The Enigma that is Jean
Everything about her was a lie. Her records, her stories and even her appearance was deceptive. Inspector Gordon could not make anything out from the case files. There were several photographs and they were all different. The whole thing made no sense. It was all about the woman sitting in front of him.
Her name according to the case file was Jean Simmons. She had conned twenty-four men and eleven women. Yet, no person held any ill will towards her. Most were still smitten by her. Each one told a different story of how they came by her. She had been a victim, a seductress, an unexpected helper and so many other things. The only constant with all of them was her first name.
She changed her last name and her story each time. She had impersonated a lawyer, a doctor, a ballet dancer and a policewoman among other professions. She was meticulous and had outsmarted several smart people. She had taken cash, jewelry, art and several other items from her unsuspecting victims. Trying to value the items perceived to have been stolen itself was a daunting task. This was the smartest person Inspector Gordon knew and nobody else even came close. There was nothing about her that he could prove. The truth about her did not seem to exist.
Looking at her in person, Gordon felt strange. "Why do you do this?" asked Inspector Gordon, sitting across the table from her. He had nothing to hold her for questioning. There were no complaints and hardly any witnesses. Even if he had either of that, there was an avalanche of conflicting evidence that would not hold in court.
"Do what?" she asked, looking innocent.
The look on her face kept Gordon transfixed. He almost believed her. If not for the files in front of him, he would have been convinced of her innocence. "Haven't you had enough?" he asked with concern and surprised himself. He was concerned about her wellbeing and he did not know how he got there.
"I don't know what you are talking about. Can I go?" she asked looking nervously. Even her nervousness was a lie. Gordon saw through it but could not act on it.
"Sooner or later, someone is going to catch you," he said sadly. Even her looks were deceiving. She was not beautiful but he could not stop looking at her. Her voice did something to him, something that made him feel both uneasy and comfortable at the same time. Was she even human? He began to wonder. Then his thoughts returned to the present.
She turned to him and looked sharp. He had not seen this face of hers so far. "Not today," said Jean looking at him confidently. It was her first true emotion. Gordon knew that he would never see her again. Everything he knew about her was a lie. Somehow, he felt that he could live with it.