Love Me To Death. Steve Jackson
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her own experience, Holly knew how strong the bond between a parent and child could be.
A couple of days later, she had him meet her partner and, after conferring, they gave him the job as an independent contractor—he could use the office (her mother bought him a desk and a telephone line) and company resources and split his commission with them. He started like gangbusters; she heard him taking in a loan application before he’d officially even settled in. However, the enthusiasm didn’t last long. Within two weeks, he was complaining about being too ill to work. He coughed a lot and she had to admit that he didn’t look good. He seemed tired, wrung out.
The job was an afterthought when he called Candace Walters one day in late June to say that his funds, at last, were going to be available. She’d been after him about her money, and had confronted him about the truck title and the woman named, Rebecca Holberton. Maybe she should have a talk with Holberton and find out what was going on. Now, he said, that wouldn’t be necessary. She was going to get her money, and he had another surprise or two for her. First they were going to fly to Las Vegas, make a party of it. Then not only was she going to get her money back, he was going to give her $100,000 for having been so cooperative, as well as keeping his secrets.
In the days that followed, the news just kept getting better. He told her one day that he’d just bought them both a one-way ticket to Las Vegas. Once there, they were going to be handed the keys to brand-new Toyota 4Runner trucks, one of which would be hers to keep and drive back to Colorado. What’s more, she wasn’t going to get $100,000, she was going to receive $2.5 million; there would be $1 million in cash when they got to Las Vegas, and the rest was going to be wired into her bank account. He even had her call her bank to ascertain how to go about transferring such a large amount. Every day there seemed to be some new addition until, finally, in addition to everything else, he’d decided to buy her a mansion in Las Vegas, just a few doors down from his own mansion.
Walters was overwhelmed, though she confided to her daughter that she only half believed him. Holly worried about the outlandish gifts, but there wasn’t enough time to process what was happening. Her mother was certainly happier than she’d seen her in a long time, and Holly didn’t want to rain on her mother’s parade. The worst that could happen would be for him to disappoint her mom; then they’d go after him to get her money back.
In the meantime, Holly was busy getting ready for a business trip back to Missouri to start a new branch of her business. Coincidentally, or so it seemed, Cody announced that he and Candace would leave for Las Vegas on Friday, July 3, the day before Holly was due to leave. They would be returning Sunday.
As the day for Holly to leave approached, she and her mother took their walks in the foothills and talked about how their lives would be changed when they got back from their trips. It was still hard to believe that it was going to happen, but Neal kept acting as though everything was going according to plan. He’d told Candace to get rid of her wardrobe and sell her car as she wasn’t going to need them.
Holly was surprised when her mother told her that she was going to sell her car. It was just a little Toyota sedan, but she’d worked so hard to pay it off and was so proud of the accomplishment.
On July 1, Holly decided to pay a surprise visit to her mother. She arrived to find Cody knocking at the front door. He gave her an extra warm hug when she walked up. He was in a great mood.
Unknown to Holly or her mother, the day before he’d driven to a building-supplies store and purchased a number of items, including a seven-and-a-half-pound maul. Afterward, he had driven home and bashed in the skull of Rebecca Holberton.
Candace Walters was flustered to find her daughter and boyfriend on the same doorstep. She and Cody were supposed to go out that night to celebrate, but he was early and she hadn’t had time to shower. He said that he had only stopped by to give her something he had in a box in his hands, but he wanted to do so in private. He and Candace excused themselves, and when they emerged a few minutes later, they embraced and kissed.
Holly was uneasy about the display of affection. She just didn’t trust the guy. As he was leaving, he hugged her. “If I don’t see you again,” he said, “have a great weekend.”
When he was gone, Candace dragged her daughter back to her bedroom, hardly able to contain her excitement. Cody had dropped off a photo album with pictures of his mansion in Las Vegas, as well as the one that would be hers—proof that what he said was the truth.
Holly couldn’t believe her eyes. The houses were huge, bordered with palm trees, and both had swimming pools. They looked like the sort of homes that movie stars lived in. He’d also given her a $50 bill, half of $100 that “The Family” had sent him, symbolic of his new status; he’d given her half. “He said, half of what was his, was also mine,” Walters explained.
On July 3, Holly stopped by her mother’s again. Candace was a bundle of nerves; part of it was paranoia. Cody had warned her that if she talked about any of what was to happen, there might be dire consequences, and she’d told Holly everything. She placed her purse in the closet “in case it’s bugged” before she would talk that morning. She just couldn’t believe that the day had come, her dreams would be answered beyond her wildest imagination. It wasn’t the money, though she wasn’t going to turn that down, but rahter what it represented—time. Time to slow down and smell the roses. Time to watch her daughter grow to womanhood; maybe there’d be a grandchild some day. At least she would no longer have to worry about how to pay the utility bill or buy groceries and still make the mortgage. And she owed it all to Cody. He really cared about her, enough that he bought her a home near his. They had been wrong to doubt him.
Walters was in a rush. She was supposed to take her car to a dealership. She asked Holly to take a photograph of her with the car, admitting she was “a little sad” that she was selling it.
Then it was time for Holly to go. They hugged, holding each other tight, and wished each other safe trips. “I love you,” they said to each other, and parted.
Later that afternoon, Candace called her daughter to say she’d sold her car for $3,000. Now she was really nervous. Cody was on his way. For the last time, they told each other how much they loved each other. Then Candace was gone.
Neal drove Walters to the town house on West Chenango, saying he needed to stop for her first “surprise.” He used the garage door opener to enter the garage and close the door behind him. “The place is a mess,” he apologized with a smile as he let her into the apartment.
The light of the dying sun could only feebly make it through the paper-covered windows. Neal had been honest. The place was a mess. There were unwashed dishes and the remains of meals on every open space, especially a table over near the sliding glass door leading to the backyard. There was a footlocker and a circular saw on the floor, along with a variety of other construction materials. She didn’t take any particular notice of the black object over against a wall and only partially covered with a carpet remnant.
Neal led her over to a kitchen chair in the middle of the living-room floor. He had her sit down, and with a flourish, he produced a briefcase. It was heavy, as though filled with tens of thousands of dollars. He tried to place the blanket on her head, but she held up her hands.
“No, Cody,” she complained. “I don’t want to mess up my hair.”
Neal shrugged and gently draped the blanket around her shoulders. “Well, promise to keep your eyes closed,” he said as he walked behind her toward the closet where he kept the maul. He returned with the weapon partly raised, pausing for a moment to note how studious and trusting she seemed there in her white sundress.
The ax went up and then down again. This time he used the blade side of the maul to cleave deep into Candace’s skull above her left ear. He yanked the blade out and struck again, near the first mark; as she fell, he struck her again on the neck. When he finished, he walked back to the closet and replaced the maul.
Returning to the body, he had one final act to perform on Candace Walters, a woman who’d never done anything to harm him. A woman who’d loved him. A woman who’d given him her life savings to help him