Beware of the Neighborhood.

9 - Can't talk...Got a Mystery to solve

That evening Dad announced that he had got a new project and would be going to Australia for 3 weeks.

"But we just got here!" mom argued.

"But it looks like you people have adjusted pretty well" dad said.

"Can't you come little early?"

"Well if there are no kangaroos to film then sure" dad joked.

"I will miss you" mom said sadly

And then dad hugged her.

The next day, as mom was helping dad in his packing, Jason and I were hanging out in his room.

"Till now, what have we got?" I asked, with a pen and writing pad ready in one hand to write important notes.

"Okay so here is the situation...I asked Sarah who told me that she had met Luke from her class who has this girlfriend Joanna whose brother Tom told his friend Alex that Carolyn had seen Rebecca tell her friend Jared that Gabriella from his class had seen Mona see Veronica leave the party early." He added counting the names on his fingers

"Seriously? Couldn't you just say that Sarah told you that Veronica left early?" I asked irritably.

"no." he said simply then continued, "Alright. Mona and Veronica were talking after the party in the school's girl's washroom when veronica told her how humiliated she was and how people were going to think too badly of her and think that she was just another wanna-be person. So she told Mona that she wanted to do something, something so fierce that will gain her reputation back as the most popular girl in school. So she was talking about how she will come up with a thing which will be for what she will be popular for and then she left."

"How do you know this?" I asked, I wanted to know because he said it himself that Veronica was talking to Mona alone.

"I know because Sarah told me that she had heard from Luke whose girlfriend Joanna heard it from her brother Tom who was told by his friend Alex that Mona had told this to Gabriella who informed Jared who in turn told Rebecca who passed the information to Carolyn and from there to Alex"

"Jason! Seriously! One more time this name relay and I am leaving"

"Don't blame me; you were the one who wanted to know"

"Okay, my mistake. Won't do it again" I said, my patience on the verge of ending.

"So you think she went in the house to prove that she was brave?" I asked sceptically

"I don't know" he said honestly.

"I asked this boy Ross from my class who said that he clearly saw Veronica go in the direction of woods, which means she was heading for her house. As I said she just lives on the other side of the woods in the Town"

"But then it means that she went home..." I said.

"Yes. But I know what I saw! It was definitely her!"

"Alright, at what time did Ross see her?" I inquired.

"Around 11; 30 he said"

"And at what time did you see her going in, supposedly" I asked.

"At 3; 15am I remember well"

If veronica left at 11; 30 in the direction of her house, She must have reached around 12; 00 so why did she come back to enter the haunted house at 3? This was quite unsettling. It was as if she went home and changed her mind about the whole thing and then came Back all the way which was highly unlikely. But why?