"Mom..." "I love you, Libby." "I love you, ladybug." "Don't you ever forget that." "Libby, what you're about to tell us is very, very important." "Did Ben kill your mom and your sisters?" "You were in the house when it happened." "So tell us." "It was Ben." "He killed them, right?" "I have a meanness inside me." "Real as an organ." "It's the day blood." "Something's fuckin' wrong with it." "I was eight the night they were killed and suddenly I was famous." "The little orphan girl of the Kansas prairie massacre." "So, strangers send me money." "Just enough for me to do nothing." "Which was exactly what I did." "How much is left?" "Do you read the reports I send you?" "Sometimes." "Have you at least listened to my messages?" "How much?" "There is $482 and 12 cents left in your fund." "Now as I have mentioned before..." "Jesus had you been able to replenish it with any kind of regular income, we'd have been able to keep it afloat." "You're also two months behind on your rent." "What about the book?" "Hmm?" "That should have made more money." " I know." " Any new donations?" "Thirtieth anniversary is coming up..." " You know, I could..." " People have short attention spans, Libby." "And there's always a new murder, I'm afraid." "They want to help other little girls." "And the truth is, you're not a little girl anymore." "I'm not ready for this." "But in a way, it could turn out to be a blessing in disguise." "And lead you into an exciting new phase of your life." "What do you want to be when you grow up?" "Are you fucking kidding me?" "In the past Jim Jeffries used to hand me bulging shoe boxes full of mail." "Most of them letters with checks inside." "In return, donors would receive a form letter in my blocky handwriting that read..." ""Thank you for your donation." ""It's people like you who let me look forward to a brighter future." ""Yours truly, Libby day."" "Hello?" "Hello?" "Is this Lyle wirth?" "Yeah, who's asking?" "It's Libby day, you wrote me." "Oh, holy cow!" "Really?" "Libby day?" "Are you in town?" "What do you mean, which town?" "Well, you're in Kansas City, that's where you live, right?" "Hello?" "Hello?" "Yeah, I live in Kansas City." "Listen, your offer, is it serious?" "Lyle wirth looked like a serial killer." "Which probably meant he wasn't one." "Lyle?" "Libby?" "Yeah, what?" "You were expecting someone else?" "Wow, Libby day." "I'm so excited to finally meet you..." "Okay, just fucking relax." "There's, uh, no reason to be scared." "I'm not scared of you." "I'm just trying to figure out what kind of a person wants to meet in a laundromat in the middle of the fucking night." "Oh, no, it's not what you think." "I own this place." "I own two of them." "I'm an entrepreneur." " Can I offer you something?" " Like what?" "Detergent?" "I was thinking maybe a coffee..." " Just take a fucking step back, man!" " Sorry." "What is it with you and personal space?" "All right." "Tell me about this club." "You know how some guys collect baseball cards?" "Or women who read gossip magazines and know everything about some celebrity." "Like their baby's name or the town where they grew up?" "This is like that, only it's about murders." "We call it the kill club." "It's not as weird as it sounds." "It's like a bunch of people who like true crimes and mysteries." "You know, everyone has a case that they are passionate about." "You and your family are very special." "Huge with the club." "I mean, it's a real tragedy what happened." "Your brother in jail, going on 28 years." "Look, if you and your little club want to convince me that Ben's innocent, you're wasting your time." "Just come along, it's like..." "Like a convention." "How much?" "Five hundred dollars." "And there will be a lot of collectors there, so bring any souvenirs from your childhood..." "I want a thousand." "I can give you 700." "And you let us pick your brain about what happened that day." "Fine." "Yeah?" "Yeah." "Deal." "I betcha can't!" "Come on, let's go!" "Hey!" "What about breakfast?" "It's a little warm out for that hat, don't you think?" "Settle down girls." "Settle down." "Hey, Ben." " Hey, Libby." " I like your salt mountain." "Oh, yeah?" "Mom, Ben and Libby are making a mess at the table." "Sweetie, it's fine." "Michelle, can you make sure everyone has juice." "Mom!" "Libby took my pancake off my plate." "Libby, Ben..." "Eggs?" "Mom, Ben's wearing a hat inside." "It's not even cold." "Duh!" "Michelle, you're right." "Ben, you need to take off your hat." "It's not polite to wear a hat at the table." "Ben." "Mom, Ben looks like some ghoul from one of his metal band posters." "Why?" "It's just hair, mom." "Don't freak out." "I'll be back later." "It wasn't the first time I'd been offered money for conferences or meetings." "I'd been offered all sorts of twisted deals over the years." "Want some sweets, little girl?" "Libby!" " Welcome to our club." " What?" "I said, "welcome to our club!"" "You want me to show you around?" "I want my money." "Come on." "I'll show you upstairs." "The kill club, or "KC," as we call it, is basically for solvers and fans of famous murders." "Everyone from Fanny Adams to the killer..." "Who's Fanny Adams?" "She's an eight-year-old who got chopped to bits in england back in 1867." " That guy you passed with the sweets downstairs." " Mmm-hmm." "He was playing the role of her murderer, Frederick Baker." "Jesus Christ..." "You guys need to get a life." "Yeah, we've been trying to push the role players out, but, too many guys are into that." "Plus, it's a good source of income for us." " Us?" " The solvers." "We're a serious-minded organization." "Among our ranks are ex-cops, private and insurance investigators, lawyers." "We solve crimes." "It's what we do." "Lyle." "Who's your young friend?" "Bob bredella, this is Libby day." "Whose, uh, family was at the Kansas farm house massacre." "Oh... if you had a cock you would be in pieces in my garbage right now." "Parts that I didn't use for chili." "Get your fucking hands off me!" "You freak!" " I'm kidding." "I'm sorry." " You think that's funny?" " Only kidding." " You fat fuck!" "That wouldn't have been the first fight at kill club, but it would've been the weirdest." "You know what, I'm outta here." "No, no, no." "Libby, please." "I don't want to do this anymore." "No, no." "I can understand why you wouldn't like it so far." "Okay." "But we're not all like that." "Look, just give me a chance." "Look at this in here." "It's a bunch of pi's who think they've identified a serial killer." "They're about to catch some guy who has been crossing states." "You know, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, to help kill people." "What do you