When Perfection Fails (11 page)

As Detective Darnell Jackson approached, Lenora was grateful for a familiar face. The handsome detective would be marrying Candace in a few short weeks. Too bad this meeting wasn't wedding related. Only a few hours before, she was enjoying cake samples with his fiancée.

Darnell's voice rolled out smooth and mellow. “I'm so sorry, Mrs. Freeman?”

She scolded. “After all this time, you know you can call me Lenora.” She hated the way she addressed the detective, but it occurred to her how wrong the day had turned out to be. This man was a homicide detective. She shook her head. “I'm sorry, I know you're doing your job right now.”

He bowed his head, his face was solemn. “It's okay, Lenora. Is there someone we can call for you?”

Lenora stared at him. “No, I'm fine. Is Charmayne all right?”

Darnell hesitated. “I understand Charmayne Hudson came by to visit you yesterday at the boutique.”

Why won't he answer my question?
“Yes, she came by during the fitting with Candace and the other members of the bridal party.” Did Candace mention something to him? Lenora felt compelled to admit. “We did have a disagreement.”

Darnell responded back, “Friends argue. It happens.” He rubbed his goatee. “Would you care to share what the argument was about?”

Lenora twisted her fingers. “Why is that important, Detective Jackson?” Deep down she knew the answer to her question, but she asked again. “Is Charmayne okay?”

That's when she noticed an official-looking man walk up toward them. Darnell nodded, and the man returned his nod. As he walked by, Lenora saw CSI across the back of his shirt.

This was a crime scene. But it was Charmayne's house.

The neighborhood houses around her seemed to tilt. Or was that her body swaying? Lenora lurched forward.

Darnell caught her. “Why don't we go over here and sit down?”

She let the detective guide her away from the scene behind her over to a bench that sat in the middle of Charmayne's front yard. Lenora remembered this was Charmayne's mother's favorite spot. Rosebushes grew next to the bench.

Darnell cleared his throat. “I really hate to be the bearer of bad news.”

Too late. He was only stating the obvious. Lenora held her hands up to her mouth and choked on the lump that had suddenly appeared in her throat. Tears sprang in her eyes as she rocked her body back and forth. “She's dead. I know.”

“I'm so sorry, Mrs. Freeman. I mean, Lenora.”

A memory of Charmayne's distraught face yesterday appeared in her mind. Lenora focused on Darnell's face. “She was in the car.”

Darnell glanced over his shoulder before responding. “She apparently succumbed to the high levels of carbon monoxide.”

“She would have never done something like this on purpose.”

Darnell eyed her. “Maybe we should go down to the station to talk in private.”

“Why do you need me to go to the station?”

“It's just an informal conversation. I would like to know Charmayne's frame of mind.”

“You're homicide, but you think she killed herself?”

“Well, we need to determine the cause of death. I can say the manner in which she was found leans toward suicide.”

Lenora shook her head vehemently. “Charmayne would never take her own life.”

“You seem really sure of that, Lenora.”

She held her hands up. “I've known her most of my life.”

Darnell frowned. “Sometimes we don't always know people.”

“I have been calling her and she . . .” Lenora thought of the phone call she received before she drove over to her house. Was that Charmayne reaching out for help? Lenora didn't know how severe the threats had become, but she knew her friend was scared. What the detective didn't know was there was danger lurking and Charmayne's death may not be so accidental.

“I need to show you something.” Lenora pulled the crumpled piece of paper out of her pocketbook and stretched it out. “Someone put this on my car earlier.”

Darnell's eyes furrowed as he tried to decipher the text on the paper. “What does this all mean? What's the article about?”

She shook her head. “I can tell you later. When my husband comes.” She held out her phone. “She called me. That's why I came here.”

Darnell peered at her phone. “You're saying she called you a few minutes before you found her?”

“Yes.”

Lenora noticed Darnell kept looking behind her. She turned and saw the media starting to arrive on the scene. Lenora closed her eyes.
This can't be happening,
she thought. She snapped her eyes open. “I really need to call Pastor Freeman.”

Darnell looked at her with questions in his eyes, but he didn't say a word.

“I stand by what I know in my gut. Charmayne wouldn't have done this.”

