Newest
Older
Contact
2000-08-06
13:48:22
at about 9:00 last night, the police showed up at my front door. the mere thought of police officers over the past few weeks has troubled me as much as my own guilty conscience, so you can imagine how hysterical i was when i opened the door to find two police detectives in suits and ties flashing their badges at me.
i invited them in, offered them sodas, and tried to convince myself there was nothing for me to worry about but it didn't work. there was no reason for it to have worked, anyway. i did have something to worry about.
they declined the sodas and immediately inquired as to my whereabouts this past thursday. i asked them why, hoping i could somehow try to guard my answer, but of course they said, "just answer the question," and brushed off my question as though it had never been asked.
i told them i had been home for most of the day, as anyone who's been reading this would know. i was home for the majority of the day. the only time i left the house was to go back to the scene where my once perfect life was all at once shattered.
they cut to the chase quickly and stopped me before i could go much further. one of them harshly ripped the glasses from his face, squinted at me, and said, "we know where you went, and we know why you went there. you could save us all a lot of trouble, if you just start from the beginning and tell us your version of the story."
i didn't know what to say. police always make me nervous, even when i haven't done anything. i got all choked up. i didn't know if i should calmly describe to them all that's happened to me of late, or if i should try to cover my tracks as best i could while i still had the chance. eventually, i decided to tell them what i knew. considering what a horrible liar i am, i knew my chances of fooling two police detectives were about as good as my chances of winning millions of dollars in the lottery without even buying a ticket.
it turns out that the detectives were really very understanding. i told them where i had gone on thursday, and they said they knew because they've been watching the place. apparently, they had been alerted about the girl shortly after i abandoned her in the trees. they've been watching since then to see if anyone would return to the scene. they explained to me that the girl i hit had been walking home from a class at the local community college. when she didn't return from class, her parents got worried and went out looking for her.
i can't imagine how her parents must've reacted upon finding her lying there, bleeding from the head, alone on the side of the road. it was a horrible enough sight for me! what would i have done if it was my own daughter?
the detective went on to explain to me that the girl is still alive, thanks to her parents. if they hadn't found her when they did, she surely would have bled to death.
unfortunately, the story doesn't exactly have a happy ending. of course, it doesn't really have much of an ending at all, yet. the girl is in intensive care at the hospital. she's suffered from severe blood loss, a broken leg, a few broken ribs, some internal bleeding, and a concussion. according to the detectives, she's fading in and out of consciousness. they gave it a name, but i can't remember what it was called: some sort of near comatose variation of consciousness.
upon hearing that the girl was at least alive, i was overjoyed. the police quickly ended my momentary relief, though, when they told me the girl's parents haven't decided, yet, if they're going to press charges on me for leaving the scene of an accident. i was also assured that the charges could worsen to involuntary manslaughter if the girl takes a turn for the worse and dies from her injuries.
the worst part, though, is that the girl's parents have asked to meet me before they make their decision. how can i face them? i think i'd rather die.
