The Weaker Sex (Unedited)

Chapter 2

There were few things I regretted in life and the situation I'd found myself in was not one of them. I was sure that word of my arrest for the murder of my husband had spread throughout every nook and cranny of this place. I could practically feel the hate seeping through the walls of my cell. Deputy McAllister had processed and booked me for murder and resisting arrest. The last charge was unnecessary in my opinion. It was a given you were going to resist after you'd killed someone. Shoes squeaked on the floor preceding the appearance of Sheriff Whitley. He glared down at me pursing his lips under his glorious mustache. It'd always been my favorite feature of his despite the fact that I hated all facial hair.

He unlocked the cell, ordering me to my feet. I peeped in surprise at how roughly he grabbed my arm and yanked me into the hallway down to the interrogation room. I shrugged him off and smoothed out the sleeve of my dress before taking a seat at the metal table. He closed the door, turning to the mirror in front of us. I knew everyone was watching in there, probably even Peter Delaney who was the reason all this had happened. Sheriff Whitely took a seat with a hard, cold stare in his eyes. I was immune to such a stare. Our home had been icy for the last year and this was no different.

I crossed my legs, politely placing my hands on my lap. Tobias had always told me a lady never put her elbows on the table. "Did you kill Tobias Delaney?" Sheriff Whitley asked, with anger lacing his voice. "Absolutely." I replied with airy carelessness. "You're not even going to deny it?"
"Why would I? My fingerprints are on the knife, I evaded police, was there ever any doubt that I killed Tobias?"
"Don't get cute with me. You committed a serious crime."
"You're not telling me anything I haven't known for the last 7 hours."

Sheriff Whitley stared at me in disbelief that I was this comfortable with the idea. I wasn't, but I had no other choice. Either I killed Tobias, or he killed me in another one of his drunken stupors. I valued my life more than his, even though my life might just go down the drain. "Why did you kill him?" he asked. "I warned him." I answered. "What happened?"
"There's no in point telling you. You won't believe a word I say against the beloved 'Son of Blair County.' You'll all accuse me of lying, so you're better off putting me in the electric chair right now."
"We are a just society Mrs. Delaney, now tell us what happened or you're gonna regret incriminating yourself in this manner."
"The only thing I'll regret is not being able to kill that son-of-a-bitch again."

He slammed a fist on the table causing it to rattle against the floor. I flinched slightly, being reminded of that sound. So many nights I'd heard that sound right before Tobias found me. Sheriff Whitley ordered Deputy Wells to take me back to my cell as he was already disgusted with my presence. Jean-Louise Wells was the first friend I'd ever made in this town. She'd been loyal to me as a dog, but now I figured she hated me along with the other 2,000 denizens. She didn't speak a word to me as she released me back into my cell and locked it. I raised my eyes to hers to find not one emotion. She was hiding behind a wall; she was an officer at this moment and not my friend.

I sat on the cot leaning against the wall. The sound of my blade penetrating his skin resounded in my ears. His eyes bulged in horror as he realized that I'd really done it. He'd always laughed at me, thinking of me as a scrawny little city girl who would never dare raise a weapon against a man considered royalty. For a long time I felt I couldn't. I let him make me think I was weak... I blinked back the moisture gathering in my eyes. He was not a man worth crying over anymore. I'd cried far too many times because of him. Jailer Harris brought me a tray of food dumping it through the slot letting it slap onto the floor. "I'll need some extra napkins." I called. She mumbled an obscenity under breath earning a small chuckle from me.

Hours went by before they had any more contact with me. I'd heard a few people pass by the high window of the cell calling me a murderer and a killer. I was tempted to shout out that that was the same thing, but an English lesson was probably the last thing they wanted to hear from me. When the sun had tucked behind the trees, Deputy Wells opened up my cell telling me that Sheriff Whitley wanted to see me again. She refrained from handcuffing me and simply led me back to the interrogation room. A few other deputies hurried past us in the hall to the entrance where a group of people had gathered. I managed to catch a few angry shouts and collective cheering. My very own lynching job, what a lucky gal I'd turned out to be.

Deputy Wells shook her head, encouraging me to ignore them and focus on what my story was going to be. I looked at her in surprise. She wanted me to lie, but I didn't need to embellish or twist it around to make me look like the victim. Sheriff Whitley stood as we entered the room and offered me a seat again. He sighed heavily as if he'd been struggling with me the entire day. His eyes were streaked with red lines. It was never my intention to hurt anyone but Tobias. He softly called me by my name and once again asked me what had happened. I took in a deep breath because for that, I'd have to start from the very beginning.

Here's chapter two! How was it? I'm actually pretty nervous about posting this story because I've never written about his subject before so I'd really love some feedback. Happy Sunday!