One of Darnell's eyebrows shot up. “Are saying there could be foul play with Charmayne's death? How do you know this wasn't a way for Charmayne to reach out to you?”

Lenora swallowed and folded her arms as though to protect herself. She looked back toward the garage and watched as two men carried out a black bag on a stretcher.

Her body shook as waves of tears flowed. This old secret lay solely with her now. Lenora wasn't sure who or what led to Charmayne's death. What she did know was that it was time to tell the truth.

Darnell touched her shoulder. “Why don't I call your husband and ask him to meet us at the station?”

Unable to answer, she nodded. Lenora realized she was about to test the limits of her marriage. What would Jonathan think of her? This was one of those times when she would have loved to hear her mother's no-nonsense advice. In the back of her mind, she could hear her mother stating her favorite Bible saying, “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”

So many thoughts passed through Jonathan's mind as he maneuvered his car into the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department's parking lot. Something had been going on with Lenora that was more than grief for his father's passing or even Keith's accident. Underneath his wife's usual have-it-all-together exterior, he sensed her interior cracking. He just didn't know what caused it. She was an incredibly strong woman, solid in her faith.

His fear was he had finally pushed her over the edge by keeping his political considerations from her. They had grown increasingly distant since he took over his father's role at Victory Gospel Church.

Darnell's cryptic message on the phone didn't help matters. He said Lenora was all right, but it was important for him to come as soon as possible. Jonathan wondered if the detective had news to deliver about Keith's hit-and-run accident. It would be a relief to finally find justice. But why would Darnell have this information? The detective worked in the homicide division. They had been talking to a special detective in the CMPD Major Crash Investigation Unit.

Jonathan halted his speculation and parked the car. He shut the engine off, jumped out of his car, and walked briskly toward the building. Once inside, he asked for directions to Detective Jackson's desk. The detective walked toward him as he approached. He held out his hand to shake Darnell's hand. “Darnell, how are you, my brother? I'm looking forward to officiating your wedding to Candace in a couple of weeks. Time certainly does fly by.”

Darnell shook hands with him and smiled. “Indeed it does, Pastor.”

Jonathan noted Darnell's smile quickly disappeared.

The detective said, “Unfortunately, I have some bad news today. Will you join me over here in this room? Mrs. Freeman is waiting inside. She wanted you to be here, and I think it's a good idea for you to be here for support.”

Support?
Jonathan eyed Darnell. “Bad news?”

Darnell extended his arm toward the door. “Please, let's go inside.”

Jonathan moved toward the door marked
Interrogation
. The sign on the door seemed so official, and thoughts whirled in his mind about what news he would find out on the other side of the door.

When Darnell opened the door, Jonathan focused on his wife. Lenora had her head cupped in her hands. She lifted her head, and Jonathan noticed her eyes were red and puffy. His heart plummeted, and he walked over to the chair next to her. He pulled out the metal chair and sat down. “Lenora, what's going on? Are you okay?”

“Charmayne is dead.” Lenora's voice was flat, like she was numb of any emotion.

Jonathan touched her hands which were cold. He suspected his wife was deep in shock. That woman had always been trouble, but how was Lenora involved? He thought about Lenora's demeanor last night. What events had transpired between Lenora and Charmayne yesterday to result in his wife being so deeply troubled and her friend dead?

Jonathan turned his attention to Darnell for answers. “What happened?”

Darnell confirmed. “Ms. Hudson's body was discovered late this morning by your wife. She called 911.”

“My God! Lenora, I'm so sorry.” He gripped his wife's limp and clammy hand. Jonathan took a deep breath. His thick eyebrows were furrowed in deep thought. As he tried to grasp the news, a wave of alarm swept over him. He asked, “Why are we here? Detective, why do you have my wife in a police interrogation room?”

Darnell glanced at Lenora before speaking. “Lenora was possibly the last person to see or talk to Charmayne. We need her to help establish a timeline of events leading up to Ms. Hudson's death.”

He directed his attention back to Lenora. “There is a voice mail on Charmayne's phone from you, Mrs. Freeman. It sounded like you had something urgent to discuss with her.”

