Philip Stillwater interview #2

Friday, April 29, 2022 – 4:00 p.m.

Philip Stillwater is the son of Blake Stillwater, who was having an affair with the victim.

The detectives contacted him to come in for another interview and sent a deputy to transport him to the Yoknapatawpha County Sheriff's Department.

Participants:

• Detective T. Armstrong
• Philip Stillwater

Detective Armstrong: Would you state your name and address, please?

Philip Stillwater: You already talked to me before. You know my name and address.

Detective Armstrong: We still have to do this, just for the record.

Philip Stillwater: Fine. Philip Stillwater, 238 Highway 6 West. Oxford.

Detective Armstrong: Do you have any information concerning the death of Wendy Holloway to tell us?

Philip Stillwater: What's that supposed to mean?

Detective Armstrong: Is there anything you didn't tell us in our first interview?

Philip Stillwater: No.

Detective Armstrong: Well, then, I'll start. When I spoke to you last, you tried to tell me that your argument at Proud Larry's was just with some hippie. Finally, I got you to admit that you knew Wendy Holloway was having an affair with your father, and you wanted her to stop. Then, when we searched your parents' property, including their residence and yours, we found a picture of your father with the victim hidden in your quarters. Where did you get the photo?

Philip Stillwater: My mother gave it to me.

Detective Armstrong: Why?

Philip Stillwater: I don't know. She was upset.

Detective Armstrong: Did she want you to confront Wendy? Straighten her out?

Philip Stillwater: No. I went to Proud Larry's that night to face her myself.

Detective Armstrong: You know, Philip, the more people I talk to, the more I hear about your father's affairs. For a mystery writer, he doesn't seem to cover his tracks very well. And you never really seemed to get all that upset before. There was that little incident with that lady in Tupelo, but for the most part, you never seemed to care about what Dad was doing. Why now?

Philip Stillwater: Uh, I don't know. You get sick of it finally, I guess.

Detective Armstrong: I'm sure. How old are you, Philip?

Philip Stillwater: Twenty-three. You know that.

Detective Armstrong: Yeah, that's right. And the victim was twenty-eight.

Philip Stillwater: So what's your point?

Detective Armstrong: I was just wondering if you had ever gone out with Wendy yourself. Being that you two were so much closer in age and all.

Philip Stillwater: That's ridiculous!

Detective Armstrong: So, you never slept with her? Seems she was a pretty friendly girl. Maybe Dad moved in on your action, and you got mad.

Philip Stillwater: That's the craziest thing I've ever heard!

Detective Armstrong: Okay, calm down. You got a girlfriend, Philip?

Philip Stillwater: No. Why do you ask that?

Detective Armstrong: I was just wondering. Everyone I talk to says that girls get scared off by your spiders and stuff. And that your, uh, what should I call it? Your "relationship" with your mother weirds them out. And then I got to thinking. If my old man was hooking up with all these young women my age while I couldn't get any girl, I might get kinda pissed off.

Philip Stillwater: Detective, you're way out of line. You have no right to say such things to me!

Detective Armstrong: Maybe you're right. I guess I'm just baffled as to why this affair seems to bother you so much more than all the other young ladies your father ran around with. Can you explain that to me?

Philip Stillwater: I told you. It just starts to build up after a while. But I never had any type of relationship with that … woman.

Detective Armstrong: So, back to this photo. Where did your mother get it?

Philip Stillwater: Some PI that she had hired to check up on Dad.

Detective Armstrong: When did she give it to you?

Philip Stillwater: That night. She told me that she knew for sure who Dad was involved with. That our suspicions were correct. She had this file that the PI had put together, and she gave me the picture. I got the impression that there were plenty of other photos, but she wouldn't show them to me.

Detective Armstrong: So, Mom told you all the details, and you got mad and went to Proud Larry's to confront her?

Philip Stillwater: Yes. We've been over this before.

Detective Armstrong: Yes, we have. And in your earlier interview, you said that you rode around for a while and then went home after you left the bar. Mom fixed you a snack, and then you went to bed. Is that right?

Philip Stillwater: Yes.

Detective Armstrong: And when you went to bed, what did your mother do?

Philip Stillwater: She went to bed too.

Detective Armstrong: How do you know?

Philip Stillwater: What do you mean? She said she was going to bed, and that's what she did.

Detective Armstrong: But how do you know for sure that she went to bed. She could have left, couldn't she?

