The Polaroid Girls

Chapter 24

A/N: Hello my lovelies and happy Tuesday! I hope you all had a fantastic and safe Thanksgiving! (I know I did, mashed potatoes anyone?)

Question of the week: What are some concerns, questions, suggestions, or comments you have about the plot of this story so far?

I keep an ongoing list of things I notice need changing/adjusting in the story as I read it, edit it, and continue to upload chapters here. I mean, it's more like little torn scraps of paper and sticky notes with random comments and things I need to fix, taped and piled up around my desk (seriously, it's a problem). But is there anything you think plot-wise that needs fixin'? Let me know because your reading and suggestions play an equal part in helping me edit and perfect this beautiful beast of a story.

Once again, thank you so much for all of your support and I hope the rest of your week is splendid and just as lovely as you. c: Don't forget to vote, comment your suggestions, follow for updates, and share this story around. Thank you and happy reading! (っ◔◡◔)っ

After an evening of gathering all the information they had and compiling everything into a concise list to interrogate Ethan with, Eric and the sheriff left early the following morning to pick him up from the community college where he should have been working. Less than thirty minutes later, Ethan was led to the single interrogation room in the station and left alone there with a donut and a cup of coffee to keep him busy.

Royce shook his head at Ethan's relaxed form from behind the one way window.

"Who gave him coffee and a donut?" He asked, his voice sharp.

Eric raised a brow at him from a few feet away.

"I did. Ethan's a good guy, Hernandez. He's lived and worked in this town peacefully for years and hasn't gotten in trouble once with us. The least we can do is not treat him like a criminal."

Royce barely controlled himself.

"Eric, he could be a criminal," he ground out. "He's our leading suspect in the abduction of a nine year old girl. And just because he hasn't bothered anyone before now, you treat him like a buddy?"

"Innocent until proven guilty, right?"

Royce groaned, rubbing his face into his rough palms.

The sheriff came up behind them and laid a hand on his shoulder.

"This is a small town, Hernandez. I'm not saying Ethan is or isn't guilty, he could very well be our man, but this isn't a large-scale unit. Ethan Miller is a hard-working citizen of Rosemont who's respected and valued considerably. Just keep that in mind."

Royce peered over his shoulder at the sheriff, his eyes as hard and firm as the line of his lips.

"No offense to you Sheriff, but I don't care how hard-working, respected, and valued he is to this town. If there's even a chance that he's involved in the kidnapping of Natalie Cabell, he's a suspect in my book and will be treated as such."

With that, Royce shrugged off the Sheriff's hand and grabbed his notepad before stepping into the interrogation room. The door slammed shut behind him and Royce noted Ethan's lack of response at the loud sound. He dropped his notepad on the single table in the room and sat down opposite of Ethan, whose eyes followed him in cold, flat indifference.

Royce leaned forward onto his elbows and hunched his shoulders in the slightest bit to make himself appear even bigger than the pale, lean-muscled, medium-height, and brown-haired man before him. Ethan was smaller, lighter, and on the receiving end of this interrogation and yet, he took another bite of his glazed donut and another sip of his coffee without pulling his gaze away from Royce's sharp eyes.