by Bill Evans
The coroner wasn’t buying any of this. “First, if Steve killed her then how did he do it? Then if he killed himself, again, where is the evidence?”
Lisa was a strong, strategic thinker. It was one of her strengths as a general manager. “What if the two of them had dinner with a third party, not at a restaurant but somewhere else to make sure they weren’t seen by anyone?”
“That would make sense and it fits everything we are finding out so far. Doc, was there anything in Jesse’s stomach that would tell us she had the same kind of dinner?”
“Absolutely, we would know by her stomach contents. Unfortunately, we don’t have the results at this time. We’re still waiting on the lab report.”
“Doc, how do you classify your findings and this case right now?” Detective Reynolds asked.
“I would call this an unsolved double murder right now.”
“Really? You’ll go on the record calling this a double murder now?” Barry asked. “What makes it a double murder?”
“Just like clearing the spouse of the crime by process of elimination. I know we don’t have a physical weapon at this time. I know we don’t have a motive. We have very little evidence at all. At the same time we can rule out accidental death or death by natural causes. That leaves suicide and murder. These two people, according to the interviews of friends and family, would not take their own lives. There is no evidence of suicide on the bodies. No evidence at the locations where we found the bodies. Dead people don’t hide evidence. That leaves us with murder. I am confident enough with the lack of everything we have to stipulate now that this is a double murder,” stated the medical examiner.
“Will you go on the air and explain this exactly like you just did?” Barry asked.
“I can do that.”
“This means there is definitely another person involved. So who do we look for?” Lisa asked.
“I believe you are looking for someone who knows the two of them,” the medical examiner said. “By the evidence, or lack of evidence, these killings were not of a brutal nature. That means this person was trusted enough to get close to them. They trusted this person enough to get both of them to meet with him or her after midnight somewhere.”
“We still don’t know why they would have to meet or why Jesse was in Steve’s bed and why Steve was found in the studio,” Lisa continued. “And why would Steve have this big, huge meal?”
“It is possible they weren’t together. In that case maybe there are two separate murderers,” Barry said.
“One murderer, that is all. The person who did this is very smart and meticulous. He or she didn’t leave any evidence anywhere. Things were well-planned enough to send confusing messages to the crime scene. I think the only things we know or have found out are the things the killer is okay with us knowing,” the medical examiner said.
“The killer must know what this relationship is between Steve and Jesse. Otherwise, why would there be two bodies?” Lisa added. “And if one person outside a two-person relationship knows about it, that means probably some other people know about it. We need to find those people.”
***
Several hours had passed. Lisa looked at the clock on the conference room wall. She needed to meet Stewart for drinks at his country club. Barry made arrangements for the coroner to be on the newscast at five and six. He was happy that for the first time in several nights his news team would have something new to report.
9
IT WAS 4:30 WHEN Lisa pulled up outside the country club just a few blocks from Stewart’s home. He liked to meet for early cocktails before he went into the dining room. Lisa had a lot to catch Stewart up on, but knowing him he probably already had this news.
Stewart was sitting in his normal, quiet place off in the corner. He liked being against the wall so he could see everyone approaching. He also liked sitting away from people for privacy reasons. Lisa walked over to him, stopping to ask the bar tender if he could put the TV on her station.
“I took the liberty to order your usual drink. Is there anything new on Steve and Jesse?” Stewart asked as soon as Lisa got to the table.
“Well, I just came from the coroner’s office. The autopsies are completed and the chief medical examiner is now willing to call this a double homicide.
“That’s new. What changed?” Stewart asked.
“In his words, the lack of evidence of a cause of death. The evidence isn’t telling us how they died, and so that makes it all suspicious.”
As Lisa was finishing her sentence, a very distinguished-looking gentleman stopped by the table. “Pardon the interruption, but I have to say hi to my favorite person, Masseur Simpson.”
“Pierre, the restaurant is wonderful and the food has been superb.” Stewart stood up to greet the chef. “Pierre, let me introduce to you Mademoiselle Lisa Campbell.”
Lisa extended her hand. “It is truly my pleasure.”
“Lisa, this is Pierre Cardeau, our extremely gifted executive chef,” Stewart said.
“It is wonderful to meet you, Mr. Cardeau.”
“Please, call me Pierre,” he said to Lisa. He then turned to Mr. Simpson, “You are too kind.”
Pierre Cardeau began to walk away only to turn back to Stewart. “How was the steak and lobster I got you the other night?”
“Perfect. One of the best meals I have ever had,” Stewart replied.
“You come in tonight and let me fix you my fantastic chocolate dessert that I know you’ll love,” Pierre said to the both of them.
“I promise I will be here this evening,” Stewart said.
Lisa almost choked on her drink when she heard the chef ask her owner, her lover, her boyfriend, how his steak and lobster was. Was this just a coincidence, or was it possible Stewart Simpson had something to do with Steve Johnson? Or, at the very least, Steve Johnson’s last meal. She composed herself so Stewart wouldn’t notice, but she knew she had to figure out a way to find out more about Stewart’s steak and lobster dinner.