Philip Stillwater: No. Where would she go?

Detective Armstrong: Maybe to Wendy Holloway's house to confront her in person?

Philip Stillwater: Why would she do that? That's ridiculous!

Detective Armstrong: But you can't say for sure one way or another whether she went to bed at that time or not?

Philip Stillwater: Of course, I can. I know my mother. She said she was going to bed, so that's what she did.

Detective Armstrong: But you didn't actually see her go to bed?

Philip Stillwater: Well, no. I'm not in the habit of checking up on my mother. When she tells me she's going to do something, I just take her word for it.

Detective Armstrong: You know your mother so well. What's the deal with her and this psychic?

Philip Stillwater: I don't know. Mom thinks that woman knows things that other people don't.

Detective Armstrong: Is that what you think too?

Philip Stillwater: She seems like she has a screw loose to me, but talking to her makes Mom happy, and it's not hurting anyone, so why should I say anything?

Detective Armstrong: You've met Sister Susannah then?

Philip Stillwater: Yeah, I drove Mom down to Jackson a couple of times to see her.

Detective Armstrong: That's a long way to go.

Philip Stillwater: Yeah, three hours one way, but we stayed overnight, had dinner in town, made a night of it. So at least it wasn't a complete waste of time.

Detective Armstrong: You ever go see Sister Susannah on your own?

Philip Stillwater: Why would I?

Detective Armstrong: Maybe she had some kind of information you could use?

Philip Stillwater: I doubt it. Besides, if I wanted to talk to her for some reason, I'd just do it online, not go all the way down there.

Detective Armstrong: That's an option?

Philip Stillwater: Yeah, Mom did it sometimes when she didn't have time to go see her in person.

Detective Armstrong: You know a lot about what your mom does.

Philip Stillwater: I guess.

Detective Armstrong: Does she know as much about what you do?

Philip Stillwater: I don't know. Maybe.

Detective Armstrong: You know Detective Murphy is talking to her right now. Is she going to tell us that you stayed home all night the night Wendy Holloway was killed?

Philip Stillwater: Yes. She'll tell you that I slept late and got up around 10:30 or so the next morning.

Detective Armstrong: Can anyone else confirm that you didn't leave your cottage?

Philip Stillwater: No. I mean, it's not like anyone was standing guard or anything. But both of my parents are very light sleepers, so they would have heard my car if I had left.

Detective Armstrong: I'm sure they would have. Those Porsches aren't the quietest things. Of course, you could have pushed it down the driveway and started it out at the street.

Philip Stillwater: That seems like a lot of work.

Detective Armstrong: Or you could've borrowed Mom's car or Dad's car.

Philip Stillwater: Yes, I guess I could have. I also could have gotten a spaceship to beam me up and transport me wherever I wanted to go. But I didn't do any of those things.

Detective Armstrong: You own a bicycle, Philip?

Philip Stillwater: No.

Detective Armstrong: You're sure about that?

Philip Stillwater: Of course, I'm sure.

Detective Armstrong: How do you get around campus?

Philip Stillwater: I walk like everyone else.

Detective Armstrong: Oh. I heard that some kids drive to campus, but they keep a bike or something in one of the racks to ride around on while they're going from class to class.

Philip Stillwater: The campus is hardly that big, Detective. Besides, most of my classes are in Shoemaker. I just park in the commuter spots at the stadium and walk right over.

Detective Armstrong: So you didn't go over to Wendy Holloway's house that night at any time?

Philip Stillwater: Of course not! Why would I want to go there?

Detective Armstrong: Well, she didn't exactly agree to do what you wanted her to when you argued with her at Proud Larry's. Maybe you wanted to have another go at her. Maybe you wanted to try again to convince her to stop seeing your father.

Philip Stillwater: That's crazy!

Detective Armstrong: Maybe you went over to her house to reason with her, things got out of hand, and she ended up dead.

Philip Stillwater: No way! That's not what happened. I never went to her house. I never saw her again after Proud Larry's. That's the truth, and I'm not going to tell you again.

Detective Armstrong: I doubt that, but okay. Philip, I gotta tell you. I think there's more that you're not telling me.

Philip Stillwater: I don't know why you might feel that way.

Detective Armstrong: Well, I do, and I think you do too. But don't worry. Everything will come out eventually. Until then, you be sure and stay where we can find you if we need to.

Philip Stillwater: Yeah, sure.

Interview ended – 4:27 p.m.