#veritasinterrogation

𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐓 𝐈     —     𝒀𝑶𝑼

DO YOU HAVE ANY CRIMINAL HISTORY ? ANYTHING BIG OR SMALL THAT YOU WANT TO MAKE US AWARE OF ?

"no,” she answers, almost immediately. she can’t tell if the word came too fast, too abruptly, to be believable. she tries to focus in on grant’s gaze, tries to see if there’s anything there, but there’s NOTHING to go off of. there’s no way to tell if grant believes her claim — and, upon a brief, inward glance, she’s reminded of the fact that maybe, just maybe, grant is in the right for that. still, it doesn’t change the fact that grant’s expression is unnervingly calculated and emotionless. kiki isn’t sure if that’s because the officer is just THAT good, or if the narcotics — which... in her defense, she hadn’t KNOWN that she’d be summoned to the police station when she’d taken them, so — in her system have dulled her own abilities to be perceptive. “nothing, officer.”

HOW HAVE YOU SPENT THE FEW WEEKS BACK AT COLLEGE ? WHAT HAVE THEY BEEN LIKE ?

she can’t stop the way an incredulous scoff leaves her lips the moment that she hears the question — because, REALLY, what kind of question is it? “well, let’s see. it’s my senior year. i should be worried about graduating in the spring, but instead i’m just worried that i might not SURVIVE that long. two of my childhood friends have been killed, two other people i used to spend my childhood around got kidnapped, and even though you arrested someone, you still called me in for an interrogation —” she forces herself to breathe, in slowly and out even slower. “so, to answer your question, it’s been the worst two months of my fucking life.”

𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐓 𝐈𝐈     —     𝑫𝑨𝑰𝑺𝑬𝒀

HOW DID YOU KNOW MISS. RUTHERFORD ? WHAT WAS THE NATURE OF YOUR RELATIONSHIP ? 

"we were friends when we were kids,” kiki begins, folding her hands in her lap. despite everything that had been happening, it had been a LONG time since she talked about daisey and the friendship that she, once, shared with her. it felt like it was... a LIFETIME ago. she’s never been eager to jump at the chance of sharing how close she and daisey once were. the past few years have made that much especially true. the last few months brought a sense of guilt along with it that she couldn’t explain — that, maybe, she could have changed the way that the universe and its events unfolded if she’d made a few different choices along the way, despite the sound of oz’s voice in the back of her mind telling her she COULDN’T BLAME HERSELF. “i wrote letters to her. it was, uh... a therapy assignment. i was friends with nate, so was she. but we... grew apart as we got older. around high school. so i hadn’t really... talked to her in a time.”

DO YOU REMEMBER WHERE YOU WERE THE NIGHT DAISEY WENT MISSING ? IF SO, WHERE WERE YOU ? WHAT WERE YOU DOING ? WHO WERE YOU WITH ?

kiki falters, her hands tighten their grasp. she wants to cross her arms over her chest, a defense mechanism, something to protect herself. but she KNOWS how the gesture would read to grant, what kind of implications it carried. so she DIDN’T. “i was at oz lamar’s party, like everyone else in the town. nothing exciting,” she attempts to say coolly but grant doesn’t seem amused. she has questions and she wants them all answered, apparently. “i... hung out with my sister, alice, for a little bit. and then i was with my boyfriend — julian bernard — for awhile, but he wasn’t my boyfriend yet, that came — ” she swallows her words, quickly realizing there’s no way to say that they didn’t get together until the day that daisey’s body was found — like, almost IMMEDIATELY after the news broke — without unfairly incriminating the both of them. “ — later. doesn’t matter. anyway, i went upstairs with my best friend, ulysses kennedy and we — ” 

she hesitates, stares down at her fingers as memories flash through her mind, against her will. honey’s eyes blown-wide, the way her fingers trembled when she reached for him, the way they’d caught each other’s gaze as they were cleaning themselves up and agreed not to talk about it, the way she hadn’t even thought to let herself feel any way about it until she was crying on the floor of her shower the next morning. and, STILL, she can’t bring herself to regret it, no matter how awful of a person that made her. maybe she would have, if the circumstances had been even just a little bit different. but it was HONEY, and, somehow, that makes all the difference. “ — we hooked up. what? c’mon, what are friends for, am i right? and then i went home at... i don’t know, two-thirty?”

DID YOU NOTICE ANYTHING STRANGE ABOUT DAISEY’S BEHAVIOR THE NIGHT SHE WENT MISSING ? DID YOU NOTICE ANYTHING SUSPICIOUS ABOUT ANYONE ELSE YOU RAN INTO THAT NIGHT ?

"i mean, like i said, i haven’t talked to her in a long time, so i’m not exactly the BEST person to pass a judgement call on her behavior,” she shrugs, forcing her shoulders to relax despite their innate instinct to coil with stress. “and we ran in pretty... starkly different social circles after our friendship ended. i saw her once at the party, around one in the morning, but i didn’t talk to her. she was a little busy going at it with otto balantyne, her fiance — and not in a good way. they were fighting over something, but i wouldn’t really call that strange. being at each other’s throats constantly was kind of their thing, but they never called off the engagement so i assume they always worked it out in the end.” grant’s gaze is still inquisitive, still peering into her soul, like she’s waiting for MORE. “i don’t know what the fight was about, if that’s what you want to know. i wasn’t hanging around in the shadows to try and eavesdrop, i was just... passing by. but, i will say that she seemed... i don’t know, nervous afterwards? just not herself. usually she always wanted to be the center of attention, but after that she seemed... paranoid is a strong word but... something wasn’t right.” 

the more she speaks, the more the uncomfortable feeling in her stomach that’s been brewing since the moment she stepped foot into the police station feels like it’s boiling over. she’s treading dangerous waters and she knows she has to reign it back in, say SOMETHING to stop herself from blubbering like a complete mess, saying too much.

“and, WELL... it was friday the thirteenth and a full moon. have you considered the possibility of werewolves? maybe mothman?”

WHERE WERE YOU THE NIGHT DAISEY’S BODY WAS RECOVERED ?

"i was with julian,” she answers, almost immediately. “well. not the moment that her body was found, i was in my apartment then, but... i went over to his place really soon after.” truth be told, the day that daisey’s body was recovered had... very quickly turned into the day that she and jules finally got their shit together, and remained that way in her own mind. the fact that daisey rutherford had been killed had been a silently lurking truth since the day that they first received word of a post on daisey’s old blog — a day that she had ALSO spent standing in front of jules in his apartment. life is balanced like that, she thinks. daisey rutherford was taken out of the world and daisey jr was thrust into it. “i kind of had a come-to-jesus moment about... you know, how delicate life is. how easily it can all... fall apart. and he was the only person i wanted to be around.”

HOW FAMILIAR ARE YOU WITH THE ASHMONT WOODS ? HAVE YOU BEEN THERE OFTEN ? HAVE YOU RECENTLY VENTURED OUT HERE ? IF SO, WHY ?

her stomach jolts, twisting in uncomfortable nausea, the moment that the first question leaves grant’s lips. she blanches, pales, she’s certain of it, but can’t find it in herself to even think twice about the way that it might make her look — not she’s concentrating all her effort into not breaking down on the spot. “the last time i went into the ashmont woods was when YOUR police force decided that they didn’t have the man-power to find missing college students on their own so they sent US out as bait.” she’s surprised with her own ability to keep her voice steady, though her hands are grabbing fistfuls of her sweatpants, knuckles white. “you remember that, ELAINE ? my best friend and my sister found the body of my oldest friend. do you have any fucking idea how bad that fucked her up?” she knows she’s getting away from herself, she can feel her control slipping. she isn’t sure what time it is, exactly, but the grating irritation she feels in her bones is one of the biggest, flashing indicators that whatever pill she’d popped that morning is starting to wear off. she forces herself to breathe again, to grasp a bit harder at the reins. she’s almost done. “so, no, i don’t go there OFTEN, officer.”

𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐓 𝐈𝐈𝐈     —     𝑾𝑬𝑬𝑲𝑳𝒀 𝑬𝑽𝑬𝑵𝑻𝑺

WERE YOU AT THE FOOTBALL GAME THIS FRIDAY ? IF SO, DID YOU NOTICE ANYTHING SUSPICIOUS AROUND THE MEMORIAL TABLE ?

"i was. briefly,” she answers, her heartbeat quickening a fraction. and, again, there’s another question. how, exactly, does one tell a police officer that they made their exit moment they saw flashing lights, sirens, the sight of someone being taken away in handcuffs without sounding guilty? a hollow-sounding voice in the back of her mind reminds her that, maybe, there’s a reason why it doesn’t seem possible. “i didn’t notice anything suspicious, no. i wasn’t by the table for very long. i signed nate’s book and left.”

DO YOU HAVE ANY INFORMATION REGARDING THE ARREST OF HOLDEN WOODS, HIS CHARACTER, OR ANY EVIDENCE YOU MAY BE WITHHOLDING IN REGARDS TO HIS CASE ? 

kiki shakes her head. this time there isn’t anything she’s trying to hide, anything that might cause her answer to hesitate. “no. i don’t know holden very well. i can’t remember the last time that i talked to him. certainly not since daisey died, i can tell you that. but i never really trusted him and i’m usually a pretty good judge of character.” it feels almost laughable to say that with the knowledge resting on her shoulders of just how many people in her life she’s recently learned have the capacity to kill. not that it’s affected her sense of their character in the long run, anyway. “but nothing i’m WITHHOLDING, no.”

DO YOU HAVE INFORMATION ON THE RELATIONSHIP DAISEY HAD WITH ROMANTIC PARTNERS IN THE PAST ? ANYTHING NOTABLE ABOUT THEM ?

her lips purse, thinking on it for a moment. the only person she can think of with any romantic connection to daisey is... OZ. she’s certain that he had NOTHING to do with it, and for good reason. “no. i don’t know anything about that. like i said, daisey and i weren’t really friends anymore by the time that boys, or girls, or... WHOEVER became a notable part of our lives.”

