Chapter 9 - Framed For Attempted Murder And Locked In The Interrogation Room
The interrogation room at Chicago’s 1st District Police Station was freezing, illuminated only by a buzzing, yellowed fluorescent tube.
I sat alone at the metal table, my wrists still red and raw from the handcuffs. Three hours had passed since the gala. My emerald evening gown was creased and cold, a bitter mockery of the magical evening I thought I had shared with Lucas.
The heavy steel door swung open, and Detective Vance Miller—a tired-looking veteran with graying hair and a thick folder—walked in, sitting across from me.
“Miss Vance,” Detective Miller sighed, tossing the folder onto the table. “You’re in a world of trouble. Attempted first-degree murder of a corporate executive. Corporate espionage. Possession of Schedule II controlled substances without a license.”
“It’s a frame-up, Detective,” I said, my voice steady despite the terror gripping my chest. “Julian Bennett planted those vials in my basement locker. His brother Lucas was poisoned six days ago on the forty-fifth floor of Meridian Tower. I performed CPR and saved his life. Julian tried to kill him then, and he tried again tonight at the Drake Hotel with a tainted water glass.”
Detective Miller rubbed his temples. “Look, kid. I want to believe you. But Julian Bennett handed us signed affidavits from three building security guards claiming you had unauthorized access to executive suites. He provided surveillance footage showing you entering the pharmaceutical storage areas. And right now, Lucas Bennett is under private medical lockdown at an undisclosed facility authorized by his legal power of attorney—Julian Bennett.”
Cold dread flooded my veins. “Julian took control of Lucas?”
“Evelyn and Julian Bennett filed emergency conservatorship papers with Judge Harrison two hours ago, citing Lucas’s physical and mental incapacity following his collapse at the gala,” Miller said quietly. “As of midnight, Julian Bennett is the acting CEO of Meridian Enterprises. And you’re the scapegoat taking the fall for the attempted murder.”
Tears burned the corners of my eyes, but I refused to let them fall.
I had fought so hard. I had given up everything to keep Lucas breathing, to protect him from the monsters in his own bloodline. And now, Lucas was trapped in a private facility at Julian’s mercy, and I was going to spend the rest of my life in a maximum-security prison.
“You have to test the broken glass from the ballroom floor,” I begged, leaning forward. “The water glass I knocked away from Lucas. Test the chemical residue! It will match the synthetic peptide from his first collapse!”
“The Drake Hotel cleaning crew swept and disposed of the broken glass before our forensic team arrived,” Miller said with a grim expression. “Julian Bennett’s private security handled the cleanup.”
“Of course they did,” I whispered, burying my face in my hands. The corruption was total. The Bennett empire had bought the police, the hotel, the judges, and the evidence.
Suddenly, a loud commotion erupted outside in the precinct hallway.
Shouts of protest, heavy footsteps, and the sound of a commanding voice barked through the reinforced doors.
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“You have five seconds to open that door, Detective, before my legal counsel files a federal civil rights lawsuit that will bankrupt this entire municipality!”
The interrogation room door was kicked open with a thunderous bang.
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