Twists and Turns

Chapter 17

In the interrogation room, Daniel and Kate sat at the lone table opposite Donnie, who was brought in for questioning.

"We didn't bungle the capture of Yuss," Daniel told Donnie, "but you already know that. We both know that Yuss never existed."

Kate was puzzled, but she said nothing, whereas Donnie practically spitted out his words in anger as he pounded the table.

"You're even crazier than I thought you were!" he accused Daniel, "You seem to have forgotten that I had two office friends shot DEAD and then you dare say the shooter never existed! You must be in the middle of one of your stupid hallucinations! That's it! I've had it!"

He started to walk towards the door, but it was Kate who stopped him.

"If you attempt to leave, Donnie, I'll have you arrested," she warned him.

"You'd do that to me, Kate?" he looked at her incredulously, "Arrest me? After all we've meant to one another?" he then looked smug as he added, "No, I doubt you would do that!"

"Just try me," she answered calmly back, "as soon as I can whip out my handcuffs, I will arrest you, Donnie."

It was like a promise and her voice sounded emotionless.

Donnie's eyes narrowed, "Yeah,on what charge?" he challenged her.

Daniel was the one who responded, "For the killing of Larry Stevenson."

Though it was stated nonchalantly, it seemed to have an effect on Donnie.

"W-what?" Donnie's forehead furrowed with confusion as he stood near the exit door.

His previous smug attitude was gone, and in its place was bewilderment. Kate was as much in the dark as Donnie, but she knew she couldn't let him leave, even if she had to tackle him to the floor.

"Sit down, Donnie," Kate insisted, "we have a lot to discuss."

As if hypnotized, Donnie walked back and slowly lowered himself back into his chair.

He then tried sincerity, "I swear I didn't shoot anyone. Yuss did the killing!"

"Not so," Daniel countered, "Yuss wasn't a real person...but he was there because YOU were Yuss."

"That's not true!" Donnie insisted, a bit too loudly, "Yuss was real! He was the accountant in our office! And a very good one at that!" he almost sounded as though he were trying to convince himself of that fact, "besides, how could I have been Yuss? You saw that picture I took at the Christmas party with him! That picture was REAL," he turned to Kate, "Kate, have your lab people analyze that picture and I guarantee you, it's authentic. I was standing right next to Yuss!"

"I have to give you credit, Donnie," Kate said, "you may be a liar, but you're a clever liar."

Sweat started to form on his brow as his tone sounded desperate, "Kate, listen to reason! How could I have been Yuss and done my job for half a year? Larry and Mary Ann knew Yuss, too. They worked alongside him, just like me!" Donnie zoomed in on Kate, "It doesn't make sense, does it? How could I have heartlessly killed anyone? You know me, Kate! Trust me!"

Trust, Kate thought morosely, there's that word again. She was beginning to hate it.

"Maybe it isn't all your fault, Donnie" Daniel told him, "I think you blame Ed Shaw for part of this."

Ed Shaw was the District Attorney in the main building, who oversaw all legal operations.

Donnie started to get excited.

"Yes...YES...It was Ed's fault, you're right about that!" he admitted, "I haven't had a raise since coming out here. And Larry and Mary Ann claimed they hadn't had one since they started working at the DA's office, either. Ed kept saying maybe next year. Then next year came and nothing. Then he promised a raise when we moved over to the next building. We did that; and nothing. All three of us felt overworked and underpaid. At last he gave in a little by allowing us to hire a part time accountant and office manager."

Kate could see where this story was leading.

"But the three of you then decided that all of you could easily handle that work," she surmised, "So whose idea was it to make up Gene Yuss?"

"Larry; it was ALL Larry's idea!" Donnie admitted, "It started out as a joke. He said we could make up a fake employee and then split his paycheck among the three of us. And the more we thought about it, the more brilliant it sounded. Mary Ann, as usual, was very thorough with the paperwork. She was the one who obtained the social security number and all the legal papers to make Yuss seem real. We pledged to keep it a secret. No family member, spouse... or even fiance knew," he then turned pleading eyes directly at Kate.

