Chapter 35
LIES
The investigative report on Tex Weller was sitting on my desk when I got to the office. I had hired Paul Thayer to do it and asked him to be very discreet as we didn't want Tex to know about it. The thrust of the investigation was to determine Tex's whereabouts on the day of the murder. I didn't really think Tex had anything to do with Don Baker's murder, but prudence dictated we make doubly sure he didn't.
The murders took place on Monday, October 19, 1987. Tex claimed to have been at home with his wife Sunday night watching the Cowboy game. In order to verify Tex's story, Paul had surreptitiously obtained telephone records, credit card receipts, and talked to neighbors. The telephone records showed only two incoming calls both before nine o'clock and no outgoing calls. The incoming calls lasted less than one-minute indicating that they were answered by an answering machine. Interviews with neighbors provided no useful information. There was one disturbing credit card receipt, however. It was from a gas station in Grand Prairie where either Tex or Toni filled up their tank at 8:57 p.m.
It was clear Tex had lied to Stan about his activities the night of the murders. That didn't prove anything in particular but it did indicate Tex was hiding something. I decided I better discuss the matter with Stan. I went into his office and told him what I'd found out.
"You think Tex lied to me?" Stan asked.
"Obviously, unless they hired someone to go fill up their car with gas."
"Maybe one of them just ran out to get gas?"
"Then why didn't they tell you about it?"
"They probably forgot about it."
"Maybe, but my bet is they weren't home that night. You usually get gas on the way out or on the way home."
"So, what do you think I should do?"
"Talk to Toni and see if she verifies that she was with her husband that night," I said.
Stan took a deep breath. "I don't know. That will be a slap in the face."
"Better a slap in the face than a bullet in the head. If he's not telling us something, we better find out what it is."
Stan shook his head. "Okay, I'll talk to her."
It was awkward having Tex in trouble with Metroplex while I was defending Jimmy Bennett. I knew Stan was having trouble dealing with it, but I thought it better if he talks to Toni than I. Toni didn't know me as well and might take offense at me suggesting that her husband might be a murderer. Stan had saved her husband's life, though, so she wouldn't take offense so quickly if Stan asked her about his alibi.
I went back to my office and starting thumbing through my to-do list. The trial was rapidly approaching so I started working on my voir dire questions for the jury. Being a high profile case, it would be difficult to find jurors who hadn't heard about the case and already formed opinions as to Jimmy's guilt or innocence. Another consideration was that Metroplex Savings and Loan had hundreds of thousands of customers and many of them could easily show up in the jury pool. Their experience with Metroplex could cloud their objectivity. There were also issues with drinking, drug use, and capital punishment to complicate matters.
Several hours later I put away my voir dire outline and called Bart. I was too tired to cook so I suggested we go out and check out a few spots that had been suggested for our rehearsal dinner. Bart said that sounded good and he'd meet me at home at six. After I hung up, Stan came into my office.
"Toni said she had a book club meeting that night. She left at 6:30 p.m. and she thinks Tex went to a sports bar that night. Apparently he goes there often to watch Monday night football."
"Shit. That lying son of a bitch."
"Hang on," Stan said. "There might be some other explanation."
"If he was at a sports bar, he would have told you. He'd have an alibi. He obviously didn't go to the sports bar."
Stan shook his head dejectedly. "Let me talk to him. There must be some other explanation."
"Was Toni upset you asked her about Tex's whereabouts?" I asked.
"No, I blamed it on the DA. I told her the police would be snooping around checking out everyone's alibi for the DA and that she had better think back and figure out what she and Tex were doing at the time of the murders. She just blurted it out. Apparently she and Tex hadn't talked about it."
"Good. I was worried she'd be upset with you."
"She'll be very upset if it turns out Tex was involved in the murders."
Stan left and I started packing up to go home. Over the last several hours I'd developed a severe headache and my stomach was in a knot. On the way out the door I took three aspirins with a Coke chaser. Heavy traffic on Preston Road didn't improve matters. All I could think about was getting into a hot tub and relaxing a little before Bart got home. I was already a wreck and I still had two weeks until Jimmy's trial would begin.
