Floundering Adrift (Detective Linda Galbes)

by Combs, Sasha

  “Nope, we won’t need to stop by my place. Everything that I’ll need is right here.”

  “Good.” He said, while patting her rump, then encouraging her to return to the kitchen to finish eating her breakfast.

  *************************

  Chapter 9

  When Linda arrived at the precinct, she walked in, passing commander Bunts office. Her boss looked surprised to see her, but his bewilderment wasn’t enough to encourage her to go home. While riding in the limo with Hayford, she’d sat quiet while he conducted business on his phone. Linda didn’t like the idea that two people knew about the digital photo or the recovered film. And of those two people, one of them knew that the evidence had been stolen out of her car. Even though Gerry didn’t know about the theft, she was fairly certain that the geeky employee wouldn’t be so keen to talk about his accomplishment because he’d broken several rules by removing the evidence from the crime lab. And as for Stone... Linda wasn’t sure why her partner had put his neck on the line; covering her ass. He didn’t have anything to gain but there was a great deal that could be lost. She toyed with the idea of saying nothing, all the while hoping that a new clue would lead them in the right direction. While standing in her commanders office, Linda wasn’t sure if withholding this information was the right thing to do. She was just about to confess, when the commanders private line lit, requiring his full attention. Linda excused herself from his office. She walked down a rear hallway, down a corridor leading to the detectives offices. The passage way was lined with interrogation rooms. Some had two-way glass, allowing for easy observation. Above each door, a lit sign indicated if the room was empty or in use. As she neared one of the rooms nearest to the end of the hall, she could see the lit, ‘Occupied’ black lettering, backlit in white lights. Linda’s approach didn’t slow, but when she turned her head, her feet practically tripped one over the other. She turned, facing the two-way glass because she was certain that her eyes were playing tricks on her.

  Seated on one side of a rectangular table, Angelica Fischer sat nervously toying with the strap on her Chanel purse. The young woman had taken care to dress in a classic outfit. The creme suit was a declarative statement of class and wealth. Right down to the nude coloring on her fingernails; Angelica looked prim and proper. Even her hair was up and off her shoulders, tastefully coiled in a chignon. Linda couldn’t imagine why this young woman was here, given that she had not called her. She tried to recall the message left by Stone on her voicemail. Except for telling her that he’d be in early today, her partners words didn’t contain much to concern her. Yet, a woman that she’d intended calling was here at the precinct, and Linda wanted to know why.

  Linda lowered her eyes, assessing the outfit she’d chosen to wear. As she sized up her appearance; she looked much like the young Mrs. Fischer. Except for the hairdo and nail polish; the two women looked like mirror images. As she considered this, Linda had an idea. She recalled seeing Angelica that night at the party, nervously behaving when Linda had questioned her about that night at the crime scene. In the police reports, Angelica had failed to satisfactorily explain her presence there. Then there was the sports car Linda had noticed the young woman standing near. She was quite certain the man driving the vehicle wasn’t her husband and the person definitely wasn’t her husbands driver. Linda had a strange sixth sense that always pointed her in the right direction. While other people noticed the obvious; Linda could see within the crevasses of any given situation. There was something unnerving about this woman and she’d noticed it the first time she’d seen Angelica. Unfortunately, due to the drugs she’d taken; Linda had never been able to learn much from her. Then, after running into her at the engagement party. Again, Linda had watched subtle behavior that most people wouldn’t see. Her twitching cheekbone; forcing her lips to spread and smile. Linda didn’t have an ounce of evidence but she was certain that Angelica Fischer was hiding something. Or was she protecting someone? Whatever the question or answers were, Linda was determined to get to the bottom of things.

  She dug in her purse, looking for her badge and pad; trying to look the part. Officious and professional. She placed her hand on the doorknob. In her head, she did a quick countdown, starting from five. On zero, Linda opened the door wide, bursting in as if she’d been the person Angelica was waiting to talk to.

