Sullivan’s confession stirred up a great amount of silence in the basement. Everyone was staring at him, and he was staring at the ground.
Finally, Jenkins said: “You did?”
Sullivan nodded.
“Why?” Cruz asked.
“Yeah, why?” Carter asked. “Please explain. Why did you kill Freeman? Was the fear of him stealing from you getting to you or what?”
Sullivan picked his head up. “It had nothing to do with Freeman trying to steal a paycheck from me.”
“Then what was it?” Carter asked. “Tell me.”
Sullivan took a deep breath.
“I’ve been working at the hotel for about fifteen years,” Sullivan said. “And as I worked there, one of my biggest goals was to be promoted to assistant manager. Just recently, the opportunity to receive that promotion came. I deserved the job. I’ve worked there for so long, I am a hard worker, and I enjoy the job. But…”
“The promotion went to Freeman,” Carter said.
Sullivan nodded. “That made no sense to me. Not only had he not worked there as long as I had, but I didn’t understand how he should deserve the job with such a criminal record. I never even understood how he received the job at the hotel in the first place with such a criminal record, let alone receive a promotion to assistant manager. It made no sense to me at all.”
“You decided to kill him because of it.”
Sullivan nodded again. “I didn’t know when exactly, but I knew I would do it, eventually. Then there came the day that Elliott informed me about his party. I knew very well that Elliott would invite Freeman, because I knew that he had been friends with him in the past. That’s when I knew that tonight was the perfect night.
“I was smart enough not to use my own pistol. I was sure that if I did, the police could use the bullet and trace it back to me. I knew Elliott kept a loaded gun in his drawer in case of burglars. He also keeps a spare, which is also kept loaded. I decided to use one of his guns to kill Freeman. That way, I could not be traced.
“At one point during the party, I excused myself to go to the bathroom, but instead, I went to Elliott’s room and stole his gun from his drawer. I wore sleeves to the party so that I could cover up my hands to pick up the gun. That way, I wouldn’t leave fingerprints on it.
“I wasn’t sure when the right moment was to kill Freeman. I knew I had to be in a room full of people, that way that anybody could count as a suspect. Then Elliott invited us to go to his basement to look at his rat trap, and he managed to invite Freeman down there as well. That opportunity couldn’t have been more perfect.
“In the basement, after Elliott left, I saw that poster on the wall, which was directly behind Freeman. I pretended to walk up to the poster and read it. When I was sure that nobody was looking, I quickly pulled out the gun, my hands covered with my sleeves, and I shot Freeman in the back of the head.
“Before the day of the party, I practiced shooting with my own pistol. I did this in the woods so that people would think I was hunting. What I practiced, I was shooting my pistol and letting go of the pistol the instant that I pulled the trigger. If I did this, nobody could turn and see me holding the gun. It worked. The instant I pulled the trigger on Freeman, I let go of it. As soon as everyone turned around at the sound of the pistol, all they saw was Freeman’s dead body and a pistol collapse to the ground.
“I thought the murder couldn’t have been done more perfectly. Nobody would suspect me and I would receive the job as assistant manager. But then, you came along and ruined everything. I knew you would be angry about Freeman’s death, but I didn’t think you would lock us up in the basement like you did. But I was sure you wouldn’t be smart enough to figure out the mystery.”
“And why would you think I wasn’t smart?” Carter asked, sternly.
“Because,” Sullivan said. “You were friends with Alan Freeman.”635Please respect copyright.PENANAlyFmyktTCN