I Rize (6 page)

Madison’s words never held any meaning from his point of view. Fingers drumming in the air, he left the cafeteria humming his and Adny’s favorite fabricated tune in his mind.
The circus of fools is back in town. They’re back in town, back in town
.

J
unior arrived at the police station with Adny’s laptop ready in his hand. The place seemed even busier than before. Phones rang constantly. Piles of papers were scrambled all over desks and covering the floor. People scattered everywhere, consumed by their jobs. He looked up at a television screen and always hated seeing the same high school picture of Adny shown on the news for the last few days. The situation weighed even more heavily on his heart each time a news reporter mentioned her name. Usually, local news stations didn’t linger on about stories regarding suicides and suicide attempts of young teenagers because it could potentially cause copy-cat suicides to occur. Adny’s story was constantly played on numerous news stations.

A slight crack in Detective Miller’s office door allowed him to see the detective’s signal to come in. Inside, he stood for a moment, taking in the scenery. He watched Detective Miller lean back in his chair tapping his fingers against the old, rusted desk. Pictures of his family were plastered on the wall. Hundreds of different types of books lined the cracking bookshelf.

Junior looked on the desk and saw a card in an upright position. He couldn’t help but smile, when he read it out loud.
Hapy Faters Day.

Detective Miller’s grin widened as he picked up the card to show where a heart was drawn. “My four year old made it for me.”

Junior placed the laptop on the desk to change the detective’s focus. “Detective, do you have time to talk now?”

“When you gave me those names, I contacted their parents, and they should be coming in a few minutes. Only person I couldn’t get in touch with was Terri.”

Junior shook his head, not surprised. “She can be stubborn at times.”

The phone rang. Detective Miller picked it up and placed his hand over the speaker, indicating to Junior that the suspects were ready to be questioned. Before Junior could respond, he took his hand off the speaker and finished the conversation. Not many words were exchanged. The detective motioned for Junior to follow him out.

Shandi walked into the police station with her mom and lawyer. Madison walked in by herself. They were each taken to separate rooms. Junior stood outside of the office as the girls walked by, looking into their deceitful eyes, hoping they would say something. Shandi kept her head down. Madison’s half smile made him feel like the entire situation was one big joke to her.

D
etective Miller started with Shandi. He placed the recording device on the table.

“Can you state your name for me?”

Shandi looked over at her lawyer first and then at the detective before responding. “I’ve never done this before, sir.”

“Listen, Shandi Downey. That is your name, right? This is how it works. I ask you questions, and you answer them. It’s simple. Do not make this process more complicated.”

Similar to when Detective Miller interrogated Mickey, Junior knew his intentions were to make her confess to his demands. Detective Miller harnessed the ability to place fear in even the toughest people.

“Did you know Adny Storm?”

Her eyes darted back and forth at the detective’s water bottle. “Yeah, I guess.”

The detective took another giant gulp causing Shandi to bite her dehydrated, cracked lips even more. “How did you meet her?”

“Her stepsister, Terri, introduced us.” She paused, looking down at the table. “We all became good friends after a while.”

In Junior’s mind, Shandi’s body language and delayed speech exposed her true nature. He knew the detective worked in the police department long enough to know when someone was lying.

“If she was so happy around you, why did she attempt suicide?”

While rocking back and forth in her seat, Shandi kept rubbing the back of her ear. “I … don’t know …”

“It is difficult for you to look me in my eyes, but I bet it wasn’t so difficult for you when you were stripping Adny of her right to happiness. You got a kick out of it, did you not?”

Shandi’s lawyer eyed him down, signaling her client not to answer. “Detective, it’s not wise to turn this into an accusatory session. My client has the right to leave any moment.”

Detective Miller looked at Shandi, tapping his fingertips lightly against the table.

“Your lawyer is right. I have done much of the talking. It’s your turn now.”

Shandi waited for the signal from her lawyer to continue. “I did nothing wrong.”

“So, you are sitting here telling me you had nothing to do with Adny’s situation? Well, according to Adny, you did.”

