The Interview of Karen Smith Ch. 01

Hello, my name is Sam Mason. For reasons I will not yet divulge, I have been asked to conduct, and record, an interview with a woman by the name of Karen Smith. The focus of this interview will principally concern Ms Smith's acquaintanceship with a Miss Sarah Dunlop.

It is worth noting at this time, that I have not met with, nor had any communication with, either Ms Smith or Miss Dunlop prior to the interview. I have, however, been provided with a few ancillary details, including a photograph of Ms Smith, and I will describe her now for the benefit of the log.

She appears to be mid, perhaps verging towards late, thirties. She has pale skin and dark red hair, which she wears at shoulder length. Her eyes are a greeny-blue. She is reasonably attractive, stands approximately 5'3" tall, and is marginally overweight.

The interview follows.

*

Sam Mason: Hi Karen. My name is Sam.

Karen Smith: Nice to meet you.

SM: Do you understand why I'm here today?

KS: Not exactly, no.

SM: I've been asked to interview you about your relationship with Sarah Dunlop.

KS: Yes, I'm aware of that much, but nobody has actually told me why.

SM: I'm not able to go into that I'm afraid.

KS: I'd prefer to know why we're doing this before we proceed.

SM: Sorry, but I have been explicitly instructed not to give you any detail regarding the purpose of the interview. If you don't want to continue, you can leave now.

Karen remained silent for several seconds.

SM: Do you wish to leave?

KS: No.

SM: You're sure?

KS: Yes.

SM: If you're sure, I need to ask that you provide open, honest and comprehensive answers to all my questions. You understand?

KS: Yes.

SM: Good, let's get started. First, I want to find out a bit about you.

KS: Okay.

SM: How old are you Karen?

KS: I'm 37 next month.

SM: Are you married?

KS: Divorced.

SM: When did you split with your husband?

KS: It was about three years ago. No, nearly four actually.

SM: And for how long were you married?

KS: Eight years.

SM: Any children?

KS: Yes, we've got two girls.

SM: Why did you and your husband divorce?

KS: There were many reasons - I guess we grew apart.

SM: So it was amicable?

KS: Oh no. Far from it.

SM: I see. What do you do for a living Karen?

KS: I work part-time in a call centre.

SM: Of course, and I understand this is where you met Sarah, is that correct?

KS: Yes.

SM: Tell me about your first meeting.

KS: Okay. Well I've worked at the call centre for six years, the last three of which I've been covering the grave-yard shift.

SM: What hours does that entail?

KS: 10pm through to 6am.

SM: So I guess it is quite quiet at that time?

KS: Yes, very quiet. I usually take one or two calls an hour. It's nice - I like it that way.

SM: How many nights a week do you work?

KS: Just three.

SM: And Sarah does the same hours?

KS: Yes, she joined the night shift about a year ago.

SM: Did you welcome her arrival?

KS: Yes, but she was very quiet, kept to herself.

SM: How many of you work over night?

KS: Back then, there were three. Me, Sarah and a lady called Maggie.

SM: Were you friendly with Maggie?

KS: Yes, very friendly we used to natter away for hours. She's a very nice lady.

SM: Did you and her make an effort to include Sarah?

KS: Yes, we both did - daily - but we were lucky if we got more than a one word answer from her.

SM: Did you find her arrogant?

KS: To be honest, I couldn't decide whether it was arrogance or she was just shy.

SM: Can you describe Sarah for me?

KS: Her appearance?

SM: Yes.

KS: She is beautiful. Voluptuous curvy figure, deep blue eyes, long dark hair. Every man's dream girl, I guess.

SM: And how old is Sarah?

KS: 28.

SM: Okay, so how long did this dynamic remain?

KS: How do you mean?

SM: Sarah being so...elusive.

KS: Three or four months.

SM: What changed?

KS: Maggie was involved in a car accident.

SM: Was she okay?

