Ch. 45 Setting The Board
The walls of the police precinct feel like they're closing in. My steps echo on the cold cement floor as I head towards the interrogation room.
That bastard Coleman is still gunning for my sister. And the investigation into Boon is stalled.
I stare at my phone, my conversation with Marcus ringing in my ears.
"We have Marissa Grey's address. Celeste and I are planning to head to London soon. How about you? What's the situation with boon?"
"They found an encrypted cellphone in a discreet search of his car they couldn't get into. Also, we're planning to arrest Madison soon. But I don't know how much it will help Celeste.
"No one will believe the truth even if we shout from the rooftops—especially considering the sway William Kent has. He'll call it a witch-hunt I'm conducting to save my sister."
Marcus goes quiet on the other end for a few seconds. "The world needs to hear it from the horse's mouth. A confession. A public confession. That's the only way."
I remember freezing—because I know what I have to do to get a confession—and it leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.
"Can you get me twenty minutes with Boon's phone?" Marcus continues, like he hasn't just suggested I come within a few inches of selling my soul.
"What? Why?"
"I'll get into his phone. I'll need twenty minutes."
It's my turn to go quiet. "I'll see what I can do."
And now here I am, pacing the precinct floor, steeling my nerves for what is to come once I enter the interrogation room where Madison is already waiting.
—-------------------
The air in London is wet. The sun is beginning to peek out.
Celeste and I took an evening flight to make sure we got here first thing in the morning.
She looks around, face tight. I can see the toll the past few hours have taken on her.
"Come on, our ride is waiting. Are you hungry?" I take her hand in mine and tug on it lightly.
She turns to me and shakes her head. "Let's get this over with."
—-------------------
We drive in silence for two hours. Modern highrises and city traffic give way to lush green countryside.
The anticipation of what we'll find has my nerves wound tight.
I glance at Celeste. Her hands are twisted tight in her lap, and her shoulders are extremely tense.
The GPS pings and we both look to the far right—where a gravel driveway leads to a cottage.
The same one from the photo Legend shared with us.
"This is it." Celeste's voice is raw from hours of lack of use. We park by the road and walk the rest of the way.
A few minutes later, we're standing in front of a wooden door, waiting for someone to respond to our knock.
One minute turns to three.
We're beginning to wonder if anyone's even home when the lock clicks.
—---------------
One look at me, and her face drains entirely of color.
Her eyes go wide as she stands frozen by the door.
"Celeste."
My fingers curl into a fist so tight, my nails cut into my palm, reminding me to hold myself back from assaulting her.
"I'm surprised you remember." The venom in my voice takes me back.
Marissa is just as shocked, as she takes a step back.
"Who is it, Mari?" A young girl, about ten years old, sharing Marissa's nose, opens the door wider.
Marissa's grip on the door tightens, and she looks prepared to shut it and bolt, so I answer for her.
"I'm Mari's friend from London. This is my boyfriend, Marcus. Who are you?"
"I'm Karin, Mari's sister. What's your name?"
I pull out one of the mango lollipops I always keep on me courtesy Marcus and offer it to her. "I'm Celeste. May we come in?"
She takes the candy and opens the door wider to allow us in, while Marissa stands there frozen, hands shivering.
She finally shuts the door and comes in after us, fury sparking in her eyes.
"Karin, darling, why don't you go to your room and do your homework. Mari needs to catch up with her friends..."
She ushers Karin towards the back of the house before rounding on us.
"How dare you! Who do you think you are?!"
"I should be the one asking you that, considering you left me to the wolves all those years back.
"Did you even feel a little remorse for your part in what Coleman did to me?!"
My volume rises with each word, and I'm ready to tear her face off.
Marcus holds my hand and squeezes hard.
"Why don't we all sit down." He leads me to a couch in the living area and Marissa follows like a puppet on strings.
We sit in silence for a few minutes, and Marissa's composure breaks.
