“What is your name?” the man asked.
The kid wiggled around in the rickety wooden chair, desperately trying to free himself. The man just sat back and watched, knowing no amount of effort on the kid’s part would make a difference. The man had learned to tie knots at summer camp when he was a young boy. He’d even won an award for the best and fastest knot tied in camp, and a giant, red ribbon had been pinned to his chest. The kid wasn’t going anywhere unless the man wanted him to, and right now, he didn’t.
“You know,” the man said. “I’m not sure why you’re acting like you’ve been imprisoned. I don’t have a weapon. I haven’t hurt you. I’m only sitting here, trying to have a conversation. Man to ... well ... man to boy, it seems.”
“If you just want to talk, why am I tied up?” the kid asked.
“I need you to stay put while I figure things out.”
“Things? What things?”
“It depends on how you answer my questions.” The man crossed one leg over the other. “Now then ... where were we? Oh, right. You were about to tell me your name.”
“Thomas Walker.”
“I hear you also go by Tommy. Which would you prefer?”
“I don’t care.”
“Fine, then. Tell me, Thomas, what was the lady doing at your house today?”
“What lady?”
“Must I really define everything for you in order to get a decent response? I’m asking about the foreigner who has become chummy with the senator in recent days, or should I say, former senator. I’m sure you’ve seen the news. He stepped down today. It’s about time.”
“She said her name was Sloane. Can’t remember her last name. She’s not from here. She’s American.”
“Her last name is Monroe. Did she tell you her reason for being here?”
“She’s helping the senator find the man responsible for the murders.” The kid glared at the man. “I’m guessing that’s you.”
“It was always meant to be murder, singular—one simple, uncomplicated murder. Too bad things have to change sometimes, but the water has already boiled now. May as well make the most of it. Can I tell you a story?”
Tommy shrugged. “What for?”
“I’ll take that as a yes,” the man said. “Recently, I killed a woman, as you know. It was fast and clean and perfect, just like I intended. No prolonged suffering on her part. After she died, I stood back and looked at her. And do you want to know something? I actually felt all right about what I’d done. Satisfied. It was a real relief after a confusing few months. I went home pleased with myself, knowing I’d done the right—”
“Killing isn’t right.”
“Come now, Thomas. It’s rude to interrupt a person before they’ve finished. Didn’t your mum teach you any manners?”
“Don’t talk about my mum.”
“As you wish. Let’s continue. After I returned home, something odd happened. Do you know of anything odd happening after she was murdered?”
Tommy shook his head.
The man smacked Tommy’s knee. “Sure you do! But if you want to play dumb, that’s fine. I’ll indulge it for a moment. The morning after the murder, I turned on the news, interested to see what they had to say about the woman they’d found dead. I was shocked to learn the police were looking for a killer responsible for two homicides, not one. I thought surely there must have been a mistake. After she was dead, I’d left just as quickly as I came. No unnecessary victims, no screw-ups, and yet somehow, after I departed, a second person was murdered.”
Tommy was quiet for a moment and then said, “Yeah, what about it?”
“Exactly my point, and that’s why you’re here. What about it, Thomas? You tell me. After all, you know what happened after I left, don’t you?”
Tommy shook his head. “No, I don’t. Why would I?”
The man leaned forward, gripping Tommy’s kneecap in his hands. “Lie to me again, and I’ll slit your throat right here, right now.”
A tear ran down Tommy’s cheek. The man loosened his grip and relaxed back into his seat again.
“I’ll tell you how I know you’re hiding something,” the man said. “I saw you two nights before the murder. You crawled through a window on the side of the house. The next night, you did the same thing. I’m guessing on the night in question you arrived right after I left, which means you know what happened.”
Tommy remained quiet.
“You do know, don’t you?” the man asked. “Because all this time, I’ve been trying to figure out why anyone would lie to the police about it. Why would they say I killed two people when I only killed one? It didn’t make any sense at first, until I realized the second murder was being covered up. The boyfriend’s murderer is being protected. What I want to know is—why?”
“You still killed Caroline, so why does it matter?”
The man slammed his fist down on the arm of the wooden chair. “Because. I didn’t kill him! I had no reason to kill him. His death is not on me, and I won’t be blamed for it!”
The man closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths, trying to collect himself. He didn’t like getting angry. He didn’t like it when he had a loss of control or how it made him feel inside.
