Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Sleepy Hollow. I only claim the events in my story.
Warning: There is language, violence, and sex in this story.
"YOU BASTARD! YOU FUCKING BASTARD!"
"Ma'am, I'm going to have to ask you to calm down."
"HE KILLED HER! HE KILLED ME SISTER!"
"And we're taking care of that, but if you would please-"
"KILL HIM! PUT HIM IN HER PLACE SO HE KNOWS HOW IT FEELS! YE'VE GOT A PISTOL!"
"I can't do that, ma'am. All will be justified by the law. Now I need you to calm down. We don't need two arrests tonight."
Edward Greeves then led the hysterical woman on, escorting her to the nearby courthouse. Others would take care of the corpse and the criminal. In the meantime, she needed to be questioned.
He calmed her down as he led her on, until she was eventually in a calm state.
"Constable, there was a murder at 5th and Syracuse. This is our only witness," Edward explained upon entry to the building. The man he was speaking to nodded and led on to another room. The woman sat, as did the man.
Edward left the room. This was a justified man he left the woman with, and he most certainly knew how to put clues together. It was just the matter of if the higher court marshals would actually use them.
"Madam, do you find yourself to be a state capable of explaining tonight."
The woman nodded.
"Now, I'm going to have to ask your name. Do you mind giving it?"
"Eleanor McDaniels."
"Ms. McDaniels, can you identify tonight's victim?"
"Me sister, Grace."
"And did you and your sister know the assailant?"
"Don Rice."
"How did you know Mr. Rice?"
"He was…HE WAS HER FUCKING FIANCEE!"
"Ms. McDaniels, please calm down and keep the foul language to a minimum. For now, we just need basic facts. Here," the constable offered the woman a handkerchief.
Eleanor cried into it for a moment, and then after taking a few deep breaths, wiped her face and handed it back.
"Now Ms. McDaniels, do you mind telling me how the assault started? Or, for that matter, where you were and what prodded it?"
"We was in our apartment, Grace and I. We shared the place and she had invited Don over. We had dinner together and then I went out to give the two some alone time. I went down to me friend Jennifer Connoly's for some gossip. This was about 8 when I left. I came back around 10. And there he was, just standin' o'er 'er corpse, that BASTARD!"
"Please, Ms. McDaniels. Now, did you see any incriminating hints to make you believe he did it?"
"'E 'ad a knife," she replied, her accent Irish accent thickening as she became more upset, "And there was stabs all in 'er chest! Tha' BASTARD!"
"Ms. McDaniels, if you please, I guarantee you we have the best men on the job to take care of all of this."
"And 'oo are you ta be tellin' me tha'?"
"I'm Constable John Smeargout. I know this force, and I know it well. We sent a good man. A brilliant man. He's the only one we have left who's both."
"An' 'oo migh' tha' be?"
"A Constable Ichabod Crane. You have no reason to worry with matters in his hands. Now, thank you for these preliminaries, Ms. McDaniels. I'm sure your lawyer will be with you in the morning. We will get more in depth in details then. Now, try and get a good night's sleep. Why don't you go to your friend Jennifer Connoly's?"
The woman nodded as John began to lead her out. Edward was just outside and proceeded to escort Ms. McDaniels to her friend's. They had basic information, but it was up to Ichabod to tie it together and to try and get the courts to listen this time. Maybe his past trials would help.
"Dear God, I hope," Edward mumbled under his breath.
Ms. McDaniels didn't notice. She was too caught up in the horrors of the past few hours.