Chapter 10 - The Man at the Kitchen Door
Peter Voss agreed to meet investigators at a secure location.
He refused to come to the courthouse.
He refused to speak over the telephone.
And he insisted that Eleanor Bennett must not learn where he was staying.
When Sullivan finally brought him into the interview room, I barely recognized the man from Katherine's description.
He was in his late fifties.
Broad-shouldered.
Gray-haired.
With a scar running from his left ear to his jaw.
He looked at me for several seconds.
Then lowered his eyes.
"I'm sorry."
I didn't answer.
He sat.
Sullivan started the recording.
"Mr. Voss, tell us what happened on September fourteenth."
He folded his hands.
"I received a call from Richard Bennett at approximately nine-thirty that evening."
"What did he say?"
"He said there had been an incident and his wife needed medical assistance."
"Why didn't he call emergency services?"
Voss hesitated.
"He said his mother wouldn't allow it."
I felt sick.
Sullivan continued.
"What were you instructed to do?"
"Bring a vehicle to the side entrance."
"For what purpose?"
Voss looked at me.
"To transport Mrs. Bennett."
"Where?"
"The facility outside Worcester."
I closed my eyes.
There it was.
The answer I had feared.
Sullivan asked whether Voss had agreed.
"Initially."
"Why?"
He looked ashamed.
"Because I thought I could get her out safely. I'd been trying to collect evidence against Eleanor for years."
"What changed?"
"When I arrived, Claire was barely conscious. Her breathing was shallow. Richard was panicking."
"And Eleanor?"
"She told me to take her anyway."
I opened my eyes.
Voss looked directly at me.
"I refused."
My throat tightened.
"What happened then?"
"Eleanor threatened to have me arrested. She said she'd tell the police I had assaulted you."
Sullivan leaned forward.
"And?"
"I called an ambulance."
He swallowed.
"Then I used my phone to record what happened."
The room went quiet.
He placed a small encrypted drive on the table.
"The recording begins after I entered the kitchen. I wish I'd started sooner."
Investigators had already made a forensic copy.
Sullivan played the relevant portion.
The screen showed the Bennett dining room.
I was lying on the floor.
Richard stood near the table.
Eleanor was beside him.
Voss's voice came from behind the camera.
"She needs a hospital."
Eleanor turned.
"Put that phone away."
"Mrs. Bennett, she's injured."
"Do what you're paid to do."
Richard stepped forward.
"Mother, stop."
Eleanor rounded on him.
"You wanted this handled."
"I didn't want her dead."
My heart stopped.
Eleanor's voice became very quiet.
"Then perhaps you should have thought about that before you touched her."
Richard looked down at me.
Then said something I would never forget.
"Just tell me what happened to Katherine."
The recording continued.
Eleanor stared at him.
May you like
And answered.
"You don't want to know what happened to Katherine. You want to know what happened to Mercy."
