I grabbed my cell phone and dialed the number, careful to block my own number. After three rings a man answered, a voice I didn’t recognize.
“Hello?” There was some commotion as if adjusting his own phone, and he lowered his voice. “Mikaella? Is that you?”
I disconnected the call and tossed my phone on the bed. Mikaella. At least I’d found another piece to the puzzle. She wasn’t very clever with her alias. Who was the man? I turned to the floor and grabbed her book bag, sitting on the bed as I unzipped it, the anticipation causing my heart to race. I pulled out a few outfits, tossing them to the side as I felt around in the bottom of the bag.
“Fuck,” I growled as my search came up empty. I shoved the clothing back inside and grabbed her purse, dumping the contents onto the covers. I grabbed a card to the Lockhart library issued only a few months ago. My heart seized when I saw a newspaper article with Katie’s face, and I tossed the card onto the covers on top of a picture of Ella as a child. I picked up the article, my eyes struggling to focus on the faded print.
Foul Play Suspected in the Death of Katie May Alexander
I dropped the paper, letting it flutter to the bed before picking up the next. This was a different case entirely.
Manhunt Expands for the Dream Killer
What did one have to do with the other? Did she think this Dream Killer was responsible for Katie’s death? Did she think it was me? Was she some sort of law enforcement that I’d threatened? “Fuck,” I yelled at the top of my lungs until I had no breath left in my lungs.
* *
“Call the police!” I watched the large silhouette holding her lifeless body walk away, blocking out the light momentarily. What I thought was heaven was the headlight of a rusted blue pickup truck, God nothing more than a stranger. My angel had forsaken me. I closed my eyes as I quit struggling against the weight on my shoulders. There was no reason for me to fight anymore.
“What did you do to that girl, boy?”
“I loved her.” In that moment I realized that it was me who had done this to her. I should have left her alone. I wasn’t what she needed, and everyone knew it but the two of us. I thought her heart was big enough for both of us, but what we had is what stopped it from beating.
It didn’t take long for police cars to swarm the street, and in such a small town, everyone came out to see what horrific event had transpired. The blue and red lights from the cars bounced off the trees, disorienting me. Handcuffs were placed on my wrists, and I was lifted from the ground. As I turned to face everyone I’d ever known, they gasped and screamed as my own eyes drifted down over my blood-soaked clothing.
Hands were all over my body now, searching and grabbing at me.
“We have a weapon.” I turned my head to see the blood-smeared handle of my father’s pocketknife. It was all I had left after losing him, and now it had ended the life of the girl I loved. My eyes turned back to the crowd in time to see my mother fall to her knees, screaming in agony.
“You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say or do may be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to consult an attorney before speaking to the police and to have an attorney present during questioning now or in the future. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you before any questioning, if you wish. If you decide to answer any questions now, without an attorney present, you will still have the right to stop answering at any time until you talk to an attorney. Do you understand each of these rights I have explained to you?”
“Yes,” I mumbled.
“Having these rights in mind, do you wish to talk to us now?”
I glanced up at the sound of a woman screaming, my eyes landing on Katie’s mother as Coach held her around the waist. On her right was Bryce, no emotion on his face. I lurched forward as the officer grabbed my arms, struggling to get me on the ground. Another officer helped him. Soon my chest slammed against asphalt, the air momentarily knocked from my lungs.
“It’s all my fault,” I rasped as I rested my cheek against the warm road.
* *
Katie’s death was ultimately ruled a suicide due to the vertical cuts on her wrists, but I knew something else had happened to her, even if the evidence of such a crime had been washed away. Although I was proclaimed innocent, I was guilty in the eyes of everyone around me. I couldn’t function, couldn’t think clearly, and was soon sent away to a mental health facility. My mother had suffered enough after the death of my father, and I couldn’t blame her for not wanting to be the mother of someone everyone thought was a killer. Even if it meant the last person I had in my corner had given up on me.