“Steak and lobster?” she asked inquisitively.
“Pierre was nice enough to send over some steaks and lobsters for me the night I got in. It’s one of the perks of taking care of people the way I do. Sorry for the interruption. Continue bringing me up to speed. What were you saying about Steve and Jesse?” Stewart acted as if nothing important just happened.
Lisa’s mind was spinning. She remembered when she called Stewart to tell him that Steve and Jesse had been found dead. He said he was coming into town that night. That was the first night she met with him on this trip. She couldn’t help but think, What if he had gotten into town the night before? Why though? What could he possibly have going on with Steve Johnson?
“Lisa, are you out there somewhere?” Stewart’s voice startled his general manager out of her thought process.
“Sorry, I was just trying to remember everything I wanted to tell you. The coroner is calling this a double homicide now,” Lisa told Stewart.
“That’s what you said. Due to a lack of evidence or being unable to determine why either one of these people died.” Stewart chuckled at the thought. “That is something I’ve never seen or heard of before.”
“Stewart, there is going to be a memorial service for Steve Johnson tomorrow night. It might be nice if you stopped by. The station employees would be impressed if you did that.”
“I might be flying back to Dallas tomorrow morning for a meeting. If I’m here, I will show at the service, but don’t count on me.”
When Lisa finished her drink she made up an excuse to get back to the station. She knew Stewart would be disappointed that she would not be going back to his place. That was the normal routine, and although it wasn’t in the contract, it was certainly understood. Tonight Stewart would just let her go. He wasn’t up for the normal course of events tonight. It was better that he let her go back to work.
Lisa’s mind kept racing. She remembered telling Stewart about the deaths of Steve and Jesse and how Stewart alread
y knew that Steve was found on the news set—despite not being in Santa Barbara at the time. She remembered he said that people from Santa Barbara called him when they saw it reported on the news. He also knew about “a girl” found in Steve’s house—before it was made public. Curious, she thought.
On the drive back to the station, Lisa decided she wouldn’t share her new information or speculation with anyone until she had something more concrete. It was the only way to protect her owner from becoming part of this investigation. She hoped there would be an easy explanation to everything.
Lisa didn’t go back to the station. Instead, she went home. Tom would be there and they could just unwind with an early evening. She often wondered about the possibility of truly loving two men—and cheating on both. There was no real guilt for her. There was a definite sense of concern to keep her husband from ever finding out. Other than that, this was a perfect relationship for her and had been since they married. Lisa knew that most people would not be able to understand the relationship, but she was okay with that. She made sure that she never short-changed Tom in their relationship. Tonight she would let him know that he was the only man in her life. That was all he needed to know.
***
Barry had run the story with the chief medical examiner stating the case was now considered a double homicide. The other news channels didn’t have anything on their five o’clock news about it. Everyone had the story for their six o’clock news, but CBS had the actual interview. Not wanting to clap or say anything out loud, Barry was very pleased how the new November rating period was beginning to shape up.
Tami was at Barry’s house getting dinner ready. She would start her first day on tomorrow’s morning show. Barry thought she had practically moved into his place considering how much time she spent there. Tami, in her mind, had moved in with her boss. Getting up at 2:15 in the morning so her day could start at 3:00 didn’t excite her. But being part of this business did. She knew she had to start somewhere. It wasn’t lost on her that she was sleeping with her boss. That is not what she meant when she thought to herself she would have to start somewhere. She was in love with Barry but knew Barry wasn’t quite feeling the relationship the same way. The age difference bothered him. He knew the relationship would end when Tami got tired of hanging out with the old guy.
Barry’s phone rang at the house. His caller ID didn’t recognize the number so he almost didn’t answer the phone. “Barry, this is Richard. Do you know anything about a second life insurance policy on Steve Johnson?”
“A second life insurance policy?” Barry asked. “I know the station gives every employee a life insurance policy. Who’s the second policy’s beneficiary? Is it someone other than his family?”
“You could say that. The beneficiary is Stewart Simpson, the owner of your station.” Barry could see Tracy smiling a little as he shared this with Barry as if he’d just caught a big break.
“Why would the owner have a policy on our main anchor? Richard, let me get back to you. I need to check with someone on this. Thanks for the call. Oh, wait a minute. How much was the policy for?”
“A half million dollars.”
Barry sat for a period of time thinking about what he just heard. He hoped there was a good explanation but couldn’t figure out what it might be. Perhaps Lisa would know about the policy. If she did know, he’d feel a lot better about hearing about it. He dialed his boss’s number.
Lisa and Tom had gotten comfortable with a rare night of each other when her phone rang. She didn’t have the option not to answer it. Twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. That was the job description, and she lived it.
“Hello, Lisa speaking.”
