Two nights after Christmas, clear and cold
an unhurried and contented fullness
had settled on a small, quiet town in Missouri
an unobtrusive little place,
sort of place that didn't make a fuss,
a town called Troy.
It was December 27th, 2011.
There'd be a fuss tonight.
Troy was about to make headlines.
The dead woman on the floor was Betsy Faria.
It was obvious that her wrists had been slashed.
The blade of a kitchen knife was still buried in her neck.
A few feet away in the kitchen,
her husband Russ was on the phone with 911,
sounding hysterical.
Maybe too hysterical.
- - Yeah, I-- - I just got home from a friend's house and--
and my wife-- my wife killed herself.
She's--she's-- she's on the floor.
A terrible story too often told.
Dead wife, guilty husband feigning grief.
Open and shut, a story like that.
Easy to judge the book by its cover.
You'd think what happened on Sumac Drive
was at the hands of Russ Faria,
and you'd be wrong.
Dead wrong.
Enter Pam Hupp.
You know, when people want you to admit
to something you didn't do? I can't do that.
I'm not that kind of person. Mm-mm.
They don't know who I am.
[cheerful music] I'm a businesswoman!
I do business all the time.
Flip houses, turn a profit.
I'm real successful.
I'm a pillar of the community.
She's a pillar of the community.
Thanks, Ger! Great guy.
[slurps]
I'm other stuff too: a loving family woman.
My husband, Mark.
He thinks I'm a hoot. - [laughs]
My son, Travis.
Owns his own condo that I financed.
Sarah, from my first marriage.
all: Cheese!
Don't we look great?
Almost forgot!
My mom, Shirley.
R.I.P.
Took care of her till the very end.
Just like my best friend, Betsy.
Bets had a rough go with cancer,
but I got through it.
I miss ya, Bets.
What happened to Betsy was hard on me too.
Probably more than anyone.
Except maybe Betsy.
And people still say, "Pam, she's blah, blah, blah."
But everyone knows it was her husband.
Did you hear that 911 call?
[screams]
[rapid breathing]
Wah-wah-wah. What a faker.
And then I get stuck with his problems?
I had to deal with her bratty daughters, her mom--
oh, my God, her mom--
but I was happy to help.
And here we are,
all because I was such a good friend.
Ah, the friend, the confidant.
And my, my,
such a story she could tell.
[sinister music]
♪
[line ringing]
- Hello. - Hey, how ya feeling?
Want me to bring some of those suckers when I come back?
This time, chemo wasn't bad.
I feel kinda good, actually.
Great, I'm glad.
I was just thinking of that bad day a couple chemos ago.
You went and played tennis after.
Mm. I pushed it too hard that day.
Yeah, it took like an hour
to clean all the puke off the court.
Wouldn't want that going down at your mom's.
Really, Pam.
I'm good to stay.
My family's here and-- - See?
That's what I'm worried about.
All those germs when your white count's low.
Let me feed Mark and Travis, then I'll come pick ya up, kay?
- Can I come back and get you? - Is that Russ?
He should just stay out and play his game. I got ya.
If I wanna go home,
he'll just get me after his guys' night.
I don't mind driving. I'll come after dinner.
See how you're doing.
Drink lots of water. I'll see you soon.
Pam?
Oh, have fun playing karate priest.
I'm a monk with celestial powers.
[bell chimes]
Oh, the mundane moments of every day.
The drinks we buy,
the shops we frequent,
the names we're able to put to faces.
Oh, we're out of cherry.
Ger? - Oh.
Sorry, Pam.
Here you go.
- Thanks. - Uh-huh.
["Jingle Bell Rock" playing]
Oh, hey, Dave.
Happy late Christmas.
Hey, Pam. You too.
Thanks.
Santa treat you well? - Nah.
But I wasn't that good neither. [both chuckle]
Maybe next year he'll bring me a girlfriend, right?
You kidding?
Any girl just needs to get a look at you in that uniform.
♪ It's the right time to rock the night away ♪
It's the intent behind the little things we do
that says everything. [bright chime]
This too.
[sinister music]
Bye. - Bye.
It's those little things
that may turn out to prove your innocence.
♪
[slurps]
♪
There are things in Troy one takes for granted.
The bit of history downtown,
the winter chill, and safety,
but certainly not murder.
