Chocolate Girls with Golden Hair (24 page)

She hoped to stall the questioning for
as long as possible, especially since the issue of her hair color
was bound to come up again.

Bianca lost her humility and changed
her tune. No longer was she the timid little mouse that they
escorted in for questioning. She was now just plain angry. "What is
it you want to know? I told you everything. Anyway, you're wasting
your time with this. I'm not even strong enough to strangle anyone
and what would be my reason if I were?"

"There's always a reason," Detective
Lane said as he peered at her. "Why did you run?"

A faint smile covered Bianca's face as
she wrenched and turned, not sure how best to answer. Then the
truth escaped from her lips. "I was scared, didn't know what else
to do."

"Where were you going to go?" Detective
Lane asked her.

"I don't know."

Detective Uhler glanced over his notes.
"Ms. Bell, in your apartment I noticed the framed obituaries of
your family. That was your family, wasn't it?

"Yes."

"Why don't you tell us what happened to
them?"

"They died."

"They died or they were murdered?"
Detective Lane asked.

After briefly composing herself, she
said, "So you're now saying that I took out my whole
family?"

"We're not saying anything," Detective
Uhler said. "We want you to tell us."

Bianca hated the way Detective Lane
studied her every time she spoke, judging her every word and move,
as if predetermining her fate.

"My family has nothing to do with why
I'm here."

"How did they die, Ms. Bell?" Detective
Lane asked her.

"I don't know."

"Oh, you know," Detective Uhler
said.

"What if I refuse to answer?

"We have all day and night," Detective
Uhler said. "And don't even think about lying, because I'll check
it out."

In enough trouble and frightened to the
core, the last thing she wanted to do was talk about the death of
her family. Why were they putting so much emphasis on her deceased
family? She wrestled with the decision of whether to disclose such
personal details that could reopen too many old wounds.

"We're waiting," Detective Lane stated
firmly.

She realized that they were not likely
to let up. Without giving it any further thought, she inhaled a
deep breath and shifted her body back into the chair.

"My sister was strangled, my father
shot my mother, then shot himself. Is that what you wanted to
hear?"

The detectives shared a look between
each other, then Detective Uhler asked as he removed his glasses.
"Why was your sister murdered?"

"Why?" Bianca asked, as if she didn't
understand the question.

Detective Uhler didn't repeat the
question and didn't seem the type to back down. While he waited for
an answer, she realized that her anger served no purpose and
thought maybe if she just answered their questions without
hesitation, everything would be all right, and they would let her
go.

With her hands flat down on the table,
she exhaled a short breath. "My sister was having an affair and her
jealous, insecure husband found out about it and strangled her. Is
there anything else you would like to know?"

"We want to know everything," Detective
Uhler remarked.

Detective Lane scooted his chair closer
to Bianca. "Ms. Bell, you're a suspect to a murder. We can ask you
whatever questions we like for as long as we want."

Detective Uhler interjected. "Don't you
think it's a little odd that both your sister and Bruce Colby were
strangled?"

"No, not at all."

Detective Uhler slid his glasses up on
his nose, continuing to scribble notes on his pad. "And what about
your mother and father?"

Bianca exhaled a breath of frustration
and asked softly, "May I go to the ladies room? I really need to
go."

Detective Lane chuckled. "No, you may
not. We want to know about your parents."

"I told you."

"Forget about all of that for now,"
Detective Uhler said. "I'll ask you something you can easily
answer. How do you explain Bruce Colby's wedding band in your desk
drawer?"

Bianca's eyes bulged. "I don't know
anything about that, and by the way, aren't I entitled to an
attorney?"

"Sure," Detective Uhler said. "We can
lock you up right now until your lawyer arrives or you can talk to
us right now. It's your choice."

Not only did Bianca not have an
attorney, but being locked up didn't rest well with her. She would
just as well answer their questions in the hopes of satisfying
their curiosity to the point of letting her go.

Detective Uhler studied his notes.
"Now, we want to know why security has a record of you leaving the
building at six-thirty, the approximate time that Bruce Colby was
murdered."

Bianca's eyes shot to Detective Uhler,
the most serious stare she could find in herself. "I didn't kill
him."

"No?" Detective Uhler
questioned.

"No."

Detective Uhler stood up, pivoted over
to Bianca. "Why did you color your hair this morning?"

Bianca raised her shoulders, and then
said, "I didn't like the color anymore. I know you probably think
it was because I didn't want to resemble Camina or Michelle, but
that's not it at all. It wouldn't have worked anyway. Everyone at
the office knows that I have blonde hair. I dyed my hair back to
its natural black color because I didn't like the person I had
become since bleaching it blonde."

"And what person is that?" Detective
Lane asked. "A murderess perhaps?"

Bianca refused to comment on his
suggestion.

"Were you dating Bruce Colby?"
Detective Lane asked.

"No. I was not. That was Camina's
boyfriend."

"Ms. Givens said you had some type of
identity problem," Detective Uhler said. "She said you wanted to be
like her. What's that all about?"

"She is welcome to her
opinion."

"Is there bad blood between you and Ms.
Givens?" Detective Uhler asked.

"I don't have anything against her.
It's her. She doesn't like me."

Detective Lane's eyes scrolled across
Bianca's face. "Didn't you just say back in your apartment that
Camina was the one who told you that Bruce Colby was murdered, that
she was your friend?"

