by Ritzy Ritzhaupt 2014 ©
“I
know I’m guilty. Yes, I killed her”, she confessed to the officer with big
hand gestures.
“I
wanted her out of my life. She was a problem, a huge pain in my ass! She caused
me tons of extra work”, she slurred as though in a fog. Like a spinning top
when it ends, she toppled into the nearest chair, finally sitting but far from
calm as she continued to fidget in her chair.
.
“Mmmmm,”
the detective said as he watched her for a moment, before he went into the
other room for coffee. “Would you like a cup of coffee, ah…?” he directed to the woman that had just
confessed, as she stared blankly at the detective.
“Coffee?”
she asked as though on another planet, appearing muddled, trying to hide her emotions.
“Coffee, not too hot with two sugars,” she requested. “Linda,” she told him her
name. He motioned for another officer to get the coffee.
“Okay
Linda, go over what happened and don’t leave anything out.” He instructed,
giving her the fresh cup of coffee as he sat down across from her.
“She
was there, in front of the full length mirror, when I entered my bedroom.”
“Who
was there, in front of the mirror?” he cocked his head to listen closer to her
response.
“Maryanne,
she was wearing my new evening gown!” she leaned forward to express her shock
at the woman entering her home uninvited, as she continued. “I had just bought
it to wear to my college reunion. My new dress!” she yelled, all her words ran
together with hardly a breath between, as she reared up on the edge of her
chair!
“Who
is Maryanne? And then what happened?” he nudged her memory.
“She
turned to face me”, Linda paused, sucking air into her deprived lungs, as her
eyes were wide and dazed, as though in disbelief. She felt she was at the scene
of the crime as it played out in her mind’s eye. “She laughed at me… she, she
stood there and laughed at me as she made the dress twirl around. She laughed.”
Linda mumbled as she sobbed, rising, she fell toward him. He grabbed her,
before she crumpled to the floor and gently placed her back in her chair.
“Okay.
Than what happened Linda?” he encouraged in a softer voice, encouraging her to
tell more.
“Maryanne
didn’t stop.” She focused her eyes just above his head, as she slowly formed
each word, as though she was once again in the same room with Maryanne.
“Oh”,
he empathized as he moved closer, watching her facial expressions.
“It’s my dream! My dress! My life! I had to
make her stop! I had to!” Linda faintly screamed, tearing at her clothes as she
lunged toward him, pounding her fist on his chest.as she wanted to push him
away.
“Okay,
okay,” the detective, said as he tried to get her to reveal more without
hitting him.
“What
did you do next?” he continued.
“I
plunged the knife into her heart!” she sobbed, wringing her hands.
“The
knife?” he asked, glancing at the other officer with a questioning look.
“Yes,
the knife. I stabbed her with the damn knife! I stabbed her, again and again.
Each time I shoved it deeper and deeper. I thought it would break off but it
didn’t.” She stared, wide eyed with glee as the scene replayed out in her
minds-eye. It was as though Maryanne seemed to fade into the distance. She’ll
never bother me again. She mumbled, as she stared blankly at the detective, the
bitch is gone. She expressed to him,
in soft heated words.
“Where
did you get the knife?”
“I
don’t know… it was in my hand!” she yelled distracted.
“Mmmm,”
escaped from his lips as he continued to listen.
“I…
ah, I… ah, I don’t know,” she looked at him stunned by what she said as she
tried to remember where she had gotten the knife. “I don’t know. I killed her,
I killed her”, she sobbed in distress, looking at her hands as though they were
the enemy.
“You
killed her?” He stared at the other officer shrugging his shoulders. “And then
what did you do? Did you leave? Did you try to clean up the mess?
“The
mess, yes, the mess, it was everywhere. No, I left the mess.”
“What
did you do with Maryanne’s body?” he calmly asked Linda.
“I…
I… I don’t… remember, I don’t know.”
A
uniformed police officer entered the room shaking his head as he handed the
investigator a note with Linda’s address across the top.
The
note read, “No body – No blood – Large butcher knife – One shredded party dress”.
He handed the note back. All the officers took turns reading the message; some revealed
a slight snicker, holding back any sound.
“Are
you sure Maryanne was dead?” he asked frowning as he visualized the note.
“She’s
dead… she’s dead… yes, she’s dead!” the words dripped from her lips as though
drops of blood slipped between them, in total frustration she wrenched the
words from her mouth.
“How
many times did you stab her?” He shrugged to the other officers viewing the
interrogation through the large mirror, as he spoke. They all had become transfixed
by the woman’s confession.
“Six,
ten times, lots, I don’t remember exactly,” she mumbled counting on her
fingers, trying to keep track of her slashing stabs.
“
Hmmmm… Where was this blood?” He hoped
for some answers that made sense.
“I
told you, it was everywhere.” Her sigh, could be heard around the room
“Everywhere?”
the officer repeated with a raised eyebrow of doubt.
“Her
blood was on the bed, the mirror, the floor, the dress, everything was covered”,
she exclaimed as she smacked her hands on the table, confused by their
continued questions. She wondered if they were blind and couldn’t see
Maryanne’s blood, as they kept pushing her for more information.
“Did
you wash your hands after you stabbed Maryanne?” His eyes crinkled in total
disbelief. He glanced into the mirror acknowledging the other officers. He was
sure they also sighed with disbelief at Linda’s story.
“Yes,
I washed my hands. No, I don’t… remember. They, were clean, yes, I washed them.
There was blood everywhere. I killed her. I killed Maryanne, she’s gone.” She
clutched at her heart as she spoke, realizing the truth once again, she had
killed Maryanne!
“Did
you wash the blood off the knife?”
“I
don’t remember what I did with the knife!” she whined, confused by the same
questions.
“How
big was the knife?”
“How
big?” She acted exasperated, fidgeting, “I don’t know” she spit out, revealing
her frustration.
“Did
you put the knife by the dress?”
“I
don’t remember. I stabbed her with a knife many times. I killed Maryanne and
she’ll never come back. She is gone forever more. Gone, do you understand?” she
yelled annoyed at his repeated stupid questions!
“If
she’s dead, than where did her body go and all the blood?” the investigator
asked as he leaned over her.
Linda
lowered herself back into the chair and flopped forward. Resting her head on
her arms, she sobbed. Heavy exhausted sobs making her back heave up and down.
In a daze, she, herself become Maryanne and then herself and her weary and
wondering brain. Exhaustion left her limp in her chair as she softly said, “I
murdered her”.
The
detective left the interrogation room as Linda continued to sob. He walked over
to the over detectives that had also been watching the interview. He sent a female detective to bring Linda some
tissues and help calm her down. He wanted to know what other detectives viewing
them thought had happened
“What do you think happened? What did
she do with the body? Who is Maryanne? Got to get a last name, I have no idea
who Maryanne is or if she’s even real.” He questioned as he asked the other
officers for their input.
“I think we need the psychologist to
check her out. No blood found, that is very unusual.” The observant female detective words filled the
room as she spoke.
“So, it had to
be there in her room… did she kill her somewhere else?” Pent up thoughts were spoken from others, that
had also viewed the exchange.
