A/N: ...and so it continues...
Sven took a minute to breathe before he continued with the interrogations as he walked across the room. The Legionary was next. He opened the door to see him, hands placed on the desk before him, palm up, as he stared at the doorframe.
"He's been like that the whole time." the trooper said sullenly.
Sven nodded as he entered the room, closing the door behind him. "What is a Legionary doing here on the Strip?"
'Cutting to the heart of the matter already…' Vulpes thought as he shifted his gaze to the sharply dressed man. "I was asked to put a Legion uniform on by her." he stated plainly.
"So you aren't a real legionary?" the Detective inquired.
"If I was, do you think I would be stupid enough to wear a uniform onto the Strip?" His steel glare met the other man's azure eyes. "I was asked to put this on. Maybe it was some sort of fantasy for her." Vulpes attempted to dance around the question, as if he was found on the Strip to be a Legion spy, it would be disastrous, as it may lead them to expose Alerio as well. Not to mention, if they lost their eyes and ears on the Strip, he would be crucified for it. The best way is to tell the truth, as it is his advantage at this point.
Sven pulled up a chair and sat across from the man. "What is your name?"
"Robinson….Henry Robinson." His alias would work better than his Legion name in this situation.
"When did you come into contact with Ms. Garrison?"
"This evening, about three hours ago. We had met each other briefly out in the Mojave, and I evaded her advances. However, she was determined this time not to, as she put it,
'let me get away this time'."
Sven pulled out his notebook and started to scribble. "Where was this?"
"Outside Tops Casino, in front of the doors."
"Can anyone verify that?" He said, not lifting his gaze from the book.
"None that I know of, though there were some drunk NCR troopers around."
The Detective took a deep breath, looking up at the other man. "If you were not wearing the Legion uniform, what were you wearing?"
"My brown suit, tie, vest, and fedora. Not too different from what you are wearing
yourself."
Sven narrowed his eyes, wondering if he had seen him earlier. "Did you hang around the Tops for long afterwards?"
He nodded. "Shortly. I went back in to play a couple hands of Black Jack, but left shortly after."
Sven had seen him at a Black Jack table when he arrived to check out Benny. "Where did you go?"
"I was asked to bring Legion armor from the Courier. I had to find it. Lucky for me,
someone sold some in Freeside." He said commented. "After that, I waited on this side of the overturned Pre-War truck's trailer until the hour I was asked to wait was up."
"How did you get in?"
"She gave me a Lucky 38 playing card. The other woman has it."
"What specific card?"
"The Jack of Clubs."
Sven placed the card on the desk next to the man. "This specific card?"
Vulpes nodded. "That's the one."
Sven nodded. "Did you happen to see her socialize with anyone else?"
Vulpes thought for a moment. "Swank, and a young man."
"Did you see her hand a card to anyone else?"
He nodded, keeping a solemn expression across his face.
"Who?"
His eyes looked to the detective. "The young man."
"What did he look like?"
Vulpes didn't commit the details to his memory as well as he should have, though
replaying it in his mind, some of them did come to mind. "I believe he had dark hair, slicked back and wore a white with black pinstriped suit. He looked no more aged than 15 or so. She handed him the card, and kissed him on the cheek. After that, I left, but before I walked out of the door, I heard her talking to Swank."
"What were they talking about?"
"I couldn't be sure, but I believe she wanted him to buy her something that looked pretty. I didn't pay too close of attention. I waited for her to come out to talk to her."
"What did you talk about?"
"Somehow our first meeting was on my mind since it happened, and I could not stop thinking about her. I tracked her to the Strip, and hoped that I would catch her, but privately. She suggested that I visit her within an hour here, and therefore I did. She also asked me to bring Legion armor and change into it upon arrival." Flipping the story a bit, using her alibi as his was linked to the Legion.
"And when you arrived?" He asked, back to scribbling notes
"I changed into the armor and proceeded to the Presidential Suite, at the correct time, as she instructed." His voice was smooth, unwavering.
"And when you got here?"
"I went straight for the room across from the elevator doors. I found her laying there, dead." His voice was even, just as with every answer he had given.
Sven looked up, peering at the man's hands. "I see you have blood on your hands. How did that happen?"
"Admittedly, I was eager to have her. I climbed on the bed, but it was then that I checked
her pulse, as there had been no response previous. There wasn't one. It was then that I realized that my knee was in a puddle of her blood, in which I turned the body over and saw the stab wounds. That is how there is blood on my knee and palms." his smooth tone continued as he held out his hands and gloves to be inspected. "That is the truth."
Sven inspected his hands carefully, drawing rough illustrations of them in the book. Once he was satisfied, he continued his questioning. "Did you know there was anyone else here?"
"I was told to 'not disturb the others', but she elaborate. Once I found her dead, I turned to leave. It was then that the Sniper attacked me."
"The Sniper?"
Vulpes nodded.
"Why would the Sniper attack you?" he inquired.
"Because I am dressed like a Legionary? Or that I came out of a room that had a corpse in it? I'm not entirely sure."
Sven sighed. "What did you think of Ms. Garrison?"
Vulpes shrugged. "She was a woman that knew how to get what she wanted. However, she was a whore."
"If you were to kill her, what would your motive be?"
"I have none. On the contrary, I wanted her alive."
"What if she refused you, as you grabbed the knife and plunged it into her back?"
"If I were to kill someone, I would slit their throat, and they would see me. Stabbing in the back is uncalled for and cowardice. In addition, why would I leave the room to grab a knife and set it on a table by the door when I have one in my boot?" Vulpes pulled the small knife from his footwear, the blade only being 3 inches in length.
Sven could tell it was too short to actually have done the deed. "Why would you have that on you?"
"Legionaries are dangerous. Wanted to act the part appropriately." he reasoned. "Also, you never know what a girl like that could be into."
Sven reached out for the blade, in which Vulpes agreed to let him have it. The blade was sharp, and showed little to no signs of wear. It was also clean, without a trace of blood or fiber from the dress on it. Sven handed it back to the man. Not convinced that he was telling the truth about not of the Legion, he continued to question him. "A man of the Legion would also take the opportunity to dispose of Mr. House, wouldn't he?"
Vulpes' expression turned to confusion, halfway wondering where that question might've come from. "I would suppose so…"
Sven smirked. "Did you kill Mr. House?"
His eyes widened. "Mr. House is dead?" he inquired in disbelief. "How did that happen?"
"I thought you may be able to tell me." Sven said as he sat back in his chair.
Vulpes shook his head. "I know nothing of that. What did he die from?"
"A .308 round to the head." Sven said, peering at him from underneath the brim of his fancy fedora.
"I wouldn't carry that kind of weaponry."
He nodded, continuing to write. "Who would? The Sniper?"
Vulpes nodded.
Sven looked up from his notes. "Is there anything else you have to say?"
"I am innocent."
To be continued...