DO YOU BELIEVE THAT SHE HAD ANY JEALOUS EXES ? OR ANYONE ELSE THAT MAY HAVE BEEN ROMANTICALLY SCORNED BY HER OR PURSUING HER ?

"jealous exes? i mean, i don’t know about that. i can’t think of any she dated who had the capacity to KILL her... except holden, i guess. but, if you’re asking about it, that means you can’t be so sure.” she lifts one shoulder, slightly, and then drops it again. the idea of dragging someone under the bus isn’t one she’s particularly proud of, but... she’s starting to feel more and more like she’s doing whatever it takes to survive. she’d seen the report on holden’s arrest. she knows that he got booked partially on the count of an earring in his bedroom, a piece of evidence she has growing suspicions might have planted on him, the same way evidence had been planted on HER. the only difference was that her’s was signed with jules’s name and holden’s was probably signed with cassidy’s. “there’s always margo colby. people say she stalked daisey. i don’t know if it’s true or not, though. you know how people are... they talk.”

𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐓 𝐈𝐕     —   𝑻𝑯𝑬 𝑰𝑵𝑽𝑬𝑺𝑻𝑰𝑮𝑨𝑻𝑰𝑶𝑵

DO YOU HAVE ANY PEOPLE YOU FEEL THE POLICE SHOULD LOOK INTO ? PLEASE, LET US KNOW WHO AND WHY.

the taste of throwing margo’s name out is still sitting on her tongue, sharp and bitter, and she can’t wipe it away no matter how many times she tries to swallow it back. and, if it’s still there... well. “if you’re feeling CONFIDENT in holden, then i’d say ivy westbrook is someone to look into. she and holden spend a lot of time together and i heard they used to... well, i’ll just say if there’s someone who could be the bonnie to his clyde, then it’s her.”

DO YOU HAVE FEELINGS TOWARDS THE INVESTIGATION ? ANY COMMENTS ?

she could end all of this here, if she wanted to. she could. she has the knowledge, the insight, the words, to help close this case for GOOD. for a moment, she debates it. she debates putting herself at risk for the sake of closing this stupid fucking book, but then... she falters. the last time she put herself at risk, daisey jr had made it clear what the repercussions of such an action were. sure, there was a chance that whoever it was wouldn’t be able to get to her in time if she spoke on it now, but that wasn’t a given... and she still had a lot of people who could be hurt at the risk of her saying something now. people who WOULD, without a doubt, go down right beside her. 

so, instead of saying anything, she keeps her jaw wired shut and shakes her head, slowly.

it isn’t until they give her the all-clear to go and she’s walking out of the station that she feels something like regret pooling inside of her stomach. maybe it had been the wrong choice. maybe she should have said something. 

Part One ( You. )

Do you have any criminal history? Anything big or small that you want to make us aware of?

the air felt thick, as if made of stone ━pressing in a room made even smaller walls that felt more looming over him than the eyes of father and mother whenever he’d make a small mistake, just like the person in front of him trying to pierce his soul with those eyes as if he was a monster in need of slaying. this was no stage, this was no conference with his parents who really little wanted to know of him unless it was about a new trophy to add ━he was alone in this, and he knew he wasn’t going to deal with anything easily.

remembering how to breathe was becoming harder, and harder.

“ no, i have none. ” it was said immediately, as it was true ━nam inseong, jewel child, nothing to his record indeed as his face, even in all that distress taking away softness from his lips and color to his cheeks, remained pristine and doelike, remained with so much pain in his heart and soul because one of his longtime friends just disappeared without a trace, lost forevermore.

even when the lonely light of the interrogation room almost felt like berating him with its flicker as he just really wanted to let himself shrink away, tiny and useless and disposable so easily.

How have you spent the few weeks back at college? What have they been like?

and if the first question felt just right with the situation, the second jarred so much against it, lacking of the proper flow that made inseong blink for a moment, confused, not really knowing what to say ━blinking a few times before actually shaking his head, attempting to give himself some semblance of relaxation, albeit fictitious. there was no hope, no relaxation, actually ━there was no way his nerves wouldn’t stop being tense and his shoulders stop sulking no matter how harshly he tried to stiffen himself up. there was no way things were going to be back the way it was, that was a fact everything of himself needed to accept as fast as possible, or it was going to be the end of him.

“ ah, it was fine, a-actually. as fine as one in this si-situation can be, of course. i have been busy with practicing as i’ve been planning to take part on some big c-competitions ━and of course returning to college means m-more things i have to focus, which is nice ! i’m not a fan of lazying around... if i do i start getting a-all frantic and jittery and stuff. ” god that was the most awkward chuckle ever. “ i have started band as well. i just━am trying to remember how it f-felt before. ”

Part Two ( Daisey. )

How did you know Miss. Rutherford? What was the nature of your relationship?

the moment of ease was stripped away as easily as one would strip away an aching tooth ━sudden and sharp and bringing inseong back to an earth he didn’t want to walk through, back to a reality where yes, college had started and competitions were right at the corner, but also daisey died and he was being looked at as a suspect, just because he knew her, because he was seen with her somewhere. “ we grew up together. ” it was admitted with a little bit of nostalgia in his words, an awkward curl of chapped lips, unsure if such an information was going to bring him on top of the suspect chart but alas ━he was a shit liar anyways, and even if he was a good liar he just couldn’t, when it was about someone close who just got murdered.

murdered. it was even so hard to think of that word, of how close now it felt, more than ever.

“ our families’ manors are next to e-each other, and we used to spend t-time together and play together ━with daniel too. of course. we all decided to take separate ways in terms of studying, b-but we were all friends, talked and spend time together, even if it wasn’t like when we were kids, of course. ”

Do you remember where you were the night Daisey went missing? If so, where were you? What were you doing? Who were you with?

“ i was attending oz━i mean, la-langston lamar’s party, with everybody else. i admit i’m not a fan of big loud parties, but since it was a friend hosting it i was like, ‘why not?’ ” honestly he’d say, the golden child, whose hands were held in a grip as he tried to remember the party, the amounts of alcohol he’s drank ━he shoudln’t have, he really shouldn’t have━, the way people screamed and danced and was having fun and those who were next to him. a fun he never really got, but he was just the same age as them all, attending the same school ━seeking the same thrilling fun at least once before he’d truly end up regretting never trying before.

“ i was nearby the dj set ━with the other guys of the band. we were speaking with the dj about music and about some remixes we were i-interested in listening, since the dj said those were made by themselves. ” the interest in music still remained, vivid in the eyes of the boy that still looked so genuine, awaiting for a nod to continue his spiel. “ then i saw zola and i spent most of the time with her too. she’s too a good friend of mine, and she’s nice to talk to. we had some drinks, chitchatted, looked around at people doing party things, nothing much, really. ”

Did you notice anything strange about Daisey’s behavior the night she went missing? Did you notice anything suspicious about anyone else you ran into that night?

“ a-anything strange? ” it had to force his memory a bit more, but there was something he had seen, something that he clearly had some say in it and that maybe could help finding something ━eyes wide, mouth pursed, rabbitlike child just wanting to prove himself and the world he was a good boy, that he really was and there was no reason to hurt him like that ( for once, selfishly ).

                               remember remember remember remember.

“ i was a bit tipsy and definitely tired as expected from having a party with friends, but-but i remember seeing daisey around 1AM while i was out trying to take a breather, i believe? she was leaving with s-someone i really couldn’t tell who they were, i couldn’t tell any features because it was dark ━they left to-together and i just thought it was some other friend of hers, it wouldn’t be the f-first time. ” she had a lot of friends besides himself and oz, after all.

Where were you the night Daisey’s body was recovered?

“ i was at home. rosalia can c-confirm, as we live together in the same apartment. ” and he almost wished he wasn’t, but alas ━at home he was, fixing strings of his pretty violin, well convinced he’d have to perform soon when instead it was the air of funeral knocking at his door. he could still remember miss rutherford’s face when asking him where daisey was, if he’s seen her ━of course she’d expected him to know, they played together as children, they still talked, it was natural. but he barely knew where daisey went that night, he barely could hold himself together when finding of her being gone forever.

he still thought he was doing a terrible job at it.

“ i got the news a-and i was heartbroken, agent. she w-was my childhood friend, after all. ”

How familiar are you with the Ashmont woods? Have you been there often? Have you recently ventured out here? If so, why?

his head shook, immediately. the woods, of course they were going to be mentioned ━a place so cursed even to those who didn’t believe in superstition, for it just had an air of horror and dread echoing all within and all around it, surrounding ashmont like a choking grip growing tighter and tighter. inseong never liked it, something in his bones always found revulsion towards the endless natural maze made of branches and dead leaves and hidden pathways ━even now, so far from it, he could almost swear he could hear it cackle.

“ the woods? no, n-never been there ━the closest i’ve been to them was when i was a child, with daniel and daisey, where we wo-would just go there and try to spot squirrels and deers. but we never ventured fu-further, i’ve always been scared of it actually. it always gives me a s-sense of dread. ” like nails caressing his back and being sharp and bony and menacing to tear apart his skin, breath of witches cold against his neck. something in the woods always felt like hunting for blood and he didn’t want to find if it was true or just the nightmares of a very sensitive rich child. “ so i always steer c-clear from there no matter what. ”

Part Three ( the Investigation. )

Do you have feelings towards the investigation? Any comments?

what was he supposed to do? what were they expecting him to say? a person so close to him just died, he and many others of the school got threatened, everything was a chaos and it was in those moments he wished for parents to be there and be supportive ( a dream meant to remain a dream ), envying those with siblings that could watch each other’s back because nam inseong felt alone, so alone, and it was tearing him apart second after second.

and the more time passed, the more whoever now owned daisey’s blog was going forth with their very own brand of witch hunt, and he knew there was nothing he could do to make sure others would be off the list and avoid all the ache and all the paranoia.

