Colin McEvoy - Love Me or Else: The True Story of a Devoted Pastor, a Fatal Jealousy, and the Murder that Rocked a Small Town

Dear Reader:

The book you are about to read is the latest bestseller from the St. Martins True Crime Library, the imprint The New York Times calls the leader in true crime! Each month, we offer you a fascinating account of the latest, most sensational crime that has captured the national attention. St. Martins is the publisher of John Glatts riveting and horrifying SECRETS IN THE CELLAR, which shines a light on the man who shocked the world when it was revealed that he had kept his daughter locked in his hidden basement for 24 years. In the Edgar-nominated WRITTEN IN BLOOD , Diane Fanning looks at Michael Petersen, a Marine-turned-novelist found guilty of beating his wife to death and pushing her down the stairs of their homeonly to reveal another similar death from his past. In the book you now hold, LOVE ME OR ELSE , Colin McEvoy and Lynn Olanoff detail an unusual case of love gone terribly wrong.

St. Martins True Crime Library gives you the stories behind the headlines. Our authors take you right to the scene of the crime and into the minds of the most notorious murderers to show you what really makes them tick. St. Martins True Crime Library paperbacks are better than the most terrifying thriller, because its all true! The next time you want a crackling good read, make sure its got the St. Martins True Crime Library logo on the spineyoull be up all night!

Charles E. Spicer, Jr.

Executive Editor, St. Martins True Crime Library

CONTENTS

CHAPTER 1

The door shouldnt have been unlocked.

Judy Zellner slipped her key into the side door at Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, but the door fell open before she could turn it. She looked down at the doorknob, surprised and more than a little annoyed. This door is always supposed to be locked, everybody in the church knows that. Even out here in rural Bucks County, Pennsylvania, the door has to be locked.

Whoevers in here is going to get a piece of my mind, Judy thought, slipping the key back into her purse and stepping into the hallway. She was glad to get out of the cold on this winter day of January 23, 2008.

The door to the church office was shut, but through the large interior window Judy could see the light was on. She hadnt expected anybody to be there that Wednesday afternoon, when she came on her twice-weekly routine to clean the church. She glanced briefly through the window, but nobody was sitting behind the desk inside the small office. Perhaps, she thought, Pastor Shreaves is upstairs somewhere.

But first things first. Judy walked straight past the office, dropped her purse and coat onto the table in the narthex, and headed for the bathroom.

The sixty-year-old grandmother of six had been faithfully attending Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church for the last twenty-six years. Even after she moved from nearby Wassergass to Allentown, the largest city in the Lehigh Valley region, she continued to call this church her own, and encouraged her three children to regularly attend with her. Judys home in Allentown was twelve miles away, and she had to pass by several closer churches on her way to this one, but she never once considered going somewhere else. She loved her church family here at this small parish. She loved singing in the choir and being involved with everybodys lives.

The church sits along Route 212, a winding country road that serves as a major thoroughfare in Springfield Township. The town of about five thousand residents rests five miles southeast of the Allentown and Bethlehem metropolitan area, and about forty miles north of Philadelphia. Bucks County grows far more suburban as it borders Philadelphia on its southern end, but here in the northern end of the county, Springfield Township remains an example of the areas rural heritage.

At over thirty square miles, Springfield Township is the countys second largest municipality in terms of land area, and about half of it remains undeveloped, preserved as agricultural open space or completely vacant land. More than 44 percent of the township consists of heavy woodlands, and much of the land is characterized by large rocky hills cut by valley streams and creeks.

And thats just fine with the residents of Springfield Township. Most of the townships residents98 percent of which are whitefall between ages forty-five and sixty-four, and are perfectly content to drive outside the area for goods, services, and places of employment if it means maintaining Springfields rural character. In a survey, when asked what types of stores, businesses and professional services were needed most in the township, 51 percent responded, none needed.

Judy passed the church office again on her way up to the pastors office, where she found his door was locked. Judy was surprised. Since he joined the church nearly three years ago in March 2005, Pastor Gregory Shreaves was almost always here. Judy hadnt yet met the new secretary, Megan, who was hired a few days ago. Maybe shes here somewhere, she thought.

Judy grabbed her cleaning supplies from the closet down the hall and went back downstairs to the church office. Nobody was behind the desk, so Judy started walking toward the cubbyhole of file cabinets in the corner of the room.

Megan? Judy called, tilting her head to see if anybody was in the corner. Megan, are you back there?

As she passed the corner of the desk, Judy froze as something caught her eye. Crumpled behind the desk lay the body of a woman, her legs folded at the knees, her head and upper body curled forward, pointing toward the ceiling.

There was a great deal of blood. The womans head was soaked in a crimson puddle, strands of her long brown hair flowing outward in all directions. Judy looked at the womans chest and found it motionless. Then her eyes drifted to the wound on the right side of the womans head.

Judys thoughts immediately turned to her many hours spent watching CSI: Crime Scene Investigation on television. Dont touch the body, she thought.

She froze. What if the person who did this was still in the church? Oh my God, she thought. Somebody could kill me.

Judy grabbed the cordless phone sitting on the desk and ran outside. Fumbling with it, she dialed 911.

911, where is the emergency? an operator said.

Judy screamed into the phone: a primal, fearful sound that was impossible to decipher. The operator tried to calm her down and instructed her to stop screaming, calming Judy long enough to find out the address she was calling from.

Okay, whats the problem? the operator asked.

Theres a girl murdered in our office! Judy said, her voice loud, nearly hysterical.

Theres a girl what? the operator asked.

Murdered! Judy shouted back, breathing long, panicked breaths.

Maam, listen, calm down, the operator said. What do you mean? Whats wrong with her?

Shes lying behind the desk, full of blood! Judy said, her voice growing higher, her breaths getting so heavy she started to gasp between phrases. Im the cleaning lady at the church and I just got here.

Is she awake and able to talk to you?

No, it looks like shes dead! Judy said. Theres blood all over her head and around her head! Oh my God!

Okay. And maam, you dont want to go near her? the operator asked.

I dont know if somebody else is in there! Its a big church!

After asking for Judys name, the operator continued, All right Judy. Just breathe for a sec, okay? Dont touch anything, okay?