"I'm really sorry for what happened to you."
"Did you see what Coleman did? Did you throw me to the wolves?"
She swallows hard and tears fill her eyes. "I'm so sorry."
My jaw clenches so tight, I'm sure it'll spasm. "Not good enough."
Marissa looks so guilty I almost break. She glances towards the back of the house before turning to me.
"I had to think of Karin." She whispers.
I want to scream—I don't care! That she should've done the right thing! But Marcus cuts in.
"Why don't you start from the beginning?"
Marissa looks at the floor and heaves a shuddering breath.
"I was returning with Celeste's drink when I saw Coleman's bodyguards ushering everyone out. Coleman was walking a few paces ahead like he owned the venue.
"I slipped past his bodyguards but not before he was already in the green room.
"The green room walls are thin. I heard everything that was spoken. I was just pulling out my phone to call 999 when his bodyguards spotted me. This was around the time you bit him, and they were rushing to the door. One of them grabbed me and took my phone while the others beat you up."
She's shaking all over as the fear and trauma of that day hits her in full force.
"Once they were done with you, Coleman had them pull me into the other room. There, he showed me pictures of Karin. Said if I testified, he'd have Karin pulled from my custody.
"You have to understand, I had no choice. My mother is a junkie, and her father OD'd. Karin was born addicted to drugs. The state finally gave me custody of my sister.
"If Coleman got her put into the system, Karin wouldn't last. She still struggles."
Her voice is completely broken. "Back then, she was so small... I chose her. He gave me my phone back and instructed me to call 999."
Her breath hitches and tears pour down her face. "I couldn't face you after betraying you so badly. I'm so sorry."
She puts her face in her hands and sobs.
My cheeks are wet too. I turn to Marcus, whose face is as white as my own.
Can I even blame Marissa? I would've done the same in her place.
We sit in horrified silence as the implications sink into us.
Eventually, Marissa manages to compose herself. Marcus turns to her.
"So what did you do after you quit working with Celeste?"
"I was forced to work for Coleman. I was working for him till eight months back, but I couldn't stomach working for him knowing the kind of man he is."
Marcus seems deep in thought before speaking again. "He let you go? Willingly?"
Marissa shakes her head. "He didn't. I basically ran away. No one knows about this cottage. It belonged to Karin's father. Either way, he made me sign an NDA. I guess that's why he's not concerned.
"I'm pretty sure that NDA isn't valid either." Marcus pauses before continuing, "Would you be willing to testify?"
"I can't. I'm sorry. I can't risk Coleman coming after me. After Karin."
"Is that the only reason?" Marcus asks Marissa.
"Isn't that plenty of reason?" Marissa counters.
Marcus agrees. "Fair. Can you tell me anything about Coleman's finances? Or if he's ever done this to anyone else?"
Marissa looks nervous. "What would you do if I knew?"
My pulse spikes as the thought of Coleman harming others. Marcus looks into her eyes and speaks slowly, as if choosing his works carefully.
"We are determined to bring him to justice. Any help or leads would be appreciated. Of course, your name will never come up."
"How can I believe that? What if you're just conning me?" Marissa looks like a trapped rat. The pain in her eyes speaks volumes to the crushed hope in her heart.
Marcus nods. "I am the Chairman of a renowned Tech company. I have resources. I just need a direction in which to look. Once I have the evidence, I can make sure that the source is never tied to you."
I stare at Marcus, shocked he would go this far, while Marissa turns to me. "Can he deliver on what he just said?"
I meet Marcus's eyes—and I know he'll deliver on this and more. "Yes."
Marissa looks towards the back of the house, where we can hear Karin fussing.
"Okay." Marissa turns to us and looks us both in the eye. "I'll tell you what I know. After this—"
She turns to me specifically. "—we're even."
Marcus and I nod.
Marissa leans back on her chair, clearly overwhelmed. I go to her kitchen and put on a pot of tea.
