CHAPTER FIFTY SEPTEMBER

Wokebro: Who cares about a fucking necklace?

Alex33: It doesn’t make sense though.

BreannaT: She’s right. It’s not a small detail.

TNT: Hard disagree. I mean, come on.

Daddy-oh: Exactly. Leigh Jones saw his tattoo. She put the nail in the coffin. Guy’s guilty as sin.

Alex33: It fits too well though, his confession. Especially with the heart detail.

Wokebro: The confession doesn’t even matter though. Leigh Jones is all that matters.

Alex33: She’s a key witness, I’m not arguing that.

TNT: She’s the witness. That’s the point.

BreannaT: And if the police had listened to her in the first place, the guy would have been caught before killing more people.

Daddy-oh: Who knows how many people this guy’s killed.

Hannahbanana: Nobody listens to women. That’s why serial killers get away with it.

TNT: JFC. Can we make this not about feminazi-ism for once?

BreannaT: She has a point.

Hannahbanana: It’s called femicide. Educate yourself.

TNT: It’s called you’re a cunt. Educate yourself.

Hannahbanana: Wow, dude. You a little fragile? Your mommy hurt you or something?

Alex33: Why would you say it’s a heart necklace? Why specify that if it’s not?

Wokebro: Memo to Alex. No one gives a shit.

“What’s wrong?” Wiley asks, to my frown.

“Misogynist pricks on Twitter,” I answer.

Wiley lets out a scornful laugh. “Try being a they on Twitter. That’s a barrel of laughs.”

“Yeah,” I say, feeling guilty for complaining. “I’m sure that sucks worse.”

Wiley fact-checks something while I leaf through the confession, the autopsy, and the police report again. I find no other connections or insights.

“Do you think I’m overthinking the heart thing?” I ask, having blurted out my discovery right when I came into the office.

“Meh.” Wiley opens their desk drawer, searching for Nicorette gum, then pops out a piece from the foil. “I think it won’t push the needle for Toby, if that’s what you’re thinking.”

“That’s for sure,” I say, with a groan. “I’d have to have an actual video of someone else killing Nicole White to get any traction with her.”

They chomp the nicotine gum. “What did she say about the newest 666 letter?”

“Not much,” I answer. “Sent me an email apologizing for the lapse in workplace safety that was basically cut and pasted from an HR manual.”

Wiley harrumphs at this.

Tidying my desk, I notice a thick manila envelope that had been covered by a book. With a beat of excitement, I recognize it as the FOIA packet and, picking it up, uncover yet another FOIA packet for Ryan Johnson. “Ah,” I declare. “Two FOIA packets. My cup runneth over.”

“Yippee,” Wiley says.

Ignoring them, I make haste with my packets. I open the first one with some hesitation, given the contents of the last letter, but find nothing but normal, boring official-looking photocopies. Flipping through, I see Adam Redmond’s fingerprints, along with DNA results from a freely given saliva swab. He was very cooperative, in fact. A detective’s report full of typos fills another page, along with handwritten notes. The handwriting looks large and sloppy but is actually fairly legible. States alibi was an AA meeting. Wife confirms. AA meeting was scheduled that night at St. Mary’s Baptist Church.

“AA meeting,” I say to myself.

It seems their wise counsel hasn’t stuck, unfortunately. But as for the meeting, I can only hope the police verified that. Ten years later, I would have no way of doing so, short of asking the church for any records, which I doubt they kept. And the group’s confidentiality would be another strike against me. Further down the page, I spot another line, type-written this time.

POLYGRAPH: PASSED.

I skip over pages with less legible handwriting, deciding to move onto Ryan Johnson before tackling that. This time, DNA was not freely given, and neither were fingerprints. It appears his parents spent money they didn’t have on a lawyer. He cooperated only inasmuch as absolutely required. He gave his Clare Dibold alibi, which was minimally checked. His noncompliance with police efforts seemed to start after one key development early in the investigation. This was also typewritten.

POLYGRAPH: FAILED