Page 19 of Outrun The Devil

Liam remained silent.

“So that’s how you want to play this.” She theatrically opened the file, though it contained only a few pages. Despite its brevity, her performance succeeded in unnerving him, so she milked the moment for all it was worth.

“Two thousand sixteen a fight with a bouncer at The Hive. Two thousand seventeen you punched a guy who caught you urinating on his car. Two thousand twenty a bar fight.”

“Those were all misdemeanors.”

“No, those are all assaults.”

“Well, I do have my moments,” he chuckled nervously. “Maybe it's best if I steer clear of bars.”

Olivia leaned in, her voice low and serious. “Look, we know you were at the crime scene. We’ve got your name tag that was found in the victim’s mouth.”

Liam shifted in his seat, looking nervous.

“Who were you with that night?” Nathan asked, his tone more forceful.

“I was alone,” Liam said, his voice barely above a whisper.

He glanced at the two-way mirror again.

“Look, Liam, you can just tell us what you saw or we can throw you in with the zoo lockup.”

Liam shifted again in his seat and Nathan shot her a glare.

“I’d be entertained to watch how they’d eat ya alive,” she sat on the corner of the table. “Snap ya like bamboo,” she made the motion of a stick break in two and grinned. Nathan’s eyes could have burned holes in her. That only made her want to continue, to push the suspect more.

Liam cracked. “Fine. Just keep me out of lockup. I’ll tell you everything.”

She hopped down from the table and patted him on the back, he jumped in response. “See, that wasn’t too hard.”

Liam's words spilled out, his voice filled with apprehension. He recounted the events, describing how he and his friends had ventured into the park, their eager mischief guiding their actions. His eyes darted around the room as he reenacted the scene, his hands gesturing animatedly to emphasize the details.

“I swear, guys,” Liam began, his tone earnest. “We were just fooling around, goofing off like we always do. But then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw him—the man. He was carrying something big, something that looked out of place, ya know… In the dark.”

He paused momentarily as if searching for the right words to convey his certainty. “I couldn't get a clear view of his face, it was obscured somehow. But the image is burned in my mind.”

“What was he driving?” Olivia asked, arms crossed.

“I don’t know, uh,” he paused, searching for an answer. “A pickup truck, probably a Ford if I had to take a guess.”

“A guess?”

Liam’s eyes narrowed as he tried to recall more details.

“So you were able to watch this man long enough to not long catch what he was driving but that he was also carrying something large?” Nathan asked.

Olivia pinched the bridge of her nose. She didn’t need a premonition to tell her that this idiot wasn’t the killer. It was more likely that the real killer was leading them on a wild goose chase to keep them off his trail. Olivia tried to tug on that invisible line but there was only silence. Regardless, she would make sure they followed through as they did with every suspect. That was the job, after all. Following the facts and the evidence and see where it led them. As Nathan leaned in closer

Olivia stepped right into Liam's personal space, a deliberate move to intimidate him. “Let me make this clear,” she said, her voice laced with a threatening tone. “If I find out you're lying to me, I will personally ensure that your time in prison becomes a living hell.”

As she spoke, she could hear the distinct sound of the chair scraping against the floor behind her, indicating that Nathan had risen from his seat. It was likely that he was concerned she might physically harm the suspect.

As Olivia and Nathan emerged from the interrogation room, the scent of stale coffee hit her. In her fingers was a small amount of hair she pulled off Liam. She placed it in a bag and then into her pocket for safekeeping.

A hand curled around her arm and yanked Olivia to a stop. She threw a glance behind her once Nathan’s hand released her arm. “What the hell, Steele?”

“I could ask you the same thing,” he snapped in a hushed tone. “What was that back there?”