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"Think harder," Ken demanded.
"No, I'm not going to think any harder," he snapped. "I already told you what I know--"
"And we already know you lied." Ken pulled out a file and slapped it on the table. "You were stalking Meghan. You were obsessed with her."
"Oh, I was obsessed, was I?" Darren laughed. "Meghan was an emotional basket case. She was crazy. She was trying to leave me and I wouldn't let her, big fuckin' deal."
"You mean when she tried to leave you and break up with you," Nicky said, "you got violent."
"I'm violent to everybody," Darren said. "Get away from me. I don't want to be near you."
"Tell me the name of the other victim," Nicky said.
"I don't remember.”
"Bullshit."
Ken swiped his hand through the air. "Look, Darren, let’s just cut to the chase. We know you’ve been linked to human trafficking before, and you managed to sneak your way out of charges. But you're not going to get away with it this time."
"I already told you this, you piece of shit," Darren snapped. "I didn't remember the name of that other chick, okay? Maybe it was Stacey or Sarah or something. Doesn't matter. I didn't do anything to her, and I didn’t do anything to Meghan.”
Nicky leaned in. Her eyes darted back and forth, taking in Darren's face. As dirty as this guy seemed, he did appear to be telling the truth. But if that were the case, then that would make this all even more confusing. If Darren talked to the police and was cleared of any wrongdoing, then why was it never filed?
"Where did this Rawlings or whoever cop work?” Nicky asked. “Do you know?"
"It was back in Frankstown. I'm tellin' you, talk to them and this'll all get sorted out."
"We don't have any record of the police talking to you," Nicky said.
"So maybe the cops back there don't file a report if I didn't actually do anything," Darren said.
Nicky frowned. It was possible that was true, but then that would mean these cops were dirty.
"Are you sure about that, Darren?” Nicky asked. “Are you really sure you didn't do anything to Meghan or this other girl? If you just hurt one woman, that means you got away with it once, which means you would probably do it again."
Darren was seething, shaking in his chair. “How many times do I gotta repeat myself?” he said. His tone was no longer jocular and borderline maniacal. It was quiet, reserved, and angry. “Let me out of here. You’ve got nothing on me.”
"You're not going anywhere, Darren," Nicky said.
"I'm not talking to you anymore," Darren said. "You people don't have shit on me; you can't keep me here."
"For pulling a knife on a federal agent, we can," Ken said.
Nicky stood, skidding her chair against the floor. "Stay here and think about what you've done, Darren."
With that, she breezed to the door, Ken behind her. They left Darren thrashing like a wild animal in the interrogation room and reconvened outside. They were in a small, cramped police station not far from the strip club, but if what Darren said was true, then they needed to get back to Frankstown and hunt down this Rawling or Ryley character. But first: Nicky needed to confirm whether any of it was true.
They went into the lobby of the police station, where an older secretary sat behind the desk. She looked up at Nicky and Ken through her glasses. "You two find what you're lookin' for with that guy?"
"Actually," Nicky said, "we were wondering if you could give us any information on a cop over in Frankstown. Should be in your database, right?"
The secretary nodded, going on her computer. "Yeah, should have it. What's the name?"
"Should be something like Ryley or Rawling, something with an R."
The secretary typed in the name and waited. "Nothing's coming up," she said.
Ken ran his hand across his hair. "Are you sure?"
