Of course Bad Cop deflates the moment Richard knocks on the door. His routine was just getting to his favorite part, I’m guessing. He takes his pot of coffee with him as he leaves, thank God.
“Johanna,” Richard says, taking Bad Cop’s seat, “I need you to go over every detail of what happened last night.”
All of it is suddenly exhausting – the questions, the cops, the lights, the coffee, the cold, the fact that Ariela died only hours ago – all of it is suddenly enough to make me break.
I slam the coffee mug down on the table.
“No.”
“What do you mean ‘ no’?”
“I’m done. I want to go home. I want to be in bed. I want to pretend like today never happened.”
Richard stands again, rubbing his own red eyes. He crosses the room to stand behind me and leans over to whisper in my ear.
“Simon just accepted a plea deal. He says Ariela’s murder was your idea – that you demanded it. So, unless you can help me prove your own innocence, you’ll be sleeping in a prison cell for the rest of your life.” – © 2015-2021 Portia July
This is the final part. You can read Parts 1-3 in previous weeks.
Portia July 