“ i j-ust want justice for my friend. i want her to r-rest. ” he uttered, unnecessary to raise his voice when every single syllable echoed within those tiny walls, when there were microphones everywhere even when he couldn’t objectively see them. his own hands trembled ━he’s tortured his shirt enough, he could just let them curl onto each other in a semblance of a grip━, his body felt ready to break down in tears again and he even doubted having more to shed. “ i just really want this to end, agent, i want this to end. ”

Do you have any people you feel the police should look into? Please, let us know who and why.

no. no no no no, it was what the person behind daisey’s hacked blog wanted more than anything, that pointing of fingers and dog eat dog chaos he wanted no one to partake in, because it just felt so wrong in so many levels  ━the widening in his eyes and pallor in his face making him look like he indeed saw a ghost that he wasn’t supposed to meet eyes with, his own stance a bit frantic in his pathetic attempt not to completely start begging to be believed. even movies show that didn’t work most of the times unless you were the tale’s protagonist, and he was none.

“ i don’t ━i don’t think the killer is within us. i don’t know, maybe━m-maybe i saw too many crime shows, ” yes, most likely he did, but netflix was essentially one of his closest friends... depending on how one would consider a streaming site ‘friendly’. “ but i just have the s-sensation that we’re b-being put one against the other, agent, like, on p-purpose. you... you don’t have to believe me, and of course i’m n-not trying to tell you how to w-work, no━━i just think this person is... is not within us. i c-could be wrong, but my guts tell me that. ”

Part Four ( Weekly Events. )

Were you at the football game this Friday? If so, did you notice anything suspicious around the memorial table?

the game that friday was something he wasn’t that much invested to, but he remembered sam just bursting at his door and essentially trying to convince him to go ━he succeeded, inseong’s not that hard to defeat━, giving himself the motivation to go and show support to those band members who were selected to play their loud and brassy instruments as a cheer to the people so excited to watch burly men fighting for a ball... only to then leave when the chaos of the blackout had become too much and he had felt the spirals of panic choking him already. if it was done for his safety, leaving was much more acceptable and less of a thing that could frame him as guilty of something somehow, right? 

even if now sam wasn’t really sam, he didn’t even know who were his friends and what was the lie he had been embedded in like the fool and naive idiot he was ━it was making him sick, so sick, so much wanting to just hide under a table and leave when the world had finally reached its end. “ i was brought to watch the g-game by a friend, as i wanted to show some support to my fellow band members, but i left during the b-blackout because the confusion and the cro━crpwd were making me panic. ” eyes looking down, giving a light brush to his tired wrists, feeling how tense his veins and muscles were. “ i didn’t really notice a-any-nything, i just went straight out because i n━needed air. ”

Do you have any information regarding the arrest of Holden Woods, his character, or any evidence you may be withholding in regards to his case?

the name of holden woods wasn’t exactly one that uncommon around ━a person he’s occasionally seen while hanging out to a pub that had a delicious raspberry flavored irish beer, a person he’s had just a few friendly conversations, a few jokes here and there, but nothing really going from the line of acquaintances to the one of friendship. but outside of that? outside of the occasional nods while crossing college corridors and those bursts of conversations here and there? he knew nothing.

like he knew nothing, in the end, of the people around him. 

“ we were just acquaintances, sir. ” he candidly replied, eyes softly blinking. he truly tried to remember anything weird coming from holden, but besides reminding him to get laid and have some fun, there was nothing weird. nothing intimating murder ━did saying classes were essentially a whole murder count? he himself made those jokes with the band buddies before, did it make him a murderer? “ besides greeting each other when m-meeting at school or outside, none of our conversations went b-beyond regular student talk. ”

Do you have information on the relationship Daisey had with romantic partners in the past? Anything notable about them?

now, that was one messy question. quite fitting the mess he had recently found out ( via others’ complaint, of course ) about daisey’s love life, things he didn’t want to know the details of because ━alive or not━ it wasn’t his business to meddle in. he knew of otto ballantyne of course, daisey’s mom often talked with his mother about how much luck there was in that arranged marriage, but that was it. occasional eavesdropping, and the classical naivetè of a young adult thinking his childhood friend was also having young adult experiences. 

he wasn’t sure if the flock of lovers and people lead on left and right were part of what someone would call ‘young adult experiences’, though. for sure, he and many others didn’t need to be experts in psychology to know it was a mess. “ not really, sir. ” so inseong gave himself some composure after thinking for what he felt like hours ━mere minutes, actually━, legs parting lightly so that he could rest the palms against the warm wood  of the chair, humming a bit. “ i knew of her e-engagement with otto ballantyne, and i knew she had experiences with o-others, too, but i didn’t pry that much b-because i always respected the fact it was n-none of my business. ”

Do you believe that she had any jealous exes? Or anyone else that may have been romantically scorned by her or pursuing her?

“ i mean, probably? i w-wouldn’t be surprised if she had some exes around that weren’t p-pleased of being dropped. ” there was just a shrug after doe eyes blinked in confusion, honestly not knowing about the excruciating details except for what had already been shared with the world around him ━it was daisey’s business, the same private business that now was pretty much of public dominion, and it wasn’t even a sliver of the whole picture. the only one who knew about the whole truth was one, and they had daisey’s blog and ashmont’s secrets in their hands.

part one ( you )

do you have any criminal history ? anything big or small that you want to make us aware of ?

“ y’all have a file. can’t you read ? ” he’s off to a great start, petulant look on his face as he waits for an answer. the only thing he gets in response is a prompt to answer the question, cooperate, blah blah blah. boring. he’d liked it better when he’d been able to drunkenly joke around with the beat cops back in the holding cell.

“ public drunkenness, drunk & disorderly, and assault. ” he offers them a grin, then, all sharp white teeth, the wolf greeting little red riding hood. “ but all charges have been dropped. so do with that what you will. elaine, go ahead and jot it down, i know you want to. ” he leans forward, tipping his chin as if trying to spy on her notepad. “ say, would you mind using a sharpie or something ? that pen’s too light for me to see. i kinda felt like this could be a group project, you know ? collaboration. ” he purses his lips at the silence he gets in response, then sits back once more. “ damn, never mind. solo it is. ”

how have you spent the few weeks back at college ? what have they been like ?

“ does this question ever go over well ? this feels like the kind of question that doesn’t go over well. ” he rolls his eyes, crossing his arms over his chest. “ it’s been shitty. i was minding my own business, trying to start my senior year off, actually attempting to go to class for once. but daisey rutherford just had to go and get herself killed. now we’re all huddled up in our rooms from dusk ‘til dawn, trying our very best not to put targets on our foreheads. ” he raised one brow. “ ain’t college a dream ? ”

part two ( daisey )

how did you know miss. rutherford ? what was the nature of your relationship ? 

“ not good, which i’m sure is why you dragged my ass in here. ” he sighs, tipping his chair back on its two back legs. “ she stole from me freshman year. some... really important documents, things that weren’t the type of thing i’d appreciate anyone touching, much less someone i barely knew. i was pissed, obviously, since she stole from me. classic rich girl move, you know ? she’s got all the fucking money in the world— stop looking at me like that, we’re all adults here, i can fucking curse. anyway. sorry, she had all the money in the world, and she still decided to poke around and pilfer my shit. i was rightfully angry, and we’ve never gotten along since. i generally tried to avoid her, but this campus is small, so i’d still see her sometimes. i mostly just talked shit if i ever ran into her. ” honey watches elaine’s pen move across her notepad, and he can practically see MOTIVE flashing across the paper like a neon sign. which, he feels, is catastrophically unfair. even in death, daisey’s making his life harder. 

do you remember where you were the night daisey went missing ? if so, where were you ? what were you doing ? who were you with ?

honey sucks his teeth for a moment, knowing the answer but not quite wanting to admit to it. his eyes dart between the two officers, their eyebrows raised expectantly, and he lets out a sigh. “ well, i sure hope this is a no-judgement zone, ” he says dryly, folding his hands in front of him on the table. “ i was at oz lamar’s party, same as i’m sure most people were. i spent the beginning of the night chatting with some classmates, playing some drinking games, that sort of thing. i then went to the upstairs bathroom and hooked up with my boyfriend — well, he wasn’t my boyfriend at the time, but anyway — zar ros. balthazar. we came back downstairs separately, and a little while later i headed back upstairs with my best friend, kiki kibler. kiera. ” 

their gazes continue to bore into him, as if to say and what did you do up there ? 

“ i hooked up with her, too, alright ? jeez. can’t a guy get laid in peace ? ” honey rolled his eyes, leaning back in his chair once more. “ we came back down about an hour later, and i spent the rest of the night with kiki. i left at around 2:30. ”

did you notice anything strange about daisey’s behavior the night she went missing ? did you notice anything suspicious about anyone else you ran into that night ? 

he’s about to answer, say some bullshit about what am i, her keeper ? when he remembers the interaction they’d had that night. though it’s been a while since the party, he can recall the look on her face as clear as day. “ yeah, actually. she was being all... paranoid and weird, ” honey says, frowning. “ i don’t know why, i mean— like i told you, we sure as hell weren’t friends. but she seemed super freaked out about something. she even asked me to switch jackets with her, which was... so fucking weird. obviously her shit didn’t fit me, so i just tied it around my waist. i looked like a fucking dork, but whatever. i didn’t even think to say no, you know ? i was kind of caught off guard by the fact that she seemed so different than usual. even when i’d talk shit to her face, she was usually pretty composed. kind of a bitch. but that night she seemed... freaked out. like she was looking over her shoulder for something. so... that was definitely strange. ” he thinks for another moment, searching his brain. “ other than that, not really. daisey was the only one i saw acting odd. ”

where were you the night daisey’s body was recovered ?