"And then the deception took a life of its own," Daniel concluded.

Donnie didn't deny it.

"With some very careful planning on our part, yes," he said, as he recalled specifics, "we had to give Yuss a southern accent so that he could answer questions whenever someone in the main office called. And every time someone from the main office would drop by, Larry or I would take turns putting on the disguise. It helped that we were the same height, coloring and built."

"So that's how you created those Christmas photos," Daniel said.

Donnie nodded, "Yeah, we would make sure that Mary Ann took a picture of Larry and me dressed as Santa and then we would switch and he would be Santa to take a picture of me and Mary Ann. Then she would later post the pictures on the office Facebook."

Kate looked at Donnie with a disappointed look.

"Donnie, I can't believe you perpetrated all of this. You...someone who pledged to uphold the law!"

"Back then, it just seemed a harmless scam," Donnie said, "I mean, who did it hurt, really? We WERE doing the work of another person, and might I add, doing a damn good job of it! And I really did need the extra money."

Then he only addressed Kate, "And I swear to you, Kate, I did it because I wanted to give you the best wedding ever."

"That doesn't make what you did right, Donnie," Kate responded ruefully.

"I know, I KNOW, Kate, but you were my motivating factor," he claimed, "anyway it was working so well for the three of us. We were operating like a well-oiled machine," Donnie looked proud before his expression fell again, "well, it WAS working out...until Larry got greedy, that is."

"So he was the one with the idea for stealing the $40,000 from the evidence safe," Kate assumed.

"I told him we didn't need it!" Donnie insisted, "but he had a wife...and two teenagers at home and was mortgaged to the hilt. He pointed that out and also that Mary Ann had purchased a new car and wanted to take a trip to Europe this year. And then he went off on me, pointing out all the expenses of a wedding and my need to buy a house. And he was right," he gave Kate his most sincere look, "Kate, I wanted to give you the world."

"Donnie, you know me. I didn't need anything fancy, including a wedding or a house," Kate told him, "You should have come to me with all this. We could have figured it out."

"I was losing you," he said, "I could feel it." He then gave Daniel a hard stare, "but then, again, maybe I never had you."

Daniel slightly flinched.

"So Larry Stevenson kept pushing the two of you to help steal that evidence money," Kate purposely kept the story on track, "and he thought up the plan that Yuss would take the fall for it."

"Yes," Donnie face saddened again, "but Mary Ann and I argued with him; told him that that would cross the line. And then Mary Ann made the fatal mistake. She threatened to go tell Ed of our deceit."

"And that would eventually cost her her life," Daniel morosely said, "I assume Larry shot her first."

"But I had no way of knowing that!" Donnie promised, "That awful morning, Larry came in like usual. I was at the copy machine. From the corner of my eye, I see Larry take out a gun and shoot her. Just like that. Then all hell breaks loose. I go over there, yelling at him and he's telling me he needs that $40,000 and she's not going to stop him from getting it! He starts to turn, but I grab his arm and we wrestle for the gun. I get it and threaten him with it, but he thinks I won't shoot. He then heads towards his office to get to the evidence safe. In the meantime, he's dialing 911 to report the shooting. When I heard him calling, I guess I panicked. He had just killed Mary Ann. He was going to steal the money and leave me in a lurch. I was so angry that he ruined everything. I was determined not to let him leave, so I followed him and I shot him...but it was only meant to slow down his escape. Unfortunately, my hand was shaky and I guess I hit one of his main arteries. I mean, blood was gushing everywhere..."

Donnie looked down, shaking his head back and forth.

"So you decided to put the blame on Yuss, just as Larry had planned," Daniel continued the story, "and you left the clothes by the exit as part of the plan. Then you went and shot yourself as well as a means to divert suspicion from yourself."

