34. Interrogation - Part 1

The interrogation room at the NCI was better than those at the police station. At least, it wasn't scary or traumatizing. The room was brightly lit and had a water dispenser in one of the corners.

A one-way glass pane covered one side of the wall, blacking out everything from the inside. The entire room was under surveillance and everything spoken or done inside was recorded for future reference.

"Officer Blake, one of you will accompany me inside the interrogation while the other will monitor from outside. Who among you is good at reading body language and expressions?"

Elise leaned against the table outside the interrogation room as they waited for the four men they had summoned.

"That would be me, although Officer Lewis is as good as me as well," Daniel replied and Derek agreed with him.

"Great. Please let us know if the suspects show signs of agitation or frustration. Sometimes, we might not be able to catch it, but someone watching from the sides does." 

Elise handed Daniel and Derek an earpiece and took one for herself. 

"And Officer Lewis, please help me interrogate the suspects. Please don't hold back if you find suspicious about them."

"Got it, Officer Winslow." Derek was surprised and honored. He wasn't treated as a bystander in the case. Instead, Elise had actually assigned him a task, holding him and his colleague at an equal stature as her. Her actions made him feel that the police were not assisting the NCI in doing menial work. Instead, they had joined hands towards a collective goal.

"All the four men will be tough nuts to crack. Beware, Officers," Elise warned as she read the message Sarah had sent her.

"By the way, do you two have girlfriends?" 

Elise's out-of-the-topic question stumped the two men and they looked at her cautiously. She seemed like the gossip lady who was interested in everyone's lives as they showed in the movies.

"Why? May we ask, Officer?" Derek narrowed his eyes and stepped away from her in alarm.

Daniel looked at her cautiously and even pulled up his jacket as though he was protecting himself from her. For a moment, Elise felt like a lecherous person who had her eyes set on two innocent men. She didn't know if she should laugh or cry at their behavior.

"Well, I promised Sarah to fix a blind date for her this Saturday. I completely forgot about it due to work. If either of you is single and interested, maybe you can give it a try," Elise suggested as if she were speaking about the weather rather than setting them up on a blind date.

Derek and Daniel didn't know how to react and looked at each other in confusion. They had never expected such a domineering and reticent NCI officer to ask about their relationships. How eye-opening!

"You are free to reject me. It's not as if I am holding you at gunpoint and threatening you to agree." Elise gave them a way out when she saw their expressions. At the same time, she tried to search her memory for any good, single men she knew.

"Well, I have a girlfriend. So, I'm out." Daniel raised his hand and looked at Derek.

"I just got out of a relationship. I'm not certain if I want to get into one this quickly," Derek explained, scratching his head awkwardly.

"Fair enough. Thank you and sorry about that." Elise smiled at them apologetically. 

"Not a problem." Daniel didn't mind her impulsive behavior. She had good intentions in mind.

"Would you like to have something before we start? Perhaps something to drink?" Elise moved her eyes between the two men who shook their heads.

"Excuse me. I'll be back soon." Elise walked away from the two men. However, her sharp ears caught onto the two police officers' conversation.

"Why don't you give it a try, Derek?"

"I'm not sure. I just got out of..."

"Oh please, you two weren't even serious." He rebuked and Elise smiled to herself before taking a left and entering the corridor that led to the washroom.

When she returned, the men had returned to normal and there wasn't any tension between them. Elise didn't probe and waited for the four men to arrive.

"Lee is here," Elise glanced at her phone and stated, and a few minutes later, Lee arrived, escorted by two policemen from Daniel and Derek's team.

"Officers, what is this about? Why am I called here?" he questioned warily.

Elise quirked her brows, a subtle smile making its way onto her lips. The man's English accent had changed in just two days.

On the day of the explosion, he had spoken to them in fluent English having slight tinges of Cantonese accent. But now, Lee was trying hard to show his Cantonese accent, making his English sloppy and difficult to understand. 

Elise wasn't the only one who noticed the anomaly. The two police officers did as well. But all three maintained a poker face as they continued to observe the man.

"We have a few questions we want you to answer," she answered for everyone.

"But I did nothing." The man's eyes quivered, another giveaway that there was something fishy about him."

"Don't worry. We will just ask a few questions about the warehouse and the explosion. It will take a few minutes at most and you're free to go afterward," Elise explained, not giving away any more details. Well, letting him go depended on the answers he gave them.

Lee nodded slowly, his body still tense and stressed. He didn't have a choice either.

"Please go inside the room. We'll be there shortly," Daniel commanded, pointing towards the room they had prepared for the interrogation.

"Did you notice that, Officers?" Elise questioned once the man was inside.

"He sure is suspicious. He is trying hard to hide something," Derek analyzed.

"And that is what we'll get him to confess," Elise mumbled as she picked up the file after securing her gun to her holster.

"Ready?"

Daniel and Derek nodded at her and the trio got ready to extract information from their suspects.