“ at home, high as a fucking kite. my roommate was probably around somewhere. otto ballantyne ? ” he stares at them for a long moment, as if he’s playing some strange game of chicken. honey’s the one to break first, laughing loudly in the small room. it echoes off the walls. “ i’m joking. jesus, can you imagine ? i don’t do drugs, officers, ” he says sweetly, and it’s clear that he’s lying, but what does he care ? “ i was at home, though. i got pizza delivered. meat lovers. you can double check me on that. ” a jab at zar, for ignoring him the entire day after he’d left that voicemail. it feels stupid, now. 

how familiar are you with the ashmont woods ? have you been there often ? have you recently ventured out here ? if so, why ?

“ familiar enough. ” he shrugs, as if the answer is obvious. until nate’s body had been found there, it’d been as innocuous a place as any to him. “ i mean, they’re right there. there’s some nice paths to take a walk or run on, if you’re into that sort of thing. i go there sometimes to clear my head, but i haven’t been there recently — other than to participate in the search party. ”

part three ( the investigation )

do you have feelings towards the investigation ? any comments ?

he shrugs again, indifference clear in the lines of his expression. “ no offense, but i don’t really care, ” he answers, reaching out for his coffee. he takes a long, slow sip, pushing the limits of the officers’ annoyance just for the sake of annoying them. “ like, i’m glad you’ve got something exciting to do for once, but i just want to, like, live my fucking life. not being able to go out past 7 makes me feel like a goddamn mormon or something. and they’re extinct. ” he shakes his head, seemingly indifferent to the matching, confused looks on their faces. “ i hope you catch the dude or whatever, but do it quick. i’m tired of this already. ”

do you have any people you feel the police should look into ? please, let us know who and why.

his first thought is: the boyfriend usually did it, but his own fucking roommate is— was— daisey’s fiancé. he doesn’t think otto’s capable of this, not even for the drama of it all. “ i have no idea, ” he says, and it rings true. “ i’d say maybe an ex of some kind, but... beyond being antagonistic toward each other, i didn’t really know daisey. i don’t want to point fingers at people in her life without really knowing what was going on. ”

part four ( weekly events — search party )

were you part of the search party in the woods on october 15th to 17th ? if yes, what did you find ? 

“ i was. ” that answer is simple. the next, not so much. what did you find. honey loses focus for a moment, his mind blurring the lines between every time he’s found something like he did that day in the woods. he snatches at wisps of bodies, some more battered than others, some more... unrecognizable than others. finally, his mind catches on the feeling of his hand on alice’s shoulder, warm and solid, and he startles back to the present. “ nate ballantyne, ” he answers, clearing his throat. “ i found nate ballantyne’s dead fucking body. i already answered questions about that. look at your goddamn file if you want more details. ”

in the week that the four students were missing, did anyone’s behaviour strike you as odd or suspicious?

he settles them with a look, impatient now that his iced coffee is gone. “ i’ve been too busy being locked up in my apartment for half the day to really interact with my classmates all that much. i didn’t notice anything amiss, but i wasn’t really spending a lot of time out and about. i was mostly at home with my boyfriend. ”

what is your connection to the four missing students ?

their faces flash through his mind: libby’s, danny’s, nate’s... one of them dead. his thoughts only stop once they reach rosa, picturing the way she rolls her eyes at him, goodnatured and usually followed by an exasperated smile. he can’t help the selfish flash of gratitude that she came out of this ordeal alive. “ i’m good friends with rosa morais. rosalia. but the other three... ” he trails off, shaking his head. “ i didn’t know them well. acquaintances at best. ”

do you know of anyone ( or anything ) that could lend to the motive of the person who killed  nathaniel ballantyne?

“ no, ” he says, and it’s the truth. daisey had much more obvious answers — she had plenty of enemies, himself included. but nate ? sure, he’d been... kind of pretentious, but honey had never gotten the impression that anyone truly disliked or hated him for it. “ sorry, i didn’t know him too well. that’s probably a better question for oz lamar. they were close. ” 

his eyes dart back and forth between them, and he waits for another question that never comes. elaine is still writing on her damn notepad.

Part One ( You. )

Do you have any criminal history? Anything big or small that you want to make us aware of?

“No.” The answer is a little too quick, a little too panicked to seem entirely true. Her nerves are shot, her blood is laced with caffeine. She can’t stop shaking; hopefully they chalk it up to her anxiety. That is, after all, a major part of why she can’t seem to sit still, her usual decorum is lost-- forgotten and left to rot on the forest floor, just as she had been. Just as she’d learned Nathaniel had been. That thought churns her stomach, brings a welling of tears to her eyes. She squeezes them shut for just long enough to clear her vision and not a second more. Closing them for too long is a mistake. Trying to force herself into falling asleep for the past two nights was enough proof of that. Even still, her quick answer boiled down to mostly being about the fact that the other twenty-nine students involved in this case now knew her deepest, darkest secret. Unfortunately for some of the police officers in this very precinct, they knew it too. They just hadn’t needed the blog to tell them. “I have no criminal record. I’d be pretty stupid to pursue law, if that were the case.”

How have you spent the few weeks back at college? What have they been like?

An incredulous gaze lifts from the place her hands are fidgeting on the table, brows furrowing as she tilts her head. “Are you kidding me?” A breathy laugh, cold and unamused. “I’ve spent them in total fear, Elaine.” She says the name with the venomous taste of condescension on her tongue, only to turn to the younger officer immediately after, her expression puzzled. “You’re sure you want to work here, Mikey? I’m pretty sure you’d be better off training under Starsky and Hutch.” The girl who would’ve come into this interview all of a week ago was nowhere to be found amidst her foul temperament and biting remarks today. In spite of the current state of affairs surrounding her reputation, Rosa had always been respectful to the right authorities, even if she felt they were undeserving. 

The person answering these questions retained nothing of that polite, well-mannered mask. “They’ve been horrifying. One day I’m celebrating making it to my senior year, the next I’m worrying about whether or not any of the people who knew Daisey were going to see graduation.” A faux-thoughtful expression crosses her face before she speaks again. “Oh, and then the local police force decided to keep us all on lock-down, like we’re kindergartners on a field trip. And would you believe that it didn’t help anything at all, because four of us went missing under their oh-so watchful eyes? One of us were even murdered? The second one in a month? I don’t know. Maybe, if you ignore all of that crap, it’s been a great last year before for law school.”

Part Two ( Daisey. )

How did you know Miss. Rutherford? What was the nature of your relationship?

“We barely associated. We had a few petty arguments now and then; academic rivals, I suppose.” You guys aren’t asking the right questions. This won’t help anything. The thoughts nearly tumble from her careless lips, only kept back by Rosa’s tightly clenched jaw. “She was a cruel and vindictive sociopath, but I’m sure you’ve gathered that much. Even with your way of investigating. Point is, I didn’t care about her until she went missing. I was just focused on getting into Harvard. I don’t have the time to spare on actively hating someone. Other than being a snarky annoyance, Daisey wasn’t on my radar. Everyone was on hers, though. Girl had no life aside from getting off to the sound of people crying.”

Do you remember where you were the night Daisey went missing? If so, where were you? What were you doing? Who were you with?

“I was at Oz Lamar’s party, same as basically everyone else at St. E’s. I spent part of the night with my gi-- my friend, Ivy Westbrook. We did shots together, I got super drunk, and then I met Holden Woods and we became besties in the bathroom.” She produced her phone in order to scroll through several of their blurry, intoxicated pictures together. “These span over an hour. So, clearly I was having the time of my life, I guess.” At least the change of subject subdued her sudden temper, her demeanor visibly simmering down.

Did you notice anything strange about Daisey’s behavior the night she went missing? Did you notice anything suspicious about anyone else you ran into that night?

“All I remember of Daisey that night is seeing her dry humping someone who was definitely not her fiance.” That’s all she plans to say, before she decides to tell them more before they can demand it. “I saw her making out with someone else. I don’t know who it was, because I’d assumed it was the guy-- is his name Octopus? No, that’s stupid. I don’t know.” She takes a second to collect her thoughts, lips pursed in her concentration. “Anyway, I thought it was him. Clearly, I didn’t want to be privy to a peep show, so I ran through the hall. That’s when I ran into the poor guy. Completely unaware Daisey was hooking up with someone else.”

Where were you the night Daisey’s body was recovered?

“I heard while I was in the grocery store. Everyone around me started talking about it, and someone turned on the TV. Everyone in the store just stopped and stared, horrified. No one wanted to believe it. Regardless of what kind of person she was, she didn’t deserve to die.” Rosa can still recall the look on every single stranger’s face that day. “It was so... quiet in there after the broadcast went off. Not another word was spoken, like an infinite moment of silence.”

How familiar are you with the Ashmont woods? Have you been there often? Have you recently ventured out here? If so, why?

“Fuck you.” She pushes her chair back with a deafening screech of the legs against the floor, poised to get up and leave. An empty gesture, apparently, since she stays in her seat. The room is blending together now, her eyes trying to find something to anchor her to the room, to remind her of where she is. Each of her hands find the lining of her seat, her white-knuckled grip doing nothing to help. She finds herself breathing in uneven patterns, heart palpitating as she tries to distract herself. This is pathetic: one mention of the woods and she’s unraveling, spiraling into a panic attack faster than she’s ever done so before. She’s avoiding either officer’s gaze out of humiliation, unwilling to ask for help. The sound of her own voice calling out that night, begging for a savoir, is an echo in her mind. The concrete floor of the police station suddenly looks a lot like the blood-riddled leaves coating the ground in the Ashmont woods.

