Page 49 of Girl, Deceived

She inspected for any signs of familiarity or recognition. This type of offender wouldn’t be able to resist acknowledging his handiwork, especially when framed by the glossy parameters of a crime scene photograph.

Ella focused on the corners of Alex’s mouth, his shoulders, his pupils, feet, fingertips, forehead wrinkles.

And she got nothing.

‘I don’t know what this is.’

Ripley asked, ‘What’s it look like to you?’

Alex sucked air through clenched teeth. ‘A demon face? I don’t know.’

Ella sighed inwardly. She had genuinely hoped that this would be the piece of evidence that broke him, the one thing that he couldn't deny. But his genuine confusion and lack of recognition seemed to seal the deal: either Alex was an incredibly talented actor, or he truly had no connection to the mask.

She leaned back, feeling defeated. ‘Alex, it seems we're at an impasse here.’

Ripley added, ‘Our job is to get to the truth, to get justice for these victims. If you're truly innocent, we need to know now.’

Alex seemed to deflate in his chair. ‘I swear, I had nothing to do with these murders. Everything about my phone and the private screenings at my shop is true. But I never hurt anyone.’

Ella inspected her fingernails while she weighed up her next move. Piecing Alex’s story together, she arrived at one logical conclusion. Alex Morton was something of a hermit, and by his own admission, most of his social interaction came from his illicit parties.

And their killer – if it wasn’t the man in front of her – had taken Alex Morton’s phone for a reason.

It was another twist in his tale. A swerve to add depth to his story. The killer wanted Alex Morton as a suspect because it would make the finale that much grander.

‘So, Alex, let’s say we believe you.’

Alex sighed so heavily that Ella felt his breath on her face. Sourness and cigarettes. ‘Please do. I’m not a murderer.’

‘Chances are someone stole your phone during one of your little get-togethers at the back of your store?’

‘Yes. I mean, I don’t know,’ Alex stuttered.

‘Continuity, Alex,’ Ella reminded him. ‘You said you hosted your parties at weekends, and that you lost your phone Saturday night.’

Alex flopped back in his seat again. Ella suspected that he knew what was coming.

Ripley leaned in and said, ‘That means our killer was in your store last Saturday night.’

The suspect tensed up at the comment. Ella spotted signs of genuine distress in his microsignals – increased blink rate, parted lips, unnaturally furrowed brow. As far as she could tell, Alex’s response was authentic.

Ella’s phone began to ring in her pocket. She ignored it for a moment.

‘So, we’ll expect a list of names on our desk in thirty minutes. Don’t forget anyone.’

CHAPTER TWENTY THREE

Outside the interrogation room, Ella returned the call she’d missed. It was from a desk at Virginia PD

‘Miss Dark?’ a voice said. ‘It’s Bob Stone at Virginia.’

A lump formed in Ella's throat. Bob Stone was an old friend from her days in law enforcement and the one she'd entrusted to keep tabs on Logan Nash while she was away.

‘Bob, is everything okay?’ she asked.

‘Bear with me a second, Dark, the line is bad. I’m going to try you on another number.’

The cop suddenly hung up. Ella moved the phone from her ear and glanced at the screen in confusion. The line had been fine.

---