Fireflies by David Menon Page B

me?’
    ‘Tina, we received a phone call this morning identifying you as the girl in the CCTV footage walking arm in arm with James Clifton out of the Paradise club on the night he was murdered. We need to ask you some questions’.
    ‘You can have my office for as long as you like, detectives’ said Paula.
    ‘Thank you but I’m afraid that due to the seriousness of the matter we think it’s best if Miss Webb accompanies us to the station’.
    ‘Are you arresting me?’ asked Tina.
    ‘We’re asking you to assist us with our enquiries, Tina’ said Jeff. ‘And if you didn’t kill James Clifton then you’ve got nothing to worry about’.
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    FIREFLIES SIX
    Jeff managed to put aside his slide back into conscious grieving in order to concentrate on what was emerging in the case. He went into the interview room with Rebecca where Tina Webb was sitting waiting for them. She looked up anxiously when they sat down opposite her with the table in between and switched on the tape recorder. Tina was frightened. She’d never seen the inside of a police station before.
    ‘Tina, we’re interviewing you under caution in connection with the murder of James Clifton’ said Jeff. ‘Do you understand what that means?’
    ‘I didn’t kill him’.
    ‘You’ve already waived your right to legal representation’ said Jeff. ‘Do you wish to confirm that decision?’
    ‘I didn’t kill him so why would I need a lawyer?’
    ‘Okay’ said Jeff who then proceeded to read Tina her rights.
    ‘This is mad’ said Tina. ‘Who told you it was me on the CCTV?’
    ‘Oh I’m afraid we can’t tell you that, Tina’ said Jeff.
    Tina had a bloody good idea who it would’ve been. It must’ve been Paula Jones, the fucking bitch. ‘Am I being charged with something?’
    ‘Not at this point, no’ said Jeff. ‘Did you go out with friends on Saturday night or were you on your own?’
    ‘There were three of us, me, my friend Andrea Kay from work and my friend Donna Price’.
    ‘We’ll need their contact details’.
    ‘Well you can find Andrea at the supermarket where I work on Regent Road. Donna works in an insurance office in town. She’s not a snob though like some of them office girls can be’.
    ‘Did you all go your separate ways on Saturday night?’
    ‘Well we were together until more or less the same time’ said Tina. ‘I’m the only one who pulled though. Andrea doesn’t really do that sort of thing. She’s more of a looker than a player. Donna is normally up for it but she just wasn’t in the mood that night. They shared a taxi home because they don’t live too far away from each other and they both texted me to say they’d got home okay’.
    ‘How long were you talking to James Clifton before you left the club with him?’
    ‘About an hour or so’ said Tina. ‘I mean I can’t be precise because it was well into the night and we’d all had a few’.
    ‘Which one of you suggested you go off together?’
    ‘He did’ said Tina. ‘Andrea and Donna were talking to a couple of the others in the stag party but like I said they didn’t go back with anyone’.
    ‘Tina, you know about the CCTV footage we have of you leaving the Paradise club with James Clifton on Saturday night’ said Jeff.
    ‘I do, yes’ Tina replied in a soft voice.
    ‘Around four hours later his mutilated body was found behind a rubbish bin at the back of the Mayfair hotel in Stockport’.
    ‘I’ve never even been to that hotel’ Tina declared. ‘I’ve never been anywhere near it and that’s the truth’.
    ‘What happened after the two of you left the club, Tina?’ Rebecca asked.
    ‘He came back to mine’ Tina admitted in a soft voice. ‘But look, I swear I didn’t kill him. You’ve got to believe me’.
    ‘So what did happen between you?’ asked Jeff. ‘The sooner you tell us that the sooner we can get this over with’.
    Tina’s moment of inner bravado from moments ago had gone. Inside she