Jed Had to Die

CHAPTER 32

Recorded Interview

June 5, 2016

Bald Knob, KY Police Department

Justine Pickerson: This is horrible. Just horrible. I’m such a horrible person.

Deputy Lloyd: Ma’am, are you okay?

Justine Pickerson: I’ll never be okay again! When I think about the things I said… I had to come into the station as soon as I heard so I could change my previous statement.

Roy Pickerson: Me too. I just can’t believe what we heard and I feel awful about it.

Deputy Lloyd: Mr. and Mrs. Pickerson, what did you hear? I’ve already told you, we can’t use rumors and gossip to arrest anyone.

Justine Pickerson: Where in the hell have you been all day, Buddy Lloyd?

Deputy Lloyd: Um, I’ve been here at the station. Trying to solve a murder.

Justine Pickerson: Well, I’ve been down at the square with the rest of the town and I have seen the light of my wrongdoings. There’s no need for you to continue this investigation. I’d like to confess to the murder of Jed Jackson.

Deputy Lloyd: Wait, WHAT?

Roy Pickerson: Yep, me too. I helped her kill Jed Jackson.

*Door opens and slams shut*

Starla Godfrey: Oh no you don’t, Justine. I’M confessing to the murder of Jed Jackson.

*Door opens and slams shut*

Mo Wesley: Excuse me, is there where I confess murder?

*Door opens and slams shut*

Andrea Maynard: Sorry to interrupt, Deputy Lloyd. I just wanted to tell you that I killed Jed Jackson.

*Door opens and slams shut*

Teresa Jefferson: Oh, hello everyone! Is now a bad time to confess to killing Mayor Jackson? My husband Frank would like to confess too, but he had to go to work, so I’ll just do it for him.

*Door opens and slams shut*

Andrea Maynard: Wow, it’s a tight squeeze in here. Move over a little, Starla, I need room to write down my confession of murdering the mayor. I brought some meatloaf from The Hungry Bear and left it out at the front desk if anyone is hungry.

Mo Wesley: Mmmmm, meatloaf. I could go for some meatloaf. Confessing to murder makes me hungry.

Deputy Lloyd: What in the hell is happening right now?

*Door opens and slams shut*

Franny Mendleson: Hi, I just-

Deputy Lloyd: Let me guess, you want to confess to murdering Jed Jackson?

Franny Mendleson: No, I was just coming in here to tell you there’s meatloaf out at my desk if anyone wants a piece. But now that you mention it, yes, I’m the one who killed Jed.

*Door opens and slams shut*

Sally Plunkett: Oh, good, you’re all here. My poor baby girl.

*Crying, sniffling, nose blowing*

I did it, Deputy Lloyd. I killed Jed Jackson, that lowlife piece of dirt.

Andrea Maynard: Scum of the earth!

Teresa Jefferson: I can’t believe that rotten man was our mayor!

Justine Pickerson: I always knew there was something wrong with him.

*Door opens and slams shut*

Caden Jefferson: Oh, hey Mom, hey Dad. Please don’t ground me, but I killed Mayor Jackson.

Deputy Lloyd: Jesus Christ… I should have been a doctor, like my mother always wanted.

Starla Godfrey: You should always listen to your mother, Buddy. I know you need to arrest us, but that’s going to have to wait. We’ve got food to make and deliver, isn’t that right, everyone?

*Cheering, clapping, laughing, loud undistinguishable voices*

Andrea Maynard: You should come with us, Deputy. I know Emma Jo wouldn’t mind you stopping by. I’ve seen the way she looks at you.

*Cheering, clapping, laughing, agreements from loud undistinguishable voices*

Deputy Lloyd: Well, what’s everyone standing around here for? Someone grab the meatloaf and let’s go!

CHAPTER 33

A good friend knows how you take your coffee. A great friend adds booze.

—Coffee Mug

“You were always such a sweet girl. That lasagna just needs to be popped back in the oven at 350 degrees for thirty minutes.”

Justine Pickerson hands me the plate in her hands, gives me a pat on the cheek, and a smile and then walks out of Emma Jo’s kitchen.

“I’m so glad you came back to town, Payton. It’s a much better place with you in it, isn’t that right, Bo Jangles?” Starla says, handing me a plate of chocolate chip cookies while at the same time, holding her rat dog out for me to pet.

I nervously reach my hand over to him and my mouth drops open in shock when he licks my hand and then nudges it with his nose, requesting a pat on the head.

Starla moves out of the way to make room for Frank and Teresa Jefferson, both of their arms piled with plates of food while they lavish me with similar words of praise as everyone else.

It’s already been a strange enough morning, and I was already on the verge of tears when I came downstairs to the kitchen and found the gift Leo said he’d left for me. Having the entire town traipsing in and out of Emma Jo’s house all afternoon, piling me with food and compliments has thrown me for such a loop that I haven’t been able to do anything but smile, take the food from their hands, and put it with everything else currently covering all the available surfaces in the kitchen.

After the train of people finally comes to an end with Buddy as the caboose, handing over a pan of meatloaf from The Hungry Bear and then leaving dejectedly when I tell him Emma Jo isn’t home, I flop down in one of the kitchen chairs, staring in a daze at the pans of cheesy potatoes, spaghetti, chocolate cake and fresh sweet corn that Andrea Maynard said Leo’s parents asked her to drop off.