How to hide a body

Defense

Tyler fiddled with the hairband on her wrist as they all filed into the room and shivered slightly when she felt Officer Gray's breath on the back of her neck so she reached her hand to brush it quickly. The room wasn't too big, about the size of your average living room, and had random tables pushed up to the sides against the walls. There was only one window to the right of where Tyler was ushered to sit down. They all sat around the room in separate chairs, Tyler on her own on the right side of the room, Officer Gray to her left, and Blakeman, Archer, and Baxter sat in front facing them whilst a policewoman guarded the door.

"Do you have any defense Miss Foxley for what you are about to be accused of?" Blakeman spoke as if the verdict wasn't already final and she attempted to look him in the eye but flinched back at his stare. She glanced over at Officer Gray then her eyes ran over the other faces in the room as she tried stalling.

As she fled down the stairs, she wrapped her purple scarf around her neck, getting it caught in the velcro of her coat... making her lose balance on the last step and stumble slightly sending her crashing into a...random stranger. Going to apologize she stepped towards them, springing back when they barged past her and...headed up the stairs.

The corner of her lips turned up slightly, "I do actually. I have quite a bit thank you."

Blakeman raised an eyebrow, "then by all means do share."

She nodded and rose out of her seat, "I have evidence that the killer was Officer Dolan Gray," her gaze wandered over to the man she'd only previously shared a conversation with.

"I beg your pardon Miss Foxely but he's an officer and is trying to plead your innocence himself," Archer denied and Baxter rolled her eyes at him.

"Please do go on Miss Foxley."

"I'm sorry but are you all doubting my loyalty," Dolan spoke up as he stared at Tyler with disbelieving eyes and she tried her hardest to avoid it.

"Continue Miss Foxley."

"I strongly believe that Officer Gray murdered Clay Roan and many others and has only gotten away with it because of the position he holds," she further accused.

"Why were you involved then?" Blakeman questioned her.

"Opportunity," she shrugged, "I live on the opposite side of London to him so how could he know anyone in the area."

"I'm sorry Miss Foxley but it doesn't all add up," Archer dismissed her with a wave of his hand.

"Of course it doesn't. I wouldn't harm another person," Dolan stood from his seat.

"But it does," she pleaded and moved towards the three senior officers in the room as she tried to make her case, "You've been looking for the killer of all the others for ages, why do you think they weren't found?" The room was silent as the officers attempted to think of an answer so she just carried on on her own accord, it wasn't like they'd let her continue talking if she didn't, "He didn't intend to kill him at first. Same with the others. He wanted something." She glanced over her shoulder at him before she looked away, "He tracked down the group that was accused of stealing a priceless piece of jewelry but got away scot-free. He probably came across a random file and given his situation he couldn't refuse." She turned around to face him straight on, "Your wife is dead, isn't she?" She spoke more softly and nodded to herself when he didn't reply but only looked down at his shoes, "I was stupid for not catching onto it faster. You're a single father who can barely provide for his daughter and had no immediate relatives left. You didn't want that life for your daughter." He clenched his hands at his sides at her words and shook his head to himself, "He visited each of the members. I believe you killed the first out of anger at not finding anything. After that, you saw no logic in keeping any of them alive. Until you met with Clay in my apartment. I'm sure he realised what you wanted and what was going to happen because everyone else had been mysteriously murdered. So, whilst you put on the act of a host and made coffee. Two sugars was it?" She quipped as she started to gain confidence and spoke with more clarity, "He slipped the tiara away into one of the loose skirting boards. He knew it wasn't your house because there were pictures of me and he'd recently bumped into me coming out of the apartment block. When he denied having it you killed him. I was the perfect target to be framed with my history with the police and my parents before me it was a no-brainer that there wouldn't have to be much evidence provided to frame me. Like you said you know me and my habits so getting into my apartment was simple enough, all you had to do was take the key from under the doormat. You didn't know that two of us lived in that apartment though, I never mentioned it so until you saw us both enter the apartment, you only assumed I would be involved. You watched us as we hid the body and pretended to be surprised when you found it. As expected, the body was covered in our prints and when we went on the run it was pretty much confirmed that we were the killers."

