Authors Interviewing Characters: Wendy M. Barnhart

Scaled Vengeance

Cassidy Vickers suspected the “Scales Killer” was a woman, and she was right. As a true crime podcast host, she was obsessed with serial killers, especially when brutal abusers started turning up dead with scales drawn and carved upon them. But after the killer’s capture, Vickers retreated to a quiet life as a reporter, wife, and mother — until now. Convicted of nine murders, Scales Killer and former #vanlife influencer Emerson Kemp, rechristened “Lady Justice,” is weeks away from execution.

But brutal abusers are dying again, and Kemp’s signature icon of uneven scales mark the murders. After Kemp reenters Vickers’ life through a podcast livestream, Vickers is drawn into the case, accused of collusion, and even murder by an outraged public. Can Cassidy find the truth? Or will darker secrets leave her world in ruin?

For those fascinated with the female rage in “Killing Eve” and “Bright Young Women,” “Scaled Vengeance” is an emotionally and politically charged thriller facing the question of what justice and punishment looks like when the murdered were themselves brutal abusers.

Author Wendy M. Barnhart chats with female serial killer Emerson Kemp, one of her fictional characters from “Scaled Vengeance”

The timing of this “interview” is shortly after Emerson Kemp was convicted, which is nearly a decade before the start of events detailed in “Scaled Vengeance.”

Wendy M. Barnhart (W): I’m speaking with Emerson Kemp, the notorious Scales Killer who was recently convicted of nine murders. After it was revealed that the Scales Killer was a woman, and that she targeted abusers who escaped the justice system, the press changed her moniker from the “Scales Killer” to “Lady Justice.”

W: Hi, Emerson.

Emerson Kemp (E): Hi, Wendy. This conversation is just between you and me, no one else. I’m not giving interviews to the press or anyone else anytime soon, if ever.

W: I understand. I appreciate you taking the time to talk with me.

E: Not a big deal. But did you have to mention the Lady Justice name thing right off the bat? You know I hate it.

W: The name helps the reader understand who I’m talking to. And after all, you did leave the mark of off-balance scales at your murder scenes.

E: And “Scales Killer” worked great with my mark.

W: What is it you don’t like about “Lady Justice?”

E: It’s so…soft. I think the press meant for it to diminish my strength as a woman. I mean, the image of Lady Justice we all know is a blindfolded female, usually with scales and a sword. And what is she doing with the sword? Nothing. What is she doing with the scales? Holding them aloft. Don’t get me wrong, the meaning behind the symbol is great. But she just stands there, and the justice system gets it wrong too often. And I didn’t just stand there.

W: No, you definitely took action. You were convicted of nine murders. Were there more than nine?

E: There are many people who are doing horrible things to other people and getting away with it.

W: Which you hate.

E: You don’t hate it?

W: I do. What I meant by the statement was, because you hate that some people are hurting others unchecked, it seems we can assume you’ve killed more than the nine people for which you were convicted.

E: You know what they say about assuming.

W: So, we’re going with the non-answer answer. Fine. Let’s try an easier topic. Before the conviction, you were a well-known social media influencer living the #vanlife. How did that start? Why live in a van?

E: It started because living in a van was a cheap way to keep a roof over my head. But with time and posting online, it got a hell of a lot better. The upside of a successful #vanlife is no joke. As my social media followers grew, so did the perks. The van got nicer, the free products rolled in, and I got paid to travel to beautiful places and post pictures and reels.

W: How many followers did you have by the time you were arrested for the murders?

E: Over a million. I don’t know the exact number. May have been close to 2 million.

W: And it seems a majority of those followers still believe in you, still support you, but now that support is related to the crimes you committed.

E: Injustice isn’t celebrated.

W: Are we talking about the injustice of the system? Or the fact that many of your followers are saying your arrest and conviction are an injustice?

E: From the eyes of my supporters, it would be both. And you already know how I feel about the justice system.

W: Let’s touch on the other side then, in that your supporters say it’s an injustice for you to be convicted and sentenced to death because you were righting wrongs, helping those who the justice system failed. Do you agree with them?

E: If I did, I’d be a hypocrite, wouldn’t I?

W: You answered the question with a question.

E: Look, do I wish I hadn’t been caught? Of course. There are more people who need help, and sadly, there always will be more people who need help. But still, I did kill people.

W: And you should pay the price.

E: If only the system worked perfectly, but it doesn’t.

W: So, you shouldn’t be on death row?

E: There are many bad people doing bad things who should be in prison. I am a good person who did bad things to stop some of those people.

W: One might say the bad acts, murdering people, cancels all the good acts that came before.

E: One might also say that if the bad act ends a bad person, that in itself is a good act. But you and I aren’t going to solve this conundrum. That’s all I’m saying on the topic.

W: Fair enough. Let’s bring it back to your #vanlife on the road. How did you decide where to travel?

