29.
879 Words
Only five short minutes have passed when the policeman returns to the small room, displaying a smile that is both apologetic and satisfied. He’s not a bad person. In other circumstances and even if I’m a poor seducer, I would have liked to get to know him. The small metal ring reminds me otherwise.
“Were you able to reach Salami?” he asked me.
“Eh?”
“Excuse me… Rosette Butcher, I meant. It’s okay? She picked up?”
“Oh, yes, she’s coming.”
“Okay. I have a few more questions for you.”
“Still?” I say, tired.
“What were you doing at 20 Clifton Street?”
“Uh... I don’t know this address, sorry.”
“If I say Miss Daisy, does that mean anything to you?”
“Miss Daisy? Sure! What a lovely woman! I mean in the sense that she’s kind, nice, she’s been great to me.”
“We saw you go into her place and come out transformed. Can you explain to us what happened?”
“Pfff,” I sigh. “All that wasn’t planned. I was walking the dog. I walked past the store. She was there on the sidewalk smoking her cigarette and invited me in.”
“It’s solicitation. It’s a prohibited commercial technique,” he notes.
“Oh, really? Yet everyone does it. Anyway… She told me everything was fifty per cent off. I had to go shopping, it was timely. I walked in and they took care of me.”
“Did you notice anything special?”
“No, nothing special. They were adorable with me.”
“When you say they, who exactly are you talking about?”
“Miss Daisy and her salesgirls: Pamela and Kelly.”
“So you have nothing to declare?”
“No, nothing. I thanked them for the work they did. I’m quite a pretty woman now, don’t you think?”
“Very! Hmmm,” he clears his throat. “We couldn’t find a receipt in your belongings. Did you receive one?”
“I don’t know, I didn’t pay attention. I must admit that I was so amazed by my new look that I paid and left. I don’t believe I received a receipt.”
“You should have. They, like you, are liable to a fine for the repression of fraud. Proof of purchase is required.”
“I have nothing to reproach myself,” I tried to justify myself.
“And this?” he asks, placing the small box containing the earrings on the desk. “Was this also part of your purchases?”
“Nope. It’s a gift. Look! My lobes aren’t even pierced. It’s rather very good marketing on their part. It’s to build loyalty, I guess.”
“Keep them safe. These are real.”
“Real what?”
“Diamonds. Small, yes, but diamonds nonetheless.”
“I don’t understand anything. Can you be clear about what you’re saying?” I raise my voice.
“I’ll explain everything to you,” he said, lowering his voice. “Laurene has just taken a memorable reprimand from the chief who got wind of the forceful arrest she made of you. She’s super stressed right now. And the stress leads her to make mistakes, more or less big ones. Personally, I very quickly understood that you had nothing to do with our investigation. But she didn’t want to listen to me. Of us two, she’s the brain. She loves to say that.”
“Come on! I killed myself protesting my innocence. I don’t feel like you listened to me much.”
“We had to be sure. Put yourself in our place! We were on surveillance when we see a woman arrive – forgive me if I’m rude – nothing special, commonplace,… who wouldn’t turn heads for anything in the world and an hour later, the same woman comes out in atom bomb mode. That’s suspicious, right?”
“I almost gave you a slap but you have caught up well,” I said, flattered.
“We’ve been investigating Miss Daisy’s business for several months. We suspect her of pimping and diamond trafficking.”
“Oh!”
“I’ll put the question to you one last time, Madeline Jordan. Did you notice anything strange in the attitude or in the environment of this woman?” he asks seriously.
I think, for the sake of conscience, but apart from the extraordinary fitting rooms and the many sexy objects that filled the shop, so pretty much everything, no, really, I didn’t find anything weird.
I shake my head.
“Okay. Here’s my card. If a detail comes back to you, contact me.”
“And what about the earrings?”
“What earrings?” he said, putting his index finger to his lips to silence me. And raising his voice slightly, he proclaims:
“On behalf of the Metropolitan Police, we offer you our most sincere apologies. We are sorry for the inconvenience you have suffered, Ms Jordan, because of us. Thank you for your understanding…”
He gets up, uncuffs me and I massage my aching wrists. Then, a familiar voice is heard from the hallway.
- Writer