"Why would you come back though?"

"Because Dolan here figured that if I mentioned seeing him near my flat and seconds later I found a body, he'd be investigated. So, he hired someone to kill us. I'd admit I was ready to give up but you got the person who means the most to me injured and nearly dead. That was your first mistake." Her eyes met his in a heated stare different from what they'd usually share, "I went back because I simply wanted vengeance." She paced around the room that was now her stage, "Your second mistake was that you forgot one member. In the year that my mother broke out of prison, she was involved in a robbery. But that wasn't public knowledge and only a select few here knew because you'd be seen as fools. Played by a woman that only moments ago you had cuffed." She stopped in her pacing as the door opened and Jai quietly slipped into the room, his hair disheveled and out of breath, "at first, she wanted nothing do with it but once she heard Clay's name she became interested. After all, she's always tried to get me involved with what she's been doing for most of her life. She told me what they stole." Jai nodded at her when her speech wavered slightly and smiled reassuringly, "I went back after you hurt my friend and there it was, in a skirting board near the body. Your third mistake was not checking what you left behind at Clay's house. Similarly to you, I broke into his house, and under one of the sofas was a ring. Your ring." She unzipped her pocket and grasped the ring in her hand, "Granted, I only just realised it was your ring because of your bare finger," she tapped her index finger with the ring, "You should've got the ring tightened," she smirked at him, "I'm sure if you go to his house you'll find the knife that he used to kill Clay buried in his garden, underneath the tulips."

"And where's the tiara?"

"You can't believe this nonsense," Dolan complained but shut up when Baxter harshly glared at him from across the room.

Tyler picked up her bag from the floor and placed it gently on top of the table to the right of Baxter who nodded to her over the when she glanced up. She traced her finger along the zip before she slowly pulled it up. Navigating her hand through her clothes and random objects, she felt around for the tiara, pulling back when she felt the bubble wrap she had encased it in. She cradled the small parcel that she brought out from her bag and the officers leaned forward slightly when she walked around to face Blakeman and held the parcel out to him.

She held her breath tightly as he unwrapped it carefully and made eye contact with Baxter to his right as he lifted the tiara out of the packaging. He touched the point of the tiara and his eyes flitted over the emerald diamonds that were expertly fitted into the complicated frame of the tiara.

"I think we can prove your innocence if we find that knife so we'll get on it straight away," Baxter spoke as she tore her eyes away from the tiara, "the whole process might take a while to finalise and you'll probably be needed as a witness for his trial if that's ok?"

Tyler finally let the tension from her shoulders leave and nodded gratefully, "of course. Thank you."

Baxter smiled warmly once more but dropped it when she turned to Dolan, "Dolan Gray you are under arrest for murder," she nodded to the policewoman at the door who handed her handcuffs.

Tyler and Dolan made eye contact again as he was cuffed and she stepped towards him with the ring in her hand. She flipped it for the last time before she tucked it into his front shirt pocket, "You'll be needing that."

"Why do you think I will?" He spat at her lowly.

"Keep up hope," she mocked him and patted his pocket before she sauntered away towards Jai.

"You were brilliant," Jai praised as she collapsed into his arms, resting most of her weight into his figure.

"I just want to sleep for a thousand years now," she mumbled numbly into his top and squeezed him tightly as if she was checking he was real and not a figment of her imagination.

"Well, you deserve it."

"What are you doing here though? Don't get me wrong I love that you're here. But why?"

"I couldn't let you be alone, not again and I didn't want you to try to take all of the blame on your own," he muttered into her ear, "And... Quinn would've killed me."

She rolled her eyes, "Of course she would've," Tyler frowned as she watched Dolan be dragged out of the room and remembered someone. She turned to Jai, "I'll be back in a second," he nodded at her before she caught up with Blakeman who had exited the room. Her feet skidded on the floor as she stopped next to him, "what's going to happen to his daughter?"