mean, help?" "They call him the Angel of debt." "They think he's like a Jack Kevorkian for people with bad credit, good life insurance and no way out." "You'll like our group." "It's serious, no costumes." "Hi everyone." "It's my honor to present our special guest, and the star of this year's kill club." "Libby day." "Around 2:00 A.M. on October the 13th, 1985, a person or persons killed three members of the day family in their farm house in Kinnakee, Kansas." "The youngest child, Libby, escaped the killer through a window in her mother's room." "The oldest child, Benjamin, never produced an alibi and was extremely uncooperative with the police." "Libby testified, she saw Ben commit the murders." "Despite Libby's confused testimony, and young age, and despite a startling lack of physical evidence," "Ben day was convicted." "Based largely on rumors that he was involved in devil worship." "You done?" "I think the general consensus is that runner day, her father, did it." "I mean, he goes to Patty, tries to bully her for money, as usual gets nothing, and he goes haywire." "I mean, the guy was crazy, right?" "Right." "I don't know..." "Look, I didn't know him, he left when I was, like, two." " Where is he now?" " I don't know." "There was a blood stain on Michelle's bed sheets." "Different blood type than anyone in the family." "But since the sheets were from goodwill, prosecutor says that blood could have come from anywhere." "Yeah, we were poor." "A lot of our shit came from goodwill, okay?" "Do you remember anything out of the ordinary" " happening that day?" " Like what?" "Like, how your mother reacted to the Krissi cates scandal." " Who?" " Krissi cates." "I don't know who that is." "You mentioned her in your book." "I didn't write that book." "I didn't even read it." "What about Trey Teepano?" "What about Ben day?" "You want to hear what I have to say about him?" "Please, this is the grossest miscarriage of justice ever." "What is this woman's deal?" "Magda here is very involved in the effort to free your brother." "He's a wonderful man." "He draws, he writes poetry." "You should get to know him, Libby." "You really should." "In three weeks, that window is going to close." "What?" "In order to solve this crime, we need to compile new evidence and if you were inclined, you could recant your testimony when we file for habeas corpus." "But time is of the essence." "What are you talking about?" "Oh, because of budget cuts, they are consolidating departments and disposing of evidence from cases older than 10 years." "Which means, in three weeks' time, Ben's file will be shredded." "You're just a few people who like murder mysteries and true crimes..." "Libby." "Ben is innocent and we're trying to prove it." "He's never even filed for an appeal!" "He's had reason enough for eight appeals but he has lost hope." "Good." " Please help..." " No." " It's not a conspiracy theory..." " Hey, don't be like that!" "Get your hands off me!" "At least stay and try and convince us." "I told you she wouldn't bother, lazy little liar." "Yes, that's what you are and what you've always been." "A liar!" "You don't know shit about what happened that night." "None of you." "Run!" "Run!" "No!" "Libby!" "Libby!" "Libby!" "They're all dead!" ""Once I was in art class and met a boy named Ben." ""It was his heart I knew I would win." ""He has big blue eyes and really nice skin." ""Are you 'in'?"" ""it's Saturday and I'm thinking of you." "Guess who?"" "Hey, do you know someone here?" "Him." "Hey." "Hey." "Hey, do you know this kid?" "No, I don't hang out with middle-schoolers." "Fuck off." "Oh, little guy's pissed." "Okay, dude, what's up?" "Do I know you or what?" "I'm a friend of Trey's, I come here all the time." "You liar." "That crazy Indian doesn't have any friends." "Is he even really Indian?" "He looks Asian to me." "I think he's, uh, what do they call it, like, a mixed blood." "He's like two different things." "So, like, his drunken granddad raped a Chinese whore?" "You better watch your mouth," "Trey's into some scary ass shit." "Satanic shit." "Yeah, we get into some pretty dark shit sometimes." "You're one of the guys that killed the cows?" "We have to." "It's an order." "Bro, that's a weird order." "That was my hamburger." "Look at his face." "Sometimes things have to die." "We have to kill them." "Just like Jesus requires sacrifice, so does Satan." "Mom, is Ben in trouble?" "No, sweetie, Ben's fine." " Are you sure?" " Michelle, what do you want?" "I heard rumors." "What kind of rumors?" "Mom, there's a car coming!" "Who is it?" "Morning." "Thank you." "Who's the little spy?" "That's Libby." "She's got big blue eyes like her mom." "Where are your people from originally?" "Ireland?" "Germany." "My maiden name was Krause." "There was another German farmer near Ark city." "Last summer, his hopper went screwy and dumped 4000 pounds of wheat on him." "Poor fellow drowned in it." "He suffocated before they could get to him." " I know the story." " His farm's going under." "He owed us, uh, I mean, the fha a lot of money." "Why you working on a Saturday, Joseph, is something wrong?" "They're going to foreclose." "Why now?" "Prices aren't what they used to be." "A strong harvest is what brought those prices down, that could change next year." "There's no way for you to come out on top." "I could sell the animals, I'll sell some of the machinery." "The animals aren't worth much." "You already sold most of the machinery." "There's got to be a way." " Banks said they would back..." " Your bank's going under, too." "I'm sorry." "They're just trying to get rid of us." "I'm not sure who "they" are." "The only way to fix this is money." "I'm talking beg, borrow, steal." "Time for pride is over, Patty." "Libby?" "What you're about to tell us is very, very important." "Did Ben kill your mom and your sisters?" "You were in the house when it happened, so tell us." "It was Ben, he killed them, right?" "Listen, I've been thinking." "If I were to look into this case some more, is that something your club would be able to finance?" "You changed your mind?" "No, as far as I'm concerned Ben is the killer, but..." "I need money." "I'm willing to offer your club three weeks of my life in exchange." "That doesn't sound very noble." " Whatever." " No, wait." "Libby." "Libby." "Do you really have no contact with runner?" "No." "Well, it might be a good idea to track him down." "Although, personally I don't think runner did it." "What's your theory?" "I'm not quite ready to share that yet." "Oh, come on!" "If Ben is so innocent, why doesn't he try to get out?" "Maybe you should go talk to him." "No." "We start with other people first." "What is