by Ivan Bering
He made an abrupt exit with Joe hurrying after him. Charlie was right she had hoped for a better result. She knew the extra patrol was a long shot. Harry was smart, and if he spotted a patrol car, he would just keep cruising. Karen didn’t understand why she wanted to nail this bastard to the point where it was almost an obsession. Sure his attacks and beatings were mean and ugly but she had seen worse.
She knew this intense focus was not viewed as a strength. At a previous performance review her supervisor noted: she was too fast converging on one solution or suspect and not prepared to let go when the time came to move on or change direction.
This evening she would cruise those regions where the affluent young crowd regularly sought some action. Karen reviewed the crime scene circles drawn on the whiteboard. As she stared at the maps, something nagged at her; within minutes another coincidence emerged.
Harry’s last victim, circled on the board, laid only a few blocks from the Ritz Hotel where the Five Star Couple last registered. She dismissed the thought. It meant nothing; these two crimes were not related.
CHAPTER 31: Dr. Max’s Interrogation
Lust made logic easy to ignore.
That afternoon the bare young flesh had dominated; the string bikini and thong revealed her entire back and buttocks, a soft umber, almost black color. Her deep tan the result of many hours spent on the hot sand.
Dr. Max Armstrong was not worried about the session. The memories of that afternoon often replayed for his enjoyment: Sally lying face down on the lounge and the hot sun warming her back. He understood the danger but was confident he could control the interrogation.
In his saner moments, he thought it was time to seek some professional help because his attraction to teenagers represented a serious threat to his reputation. The man knew the line, but the damn teenager was fantastic: the afternoon had been unbelievable. Again, it had been one of those times when his attraction to young girls crushed his better judgment.
Numerous women willing volunteered to pair up, in whatever terms he dictated; his good looks, media star status and casual manner overwhelmed many in the female crowd. Generally his hectic research schedule controlled his life, but at recess the urges prevailed. Months ago, he made a connection with the teenage model group, and this proved an abundant garden for him. His occasional weekends of debauchery were justified as diversions, required to maintain his grueling research workload, a means to release pressure and be reenergized.
Routine bored him. And, when he was in that state, he occasionally did something imprudent and stupid. The birthday party had not been a surprise. Dr. Max, a most respected man of science, made a conscious decision to go to the house, hoping she would be alone. A reckless decision. Now it was time to undergo the embarrassment of an interrogation; this would take total concentration and great care to ensure he stayed on course.
His debriefing with Jessie had been short and abrupt. Max was not surprised they had introduced a blood test as part of the interrogation, and soon he was ready for the main session. He opened the door to the room marked ‘Interrogation S1’ and saw the two waiting ladies.
Janice had been introduced when he first arrived. Dr. Kate he had known for years, her presence not unexpected. The Sector needed their most senior person in charge of the entire process, from initial set up to final analysis; his denial of the charges demanded the best interrogators. He flouted his confidence as he strutted around the interrogation facility
“Dr. Kate, I want to document these sessions, before, during and after. I want to capture my feelings as the medications take control, so I have my own recorder. I don’t believe my comments will detract from the interrogation. Will this be allowed?”
Janice answered. “Dr. Max I don’t think it will be an issue, as long as we have an understanding: I’m in control of the process. This is a criminal investigation, and if there is any confusion, your recordings stop.”
Max gave Janice his winning smile. The man wanted to be in charge and couldn’t stop. Kate understood Janice’s irritation with his behavior, so much for seductive charm.
A well-rehearsed process began. Sally Grovernor’s interrogation provided the base for Legal’s recommended sequence of questions; however, their interrogation scenario was only an option. An experienced technician, like Janice, made the final decision. She controlled the pace, altered the sequence and adjusted as the unanticipated occurred. It was only if the case proceeded to S2, when Legal assumed full control of the interrogation.
The physical preparation began: room temperature lowered, the lights dimmed, and Max lounged on a large couch; after the blood sample, Max swallowed the medication. Last, a warm blanket covered the accused rapist. A short recess followed, waiting for the drug cocktail to take control.
Janice sat near the couch and reviewed Legal’s questions. She considered ignoring the prepared set and instead start with open-ended questions: let Max detail the incident and the relationships with Grovernor and his daughter. A structured approach with a question and answer set might give him too many opportunities to manage each response.
While they were waiting, Dr. Max began to speak into his personal recorder.
“The warm blanket is a splendid idea for relaxing and even though the meds haven’t completely taken control, I feel very calm and relaxed but not sleepy. My mouth is becoming dry but not excessive..... eyesight is failing and I’m very sensitive to the light. I’m glad the room is dimly lit. I’ll keep my eyes closed because of the problems in focusing…….result is a touch of nausea. Oh yes …..I can now feel the drugs starting to work. I want to talk.
I feel a need to explain and clarify. I want to please the world and clear up any confusion. I’ve no concerns about my personal safety and no concern for my reputation, image, and future, just completely relaxed and confident that nothing can touch me. I’ll feel better if I tell…… and not try to be devious….. I know I can’t lie…… just thinking about a lie is upsetting. I want to be friends with all of you and make you understand. I’m ready.”
