got to the part about Heather, he spoke barely above a whisper, so that Ford had to ask him to speak up so the digital recorder could pick up his voice.
They had spent the evening as people having illicit affairs generally did. Then Heather, with a case of the postcoital munchies, had begged Eldon to order pizza. He’d gone to pick it up, he said, because the restaurant didn’t deliver past midnight.
“Why did you take Justin with you?” Ford asked. “Why didn’t you leave him at the house if Heather was there?”
“He woke up just as I was about to leave, crying and cranky. Heather didn’t know anything about taking care of children, and she wasn’t comfortable alone with him. I scooped him up and brought him along because he liked to ride in the car. It usually put him right to sleep, which I thought would be a good thing.”
“And did he fall asleep?” Ford asked, scribbling notes.
“The restaurant was less than ten minutes away. By the time I got there, Justin was out like a light. That was why I left him in the car. I didn’t want to wake him up. I know it was wrong—crazy wrong—but the pizza place was in a nice neighborhood. The parking lot was well lit. I was going to run in, grab the pizza and run back. I was gone less than two minutes.”
“And when you came back?”
He shook his head. “I almost didn’t notice he was gone, at first. The car was dark, and I was anxious to get back home. I turned around to back out and…that’s when I noticed.”
“What did you do?”
“For a minute, I just stared in shock. Your mind goes through all the usual stuff—maybe I was seeing things. Maybe he got out of the seat and moved to a different part of the car. Maybe he wandered off. He’d just recently learned to get himself out of that car seat.
“Or maybe I hadn’t brought him with me—maybe he was at home. I considered everything, including that I might be going crazy. Then I started searching. And calling. I had every employee from the restaurant searching inside and out. And when he didn’t turn up after a few minutes, I called the police.”
Despite everything, Robyn’s heart went out to him. She could see the torture on his face. His lawyer had elected not to put him on the stand during his trial, claiming that it was always a risky move. The D.A. could trip up even the most innocent defendant.
Now she believed it had been a mistake not to let the jury see Eldon’s raw pain. He hadn’t shown this side of himself to the media, but if they saw him now, they would never refer to him as cold again.
She couldn’t even imagine the guilt he must feel. If she’d been in his shoes…well, she never would have left Justin in a car unattended, under any circumstances. But children were snatched from even the most attentive parents.
Robyn thought the interview was over. Eldon had finished his story. But Ford had more questions.
“What happened to Heather?” he asked. “When you didn’t come home with the pizza—did she call you? Did she come looking for you?”
“No. I was so focused on finding Justin, I completely forgot about her. And when I came home—hours later—she was gone. She’d left an angry note, which I destroyed.”
“Did it surprise you that she didn’t call?”
Eldon hesitated. “She was…melodramatic. She probably assumed I was with another woman. Such a reaction is not completely normal, I know, but it’s what she likely would have done.”
Ford looked to Robyn for confirmation. She nodded. The Heather she had known was borderline paranoid. Everything was about her. In her mind, people and events all conspired against her.
“Did you continue your affair with her?”
“God, no. I was living in a fishbowl after Justin disappeared. By the time I realized I was a suspect, Heather had left town. I didn’t see the point in dragging her into it—tearing up my marriage and my character in the process—if she couldn’t be found to back me up.”
Robyn
They had spent the evening as people having illicit affairs generally did. Then Heather, with a case of the postcoital munchies, had begged Eldon to order pizza. He’d gone to pick it up, he said, because the restaurant didn’t deliver past midnight.
“Why did you take Justin with you?” Ford asked. “Why didn’t you leave him at the house if Heather was there?”
“He woke up just as I was about to leave, crying and cranky. Heather didn’t know anything about taking care of children, and she wasn’t comfortable alone with him. I scooped him up and brought him along because he liked to ride in the car. It usually put him right to sleep, which I thought would be a good thing.”
“And did he fall asleep?” Ford asked, scribbling notes.
“The restaurant was less than ten minutes away. By the time I got there, Justin was out like a light. That was why I left him in the car. I didn’t want to wake him up. I know it was wrong—crazy wrong—but the pizza place was in a nice neighborhood. The parking lot was well lit. I was going to run in, grab the pizza and run back. I was gone less than two minutes.”
“And when you came back?”
He shook his head. “I almost didn’t notice he was gone, at first. The car was dark, and I was anxious to get back home. I turned around to back out and…that’s when I noticed.”
“What did you do?”
“For a minute, I just stared in shock. Your mind goes through all the usual stuff—maybe I was seeing things. Maybe he got out of the seat and moved to a different part of the car. Maybe he wandered off. He’d just recently learned to get himself out of that car seat.
“Or maybe I hadn’t brought him with me—maybe he was at home. I considered everything, including that I might be going crazy. Then I started searching. And calling. I had every employee from the restaurant searching inside and out. And when he didn’t turn up after a few minutes, I called the police.”
Despite everything, Robyn’s heart went out to him. She could see the torture on his face. His lawyer had elected not to put him on the stand during his trial, claiming that it was always a risky move. The D.A. could trip up even the most innocent defendant.
Now she believed it had been a mistake not to let the jury see Eldon’s raw pain. He hadn’t shown this side of himself to the media, but if they saw him now, they would never refer to him as cold again.
She couldn’t even imagine the guilt he must feel. If she’d been in his shoes…well, she never would have left Justin in a car unattended, under any circumstances. But children were snatched from even the most attentive parents.
Robyn thought the interview was over. Eldon had finished his story. But Ford had more questions.
“What happened to Heather?” he asked. “When you didn’t come home with the pizza—did she call you? Did she come looking for you?”
“No. I was so focused on finding Justin, I completely forgot about her. And when I came home—hours later—she was gone. She’d left an angry note, which I destroyed.”
“Did it surprise you that she didn’t call?”
Eldon hesitated. “She was…melodramatic. She probably assumed I was with another woman. Such a reaction is not completely normal, I know, but it’s what she likely would have done.”
Ford looked to Robyn for confirmation. She nodded. The Heather she had known was borderline paranoid. Everything was about her. In her mind, people and events all conspired against her.
“Did you continue your affair with her?”
“God, no. I was living in a fishbowl after Justin disappeared. By the time I realized I was a suspect, Heather had left town. I didn’t see the point in dragging her into it—tearing up my marriage and my character in the process—if she couldn’t be found to back me up.”
Robyn
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