—---------------------
We wait for Celeste to return. Marissa finally starts speaking.
"He's slept with every actress that has debuted with HC studios—except Celeste. Most of them are unwilling to risk their careers. In the time I was working for him, I know of at least three who will do anything to stay in his good books..."
She hesitates before continuing.
"While working for him, I heard rumors...there was an actress, a couple years before Celeste debuted. She was said to be going places. She was nominated for a BAFTA, like Celeste, but didn't win.
"They say she disappeared completely after that night. Like a ghost, never to be seen. Honestly, I thought they were exaggerating until I looked into it. Hazel Wollinger. I couldn't find anything except her BAFTA nomination, and even that was a passing mention.
"The movie she was nominated for was produced by HC Studios, and it completely disappeared. You can't find the movie anywhere except vague mentions; it's out of distribution, and the one article I found about the actress was gone the next time I looked."
Marcus and I exchange alarmed looks.
"Marissa," Marcus continues, "Does he keep anything incriminating on his computer? Anything we can use?"
Marissa bites her lip. "He's really careful. His home and office computers only had work information."
There's something in her expression that both of us have caught.
"But...?" I prompt her.
"His assistant told me he once saw a photograph of him in bed with an actress. Coleman was looking at it when David accidentally walked in on him. He walked right out... he told me that very night, when we were out for drinks and he was dead drunk.
"He was gone the next day, transferred off site. I could never reach him after that."
"Any idea what computer it might be?" Marcus asks her.
"It was his laptop. The one that's never out of his sight—that no one else is allowed to touch."
Marcus looks deep in thought. "Any idea about payouts? He's clearly into a lot of shady things. Where does he get the money?"
Marissa shrugs. "That, I don't know. I've told you everything I could. Please leave."
Marcus reaches into his pocket and pulls out his card.
"Please call me if you think of anything else."
—----------------------------
Madison looks bone white. Her pallor has steadily increased as the pile of evidence against her and her father has only grown in the last few hours.
She has only now come to the conclusion that there's no wiggling out of this one.
"You and your father are going away for a long time, Maddy. I wonder if he'll survive prison."
Madison flinches at my use of her high school nickname and the threat to her father—like I knew she would.
I start gathering all the files and start to get up.
"Wait. What is it you want? I'll cut a deal. But don't punish my father."
Her face is set in a mask of indifference, but her words show something else entirely.
I pretend to consider her question thoroughly for a minute.
"What are you offering?" I ask her, sitting back down.
She grits her teeth, then smirks. "I know your precious sister is in a public storm—and the only one that can save her is me.
"So here's my offer—I'll make a public confession. In return, I'll pay a minor fine, no jail time, I get to keep my licence and you forget about my father."
I stare at her in disbelief, before I start laughing. I laugh so hard tears spring to my eyes.
"Oh, that was funny." I look her straight in the eyes.
"Here's the only offer you'll get. You make a public confession.
In return, you'll pay the statutory fine as defined by law.
You will lose your medical licence. You'll face jail time that we'll recommend be reduced to time served with six months of supervised probation and two years of community service.
If you're lucky, the judge will grant this request. If you're unlucky, you'll go to jail.
"Your father will quietly resign from all presiding positions and surrender his medical licence voluntarily. In return, I'll see to it that his name is not mentioned in the proceedings and he gets to keep his health and dignity. You have until I leave this room to decide."
Madison's face turns red with fury.
I pick up my file and start walking towards the door.
Three.
Two.
One.
"Fine." She calls out. I pause, my hand on the door. "Fine. I accept."
I turn calmly towards her. Her face doesn't have a shred of remorse. She took a gamble. She got caught.
Was she like this in high school as well?
There's no way to know.
"Good choice."
I leave her sitting there in handcuffs. A police officer will take her.
I pull out my phone to call Marcus and Celeste. We have the deal, but now we have to plan the release carefully.
Surpise!
Writing about the investigation was some of the most fun I had...
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