When Bart got home, I was still in the tub. He came in and was amused to see me there. I started to explain but he gestured for me to shut up. He knelt down and started washing my back.
"Have a bad day, honey?"
He was a dream and I was so lucky to have him, yet I couldn't help comparing his back rub to the one Stan had just given me. I know it was terrible, but I couldn't help myself. Even immersed in as highly a conductive medium as water, the electricity just wasn't flowing. What was I going to do? I closed my eyes a moment trying hard to rid myself of the memory of Stan's gentle touch.
"Yes, more problems with Tex."
"Oh, no. I thought that issue had been put to bed."
"So did I until I read Paul Thayer's surveillance report."
I briefed Bart on what I'd learned.
"Well, that doesn't prove anything."
"Except that he was lying."
"Maybe he has a girlfriend," Bart suggested.
"You think? An old guy like that?"
"Hey. There are a lot of young women out there looking for a sugar daddy. Tex would make a good one too—plenty of money and as gullible as he is. If a girl said she was in love with him, he'd probably believe it."
I thought about that a moment and hoped it was true. Not that I wanted to hurt Toni, but it would eliminate Tex as a suspect so I could get on with my murder trial without worrying about stepping on a landmine. I made a mental note to discuss that possibility with Stan.
An hour later Bart and I left to check out three spots as possible locations for our rehearsal dinner. The first was the Belo Mansion which had been converted into the headquarters of the Dallas Bar Association. It was elegant yet cozy and the food was excellent. Next we went to the Mansion. We went to the bar and ordered drinks.
"Boy, this place is nice," Bart said.
"A little too high class maybe," I said. "We're not exactly high society."
"Well, circumstances change. We're moving up in the world—at least you are with your high profile murder cases."
"Yeah, but you can't change who you are. I'm not comfortable here."
"Okay, then McDonald's it is."
I laughed. "That's not a bad idea. It would save us a bundle."
"So, Baby Doe's?"
"Yeah, it's where we decided to take the plunge. I like the atmosphere and I feel comfortable there."
Bart took my hands. "Well, I want you to be happy so that will be fine."
I smiled and said, "Monique called and said she ordered the cake from Stein's and scheduled a bridal luncheon at the S & S Tea Room."
"That's nice."
"It's going to be a five-layer cake with lemon icing."
"Hmm. Sounds good."
"She's hired Gittings as our photographer."
"Gittings? I think I've heard of them."
"They're the best in Dallas."
Bart nodded like he was interested but I could tell wedding arrangements didn't excite him. When it came to weddings, it seemed men were just there for the ride. They'd just as soon go to a JP and have a cozy little ceremony in front of a couple of strangers and miss the hoopla of a formal wedding. I decided to change the
subject.
"So, tell me about your day?" I said.
Bart looked at me and shrugged. "Ah. Just a typical day in court—a couple dope dealers pled out, a short shop lifting trial, and a bond hearing."
"Whose bond hearing?"
"Amy Garner, the assistant cashier at Metroplex Savings & Loan."
"What's she charged with?"
"Embezzlement. It seems she and a loan officer concocted a plan to give a loan to a dummy corporation, take the money for their own use, and then report that the corporation had gone out of business. If you looked in the file, it looked just like a typical loan default."
"Really? Wow. That's amazing," I said. "How much money?"
"Eighty grand."
"God. I can't believe they thought they could get away with something like that."
"Well, they almost did. If the bank examiners hadn't insisted the bank file suit against the corporation, they probably would have gotten away with it. Unfortunately, the law firm hired to collect the account discovered the corporation was just a shell."
"How stupid people can be," I said. "You'd think they'd take the money and run."
"I know. But most thieves think they are smarter than everyone else and will never get caught."
After having a few drinks, we went to the dining room and had dinner. The food was great but I was glad we weren't going to have the rehearsal dinner there. My father wasn't rich and I knew the wedding tab was already over ten grand and climbing. I wanted to help out with the cost but he insisted I let him handle it. After dinner we went to the bar where a band was playing and people were dancing. It was after eleven when we got home. All the dancing and drinking that night had taken its toll on us. When I finished in the bathroom and came to bed Bart was fast asleep. I climbed into bed and put my arm around him. He'd make me happy. I knew he would.