Manson: The Life and Times of Charles Manson Hardcover by Jeff Guinn

Author:Jeff Guinn
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
ISBN: 9781451645163
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Published: 2013-08-06T04:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

LaBianca and Shea

The oppressive L.A. heat wave broke on Saturday evening. The previous day’s temperatures hadn’t dipped below ninety, but now they dropped into the seventies, bringing a blessed coolness carried throughout the city by soft breezes. As darkness fell a little fog drifted in off the ocean, and its wavering tendrils extended into most of the suburbs. But there wasn’t enough fog to obscure vision along the roads. It was a very pleasant night to be driving around Los Angeles.

Seven people—Charlie, Tex, Clem, Linda, Susan, Pat, and Leslie—were too many to comfortably fit into Johnny Swartz’s Ford, but a larger crew than the previous evening’s was necessary. Charlie had in mind at least two separate slaughters; doubling the murder scenes made it that much more likely that the cops and media would buy into the copycat scheme and tie everything to the Hinman slaying. Three-member teams seemed about right. Once again, Charlie had no intention of doing the bloody work himself. Clem made a useful addition since he’d do whatever he was told. Leslie was smart enough to leave a murder scene just the way that Charlie wanted, with the right bloody words, Black Panther clues, and no fingerprints.

Charlie gave Tex a new handgun and also a military bayonet that the Family had acquired from an Army surplus store. Then they piled into the Ford, with Linda behind the wheel, Charlie beside her, Tex folded in beside Charlie, and Pat, Susan, Leslie, and Clem all wedged in the backseat. Beyond the physical discomfort of too many people jammed into too small a space, the atmosphere in the car was leaden with the knowledge of what they were about to do. No one suggested turning on the radio for some music. The only conversation was one-sided, with Charlie barking out orders for Linda to make various turns, often waiting to tell her until the turn was imminent. She missed some and had to turn around, and when that happened Charlie snarled. A few times he jabbed her with his elbow. He told her repeatedly how stupid she was.

Everyone had smoked weed that day. Tex and Susan also dipped back into their stash of Meth. Perhaps it was the effect of the drugs combined with the fact that Charlie never told them where they were driving to, but it seemed to everyone else in the car that they meandered down residential streets forever with no real sense of destination, stopping here and there for Charlie to get out and reconnoiter.

• • •

Leno and Rosemary LaBianca had just returned home from Lake Isabella, north of Los Angeles. They’d originally driven to the lake on Tuesday to drop off a speedboat to be used over the weekend by teenage Frank Struthers, Rosemary’s son by an earlier marriage. Their plan was to bring Frank and the boat back on Saturday.

The LaBiancas were upper middle class. Leno ran a chain of grocery stores, and Rosemary was co-owner of a boutique. After leaving the boat

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