it?" "Is it a money thing?" "I just don't like wasting my time, okay?" "Okay." "How about... $300?" "Where do you get this money?" "As treasurer, I have a certain amount of discretionary funds." "This is the project I choose to use them for." "What?" "What's so funny?" "You're a noble embezzler." "That's what's funny." " That makes you almost likable." " Thanks." "I need 500 more." "An advance." "Why?" "'Cause I got to get my car out of the shop." "It's been held hostage for the last six months." "I'm going to need a car." "All right." " You better play ball." " Yeah, yeah, I will." "Go see Ben." "It all starts with him." "No, it all ends with him." "He killed them." "I'm serious, Libby, go talk to him..." "Fine!" "I'll talk to him!" "Just to prove you freaks wrong." "Make that fat bitch magda cry." "I think..." "I saw Ben as I was standing at the door of my mom's room." "He was threatening her with our shotgun." "Satan encourages you to do what feels good." "Because we're all basically animals." "Settle down." "Quiet." "Benjamin, you do understand this is very serious, don't you?" "Hi, Libby." "Hey, Ben." "I never thought I'd see you here." "Yeah well, I never thought I'd come." "Turns out you got a couple of fans outside." "People who take you for the victim, well played." "I thought about you a lot over the years." "Every once in a while, someone tells me about you but it's not the same." "How's it in there?" "I'm fine." "Really, I am." "I have my high school diploma." "I'm even part way to a college degree." "English." "I read fucking Shakespeare now." "Good for you." "Man, Libby, you're so beautiful." "You've got mom's eyes." "You must hear that all the time." "Who would tell me that?" "Runner's gone, don't know where." "Diane's dead." "There's no one." "That's not good." "They should've taken better care of you." "You're born again?" "Hmm?" "You found Jesus in there?" "Why are you being so nice to me?" "I'm not that nice, Libby." "I got a lot of anger for a lot of people." "Just, you're not one of them." "What?" "You're different." "You're different than I imagined." "You know, we don't have to stay in this room." "This room is designated for death row inmates." "We can be in an open room." "Unless you requested this one?" "Remember that horse, yellow?" "Yellow?" "The famous horse that refused to be ridden?" " What, did he bite you?" " Nothing that dramatic." "Just thought I had a good hold of him, he threw me against the fence and slammed my hand against a nail." "Runner been in here?" "You know where he is?" "The last letter came care of" "Bert Nolan's group home for men somewhere in Oklahoma." "He asked me for $500 to carry on his research on my behalf." "Good ol' runner." "What's the tat on your arm?" "Oh, it's a old flame." "We started out as pen pals." "I thought I loved her." "Thought we'd get married." "How about you?" "You got a boyfriend?" "Don't do that." "How dare you?" "You don't get to do that." "Libby, I'm..." "No, you don't get to ask me fucking questions." "I mean, here comes my little sister after all these years." "And I'm thinking," ""maybe this one thing will work out."" "Maybe I won't be so fucking lonely." "We can talk about a goddamn horse, that's all I'm asking for, something just as tiny as that." "I don't remember the horse." "Yellow?" "It was a dirty old farm horse." "But it was your horse." "How come I can't remember him?" "You were pretty young when mom had to sell him." "Broke her heart, but she needed the money." "I can tell you all about him." "Go ahead, ask the question." "I don't need to ask." "I know you killed them." "No, I did not." "Of course not, I was a teenage boy in a house full of girls." "At school I was the kid that nobody paid attention to." "In that court room, people were scared of me." "I was a bad ass." "A bad ass who killed his family." "Libby, I was a fool, but I did not kill mom or debby or Michelle." "Then why have you never filed for an appeal?" "Hmm?" "You like it so much in there, you want to stay there?" "You know what I think?" "I think you're full of shit." "You look awesome." "Told ya." "You don't think I might be too old for you, huh?" "Means that 17 might just be too old for your taste." "Come on." "Come on, Ben." "Focus on me." "Come on, baby." "Is that all you got?" "You know, I saw a couple of friends today at the mall." "You know a little girl named Krissi cates?" "Um, yeah." "She's in that art class I've been helping out with after school." "Why?" "You never told me about no art class, Ben." "Yeah, well, I'm just helping kids." "One of my old teachers asked me to." "Well, they say the police are looking for ya." "They say you did some naughty things to some little girls." "Everyone's calling you a perv." "What are you talking about?" "I love you." "Shh..." "The baby's kicking." "It's aunt Diane!" "There are more bags in the car, with some surprises!" "Go get them." " You shouldn't have." " It's what I do." "Are you okay?" "The wolves are at the door." "That's too much." "I love the land." "It's like loving your kids." "I know you probably don't know what I mean, but it's this overwhelming feeling." "Watching it grow and produce." "And reproduce." "But you can only work so many hours a day, and so many days a week, Patty." "All by yourself, you never stood a chance." "You should have done like me and left this place." "You should have gone to college, you're the brains." "It's mom and dad's farm." "I know." "It's time to let it go." "I don't see Ben." "He left early this morning." "How are things with him?" "Difficult." "Where is he?" "I don't know, why?" "So what do you think, is it a boy or a girl?" "I don't know." "How would I know?" "Oh, so you're saying you don't care." " No, I do care." " Mmm-hmm." "I was actually thinking of some names if it's a girl." "Well, do you care to share?" "Mmm, not yet." "Are you sure Michelle hasn't found out?" "She hasn't said anything." "That little weasel." "You know, I swear if I ever get my hands on her..." "Shut up." "You know I've promised my dad, Ben." "He said if he ever found out I wasn't a virgin anymore he'd shoot me in the head." "So you tell your nosy little sister to stop talking shit about me at school." "Before he finds out." "Hey, it's Trey!" "Quit fucking around and get out of there." "You don't know him, Ben." "You don't know what he's capable of." "You know, I think we should leave town before our parents get back." "Okay." "Really?" "That easy." " What?" " How are you going to support us?" "You'll have to get a job or..." "I don't know, ask runner for money." "Runner?" "My dad?" "Yeah." "He makes money, right?" "He does handyman stuff, for work, labor..." " He works