You’re okay, you’re safe, you’re here. The voice reminding her of her safety isn’t her own. It’s Ivy’s, gentle and careful and warm, the same words she’d woken up to, after being pulled from a nightmare on the night they spent together. The memory slowly overtakes the one Rosa’s trapped in, the rough edges of the treeline enveloping her smoothing out, fading back into the recesses of her mind as she concentrates on breathing. Her relief is palpable as the comfort of home brings her back to her senses slowly, allowing her to melt into the chair once again. A hand covers her eyes as Rosa motions for the questions to continue and clears her throat. “I’m intimately familiar with the depths of that forest, considering how you and your incompetent officers nearly let me die there, thanks for reminding me.” She broke her words in order to pull in a deep sigh, the only thing keeping her from crying being her adamant desire not to deal with these people for a second time. “I don’t want a break, I’m fine. Keep asking your stupid fucking questions, because I’m not coming back for another one of these.”

Part Three ( the Investigation. )

Do you have feelings towards the investigation? Any comments?

“Just one,” Rosa takes a moment to steady herself before she looks the lead detective in the eye once again, defiance scribbled across her features, jaw set. “Do better before someone finds dead student number three in some storage building.”

Do you have any people you feel the police should look into? Please, let us know who and why.

It’s getting increasingly difficult to answer these inane inquiries, and her expression shows it. “I guess the fiance. I wouldn’t be happy if I found out the girl I was engaged to was sleeping with other people. I don’t know if he knew, so I’d break that to him gently. Daisey was a good liar.”

Part Four ( Weekly Events. )

Where were you kidnapped from? What do you remember of your abduction?

She’s moving uneasily in her chair once again, the only thing holding her facade together the mantra she’s still repeating in her head. Nerves make it hard for her to be angry, the rage from a few moments ago swapped out with unease, her hands back to wringing together, her foot beginning to tap against the floor. “I don’t remember any of that. Doctors said I could’ve blocked it out, or something, but I can’t even remember waking up that morning. As far as I’m concerned, that entire day is gone.”

What details do you recall from the time you were captured to the time you were released?

“Details?” Rosa’s disapproving scoff is half-hearted now, as she fights to recall the fuzzy memories in as calculating a way as possible. She couldn’t-- wouldn’t-- freak out again. “There aren’t details. At least, not for me. I couldn’t see, couldn’t hear, couldn’t speak. I was awake for all of it, and I couldn’t even get the blindfold off.” The tears that’d made such a fuss trying to escape her eyes are finally streaming freely down her face, but she’s too preoccupied to notice. “My arms were tied down to a chair,” her hands instinctively gravitated to the burns on her wrists, “and my legs were tied together. My mouth, um, was duct taped… and… there were these headphones on me. Noise cancelling, I guess, unless whoever took me was a monk.” She swallowed past the growing lump in her throat, eyes searching the table in front of her as she went on. “They fed me this disgusting-- I guess soup? And gave me water twice a day. They were always wearing gloves, so I don’t even know if they had long fingernails.”

Did you learn anything about your kidnapper? Any facial details, an accent, any knowledge that you can share to help police in their investigation?

Her irritability resurfaces at lightning speed as she realizes how little she’s being listened to. A spark of recognition lights her face up, jaw dropping as she wiped her cheeks in a fervor. “Wait, no, I remember it. I remember everything.” Shaking hands ushered for the detective to grab her pen and paper. “Write this down, hurry-- before I forget again.” Rosa nods to herself as she begins to recount everything she knows. “It was a man, stocky build. He had white hair, and… it was spiky. A dark goatee, with a little light patch right in the middle. I couldn’t see his eyes, because he was wearing these thin, plastic, black sunglasses.” She clapped once, as if in celebration. “And every time he came to give me food, he pulled my headphones off just enough for me to hear him scream FLAVORTOWN! as he poured it down my throat.”

“Oh, wait, that’s Guy Fieri. I guess I didn’t miraculously remember anything since the last time I answered that, two minutes ago.”

Were you aware of any of the other kidnap victims when you were taken? Do you have any information or insight into the death of Nathaniel Ballantyne?

Part One ( You. )

Do you have any criminal history? Anything big or small that you want to make us aware of?

Alice smiled. She had never been arrested, not even reprimanded or given a warning. “No, I don’t.” It wasn’t like she’d never done anything illegal. She drank before she turned 21. She smoked weed, which had yet to be legalized in Connecticut. Daisey had encouraged her to try acid once, and molly, and coke. She always hated it, and refused to do anything for a second time. And there was the time she shoplifted in the seventh grade. But if the Macy’s beauty counter’s security camera didn’t notice, the police never would. She had done things that were illegal, but nothing that police genuinely cared about. And there was a beauty in their question. They didn’t really ask her if she’d ever broken the law-they asked if she’d ever gotten caught.

How have you spent the few weeks back at college? What have they been like?

Her smile faltered. Alice had spent the last few weeks being terrorized by a murderer, having her nudes leaked along with her dirtiest secret, and crying in bed. She had spent them as a shell of her former self. And even though she wanted to scream at Officer Grant that someone was taking credit for Daisey’s murder and she had a list of the 29 people it could be, she didn’t. She couldn’t. What would happen if she did was unclear, but Alice knew it would be more awful than she could imagine. “The past few weeks have been hard. I miss Daisey. I mean, we didn’t really talk anymore. But not having her around is just…” Alice sighed. She didn’t know how to finish that sentence. “It just feels wrong. And the way it happened?” Alice grimaced. “Well it’s just all very disturbing. And then the blood outside the art gallery. It’s hard to focus on my classes, or cheer, or the play I’m doing when terrible things are happening around me.” 

Part Two ( Daisey. )

How did you know Miss. Rutherford? What was the nature of your relationship? 

“Daisey has been my best friend since we were fourteen.” Alice paused. “Had been. Last spring-well it seems so stupid now, but she said something that hurt my feelings, and I decided I didn’t want to be friends with her any more. Or maybe she decided. I guess I’m not quite sure.” Alice frowned. Perhaps she was being too truthful. “But before that, things were wonderful. In high school, Daisey, Angel-Angelica Flores, I mean-and I, we were practically inseparable. We were all on the cheer squad, and we had sleepovers practically every weekend. A couple of times Daisey even took me on family trips.” Alice smiled, memories playing in the back of her head. But that had been only a small snippet of their relationship. In truth, at the beginning of their friendship, Alice was practically obsessed with being like Daisey, convinced that that amount of popularity and attention would mean people truly cared about her. Her need for attention was almost pathological and no one had more attention on them than Daisey Rutherford. Being around Daisey meant some of that attention would land on you. But being around her also meant letting her do whatever she wanted, and it meant playing along with her games. It meant learning to love gossip and how to extract it from people. It didn’t take long for Alice’s friendship with Daisey to change her into a completely different person. “Our relationship was pretty normal for best friends.” What a joke.

Do you remember where you were the night Daisey went missing? If so, where were you? What were you doing? Who were you with?

“Uh, yeah, I was at the party at Oz’s house.” She paused for a minute, thinking. “The homecoming party. I was just doing normal party things, I guess. Drinking, dancing and hanging out. I mean, I had a few drinks so I don’t remember it all. But I remember I spent a lot of the night with Angel. We danced for awhile, and then she went off to do her own thing. Then I played beer pong, can’t remember who with.” She stopped to think again. The whole night had been a blur. “Well I saw my sister, Kiera Kibler. I can’t remember what time, but I remember saying hi to her. I hung out with Vitória Da Silva. Oh, and Delilah Jordan. I think we did a couple of shots and danced, And then I went home by myself, around 3:30.”

Did you notice anything strange about Daisey’s behavior the night she went missing? Did you notice anything suspicious about anyone else you ran into that night? 

Alice looked at Officer Grant. She didn’t know how to properly answer the question, because all of her interactions with Daisey had become strange. She frowned for a moment before smiling uncomfortably and shrugging. “I don’t know. Daisey was acting like her usual self at the game,” which meant belittling Alice’s cheering and whispering about her to their teammates, just loud enough so that she could hear. “And I only saw her for a few seconds at the party. I don’t know if I would say she was behaving strangely. I just saw her from across the room, and then we made eye contact. And she smiled at me. I guess that part was a little weird. But not weirder than things had been between us” Alice smiled. At the time she had thought nothing of it. She was mad at Daisey, so she didn’t smile back. Now she wished she had.

Where were you the night Daisey’s body was recovered?

“The night they announced she was dead? I was at rehearsal for one of the shows I’m doing this semester. Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. I’m playing Maggie.” Alice smiled with pride, before remembering that she was being interrogated by the police and now really wasn’t the time. “We were taking fifteen. I was just looking at my phone, and I got the news bulletin. I had to go outside. I…” she frowned. “I don’t know. I couldn’t stop crying. I ended up coming back to rehearsal like ten minutes late. The director was not happy.” 

How familiar are you with the Ashmont woods? Have you been there often? Have you recently ventured out here? If so, why?

Alice looked at Officer Grant, and then at Officer Forrester. She didn’t understand. Daisey was found in the junkyard. Why were they asking about Ashmont woods? “Pretty familiar. I grew up here, so I used to play in them. As a teenager I would go for walks there when I needed to be alone, before I had a car. I guess I still do that, sometimes. If I just need quiet.” Alice neglected to mention the fact that she also frequently went there to smoke with Oz. She stopped to think for a moment. “And I walk my dog in the woods. I think we went for a walk there like a week ago.”

Part Three ( the Investigation. )

Do you have feelings towards the investigation? Any comments?

