Perfect Murder, Perfect Town - Lawrence Schiller [140]
Almost a year later, in March 1996, JonBenét was coughing a lot, and two months later she bent the nail back on the fourth finger of her left hand in another fall. Though it was swollen and painful, there was no bruising.
Three months before JonBenét’s death, on August 27, Patsy told Beuf that JonBenét was a good sleeper, wasn’t hard to get to bed, and was easily awakened in the morning. She wasn’t interested in the opposite sex, behaved modestly in public, and didn’t engage in sex play with her friends. She was, however, asking about sex roles and reproduction. She was not rude or afraid of either parent. She didn’t seem to be bossy with her brother, Burke, didn’t react with tantrums, and was active. She loved fruit and some vegetables. Patsy said she was delightful and doing very well. Burke had his annual checkup the same day.
In October, two months before her murder, JonBenét had a stuffy nose and bad breath. She was diagnosed with allergic rhinitis. On November 12, JonBenét was checked for the last time by Beuf. She had a runny nose and a cold sore and was sneezing. Three weeks later her eyesight was checked by Dr. Marilyn Dougherty. In early December, JonBenét missed a pageant appearance because she was sick, but she didn’t see Dr. Beuf.
Dr. Beuf told a reporter covering the story that JonBenét had had an average number of physician visits for a child her age.
The police now had to collate the medical data with other information before any conclusions could be drawn.
I got to know Suzanne Savage from church. When she was totally overwhelmed by her workload at the Ramseys’, I helped out. Ended up staying for almost three years. After I left the Ramseys’ on Labor Day of 1995, Linda Hoffmann-Pugh started to work for them. The Ramseys weren’t warm and affectionate people. They were very professional, very down to business. They communicated with each other like two people who are amicably divorced.
I was working for them when Patsy got sick with cancer and after she recovered. During that time, Nedra moved in and was caring for the children. Then Patsy had what she called her divine intervention and was cured of her cancer. After Patsy finished decorating the house, Burke became her favorite child. She spent all of her time at his school. He was her first project.
At that time JonBenét was too young to do anything spectacular. She hardly got Patsy’s attention. Suzanne Savage was in charge of her. JonBenét wasn’t in school yet, and her world revolved around adults, whereas Burke’s life revolved around his friends.
Then, when JonBenét started school, she became Patsy’s second project. The children really were like projects to her. I’m afraid that after JonBenét became Patsy’s focus, she also became her obsession.
I think that to Patsy, nothing and no one had the right to be imperfect. Everything had to fit Patsy’s image of what it should be. So JonBenét was under immense pressure to fit the image Patsy had of her new project.
When the police interviewed me, they asked if the kids wet the bed a lot. I said yes. Detective Harmer asked if I thought that was unusual, and I had to say, “Not really. Not at that age.” Burke wore Pull-Ups until he was six, and JonBenét always wore them. But I also told the police it was curious to me that Burke stopped wetting the bed when he stopped being the focus of Patsy’s attention. And that was when JonBenét became a chronic bed wetter. But you know if you have little kids around that age, they are bed wetters. When I left in September of 1995, they were both still wetting their beds.
Then the detectives asked me about the Bible on John’s desk in the bedroom. The cover was embossed JOHN AND PATSY RAMSEY. Sometimes it was by the bed. It was always being read. I know, because I never had to dust it. I told the police that I never saw it open; it always had a bookmark in it.
I don’t