JEFF: “I will cause you pain”

Yesterday I re-listened to most of the episodes while I was cleaning, and — like everyone else who is listening — I’m trying to figure out where this is going. Having the benefit of hindsight, a few more things stood out to me. There’s a lot of speculation about Jeff at this point, and I had forgotten that he told Rosemarie that Elaine’s last words to Susan were, “I will cause you pain.” I did remember that his wife “evidently” committed suicide by taking pills, but at this point it feels wrong to focus too much on that. However, now that we’ve ‘met’ Jeff and heard him a little, and now that we’ve heard both his and Susan’s account of what happened that last day, what he told Rosemarie stands out a bit more, now. (I haven’t heard him repeat it, either. His account sounds just as mundane as Susan’s at this point.)

Broken Home [6]

Rosemarie: Jeff told me, her boyfriend, on the phone, that Elaine’s last words to her mom — it’s awful, it’s terrible — were I’m, “I will cause you pain.” That’s what Jeff said that she said. And I just thought, whoa, what? You know, I didn’t know the relationship was — I didn’t know she was into what she was into. But, uh, you know, when Jeff said that it just kind of, whoo, hits you hard.

Neil Strauss/VO: Jeff, you may recall, is Susan’s boyfriend, and she mentioned that she was with Jeff the last time she saw Elaine. So I’m curious about him, and the story he said about Elaine insinuating that she’s going to hurt himself.

Neil Strauss: What do you think of him? Because I haven’t met him.

Rosemarie: Jeff? He’s a nice guy. You know, his wife, um, passed away. Or, she committed suicide. Evidently took pills — I think was pills, maybe six years? Five years? I’m not sure.

Episode 6: Broken Home

It’s late and I’m tired. I have a lot more to add, including from other posts, but I just wanted to get it started. By tomorrow — Thursday — it will be bustling.