Alice thought back to earlier that morning. She had held the package in her hands, turning it over and over again as she looked around to see if she’d been followed. It was small, hardly more than an envelope. Just large enough to hold a necklace. A gold chain, flecked with dirt from outside the Lamar’s home. But more importantly, something had formed a slight crust on it, deep red and crumbling. Dried blood. Alice had seen it, moonlight reflected off of it’s surface as she left Oz’s party. She was like a magpie-attracted to shiny things. And in her drunken stupor, she had picked it up off the ground and pocketed it. Alice figured that in the morning, once her hangover had died down, she’d send out a mass text to see if anyone had lost something. But she had put it in her jewelry box where it was quickly forgotten. It wasn’t until after Daisey was declared missing that Alice went looking for a bracelet Daisey had once given her. She didn’t find the bracelet, but there lay the chain, dried blood on it as clear as day. She had wanted to take it to the police immediately, but the killer’s message had warned her against it. So it sat in her room, hidden for weeks. After Alice got the notice that she was being summoned to the police station, she decided she couldn’t hold onto it anymore. But so much time had gone by, there was no way the cops wouldn’t be suspicious. There was even the possibility of being charged with evidence tampering or obstruction. Alice had done enough research to know that the charges wouldn’t stick-they wouldn’t have proof of knowledge or intent. But if she was charged, the killer would know. So it all had to be anonymous. She put the chain in a plastic bag, and the plastic bag inside the small parcel. She wrote the Ashmont Police Department’s address on the front. And then she drove to the edge of town where there happened to be a mailbox. Alice stood there for ten minutes, debating whether or not to send it. On one hand, it was DNA evidence. It had the potential to solve the case of Daisey’s murder with one trip to a lab. On the other, the killer had said people would pay if they talked to the cops. What if someone had seen her pick the necklace up at the party? What if the killer was watching her now, waiting for her to put it in the mailbox? She couldn’t bear to have more pictures of herself leaked, or, god forbid, a video. She couldn’t risk her life, or jeopardize the lives of the people she loved. Alice was too afraid. So she put the package back into her purse, got in her car, and drove away. 

It was still burning a hole in her purse. She couldn’t think about it without feeling her heart beat faster. Bringing evidence into a police station and not turning it over was stupid, even for her. Especially evidence that she put her fingerprints on before she ever realized what it was. But there was no safer place for it than where she could see it. She was already planning on ordering a lockbox off of Amazon once she got home. Alice swallowed, turning her attention back to Officer Grant. She would have to keep most of her comments on the investigation to herself, it seemed. But she could say how she felt about it… almost. “I just hope things are going well. It’s really important to me that this is solved.”

Do you have any people you feel the police should look into? Please, let us know who and why.

Of course there were people Alice thought the police should look into. Twenty nine of them. Some of them she truly believed couldn’t have done it. But it wasn’t her place to decide. However, as Alice tried to ignore the chain hidden in her bag, one horrible thought made its way into her head. That she had absolutely no idea who that necklace belonged to. It could have been Daisey’s. It could be the killer’s. Or it could belong to some not-so-innocent bystander.  And none of that told her who was responsible for all of this. Her brow furrowed as she sat in thought. “I really don’t know. I guess the person who seems the most suspicious to me is The Figurehead. Everyone knew he and Daisey didn’t want to get married. It was all fake. And now his brother is missing? I don’t know, maybe that’s a terrible thing to say. I don’t know what his relationship with Nathaniel is like. But it just feels strange.”

Part Four ( Weekly Events. ) 

Did you attend the illegal bonfire? Do you know who organized this event?

Alice nodded. “Yeah, I was there. Even beforehand it seemed like a bad idea, but I wanted to go anyway for some dumb reason. I heard Daniel Rutherford helped organize it. But I have no idea if that’s true. Wouldn’t surprise me, though. Danny loves parties and I’m pretty sure he hates rules.”

Did you notice any suspicious activity if you attended the event? 

“No. Honestly?” Yes, Alice, they want you to speak honestly, she thought, nearly rolling her eyes at herself. “I was pretty drunk. My only concrete memory from the bonfire is the reaction I got when I told a bunch of people who were making s’mores what gelatin is really made out of.”

Do you know Nathaniel Ballantyne? If so, what do you know of him? 

Alice shrugged. “I wouldn’t say I know him. I more know of him. He dated my sister, a long time ago. Near the beginning of high school, I think. But maybe it was middle school? I don’t know, I’d have to ask Kiki.” The next question was trickier. “I know he loves the stars. A hobby he totally got from my sister. Hmm, what else… Well, he’s a TA at St. Etienne’s. I am, too, so I see him at staff meetings every once in a while. He’s obviously really smart. It gets kind of annoying.” 

Do you know anything about his connection to Daisey Rutherford? 

“Other than his brother? I don’t think they had one.”

.

he took his designated place on the opposite end of the table, hands folding in on each other carefully. he has nothing to worry about. ultimately his summons for this interrogation has nothing to do with him and he’s aware of that. and yet his knee keeps a slightly nervous bounce as he begins to fiddle with his fingers. any normal person would be a little nervous in police custody,  sam tries to remind himself. this is about daisey’s death. the murderer now assumed to be nathaniel ballantyne. only it takes but a few nudges before someone’s yelling jenga! and the entire thing collapses. a killer’s blackmail. the thirty. his secret. 

Part One ( You. )

Do you have any criminal history? Anything big or small that you want to make us aware of?

a gentle smile finds its way to pink lips as his nervous ticks dissipate. he’s been conditioned for moments like these with lessons taught by parental figures and the like. he also knew those minor incidents in question were cleared. at the very least buried deep enough so that no one else should find them. after all a diplomat’s son is not meant to be problematic. “no.” he answers calmly. there are no records and there’s certainly nothing he’d want to make them aware of. certainly not if it meant those back home could gain a whiff. they’d be all over him in a heartbeat and he may never see ashmont again. “no I do not.” this time it’s spoken with clarity as his slender frame leans into the table so he can be picked up by the microphone.

How have you spent the few weeks back at college? What have they been like?

all of the events dating back to the beginning of the school year came flooding back to him. oz’s party. the threatening message sent by daisey’s blog. a message that he hadn’t taken seriously enough to begin with. he refused to believe that the contents of said message were true. however it was not merely the discovered fact that daisey is dead, but more importantly that someone knew his secret. at the time it felt impossible. arrogance claimed him for a few weeks and one by one the dominoes began to topple over. those within the thirty were exposed and they were scared, distraught, shamed. he could see it in their faces. in the eyes of their loved ones. in their actions. it was real and only getting worse. the killer was quite literally painting the town red. 

his arms retract from the table, lifting hands first, palms to each other, before they settle onto his lap. slender shoulders rise and fall in a soft shrug. “the past few weeks have been stressful” he admits with a slow drawl. “it was very nice to see everyone again at first...and then daisey went missing...and” there it is, the fork in the road. it’s a moment he could just take. like that. how would they know? what else would he have to lose? “..then she was found.” but he already decided his path. long before this summons. it’s still a thought though, one that lingers at the back of his mind. what did he have to lose...

“it seemed like everything was returning to normal..at least..as normal as it could be and the art gallery happened...” an event that he’s still extremely upset about. “and now you know... we are placed on this curfew.” it’s unintentional but a hint of spite laced it’s way into his voice upon mention of the curfew. “so yes..” pick your battles sam. “it has been stressful.”

Part Two ( Daisey. )

How did you know Miss. Rutherford? What was the nature of your relationship? 

these are routine questions. he’s well aware but in some instances it felt like a waste of time. “the rutherfords are my host family for the exchange program.” and how lucky he is right? that this occurred by random chance and everything is going smoothly. wrong. he couldn’t have taken a bumpier road. it’s not their fault though, no one asked for this. “that is how I got to know daisey.” the woman of the hour that seemed to last forever. sam was fond of daisey so he didn’t always mind being at her beck and call. some instances proved to more hellish or inconvenient than others but growing closer to her was satisfying. she pulled him in like a shiny piece of gold. “daisey and I were friends.” sure he could call it that. it never got the chance to flourish into something else so they remained in the realm of friends. “I got to know her over the past year because I was living with her family.”  

Do you remember where you were the night Daisey went missing? If so, where were you? What were you doing? Who were you with?

the infamous friday the thirteenth. once feared due to killers like of jason or freddy and monsters among the things going bump in the night. daisey was murdered that night. the irony of it all almost makes his mouth twitch in amusement, how twisted is that? he begins to wonder if it was a planned attack but his expression remains stoic. there’s no reason for falsely incriminating himself because his thoughts ran wild. “yes. I was at the party oz threw after the homecoming game.” the artist reclines in his seat, taking a moment to realign that night. the details don’t take very long to reach the forefront his mind but he allows the pause. “I do not remember exactly what time I arrived, I had already been drinking before I got there with a few other people. I remember dancing and just generally talking to people.” dark brown curls bounce slightly when he shakes his head. “ah, I went outside for a little and spoke with zar.” his roommate now. accused of man-slaughter by daisey’s killer. more irony. “I went inside again a while after that...I helped someone prank honey.”

 it’s then that he allows a smile to break on his features. “it was pretty good. we put mayonnaise in this mixture of water, vodka and tequila.” what was not half as amusing was when his partner in the ordeal got punched in the face. at least..it wasn’t amusing for them. “I think it was probably close to two am when I left I...ran into a friend. well.. we are not really friends anymore” and who’s fault was that? sam’s the one truly pushing sutton away. “but I did not want to be there anymore after that.” the final detail that comes to mind forces his jaw to clench. looking back at it now it’s another regretful decision. “I hooked up with angel that night too...” now he hates to admit it, shifting uncomfortably in his seat. angelic flores, the recently revealed mother who had no problem abandoning her poor child. it’s not an action he can ever see himself standing behind. “I think I got home around three or three thirty? I can not remember.”

Did you notice anything strange about Daisey’s behavior the night she went missing? Did you notice anything suspicious about anyone else you ran into that night?