“I apologize for the outburst,” the man said. “I don’t like to lose my temper. I really am a rational man, most of the time.”
“If you say so.”
“What’s wrong with you, mentally?”
“Nothing is wrong with me. What’s wrong with you?”
“Bold statement for such a soft kid. You’re different, you and Grace. Your faces are similar and round, and your eyes remind me of almonds. Is that why you like Grace so much—because you both have eyes shaped like almonds?”
“Don’t talk about her,” Tommy said.
“Why not?”
“Just ... don’t.”
“I might be able to respect your request if you give me the information I want. Part of my decision about what to do with you depends on your honesty. I’m giving you a chance not everyone gets with me, like your girlfriend’s neighbor, the one who lived across the street. But then, she was a vile old woman, and you ... well, the jury’s still out on what you are, isn’t it?”
Tommy’s breathing changed, becoming heavier until he was puffing so hard through his cheeks, the man thought the kid might pass out. He’d pushed him, maybe a bit too far, but if it gave him the closure he wanted, it was worth it. Soon everything would be made right again. Soon everyone would know the truth.
“Do you need a glass of water or a moment alone to calm yourself down before we continue?” the man asked.
Tommy shook his head.
“I imagine you’re getting hungry by now. I have a sandwich all made up for you. As soon as we’re finished talking, you can have it.”
“Don’t hurt her.”
“Don’t hurt whom, your girlfriend?”
“Yes.”
“I have no plans to do anything to her at the moment. The girl’s just lost her mum. She’s hurting enough, wouldn’t you say?”
“All you want is for me to tell you who killed Hugh?”
The man nodded. “Spare no details. Tell me everything. You arrived at the house after I left that night, and then what happened?”
“I saw Grace.”
“Where did you see her? What was she doing?”
“She was climbing out of her mum’s bathroom window. She was crying. She said Caroline was dead and Hugh killed her. I ran into the house, and Grace chased after me. Hugh was standing outside Caroline’s bedroom with his car keys in his hands. I thought he was leaving. Grace picked up the knife and started swinging it. Hugh ran, and she chased him. He got to the top of the stairs, and she swung at him and missed. He reached for the knife, trying to get it away from her, and I pushed him. I pushed him, and now he’s dead.”
The kid was bawling uncontrollably.
The man stroked his chin, thinking.
It was a good story.
But did he believe him?
“Get yourself together, Thomas, and stop sniveling. I have more questions. What happened after the two of you realized he was dead?”
“Grace said she was going to call her uncle. She said he’d know what to do. She told me to go home, and she’d call when it was safe.”
“And did you leave like she asked?”
“No. I didn’t want her to be alone. But then Grace’s neighbor was running across the street toward the house. Grace told me if I didn’t leave, it would make things worse, so I hid, but I didn’t go home. I watched Grace to make sure she was okay.”
“What did you see?”
“Grace told her neighbor that she killed Hugh. The neighbor hugged her. She said everything was going to be all right. They called James, and he came over. He told Grace not to worry. He said everything would be fine. Then I went home.”
“You could have told the police what really happened. You could have told the truth, and you didn’t.”
“I wanted to protect Grace.”
“And yourself. Now that I know the truth, you may as well admit it.”
“I just did.”
“I’m going to need you to admit it all over again. I’m going to record your confession.”
“And then what’s going to happen?”
The man drummed his fingers on the arm of the chair. “Hard to say. I’m feeling conflicted about what to do with you. Part of me thinks you deserve to die. The other part thinks you deserve to live to serve out whatever sentence you have coming to you. What to do, what to do ... I suppose we could flip for it.”
“Flip for it?”
“You know, heads or tails. I believe I have a coin in my car. Hold on. Be right back.”
The man darted out the room, returning a minute later. He held the coin out in front of him, showing it to Tommy. “Got it. Now you call it.”
Tommy’s eyes widened. “You’re crazy.”
“All right, then. I’ll call it. I choose the Queen.”
The man pinched the coin in between his fingers and flipped it into the air, smiling when he clapped it flat against his hand as it came down.
“It’s exhilarating, isn’t it?” the man said. “Would you like to peek, or shall I?”
“I ... I ... don’t ...”
The man lifted his hand just enough to reveal the final verdict in the case of Thomas Walker. He stared at the coin for a moment, and then looked up and said, “Well, well, this is interesting.”