"Yeah, and I was a lousy shot again," Donnie looked over at Daniel, "I had only meant to give myself a flesh wound, but again, my hand was shaking and I misjudged. Believe me, I didn't want any of this to happen," this time he focused on Kate, "I wish I could start all over again...it would have been so different."

Oh Donnie, Kate thought with regret, always needing a second chance and still blowing it.

Donnie's head was bowed low. He was exhausted and he knew what was to come next. Kate slid the yellow legal pad to his side, alongside a pen.

He looked at the blank pad.

"Don't tell me, I know what comes next" he said, with a bitter tone, "you want me to write out my confession."

"And don't forget to sign it," she reminded him.

And that's exactly what he did.

.

TWO DAYS LATER

Daniel and Kate sat on the patio of Bar Toma, located on Michigan Avenue, enjoying a leisurely lunch. The bistro offered homemade pastas and pizzas baked from wood-burning ovens. It had a very casual and friendly atmosphere, making it the perfect daytime date.

They had decided to not talk about the Yuss case today, so they could enjoy just being with each other. From across the table, Kate observed Daniel staring off into the distance, deep in thought.

Swirling the glass of wine in her hand, she liked how the spring breeze seemed to flutter through his hair, ruffling it a bit.

"Penny for your thoughts, Daniel."

He looked at his plate of organic arugula and pear pizza versus her plate of New York style pizza, slathered with pepperoni, sausage and salami.

"I was thinking," he began, with a serious tone, "that your slice of New York style pizza is really my slice slice of pizza that happened to fall on the wrong plate."

She laughed.

And it sounded wonderful.

When her laughter stopped, she gave him a slice of hers and he did the same with his.

Then she asked, "Anything else on your mind? Your contemplative mood tells me you were thinking of more than just stealing my slice of pizza.".

He smiled and his eyes seem to illuminate with happiness.

"You mean, I borrowed your slice," he teased before getting serious again, "I was just thinking how sitting outside in this patio reminded of Paris, with its lovely cafes," he said, as he continued to observe her. He paused before adding, "...except, of course, this time it's different because although I am not in the city of love, but merely in love."

Kate smiled.

Her feelings for him was evident as she placed her hand over his. When she looked up and smiled, he felt as if he understood the secrets of her heart, and it made him ecstatic.

Except for one thing.

"Kate," he tried to be as gentle as possible, "Everything that happened between us is so unexpected..yet wonderful. I've spent so much time fighting my feelings for you because, as you know...I'm not normal-"

"Daniel, that's not-"

"No, Kate, you need to listen," he leaned in to make his point, "You need to know the facts. I have a condition. I'm a paranoid schizophrenia. It means I lose touch with reality," he had never been so forthright before, and it only made him feel stronger because it was Kate he was telling the facts to, "and I always wondered if it was fair of me to ask for anyone to live with me that way. Are you willing to do that, Kate? Live with someone who has a mental illness?"

Instead of being repelled, she held onto his hand harder.

"You're no different from anyone else, Daniel, in that you can give love and you need love back," she told him, her tone very determined, "we can get through this together."

Daniel couldn't believe he was with the most understanding person in the world.

Karma has been very good to him.

"Kate, I don't know if I deserve you."

She smiled, "Just be sure to tell your hallucination that...especially someone as amazing as Hercule Poirot."

"W-wha-" Daniel's face looked shocked, "How did you ever figure out-"

Kate laughed.

"Who else would be clever enough to help you figure out the identity of Gene Yuss while enjoying Belgian chocolates at the same time?" she reasoned.

Daniel laughed.

Really laughed.

And as he sat in the tiny patio, he finally was able to appreciate the lovely breeze, the towering trees, the expansive blue sky and the foliage creeping along the edge of the restaurant's roof.

She made him aware of everything.

He was happy. Happy at last.

"I love you, Kate."

"Don't ever stop saying that," she told him, "and tell that to all your friendly hallucinations, too."

Daniel smiled for the first time after someone mentioned his hallucinations.

Because from now on, when he hears people saying he's crazy, he'll tell them he's crazy in love.

.

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Last chapter coming up!

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