“it was not particularly strange...” he admits, because in truth it wasn’t. daisey drank at these things. she got high sometimes. it wasn’t new but perhaps it felt different. he can recall the hazy smile that splayed across her visage. the lazy uncoordinated movements that stood out from the crowd. daisey had a way of doing that. standing out in a crowd, even when heavily intoxicated. “she was under the influence of something. I do not know what, I hadn’t been with her much that night. I think it was probably close to one am? I know it was past midnight because it was after I came back inside. I had gotten a call at around twelve thirty that I missed I tried calling back, but they did not answer and I saw her maybe....ten or....fifteen minutes after? she was in the main area, I was on my towards the stairs, I heard her saying something but it wasn’t clear at all. I thought I would see her again at home but...” another shrug finishes his sentence as that was truly the last he saw of daisey rutherford alive. 

Where were you the night Daisey’s body was recovered?

where he always was. practically every friday night, the tourist found himself at the bar with one of his good friends. “I was at the bar with vi. we usually go there every friday. I think that night I had finally gotten a part of one of the card tricks she was showing me. It was exciting because I usually mess something up. it is a very hard trick. she is very good at it, but I got the first part down...and we haven’t really revisited the trick since..”

How familiar are you with the Ashmont woods? Have you been there often? Have you recently ventured out here? If so, why?

this question snags his attention, thick brows pull together as he leans forward curiously. he hadn’t heard anything about the woods yet. what sort of drop of information is this? a red herring or is it a matter of importance “I have probably only been there once when I around when I first arrived. once or twice.” that’s all he could honestly remember of them. the woods weren’t particularly a place of interest for him. “I have not been there recently no..” why sits at the tip of his tongue, begging to be asked but the police weren’t there to answer questions. 

Part Four ( Weekly Events. ) (* switched bc he felt like bein a lil shit at the end)

Did you attend the illegal bonfire? Do you know who organized this event?

“no.” his answer is simple and straight forward. he did not attend the bonfire out of caution for the repercussion should anyone have gotten caught. he did not expect this outcome but he’s glad he hadn’t gone regardless. his head begins to shake in response to the second question but then he’s reminded of a conversation in passing. “I do not think I know exactly who organized it. I remember speaking to danny, he mentioned it, but I do not know if he helped organize anything.” 

Did you notice any suspicious activity if you attended the event?

“I did not..because I stayed at home” in apartment six all night. “bath bomb, the cat” he clarifies, his favorite of the apartment’s animals “stared at the wall for a little before chasing her tail and falling over. I do not know if that counts as suspicious activity. she falls over or jumps from high places a lot.”

Do you know Nathaniel Ballantyne? If so, what do you know of him?

nathaniel ballantyne. the ashmont police department’s person of interest. sam can’t say he knows the man well enough to make an accurate judge of his character but the opinion heavy information he does hold doesn’t sit well for nate. “not really.. I have met him a few times..” here’s his second fork in the road. he could sink nate and potentially assist his blackmailer or hope to god that nathaniel and the ominous killer are one in the same and they actually catch him. weighing out the options they both seem one in the same and the win-lose ratio has already been tossed. “I have never gotten particularly friendly vibe from him. he has always kept to himself.” in the dark of the lamar library. “actually,”  sam straightens as that visual re-enters his mind from that night. it was brief but it was odd. “I remember something else from the party. I was walking around upstairs and I walked into the library and he was sitting in front of the window by himself in the dark by a game of chess. it was very strange. I couldn’t tell if he was waiting for someone or...something. I did not stay for long. I...had a weird feeling.” he admits partial truths. samuel thayer was not afraid of the strange, seemingly gentle, giant. he can only hope he picked the right road. 

Do you know anything about his connection to Daisey Rutherford?

“I know that they obviously knew each other. daisey... was engaged to his brother..uh..I remember they had this thing...like..a sort of rivalry about school or something. I know daisey complained to me about something like that once..” oh the earful of complaints that girl had. some spoken directly. some overheard. the rutherford manor was large but they resided in close enough quarters.  “I do not know...I can’t say that I know him well enough to point fingers, but...” his inhale of breath offers a pause before he continues. “I think that reasoning holds the same both ways. I can’t say that I know for sure that he would not do anything.”

Part Three ( the Investigation. )  (* switched bc he felt like bein a lil shit at the end)

Do you have any people you feel the police should look into? Please, let us know who and why.

“just nathaniel I guess...why else would he run?” his lower lip catches between his teeth. admitting it now felt wrong but there’s no turning back. it’s his simplest line of thought and his only way to help. “I do not know...” a stressed sigh over takes him as both hands reach up to smooth over his face. they remain on his cheeks for a moment. his decision has been locked in.

Do you have feelings towards the investigation? Any comments?

“I do have a few comments” and there he goes. still clasped together his hands return to the table top and his gaze locks with detective grant. “I do not understand this curfew or the buddy system. if anything it is only scaring everyone even more. you can not just treat us all like we are children. do you know it’s the children with over protective parents that act out the most?” now he is speaking from personal experience? “I think this is only going to cause more chaos. please consider getting rid of it or making it later..”

thank you for your cooperation.  

part one ( you. )

“do you have any criminal history? anything big or small that you want to make us aware of?“

nevaeh fiddled with her hands. this was an easy question to answer. but she was still nervous for some reason. she took a deep breath and tried to remind herself that she had nothing to be nervous about. especially with this question. “no.” she bit her lip, as she tried to focus on something other than the fact that she was sitting in a police station, talking about the death of the girl she was in love with and a death that she was apparently a suspect in. 

“how have you spent the few weeks back at college? what have they been like?”

she had answered this question a number of times, although they were always phrased a little differently. so many ‘how have you been’s and ‘are you okay’s and ‘how are you feeling since you know...’s. she was almost tired of answering them at this point because she never knew how to answer them. who would be okay after everything that happened? what did okay even mean? “they’ve been...rough.” she nodded. “like, i guess given everything that’s happened, that’s inevitable, right? i’ve spent most of the weeks either isolating myself or throwing myself into art and plants to distract myself from....everything.”  

part two ( daisey. )

“how did you know ms. rutherford? what was the nature of your relationship?”

this was one of the questions nevaeh dreaded. she felt like admitting her feelings for the now dead girl would somehow incriminate her. she had seen crime shows, jealous exes and crushes were always suspects. but she knew she couldn’t lie, not when finding daisey’s killer was on the line. she didn’t know exactly how to describe the nature of her relationship with daisey. there was the one on the surface, they were friends, acquaintances. and there was the deeper one that not many people knew about. the one that nevaeh wasn’t even sure daisey knew about herself. “we were friendly. i was in the student government with her.” that was their relationship on the surface. she took a deep breath and tried to find the words to describe their relationship on the deeper level. “and...” the words seemed to escape her. she rarely talked about her unrequited love out loud. mostly in paintings and poems, she barely uttered her feelings about daisey to others. besides plants. she focused on the fern sitting on the police officer’s desk and pretended it was one of her plants in the greenhouse. “we were friends, although i had always wished we were more. i fell in love with daisey the second i laid eyes on her. i picked flowers to give to her, although i mostly never had the courage to give them to her. there was just something about her soul that i was gravitated to, i guess.”

“do you remember the night daisey went missing? if so, where were you? what were you doing? who were you with?”

the night daisey went missing. even the day after, it was a complete blur. given more time, the night became even more blurry. there were some parts that were seared into her brain that she wished would just go away. she blinked, trying to remember specifics. she didn’t even remember why she went to the party, considering the fact that she hated them. but then she remembered. “i remember parts of it. i think i went because daisey was gonna be there.” she realized how...stalkerish that sounded and quickly added, “but also it was hosted by my cousin, oz and i went to see him too. and my other cousin, zo.” she took another deep breath and said, “a lot of that night is kind of a blur because i saw daisey leave a bedroom with someone and it just upset me. you know, because....i....uh, anyway. i cried in the bathroom, and then went on a walk with my cousin, oz. and then i left.” before she ended answering the question, she remembered the earring. there was a part of her that was telling her to not mention it. it was even more incriminating to have something that belonged to the victim than just harboring a crush. “daisey also lost her earring that night and i picked it up to give to her. but before i could, she was gone so i was just gonna give it to her in the next student government meeting.” the next student government meeting that never came. all that was left of daisey at those meetings was an empty chair where she used to sit and command the attention of everyone in the meeting. 

“did you notice anything strange about daisey’s behavior the night she went missing? did you notice anything suspicious about anyone else you ran into that night?”

nevaeh nodded. “there was something a little weird.” she wasn’t sure how weird or out of character it was for daisey. but if anything helped the investigation, she figured it didn’t hurt to tell them. “the person i saw daisey leave the bedroom with, they both looked disheveled and the person, i didn’t get a good enough look at them to identify them. but i'm pretty sure it wasn’t her fiance.” 

“where were you the night daisey’s body was recovered?”

nevaeh couldn’t really remember the exact details. that was becoming more and more common with her. not being able to remember things. “i’m pretty sure i was in the greenhouse when i heard the news. i remember seeing the notification.” she bit her lip and added, “i remember hoping that maybe they had found her body, alive.” her voice broke a little with that last sentence, much like her hope did when she read the end of the notification that day. 

“how familiar are you with the ashmont woods? have you been there often? have you recently ventured out here? if so, why?”

the ashmont woods. when nevaeh was a child and an adolescent, they were one of her favorite places in the world. she would travel to them to spent time with nature, with the trees, be one with the leaves. “i used to go there when i was younger. i’ve always loved plants and nature, so they were always nice to go in. when everything got to be too much, when i got to be too much, i would go into the woods and they didn’t care that i was too much.” she nodded, as she pursed her lips. “i haven’t been there recently. the botany program at st. etienne’s is pretty intense, so i mostly spent time with plants in the greenhouse. i think the last time i went there was when i was in high school.”

part three ( the investigation. ) 

“do you have feelings towards the investigation? any comments?”

nevaeh wasn’t really sure what this question meant. were they asking if she was going to cooperate? that didn’t make much sense to her because she was literally cooperating by going in for this questioning. did they think she was gonna say something about how she thought the investigation was stupid and further incriminate herself somehow? “i don’t really know what you mean but i hope it goes smoothly and they catch whoever did this.” she flattened out a wrinkle in her jacket before adding, “so we can all go on with our lives and daisey can finally rest in peace.”