Janice listened to his monolog, reviewed the monitoring equipment and agreed. She was alone in the main room, Kate and Legal in the adjoining room, the entire session being recorded for analysis.
Janice decided to let Max control the flow of the story. The man was a genius and aware of all the implications and concern. Rather than attacking questions, this soft approach may get a better response; she would start this way and see how he responded, about himself and his reputation. “Dr. Armstrong, why don’t you tell me your version of what happened? And why you think this all happened?”
He began: his voice now much deeper and his cadence much slower. At times, there were long delays between words, a typical reaction and not a devious maneuver. The blunt confession blurted out, fragments, phrases and sentences with surprising emotion.
“There is no doubt Sally Grovernor is one helluva a woman, not a girl……… she stopped being a girl when she was 13……at times, I would have given away the Nobel Peace Prize to undress her and ……well it would have been a helluva a night……. And God…..….. I was close a couple of time to reaching out and stroking that magnificent ass. But Vince and I were close and I, for once, kept my hands to myself. I probably inadvertently signaled my real feelings.
You know I’m not known for self-control when it comes to young females…….. Oh, I certainly wanted that woman and……… I was very…………very close to going over the edge.”
“Dr. Armstrong if all this is true, why did Dr. Grovernor and Sally bring these charges?”’
“Yes, I know it’s strange. Let me go away back. I started working on my science degree when I was 15 and had my Ph.D. at 20. At University, Vince and I first met at some evening seminars. Vince had already graduated, but these sessions were open to anyone in industry who wanted to attend.
Vince’s company arranged to utilize an extraordinarily expensive and complicated testing device………a recent acquisition by the chemist
ry department. Even though I was busy with my Ph.D. thesis, the department assigned me to help his staff. His team struggled with the device, and I ended up doing most of the work for them. Vince appreciated my efforts and insisted on a monetary bonus; the results of this testing became part of Allied Scientific efforts to modify their products. And a year later, after my Ph.D. was granted, he asked me to join and help develop products for the company.
He’s an excellent businessman and his company really blossomed. My contribution started in the lab, and we patented a number of processes and marketed a few highly profitable pharmaceutical products. The best ones were the birth control meds and the erectile dysfunction meds. I made a lot of money, but I want back to the academic life and freedom with my research ideas……..I wasn’t happy. There were always presentations to make……………….. to take me away from the lab………. mind you, the wine and woman were excellent.
That’s when the press started on me as the wonder child who hadn’t learned to zipper up his pants…………..those bastards. One fucking cartoonist published some ugly stuff …. clever and gross enough to get worldwide coverage……….. almost cost my University appointment. Thank God I had already signed up at the University before all the shit started flying.”
Max stopped and drank from the supported water container. Janice was patient. “Dr. Max is this when Vince got upset, when you quit his company and went back to academic to pursue the academic career?”
“No, Vince was good about my returning to a university life. I think he wanted to end the negative press and my association with his products…………… you know a horny scientist who is developing birth control pills …not a good combination…….besides, he thought he had enough brains in the lab to continue without me.
We remained friends for a long time, during my departure and after……. the Nobel Peace Prize, my appointment as Dean of the Science …….all my accolades not a problem for Vince. Shit…. I was at their home on many weekends. Vince loved to BBQ and he’s an excellent cook; it didn’t hurt his company for me to be trotted out as a one-time member of his company…..Nobel Peace Prize winner etc.
Then the competition got lucky and developed competitive products at a substantially lower costs. Vince has tons of money………. but wanted more and was not about to fold his company or sell out.
He insisted I return for an 18 to 24-month stretch to tackle the cost problems. I tried to explain to him I enjoyed my new role as Dean…… and interfacing with many different branches of the academic, scientific community. He didn’t believe me……..accused me of being too busy screwing anything available on campus ……..bottom line ….. he became furious and accused me of trying to destroy his company. It never came to blows, but it did get ugly, and I was told to stop coming around…..no more home visits or BBQs.”
Max stopped and started to breathe a little faster. “Are you alright Dr.? Your temperature is down, your heart rate has decreased, and your breathing is rapid and rather shallow.’
“Janice just …give me a few minutes. I’m reliving the central scene…it’s very stressful.”
Janice nodded and adjusted her earphones to hear if Kate or Legal wanted changes. She heard Legal team wondering if Max was trying to establish some type of meditative state, a yoga trick to control the medication and his responses. Was he attempting to avoid something? Kate told Janice to proceed and not wait. Janice restarted.
“Dr. this is normal. Let’s proceed. You have explained why Vince was angry and may have a motive to discredit or hurt you but what about Sally? She was certainly not part of the business standoff.”
“You’re right and here comes………… some of the nasty parts. As I said I at one time I was a regular house guest…… Sally frequently present………. about 10 years old when I first meet her….. I was a recent grad who’d just joined her dad’s company. I’ve to admit even at that young age she was aware of me and ….and yes, an element of lust surfaced in my mind …but didn’t take control ….and ..”
He stopped; Janice didn’t push this confession; she would wait until S2, if it went that far. She continued with her strategy to allow him to tell the story.