on farms." " Are you kidding?" "Well, yeah, what did you expect?" "Trey!" "Ben doesn't know about his dad!" "You sorry sack of shit." "You don't know about your dad?" "What the fuck, dude?" "Hey, Ben." "You're smoking your dad's weed, buddy." "What are you guys talking about?" "It's crap and he overcharges." "Said he got it in Texas." "Let's go find runner, honey." "So we can get some money." "Get the hell out of here." "Teenagers across America are playing with a new and frightening game." "Satanism." "Their school books are marked up by satanic symbols." "They are seduced by heavy metal heroes, many of whom feature satanic imagery in their songs and album covers." "The fixation on violence, evil and death leads them to commit abominable crimes, including human sacrifice and sexual abuse of children." "We're in the very throes of a new satanic age..." "Everyone at the time." "Police, judges, the psychiatric community, they were seeing satanists everywhere." "And there weren't?" "A few lost, frustrated kids take those lyrics too literally?" "Yes, but real criminal satanists?" "What did the investigation say?" "The crime scene was contaminated." "People traipsing in and out of the house all day was against all the rules of police procedure, but no one cared." "They had the perfect culprit, a strange teenage boy that no one in town liked much and listened to heavy metal." "You know, it was convenient." "I've got the files so you can take a look." "Libby, it's not a request." "It's part of the job." "Seriously?" "it's like you guys want Ben out more than he does." "It's ridiculous." "What did you think of him?" "I don't know, Lyle." "Did you ever hear about him with his serious girlfriend?" "Molly or Polly?" "Something like that." "No. it doesn't ring a bell." "It's probably nothing." "He had a tattoo of it on his arm." "It's probably another magda." "Will you just tell me?" "Just tell me, who do you think did it?" "I think Lou cates did it." "Krissi cates' father." "Found out he had a history of violence, went to jail for aggravated battery." "You still have no idea who Krissi cates is, do you?" "No." "Libby..." "Come on, I know you hate doing this, but could you try?" "You're stuck with us anyway, just try." "You're smart, you'll see for yourself that something's not right." "Just..." "Just take a look at the folder." "Come on, you'll see." "Please." "Since I was seven I'd only seen flashes of Ben." "Like some evil entity in a haunted house." "But I'd forgotten there was once just Ben." "My brother." "Shy." "Serious." "Couldn't have done what they said." "What I said." "The molestation of Krissi cates and the murders weren't legally linked." "But everyone had heard the rumors and the jury was surely poisoned against him." "Oddly, all the little girls backed down and the cates family never pressed charges." "The kill club found Krissi cates mother in emporia, Kansas." "But she'd never returned their calls." "You never leave a message for someone you really want to reach." "You keep calling and calling until somebody picks up." "Out of anger, curiosity or just fear." "Hello?" "Hello?" "I'm so sorry, did I just wake you up?" "I didn't realize how late it was." "I can call back later." "Who is this?" "My name is Stephanie Adams, I'm an old friend of Krissi's," " I was just looking for her..." " Christ!" "You people won't stop calling until I give you what you want, right?" "I have no idea what you're talking about, ma'am." "I'm just an old friend looking for her," "I thought maybe you could help me." "What was your name?" "Sally?" "Yeah, my name is Sally Adams." "Listen, Sally," "I've remarried and I have very little contact with my previous family." "Got it." "You don't by chance have a number for Lou or know where I can find him?" "Lou would be in some bar in Kansas, I'd guess." "As for Krissi, drive west on I-70." "Just past Columbia." "Take a left into the giant strip club." "You'll find her." "Don't call again." "Mrs. day." "I've called you down to the precinct due to some serious allegations about your son." "How's he regarded in school?" "Is he a popular kid?" "He has lots of friends." "From what we understand, he's a bit of a loner." "So what does that prove?" "You have four children, correct?" "Yes." "Same father?" "Yes." "Mrs. day, we've got four little girls who say that Ben touched them in their private areas." "That he took them to some farm and performed certain acts associated with ritualistic devil worship." "Some farm?" "Ben doesn't even have a car." "You don't know Ben." "Satanic worship is not uncommon." "It's made its way into all areas of the community, and part of their rituals involve the degradation of children." "Do you have any evidence?" "Any witnesses?" "Besides some 12-year-old girls..." "We got the note Ben left in Krissi cates' locker." "We need to speak to a lawyer." "You do realize that abuse usually starts at home." "Mrs. day, with three little girls, if I were you, I'd want the truth out more than anyone." " Mrs. cates?" " Yes?" "I'm Patty day." "Ben day's mother." "It's Ben day's mother." "Can you take these and show me exactly what happened?" "Thank you." "Krissi?" "Krissi, I'm Patty day." "I'm Ben's mom." "I don't want her here." " I don't want her here!" "You promised!" " Okay." "Okay." "We're not safe!" "We've heard about you." "Got four kids at home, can't afford one of them!" "Their daddy's a drunk, if not worse." "You're on welfare!" "Your meals come from a food bank and Jesus Christ, you've let your son do this!" "I hope you're not hiding him." "Police are looking for him." "I'm trying to find him, I swear." "Ben is going to hell!" "Krissi?" "Yeah?" " Do you have time for a little chat?" " About what?" "To be frank, it's about Ben day." " Buy me a drink." " Sure." "Who's this?" "This is Libby." "She's with me." "What can I get you?" "Vodka cranberry, double." "Make it two." "So..." "Ben day, hmm?" "He really fucked up my life." "You maintain you were molested by him?" "I was 11 and he was 16." "He started hanging around with me after school." "I got that a lot." "I was a cute kid." "And we had lots of money." "Go on." "He would take me into the closet and make me perform oral sex on him while making me pledge allegiance to Satan." "Hey, baby, let me get a bag of chips." "You don't mind, do you?" "Anyway, Ben was pretty sneaky with me." "I mean, he had an altar in there." "Upside-down cross." "Some dead animals." "Sacrificed things." "That's why I thought that he was working his way up to killing me, but he killed his family instead." "His whole family was devil worshiping." "Um..." "How did your dad react when you told him what Ben had done to you?" "God, he