[utensils scraping]
[dog whining]
Those chemo rooms are tiny
and there's no place to be with all these people,
so I'm stuck standing. - On your bad leg?
All 'cause her mom's friend Bobby's there
and everyone thinks she's so great 'cause she's from Texas
like it's France or something,
and I'm supposed to be all impressed
'cause that's where Bobby's from.
Now she wants Bets to stay at her mom's tonight.
But you're still gonna go get her?
Well, yeah.
And you're gonna call me after you drop off Betsy?
Mm-hmm, that's my plan.
[utensils scraping]
[slurping]
She ready? - Pam.
I didn't know you were coming back.
Yeah, Bobby. Bets wanted me to.
She's gotta get to bed.
Win-win.
Now I can hear more about Texas.
All your barbecue and stuff. - Huh.
Hey. Where's your coat?
I'm not sure where it is.
Betsy's playing her game.
Why don't you just stay for a drink?
Sure. I can chill a sec.
[sinister music]
♪
Oh, let me take your coat, hmm?
No, I'm good.
You play your game.
♪
[sniffs]
♪
My berserker goes into adrenal rage--
plus three on all attacks
and attacks the Lord of Entropy.
You can't attack the Lord of Entropy.
He's a god!
Are you sure you wanna do that?
No. [phone vibrating]
Yes, yes, I attack.
Okay, you heard him.
I mean, everybody roll to attack.
Jackass. [indistinct muttering]
[rock music playing]
You get that.
♪
[exhales]
[unsettling music] - [slurping]
♪
Russ took a nice photo of us on Christmas morning.
Figured out how to set the timer and everything.
[laughter] - [slurping]
We're working on it.
I just wish that he wouldn't smoke in the house.
With you in your condition?
How's the game going?
[music stops abruptly]
You know, maybe we just go ahead and call it a night.
Wait.
No, Mom, I thought you were staying with us
at Grandma's house.
Well, Pam came all this way, so...
I'll just see you tomorrow, sweetie.
Hmm.
That big beanbag is something.
Yeah, grandma got it for me for Christmas.
It's called a LoveSac. - Mm. Hmm.
Wait, something got on it.
Yeah.
I saw that when I came in.
Just asking for trouble with white.
Let's get these on ya.
Here.
Hey!
I didn't get my hug.
We'll save it for tomorrow, Mama.
- Aww. - Yep. See ya, Janet.
[sentimental music]
♪
It's hard to know when a goodbye
will turn out to be important.
Who would ever think this goodbye
would turn out to be forever?
♪
Whoa.
You maybe wanna slow down just a little?
No rush.
Oh, was I speeding?
Oops. [chuckles]
What's the opposite of night vision?
That's what I got. [chuckles]
Yeah, I know. Russ could've drove me.
[sniffs]
Hey, let's watch a movie at your place, huh?
[sighs] It's been a long day, Pam.
I'm tired.
Hmm.
Okay.
Well, just a show, then.
You can't spend enough time with the people you love.
Yeah, I know what you mean.
I feel like I don't see Mariah enough
since she started living with my mom.
The school district there is so much better.
♪
Well,
me and the kids
just wanted you to know that
Russ has been so sweet.
I know you're not his biggest fan.
He's a mess.
Lord knows I'm a mess.
That is why it is so good
that you have got your eye on us.
♪
And that you'll--
[voice breaking] you'll help my girls when--
when--oh, God.
I just don't want them to have too hard of a time.
Here we are.
♪
[sniffles] Thanks for the ride, Pam.
[lock clicks]
I promised Mark we'd call him together
when we got home. - Oh.
Is he okay? - Yeah.
Let's just call him. [phone dialing]
Sure.
Great. [line ringing]
Hmm.
Wasn't he expecting you?
Must be away from his phone.
Oh! - Hey, it's Mark.
Leave a message. - Get ready.
[line beeps] Hey, Mark, it's us.
Just got Betsy home and she's gonna get all tucked in,
but we just wanted to say hi.
Happy Christmas, Mark. Hope you're good.
Thanks for loaning me Pam.
Those little things,
like a timestamped phone call, for instance...
- Perfect. - Can make an alibi.
The question is, will it stand?
Hello? I'm worried about ya.
Bets, honestly, I don't know why you're doing this to me.
You mad or something?
[dog barking]
Call me. You better be okay.
