AND IF YOU FALL, HOLD MY HAND
Date of Birth 🡒 March 22, 1990 [29]
Identity 🡒 Cis Woman & She/Her
Hometown 🡒 SoHo, New York
Has Been in St. Clair 🡒 1 Week [as of December 2019]
Currently Living 🡒 Bon Temps
Faceclaim 🡒 Melisa Asli Pamuk
OOH BABY, IT’S A LONG WAY DOWN
1. GOOD AFTERNOON, FIRST OFF I JUST WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT THIS IS SIMPLY PROCEDURE. YOU AREN’T IN TROUBLE. WE JUST HAVE SOME QUESTIONS TO ASK, IS THAT ALRIGHT? AND BEFORE WE GET STARTED, HAS ANYONE OFFERED YOU SOMETHING TO DRINK YET? A WATER, COFFEE, OR PERHAPS A CUP OF TEA?
“Coffee, with two sugars in the raw and some almond milk please.” Adriana’s voice was clipped and clear while a polite smile rested on her lips. She doubted they would have all that she desired in the small town police station. However, she got her point across. They could not ruffle her nor lull her into a sense of false security. Perhaps it had helped to date that one cop a few years ago…
2. OKAY THEN, COULD YOU PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME FOR THE RECORD? IS THAT YOUR BIRTH NAME? ANY ALIASES WE SHOULD BE AWARE OF?
“My name is Adriana Mercan. Yes, that is my birth name and I do not really go by any nicknames. “ She held a subtle smirk as she saw a flash of recognition in her interviewer’s eyes. It would be fascinating to see if they knew her for her books or if her name simply set off a bell of familiarity without them being aware of why. Perhaps they have seen her name in passing from visiting the local bookstore.
3. NOW THEN, LET’S TALK ABOUT YOUR CHILDHOOD BRIEFLY. WHAT WAS GROWING UP LIKE FOR YOU?
“Is that really necessary?” Adriana was starting to not enjoy this interview anymore. She was not in the habit of telling her life story for free. Oh, she’d have to call her lawyer soon to make sure all of this was entirely above board and needed. “I was born and raised in the Soho neighborhood of New York City. That should be enough information for you.”
4. AND WHAT ABOUT YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR FAMILY? WERE YOU CLOSE WITH YOUR PARENTS, OR GUARDIANS? ANY SIBLINGS?
“Now, that entirely is not relevant information, officer.” Her earlier easy and happy mood had evaporated. “What did you say these questions were in relation to again?” They did not need to know about the dynamic of her relationship with her parents. They had been traditional and strict. How disappointed they were when she decided to pursue a career after college instead of marriage to someone they approved of. But now how they changed their tune! When their daughter finally became a successful author, she no longer was omitted out of shame from updates on their lives to friends.
5. WHAT WAS YOUR HIGH SCHOOL EXPERIENCE LIKE? DID YOU ENJOY IT? DID YOU HAVE A LOT OF FRIENDS, OR WERE YOU MORE OF A LONER? SOMEWHERE IN BETWEEN, MAYBE?
“You really have no reason to know what my experience was like.” She sighed. Now, this was completely out of line. If the officer wished to know her background he could read interviews that were already published. Adriana was quickly becoming frustrated by this whole charade. “If it is relevant, I shall give you the name of my high school – but that would be all the information you received.” Adriana had been popular, though perhaps a lower tier of popular? High school dynamics had seemed so terribly messy back then. And of course world-altering.
6. SO, DID YOU GO TO COLLEGE? IF SO, WHAT FOR AND IF NOT, WHY? WHAT WAS YOUR POST-HIGH SCHOOL LIFE LIKE?
“I did attend college.” Adriana sipped her less than lackluster coffee to force them to wait for such an answer. “I attended Columbia University and received a degree in English.” Was that too shocking given her career as an author? Perhaps her parents had regretted after graduation sending their literary buff daughter there when she forgo marriage. Now, they were perhaps proud of that decision.
7. DO YOU HAVE A REPUTATION AROUND TOWN? HOW WOULD YOU SAY OTHERS PERCEIVE YOU?
“As I only recently moved here, I am not entirely sure what sort of reputation I would even have accumulated.” It was already on the records that she had only recently moved here. Adriana did not even have an apartment yet! “The only reputation I could possibly have would be one related to my name only.” Some people perhaps thought they knew her from her books. The critics around the world compared her to Gillian Flynn, Paula Hawkins, Riley Sager and Ruth Ware. Though what people thought of her in this new town were completely unknown.
8. CAN YOU HELP ME UNDERSTAND YOUR PERSONALITY? WHAT ARE YOU LIKE, BOTH ON THE SURFACE AND DEEP DOWN? WHAT ABOUT IN PUBLIC VERSUS IN PRIVATE?