KS: She is now, but it was quite serious at the time. She hasn't ever returned to work.

SM: Was she replaced?

KS: No.

SM: So it was just you and Sarah in the office. That must have been a little awkward?

KS: You could say that.

SM: Was she still as quiet and self-contained?

KS: At first.

SM: Then what happened?

KS: A week or so after Maggie's accident, I arrived five minutes late. Sarah was already at her desk and was talking, loudly, on her phone. Her mobile that is, not her work phone. It wasn't the Sarah I knew. She sounded energetic, bubbly.

SM: Do you know who she was talking to?

KS: A friend I guess, they were discussing a rather adventurous night out.

SM: Go on.

KS: As I was sitting down at my desk, I caught her eye, smiled and mouthed a friendly 'hello'. Then - out of nowhere - she just cut me this look.

SM: What sort of look?

KS: It was a contemptuous icy glare. As if to say 'don't you dare look at me'.

SM: How did you react?

KS: I turned away, quickly.

SM: Did you challenge her about it later?

KS: No - I avoided her for the rest of the evening.

SM: And she didn't make any attempt to apologise or explain?

KS: No.

SM: So what happened at your next shift?

KS: It was a couple of days later, so I'd had plenty of time to dwell on it, and convinced myself that I was probably just being hyper-sensitive. When she arrived at the office I greeted her as if nothing had happened and asked how she was.

SM: And?

KS: She ignored me.

SM: Completely?

KS: Yes, she didn't so much as glance in my direction.

SM: What did you do?

KS: Nothing. I shrugged it off and carried on reading a book I had just started.

SM: So there was no contact again that evening?

KS: No. There was contact.

SM: Explain.

KS: I popped to the toilet around 2am. When I returned she was on her mobile - the way she was talking, it sounded like the same person as before.

SM: What were they discussing?

KS: I didn't hear all that much. As soon as I got back to my desk, she looked across at me and told the caller she had to go, because 'the fat bitch is back'.

SM: She called you a fat bitch?

KS: Yes.

SM: Did she say it quietly?

KS: No, if anything, she increased her voice.

SM: Did it upset you?

KS: Yes.

SM: Did you do anything about it?

KS: I was in shock. I didn't understand what I'd done to deserve being spoken about like that.

SM: But did you do anything?

KS: I waited until the end of the shift. She stood-up, was about to walk out the office and I confronted her.

SM: What did you say?

KS: I said I didn't understand what I'd done to offend her, but I didn't like the way she had spoken about me.

SM: What was her reply?

KS: She walked over to me, yanked my head backwards by my hair and told me that it was my face that offended her.

SM: Did you fight back? Or tell her to let go?

KS: No. I was too scared. She held me for a few seconds to see if I had the audacity to respond, then let go and strolled out of the office laughing.

SM: What did you do next?

KS: Nothing. I just sat there shaking and crying.

SM: Did you report her?

KS: No.

SM: Why?

KS: I don't know.

SM: Let's move on to the next shift.

KS: Okay. It was the following evening.

SM: You weren't tempted to call in sick?

KS: I was tempted, but I didn't.

SM: What happened?

KS: I arrived early to make sure I was there before her, stuck my head in a book and prayed she'd leave me alone.

SM: Did she?

KS: No. She didn't.

SM: Go on.

KS: About an hour in to the shift, I caught her staring at me, out of the corner of my eye. I pretended not to notice and continued reading. This seemed to be working, but then she let out a big sigh and said, 'I'm so fucking bored'.

SM: Did you react?

KS: No. A couple of seconds later she asked if I'd heard her.

SM: What did you say?

KS: I said she could borrow one my books. She rolled her eyes like it was the most pathetic suggestion imaginable, and said she had a much better idea. I nervously asked her what it was, and she said...she said that she was going to...to finger herself.

SM: What was your reaction?

KS: I was dumbstruck. I stared at her in disbelief.