[dog barking]
[line disconnects]
[dog barking]
[dog whining]
[sinister music]
A phone can be both sword and shield.
Each call a strike or a defense.
♪
Janet, I've been trying Betsy for like a half hour.
No answer. Maybe her phone's off?
That's not like her, right?
No, it isn't.
Maybe she's mad at me or something?
Oh, what would she be mad at you for?
I don't know.
She wanted to watch a movie until Russ came home,
but I said, "You just need to rest."
So she said she's gonna watch TV till he got home
and he was gonna be home in, you know, like, an hour or so,
so I said "Okay."
But I would've stayed. - Oh, God.
I just hope she's not in a bad place in her head again.
Yeah, I shouldn't have worried ya.
Just wanted to see if maybe you knew something.
I'll keep checking,
[sinister music]
♪
Leaving a friend's house, do we notice the time?
Should we?
[unsettling music]
♪
It's a funny thing, fate.
All just a series of decisions.
Right or left, stay or go.
Welcome to Arby's. What can I get for you tonight?
Um... [clears throat]
I'll have the, uh, chicken bacon Swiss.
Uh, sorry, no.
I'll have the beef and cheddar melt.
Sometimes one small thing
could make all the difference in the world.
Sometimes it's stopping at a light
before a truck barrels through the intersection.
Actually, two beef and cheddars.
Other times, it's how to satisfy
a case of the munchies.
[rock music playing]
Oh, thank you.
♪
[dramatic music]
♪
[dog whining] - Hey, girl.
Why you out here, huh?
Come on.
♪
[screams]
Lincoln County 911. What's your emergency?
[sniffles] Hello?
Ma'am, I'm gonna need you to take a couple of deep breaths.
What's your name?
[sobbing] My name-- my name is Russell Faria.
Okay, Russell, what is the address where you are?
1--1--130 Sumac.
[sobbing]
- I-- - I just got home from a friend's house, and--
and my wife--
my wife killed herself.
She's--she's-- she's on the floor.
O--okay, Russell,
I need you to calm down, honey, okay?
What did she do? Do you know?
She's got a knife in her neck
and she sliced her arms.
Okay. Is she breathing at all?
She's dead. [rapid shallow breathing]
The worst call he ever had to make,
and Russ had no idea
how much it would be picked apart.
[breathing heavily]
Russell, they're on their way, hon.
Okay, is there anybody else in the house?
[voice breaking] No.
No, I'm all alone.
[sirens wailing]
Russell, I've got a couple of officers
out there right now.
Can you do me a favor and open your front door?
[grunts]
[pounding on door]
Sheriff's department.
Sir, is there anyone else in the house?
No.
You said your wife killed herself?
Yes.
Oh, my God, Betsy.
[sobbing]
Could you please take him outside?
[sobbing]
[soft tense music]
♪
Got a female down at 130 Sumac.
Looks to be a definite J4.
Copy that.
[sirens wailing]
Update information at crime scene, 130 Sumac.
[indistinct chatter]
I'm just gonna get this off of you.
No witnesses as of yet.
County's sweeping the neighborhood now
to see if anybody saw or heard anything.
[shivers]
[desolate music]
♪
It was 34 degrees in Troy
when Detective Michael Merkel took Russ' coat for evidence.
[dog barking]
Russ' beloved dog, Cicely,
had been mysteriously left outside the house.
While inside, Captain Mike Lang
and lead detective Ryan McCarrick got to work.
[dramatic music]
See the sock hanging off?
Signs of a struggle.
And the knife in her neck?
Doesn't spell suicide.
You hear that 911 call? - Totally over the top.
We need to know everything this guy touched
in the last 24 hours.
The scene will never be as fresh as it is right now.
Here's one for ya. I didn't see a drop of blood
anywhere on him.
Must've washed it off.
Check every inch of the bathrooms.
Showers, laundry. Find where he washed it off.
♪
Hey, this pillow's in a weird spot.
[camera snaps]
[indistinct radio chatter]
Where am I going?
We just need you to come down the station,
answer some questions about your wife.
Due diligence.
♪
[siren wailing]
How you liking your first murder?
Honestly, thought it'd be harder to solve.
We got statistics for a reason, brother.
Learned that in my 200 hours of training.
This?
Textbook spousal homicide.