Red stained lips pursed in displeasure at this new line of questioning. It was not entirely unexpected. But she had hoped the officer had enough sense to see by now she had no desire to conduct a personal interview. “You will have to explain to me why this is relevant at all to my arrival here today before I answer.” Adriana simply replied. They of course would assume she was cold and terribly standoffish. What a field day her agent would have with this interview!
9. LEADING OFF OF THAT, WHAT WOULD YOU CONSIDER TO BE YOUR GREATEST STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES?
“I have agreed to come in and answer your questions today officer, but I am certain this has nothing to do with whatever your true line of questioning is. I have only recently arrived and as I explained before I am here for research purposes only.” She already had been kind enough to say as much as she had. Truthfully, Adriana had no reason to even come in today.
10. A BIT HEAVIER, I KNOW, BUT I HAVE TO ASK IF ANYTHING HAS HAPPENED TO YOU PERSONALLY IN YOUR LIFE THAT DRASTICALLY CHANGED YOU AS A PERSON?
“Now, that is where I draw the line.” She set the terribly and mostly untouched coffee back on the table. With a flourish that spoke of subtle power, she pushed her chair back and rose. Adriana did not have to put up with this! This was no therapy session! Nor was it any in-depth exposé! They had gone terribly off course and succeeded in only angering her.
11. AND OF COURSE, I HAVE TO ASK, WERE YOU IN TOWN BETWEEN ‘96 AND ‘99 WHEN THE ORIGINAL DROWNINGS OCCURRED? DID YOU HAPPEN TO KNOW ANY OF THE ORIGINAL SEVEN VICTIMS? WHAT WAS YOUR LIFE LIKE DURING THOSE TRAGIC YEARS? WHAT WAS THE AFTERMATH?
Ah, of course they would throw this at her before she stormed out! “Now the true line of questioning comes out.” Adriana could almost hear a slight purr in her words. She stood behind her chair and the officer could perhaps see a hidden smirk. She knew they would change their tune soon. “I have lived in New York my entire life, officer. I was six and nine years old at the times of the original murders. The deaths did not affect me until recently. I am sure you are familiar enough with my work to understand why the deaths would perhaps interest me. For research purposes purely, of course.”
12. THAT SAID, DID YOU KNOW EITHER DARYLL BORDELON OR GEORGIANA MEARS PERSONALLY? IF SO, WHAT WAS YOUR RELATIONSHIP TO THEM? HOW MUCH HAVE THEIR DEATHS AFFECTED YOU?
“I did not know either of them.” Of course there was a chance she could possibly know the recent victims. Though it was so slight since they both died before her arrival here. “I knew of Georgiana’s filmography. I do think if she was handed a better script, her career could have taken off. She had some raw talent.” Adriana did wish to find out more about the two the officer had listed. If only for research to her new book.
13. LASTLY, WHERE WERE YOU ON THE NIGHTS OF MARCH 9TH AND JULY 23RD AND IS THERE ANYONE THAT CAN CORROBORATE YOUR WHEREABOUTS?
“I was in Manhattan, New York City both of those nights. What I was doing exactly I cannot remember without looking at my schedule. You can call my agent to try to corroborate my whereabouts.” She tucked her purse beneath her arm. “Now, I do believe we are done, officer. Next time, please call my agent if you wish to repeat this disaster again. Or better yet my lawyer.” Without uttering another word, she simply left.
TO THE BOTTOM OF THE RIVER
Adriana has never told another soul the truth of her relationship her last year of college. To the rest of the world her boyfriend at the time seemed like the perfect fit for her. And perhaps he could have been. Yet, he was entirely different in private. Extremely controlling, he kept Adriana under his thumb the whole relationship. She was threatened with broken bottles in their shared apartment when he thought others looked at her too much. He pushed her down the stairs in their apartment when she tried to leave for a job interview he did not approve of. He once tied her to the bed when she tried to pack for a family trip because he thought she was trying to leave him. He broke her wrist for no reason another night.
She has so many memories of explaining away the bruises and marks he left on her body. Was it a shame she learned how to perfectly apply makeup to cover up marks? There are a few scars she never could rid herself of spread across her body. She was finally able to free herself from him when she went to the police and told a detective everything. Papers were filed and she was able to secure a restraining order. With her very expensive lawyer she started to employ then, Adriana was able to hide the entire situation and protect herself even more from her ex. She would not allow him to tarnish her career and her reputation. Perhaps elements of the abusive villain in her first novel was inspired by him – though Adriana will only claim her first novel is not based on any real events or people.