SM: What did she do?

KS: She again asked if I had heard her. I confirmed I had, then she started laughing and said 'have you got a problem with me finger...finger fucking myself?'

SM: And your reply?

KS: I was scared. I could feel that my face had turned gone bright red. I told her she could do whatever she liked, and locked my attention firmly back on my book.

SM: What happened?

KS: She stripped off her jeans and casually threw them in my direction - they landed on the desk next to mine.

SM: Then what?

KS: Well, I kept my head in my book so I couldn't tell exactly what was happening, but let's just say that nearly an hour of moaning and groaning followed.

SM: And you didn't look round?

KS: No.

SM: Not once?

KS: No.

SM: Did she orgasm?

KS: Yes, I would assume so from the noise she made.

SM: What did she do after she was finished?

KS: She walked towards my desk and retrieved her jeans.

SM: Was she naked?

KS: No, she still had her t-shirt on and was wearing a thong.

SM: So she just picked up her jeans and put them back on, without saying anything?

KS: Yes, but she also came over to my desk and wiped her wet fingers in front of my keyboard.

SM: Did she say anything as she did this?

KS: No, she just cackled.

SM: What did you do?

KS: When she wasn't looking I found a tissue and cleaned it off.

SM: And was that the end of it, for that evening?

KS: Yes. It was.

SM: And you still didn't report any of this?

KS: No.

SM: When was your next shift?

KS: A few days later.

SM: Did you go in?

KS: Yes.

SM: And what happened?

KS: Again, I did my best to stay out here way, but as soon as she sat down at her desk she started.

SM: What did she do?

KS: She began screwing up bits of paper and throwing them at the back of my head.

SM: Your reaction?

KS: I ignored the first few, then exploded. I jumped out my chair and started screaming at her to leave me alone.

SM: How did she respond?

KS: She waited until my tirade was over, then slowly stood-up, walked towards me and slapped me hard across the face.

SM: How many times did she hit you?

KS: Just once, but it was very hard. Then she grabbed me by the throat, forced me back onto my chair, and said 'if you ever talk to me like that again, you'll seriously regret it. Understand?'.

SM: What was your response?

KS: I nodded.

SM: Then what happened?

KS: She let me go and told me that today I was going to watch.

SM: Watch what?

KS: Her...play with herself.

SM: Go on.

KS: She pulled her chair over, so it was just a few feet away, and - staring me directly in the eye - started un-buttoning her jeans. She laughed as she peeled them off and said 'I bet you wish you had a body like this, don't you?'.

SM: How did you reply?

KS: I was scared so I, very quietly, said 'yes'. Then she removed her thong and sat down.

SM: So she was sat naked from the waist down?

KS: Yes.

SM: Did you admire her body?

KS: As I said earlier, she is very beautiful.

SM: Was she shaved?

KS: Yes, completely.

SM: Then what happened?

KS: She reached down, picked up the thong and threw it towards me. It landed on my lap, and then, with a cruel smile, she said 'put that on your head'. I pleaded with her to stop, and she repeated the instruction, with an added venom.

SM: So you complied?

KS: Yes. I opened out the thong, and slid it over my head.

SM: What did she do?

KS: She laughed hysterically and called me a sad little bitch. Then she made me say it.

SM: Say what?

KS: 'I'm a sad little bitch'. She made me repeat it over and over, while she started...fingering herself.

SM: And you just watched?

KS: Yes.

SM: Did you enjoy watching her?

KS: No, I didn't.

SM: How long did this last?

KS: She came about twenty minutes later, and then - without saying a word - went back to her desk. I motioned to remove the panties from my head, but she noticed and told me to leave them there.

SM: You worked the rest of the shift with them on your head?

KS: Yes.

SM: How did you feel?

KS: Degraded. Ashamed. Like a 'sad little bitch'.

SM: Okay, I think perhaps we should take a ten minute break there.

KS: Okay.