was so over-protective." "He went totally ballistic." "Sometimes I think, had my dad had found Ben, he would have killed him and Ben's family would still be alive." "Your dad live around here?" "No, we lost touch." "Hey, can you lend me 20 bucks?" "Can we get your dad's address?" "I just told you." "That we're out of touch." " Yeah, I know, but I'm sure there's a way..." " Lyle." "Take care of the check." "How much did you say?" "You know what, make it 50." "I'll totally pay you back." "I'll give you a pen, you can write down your name and address." "Here." "Libby day." "My name is Libby day you lying whore." "Don't lose that." "Burt Nolan home." "Hey, I was looking a runner, or a Ronald day." "Is he staying with you?" "Well, he's been in and out." "But I'd be happy to give him a message." "Could you ask him to call me back?" "My name's Libby day." "It's kind of important." "Would you tell him I need to talk to him about Ben and what happened that night?" "Ben and that night." "Okay." "That night." "That night." "I'd been a sleepwalker since I could walk." "My mom usually didn't move when I got in bed with her." "But, that night, she turned to me and told me she loved me." "She hardly ever told us she loved us." "That's why I remember it." "I can't dwell on these thoughts." "I've labeled these memories as if they were a particularly dangerous region." "Dark place." "Michelle's diary." "I'd forgotten what a rotten busy-body Michelle was." "In her last pages, she kept writing about Ben's girlfriend, Diondra, as an evil whore." "I don't ever remember Ben ever having a girlfriend." "Diondra Wertzner." "I'm a bad mother." "What are you talking about?" "You're superwoman as far as I'm concerned." "You keep the farm going, you raise four kids, get them to school every day and you don't drink a gallon of bourbon to do it." "No, that cop was right." "If things weren't bad at home," "Ben wouldn't be in so much trouble." "Fundamentally he's a good boy." "Sometimes I think it'd be better if I disappeared." "Oh, yeah?" "And what about the kids?" "They could go with you." "They'd be better off in Kansas City." "Father's a nut job and I'm a failure." "That's runner's new car." "Do you want me to come in with you?" "No, I'll be okay." "Mommy!" "Daddy's here!" "And he brought doughnuts!" "Nothing concentrates the attention more than an animal that can kill you." "Girls, you know you're not supposed to let anyone in the house when I'm away." " But, mom, it's daddy." " And now daddy needs to leave." "Come on!" "Let's talk!" "I'm in no mood, runner." "Vern evelee told me." "You just sold the tiller." "Yeah, and that money's gone." "That money is gone as quick as I get it." "You should know that." "You're never as broke as you say." "I just need enough cash to get to Texas." "I'm sorry, I can't help you." "Patty, I'm in a real jam here." "This is life or death stuff." "Runner..." "I am dealing with some really bad stuff." "Oh, really?" "Ben is in big trouble." "It's bad." "He'll need a lawyer." "So you do have money." "No, I don't." "Lawyers cost money." "Okay, so you got jewelry, don't you?" "You got some jewelry, what about that ring I gave you?" " The engagement ring?" " Yeah, the engagement ring." "If what was worth anything I would have pawned it off years ago." "What about this?" "What about this?" "Those are real rubies, right?" "That is my grandmothers cross and you know how much that means to me and that stays in my family." "You're going to be really sorry, Patty." "I've been sorry a long time." "Bye, girls." "Your mom is a cunt!" "Thanks for fucking nothing!" "We don't open for another hour." "Oh, I'm sorry, honey." "This is a men's hostel." "I'm looking for someone." "Runner day." "Are you the manager?" "Manager, accountant, priest." "But he's gone again." "I don't allow drinkers here, and he just got his third strike." "You know where I could find him?" "Well, I would bet anything he's living at that toxic waste site." "That's an old dumping spot for grasshopper bait." "Loaded with arsenic." "Just prepare yourself for some disappointment." "I wonder what it said about me?" "That my own father was living in a toxic waste dump." "Don't even think about..." "Put the gun down!" "It's your daughter!" "Prove it." "I can't prove it." "Well, well, come on down." "Come on down!" "No, don't touch me." " Daddy's got ya." " Get your hands off me!" "Remember when you were a little girl?" " No!" "No!" " Say uncle!" " No!" "Let me go!" " Say uncle!" " No!" "Uncle!" " Say uncle!" "Fuck!" "Jesus." "How long has it been since I've seen you?" "Do you remember that flamingo ashtray I sent you?" "Yeah, when I was 10 years old and a non-smoker." "Nice, huh?" "You know why I'm here, runner." "It's time you tell the truth about the murders." "Ben was no babe in the woods." "You hang with the devil and sooner or later you're going to have to pay." "I should have known it, as soon as I saw him with that goddamn injun." " Who?" " Trey teepano." "You know what..." "People don't know shit about what really happened that night." "Who ended up with the money, huh?" "'Cause it sure as hell wasn't me." " You know we had no money." " Your mom had money." "Your queen bitch mom!" "What happened to Patty's life insurance money, huh?" "Because I sure as shit didn't get it." "You know it went to Diane." "She used it to defend Ben." "I worked years on that farm and I never received a dime!" "That bitch even asked me for alimony!" "Is that what happened?" "Hmm?" "You go there that night, ask her for money?" "Get in a fight." "What I'm trying to tell you is that Trey was a bookie who needed to get paid." "And what, you owed him money?" "No, no, no." "You want everything for free." "And you wrote that book." "You wrote a book, right?" "So you have got money!" " I haven't got..." " You've got money." "Get your fucking hands off me!" "Fuck!" "Are you scared of me?" "Where were you that night, runner?" "I don't remember a thing." "Hey, did they ever find diadra?" "You mean diondra?" "I always wondered if they killed her that night." "What are you talking about?" "That's what they do, don't they?" "Devil worshipers?" "They kill pregnant ladies and their babies." "You are." "Hey, runner." "Come here." "I don't have it, man." "I tried to scrape it together." "I did, but I just don't." "Hey, honey." "You gonna say hi to me?" "Oh, diondra." "I must be oblivious here," "I'm drinking myself cross-eyed because I'm so worried about this situation." "See, I don't get it runner." "You say you don't have any money, but you had that giant stack of weed just a few weeks ago." "I didn't charge you nothin'." "Because you owe me!" "You guys love to gamble, but you never want to pay!" "I'd say that's an exaggeration, Trey." "I know someone else who needs money." "God." "Look at this black hair you have." "I didn't know you knew Trey." "You owe him money?" "No, I don't owe him anything." " He wants money for his girl." " Tomorrow night." "Here." "Or so help me, runner, I will hurt you." "Hey, I want to tell you something." "What?" "I got diondra... she's..." "I got her pregnant." "We're having a baby." "Make sure it's yours." "Okay. 