E: It was a combination of what I wanted to see in our beautiful country, and where I was needed.

W: How do you mean?

E: For example, I wanted to see Glacier National Park. Have you been there?

W: I have. It’s amazing.

E: Freaking gorgeous. Anyway, once I’d made the decision to travel to Montana, I looked for situations where I might be able to help.

W: That’s how you ended up in Bozeman? One of the nine murders you confessed to was in Bozeman: the guy who kept his young wife locked in the basement of their home.

E: More like a root cellar.

W: Right. There was a flood, and the wife managed to get a neighbor’s attention through a vent to the outside. The wife was freed and her husband was arrested. But she later recanted everything she’d told the police about being a prisoner.

E: That’s right.

W: And after you arrived in Bozeman, you located this man and you…

E: Incapacitated him and locked him in a similar sort of space, which then flooded.

W: Because you flooded it.

E: I did direct a large amount of water into the space where he was confined and he drowned.

W: How did you manage the whole thing? How did you get him into the space where he drowned?

E: He wasn’t exactly the faithful type. I found him at a dive bar I’d heard he liked, flirted with him, acted like I’d had way too many drinks and he offered to drive me home.

W: Because he wanted to make sure you got home safely.

E: Hah. Right. He wanted something, but safety had nothing to do with it. Anyway, I gave him directions, he followed them, and we arrived at the location.

W: Was he angry you were in the middle of nowhere?

E: He didn’t care. He thought he’d get what he wanted then bail. Then I gave him a crack to the skull, but no worse than he’d ever done to his wife.

W: And that was that.

E: Pretty much.

W: What about cameras at the bar?

E: The dive bar had one inside and one on the parking lot but they were cheap models. I knew the quality of the images would suck, if they even had the cameras connected. Plus, I looked different and avoided the cameras as much as I could.

W: I saw the images in the police file. They did indeed suck.

E: Yep.

W: What happened to the wife after all of that?

E: She moved back in with her parents, she started therapy, she has her whole life ahead of her.

W: If she makes better choices.

E: At least she gets a chance to do that versus the alternative. He didn’t simply talk her out of pressing charges when he got arrested. He beat her. He terrified her. Her life was ending with him one way or another.

W: All that you did, trying to help people, and committing murder to achieve that goal…that’s a lot for one person to carry. Were you always alone in your travels?

E: Are you asking if I had friends?

W: Friends, lovers, acquaintances, anyone?

E: I always traveled alone. I have friends everywhere, though some may be less inclined to acknowledge our friendship since the conviction. And I had lovers whenever I was so inclined.

W: Anyone special?

E: Sometimes they were special, more often they were just fun. But none who ever stayed with me on the road for any significant length of time.

W: It’s well known that you rescued stray animals while living on the road and found new homes for all of them. Are you a cat or dog person?

E: Dog person, 100%.

W: Why didn’t you adopt one of the dogs you saved along the way? 

E: Too much uncertainty in my life. I didn’t want a dog of mine to end up in a bad situation if something happened to me.

W: I get that. You did have some conflicts with people during your travels, which you shared in your posts, and maybe a dog would have dissuaded some of those people before they engaged with you. But even without a dog, you defended yourself well. How did you learn to protect yourself like that?

E: I had some excellent teachers along the way. I was on my own at a very young age and was lucky to meet people who showed me what I needed to know to survive.

W: I’m sorry you ended up in that kind of situation. Being on your own so early in life must have been scary.

E: Yes, but I didn’t really know how scary it was. It seems like sometimes when we’re afraid, the brain shuts off those sensors that tell us to be scared. Do you know what I mean?

W: I do. It isn’t until you’re clear of the situation that you realize how much danger you were in, because knowing it in the moment would be too much to handle.

E: Exactly. Get through it first, process the fear later.

W: Been there. And I wish none of us ever had to go through things like that.

E: We are resilient creatures. And part of being resilient means knowing when to rest. Which is to say, I’m tired of talking.

W: Okay, Emerson, we can stop here. Thank you again for chatting with me. 

E: You’re welcome. See you on the other side of our story.

—

International bestselling author Wendy M. Barnhart (formerly Terrien) received her first library card at age 2, and soon began writing her own stories. “Scaled Vengeance” is her first thriller. Her debut novel, “The Rampart Guards” (February 2016) launched a highly successful YA urban fantasy series, earned a Kirkus starred review and was named to Kirkus Reviews’ Best Books in 2016. The fourth installment in the series, “The Forge of Bonds” received the Colorado Authors League Award of Excellence. 

 

Wendy serves on the board of Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers, and is a member of the Colorado Authors League, the Authors Guild and Sisters in Crime. Find out more about her at her website WendyMBarnhart.com.

 

Tags: featured, women writers

Category: Interviews, On Writing