Photos by SAM DEAN The Roanoke Times

Crime scene tape is tied to the mailbox at the Carter family's house on Wilhaven Lane in Axton on Monday. Investigators say they are waiting for Timothy Carter's condition to improve before interviewing him again and that they will interview relatives to help determine a motive in the case.

SAM DEAN The Roanoke Times

An investigator with the Henry County Sheriff's Office checks on the Carter house in Axton on Monday. Investigators say that William Carter Sr. killed his wife and older son and wounded his younger son before turning the gun on himself.

AXTON -- William Ronald Carter Sr. appears to have set out on a plan Sunday to kill his family and then himself, Henry County Sheriff Lane Perry said.

Carter, 56, left a letter with instructions "putting his final affairs in order," Perry said. Investigators believe that Carter fatally shot his wife, Bonnie, 56, and older son, William Jr., 29, and then wounded his younger son, Timothy. William Carter Sr. then turned the gun on himself, according to authorities.

Timothy Carter, 22, remains in fair condition at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, N.C. He is expected to recover from his wounds, Perry said.

William Carter Sr. called Timothy home from Radford University, where he is a senior chemistry major enrolled in summer classes.

His father "used trickery to lure him to the basement of the home" and shot him in the back as he descended the steps, according to authorities. As Timothy Carter escaped to a neighbor's house across the street, his father shot him again, authorities said.

Trae Cotton, dean of students at Radford, described Timothy Carter as a "popular, well-known young man."

He was a member of the Deliverance Gospel Choir and the Black Student Affairs Council.

Cotton said he hasn't spoken with Carter but left a message for him at the hospital. He said he wanted to offer his support and let Carter know the university will help him in any way it can when he is ready to return to school.

The university plans to offer him counseling services as well, spokeswoman Mindy King said.

"Our hearts go out to Timothy," Cotton said. "We are praying for him and his family at this difficult time."

Investigators are waiting for Timothy Carter's condition to improve before interviewing him again.

As for insight into a motive, Perry said investigators hope that interviews with other family members will shed some light on that.

"We've heard three or four different reasons," said Perry, who called the crime irrational and a tragedy. "But we're not sure what caused him [William Carter Sr.] to do this."

Investigators continue to piece together a rough timeline of events. Based on a crime scene investigation, William Carter Jr. was shot first, Perry said. The elder Carter then shot his wife and waited for Timothy Carter to arrive from Radford.

Other than yellow police tape, the brick house on Wilhaven Lane showed no signs Monday of the shootings that took place 36 hours earlier or the fire set shortly after. Floral arrangements and yard ornaments were spread across the yard, a testament to William Carter Sr.'s love of gardening, neighbors said.

Jean Gibson recalled William "Ronnie" Carter's flower and vegetable gardens and the gift basket he gave her one Christmas. He was always giving vegetables away or inviting others to come and pick what they needed, she said.

Gibson said she grew up and raised her children in Axton and her oldest daughter went to grade school with William Carter Sr.

"Just a super guy, I thought," said Gibson, who last spoke with Carter about a month ago.

Nancy Edelen said she never saw signs that Bonnie Carter was in any danger. Bonnie Carter worked for Edelen and her husband as a certified nursing assistant for more than two years. Edelen said she had met both William Carter Sr. and Timothy Carter.

"Bonnie always had wonderful things to say about him [William Carter Sr.]," she said. "I just thought they were deeply in love."

William Carter Sr. and his wife had recently returned from a vacation, and Bonnie Carter worked a shift at Edelen's home in Martinsville on Saturday before heading home at 9 p.m.

About two weeks ago, Edelen enlisted Bonnie Carter to help interview another woman to work during the weekends.

"She was just a very wonderful person in every way," Edelen said of Carter. "A hard worker, jolly, loving, kind. You couldn't help but love her."

Neighbors said that William Carter Sr. had recently retired from Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. plant in Danville. Former co-workers and Axton residents stopped by The Rock House convenience store nearby and expressed their shock and described their connections to Carter, whom several referred to as a nice man.

Traffic on Wilhaven Lane has been constant, Gibson said. Since Sunday, people have driven slowly past the house to get a peek at the scene.

"I still can't believe it," Gibson said. "He's one of the nicest people I know. Something had to happen to make him snap like that."

The slayings of Bonnie Carter and William Carter Jr. are the third and fourth homicides in Henry County this year, Perry said.

Hines Funeral Services in Martinsville is handling the arrangements for the Carter family, but a date for services has not been set.

Staff writer Shawna Morrison contributed to this report.