Listening intently through the window, Junior recognized Detective Miller’s new tactic from a recent
Law and Order
episode he watched. The goal was to pull her evil layers away inch by inch by acting as if Adny confessed every deed committed.

Shandi held the bottom of her stomach, and it looked as if she wanted to throw up over the news. “She’s alive?”

“You seem shocked, surprised, or is it more of a disappointment? You wanted her dead, didn’t you?”

Junior noticed a faint smile appear on the detective’s lips while observing Shandi’s blank expression. He had a feeling the detective was digging deeper within her subconscious past the guilt and toward the final confession.

“I’m sure your mother hates liars. Detective Miller pointed toward the window. She’s standing outside of this room; so don’t disappoint her like you always do.” He leaned in closer across the table lifting one finger in front of her face. “I’ll give you one more chance to tell me what happened.”

Shandi looked away from him, continuing to hold her stomach. “I … don’t remember.

Junior recognized Shandi’s ploy for innocence because he attempted to generate amnesia out of thin air many times as a young child to get out of trouble. Knowing how his efforts always failed miserably, he had a feeling she wouldn’t survive the detective’s good judgment of character.

Detective Miller slammed his hand down on the table, causing Shandi to jump up from her seat. “You enjoyed plighting away in her misery??” He cornered her further into the seat. “Or was it her echoing cries of pain that turned you on more?”

Everyone inside and outside of the interrogation room was stunned by his reaction as Shandi’s lawyer pulled him away. “Detective, that’s enough. My client and I are leaving now.”

Shandi lifted herself up and looked in the detective’s direction. “Detective, I know I didn’t help much today, but something has been distracting me for over a year now. She leaned down to wipe the blood spots from the bottom of her seat. “What happened to me has heightened the guilt I feel about what we did to Adny.”

Detective Miller remained seated. Her lawyer stood at the opposite end of the room with the door opened.

“Detective, that blood is not what you think it is. I haven’t had my period in about a year now. Can you help me report a rape? You help me, I’ll help you.”

Detective Miller pulled out his writing pad. “Was it someone you knew? Or was it a stranger?”

She walked over in her lawyer’s direction. “Someone I knew.”

“Could you give me a name, and I will direct you toward the right person in the police department to help you.”

“Terri’s boyfriend.”

Junior placed his hand over his mouth, shocked about what he heard. He felt no sympathy, but more frustration wondering how it related to Adny’s misfortune. There was no time to think further as he watched Detective Miller walk into the next room. It was Madison’s turn. Junior helplessly watched from the window as Madison sat engrossed in her cell phone, failing to notice the detective’s arrival.

He extended his hand to greet her. “I’m Detective Miller. What’s your name?”

She ignored his efforts to greet her and directed her attention back to the cell phone.

He pulled the phone from her hands. “You don’t like shaking hands?”

She scrunched up her nose with disgust, not responding. “Your mom or dad isn’t present?”

“Nope, so give me my phone back.”

“And you don’t want a lawyer? Your phone can wait until I finish.”

“Nope, are we done here? I have cheerleading practice.”

“Practice can wait ‘til after I ask you a few questions. How about I make you a deal?”

Madison rolled her eyes and asked, “What is your little deal?”

“You answer my questions with no problems, and then you can leave. Deal?”

As Madison collected her personal items she responded, “This is a waste of my time. I’m leaving.”

Detective Miller dangled a pair of handcuffs in her face. “I can smell the marijuana on you. I have handcuffs; you don’t.”

She sat back down with her legs crossed and arms folded.

“I will give you one more chance to take my deal.”

“Okay, fine. Whatever.”

Junior knew Madison much better than Detective Miller. He knew that Shandi feared the detective, but Madison was never taken aback by fear. The detective would have to adjust the way he approached the situation in comparison to Shandi and Mickey.

“State your name for me, please.”

She looked him in the eyes while he pulled out the recording device. “So you are recording our conversation? Isn’t that against one of those laws you people have?”

