The RunAway Model

III. Hell Starts Here

Marco studied the woman sitting across the table from him. Her eyes were drooping and she looked like she was about to fall asleep but kept fighting to stay awake. She tucked her messy brown hair behind both ears with shaking hands.

Her brown eyes lifted and looked straight at him. "I didn't really see anything...I don't know. I don't remember a lot of things. I just...I just want to get the hell away from here," she begged. Her eyes went to her brother. "Gian, please, just take me away from here."

Her brother rested his hand on her shoulder for comfort but shook his head. "You have to stay for questioning."

Marco stayed silent throughout the exchange. He brushed his fingers through his short black hair to wake himself up. He had stayed up all night closing a case and now he stumbled upon another one without proper rest. Gian was taking this case personally. They could hand it over to another team, he thought.

"Tell him what you told me earlier," Gian urged his sister, tilting his head toward Marco.

Khaye hesitated. Marco saw her shiver as she tried to collect herself. "I...I'm not sure what I saw or heard, Gian. I...I don't remember a lot of things. Everything happened so fast."

"Tell him what you told me over the phone," Gian prodded gently, bending down to look his sister in the eyes.

Khaye turned to Marco. She swallowed for strength and said, "I saw her with a man hours before. I think they're lovers. He handed her a bag. I think they made an exchange of some sort."

"Who was it? Did you get a name?" Marco spoke for the first time.

She closed her eyes in concentration. "I think she called him Richard." Her eyes started to water once again and she looked at her brother for comfort. "And he was there, too. He was there...oh God, I don't understand anything anymore. They fought and there was a lot of screaming..."

Marco closed his eyes for patience. He took a deep breath before he said, "Can you recount what you can remember?"

"I said I don't remember a lot of things!" Khaye cried out in frustration.

"Okay, okay, calm down," Gian tried to soothe her. He glared at his partner and added, "She's under a lot of stress."

Marco took another deep breath. So was he and he barely had enough rest. "Okay, I'm sorry. Let's try something different then." He looked at Khaye closely and held her gaze. "Tell us what you did from the moment you got here."

Khaye turned to her brother and he nodded in encouragement. She lifted her shaking hands and placed her palms down on the table to keep them steady. Her eyes locked on Marco's dark ones as she started to talk.

*****

One hour later, Theo opened the door and Richard burst in the room in rage.

"Where the hell have you been and—" and then he saw her sitting on the chair and he stopped. His eyes roamed around her and landed on the scarf around her neck. "Did you find the money?" he asked, his voice dangerously calm.

His brother's eyes met his and Richard got his answer. Theo was a second too late to stop him from storming toward the woman. He saw the look of fear in her eyes as his brother approached and grabbed her face with one hand.

"This is not the right time for this, Richard," Theo calmly said as he watched the woman fight her way out of his brother's grasp.

"She killed her, didn't she?" Richard uttered. He said it as a statement.