Say You're Sorry

Morgan rubbed at an ache in the back of her neck. “By ten thirty, Tessa was alone at the lake.”

Sharp halted and frowned. “So what happened next?”

Three beats of silence passed, then Lance asked, “Did Nick know she was pregnant?”

“I don’t think so. He didn’t mention it.” Morgan wrote the question in her notes for her next interview with Nick. “I didn’t know about it when I interviewed him. But the DA’s theory is that she broke up with him because she was pregnant with another guy’s baby. Nick became enraged. He came back to the party and attacked her.”

“It’s a reasonable hypothesis.” Sharp pivoted to face the board. “But it isn’t without holes.”

Morgan scanned the autopsy. “The ME notes that a chunk of Tessa’s hair was cut from her head using a blade, not scissors. It was not found at the scene.”

Sharp straightened. “A trophy?”

“Or a memento,” Lance said. “May I see that report?”

Morgan moved aside, giving him access to the pages she’d spread out on the table.

Lance moved to a pile of crime scene photos and selected one. “Tessa was wearing a denim skirt. When she was found, she was fully dressed and her skirt was arranged over her legs.” Lance took the photo and attached it to the murder board with a magnet. “He dressed her or allowed her to dress, suggesting the murder didn’t occur immediately after the rape.”

“So was the killer ashamed of the rape?” Morgan asked. “Maybe that’s why he wrote sorry on her forehead.”

“Possibly, if he’s the one who is sorry. It’s also possible that he thinks Tessa should have been sorry for something.” Sharp stepped up next to Lance and stared at the picture. “Because I see rage in the extent of Tessa’s injuries.” Sharp’s gaze flickered back and forth between the timeline, the photos, and the inconsistencies. “Nick said he didn’t use a condom.”

“Correct,” Morgan said.

“Were any condoms found at his house?” Lance asked.

“No.” Morgan pointed at the board. “But whoever raped Tessa brought a condom and a knife with him, making his attack premeditated.”

“So her killer was very angry but planned out his attack,” Sharp said in a tight voice. “At least in the time immediately preceding the murder. Possible motives: jealousy, possession . . .”

“If I can’t have her no one can?” Lance returned to the table. “Do we have Tessa’s phone records?”

“Yes,” Morgan said. “The Palmers gave the police immediate access to their account. For a teenager, she doesn’t have much activity on her phone. Mostly she texted back and forth with Felicity and Nick. Reviewing her texts for the three weeks before her death, I found complaints that her grandparents are ridiculous, they don’t understand her, they want her to date Jacob. She describes him as an obnoxious jerk. She doesn’t mention her pregnancy. However, on the night she was murdered, right after she texted Felicity, she placed a twenty-nine-second phone call to the landline at Jacob Emerson’s house.”

“Who uses a landline?” Sharp asked.

“I don’t even have one,” Lance added.

“In Jacob’s interview, he says he and Tessa only went out a couple of times. His parents and her grandparents kept pushing them together, but he says they weren’t ‘into each other.’” Morgan used air quotes. “Jacob isn’t permitted to have his phone at night. It gets turned off and left in the kitchen. Tessa knew the rule and called on the landline. Jacob’s father answered the phone and told her to call back in the morning.”

Sharp rubbed the back of his neck. “What about the connection between Tessa and Jamie?” He put a photo of Jamie on the board and drew a line connecting it with Tessa’s picture.

Lance hung a picture of Kevin Murdoch on the board. “I want more background information on Jamie’s soon-to-be stepfather.”

“The excessive sweater?” Sharp asked.

“Lance is right,” Morgan agreed. “Kevin was far too nervous during our interview. In addition to sweating bullets, Kevin couldn’t hold eye contact or keep his hands off his face. He knew Tessa, and he’s hiding something. I want to know what.”

“Did the police collect DNA from any of the other kids?” Sharp asked. “The forensic reports aren’t in, but the medical examiner found a number of hairs on her body and clothing. Different colors. Different lengths. None of those have been tested yet.”

Morgan shook her head. “No. It seems they focused only on Nick from the very beginning. But she could have picked up hairs hugging her friends.”

“But they could still be compared to the DNA of the fetus,” Sharp said, “if we think the unknown father is a suspect for her rape and murder. A condom prevents the transfer of DNA via semen, but it’s hard to rape a woman without leaving any biological evidence behind. I’ve no doubt that forensics will turn up other sources of DNA. The difficulty lies in determining what belongs to the killer and what could have been transferred through normal activities.”

Lance stood and rubbed his thigh. He said his bullet wound was fine, but it clearly still bothered him. “So what’s our theory?”

Morgan set her marker on the narrow ledge of the whiteboard. “Tessa was alone at the lake. We know she was upset with her grandparents. She texted Felicity about her breakup with Nick. Then she called Jacob’s house but was denied access to him. What happened next? Someone had to come back to the lake and attack her. He brought a condom and a knife with him. He knew she was there and planned to kill her.”

“But who?” Lance asked.

“I want to get a copy of last year’s high school yearbook,” Morgan said. “Then we can see who Tessa hung out with last year.”

“The autopsy says she was approximately eight weeks pregnant, so she got pregnant in July,” Lance pointed out. “Not during the school year.”

Morgan nodded. “True, but I doubt very much that Tessa slept with a boy she didn’t know.”

Sharp jerked a thumb at his growing lists of Witnesses and Suspects. “We need to gather as much information as possible about every one of these people. Lance, how about we get your mom on that?”

Lance fumbled a pencil. “My mom?”

His mom? Morgan’s curiosity piqued. Other than the revelation about his father’s disappearance, Lance didn’t talk much about his family or past.

Sharp nodded. “She’s the pro at accessing online information, and we need the help.” He gestured toward the board. “In case you hadn’t noticed, this case is a total cluster. Our best alternate suspect is a seventeen-year-old with a lawyer for a father.”

“My mom has never helped us with a case. She might not want to get involved,” Lance protested.

“You won’t know until you ask.” Sharp pinned Lance with a look. “She might appreciate being useful. It could be good for her.”

Lance looked doubtful.

“Do you want me to ask her?” Sharp offered.

“No. I have to check on her today anyway.” But Lance didn’t look happy about the idea. “No promises.”

“Understood.” Sharp nodded.

“We need to interview Robby Barone, Felicity Weber, and Jacob Emerson. I have no doubt Mr. Emerson will be in on Jacob’s interview.” Morgan abandoned her file, went to the board, and started a list of Questions.