“Look, there were problem students for sure, and a few who failed her classes, but she wasn’t directly responsible for anyone being suspended or expelled. Problem students were a problem for the whole school. And art’s an optional subject, it is nowhere near as important as English or math. Flunking art is not a big thing. It’s not career-damaging. So no, I really couldn’t think of anyone who had a personal issue with her.” Again, Hilton shook his head, and May could see they were not going to get the response they were hoping for. He genuinely could not think of anyone.
"I appreciate your help," she said.
They walked back to the car. May was feeling disconsolate. One of their two leads had gotten them nowhere. Kerry had said very firmly that a family member who’d disguised a personal killing as a spree could only have done it as the first or second incident, and that a killer would not have waited longer in her experience.
Now the only possibility left was the restaurant manager, Barbara Vining. And she guessed that the starting point would be Barbara’s ex-husband. He lived in Oklahoma.
"Shall we call the police department and get the husband's details?" she asked.
Owen was on the same page, and knew exactly what she was referring to.
"I'll make a call right now," he said, getting out his phone and dialing Fairshore Police Department.
May opened the car and got inside, taking her pen and notebook out of her bag in preparation for calling the husband.
"Here's the number," Owen said a moment later. "His name is Sam Vining."
He read it out to May, and after mentally crossing her fingers, she dialed Sam. The number rang and rang. She was getting worried that it might not be answered, when finally a man picked up, sounding breathless.
"Sam here?" he said.
"Hi Sam. It's Deputy Moore here, from Tamarack County. I'm investigating the circumstances behind your ex-wife's death."
Sam caught his breath so badly it was practically a sob.
"I can't tell you how gutted I was when this happened," he shared. "I actually took a few days' leave from my work. I couldn't believe anyone could do such a thing to anyone. I mean, we were divorced, but not on bad terms. She was a good person. Are there any leads?" he asked.
"We're investigating any family members who might have been angry at her, and set the scene up to target her. I know she didn't have children, but were there any other close relatives of Barbara's who might have gotten on the wrong side of the law, or of her, in the past?"
"Not that I can think of," Sam said. But then he said, quickly, "Oh, wait, yes I can."
May felt her heart skip. "Who is that?" she asked.
"A few years ago, we fostered a young man for a year, when he was sixteen. His mother was in and out of rehab for that time. He was really bad news. He was a very, very troubled youngster. In fact, I think that having him live with us caused so much tension it contributed to the divorce."
"Really?" May asked.
"He had a juvenile record. We knew that when we took him on. We thought we could handle it and give him a fresh start. He'd started fires, exploded gas bottles, that kind of thing. His name was William Sime. I wish I'd thought to tell the police about him earlier, but honestly, it was such a bad experience and I was so glad to see the back of him when he finally got sent back to his mother, that I put it out of my mind and didn’t think about it since. But here’s the thing. I know he blamed Barbara, in a weird way, for 'rejecting' him even though it was the court's decision to send him back to his mother. She requested it. And, as I say, we didn't feel we were able to cope with him."
"What school did he go to?" May asked, wondering if the dots might be joined still further.
"He went to Woodbridge High School. Not that he spent much time there, between skipping school and getting suspended," he explained sourly.
Another common thread. So this troubled teen would have known the school where the art teacher was targeted. Perhaps that had made it easy for him to choose the first victim, before moving on to the more important kill.
"Do you know if William is still with his mother?"
"Yes, I think so. He would be twenty by now, so he might have moved out. But I can send you her details. Her name's Arlette. Arlette Sime. Good luck with her. We found her just as difficult as he was. But I'll message you the info now, and I hope it helps."
May stared at Owen, feeling as if they were on the verge of a major breakthrough. Barbara had fostered a troubled teen years ago, with a history of starting fires, and a grudge against her.
This provided a strong motive and could have triggered a killing spree.
May's phone beeped. They had the address. Now, to find out if it led them to the remorseless killer.