Sting

Who killed Marnie Thomas? - Part 9

Two day after the shooting.

"A tragic ending to the Tomlinson investigation came yesterday, as two tenth-graders have been arrested in connection with the case. Our sources tell us that Marnie Thomas has been charged with murder after confessing to fatally shooting sixteen-year-old Arabella Tomlinson. Thomas is also set to appear in court, charged with the second-degree murder of wealthy businessman Chris Birdman, who was himself under investigation. It is believed that Thomas provided a second girl, whose identity we cannot reveal, with a stolen firearm, telling her to shoot Mr. Birdman, which she did. She is also set to face trial to answer the same charge. The girl's defense attorney released a statement this morning, saying:

'My client is not guilty of this crime. She was acting under the duress and deception of miss Thomas, who took advantage of her fragile mental state to meet her own sick ends, and for this reason, we will be using a defense of extreme emotional disturbance. The fact that she was dragged before the courts in the first place is, quite frankly, a disgrace.'

An exclusive interview of miss Thomas is set to air tonight on the new docuseries, 'The Bullinger Ring', where she reveals details about her crimes, as critically acclaimed documentarian Mikey Bullinger is given unprecedented access for his big TV comeback."

. . .

The sun was setting outside the hive, and the team were leaving for the night. The whole floor was silent with residual exhaustion from the last few days as they packed up their things and left, one by one, much earlier than they usually would, but the need for rehabilitation went unspoken by all.

Bullinger hadn't dare show his face in the precinct since he did that interview. They'd all watched it in advance to clear him to release the footage of their investigation, and the interview came as a shock to them. He hadn't even extended the curtesy of notifying them that he would be covering the case that Baldaire explicitly warned him to stay away from, and now the horrifying answers the girl gave to his endless questions replayed in their minds on a loop.

. . .

Ten Barrels Bar, Midtown East.

Lincoln was sat on a mahogany bar stool, brushing the pad of his thumb against the glass of scotch on the rocks before him, tapping his gold wedding ring against the glass as the interview replayed in his mind.

"Why did you do it? Why did you kill Arabella?"

"Because I couldn't get away from her and Gia any other way. After they found out about my brother, they tortured me, in ways you can't even imagine. They threw things at me, called me names, spread rumors, they even tripped me down a flight of stairs. I broke my wrist. I tried everything to get away from them, and then I realized. I was stuck with them. Till death do us part."

The bartender slid another drink over the glossy counter to him, pulling him out of his thoughts.

"I didn't order this."

"It's from the ladies in the back."

He looked over his shoulder and saw two middle-aged women, waving and giggling. He smiled at them and returned to his drink, and his thoughts, continuing to tap his ring against the glass, faster and faster, and then, he stopped. He took a few seconds to think. The ring caught the dim light, and he started to stroke it. Suddenly, he removed the ring, put it in his jacket pocket, and slithered across the bar over to their table, a drink in both hands.

. . .

Hassan sauntered into his drafty apartment, weaving through boxes labelled everything from 'kitchen' to 'case files'. He huffed as he pushed through the cardboard jungle, until he reached the couch.