© 2012 Phylicia Joannis
Detective Gates took a slow look at everyone, hoping for some clue to come to him. It had been two hours and the technician still couldn’t remember what happened. They could no longer hold everyone. Without a solid lead from the technician they weren’t prepared to make any arrests, and mass transit couldn’t be delayed for more than a few hours, even if attempted murder was involved.
Chuck watched the Detective with what he hoped was a disinterested gaze. His palms had been sweating for the past two hours, which was why he’d kept them hidden in his pockets. He initially thought the news that he wasn’t a murderer was good, but now it was only a matter of time before the technician told the police everything about him.
Chuck’s heart nearly stopped when the detective said they were taking the technician’s statement, but if the police already knew what Chuck had done, why hadn’t they arrested him? Could it be they still didn’t know what happened? Chuck could only hope so.
The detective seemed agitated after leaving the privacy of the office. He said nothing at first, just muttered and stared at everyone. Now the detective was checking his watch, then checking his phone every two or three minutes. It was driving Chuck crazy.
Unable to watch the detective go through his ritual again, Chuck ambled to the break room and washed his hands. He grabbed the coffee pot and poured himself a cup, followed by an unhealthy amount of sugar, before downing the lukewarm caffeine.
“Isn’t that your fifth cup?” Chuck heard the detective behind him and gagged as his coffee slid down the wrong way.
“Sorry about that,” the detective walked up to Chuck and smacked him liberally on the back. “You okay, son? You seem a little edgy.”
Chuck finally composed himself and wiped away the coffee on his chin. “We’ve been here for hours,” Chuck stated. “Why haven’t you arrested anyone yet?”
The detective sighed and threw up his hands. “Honestly? I don’t know if we even have a case anymore.”
Chuck raised his eyebrows. Was this a trick?
The detective continued. “We’ve been going around in circles for hours with the technician’s testimony, and I gotta tell you, everything is a mess.”
Chuck lifted his head in thought. “So, you still don’t know what happened?”
“Oh, we know what happened,” the detective gave Chuck an odd look. “It’s proving it that’s the problem. Too many gaps in the story, you understand?”
“Gaps?” Chuck felt the color drain from his face.
The detective nodded and patted Chuck lightly on the back. “Don’t you worry, though. Criminals always leave little clues behind. We’ll close those gaps with forensic testing, and then you and I will have another little chat.”
Chuck’s mind shrieked. Did he know?
“I doubt it,” Chuck said weakly.
The detective laughed and walked out of the break room.
Chuck waited until the detective was gone before vomiting in the trash.
***
“What’s our next move, Mr. Mayor?” Perry stood with the Mayor in his office, waiting for him to finish a drink.
“We need to have a talk with that guy from the subway, what’s his name.”
Perry opened his mouth to supply the mayor with his name, then stopped. What was his name?
The mayor continued, “How much do we know about this guy, other than he’s got the drone used in the search for that missing car this morning?”
“Not much,” Perry hesitated. “Do you think we acted too hastily, Mr. Mayor?”
The Mayor gave Perry a hard look. “I acted precisely as I should have, but you, Perry, had better do your homework on this guy. And get a couple guys downtown at that subway dispatch station. I wanna know why this guy was floating around when they told us they got everyone off the train.”
“Yes, Mr. Mayor.”
***
Penny sipped the hot cappuccino the Mayor’s secretary brought to her. The Complainer sat beside her, texting nonstop with whoever he’d been talking to all afternoon.
“So what’s next?” Penny asked in between sips.
The Complainer stopped texting and took a long look at her. “Can I ask you something?”
“Sure,” Penny shrugged.
“How would you like to be rich?” he smiled.
Penny crinkled her forehead. “Depends on what I have to do.”
The Complainer laughed. “I like you, Penny. You remind me of my third ex-wife.” He chuckled and shook his head. “Never should’ve let that one get away.”
Penny raised her eyebrows. “I knew there was something soft in there somewhere.” She tapped his chest and smiled. “So, what happened?”
The Complainer stopped smiling and sighed. “Who knows?” he said quietly. “I worked too much, drank too much. Lied too much. She wasn’t the kind of woman who would put up with my crappy excuses. Having money wasn’t enough. She wanted me.”
“That’s sweet,” Penny said softly.
The Complainer shook his head. “I wasn’t good enough for her. The woman terrified me, so I pushed her away.”
“Pushed her away how?” Penny pried.
“The usual ways,” the Complainer smirks. “Cheating, lying, belittling.”
“That’s a terrible story,” Penny frowned.
The Complainer waved his hand. “Never mind it. What about you? Who’d you let get away?”
Penny laughed. “Me? What makes you think I don’t have someone?”
The Complainer snorted, “If you had an adoring husband at home you wouldn’t be following me all over town.”
Penny shrugged in concession. “I guess I just haven’t met the right guy. I thought there was someone, but…”
“But?” the Complainer waited for her to continue.
“Ah, he turned out to be a jerk,” Penny shook her head. “He called me stupid.”
The Complainer grunted in disproval. “How long were you two dating?”
Penny flushed. “Oh, we weren’t. I just met him today, and he bought me a cup of coffee. He saved my life, actually.”
“Most jerks do,” the Complainer joked.
Penny frowned. “It’s so weird. He seemed so sweet one minute, and the next he turned into a super jerk.”
“Hmm,” the Complainer looked like he might say something, but hesitated.
“So what are we waiting for?” Penny changed the subject.
“Well, the mayor is going to hold a second press conference, hosting yours truly, but first he’s got to get all his lies straight.”
“Really?” Penny frowned. “What lies?”
“Having dozens of people trapped in a subway is a public relations nightmare, unless you can contain the situation and keep it quiet. The Mayor and his little minion thought they had the situation contained until I showed up, so whatever web of lies they spun the first time around will have to be altered.”
“What lies?” Penny repeated herself.
The Complainer glanced at the Mayor’s secretary, who snapped her head back in the direction of her computer screen. Her cheeks flushed red at being caught eavesdropping, but she was otherwise composed.
“Let’s take a walk,” the Complainer glared at the secretary as he and Penny left the office.