  “Mrs. Fischer... Thank you for coming in. It’s always a big help when the city’s citizens do their part by helping us police the city.”

  Angelica sat straight in her chair. Her eyes darted to the entrance, which was her only way of escape. Linda mentally made note of this response. She would use this at some point during the interrogation of the young woman. Control is the key word in situations such as this. Maintaining, then keeping it. Linda could not let this woman think that she held all the cards. Even though Linda would be purposely stacking the deck with white lies.

  She cleared her throat, while settling in the chair across from Mrs. Fischer. Linda said...

  “So... Which one of the officers can I thank for escorting you into this room today?”

  To throw the young woman off, Linda fiddled with her ipad. She pulled up files to review. Specifically the recorded documents, detailing Angelica Fischer’s statement, explaining how she happened upon the first victim found dead behind the wheel in her car. Angelica’s breathing was affected by Linda’s sudden appearance. Her short breaths were interfering with her ability to talk.

  “Detective... I didn’t know... I was told that...you were not here today.” Angelica sounded like a person who’d just surfaced after spending three long minutes without taking so much as one breath of air. Linda read through the files, keeping her eyes lowered and not making eye contact with the woman. She didn’t have to look at her to know that her eyes were bucked and filled with questions.

  “Well... As you can see, I am here Mrs. Fischer. Now, that we’ve cleared that up...”

  Linda closed out the document. She lay her hands on the table, then she pierced Angelica with fierce eyes.

  “Which officer escorted you into this room Mrs. Fischer? Or do you recall?”

  “Uh... Well,... I don’t know his name. When I came in, I told the person sitting out front that I received a call from a Detective Stone. He asked if it would be possible to come to my home, but I declined. I told him that I’d much prefer coming into the station to talk to him.”

  “Stone?” She said in question. Linda tried to recall why Stone would have phoned Angelica Fischer. But it didn't’ take her long to dream up a reason. When Linda had the idea about the surveillance cameras, she’d also began forming a list of people to question. To date, Angelica had been the only person actually in the area during one of the crimes. Linda had put her name at the top of the list. When Stone came in this morning, he more than likely wanted to start his day by questioning these people. During their investigations, Stone had always been the one wanting to knock on doors, talking to whomever would listen to them. But, when Linda had created the list, Mrs. Fischer’s name always stuck out more than the rest. It was the wailing baby that made Linda believe, Angelica knew more than she’d been willing to admit. But if she were to learn anything worth knowing, Linda would have to step out on a limb. Much furthered than she’d ever done in the past.

  Linda sat back in her chair, appearing more relaxed than she actually was.

  “Mrs. Fischer...”

  “Angelica... Please, call me Angelica.”

  “Fine... And you can call me Detective Gables.”

  The young woman swallowed hard, and Linda wondered why she was so afraid. To be innocent, and to be so much in the dark; Angelica’s body language didn’t support her claims. More than ever, Linda knew that this woman was holding back information. The key would be in how best to gently ease the facts out, before she realized what she was saying. Linda had graduated at the top of her class, and she had the promise of one day being a superior litigator. It was these qualities that she called up. The fa
bric that wove her knowledge of the law.

  “Mrs. Fischer... Angelica... Do you recall me telling you about security tapes.”

  Angelica’s hand nervously brushed across her face. Linda supposed the response was a natural one. A tick that the young woman wasn’t even aware of. She wasn’t wearing her hair down, and there weren’t any strands out of place but again, Angelica’s hand brushed across her forehead much like she’d done seconds earlier. She said...

  “I... I...don’t recall a....”

  She was talking too slow and Linda wanted to speed this interrogation up. Someone would be joining them soon, and she needed to learn all she could before Stone or one of the other men or women on her team came to talk to her. Linda said...

