Page 20 of Go Under

Kate could see a hint of that difficulty coming out now. Not an orneriness, per se, but self-confidence and a complete lack of fear. If Donna possessed that quality in even greater measure, then it was perfectly believable that she could have angered the wrong person to the point of violence.

“We need to understand why someone would have wanted to kill your sister,” Marcus said. “While your specific difficulties might not be relevant, understanding them can help us paint a picture of your sister’s final days and maybe give us an idea where to look for her killer. I know it seems a little out there, but trust me, every question I ask has a purpose.”

It was a very roundabout way to avoid saying, Well, actually, Carol, you might be the killer, and we need to be sure.

Carol didn’t look entirely convinced, but she looked absolutely taken by Marcus. Kate wasn’t surprised. Everyone loved Marcus.

After a moment, Carol sighed and said, “I’m having difficulties in my marriage. My sister has never been one to hide her feelings on a subject. She offered her feelings on my marriage, and I didn’t take kindly to them.”

“I can imagine not,” Marcus said. “I’m sorry to hear that.”

Carol shrugged. “You show up for family. Donna burned every other bridge she had, but I kept a rope to throw to the other side from time to time.” Her face softened. “She meant well, I think. As I said, our family was not full of pleasant people. We were never taught how to be properly affectionate. If anything, we were taught affection was a weakness.”

“Did you visit her this morning to address the conflict between you two?”

That was a bit of a leading question, but now that the ice was broken, they needed to get the interview on track.

Carol nodded. “You show up for family. I hadn’t seen her in over a month, not since the fight, but I still texted her every day. She would always respond. She always did that. She showed up for family.”

Kate wondered how many times Carol had told herself that over the years, how much pain and anguish she’d endured because she had to show up for family. If not for the connection to the ninth commandment, Kate could see Carol snapping in a moment of weakness.

But not sewing a mouth shut and carving a cipher. That wasn’t a moment of weakness. That was premeditated.

“When did she stop responding?” Marcus asked.

“Just last night,” Carol replied. “But she always texted back.”

“Why did you visit so early?” Kate asked, breaking her silence.

“I had work today. Have work today. Oh, shit. I need to call my boss.”

“Don’t worry about that right now,” Marcus said, keeping his voice soothing. “They’ll understand when they learn what happened.”

Carol chuckled bitterly. “I’m sure they will. Then I’ll get to hear from everyone over the next several weeks how strong I am. They’ll want stories about her, and…” She took a deep breath. “God. It’s hard losing someone, even if you didn’t like them that much. They linger. It’s like an odor that you can’t get rid of no matter how many times you clean.”

Kate inhaled more Pine-Sol-over-vomit scent and decided Carol was exactly right.

Marcus nodded. He shifted his position and fixed Carol with a different expression, still gentle but lacking the smile. It was a sign that the interview had become serious. “Did Donna ever mention a gentleman by the name of Gerald Mace?”

Carol stared blankly at him. “Who?”

“Gerald Mace. The name doesn’t ring a bell?”

“No, I’m sorry. Do you believe that Gerald Mace killed Donna?”

“No,” Marcus said. “We’re just following up on a lead we had.”

Carol got the memo. “Was this Gerald murdered as well? With his mouth sewn shut?”

“We can’t release details of an ongoing investigation,” Kate said. Which was the only way she could say yes.

“Oh God,” Carol said. “Oh…” She shook her head. “No, I’m sorry. I’ve never heard of a Gerald Mace and certainly never met one.”

“Did you or anyone in your family ever live in the Philadelphia area?” Marcus asked.

“Well… Wilmington is close to Philadelphia, but we never lived any closer.”

“Did Donna attend court there?” Marcus pressed. “Or did she ever serve jury duty in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas?”