'Cause I doubt it is." "Look..." "Why would a rich slut like her hang around a loser like you?" "Think about it." "You okay, baby?" "Someone should fucking die." "You got anything?" "In the glove compartment." "What is that stuff?" "Devil's rush." "Ever had it?" "Come on." "No, man." "I don't need it." "You're gonna need it, do it." "Maybe later you become a man?" "Maybe." "Come on, baby." "Come on." "Yeah!" "No, I want the axe!" "Too heavy for you." "It's sharp, so don't fuck around." "To Satan, we bring our sacrifices." "We bring pain, blood, fear..." "Rage." "Basis of human life." "In your power, we become more powerful." "That one!" "In your exaltation, we become exalted." "We're going to make your baby a fucking warrior tonight, dio!" "Come on, baby!" "You can't just fucking stand there, It's time to get your kill!" "This is your chance, dude." "Be a man!" "I used to be like you." "I don't ever want to go back there again!" "Don't be a scared, dickless boy the rest of your life!" "Aren't you tired of being scared?" "Huh?" "Come on!" " You trust runner over me?" " I don't trust anyone." "How much?" "How much money are they paying you?" "I don't know what you're talking about." "What, you thought I didn't know about that?" "Yeah, I got paid." "It's not about that anymore." "What is it about, the truth?" "Listen, there's no way you can win this." "If I tell you I'm innocent, that means you ruined my life, sister." "And if I tell you I'm guilty, well, that doesn't make you feel much better now..." " Where's diondra?" " Oh, let it go." "I have." "What'd you do with the baby, Ben?" "What baby?" "Are you going to keep bullshitting me?" "Let it go, Libby." "What about Trey teepano?" "He said what he had to say on the witness stand." "That's too easy." "You listen to me." "Today, I can forgive your past lie." "For being confused as a kid." "But god damn it, you're a grown up now." "Do you really think that our blood could do something like that?" "I totally believe our blood could do something like that." "I've beaten the shit out of people, Ben." "I've busted in doors and windows, I've killed things!" "Half the time I look down and my hands are in fists." "Do you really believe we're that bad?" "I do." "Even with mom's blood." "Even with." "Then I'm sad for you, little girl." "Go fuck yourself!" " Is that funny to you?" " No. it's ironic." "What?" "You're just as imprisoned as I am." "It's okay, sweetie." "No, it's not." "I want Ben back." "Why can't we find him?" "Is he in trouble because of his hair?" "No, it's because of sex." "Everyone at school knows." "What are you talking about?" "Ben is your brother, you don't talk hateful about your brother." "But mom, I don't like Ben!" "He's bad..." "He does bad things!" "Has he ever touched you in a strange way or an unbrotherly way?" "The only time he touches me is when he's pushing me or pulling my hair." "Mom, he's a freak!" "It's embarrassing, just go in his room, he's got all sorts of weird stuff." "You snooped in his room?" " Hello?" " Patty?" "It's Joseph, from the fha." "Joseph, I can't find the money." "I've had a rough day." "Yes, I heard about Ben." "I wasn't going to phone you." "But how should I say this." "Patty, I trust you." "I pray for you." "I may have a solution to your problem." "I thought we were out of options." "Not entirely." " Yeah." " Libby, Libby." "We found diondra sue Wertzner." "Born on march 28th, 1968." "Was officially reported missing on October 19th, 1985, and has never been found." "So what the fuck does that mean?" "She's dead?" "I don't know, we can't be sure." "But did Ben tell you anything?" "Hang on." "Hey, told you I'd pay you back." "When I saw your name on that note..." "I should have recognized you right away, but I kinda followed your story, but it's been such a long time ago." "What do you want?" "You're not gonna make this easy for me, are you?" "Fair enough." "I was a pretty girl." "I was good in school, and Ben..." "He did volunteer work." "He gave drawing lessons." "I had a big crush on him." "We started hanging out together." "I know we were both kids, but he was old enough." "To not have encouraged me." "It was my first big grown-up kiss." "It only lasted about a second." "And afterwards, of course, he told me that we should never do it again, 'cause it was wrong." "But he kept writing me notes." "But he refused to spend any more time with me." "And I was furious." "Then, about a week later I went to a slumber party and I told all the girls about my high school boyfriend." "All proud." "And I made up things that we did." "And from there it just snowballed." "We made up this whole imaginary world, where Ben was a devil worshiper." "Kind of stories we saw on the news every day when we were kids." "Ma'am." "Your son is about to be arrested, and I know what for." "In this next year you will need some money so you can keep your children at home." "And you will need a good lawyer." "'Cause you don't want your son going to prison labeled a child molester." "What do you have to offer?" "Now I myself was once a farmer." "My dad before me and his dad before him." "But we farmers, we'd been swindled." ""Plant fence post to fence post," they said." ""Oh, and then buy more land, because," ""well, they ain't making any more of it."" "Then, whoops. "We're sorry, we gave you some bad advice." ""We'll just take your farm."" "What does this have to do with my son?" "Ma'am." "I'm no businessman." "And I'm no judge." "I'm certainly no politician." "But if you're brave enough." "I'll give you a real chance to help your family." "Your brother needs you, Libby." "He doesn't, and he's been pretty clear about that." "Now that you've explored the case with all its inconsistencies, don't you think that Ben deserves a new, fair trial?" "Based on what evidence?" "What do we know for sure?" "He's lying about diondra." "Why?" "But, everybody's a liar." "I lied to get you to kc." "You lied when you said you saw what happened that day, it doesn't make us murderers." "What makes you so sure I lied?" "Why are you so obsessed with this case?" "It's not even your story, it's mine." "It's a fascinating puzzle, a mystery with lots of different theories." "Most of