THE VELVET KILLERS

(10) A GUIDE TO GET THROUGH HIGH-TENSION SITUATIONS

LEAH

"Leah, it's gonna be okay, it's just procedure" I whisper to myself out loud, nervously staring at the people around me, before finally choosing to do inside. 

The London P.D. was established in an old yet modern building with gigantic windows and many corridors - so much that I felt like I was in a labyrinth. With the help of a few people, I finally arrive to Section 17, and when I see Alexia's face on the wall near the entrance, I just loudly think SHIT and try to take a deep breath: after all, it is not every day you get convicted to the police in order to go through an interview given your relationship with a victim. 

As soon as one of the agents inside sees me, they come directly to me. The woman in question seemed quite young, and had long, brown hair with rays of blonde among them. She stares at me quickly, before asking:

"Leah Williamson?"

I nervously nod, as she urges me to follow her: we walk though the big work space, until we reach another room with only a square table and two chairs. With a small gesture, the agent indicates that I sit down across from her, and while she looks through the file she had brought with her, I start hyperventilating. What if they know? One way or another, what if they know the truth? What if this is a trap? A set up? They know, they must know... They're gonna ask me about Katie 'cause they know it's my fault. 

Setting my jaw, I finally look up and realise the agent in front of me is staring at me with insistance, probably seeing how stressed out my body language was. After a few more seconds, she starts by saying:

"Good morning, I am Agent Danielle Van de Donk, and I work at Section 17 of the special forces associated with the MI6. We called you in because, from our sources, you knew Katie McCabe before she ended her life, and we needed some informations from you. Would you mind answer a few questions?"

I sigh: say yes, otherwise it's suspicious.

"Yes, of course!" I exclaim. Too joyful, too neat, fucking add something, I tell myself, before continuing: "But I'm not sure I'm the right person to ask: I have known her since I was a child but just because we lived in the same neighbourhood, and I hadn't seen her in practically three years when we came across from each other in college."

"I see" the agent says, lost in her thoughts, "how would you define your relationship then?"

"Erm... We weren't close, to be honest: we had different friends groups and interests, so we never really talked and all... But we kinda knew who the other was."

The agent nods, before exposing the situation straight away:

"Witnesses have recalled seeing you and Katie argue the other day at school - or at least they said she seemed quite angry - can you tell me what it was all about?"

Think. Fast. 

"You know, she had just learned the news about her father, who's been missing for years, and she was seeking for someone responsibly for some reasons... I was, erm... close  to the girl that he killed, and she told me weird things, she wasn't herself..."

"Can you specify which 'weird things', please?" the agent insists.

You're drowning in your own lies... maybe you should just put an end to it right now... Oh but that would take both Ingrid and Alexia down, and they both are managing their lives pretty well... I can't. 

Taking a deep breath, I say:

"She said each and every person of Saint Ives got it wrong, that her dad was a good person... Honestly, I understand her and feel for her: it must be so hard to find out about what kind of person he was only when his body was discovered... Two years without knowing for sure if he was dead must've been devastating."