Killing Roses

15__Bad taste in everything

Friday, 22/08

16:05

Valerie had had no idea what Shawn’s answer would be, but never had she thought he would say what he just said.

She looked at him in disbelief and puzzlement. “What?”

Shawn Crews leaned forward and stared more intensely at her, ensuring that she saw that his eyes held zero remorse. “I said… if I did, would I have been the only one?”

With his hands in his pockets, Roman placed one booted foot on Shawn’s scrawny shoulder and pushed him back.

“Sit back,” he commanded, eyes sharply studying the man’s bloodshot gaze. Crews’ statement could mean anything, Roman knew that, but by the look on Valerie’s face, he could tell she had just let herself be convinced that Shawn Crews had been the man in the van parked outside her apartment building. The man who’d killed Jennifer Crawford. “You will look only at me and answer questions that only I ask you. Understand?”

Sensing Valerie’s approach, Roman looked at her over his shoulder, his frown a warning that stopped her in her tracks.

Val barely held herself back. Every cell in her body was screaming at her to dig the truth out of Shawn. Grab him by the shoulders and shake him till the truth spilled out of his mouth. What? He wouldn’t be the only one? What the hell did that mean?! She’d never done anything to make anyone hate her!

Roman lowered himself onto the table before Shawn and leaned over to look him in the eye. “I hope you understand that you’ve just admitted to having, at some point, considered harming Ms. Quinn. Whether or not you’re the person I’m looking for remains to be proven.”

“I’m not,” Shawn suddenly blurted out with a frustrated sigh. “I mean… there’s a lot of people from varsity who would have liked to knock Valerie off her high horse, but none of us really did it, y’know? I definitely didn’t do it, whatever it is.”

Val couldn’t hold back anymore. “What are you talking about?!” she demanded, stepping forward to glare at Shawn even as Roman sent her a look of frustration. “I never had that many friends, so who the hell from school would have anything against me?! You and I, we dated for half a year and I was nothing but good to you!”

Shawn’s eyes flashed. “You were always flashing your money in my face! You made me turn into a f*****g lie, Valerie! I always had to lie about having gone to Alaska, to Hawaii or the f*****g Maldives just to impress you and your money bags!”

“I never asked you to lie!”

“Then why did I feel like I had to?! Huh?” Shawn exhaled and ran a hand over his reddening face. “You were Valerie Quinn on your high royalty horse! Valerie Quinn who turned down every guy cause nobody was good enough for her! All those guys thought you were a b***h anyway, y’know that? Fuc— ughnnn!!!”

Shawn’s eyes shut in pain, his words drowning out when Roman’s hand suddenly closed over his mouth, fingers digging into Shawn’s face, nearly crushing his jaw.

“I said,” muttered Roman through clenched teeth. “Answer… only when I ask!”

Releasing him, Roman straightened and glared down at Crews. He’d really opened his mouth and said all that crap to Valerie just now. Roman could barely hold back his fist. Grabbing a fistful of Crews’ shirt, he jerked him forward, ignoring the man’s whimper of fear.

“You clearly don’t want to do this the easy way,” Roman told him. “Therefore, to complement your taste, I’ll get that warrant in here. Yeah?”

Shawn’s eyes went wide. “What?! No! Please, we can talk it out!”

The woman who sat beside him clutched herself, letting out a frightened squeak.

Roman straightened and dusted the arm of his jacket before looking at his watch. “Selling drugs to minors,” he murmured. “…substance abuse, prostitution, fraud… long ass list. The DA didn’t have a problem issuing your warrant, Crews.”

“f**k!” Shawn clutched his hair and lowered his head. “No!” he growled out before looking up at Roman. “I said I didn’t do nothing to Valerie, for f**k’s sake!”

He turned to Valerie. “Hey… hi, Val…” he said with a twitching eye and a shaky smile which did nothing but creep Val out even more.  “Could you get me a lawyer? Huh? Come on, Val, for old time’s sake—”

Roman yanked Shawn off the sofa just as the front door slammed open. “Shut up, Crews,” he told him, nudging him towards the officers who’d just entered the room.

“Have him ready for interrogation as soon as you get down to the station,” Roman told them as the officers cuffed Shawn and his girlfriend, reading them their rights.