The drive to Betsy's was fine.
Oh, my God, Mark, Janet got Mariah this ginormous beanbag.
The size of a house.
Called a "love suck" or something?
Those things cost, like, a $1,000.
If I had beanbag money like that
when I was her age, I'd have gone to college.
[gasps]
Ugh!
Burned it.
[unsettling music]
♪
So, Russ, tell me about you and Betsy.
And you've been married how long?
12 years.
That's a long time.
You know, I know marriages can get messy.
You two had any problems?
We had our bumps.
We were separated.
Didn't get along for a bit but then we--
we found this new church and we worked it out.
Yeah? What's your pastor's name?
Mike Shriner.
You go to Morningstar?
You know Mike?
I know Pastor Mike. Great guy.
He's a good friend.
And everything with the family's
been good since then?
Well, uh, normal stuff.
We found out our daughter Lily
stole some money from Betsy's mom.
There's always something.
Right. Always something.
And she was sick?
Depressed?
Enough to kill herself?
She had cancer.
We thought she got rid of it.
She had a mastectomy, but it spread to her liver.
Now it's in her liver
even though she had her whole boob removed.
Am I allowed to go to the bathroom?
Look at him and decide:
do you see a killer?
DA Leah Askey was about to decide for herself.
- [sighs] - Hey.
Just wait till you hear this.
I thought I told you not to call me this late.
What if I was home with Chris?
Yeah, but there's been a murder.
A homicide, like, a big one.
Okay. And?
Some lady on Sumac got stabbed,
I don't know, 20,
maybe 60 times.
I processed the crime scene myself
and, uh, we have the husband here now.
I'll be there first thing in the morning.
You Miranded him, right?
Oh, yeah.
Yeah.
You know, hold on one second for me, okay?
Just hold on one second.
[determined music]
- [grunts] - Sorry.
Russ, how 'bout we make this easier on both of us,
'cause my patience is--
♪
Sit tight.
Oh, my God. Why would she do this to me?
♪
Hey. Sorry about that.
You know, so much to do and not enough bodies.
Um, look, somehow--
and bear with me, it's-- it's been a long day, but--
you know, when we bring someone in here to talk like this,
we gotta run through their rights with them
and somehow I forgot, okay?
So I'm just gonna run over this with you real quick.
Right, you have the right to remain silent.
Anything you say can and will be used against you
in a court of law-- - Am I being arrested?
We're just trying to find out what happened
and you've given us great information.
But do I need a lawyer?
Only if you did something wrong.
Okay, then.
Do you think I could get another blanket?
[unsettling music]
♪
[phone ringing]
♪
Hello?
♪
Oh, my God, what happened?
♪
Sure, officer, thanks for the heads-up.
♪
Well, my husband is working, but I'll be here.
Thanks.
♪
[unsettling music]
♪
Oh.
♪
[doorbell rings]
♪
[sniffs]
♪
Hi. Come in.
I've just been so upset.
Sorry.
Did we catch you at a bad time?
Do you need a second to change?
No, I'm good.
And now's perfect.
Can I get you anything?
Coffee? - No, thanks, we're okay.
Thanks for making the time, Ms. Hupp.
Of course.
I just can't believe it.
You can, um, sit anywhere. [dog whines]
So what happened to Betsy?
Some kind of accident or something?
No, she's not accidentally dead.
She's not naturally dead.
What's that mean?
It's an active investigation
so we can't say much,
but we're trying to figure that out.
Oh.
We both know the suicide thing is crazy.
They've found 52 stab wounds on her so far.
No.
- Yeah. - No!
They haven't been able to stop counting.
You're not gonna convince us it was a suicide.
Betsy! No. [sobs]
- The truth will come out. - [sniffles]
The truth?
Yeah, and this huge weight
will be lifted off your shoulders.
What?
You mean--
I didn't do this.
[sighs] All right. It's okay, bud.
Look, let's go over your story so far.
You said you didn't take Betsy home,
that someone dropped her off, right?
Who was that? - Her friend Pam.
She's been helping us out with Betsy.
Okay. You mind spelling that for me?
H-U--
P-P.
Um, it's a homeless shelter,
battered women in a church. - Oh, that's so nice.
So that's my Tuesday nights
and Bets always likes to, um, help those women with me,
bring them dinner, you know.
[dog whines] I know, honey.