all, there's you and Ben and Krissi." "Kids who started events that became bigger than them and had major repercussions." " I'm fascinated by that." " Why?" "You ever heard about those wildfires near San Bernardino in 1999?" "They destroyed, like, 80 homes and about 90,000 acres?" "I don't know, seems like California is always burning." "I was the kid who set that fire." "Then shouldn't you have become a firefighter or something, overcome your trauma that way?" "So, did you?" "Did I what?" "Did you lie that day in court?" "Hello!" "Hello?" " Can I help you?" " Hey." "We're looking for Trey teepano." "That'd be me." "Want to talk to you about Ben day." "My brother." "You're the one who lived, huh?" "Debbie?" "Libby." "You remember runner day?" "He said you were a bookie or something, back then." "Yeah." "Runner owed me a lot of money." "Still does, I guess, huh." "It doesn't mean I know what happened in your house that night." "You were into devil worshiping?" "I'm reformed now." "I'm a good god-fearin' Indian." "You remember diondra Wertzner?" "Your brother." "Your brother was crazy about that girl." "Parents neglected her, so she was always creating drama." "She'd run away, come back home." "Total soap opera." "This time, I guess, she just ran away for good, huh?" "She's been listed as a missing person for 25 years." "Yeah, she was one of them girls who was always trying to be someone else." "She'd talk in an English accent one day and next day it'd be Southern." "She liked to use her porn name, too." " She did porn?" " No." "It was that game." "What was the name of your childhood pet?" "And what was the name of the street you grew up on?" "Rural route 2." "Well, that's not going to work." "It's supposed to sound slutty." "You know, like Bambi evergreen." "What was diondra's... it was, uh, Polly something..." "Polly Palm." "What was the name your brother had tattooed on his arm?" " Oh, my god!" " It was Polly, right?" "I got her." "Polly Palm in kearney, Missouri." "The only one listed in the whole country apart for a nail boutique in shreveport." "Something like me, with open arms, I tell you..." "I don't feel good." "I think I need something to eat." "What?" "You're fucked." "Hey, dio, it's Megan." "I'm totally freaked out about Ben day." "Did you hear he molested all these girls?" "Hey, diondra, it's Jenny." "I hear Ben's running from the cops." "You're not with him, are you?" "Please tell me you're not with him." "I guess I should go home." "Okay, and what?" "Leave me here while you go to jail?" "What do you want me to do?" "We're leaving town tonight." "I have like $200 left from my parents." "How much do you have at your place?" "I've got some saved up." "My mom, she's got, like, 500 or 600 lying around." "But I don't know where." "Yeah, all right we'll go there." "Okay." "If we don't see a cop car outside, we'll go inside, we'll get the cash, we'll pack a bag and we'll get the fuck out of here, okay?" "Then what?" "What fucking planet are you on?" "Are you even sure this kid's mine?" "How dare you!" "Ben." "Ben, baby, I love you, you know." "And I swear to god this child's yours." "I swear to god, but you got to get me out of town, okay?" "And we gotta head west." "Otherwise you're in jail." "You're in jail and I'm dead from my daddy." "He'll make me have the baby, then he'll kill me." "Yeah?" "You know who I am?" "Holy crap!" "Libby." "I always thought you'd find me someday." "Smart girl." "Stay!" "So, this is out of the blue." "I mean, why come looking for me now?" "Did Ben say something to you?" "No, that's why I'm here." "So you think that once you know the truth, you'll find peace?" "Like, somehow that will fix you?" "I was with Ben that night." "We were going to skip town." "And he went to his house to get some money." "An hour goes by, two hours." "Finally, I thought he lost his nerve." "Cried myself to sleep that night." "In the morning, when I heard about the murders." "Packed my bags, left a note for my father telling him I was not his little girl anymore." "Skipped town for good." "Ben never gave my name to the police." "After all these years." "He protected me." "So, no one but him knows what happened that night." "I do think you that you could find this peace that you're looking for if you accept that." "Look, I hate to say this, but whatever happened, and as much as I loved Ben," "he needed to be in that prison." "There was something inside your brother that was not right for the outside world." "You were pregnant." "What happened to the baby?" "I'm here." "What are you doing?" "I told you to wait in the car." "I know you did, but..." "Baby, I'm hearing voices in my head." "Shh, shh." "You got to be quiet, okay." "I don't want to be alone." "I know." "It's just the drugs." "They'll wear off, okay." "I like your house." "Be quiet." "What's going on?" "Somebody's been in my room." "Oh, god." "You don't..." "You don't think it's the cops, do you?" "I don't know." "I got a present for you, for the baby." " You got me a present?" " Yeah, but it's not here." "Who is that?" "It's okay, it's just Libby, she's going into mom's room." "There's less than I thought." "I fucking know it was Michelle." "It was Michelle that stole my fucking present, that nosy little bitch." "This doesn't feel right." "I knew it!" "I heard everything!" "Come here!" "Get out of my way." "You don't say another word, you little bitch!" "Stop!" "Stop!" "She's not gonna say anything." "Ben, get off me." "Come here." "Diondra, stop it!" "Stop!" "Dio, stop." "You'll wake up the whole fucking house." "If you think I'm going to spend my entire fucking life worrying about this little bitch, you're wrong, Ben!" "Get off of her." "Dio, stop." "Listen to me." "We'll talk to her, okay?" "She'll understand." "Stop." "Ben?" "Hey!" "it's okay." "Okay?" "I was never supposed to meet you." "I'm a secret, you know." "A secret love child." "That's right, baby." "Crystal knows the whole story." "I tell her everything." "We're best friends." "I read your book, too." "I even have a little scrapbook of photos of all of you." "Clipped out of magazines and stuff." "It's like a fake family photo album." "Can I call you aunt Libby?" "I know that this is a lot to take in." "Want a drink?" " I need to use your bathroom." " It's just up the stairs." " Yeah?" " Libby." "Libby, I know the whole story now." "You need to hear this." "What are you talking about?" "You remember the theory the kill club had about the serial killer they called the angel of debt?" "Yeah?" "They got him, I mean, we got him." "One of our members posed as a bankrupt hedge fund manager in a suburb of Chicago and this guy Calvin Diehl, tried to help him stage his death." "Diehl