“As the years went by, it became more and more evident she was becoming the proverbial 14-year-old going on 35. I won’t go into details but you’ve seen her and you can’t deny she’s a package. Something else which you may not uncover….. She’s as pigheaded as the old man……. and if she wants something she will do anything to get it…….. a ruthless woman.”
Again he stopped and slowed down his breathing, now a more measured cadence.
“Weeks prior to this birthday, Vince had stopped talking to me and had me thrown out of any functions he could influence. A few days before Sally’s birthday I received a gift from one of my grad students…… a bottle of champagne. Vince and I used to challenge each other with questions about champagne, its production, its provenance, the works….. I knew this champagne to be one of Vince’s favorites…………. and I thought a gift of this bottle might soften him up. I was also aware that Vince and his wife had gone to Europe.
I thought I would run it over at noon…….we just live a few blocks apart. No, no…not true, I really hoped to be alone with Sally. And lucky me.....when I got there, no one was home except Sally, who was spread out on some large piece of lounge furniture …..by the swimming pool. She invited me to sip some orange juice, and I admit I didn’t give a damn about the juice…..I couldn’t take my eyes off her….. in this low cut bikini. Shit, she was practically falling out of it…….there was not much left uncovered. I was explaining the bottle was for Vince, she said………‘Fuck the bottle’.
It was getting too hot for me…….. she knew I’d developed an excited state. I thought it best to sneak out……. make a fast exit.
When I stood up to leave, she came right up to me and said something like……….. ‘Max you have wanted to take my pants down for a long time. Why don’t I help you?’…All at once her top is off and……. so is the bottom. She reaches up and kisses my like an expert and I responded…….unfucking unbelievable. What was I thinking?.............. no blood left in my head…. my brain couldn’t function. Oh and by the way, I knew it wasn’t her real birthday, and she was only 14. As a frequent house guest, I’d been to a few of her real birthday parties.”
Max stopped and was silent; his breathing became even again. Janice pushed. “So, Dr. Armstrong is this when you had sex with her out on the pool deck?”
“There’re times when I dream I had……… but it didn’t happen. Just as we’re standing there in full embrace, her completely naked…… and her hand wrapped around my penis, the phone rings. And one of her friends leaves one those teenage messages…. a young girl’s voice, her vocabulary, slang, and giggle …….all reminded me of grade ten kids. It was enough to return me to sanity…….. this was a kid.
I tried to back out of the scene in a graceful manner. She became extremely hostile, and it didn’t matter what I said she told me she would tell her Dad I had raped her. I tried to stay until she cooled off, but it wasn’t working. She’d been rejected and humiliated and this doesn’t happen to her. I just gave up and almost ran from the house. For the next couple of hours, I waited for the police…….. when no one came, I assumed she’d calmed down, and it was all over.”
“Dr. did you ever talk to anyone about what happened? Police? Friend?”
“Oh no…… What the hell could I say? We almost had sex……. she screamed and threatened me. I didn’t want more press, and I was sure this would leak if I talked to anyone.”
Janice noticed he was tiring, which was not surprising, after about an hour of interrogation, so she summarized. “If I understand you correctly, you think Sally is ruthless and angry over your rejection of her advances. And, this is the reason she wants to damage your reputation. And Vincent either doesn’t know the truth or knows but wants revenge for your refusal to help with his production problem. Is this yo
ur position?’
Max took a little time before responding. “Yes that’s it and it’s more intense than your summary. Vince will probably lose his company or have to sell and lose control, which for him means the same as losing the business. Could I have saved his company? I don’t know and neither does he but with me as the focal point he has a convenient excuse.
Sally matured into a female version of Vince, smart, mean and stubborn as the proverbial mule. I knew she developed some fixation on me… flattering for me…..and I did nothing to discourage it. Did I lead her on? Don’t think so………… but I have to say our encounter rates as one of the most sexual charged five minutes of my life. And to finish my confession, if Sally were five years older, I would be aggressively pursuing her without let up. She’s one of the few women, and I use the term women, I’ve ever felt would be a lifetime partner for me.”
The conclusion left Janice in a quandary; he confessed that in some parallel universe he would marry Sally. The man was unbelievable, an unrepentant womanizer.
In the observation room, for Dr. Kate the confession looked and sounded authentic. He threw in enough to prove he wasn’t a saint and then denied the rest. How was the bastard beating the system? He’s practiced yoga since high school, also continued to make regular visits to India. Some yoga experts claim they can control the involuntary body functions; had Max reached this level or beyond? What sort of control could he achieve? Was this why he had the courage to challenge the S1 Interrogation?
His blood work will probably be clean. Max was it too good to be discovered in that fashion. His intense attraction to teenagers may or may not be abnormal, but he persisted in taking advantage of his looks and his high profile status.
In a matter hours, Kate would be in Stephen’s chambers where she knew he anxiously awaited some good news. First, she would work with Janice to run both dialogues, Sally’s and Max’s, in a parallel pattern, a start-stop mode, attempting to uncover anything false. Her instincts told her, she wouldn’t find anything, both interrogations appeared solid. Later this afternoon she would have to deliver the news to the Judge’s chambers: both parties were telling the truth. Impossible.