The husbands aren't cooking,
being they're battered and everything.
- Right. - So from there,
I go straight to my mom's.
She's going through Alzheimer's.
She doesn't know what she's saying
or where she is half the time.
That must be hard.
Oh, it is.
And on top of all of that,
I'm driving to Betsy to all her appointments.
She's got chemo, whatnot, all her scans,
but her family's real appreciative.
Her friends were worried about her.
It would help if you could tell us more about last night.
You said you got back to Betsy's at 6:30 p.m.?
Yes.
[dramatic music]
♪
Here we are.
We left my husband a voicemail when we got there.
So he should have that on his phone.
You could ask him.
You called from inside the house?
No, no, from the car.
Right. And then you just dropped her outside and left?
Correct.
[sniffles]
Thanks for the ride, Pam.
She was tired from the chemo.
She puked her guts out earlier.
Sweet dreams.
I always bring suckers in my bag
to help her with the nausea.
♪
But it must have been a little later than 6:30.
The drive is what, a half hour?
[sniffles]
Um...
I'm so sorry.
[chuckles]
My brain gets kind of funny sometimes.
I get mixed up.
It's all right. Sorry to hear that.
I had an accident at work.
You know, we were moving the office
and there were boxes laying around
and I tripped and I fell into a filing cabinet.
Blah, blah, blah.
You know, got knocked out, had to have back surgery.
Wow. How's your head?
Your memory, I mean.
Great.
I have to remember everything
for an entire house, basically, so--
- Mm. - Hmm.
So we were in the driveway,
chit-chatted for a few...
Would you say it was less than ten minutes?
- - Gosh, I don't-- - I don't know.
I don't know. I'm not sure.
I don't remember.
Between 10 and 20?
Um, could've been, yeah.
Wasn't paying attention though.
I was just trying to get out of there
'cause with Betsy, you know--
[vocalizes]
♪
Here we are.
Oh, thanks for the ride, Pam.
Girl, anything for my best friend in the entire world.
I wish I could just stay with you.
Girls' night!
Girls' night forever!
[both laugh]
She said she didn't have clothes or anything with her.
She was at her mom's, I guess, all weekend.
How come she was staying at her mom's
and not at Sumac Drive?
That's Russ' house.
He wouldn't let her put her name on the title.
Okay, but do you know why she'd stay at her mom's?
A lot of it was she didn't like to drive,
and a lot of it was, um,
she didn't wanna go home.
Pam and Betsy hang out sometimes.
She likes talking to Pam.
Pam is a good person.
So were they currently separated
and having issues or--
Not right now.
I mean, but that would change a lot.
They were separated, gosh, six or seven times
off and on through the years.
He does a lot of pot.
And he smokes in the house,
even with her cancer and all.
Mm-hmm.
And his temper. [scoffs quietly]
That's how come Mariah moved in with Betsy's mom.
[sniffs]
Was he ever violent with Betsy?
I was at their place a lot.
And, um, he's not--
he's not the most, um--
he was kinda not nice verbally to her.
Mm.
You know the type.
Real aggressive.
[in baby-talk] He's a pusher. He's a pusher.
And I just don't care for his type.
Do you remember if Russ' car was in the driveway
when you arrived? - Uh, yeah.
Here we are.
Thanks for the ride, Pam.
Oh, good, Russ is home.
Looks like it.
And did you go inside at all?
- For a bit. - She said she didn't go in.
Betsy asked me to.
Um, and, um, she wanted to watch TV,
but, um, I was just trying to go.
Were the lights on inside?
No.
The house was dark even though Russ' car was there?
Um, Russ' car was there
and the lights were off,
which we thought was kind of weird.
But then she goes-- uh, she goes,
"Oh, well, Russ is home.
And he left the door unlocked for me."
And I said, "Well, I better walk you to the door.
♪
She had a bag, blah, blah, blah,
stuff like that.
Uh, so I walked to the door and in for just a bit,
till she could get a light on. - And could you see--
And then we had to put her dog out in the yard
'cause he was so annoying.
Aggressive.
I love dogs.
Big dog fan.
[in baby-talk] But I just hate that type.
- And then you left? - Yes.
And then I called Betsy to make sure
she got to bed okay.
Could we see your phone?
♪
Mm-hmm.
♪
Does Betsy's family know?
