"So. Miss Kamkam, we want to ask—"
"It’s Keekee. You know, like the sound of a chirping bird and...Never mind."
The investigators questioning Keekee already exchanged bored glances. Why do they get the menial work? Where's the action?...Actually never mind, they're faces and bones paid the price of that excitement. Every move they made with their arms and elbows, they can hear bones crackling in the wrong places.
One of the investigators sipped at coffee, cringed at how lukewarm it has become, and went, "So how'd you know this guy? This uh Kong guy."
"Kim! His name is Kim!"
"Right...So?"
Keekee took a moment to recount her memories. Somehow the details made her second guess herself a lot, "Uh. Kim just showed up, in the middle of my production crew shooting for a major fight scene for our film project. Just came in flying and doing all these amazing kung fu tricks and—"
She was cut off, when the coffee investigator snorted at himself in the middle of her sentence. She didn't know if she should continue or--
Until a phone rang in between them. It wasn't hers, she left her phone back in her grandmother's place.
It was the coffee investigator. Abashed, he awkwardly glanced at his partner and Keekee before 'casually' dragging the phone over and turning to the side to talk.
"Stone? You're still here!?" He hissed under his breath. “You can see we’re busy!”
Professor Stone sighed from the observation booth behind the two way mirror. He adjusted the phone in his hand as he held it up like a slice of pizza, on speaker.
"Make eye content, show her you care, don't be so mean.” He hummed, “You keep saying you have a girlfriend, but I question her taste in a clueless man like you. Be nice, it's not that hard. And don't forget to smiiile."
"...Huh...yeah, right."
"And keep this line open."
"A-again!? Detective Fra--"
"Keep. Line. Opeeeen."
The lazy investigator hide his dissatisfaction – much like a child internally raging when their mothers interrupt them from something 'important'. Nonchalantly he put the phone face down and 'secretly' shoved a wireless earbud into his ear. Sitting up straight, eyes forward, hands on the table, he put on a forced smile.
"Sorry, I have a cold. Cough. Please, Miss Kamkam--"
Professor Stone whispered into his phone, "Keeeeeekeeeeeeee."
The lazy investigator just...endured, "Miss Kip--Keekee...You were saying."
Keekee had no idea what happened, but she knew enough police drama to tell someone else was calling the shots. Perhaps, someone on Kim's side like in the shows? Sh-she only had movies and TV series to rely on right now!
"L-like I said. Kim showed up, my director loved what he did and asked me to write up a draft contact for him to sign.”
“That’s it?” The coffee investigator raised an eyebrow.
“...Well there was that...time...” Keekee blushed, her finger curling through her hair when she thought back to a special occasion. “A-a bunch of guys in the mountains who robbed me, even tried to rape me. K-Kim showed up out of the blue a-and just whacked them all away! He saved me. L-literally sweeping off my feet.”
The coffee investigator chuckled—only to pretend he choked on air when some sound filled his earpod.
Keekee then asked, "Wh-why are you all calling Kim a murderer?"
"Because he is. We got reason to believe that your boyfriend—”
“A-again, h-he’s not my boyfriend.”
"Whatever.” The coffee investigator rolled his eyes, “An eyewitness saw your man buddy with the victim when she died. And there's a lot of evidence that points directly to him as being the Belt Rapist - who you probably know has killed up to three innocent girls."
"Th-th-that's impossible! He wouldn't hurt an...Er." Keekee couldn't defend him, when she recalled he beat the crap out of 200 skull-faced stuntmen, 3 mountain bandits, and probably 20 cops.
Oh...this looks so bad.
"Wh-what I mean to say is," Keekee sorted her thoughts out, "Kim is a very nice guy. H-he protected me! He even cleaned my grandma's house – and he didn't have to!"
"About that," the coffee investigator leaned in, crossing his fingers together, "Other than the filming, have you ever met this Kim guy before?"
"No. I-it was our first meeting, period."
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"So, you didn't call him to the shoot, you have no idea who he is. And for all intents and purposes - he's a complete stranger to you."
Keekee nodded and was about to say yes...until she realized where this is going.
The coffee investigator answered on her behalf, "And you brought this guy you don't know into your house, just like that?"
Yeah...now that he put it like that, it did look bad.
"Girl, did he pay you money?"
"I AM NOT A HOOKER!"
"Just checki--OW!" The coffee investigator flinched from a loud noise in his ear as he buried his face into his arms.
Professor Stone in the observation room was frowning as he hammered the speaker of his phone into the table to get his point across.
After that flash of punishment, the investigator just sat up and forced a smile, "I mean... You called in a man you never knew, not even from the internet. How come you trust him so much? What if, he had his eyes on you as being belt victim number four?"
