wonder if she planned to talk to you in person,” Skye speculated. “How much of this do the police know?”
“Only about the styling shears and that we dated in high school. They didn’t mention a child at all, but I told Loretta the whole story.”
“Good. Who else knows?”
“No one.” Vince looked uncomfortable.
“Tell me the kinds of questions the police asked.”
“Where was I when the murder was committed? When did I last see Honey? Things like that.”
“Nothing about money or the child. Interesting.” Skye jotted down a note on her pad. “Where were you when she was killed?”
“Home, alone, getting ready to pick up Abby for the parade.”
“Did anyone come to the door or call you on the telephone?”
“No. I picked up Abby about twelve-thirty. Since we were going to watch the parade from the roof of the salon, and it wasn’t supposed to start until one, we didn’t need to get here early in order to get a good spot.” The sound of the front door opening distracted Vince momentarily.
“From the questions the coroner was asking me,” Skye said, “they seem to think she was killed shortly before I found her, which would be around eleven-thirty. Plenty of time for you to stab her, go home, shower, and pick up Abby looking fresh and clean.”
“Whoa, I thought you said you believed me.”
Skye snapped her notebook closed and tucked it back into her tote before standing. “I do, but it’s obvious that the
Similar Books