Yes, they've been informed.
Mm.
[phone beeping]
Yeah, see?
Called her when I got home.
You were home when you called her?
Yep.
Betsy knew I don't see in the dark
and she wanted me to check in.
And then I ate something,
a piece of pie, whatever,
and then I went and got a shower
and then I called her mom. [sucks lips]
♪
You know what you should look for is--
is there was this letter
that Bets was gonna send to me
about Russ putting a pillow over her face.
- A pillow? - Yeah.
Russ started playing this game
of putting a pillow over her face, um,
just to see what it would feel like.
I don't know if he said,
"This is what it's gonna feel like
when you die or whatever,"
and then act like he was kidding.
Yeah.
I didn't really know him that well though.
I just met him about three times in ten years.
[dog whining] Yeah.
Hm.
♪
Yeah, I didn't-- I didn't know him very well.
[sniffs]
- I could not do this. - Look, buddy.
We're past it, okay? We're past it.
There's too much evidence here, Russ.
And hey, being, you know--
being honest, you're a church-going man.
You're a church-going man?
- Yes. - Yeah.
Think of Pastor Mike.
Think what he would say.
He'd believe I didn't do this.
And what about God?
God's in this room with us right now.
And God knows that I did not do this.
I could not do this.
I found her like that when I got home.
We're lied to all the time, but God,
God knows the truth.
Oh, officers?
Since you're asking me so much about Russ,
should I be worried?
No, ma'am, we're keeping him at the station.
They say there's no right way to grieve.
Pam.
Pam, what's going on?
What are the police doing here?
Something happened, Minnie. Something terrible.
I'll tell you about it later.
I gotta go someplace.
Some of us may cry in times like these,
while others get busy.
[determined music]
♪
[sobbing]
He'll break. Not worried.
[sobbing]
You were promoted to Homicide supervisor,
what, a month ago?
Six months ago.
It shows.
[sobbing]
You think after that 911 call he'd run out of tears.
Where's the autopsy report? - Almost done.
More than 50 stab wounds. It screams crime of passion.
Yeah, we got a lot of info from her best friend.
She dropped her off right before.
Said the guy's got a real temper.
I mean, who else would do that to a woman dying of cancer?
[sobbing]
And he still hasn't asked for a lawyer?
Loser doesn't even know he needs one.
[unsettling music]
♪
[slurping]
[bell chimes]
♪
[exhales]
♪
[knocking on door]
Janet.
Gosh.
I don't know what to say.
- I got-- - I got you this.
It made me think of Betsy.
You know, her heart.
♪
I have one just like it.
Who would do this?
To Betsy?
Well, they're holding Russ, aren't they?
- Russ? - Yeah.
Police were asking all about him.
Is he violent? Did he get verbal at her?
All that kinda stuff.
Russ wouldn't have--
They still have him down at the station, you know?
Doesn't look good.
Well, you gonna let me in?
♪
Or if it's just family--
- I-- - I drove all the way here,
- but I-- - I can go. - No, come in.
[sighs]
You're family, Pam.
She's family. She's there for you.
She's your neighbor.
She's your friend from church.
She's the one you never see coming.
But that's the thing about Pam.
Did you kill Betsy Faria?
No.
You boys want a cookie?
So I take it you knew Russell Faria.
I didn't really know the guy,
but he seemed sorta...
- Abusive? - Real abusive.
That's Joel Schwartz.
We're here for Pam Hupp's cell data.
Not many men can pull off a pink pocket square.
Russ started playing this game
of putting a pillow over her face.
- Who took Betsy home? - Her friend, Pam.
Why don't you tell me about Pam?
She's a nice lady.
[blows loudly]
I'm gonna make him pay for what he's done.
Sheriff's department!
But...
Russell Faria, you're under arrest.
We need someone who really knows
Betsy and Russ' relationship.
Well, I know everything about it.
- He killed his wife. - Objection.
Are you gonna object to my entire opening statement?
If you keep saying objectionable things, yeah.
- [slurping] - Pamela Hupp lied about
where she was at the time of the crime.
All these questions are none of their business.
- Pamela Hupp is not a suspect. - Yeah, well, she should be.
[laughs]
You're facing life in prison.
The prosecution calls Pamela Hupp to the stand.
I got it from here.
[dramatic music]
[unsettling music]
♪