“No. It’s just for our records.”

She sat far off in the chair and gave him a strange look. “Madison Cooper. There you go. Satisfied?”

“Madison, did you know Adny?”

“Yeah, I knew that girl. She and her little friend are both weirdos. I can’t remember his name.”

“I take it you didn’t like her?”

Madison lightly chuckled under breath. “Nope.”

Detective Miller paused. Junior knew her evil wall would be much harder for the detective to strip away than Shandi’s.

“Detective, whatever your name is, can I leave now?”

“For us to leave early, I need you to cooperate. Remember our deal? Since you didn’t like Adny, why did you bully her?”

Madison turned her nose up at the accusation. “What are you talking about?”

“Did the name-calling and taunts make you feel like you ruled the world?”

The faint smile began to reappear. “None of that happened—whatever you are talking about.”

Junior recognized her malicious smile too many times throughout his high school life to know when she was up to no good.

“Lying isn’t going to help you. Are you friends with Terri and Shandi?”

She laughed to herself. “Nope, I use them to help do the dirty work. It’s fun.”

“You enjoy watching a girl’s daily sufferings in a hospital?”

Madison looked down, shifting the position of her legs constantly, not saying a word. Junior smiled at the thought of Detective Miller beginning to break down the thick wall surrounding her emotions.

“Madison, is it fun to hurt people to the point where they want to kill themselves?”

“I’m leaving now. Deal done, I have to go.”

When her back was turned toward the door, Detective Miller asked, “Why are you so angry? Where did all that evil in your heart come from?”

Madison quickly stormed out of the office. When he walked out of the interrogation room, he and Junior grinned at the successful endeavors of getting under her skin. They both knew more sessions were necessary to expose all of her superficial layers down to the core. They conversed amongst themselves on the walk back to the office.

“Junior, have you found any new evidence pertaining to the case?”

He pulled out the flash drive containing all of the videos. “Detective, I recently found these videos. In the last one, she wanted me to promise that no one else would ever see them. I have to show you. My friend needs help.”

“Junior, I won’t show the videos to anyone else. Adny deserves justice. She has been through a lot, and I know you have, too.”

“Thanks for understanding. I don’t know who else to turn to.”

“I’m going to take a look at these videos and get back to you. If you find anything else new, please do not hesitate to call.”

When Junior left, Detective Miller played the last video made. He noticed one particular phrase Adny expressed.
While I cry, they laugh. While I toss and turn, they sleep. While I suffer, they rejoice. They are my tormentors. I just want this all to end today.

He was unable to take his finger away from the replay button. Closing the laptop, he couldn’t stop staring at the wall in front of him. The familiarity of Adny’s voice caused him to shiver.

“What are you watching?”

Not knowing his wife was standing behind him, he slightly jumped from the seat. “Nothing, honey, just work issues. I’ll be outside in a few.”

She sat on his lap to share a quick kiss. “I made spaghetti and Italian meatballs … your favorite.”

He rubbed his hands through the back of her shoulder length hair. “Sounds like a good way to end this long day.”

“I got a new patient at the therapist’s office today. This girl is going to be a tough cookie to crack. She got kicked out of her previous therapy session because of her obvious marijuana use and disrespectful mouth.”

“Interesting, what is her name?”

“Silly man, you've been in the business long enough to know I am not allowed to give out personal information, even to my own nosy husband.”

A look of curiosity fell upon him. “You’ve said more than enough, I think I know.”

She gave him a playful slap against his cheek. “Wipe that look off your face because I’ve seen that look too many times to know when you’re up to some crazy plan.” They both had dreams of becoming psychologists and opening a private office space together. After graduate school at New York University, they both became licensed clinical psychologists. Later in life, Detective Miller decided to apply his expertise to the police force.

Detective Miller began packing his stuff up for the night. “I interviewed this girl earlier today and she really needs help. She puts up this wall, making it impossible for anyone to see her true self. Sometimes I miss working with people on a on more personal level, and this is my redeeming chance.”