A shallow smile skirted across Bianca's
face as she realized she'd been busted. "Did I say that?" she asked
innocently.

"Yes, you did. I was there," Detective
Lane said to her.

"Well, I thought it was her who told me
that, but it wasn't. It was another friend, Michelle. She and
Camina look an awful lot alike and sometimes I get them mixed
up."

"Hilarious," Detective Lane said. "Even
on the phone, they're confusing to you?"

"Sometimes." Bianca knew that they were
not buying any of her story, but what else could she do.

Bianca could see the suspicious look in
Detective Lane's eyes.

Detective Uhler rested his pen on top
of his pad. "Ms. Bell, what were you doing at the office at
six-thirty last night?"

"Working. I work late a lot."
Frustrated, she paused. "How long are you going to keep me
here?"

"I wouldn't think about going home too
soon if I were you," Detective Uhler said as he picked up his
pen.

"I'm telling you, I didn't kill him,"
she said. "Why would I kill Bruce, then place his ring and belt in
my desk drawer?"

A shocked look raced across Detective
Uhler's face. "I didn't say anything about a belt. How did you know
about that? I don't remember mentioning it to you."

"You didn't mention it. Someone else
told me."

"Who would that be?" Detective Lane
questioned.

"I would rather not say," she said to
him. For fear of incriminating Michelle, she decided to keep her
inside information to herself.

"I think it's time we let Ms. Bell make
her call," Detective Uhler said to Detective Lane.

"I think you're making a big mistake,"
she said.

"Oh really," Detective Uhler said, as
he flipped through his notes. "An eyewitness saw a blonde woman
leaving the men's room. There's a record with security that you
left the building right around the time of the murder, you colored
your hair back to its original color the next morning, lied several
times, resisted arrest, ran, and Bruce's wedding ring and belt were
in your desk drawer."

"Look. I can see where this is going,
and I know how it looks, but I didn't do it."

Her confession seemed to have little
effect on Detective Uhler as he approached the door. Her time was
running out. Unless she started to tell the truth, they were going
to keep her there.

"Okay," Bianca blurted out. "I'll tell
you what you want to know."

Detective Uhler's hand froze at the
doorknob. Without hesitating, he turned and gazed at Bianca. Bianca
studied the look in his eyes, and she knew one thing. He was
serious. Though she was ready to tell it all, she needed a breather
or some air, anything that would create some space between her and
them. What she needed was a cigarette, and she didn't even smoke,
but now might be a good time to start.

"Would it be okay if I made my phone
call first?"

Detective Uhler seemed to think about
it and then said, "Okay."

Bianca scooted her chair away from the
table and stood up, and Detective Lane soon met her at the door and
opened it for her. "Allow me," he said.

Down the busy hallway, Detective Lane
escorted her to the phone. It was a welcomed relief to be free of
their calculating questions. While Bianca anxiously dialed Lee's
number, Detective Lane stood close by, watching.

Once again, she needed to call upon Lee
to save her hide. He would be furious with her, this being the
second time she was arrested. Only this time, it wasn't for
shoplifting, it was for murder.

Still, he was the one she trusted, the
one who she could count on regardless of the circumstance or
situation. Upon calling Lee at his office, she learned that he was
in a meeting and was forced to interrupt him and summon him to the
phone.

"Bianca?" Lee said. "What's
wrong?"

As soon as she heard his voice, the
tears crawled from her eyes, as she had felt sane up until that
moment. It was definitely the compassion in his voice that moved
her.

"I'm sorry to interrupt your meeting,"
she said with a slight sniffle.

"Are you crying?"

Though obvious, she said,
"No."

"What's wrong?"

"I did a terrible thing, Lee, really
messed up this time. I just want to get out of here, go back to my
old life and start over."

"Wait a minute, wait a minute, what are
you talking about?"

"There was a murder at my office last
night and the police think I did it," Bianca said as she wiped the
tears from her face.

For a moment, Lee was silent. "Where
are you now?" he asked her.

"I'm at the police station on Addison
and Halsted."

"They arrested you?"

"Yes, but they haven't charged me with
anything. They're waiting to finish questioning me now."

"I'm on my way."

Detective Lane stepped in front of
Bianca and pointed to his watch as that was her signal to end her
call now.

"I have to go now. Thanks,
Lee."

It was as if Lee possessed some magical
power of just showing up and making everything better. Somehow, in
some strange way, she believed Lee could save her from this
calamity, and just talking to him, knowing he was on his way,
elevated her mood.

Chapter 16

DETECTIVE UHLER HANDED BIANCA A Kleenex
when she returned to the interrogation room. As the fear and doubt
settled in her heart, she slouched down at the table.

Detective Lane closed the door, taking
a seat across from Bianca, while Detective Uhler stood, his tiny
note pad in hand.

"Are you ready to finish?" Detective
Uhler asked her.

Bianca nodded, shifted her body back
and tried to find her center of peace. "May I have some
water?"

Detective Lane stood up from the table
and poured her some water then handed it to her.

Bianca drank the water, and felt the
perspiration of fear forming on her forehead. She fished for the
half-truths in the back of her head and hoped not to say anything
that she might regret later. Most importantly, she needed to
convince them that they were questioning the wrong
woman.

Immediately after Bianca gulped down
the water, Detective Lane asked her, "Is that better?" Instead of
answering his question, she had a question for him. "If I tell you
what really happened, will you let me go?"