Lenora closed her eyes. “I needed to talk to her after yesterday. She was so upset, and I didn't know how to help her. We were supposed to talk and try to figure it out together.”

Jonathan asked, “What was there to figure out?”

Lenora pulled her hand out of his grip. “I will try to explain, but it's not going to be easy.”

Explain what?
His wife has been acting strange enough to concern him, but Jonathan couldn't shake the deep sense of foreboding. “Why do you feel you need to explain anything, Lenora?” He turned to Darnell. “Do we need a lawyer or something?”

Darnell held up his hands. “No, this is just a visit to find out the frame of mind of Ms. Hudson. That's all.”

With her eyes focused on the table, Lenora began to rock back and forth in the seat. She rubbed her hands up and down her arms as if she was trying to warm up. The room felt uncomfortably warm to Jonathan. He wanted to reach out to his wife again, but leaned as close as he could, waiting for her explanation.

Lenora had a commanding voice, but as she spoke, her voice sounded like the young girl he had met years ago in college. “Charmayne came by the boutique yesterday. Someone had been threatening her since her father passed away last December.” Lenora lifted her head and looked directly at Darnell. “That's why I don't believe she would have taken her own life.”

Suicide?
Jonathan blew out a breath. “Wait a minute, are you saying Charmayne appeared to have committed suicide? She didn't strike me as being that troubled.”

Darnell nodded. “We will investigate before making any definite conclusions about the cause of death. Lenora, what type of threats? Did Charmayne have any idea who may have been sending her the threats?”

Jonathan watched his wife twist her hands. He touched her arm and felt her arm twitch. He pulled away and dropped his hands in his lap.

Lenora grimaced as if she was experiencing pain. “This happened so long ago it really doesn't make sense now.”

Darnell said, “Take your time. Anything you can offer will help us figure out what might have happened today. Ms. Hudson didn't leave a note behind that we have found yet, so there are a lot of questions.”

Lenora nodded. “Well, the threats seem to focus on an event that took place when we were seniors in high school.”

Jonathan frowned. He didn't know Lenora back then, but had run into Charmayne at youth church events on several occasions. He crossed his arms and leaned back in the chair to listen. Maybe he would finally get some understanding of his wife's complicated friendship with Charmayne.

Lenora cleared her throat. “We were on our way back from a party. I kind of knew we were going, but I had told my mother we were going to a study group at Charmayne's house. Charmayne picked me up, but we never went to her house. That in itself was the start of an evening that went very wrong.”

“We stayed at this guy's house for hours. I finally told Charmayne I needed to get home. It was already after ten o'clock, and I knew my mom would question why I didn't come back by curfew. Charmayne had been flirting with some guy, and I saw her drink a few beers. I don't know how many she drank, but I have always regretted that I got into the car with her.” Lenora's voice faded.

Jonathan peered at Darnell and noticed the detective was scribbling notes on a yellow pad. Jonathan took a deep breath, not sure he was prepared for what Lenora was about to reveal. In the entire time he'd been married to her, he'd never heard this story. Lenora was perfect in every way. She was the good girl your mother wanted you to marry. He never knew Lenora to attend a party when they were in college, so he knew Charmayne had to have been a questionable influence even back then.

Her eyes focused on memories of her past, Lenora continued to tell her story. “The music was loud in the car. I remember Charmayne almost ran into the back of a car. She slammed on the brakes, and it made this horrible screeching sound. After that, we went on as if the close call didn't happen. Then out of the blue something . . . someone crashed against the passenger side. The crash happened so fast, I couldn't tell what we hit. I yelled at Charmayne to stop the car. She did. We turned around and looked out the back window. I thought we had to have hit someone, but Charmayne hit the accelerator and took off.”

Tears were running down Lenora's face. “I didn't sleep that night. The next morning I saw a hit-and-run accident on the news. The accident wasn't that far from where we took off. I called Charmayne. I asked what were we going to do and how did she explain the car damage to her dad.”

“Bishop Hudson knew about the accident?” Jonathan asked.