Before Valerie could take in any more of the scene or hear any more of Shawn’s shouting, Roman had his hand on her back, steering her out of the apartment and down the stairs.

***************************************

They walked briskly across the road, heading to Roman’s car. He stalked ahead of her and Valerie followed from behind, her mind swimming a little drizzly.

Shawn’s words replayed in her head, their meaning getting more sinister the more she thought about them.

Just how many people had hated her? Just how many of them would really try and kill her? And for what reason? Because her father was rich? Because she kept to her damn self and didn’t mind any of their business?

“Ms. Quinn.”

Val looked up with a startled blink. Roman held open the passenger door, looking at her with mild impatience.

“Oh, sorry,” she murmured in response, hurrying to get into the car.

He closed the door and ran around the front to get in himself.

Valerie held her hands still in her lap as he started the car.

“Must say,” started Roman, checking his rear-view. “You’ve got a strange taste in men.”

Val didn’t look at him, keeping her gaze stiffly ahead. “You’ve already seen my strange taste in literature. Clearly, I’m someone with strange tastes.”

Roman raised a brow, surprised she’d mentioned it. “Oh, was that what it was? He fit your fantasies so you kept him around?”

Valerie’s head whipped to the side to look at him, her mouth hanging open. “What? That isn’t what I said!”

“Well, why else would anyone tolerate scum like Shawn Crews in their life?”

She stared at him speechlessly for a moment before turning away with an annoyed huff. Damn him and his disgustingly accurate logic. “I was at a weird time in my life, okay. Just drive.”

“Next time, stay at the house when I tell you—”

Meowwww.

Roman’s head whipped to the side, staring at Valerie in shock. What he saw got him cursing and pulling over to the side of the road.

Staring in shock at the cat she’d forgotten she was holding, Val pursed her lips.

“What the hell?!” said Roman, glaring at the cat poking its head out of Valerie’s coat. “What’s that doing here?! Throw it out the window! Now!”

Valerie winced at his loud voice. “Geez, I can’t do that! It’ll get run over!”

Roman raised his brows so she could clearly see the look in his grey eyes. “I don’t give a f**k what happens to it. Toss it out, or you’re walking back.”

Valerie hugged the fluffy cat and turned in the seat to look at Roman. “Walk? You seriously want me, with the target on my back, to walk back to your apartment?! What kind of cop does that?”

“If you don’t throw that thing out of my car—”

“But why?!” wailed Valerie with a sad frown. She suddenly pulled out the cat, holding it up in front of Roman’s face. “Isn’t it cute?”

“Get it away from… a-a-achoo!” Roman’s eyes closed tightly with the violent sneeze and he raised a hand, pushing Val’s hands away.

Valerie stared at him and then gasped, quickly hugging the cat back to her chest. “Oh, no. You’re… you’re allergic?!”

“No s**t!” Roman muttered, opening his window as another sneeze choked him up.

There was a sudden tap on Val’s window and Roman leaned over to look.

A Goth teenager looked indifferently in at them. “Uh, yeah, this is private parking. Sooo….”

He made a motion for them to move their car and Roman cursed, putting the car into gear. He couldn’t believe she liked cats. The woman had bad taste in everything!

He glared at the cat as he drove back into traffic. “Keep it away from me! Seriously. Even without allergies, I don’t like cats.”

Nodding, Valerie put the cat between her and the door, as far from Roman as she could. He drove in stony silence, his gaze fixated on the road ahead of them.

Valerie glanced at him cautiously as she petted the cat, hoping he didn’t tell her to toss it out again. She bit her lip and looked down at the pitiful kitty. She was already thinking of names.

Roman huffed as they turned onto his street. He’d drop her off at the apartment and head to KC’s. He had to figure out what the hell Cooper was thinking, asking KC to give him the victim’s body. The whole thing reeked and Roman didn’t like the smell.

“Oh, God,” Valerie suddenly muttered. “Please, no.”

Roman glanced at her before following her gaze to the street before them.

There was a fleet of black vehicles parked outside of his apartment building, making Roman feel uneasy.

“What the hell’s going on?” he murmured.

Valerie sighed tiredly. “My parents are here. That’s what.”