“Lisa, it’s Barry. I just got a call from Detective Tracy. He asked me if I knew anything about a second life insurance policy that had been taken out on Steve Johnson. Second to the one the station gives every employee.”
“Okay. I would imagine the family had a life insurance policy,” Lisa stated.
“No. This one was for a half million dollars and was taken out by Stewart Simpson.”
There was a long pause on the phone. Lisa didn’t expect to hear something like this. She wasn’t ready to know this. What was she going to do with this information?
“Are you sure about this?”
“That’s what I was told by Richard a few minutes ago. In fact, he was calling me to ask me if this was a common thing that owners did on their talent. I told him I didn’t know anything about it.”
“I’ll talk to you tomorrow. Don’t talk about this to anyone. Goodnight.” Lisa hung up the phone. Instantly, she thought about the chef coming over to the table and asking Stewart about the steak and lobster. How could all of this be a coincidence? She wondered what Stewart would say to her when she asked him about the life insurance policy. So much for Tom getting all her attention tonight, she thought as she walked back to where her husband was sitting.
“Problems?” he asked.
“Nothing out of the ordinary,” she lied.
***
Lisa woke up fresh from seven hours of sleep. The pill worked. Her first order of business was to call Stewart on her way into the office. She decided she would tell him about the phone call last night. The truth was Lisa wanted to hear Stewart’s reaction or what he had to say about the insurance policy. A cup of coffee with Tom and off she’d go.
Barry awoke with a half bottle of wine opened next to him. There were two more bottles of wine next to that one. Tami had gotten up without waking him. Maybe she never got to sleep. He remembered sharing the bottles of wine, making love, and still trying desperately not to think about the detective’s phone call. Barry didn’t remember much from the evening, so whatever he did must have worked. Unfortunately, he was paying the price for it now.
Lisa and Barry arrived at the station about the same time. She had tried calling her owner a couple of different times but they went straight to voice mail. She thought about asking the business manager if he knew of any such policy the owner had on the anchors. The risk there was if he didn’t know about the policy he would now. What if Stewart did this outside the station so no one knew about it?
The phone on the GM’s desk was ringing as she opened her office door. “Good morning, this is Lisa.”
“Lisa, Stewart. I’m calling to let you know I won’t be attending the service tonight.” She never thought he would show up. “I’m on the plane heading back to Dallas. I’ll let you know when I’m coming back out. Talk to you soon.”
Before she could get a word out Stewart was off the phone. He must have known the police were going to want to talk to him. Another coincidence, she thought. There is no way this is not tied together. Now her boss was on the run to get out of reach of the Santa Barbara police. She had seen this before, but that was a story from a very different time.
Lisa and the rest of the station had a memorial to get ready for. The day had gotten away from all of them. There was still a lot of shock and grief throughout the building. Murder was the word being used now. Even with more security added at the station, no one felt any safer. People didn’t know if this was a one-time event or if there was a bigger problem involving the station.
John continued trying to figure out what Steve had done his last night. He decided to go to the apartment of Chris Andrews. Chris worked in master control the morning Steve was found in the studio. Master control is commonly known as the department of geeks. It is one of the most important areas of a television station, and yet it is treated as an entry level position. All on-air programming inside a television station goes through master control. That includes commercials, public service announcements, syndication programs, paid programming, all live newscasts, and whatever the network airs.
Chris Andrews worked overnight shifts, which meant he was almost a babysitter. His job consisted of making sure everything aired properly and the commercials all played where they were supposed to. During the overnight shifts there were very few commerc
ials, so the commercial time was filled with public service and station promotions. His real work would start about four in the morning. At five the station brought in a second person in master control because of the morning news show that ran from five to seven. Then there were the news cut-ins for the next couple of hours.
John was struck by the odor of grass coming from outside the apartment. It wasn’t heavy enough to catch everyone’s attention, but John, just out of college, knew the smell well. He decided to knock on the apartment door knowing this could be embarrassing for Chris. Chris didn’t hesitate and answered the door yelling, “Scott, it’s about time!”
It was obvious to John that Chris was expecting someone and probably not someone from the station. “Hey, Chris, it’s John Rankin from CBS 2.”
Chris was shocked and immediately started waving his hand to blow the smoke clear as much as possible. It didn’t do much to change the air quality.
“John, what brings you over here?”
“You have a few minutes? I need to ask you a couple of questions about the morning I found Steve in the studio. Would that be okay?” John was still standing outside and hoped Chris would ask him in.
Chris turned and walked back into the one-bedroom apartment. He waved to John to follow. “Sorry about the mess. I’ve been off for a day and we’ve been partying a little. So, what do you want to ask me?”
“Did you see Steve come back into the station that night?” John asked his co-worker.
“John, I’ve already told the police everything I remember. Why are you asking questions?” Chris seemed irritated.
“I’m doing some background work for Barry in the newsroom. We’re trying to retrace Steve’s last three hours. We know he left the building around eleven forty-five. What we don’t know is when he came back to the station,” John explained.
