Page 36 of Shadow Angel
“Yeah, thanks. I’ll put on a pot of coffee and make some sandwiches.” Mrs. Crenshaw made the way to the kitchen.
It was clean and tidy, almost as if she’d made plans to leave, or was that Beth’s suspicious nature? She waited for the woman to sit at the table, accepted a cup of coffee but waved away the offer of food. It seemed inappropriate for what she had planned to reveal. “I need you to prepare yourself for a shock, Mrs. Crenshaw. Have you ever had suspicions things were not right with your husband?”
“Joe? No, why? He’s a good man. He helps out everyone.” Mrs. Crenshaw ate her sandwich slowly eyeing Beth with a frown. “All this, the search warrant, and arresting Joe must be a mistake. He hasn’t gotten as much as a parking ticket.”
Blowing out a breath, Beth lifted her chin. “It’s no mistake. I’m afraid Joe murdered a woman and he captured it all on video. That’s why he keeps his room locked. He has images of the women he killed on the walls.”
“I know about the pictures.” Mrs. Crenshaw smiled at her. “He loves horror movies and those are just stills. He calls them his ‘darlings’ and he showed me one day. There’s nothing wrong with a man having a hobby. He kept the door locked to keep the kids out. They’d be frightened if they saw them.”
Gathering her patience, Beth sipped the coffee. “They’re not from horror movies. They’re real. He murdered all those women and last night he tried to murder me.”
“I don’t believe you. He’d never do such a thing and those photographs are from horror movies. Why would he show them to me if they were real?” Mrs. Crenshaw blinked and looked over Beth closely. “You’re saying you were with him last night?” Her mouth turned down, “You were alone with my husband? Where?”
Beth cleared her throat. “Yeah. In a cabin in Rainbow around eleven.”
“It’s all lies.” Mrs. Crenshaw’s mouth turned into an ugly sneer. “You blonde pretty women are all the same. You’re just trying to turn me against him so you can have him for yourself.”
“Allow me to explain.” Styles strode through the door. “Agent Katz was attacked by your husband. She didn’t invite him into the cabin. Your husband has been arrested and is accused of homicide. We have enough evidence to convict him in this state and no doubt other states will be lining up to do the same. You can pack your bags now. Father Paul is coming to take you to the shelter. You can collect the kids from school along the way.”
“Stop wasting your time and go and find the real killer.” Mrs. Crenshaw glared at Styles. “It wasn’t him.”
“We’ll let the courts decide.” Styles handed her over to Ryder and turned to Beth. “We’re done here. As soon as Mrs. Crenshaw has left, we’ll lock up the place and hand it over to forensics. There’s a team flying in from Helena to collect the evidence. It’s too big even for Wolfe’s team to handle.”
Beth got to her feet, rinsed the cups and plate from the table, and followed him outside. She took a few deep breaths of clean mountain air and turned to him. “Did you hear from the lawyer?”
“Yeah, we’ll grab some lunch and pack an overnight bag. We get to interview Crenshaw at four this afternoon. We’ll stay over at Black Rock Falls. I’ve booked us rooms at the Cattleman’s Hotel. We can update our files and hopefully have this case tied up and handed over before nightfall. We’re staying over because I don’t want to risk negotiating the mountains in the dark, especially after getting little sleep last night. You okay with that?”
Beth smiled at him. “That sounds perfect.”
THIRTY-NINE
Black Rock Falls
They arrived at the Black Rock Falls County Jail with Crenshaw’s lawyer in tow. He was friendly, very professional, and Beth liked him. He walked behind them, and Styles and Ryder kept Beth between them as they walked through the passageway between the cages. They were informed by an apologetic guard this was the only direct route to the interview rooms from the roof. Annoying though it was, it gave Beth an insight into male prison life. The exercise yards like giant animal cages showed groups of men. Each it seemed preferred the company of their own cultural group and all explained without shame what they’d like to do to her. She’d deliberately worn her FBI jacket same as Styles because anything else would make her appear to cower before a bunch of foul-mouthed criminals. They reached the corridor leading to the interview room and Styles turned to look at her. She smiled at him. “Better than being at the zoo, huh?”
“Just don’t let them get inside your head.” Styles turned to the lawyer, Jerry Blackwood. “We’ll be outside when he’s ready to talk.”
“Okay.” Blackwood followed the guard through a door.
One of the guards, motioned them closer. “Agents Wells and Carter are here. They’ve asked to speak to you.” He motioned to another door. “In here.”
Glancing at Styles, Beth waited for him to comment.
“I’m okay to have them observe.” He stared at her and then at Ryder. “You both okay with that?”
Nodding, Beth followed the guard through the door. She smiled at Carter and Jo. “Nice to see you again. What a case this has been. Have you been following it?”
“Yeah.” Jo nodded and her attention moved to Styles. “Hi, Styles, how’s that dog of yours?”
“He’s fine and spending the night with Nate.” Styles grinned at her. “He didn’t want to leave me, but he understands the wordkennelsand suddenly decided to go along, although with his head down and tail between his legs. It’s only for one night. He’ll be fine. Nate loves him.”
“I have the same problem, but as luck would have it, Zorro has formed a relationship with Duke.” Carter moved a toothpick across his lips. “He’s owned by Deputy Dave Kane out at Black Rock Falls. We stay in their cottage from time to time and the dogs get along just fine.”
Clearing her throat, Beth looked from one to the other. “Have we got a plan? This is one crazy killer and we need more information. I’d like to know what made him kill for a start.”
“That might be difficult.” Jo waved a hand to Styles. “Styles should take the lead because this guy has no respect for women. That’s obvious by the way he posed them. I’m happy to throw in a few questions but we should have everyone in the interview room. You mentioned in your notes that he acted like a coward the moment Styles and Ryder arrived.” She looked at Ryder. “That’s if it’s okay with you, Sheriff?”
“Yeah, I haven’t had too much experience with psychopaths.” Ryder removed his hat. “I’ll stay outside and watch through the two-way mirror. It will be too crowded in there.” He pulled a small recording device from his pocket. “You’ll need this for the record.”
