Loopholes

Hunters Be Hunted

His mind was spinning, insides spazzing as he leaned over the toilet. He felt sick, for the gazzillionth time the past few days, and this time, again, he couldn't just get over with the urge to puke. He awaited it, hoping it would make him feel better afterwards, though he knew it wasn't going to happen. As if it was a sign, his body playing tricks on itself. He was never going to feel better. He was always going to be haunted.

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CASE: DARCY HOTCHNER — murder

INTERVIEW: GRANT SHEFFERSON — victim

[ 1/8/2014 12:14 ]

OFFICER WOLFF: Are you sure you want to continue with the interview?

GRANT: I can't talk about this with anyone else. Not my parents, not my psychologist. It has to be you.

OFFICER WOLFF: Okay, keep calm, Grant. You're safe here.

GRANT: Okay.

OFFICER WOLFF: You were telling me about that "She" person.

GRANT: Oh, yes. Darcy once came down and brought me upstairs where I saw light again for the first time since forever. I can show you everything if you have a picture or a sketch of the building.

OFFICER WOLFF: Here you go.

GRANT: We came up from the basement which was here, at least the door was. This staircase led to up here. It was dark because there were no lamps, I think, but sun light came from outside, through a few fogged windows that were way high up.

OFFICER WOLFF: What did you see when you came up?

GRANT: At first, I couldn't see a thing because I was so confused and well, used to the darkness. I couldn't see anyone in the room. I just took a look around for possible escape holes but of course everything was closed it seemed. There was one door but I never got to get near that one. Darcy led me to the very corner of this side right here and as you might have noticed at the scene, it reeked...

OFFICER WOLFF: It was where the unidentified body was found dead.

GRANT: She must have been dead for at least a few weeks. I asked Darcy who she was but then she suddenly spoke to the dead girl. Her head was smashed so I couldn't even make out what the face was. And she was in... a weird sitting position. And believe me, Darcy was speaking to this dead body as if it was still alive.

OFFICER WOLFF: Did she have hallucinations?

GRANT: Must have been the case, I mean, she had a whole conversation with the unmoving body. Until she told me to sit down on the ground and get my arms behind my back so she could tie me.

OFFICER WOLFF: Was that when you ran?

GRANT: I was so confused about the whole situation and I've never seen a body before, such a disturbing one at that. I was in shock. And I had no idea why Darcy was still talking to her. So I couldn't even move, at least I didn't think of that at the time.

OFFICER WOLFF: What did Darcy say to the body?

GRANT: She said, "What did this one do?" and "Does he deserve to die?". Before I knew it I was tied and facing the sitting corpse, waiting for Darcy to come back from wherever she went to. I think she might have gone downstairs again, where we came from. And I kept hearing her mumble to herself. That's when I knew something wasn't right. She was crazy, officer. I have no clue what happened to the corpse and who it was but seeing that Darcy was acting like that, I figured that she must have killed that person.

OFFICER WOLFF: Don't you think she could have defended herself from that person?

GRANT: Of course that was the first thing that came to my mind. But then Darcy came back with that gun in her hand, pointing directly at my head. Nobody was there to assist her. Nobody was there to control her. She wanted to kill me herself. So was it her plan from the beginning? Did she team up with that dead person? Or did she really go crazy and take that dead girl's place when she'd killed her?

OFFICER WOLFF: What about that video?

GRANT: Darcy wanted me to stay with her but she wanted peace. She kept saying she wanted everyone to stop looking for her. I think at that point she really might have taken that dead girl's place by giving orders and forcing me. It wasn't like her at all. And I know what she's like when she's really mad. I've never seen her like that.

OFFICER WOLFF: Did she ever say anything about wanting to hurt her parents?

GRANT: No. Not once. She didn't even mention them. But before she ran after me as I took my escape route, she shouted that she was going to take everyone with her. That's when I ran for my life.