Chapter Twenty-nine
Megan was up when Kate and Cindy got up. She asked if she could run with them this morning. Kate welcomed her gladly and all three went for a run and Cindy and Megan showered when they returned and Kate made some breakfast.
After breakfast, Kate went in and got a shower and the three got ready for the day.
Megan said, “You guys have got to keep me in the loop on this, for the first time I can remember I am interested in my mom’s case.”
Kate looked at Cindy and said, “I guess we can see why Vicky wanted to talk to us away from her house.”
Cindy said, “We may have enough evidence now to get a judge to sign off on a search warrant.”
Kate said, “I think it is worth a try and I don’t want to tip our hand with Vicky until we get it. I say after we get the warrant, we should drop by her house without any warning.”
Kate and Cindy went to the judge and Kate pleaded her case. The judge signed the warrant and Kate put it in her folder. They thanked the judge and went back to the station to tell the captain about their plan.
With a warrant and photos in hand, Kate and Cindy went back to pay a visit to Vicky. She was surprised when she opened the door and saw Kate and Cindy standing there.
Kate said, “We need to have a talk.”
Vicky said, :I have told you all I know, I don’t know anything else.”
Kate replied, “Oh I think you know a lot more.”
Vicky said, “I think I am going to have to ask you to leave.”
Kate pulled out the warrant and pushed it in Vicky’s hands and said, “I think I am going to have to ask you to get the fuck out of the way.”
Kate brought two of her best forensics specialists with her. She pointed inside the house and said, “Don’t leave anything unturned.”
Kate was clearly agitated and Vicky didn’t say any more. Kate asked, “Were you fine with your sister’s murderer never coming to justice as long as your affair was kept secret?”
Vicky replied, “I don’t know what you mean.”
Kate asked, “Would you care to tell us again about this photo?” Kate had the enlarged photo attached that showed a blonde wig clearly covering her dark hair.
One of the forensics investigators walked out of a bedroom carrying a blonde wig. It was the same style as the one that appeared in the photo.
Vicky said, “Can we do the interview at the station? My husband will be home later tonight. I would like to be discreet if possible.”
Kate said, “If you will tell the truth. If you don’t, your husband will know everything I know.”
The forensics crew got the wig, they didn’t have much hope of finding anything else. Kate made a walk through to see if there was anything she spotted that she wanted bagged. When she walked into the bedroom she paused. She held up the blackmail photo and recognized that it was taken in this room.
Kate asked, “Can you tell me that isn’t your bed in this photo?”
Vicky replied, “I can’t tell you that. How did you figure it out?”
Kate said, “I will tell you what we have when we go for our talk. I will give you some answers and you can give me some answers.”
Vicky followed Kate and Cindy out to Kate’s car. Kate told the CSI team, “Lock the door when you leave.”
When they arrived at the station, Kate found an empty interrogation room and the three women sat down with the folder full of photos. Kate opened it up and spread the photos around so that all could be clearly seen.
Kate asked, “Can you confirm this is you in the photo?”
Vicky replied, “Yes, that is me.”
Kate said, “Can you tell us what happened and when it happened?”
Vicky said, “It wasn’t Linda who was lonely at home and by herself all the time, it was me. She went on trips with her husband and sometimes I tagged along but I usually felt like a third wheel and just stayed home by myself.”
Kate asked, “How long have you been wearing the wig?”
Vicky replied, “I wore it for the first time at a Halloween party. I got a lot of attention so I continued to wear it.”
Kate asked, “Who is the guy in the photo?”
Vicky replied after a period of silence, “I am ashamed to say, I don’t know. I met him at the party. He was flirty and showed me a lot of attention. That was all I needed. My husband was out of town so I invited him to my house for drinks. It just escalated from there. He put his belongings on the dresser across from the bed and there must have been a camera there.”
Kate asked, “Did you see him anymore after that time?”
Vicky replied, “No and that upset me. I tried to find out who he was and no one knew. We couldn’t figure out who invited him, no one had ever seen him before.”
Kate asked, “When did you get the envelope with the note and photos?”
Vicky said, “Linda actually got the photos and note, but she recognized it was me in the picture right away. I think he thought I was her, and maybe she was deliberately targeted.”
Cindy asked, “Did Linda confront you about what was received?”
Vicky replied, “Yes, she couldn’t believe I did it and especially wearing the wig.. We were confused about why she got the blackmail note and photos.”
Kate said, “It seems obvious, someone thought they were having an affair with Linda. It sounds like something that was planned, perhaps all they had to go on was a photo. You do resemble your sister when wearing the wig.”
Vicky said, “Linda told me I better take care of it, she said she wasn’t paying anyone any money. She said she would keep it a secret as long as it didn’t interfere with her own marriage.”
Kate asked, “Did you in fact pay any blackmail money?”
Vicky replied, “I first tried to reason with them. I told them I wasn’t who they thought I was. I told them I was Linda’s sister and I had been wearing a wig for a Halloween party. They thought I was trying to get out of paying. The funny thing was my husband saw me in the wig in a photo and wanted me to wear it. It spiced things up between us.”
Kate asked, “Did you ever actually pay any money to them?”
Vicky replied, “They were asking for a hundred thousand dollars. I didn’t have that kind of money. Linda would have and could have paid, but she refused and I told them I didn’t have it. They said I would be sorry.”
Kate asked, “How did they contact you?”
Vicky replied, “They sent some notes, a few emails and called, but all of the demands went to Linda because that was who they thought they were dealing with.”
Kate asked, “Do you think Linda was killed because the blackmail wasn’t paid?”
Vicky responded, “I don’t know for sure, I always thought that may be the case.”
Kate said, “Can you give us the dates and times the phone calls came in? We might be able to check cell phone records and trace who made the calls.”
Vicky responded, “All of the messages were relayed from Linda so I don’t know exact times but I can guess a range of time. I will make you a list.”
Kate said, “Okay, make me a list and we will try to figure out who made the calls. You can go home for now and we will keep things quiet.”