"He wouldn't!" Keekee bolted to her feet in denial. "Kim has been nothing but kind to me! Respectful even! H-he treats me better than you guys, o-or any guy I’ve dated in the past! L-like, he is the classic gentlemen you can only find in black and white movies. The ones who throw down their coats over a puddle so a lady don’t get their shoes wet! You know what I mean?”
“Lady, you watch too much movies.” The coffee investigator snorted back, “You really you should switch to reality TV programs and—GAAAH!”
The officer suddenly lurched across the table, grasping his one ear. It seems, the other end of the line fired a loud sound into his ear to teach him a lesson. Once the ringing slowed down and his eyes weren’t seeing stares, he tried to sit up...with a small choke.
Keekee was tearing up. Hell hath no fury than a woman scorn.
“This is all your fault!” She screamed, “You guys totally made fun of him! And he was being a good Samaritan for crying out loud! He tried to warn you guys of the real murderer when you all said it was a suicide! Kim only wanted to help, y-you should have seen the pain in his eyes when he told me what he saw that day! Now you’re all pointing fingers, making him look like the serial killer YOU GUYS can’t find!”
“Hey now girly, you listen right—”
“No! YOU listen! You all came charging at my grandma’s house, disrespected her property, and arrested my friend! You nearly killed him too! I should report you for your excessive violence!”
“Whoa now, hold up. Were you blind to how he wiped the floor with us? What we did was merciful compared to him!”
“Kim did absolutely nothing wrong! He isn’t the murder! So let him go!”
The coffee investigator pinched at his nose bridge. He wasn’t in the mood to raise his voice at her. So he tried a different tactic. “Let’s pretend for a second, he was the Belt Rapist – for a second. Did it ever occur to you, trying to get close to you was his goal the whole time?”
“Wh-what? What do you mean by that?”
“The Belt Rapist has a pattern, like all serial killers do! He always chooses young women who can be easily fooled with the promise of a perfect love. Portrays himself as the ideal man for her, going as far as mimicking her purest preference in men. Why do you think, three girls are dead – because he got so close to them, they died before they knew it was too late. This time, this Kim, what he’s doing isn’t any different!”
“...No! Th-that’s not possible!”
“It is.” The coffee investigator stood up, adjusting his belt, “A guy comes out of no where, puts himself in danger to save a stranger like you, doesn’t get anything out of it, and been ‘respecting you’ from day one. That’s all in fantasy land! Knights and princesses! Chivalry is long dead! You and I both know – there’s no such guy like that any more!”
“S-stop it. Y-you’re doing those mind games!” Keekee cupped her ears, trying to block the officer’s voice out. “You can’t say things like that about Kim! He’s different!”
“Exactly! Think about it! What normal woman in their right mind would invite a complete stranger to live with them? I don’t see a Good Samaritan invite beggars to live in their house without a problem! This Kong guy had a motive: and that’s to crawl into your life, get it on with you, then strangle you dead. That’s why he’s been cozying up to you—”
“HE HAS BEEN TRYING TO COMMIT SUICIDE!”
Everything changed right then and there. Professor Stone did a double take and sat up in his chair, completely serious. The outburst stunned the investigators themselves, making them look at each other – as if either one had the script of their next lines. Wh-what do they say to follow up after that kind of outburst!?
Keekee found herself on her feet, fighting back hot tears in her eyes. She had to get the truth out.
“Kim had been starving himself. No food, no water. I found him practically wandering in the mountains, covered in mud and blood. I finally realized, he was hiding the fact he wanted to kill himself! We all know people go into the mountains to die when they’re at their lowest, don’t deny that!”
Keekee wiped the tears out of her eyes and barked, “Even so, he went out of his way to save me. He protected me all this time, even while he had thoughts of ending his life. And he had no where else to stay, so I INVITED Kim to my grandmother’s cabin until he could sort himself out! I wanted to help him recover, to get over the pain! What, did you think I could turn my back on such a vulnerable man like him!? Would you look away, officers!?”
The investigators exchanged glances, trying not to look weak or shameful. Keekee felt her knees buckle as the adrenaline washed out from under her. She flopped back into her chair and pulled the coat around her shaking shoulders.
“Kim didn’t even have the strength to open a water bottle when I first found him. S-so tell me, officers, how would he have the strength, or guts even, to strangle a woman he’s never met before? Everything is a mistake! He was the one who saw the murder, he was never part of it!”
Prof. Stone rose to his feet and head out of the observation room. He had heard enough, to get his mind cleared in the right direction.
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