Steve Stephens' former girlfriend revealed he left voicemails promising her he could be a better man before he opened fire on a stranger in the middle of the street.

Stephens told 74-year-old Robert Godwin Sr. to repeat the name "Joy Lane" before shooting him dead and posting footage of the killing to Facebook on April 16.

Now Joy Lane, Stephens' former girlfriend, is sharing voicemail messages he left her in the days before the murder.

"I'm motived to just strive to be the best in life now," he said in a message. "I'm really motivated."

Lane lived with Stephens, 37, for three years. Two days before the murder, they were still living together and everything seemed fine, she said.

But she said Stephens had a gambling habit that caused friction in their relationship, and she gave him an ultimatum: "It's me or the gambling."

In the video of the killing, Stephens says he's carrying out the murder in her name.

"Are there people out there who blame you?" Inside Edition's Les Trent asked her.

"Yes," she responded.

She added that she's haunted by the fact Stephens tried to call her twice before he killed Godwin and then disappeared.

"I have no idea what he was going to say," she said. "The police said that I should not text him but I did anyway. He did not get back to me."

Police moved Lane and her three children to a hotel for their safety, fearful that Stevens would come after them. But three days after the killing, he was seen in Eerie, Pa., and killed himself following a police chase.

Looking back on their relationship, Lane said she had no idea he would snap.

"I think of him as a good guy who did something really wrong," she said. "I believe Steve loved me probably like no man has ever loved me before."