A Deadly Influence (Abby Mullen Thrillers #1)(69)
“How many statements do you need?” Otis asked, as if he were a cashier taking an order in a statement drive-through.
“It’s a long way from the city,” Abby said. “Better take as many as I can so I don’t make the trip twice.”
“Let’s start with Charlie O’Neal,” Otis suggested. “He’s Karl’s roommate. He spends more time with him than anyone else.”
He made a phone call to summon Charlie, and they waited. Otis asked them if they wanted any drinks, and they both refused. Abby already needed to pee after the long drive, and she didn’t need additional stress on her bladder.
Charlie showed up pretty quickly, wiping his hands on his shirt. Abby pegged him to be in his midthirties.
“Nice to meet you, Charlie,” Abby said. “I’m Abby, and this is Detective Wong.”
He sat down next to them, facing Otis. Abby turned her own chair to face Charlie, her back to Wong.
“Charlie, how long have you been Karl’s roommate?” she asked.
“About three and a half years,” Charlie said, looking sideways at her while his body still faced Otis.
“And before that?”
Charlie glanced at Otis, then back at her. “Before that I lived in Hempstead.”
Abby nodded. Wong dragged her chair so she could also see Charlie. She had a notebook in her lap and jotted in it as he spoke. Good.
“Did you live with Karl in Hempstead?”
Charlie blinked in confusion. “No, I lived with my wife.”
“Oh,” Abby said, acting surprised. “Is your wife here too?”
“No. She stayed behind in Hempstead. We got divorced.”
“I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay. I’m blameless and upright.” He exchanged looks with Otis and smiled.
It was the second time Abby had heard that phrase within the compound. She knew what it referenced. The book of Job said that Job was “blameless and upright.” It was the Tillman cult members’ way of reacting to negative thoughts about the cult. Job hadn’t complained about his troubles, and neither should they.
She frowned, as if confused by his answer. “Okay . . . were you with Karl on the eighteenth of October around noon?”
“Yes.” Zero hesitation.
“Don’t you need to think it through?”
“No.”
“I can’t remember who I was with yesterday evening. I’m impressed you can remember so far back that easily.”
He snorted. “I’m with Karl every day at noon. We eat lunch together, all of us.”
“What, everyone on the farm?”
“Yeah, that’s right,” he said, his tone getting challenging.
“That’s a lot of people.”
“We have a large dining hall,” Otis interrupted.
“And you remember Karl being there on the eighteenth,” Abby said, addressing Charlie.
“We sit next to each other. So yeah, I remember.”
“Who does the cooking for these enormous lunches?”
“We take shifts.”
“What did you eat that day?” Abby asked pleasantly.
Charlie glanced at Otis.
“It was a Friday,” Otis said.
“Oh, then it was green beans and beef,” Charlie said, his face relieved.
“You didn’t remember?”
“I remember. It was green beans and beef.”
“Do you eat green beans and beef every Friday?”
“Yeah, that’s right,” Charlie said, his tone sharpening again.
“I get bored when I eat the same food every week,” Abby said. “Don’t you ever get bored?”
Another glance at Otis. “No. Routine is a privilege.”
“I guess you’re right. I never thought of it that way.”
“You wouldn’t.” His smirk was victorious, as if he’d beaten her in some invisible game.
“Which is your favorite weekly meal?” Abby asked.
Otis sighed. “Detective, what does that have to do with anything?”
“Just getting to know Charlie,” she said casually, keeping her eyes on O’Neal. He seemed completely stumped. That didn’t surprise her. Indoctrinated cult members often couldn’t handle open-ended questions that didn’t relate to the cult’s agenda. They were conditioned to avoid individual thinking, and that could even apply to favorite foods.
After a while he said hesitantly, “I like the fish on Monday.”
She asked him about the two dates when Karl had been seen near Eden’s house. Not surprisingly, Charlie answered immediately that Karl had been with him both times. Since one was in the morning and one was in the evening, he said he remembered it because they had been in their church with everyone else—morning and evening prayers.
“A witness testified to seeing Karl in Brooklyn on those dates,” Abby said. “Do you think the witness is wrong?”
“Yes, because Karl was with me.”
“Do you think the witness is lying?”
Charlie shrugged. “It’s not my place to judge. That’s the burden of God and his emissaries.”
“I think it’s possible that someone is trying to frame Karl for something he didn’t do,” Abby said. “Can you think of anyone who would wish Karl harm?”