"Oh god. Oh god. Oh god. Oh god. Oh gaaawd."
Keekee was pacing around nonstop for several reasons.
One, the interview room she was trapped in was small. Barely bigger than her apartment bedroom. It made her feel claustrophobic, even if she wasn't born to be scared of elevators. So she kept moving to one corner to another to mislead her brain she was in a wider range, to distract herself.
Second, she had so much restless adrenaline in her body. The raid back in her grandmother's cabin, watching Kim being hauled away like a dead sheep, and everything – nearly broke her sanity. So she used a trick most actors and artists use to balance out their adrenaline before a show, by moving around to stop the pre-stage shaking.
Third, it was damn cold! She felt even penguins would shiver with her.
"A-anyone here? Hello? I-is there anybody?"
No, Keekee didn't went insane out of the blue. She wasn't lonely enough to talk to empty air. It’s just the fact she’s seen and done enough crime drama to know there is someone watching her through that classic two way mirror. Every now and then she would call out to anyone on the other side, wave her hands or try to do something to get a reaction. Keekee went as far as cupping her face against the glass, to try and peer through as if peeping through a keyhole.
"Excuse me! C-can anyone tell me, is Kim alright? Hello!?"
Nothing, no one, not a single response. The more silence responded to her, the more she felt she was in a psychological horror flick – totally not a fan of those, even when behind the scenes.
Then – JUMPSCARE!
“OH GOD!”
“Officer Tanner, I got the report—Oh sorry! Didn’t mean to scare you like that.”
A stranger walked through the hidden door in the interview room, spooking the hell out of Keekee’s heart. The shock hit her so hard she flopped over on her own feet and instinctively raced to a corner. Her senses calm down upon seeing a living human coming over to help her up.
“Th-thank god, finally someone to talk to!” Keekee gasped, “A-are you the detective?”
"Er. No. I am from forensics. My name is Professor Stone... Oh you must be Keekee? Ah, I saw your face on the ID card, I heard you were the one who reported the murder in the mountains yes?”
“N-no no! That was Kim who...” Keekee’s eyes widened, “Oh my god! I-Is Kim alright? Wh-where is he? Please tell me, he isn’t dead!
"Whoa, whoa, whooooa," Professor Stone tried to calm the film assistant and softened his voice to make the atmosphere easier for everyone. "He’s fine. I checked on him through the investigators a moment ago. A bit roughed up from the tasers and questioning, but he’s alive and well. Rest assured.”
“Oh thank god.” Keekee clutched her heart nearly fainted on the spot were it not for Prof. Stone catching her. “Y-you can’t believe, how relieved I am to hear that. I-I could never forgive myself i-if Kim d-died, because of me!”
"Ssssh. Sssh. It's okay," Prof. Stone cooed, "Everything is fine...well...sort of."
"Dete—I mean, Professor, sir. Wh-why did you arrest him!? H-he is innocent! He didn't kill anyone! I swear!"
"Again, I am from forensic. We’re not exactly like the agents in the C.S.I. shows who carry guns and have power of arrest,” Prof. Stone replied, trying to calm the film assistant, “As of this moment, I am not in the liberty to share the details. I can only say he is our prime suspect due to the various evidence connected to him.”
“Th-that can’t be right! He hasn’t killed anyone, ever!”
Prof. Stone can’t help a chuckle, “You sure have a lot of faith for your boyfriend.”
"Uh...K-Kim isn't my boyfriend. He...uh..." Keekee blushed, just too confused to get her mind sorted out. "I-I don't know how to explain it."
"Then, in the best interest of both yourself and the suspect – you should tell everything to the investigators."
You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.
"I-I will, of course. Bu-but they haven't showed up and it's been hours!"
"...Hours huh?" Prof. Stone raised an eyebrow. "...Oh my. Look how bad you're shaking. No doubt it's cold in here. The air conditioning can go crazy at the worse times. Here, take this."
