Interrogation

When the morning came, Arthur's emotions were not settled. He was under tremendous stress for having to make the decision that ruined his possible love. He yearned to have a partner to share his happiness and pain, and he wanted someone special to lean into him.

As he observed his reflection in the mirror, he smiled bitterly. Twelve years with a heavy feeling of hate and twelve years bearing the burden of truth had changed him. He once was a man with so many dreams, but now to dream more than realizing his revenge was hard.

"Arthur, come down. I am hungry!"

Ariel's voice woke him up from his morning lamentation. He fixed his tie and went out of his bedroom to join his mother and sister for breakfast.

The interior of the house was similar to the past. The color, however, changed from white to cream, and several old electronics were changed to the newest version.

Arthur preferred to keep the design similar to the past to remember that a complete and happy family once lived in this building.

Before the dining area, Arthur passed the living room. He saw a large picture with him, Ariel, his mother, and his father smiling brightly. It was such a good sight to see. After that he walked straight to the dining room.

"Morning, mom." He greeted his mother and planted a soft kiss on her check. "Morning to you too," Arthur said as he ruffled his sister's perfectly styled hair.

"I told you over a hundred times, don't touch my hair!" Ariel exclaimed as she combed her hair again but only with her fingers.

Arthur shrugged his shoulder, utterly unaffected by his sister's tantrum. He pushed the chair back and sat on the right side of his mother.

His mother, Vivian Ford, placed her hand on Arthur's. She gripped it hard, then said. "You don't look good. Besides FSS problem, do you have anything else bugging your mind?" Vivian gave him a gentle gaze that filled him with warmth like the morning sun.

"It's just FSS, nothing else. So don't worry, mom." Arthur assured her.

Ariel scoffed at Arthur, taking her mother's hand and making Vivian shift her attention. "His heart is broken, mom." Ariel then stuck her tongue out. If Arthur did not touch her hair, maybe she would keep her mouth shut, but her brother decided to play with her.

Vivian's eyes enlarged, "He what?"

"Don't listen to her. You know that she is crazy, mom."

"Someone broke your perfect son's heart mercilessly," Ariel answered.

"Is it true, Arthur?" Vivian asked with hope. Although he had just experienced a broken heart, it was okay because, to her, it was a sign that her son was ready to have a relationship. Her son was not young anymore. It was time for him to have someone caring about him besides his family.

"No." Arthur denied it firmly. He kicked Ariel's foot under the table to stop his sister from spitting other nonsense words.

"You are lying to me, son," Vivian said. Her tone was layered with disappointment.

"Can we please drop it?" Arthur picked up his cutlery as a sign that he would not talk about it again.

"Tell me when you are ready, okay?"

And Arthur nodded. Then they started eating in silence.

Arthur was the first to finish his breakfast. After that, he stood up to leave for work. "I will see both of you again at Blossom for dinner." Arthur reminded them that they had a family dinner outside today.

"Hm, be careful," Vivian replied. While Ariel only waved her hands to Arthur.

***

On the other side, Kathrina started her days reading the forensic report that came earlier than expected. Inside the report, it stated that they found three different fingerprints. One belonged to Marcella, and the other was John and Xander.

They could ask Xander and John to come for an interrogation with what they had. And from what Joe had told her, they could make the two of them come today. If Xander and John denied the accusation during the interrogation, then they would pit them against each other. Eventually, one of them would reveal their cover.

"When will the interrogation begin?" Kathrina asked Theo.

"Less than ten minutes. Joe and Clarissa will be in charge." Theo answered shortly. He did not try to engage in another conversation with her.

Kathrina also did not try to talk again. Their conversation was always cut short due to a lack of interest on her part. Then she moved from her place to go to the observing room.

She sat and waited for Xander and John to enter the interrogation room. In the meantime, her mind wanders into Arthur. The image of his back walking away from her struck her like thunderbolts. Before she fell deeply and hurt herself, Kathrina shook her head to slap her into reality. She waved her hands in front of her face as if she was ruining the image.

"They are here." Theo informed Kathrina.

Instantly Kathrina focused on the interrogation. The first room was for John, and the second was for Xander.

"Nice to see you, Mr. Harris."

Kathrina heard Clarissa say, and the woman also smiled, giving the illusion that she was a kind and naïve woman when Clarissa was far from those words during interrogation. But, instead, Clarissa was calm and collected and pretty aggresive too.

John remained silent when Clarissa explained his right, but Kathrina could see that the man was uneasy in his seat.

The interrogation started with a basic question, and John answered truthfully. Then when it shifted to Marcella, John's agitation could not be hidden anymore. The man repeatedly moved as if the chair was burning his ass.

"We found Marcella's diary and the secret passage that connected her unit to the unit beside hers," Clarissa said flatly.

John's heart dropped, and he felt like the oxygen in the room was lower as he could not breathe properly. "What else did you find, Detective?"