used to be a farmer who lost everything to the banks in the Soviet Embargo." "So what?" "He's been at it since the '80s." "Making suicides look like accidents or murders." "What the fuck are you talking about?" "Your mother had hired him for that night." "Are you sure?" "Listen, Lyle, can you come get me?" "Okay." " Libby?" " Yeah?" "Is everything okay?" "Yeah, I'm fine." "I just need a second." "I'm sorry, but I really need to go." "I'll be out in a second, okay?" "Fuck!" "Libby?" "Yeah." "Yeah, I'm coming." "You okay?" "Yeah, I'm fine." "Listen, I'm gonna wait outside, my friend is coming for me." "I really need you to keep this a secret, okay?" "I can't risk it." "Them thinking I'm an accomplice, you understand?" "Why would they think that?" "Were you at the house that night?" "No!" "Don't worry, it'll all be over in about 30 seconds." "Go tell mom." "Come here!" "Get the fuck off her!" "What the hell?" "Mom, they're hurting Michelle!" "Run!" "Run!" "No!" "No, please don't!" "No!" "Why'd you make me do this?" " Don't do it." "No!" " This wasn't the plan." "Get the fuck off of her." "Oh, my god!" "Mom, I'm sorry." "I saw the cross was gone and I panicked." "It's okay, sweetie." "Go get the gun." "It's in the cabinet." "Where is it?" "I can't find it!" "It's in the box on the left side." "I'm looking there, mom, it's not there." " Well, look harder!" " I am looking!" "What did you do to her?" " I'm calling the police." " Wait, listen." "She wouldn't shut up, all right?" "It's her fault, she wouldn't shut up!" "Where's the little one?" "Oh, shit!" "Libby!" "Libby!" "It's gotta be in here!" "I know it's here!" "Stop yelling at me!" "How am I supposed to find anything in this crap?" " I see it, it's right there." " Okay, where are the bullets?" "Where are the bullets?" "No, it's loaded, it's fine!" "Mom!" "Mom!" "Libby?" "Fuck." "Hey, hey!" "Let me do it!" "Let me do it!" "Bitch blocked the door!" "Christ!" "Can you squeeze through?" " Oh, my god!" "She got out!" " Grab the gun!" "Damn it!" "Libby!" "Libby!" "Ben, if she saw something, we got a problem!" "Ben, baby..." " What?" " Don't you see how this isn't a coincidence?" "We need money, then we do the ritual and then, pow!" "Someone kills your entire family!" "What are you talking about?" "You inherit all your mom's life insurance!" "Whatever you want to do, baby, you want to go to California, you want to live on the beach, we can do it!" "Together!" "If you want me to, I can take care of her myself." "No, I'll get her." "Mom, we're not going to find her." "She could be anywhere by now." "She can't be far." "Her friend is coming." "What if he called the cops?" "We have to go." "What if they find us?" "Libby?" "Stay where you are, sweetheart, okay." "Stay there." "Libby!" "Libby!" "I love you, Libby." "I love you, ladybug." "Don't you ever forget that." "Libby!" "Libby!" "Libby, you okay?" "What happened?" "Where are they?" "There's no one here, I checked the house." "It's okay." "Everything's okay." "Diondra Wertzner, also known as Polly Palm was arrested last night in amarillo, Texas." "This is the latest development in the 1985 Kansas Prairie massacre case." "Ms. Wertzner was wanted in relation to the murder of Michelle day for which Ben day, her brother, has been in prison for the last 28 years." "She denies any involvement while DNA analysis is pending." "But it was announced this morning that Ben day will be released from prison shortly." "Their daughter, crystal, is still at large." "As a reminder, this is the latest twist in a larger case, that of serial killer Calvin Diehl, aka the angel of debt who has killed, or as he claims, "helped to die in dignity,"" "more than 50 people since the early 1980s." "He had each of his victims sign what he termed a "permission to kill" form along with a letter to loved ones." "Dear Ben, Michelle, Libby and debby." "I don't think this letter will ever reach you." "But Mr. Diehl said he'd hold it for me." "And I guess that gives me some comfort." "Your grandparents always told me, "make a useful life."" "I don't think I've really done that, but I can make a useful death." "My life has been determined so much by accidents." "It seems nice now that an accident on purpose will make things right again." "I hope you all forgive me." "Take care of yourselves." "I know Diane will do right by you." "I'm only sad I won't get to see the wonderful people you've become." "Although I don't need to." "That's how sure I am of my kids." "Diondra was always sure you'd find her." "She was sure of it." "Guess she was right." "So you met my daughter." "Mmm-hmm." "I've heard different things." "Is she... is she like diondra?" "Is she bad?" "I don't know." "How does a girl deal with the fact that she knows her mother is a murderer?" "She can't disappear for long, I can find her." "She's not going to go to jail because of me." "You'd really give her a pass?" "I know a little bit about people trying to do the right thing and completely fucking up." "Are you talking about me or mom?" "I'm talking about me." "You could've been talking about any of us." "28 years I've been shutting up and taking it." "28 years I've been protecting a kid that I never met." "By leaving her with your sister's murderer?" "I never said I did the right thing, but I made a choice and I had to live with it." "Yeah, I had to live with it, too." "But I do wish there was something I could say to make it better." "There's nothing left to say." "You lied." "I lied." "We're even." "What about us?" "You don't know me, Ben." "You think you do, but you don't." "Just like I don't know you." "Or mom." "Or debby, or Michelle." "Whatever silver of a memory I had of them died with them that night." "I'm so angry at you." "But you're still my brother." "You're still my blood." "I won't let what happened that night, drive my life anymore." "I just want to be normal." "I'm sorry." "I'm sorry, Libby." "I'm sorry." "You know that horse you were talking about, yellow?" "Yeah, what about him?" "I don't get it." "Why yellow?" "I don't know." "Mom named him." "It's not like he was a yellow horse or anything." "I guess she'll keep that secret with her, huh?" "There's a lot of other stories, Libby." "Beautiful ones." "Wasn't all bad, you know." "I didn't get straight on the highway." "But slowly drove to where our farm had once been." "Still standing." "That unsafe place." "That blanked-out space where my mother so desperately invited death." "Maybe Ben was right." "It wasn't all bad." "Ben learned something in his prison that I never learned in mine." "Forgiveness." "My mom told us to make a useful life." "Nothing big." "Nothing grand." "Just a start." "Finally, a start."