The forensic chemist took off his suit jacket and wrapped it around Keekee's small shoulders, bundling her up. He even turned the dial of the thermostat to zero out of courtesy. "There, all better!"
"..."
"Wh-what is wrong?"
"... Sorry it's...you remind me of Kim."
"Oh? Am I really that charming?"
"N-no not that." Keekee missed Professor Stone's frown and said, "He...he takes good care of me."
The forensic chemist took a mental note on that reaction, before chuckling it off, "I should get going. Do not worry, the investigators will be with you shortly. So if you would so kindly have a seat."
"Th-thanks...P-Professor Stone was it? I-I am grateful, for your jacket."
"No problemo. I'll take my leave then. Excuse me."
After gently closing the door behind him...his face had a storm brewing on his eyebrows. He only needed to take three steps and walk next door.
The observation room.
Professor Stone stormed into the room where two investigators were lounging about. One was absorbed in videos on their laptop and the other with his feet propped on the table, sipping a warm drink. Both glanced occasionally toward the adjacent room, spying on Keekee curling up in the forensic chemist’s suit jacket, seeking warmth and comfort.
After a sigh – Prof. Stone slapped a forensic report down in front of the relaxed officer, startling him mid-sip. “Your report, Officer Tanner.”
"JESUS!" The coffee investigator bolted in his chair, "Bro! Don't make me spill my coffee like that! It's hot! And what's the big idea turning off the cooler?”
Prof. Stone rolled his eyes, “Come on, can you guys be any worse? You have this scared girl waiting in the freezer for hours. You didn’t even offer her a cup of hot water? Psychological warfare of not, you guys got to know when to pull your punches. What would Detective Fraulein say if she caught you bullying a girl!”
“Oh for Pete sakes—” The coffee investigator adjusted himself in his chair while slapping the drink off his clothing. “We are trying to shake her up, you know – classic textbook strat. And, we can’t be too careful.”
“Pray do tell, why all the ‘precaution’?”
“Dude, you should have been there when we raided the cabin! Her man be like wiping the floor with us like rags! For all we know, this girl could be an accomplice. Possibly even a black belt herself!”
Prof. Stone pinched his nose bridge before turning the coffee investigator’s chair to face the two way mirror. “Take a good look, Officer Tanner. Does this person look like a repeated felon, a hardy criminal who bulked up in prison? Gangster even? She look like she would struggle with carrying a feisty baby, let alone kick your balls inside out. And let us not forget – she was the one who saved you all, trying to negotiate a truce. Until you tazed the guy, three times I might add.”
"H-hey man. Let's not get technical.” The coffee investigator got riled up, “Do you see my face? I look like a god damn panda in a zoo! And my fingers are busted, huh! Bandaged up! I got to do us some justice, right?"
"File a work safe form and just get on with it." Prof. Stone rolled his eyes and started to slap both investigators with the folder, "Alright you made her wait long enough. Now get to work or I’ll snitch on both of you to Detective Fraulein for laziness of duty.”
“Oh come, stop playing that card on us!” The coffee investigator groaned and got up off his lazy ass. He tried to finish his coffee, only for Prof. Stone to shove the whole folder into his chest and made him choke. After ushering the two investigators out of the observation room to talk to Keekee, he sat down in front of the laptop they were using and checked the screen.
“You guys better not be watching YouTube shorts right now... Oh this is interesting.”
To his astonishment, the screen was filled with multiple displays of police recordings.
All of them were the events of the cabin raid, albeit in various angles. The moment he figured out what was going on, he would go OOH and AAH when a swift fist and kick slammed into the ‘camera’, sending whoever wore that angle just flying like a drop-kicked pine cone.
“Wow...Is this guy filming a kung fu flick? Dayum, that’s gotta hurt. OOOOH!...Oh so that is how Detective Fraulein nearly lost an eye—PFFFFT! And there she goes, tumbling down the hill! Kihhahahahaha!”
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