“I don't know how much he knew, but I know Bishop Hudson got Charmayne's car fixed pretty quickly. I just couldn't get that night out of my mind for a while, but after I learned the man was released from the hospital, I asked God for forgiveness and thanked Him for saving the man.” Lenora's voice choked. “I wish I had said something, but I didn't want to get Charmayne in trouble.”

Jonathan's heart broke at seeing his wife's anguish. “I'm sure God has forgiven you. Thankfully, the man healed from his injuries. What I don't understand is what does this have to do with these threats Charmayne was receiving?”

Darnell leaned forward. “Was Ms. Hudson being blackmailed about this accident? It was a horrific thing to do and not confess to at the time, but why now?”

Lenora shook her head. “I don't know. Charmayne told me yesterday that this event didn't come up until a few days ago. For the last few months though, she has felt isolated, like everyone was working against her in some way. You know she had been having trouble with the city council too.”

Jonathan remembered the conversation they had about him running for city council. Thanks to Charmayne, Lenora had found out before he had a chance to inform her. Now he wondered how much pressure Charmayne was experiencing and why had it seemed like his friend, Mayor Carrington, had turned against her. Bishop Hudson was very fond of Mayor Carrington. Jonathan tuned back into the conversation.

Darnell appeared deep in thought as he gazed down at his notes. He lifted his head and focused on Lenora. “Did Charmayne say how these threats were being delivered? Certainly we can locate this information if it exists.”

Lenora nodded. “Yesterday someone sent her the article about the accident with a note attached. I'm not sure how she received it though. I don't remember seeing any postage on the envelope. We talked about receiving text messages and phone calls.”

Darnell wrote rapidly. “Well, we might be able to obtain the numbers and trace them back to the source.”

“I think whoever it was, he was using burner phones,” Lenora said.

Darnell stared at her.

Lenora folded her arms. “I tried to call back the phone numbers.”

Darnell asked, “Using Charmayne's phone?”

Lenora didn't reply immediately, as if she was thinking how to proceed with her response.

A bolt of fear shot through Jonathan as he observed Lenora. “What are you saying? Were you getting threats on your phone?”

His wife flinched. “I received a strange text after your father's funeral.” She reached down to the floor and pulled out her phone. Lenora scrolled through a few text messages. She went to pass the phone to Darnell, but Jonathan grabbed it.

He read the message. For the wages of sin is death. Jonathan raised his voice. “Lenora, how long has this been going on and how many?”

Darnell stated, “Pastor Freeman, please lower your voice and hand over the phone.”

Jonathan stared at the message once more before handing it over to Darnell. “Why would you not share this with me? This is serious.”

“I thought the message was some prank at the time.”

Jonathan pointed to her. “Charmayne is dead. I suppose she was getting messages like this too.” He rubbed his hand across his head. Then it dawned on him. “Wait a minute. You were upset about Keith's accident. I kept wondering why you seemed overly cautious. You thought this message had to do with the accident.”

He was fuming. How could Lenora walk around with this? It was his job to protect his family. Did she really think he was not competent enough to be the man of his house? What really infuriated him was someone out there was sending threats and possibly coming dangerously close to his family. Who was this person?

Jonathan tried to contain his anger. He spoke tightly. “What can we do, Detective?”

Darnell answered, “If you're saying that someone was threatening Charmayne, that definitely changes the direction of her case to a possible homicide. We have no evidence connecting anyone to a crime, though. I'm going to bring this information to my captain, and we will find this person delivering the threats. I guess we need to start by finding the victim of the hit-and-run accident that night long ago. It sounds to me like this person is reaching out to both of you. This is puzzling, though, because if neither of you ever came forward, who knows to send you these threats?”

Lenora shook her head. “I don't know. It could be the man who was hit in the accident, though I can't imagine why he wouldn't have stepped forward back then if he could identify us. After the man was released from the hospital, I never heard about him again.”

Darnell rubbed his goatee. “You have any ideas of the date of the accident, Lenora? How about the victim's name?”

Lenora nodded. “I have never forgotten the date. May 3, 1989. I don't know much about the victim other than he was a white guy. I briefly saw him on the news when he was being rolled out of the hospital. His leg was injured because he had a cast on his lower leg. I heard his name briefly, but I can't think of it now. That's all I know.”