When I arrive at work the next morning and walk into the office, Tench is on the phone, "you walk him through the crime season? Okay. Has he seen all our notes on the evidence? And? Wait a minute, say that again? Mark, that's not right."

"Is that that Ocasek?" Ford turns around from the copy machine.

"Obviously, there's something he doesn't understand." Tench ignores Ford and leans forward a bit. "Okay, look, I'll call you back. Shit, it's not your fault, Mark. Let me talk to some folks here and get back to you."

I chuckle, "well, that didn't sound promising."

"The Da is going after Benjamin first."

"Which means he'll end up offering a plea deal." I scoff and shake my head.

Carr walks up beside me, "did Ocasek tell him about Frank's history of violence?"

"I'm sure he did." Tench nods.

"Clearly, he's the most dangerous of the three."

I shake my head, "I disagree, out of the three, someone like Benjamin is more dangerous, but that's not what matters here. What matters is that one or other of these men took a young woman's life and she helped them cover it up."

"I know, Nance, but we can't do anything from here." Tench looks over to me.

"We need to go talk to the DA, help him understand."

"I have a deposition this afternoon. I can't do anything until tomorrow." Tench shakes his head.

"Holden and I will go." I put a hand on my hip.

"Are you sure?"

I nod, "someone has to or they are going to get away with this." I head toward the door, calling back to Ford, "coming?"

I can hear Ford's shoes behind me, "if being with Debbie has taught me anything, don't fight with a confident woman."

"You had to wait for Debbie before you learned that."

"I didn't have a lot of experience before her."

Holden and I rush up to Altoona, of course, I am less than thrilled about having to drive back. But lucky for us the DA agrees to see us. "How can I help you fine folks today?" he walks us into his office.

"Sir, Agent Freeman and I are just a bit concerned with the way you and your team plan on bringing up charges against Barnwright and his companions."

"Why is that?"

I take a deep breath, "it is obvious that the anger was triggered by stressors that were focused on Mr. Barnwright's fiance in particular."

"Stressors?"

"It is the terminology our unit has been working with. Think of them as triggers. Things that pushed both their buttons, based on dramatic life events."

"Frank Janderman was happily married with a new baby on the way."

"But Frank didn't want to be a father. He hated it."

"Is that a motive?"

"No, it's what we call a stressor."

The DA leans forward, placing his elbows on the desk, "so you think Frank did it?"

"Benjamin wouldn't have been able to do it on his own. He needed help, or at least someone to push him over the edge."

"You're saying Benjamin was provoked by Frank?"

"Pushed. Yes." I nod and take a deep breath, "Frank saw his chance and raped Beverly Jean. Now we can talk situationally versus preferential all day, but that won't do us any good."

"Look it, here's my question. Who killed her?"

"All three are responsible for her death."

"So they all mutilated the body?"

"No."

"Then who killed her?"

I take a deep breath, but before I can say anything Ford does, "Benjamin, did. Frank and Benjamin left her body at the dump, wrapped up. But Benjamin came back a few days later. Isn't all of this in our case notes?"

"Let me stop you right there, see here's the problem. How do I prove all this?"

"What do you mean? You have three confessions on tape. You apply the right pressors to Benjamin and he will crack, tell you anything you wanna know." I shake my head.

"Then why couldn't you get the full confession out of him."

I take a deep breath, "Because I didn't take part in the interrogations after that point. We have provided you an analysis, now it isn't my job to make sure everyone can understand that. It's yours. So do they have the right man for this job?"

The DA turns in his chair and Ford takes a deep breath, "how do we translate it so you can use it?"

"What you're saying is that both Benjamin and Frank killed her, right?" The DA turns to us.

"It's complicated, I know." I nod. "Benjamin knocked her out because he felt like he was rejected, which is a trigger for him in this case. He tied her up and called Frank because he didn't know what to do. Frank comes over and takes advantage of the situation, of Beverly. Benjamin doesn't stop him, he wants to see her humiliated. Frank knows that he's in trouble, so he tells Benjamin she's a slut. Which is a problem for Benjamin. So they kill her. Then they call Rose, have her come and help clean up. She sees her, that poor girl, in the bathtub and realizes she's still alive. So they stab her again. Then move the body to the dump."

"Okay." the DA nods, "okay. I can work with that, thank you."

Ford and I head out of the DA's office and to the car. When we get to the car, I almost collapse into the seat, "are you okay?" Ford looks over to me as he gets in.

"I'm fine, just drive."

"Well, good news is it went well."

"You think?"

"Sure, I mean… what don't you think he grasped?"

"Well, Holden, I wasn't exactly able to operate out of a place of non-bias judgement."

"I know." Ford nods.

"I think he seemed very intent on blaming Benjamin, but I don't know. But no matter how I feel about this case, he needs to blame all three of them."

Ford takes a deep breath, "Well, certainly at the end he seemed very attentive."

"Or he saw a hurt little girl, trying to find a way to heal."

"I thought you laid it out clearly and concisely for him, just like Wendy would have."

"Just with less big words." Ford and I chuckle, "if you're right we should be fine."

"We will be." Ford smiles over to me. A few minutes pass by before Ford takes a deep breath, "If you don't mind me asking, what happened?" Ford looks over to me, "I mean, I know that day in the hall you told me, but what really happened. What's your story, Nance?"

I shake my head, "you don't wanna know."

"Yes, I do. And if not because I'm your friend then because I'm your partner."

I take a deep breath, "I was seventeen when I met him, Joel Williams. He was everything I could have wanted. Handsome, funny, smart, kind in the beginning. We had dated for about a year before we moved in with either other. And of course, no one back home thought it was a good idea."

"Of course."

"But we didn't care." I shake my head, "we were in love. I ended up putting off my degree until he graduated. But as the months and semester went on he changed. He went from this sweet, devoted man, to cruel and judgemental about everything. My hair was too short, my legs were too fat, my cooking was never good enough, whatever it was, it didn't matter, he found a reason to hate it. To hate me. But I didn't notice it at the time, I thought he was just stressed because of his classes and schedule. But when winter break came around, it didn't get any better." i clear my throat, "one night we were watching tv, he was drinking, and I had gotten up to get something out of the kitchen. I had fractured my ankle, so I was in a boot at the time, and so I bumped into the table and spilt my glass of water on the table. It didn't get anything wet, it didn't do anything. But when I went into the kitchen to get a towel, he followed me and..." I clear my throat again, "beat me." i shake my head, "called me every name in the book and told me I was worthless. That no one was going to put up with me or love me up him and even he barely did. I'm not proud of it, but I stayed for about four months. Until one night he broke a vase and when he threw me down onto the floor it cut my arm. He called the police and told them I had tried to kill myself. But of course, none of his story lined up. I left the E.R. right after he left one night and took everything I had, which was an overnight bag and my wallet and came out here. Once I got here I called my family, told them what had happened. When the police went to look for him, he was gone."

"Wow… Nance, I had no idea. I'm so sorry."