“do you have any people you feel the police should look into? please, let us know who and why.”

she furrowed her brows as that inevitable question came up. were there people that she thought weren’t the nicest? sure. but she couldn’t think of any that would actually kill someone. maybe she was being naive, maybe she was giving too many people the benefit of the doubt, or maybe she just didn’t know these people at all. “i can’t think of anyone that i know of.”

part four ( weekly events. )

“what do you remember of the gallery opening? what did you do? who were you with?”

the gallery opening. only a few short days ago. the night still rung in nevaeh’s ears and mind constantly. she wasn’t sure if it would ever stop. she sucked in her lips a bit and nervously twirled her hair. she did that for a while, trying to gather her thoughts and feelings. “the gallery opening was supposed to be a good night,” she said, in a small voice, almost childlike. it was supposed to be a good night, she thought to herself again. one where she could show everyone one of the things she was most passionate about, one where she could show her friends and family everything she had been working on. “for some of it, it was. i got to see some of my friends and family and show them my art. i was with my cousins and i spent some time with zar -- i mean balthazar -- and julian.” she nodded before getting into the hard and dark parts of the night. “i was the one who found...the mural.” her voice was shaking, much like how her voice shook when she had made the police call to inform them of it. “it was pretty traumatizing. art has always been one of the places where i felt the most safe, my sanctuary from the storm.” her voice cracked a bit as a single tear rolled down her cheek that she didn’t bother to swat away. “and it turned into a crime scene.”

“what do you know about the vandalism that transpired that night?”

nevaeh took a deep breath. she really didn’t want to talk about this anymore. she had so many feelings that she didn’t know what to do with. she was all over the place in her mind and heart, and she didn’t know how to slow down. she could feel herself being reminded of that night again. in vivid detail. “i just know...i walked out of the gallery and i saw...i saw the bloody daisies. i thought maybe it was a wine stain or something before i looked closer at it, but then i saw it clearly.” she looked at the fern again. “it felt like a twisted joke. art was one of the only things that helped me stay sane and balanced, and now every time i close my eyes, i see the blood. art is supposed to bring people together, not do...this.”

“did you see anything questionable that night?”

Do you have any criminal history? Anything big or small that you want to make us aware of?

zar bit the inside of his lip, shifting a little bit in his chair and trying to maintain eye contact. his past was shameful, he could admit it, so it would make sense if he was a little embarrassed, right? “yeah, actually, um, from when i was a minor. assault, vandalism, illegal consumption of marijuana, underage drinking, trespassing, and breaking and entering.” 

he considered, for a split second, mentioning the fighting ring, but he very quickly decided that was the worst idea he’d ever had; he didn’t need anyone snooping in on that. even though, given the city-wide curfew and the increased police presence, the ring was kind of dying out on its own. instead, he presented his upturned hands, and said, “but that was all back in high school; i’ve been living pretty clean since i came to ashmont. oh, uh,” he bit his lip. “except for the puppy mill incident, but i wasn’t charged.” officer grant raised her eyebrows, and zar pretended like he hadn’t been planning out how to make the great puppy heist work since then. step one: don’t be drunk while doing it. he glanced down at his hands, somewhat embarrassed. “it should be in your records somewhere.” 

How have you spent the few weeks back at college? What have they been like?

he tried not to give too heavy of a sigh, but he still exhaled through his nose. “studying, working, volunteering. the usual, y’know? they’ve been... hectic. kinda hellish. i mean, a girl is dead. it’s pretty difficult to get through that.” and, of course, there was their little exposing murderer, but zar didn’t dare mention her to the cops. he really didn’t need them finding that blog. “and with the... the mural at the art exhibit... i don’t know, everyone’s been super paranoid.” he indicated himself. “i’ve been paranoid.” 

How did you know Miss. Rutherford? What was the nature of your relationship?

“i’m her family’s dog walker,” zar started, tip-toeing around this topic. “or, i was. the rutherfords have been letting a lot of staff go in the wake of their daughter’s death, which is understandable. they don’t want many people around their place right now.” he bit his lip; he supposed it would be best to be candid about this. “i... for a while, i was under the impression that her dogs were being abused.” he was still under that impression, but it would probably be better to pretend that was all in the past. “i volunteer at the humane society, y’know? so i thought i knew” i actually know “what abused dogs look and act like. i thought they were shelter dogs at first because of how jumpy they were, but they were quick to tell me they’ve had them since they were puppies, so.” 

he sighed, shook his head, and couldn’t help it; he crossed his arms. “i told daisey that- basically i threatened to contact the humane society, and i told other people i might take them there myself, which-.” he shrugged, sighing. “which was a dumb thing to say, and i would never do that but i was just- i was angry. i’m extremely passionate about animal rights- i’m hoping to become a vet with an animal welfare specialization.” with that, he shrugged, “so, no, daisey and i didn’t have a good relationship, but it was simply a misunderstanding. if i could say one last thing to her,” oh, god, could he manage this? he tried to unlock his jaw, look officer grant in the eye. “i would apologize for accusing her of such a heinous act, and of telling so many people about it.” she seemed to buy it; then again, she was probably just pretending. great. 

Do you remember where you were the night Daisey went missing? If so, where were you? What were you doing? Who were you with?

oh, you mean the night i realized i was in love with my now-boyfriend and also almost ruined the couch of one of the richest families in town? “i was at the homecoming party,” zar said, rubbing his hands together. “at the lamar family home. which,” he indicated with one hand, expression earnest, “i presume you know about.” y’know, since it was the last place daisey was seen alive and all. he pursed his lips together, “um, i spent a bit of the night with honey kennedy? or, ulysses,” it always felt weird to call him that, “but he goes by honey. i was hooking up with him in the bathroom at about... eleven-ish? um, i hung out with zola carter for a little bit, when i got there at about ten, and then later on at around midnight.”

“i smoked outside with sam...” he put a hand to his forehead; fuck, what was his last name again? zar snapped his fingers when he remembered. “samuel thayer. that was just after i-.” he clenched his jaw. “after i got into a little fight with oscar lamar. nothing too major, obviously, or anything physical,” except for those spring rolls, “just... we don’t get along, y’know? zola’s his cousin, and he thinks i’m a bad influence on her.” he sighed to himself, “i went back inside, danced with some people whose... names i can’t remember, and then i went home at about two thirty in the morning after saying good-bye to zola.” yeah, that was about how he’d spent the night, give or take a few details. 

Did you notice anything strange about Daisey’s behavior the night she went missing? Did you notice anything suspicious about anyone else you ran into that night? 

he looked up for a moment, trying to remember. “not really... like i said, daisey and i didn’t exactly get along, so we tend to avoid each other. oh,” he sat up, almost surprised he forgot. “there was one thing, though.” oh fuck, was he really about to throw someone under the bus. well, he’d started this sentence, so he had to end it. “i saw her friend angel, angelica flores, and her arguing from across the room? i couldn’t hear what they were arguing about, but angel kept...” fuck, he really hoped he was right. “it looked like she was trying to get daisey to drink something, but daisey didn’t want to drink it.” he shook his head, glancing back up at them. “again, that’s just what i saw, but it seemed fishy.” 

Where were you the night Daisey’s body was recovered?

zar shrugged. “i was at home. watching old battlestar galactica episodes in my room.” and icing his injuries from his fight; the night before had been the night of the voicemail. it was a shit alibi, but it was his alibi. 

How familiar are you with the Ashmont woods? Have you been there often? Have you recently ventured out here? If so, why?

zar frowned for a moment; that wasn’t where daisey was found. was... was that where she was killed? “i went for an ecology class once in, like, sophomore year,” he admitted, “but i’m... i’m not at all familiar with those woods. i’m from out of town, so i don’t exactly know ashmont all that well, especially outside of campus.” 

Do you have feelings towards the investigation? Any comments?

he shook his head. “not really? like... why would i have feelings towards it?” it was a genuine question, and read as such. “i mean, a girl is dead, and you’re questioning everyone who was involved, so you seem to be doing pretty thorough.” zar shrugged for what felt like the tenth time this interview. 

Do you have any people you feel the police should look into? Please, let us know who and why.

there were plenty of people that zar thought could be guilty. any number of daisey’s exes. her fiance who was, apparently, not super into her. a part of him wanted to throw holden under the bus, but even zar knew it wasn’t deserved. “just angel, honestly. though i don’t...” zar shook his head, remembering her breakdown. “i don’t think she would have killed her, honestly. but i just have a bad feeling about her making daisey drink something, y’know?” 

What do you remember of the gallery opening? What did you do? Who were you with?

zar tried not to look too nervous at the question. “yeah, i do. i, uh, took in the art. drank a bit of champagne. i was mostly checking out my friends’ pieces. uh, i went with honey. kennedy. ulysses? my boyfriend.” he swallowed, going over the lie he’d prepared in his head. “all things considered, i didn’t stay for very long. i got a message from our neighbor about my cat, bath bomb? she’d caught herself in the fire escape and i needed to take care of her. so i had to run home. take her to the vet.” 

What do you know about the vandalism that transpired that night?

he shrugged. “i... honestly, i didn’t know about it until the next day. my boyfriend and i left through the back. just ‘cause it was closer to our place. i didn’t even see it in real life. but, i...” zar sighed, raising his eyebrows. “i heard it was blood, and i heard it was fuc- messed up.” 

Did you see anything questionable that night?

“no,” zar insisted, shaking his head. “not at all.”