  “When we last met, I explained that the department is in possession of a closed circuit surveillance tape. Portions of the crime scene area was captured on video. The time stamp pinpoints when the murder took place. We were able to see the victims car when she parked in front of her building. We saw a person swiftly walking away from the car and we also noticed you carrying your baby, running away when you noticed the dead woman seated in her car.”

  The picture had been grainy but the woman holding the baby couldn’t have been anyone else except for Angelica, so her identity was taken for granted. According to the film, Angelica had arrived within minutes of the crime. The camera’s angle would suggest that she saw the person fleeing the area. But the image of the man wasn’t easily identifiable. For this reason, the doctored picture from the second crime scene held great significance. According to Gerry he’d lifted a still picture, then enhanced the frame. But foolishly, Linda had never seen the contents in the envelope. She didn’t know what the image looked like and she doubted that Gerry’s memory would be of any help. But, Angelica Fischer didn’t know that. She didn’t know that evidence from the detective’s car had been stolen.

  Linda forged on, questioning her witness as if the photo was neatly packed in her purse.

  “Mrs. Fischer... We know that you were in the area when Emma Strauss was killed. We’re also sure that you more than likely noticed the killer. But, we’ll sit that aside for now. For now... I would like to ask you a question that has puzzled me. The woman found dead in her car. Her neck was sliced. It was a horrible bloody scene. Gruesome and I might add, too graphic for any newspapers to publish. Do you recall seeing her that night... Dead behind the wheel of her car?”

  Angelica didn’t speak. Her head bobbed up, then down. The color left the young woman’s face, and her hands shook nervously beneath the table linked on her lap. Linda continued...

  “When I first noticed you on the night of the murder... I looked at that poor dead woman, then I looked at you. I noticed that you weren’t alone.”

  “I wasn’t with him... I was... I was....”

  Angelica’s eyes brimmed with water. For weeks, her nights had been sleepless. The color red haunted her dreams. Without meaning too, she’d said something before being able to stop herself because in fact, Linda had been referring to her baby. But Mrs. Fischer had slipped up and Linda pounced on her like a wild cat, going in for the kill.

  “Him? Who weren't you with Angelica...?”

  The woman looked down at her hands, it was then that Linda leaned in across the table.

  “Do you remember the film that I spoke about?”

  There was no response, but Linda didn’t stop talking.

  “Is that the reason you agreed to come here when you received a call from the station? You didn’t want to be questioned in your home. You never told your husband about that night, did you Mrs. Fischer. Is that the reason you changed the subject when your husband joined us at the party?”

  “I... I... I didn’t know what to do. But...”

  “Angelica... We know that you were there not long after the murder. You were there and you had your baby with you.” This was all supposition but the pieces were neatly falling into place. Now came the balancing limb act. Linda would need her to say something that would tie in to everything else.

  “Angelica... The address that you reported to the officer that night in the hospital. Your home address. Your address isn’t anywhere near the murdered victims neighborhood... But you were out early that morning, carrying your baby with you because you knew what you would find. You knew someone would be murdered.”

  “No. No. I didn’t know. That isn’t how it happened. I didn’t know... I didn’t know...”

  “Then tell me how it happened Angelica. Tell me what you knew. I need to understand why I shouldn’t connect you to these murders.”

  Angelica’s head lowered. Her tears fell like large droplets, soaking the desk. Her silent sobs were muted, but the tight coil of her body shook her shoulders. From behind, the door to the interrogation room swung open. Linda looked over her shoulder in that direction. Stone walked in; his eyes attempting to make sense of the scene. Stone took a seat next to Linda. He wasn’t even sure if Angelica knew he’d joined them. Her head hung low, not once did she lift her eyes when she finally spoke.

  “My husband can never know this. That’s the only reason I came in. He can never know. I came here because I couldn’t risk someone coming to my home. I couldn’t risk someone telling him.”

  “What couldn’t you risk Mrs. Fischer?” She asked.

  “Brice... Brice is a powerful man but he isn’t perfect. I knew this. I knew this when I married him. You see...we never really dated. Not really. He and my father met in Zurich. I was there with my father. We were staying at a house that my fathers company had rented. When my father returned to Charleston, I stayed behind. Brice came over. We had a few drinks, then before I knew it, we were wrapped in each others arms. A few weeks later, I knew that we’d made a mistake because I found out that I’d gotten pregnant. I had to tell my father because it was the right thing to do. But when Brice found out what I’d done.... He wanted me to get rid of our baby but I told him that I couldn’t. I asked my daddy if he could talk to him. Explain my situation. I didn’t know what else to do. After my father talked to him, I thought Brice might be upset but instead he told me that we’ll just have to get married. He laughed saying that my father would kill him if he didn’t. You know... At the time...I didn’t think that Brice really meant that. I thought it was a joke. I forced myself not to see his true character because I was in love with him. So, we got married. Later I learned why my husband was in such a rush to make me his wife. My father knows too many things about Brice. Bad things. Secrets that could ruin him financially. Brice couldn’t take a risk that my father might disclose those secrets, if he left me to raise our child on my own. But... I never... I would never do anything to hurt my husband because I do love him. And I told this to Mr. Gilmore. But he wasn’t interested in that. He wanted to know about me and my marriage. So, I told him. I told him that I had suspicions but I didn’t have any proof. When I tried to talk about something else, he told me not to be my husbands foot stool. I knew he was probably right and that Brice more than likely was fooling around with other women because that’s what powerful men do.”

  Linda needed to clear a few things up, because Angelica was speaking about mistakes. A past that until now, didn’t seem all that important. Her marriage to Brice came at a steep price. An unwanted pregnancy, and threats that could ruin more than one person’s life. Then out of nowhere, Angelica mentions a name that Linda knew nothing about.

  “This Gilmore person. Who is he and how do you know him?”

  Angelica's throat tightened because reality was strangling her. The chance to speak up had been weeks ago but the time for silence had fled. As fearful as she was for her life, prison seemed a far scarier place. She inhaled deep gulps then said....

  "I met Emma Strauss a few times. I’m sure you know what I mean. Business gatherings, luncheons and charity events. But I never knew Emma personally but my husband did. She was one of the women involved in an affair with him."

  Linda and Stone fought the urge to sta
re questioningly at one another. Still confused, Stone said...

  "Did you kill Emma Strauss because she was having an affair with your husband?"

  "No!" she blurted out. The surveillance video had been grainy but not so bad that they were sure Angelica didn't commit the crime. Stone had asked the woman because until now, no one else had. From the angle where she came on the scene, she would have had to circle the block. It was early in the morning and she'd driven there carrying her baby. The statement that she'd given the officer stated that she had a friend in the area. She told the officer that she'd gotten turned around. It had been her intent to leave the baby with a friend. Linda had read the report, and she’d suspected the story was a colorful lie. Something the young woman had said off-the-cuff because she’d found herself in an unexplainable situation. For weeks the young Mrs. Fischer had been off balance; unsure of whom she should confide in. When Stone offered to come to Angelica’s home that morning, it was then that she became forthright as an open book. She rushed Stone off the phone telling him that she would be happy to come to the precinct. At the time, Stone didn't know the treasure trove that lie in her mouth. He didn't know that Mrs. Fischer would provide the pieces that would fit their puzzle together.

  Stone didn't know how much Linda had uncovered, so he chose his words wisely. Sticking as close to the truth as possible. When he called Mrs. Fischer, his intent was to revisit the statement she provided that night at the murder scene. Like Linda, he had wondered why she'd been there with her small baby. Her reason sounded less than genuine and he had wanted to clear it up just in case someone had misunderstood her. He asked...

  "The night when you found Emma Strauss, dead behind the wheel of her car... You weren't looking for your friends house, were you."

  The inflection in his voice wasn't that of a question and she noticed this. Angelica nodded, while saying...